End Of Times

                                                                                   written 17 November, 2024

                                                                               published 24 November, 2024

   

            With Trump as president elect, some are grieving and others are ecstatic, but a few who voted for him are already becoming nervous as he chooses his cabinet.

            Much is written about why so many people picked him.  Some have Fox News on all day long, although Fox admitted they lie for profit to keep viewers.  Talk radio has pushed disinformation for decades, stoking fear for profit.  Social media algorithms are designed to addict viewers, increasing profit, while amplifying the worst aspects of humanity.  

            Our education system has produced generations with little to no critical thinking skills, or whole system awareness.  Some people weren't even paying attention, perhaps burned out by 24 months of Trump every day.  Google searches just before election day spiked on "when did Biden drop out?"

            Democrats have been cast as too elitist, ignoring the working class and those with little higher education.  The middle class has been slowly hollowed out for 50 years, while concentration of wealth now exceeds the roaring 20's before the Great Depression.  Inflation keeps increasing, driven by corporate greed, resource depletion, and the growing destruction caused by the climate crisis.  The empowerment of women, based on the audacious belief that women are actual people, threatens generations of masculine privilege.  Men are afraid women will laugh at them and women are afraid men will kill them.

            All of this has contributed, but doesn't fully explain why anyone except a billionaire thinks Trump will help them.  However, I live in a west coast bubble, and am often reminded at election time how out of touch I am.

            My wife Lynn walks every day.  She encountered two men with signs on School Street.  One was shouting for people to "repent".  Being good hearted, she smiled at him, and was handed a small cartoon book about the Beast and End Times, according to the Bible.

            I was struck by a passage from 2 Timothy 3:2-5.  "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God."  This describes Trump in detail, but "Christians" revere him as their salvation.

            We do seem to be living in end times.  The seas are dying, pandemics assault the planet, fire, floods and drought hit everywhere.  Trump sells the idea that all is bleak, and that he is the savior, appealing to all those who yearn for the rapture, when sinners burn in hell for eternity and the saved rise to heaven in the final judgement.  A war in the middle east is one of the signal events.  Even though everyone there will die, some evangelical "Christians" wait expectantly.

            I am inspired by the teachings of Christ, who said the two most important things were to love God and love other people.  But I can't identify with the religious organizations that men have created in Christ's name.  How did the teaching "love God" change to defining a good Christian as "God fearing?"  Love and fear are polar opposites, one opens up and the other closes down.  To believe they are the same is crazy making.  However, fear is a powerful tool for domination and judgement, excellent for controlling the faithful.

            Rather than loving other people, they are hated and killed.  Not only are "heathens" (non-Christians) the victims, but Christians kill Christians as well.  Today, some "Christians" rally at churches with guns, shouting "death to Democrats".  This makes sense for a domination/judgement organization, but can't seriously be considered following Christ.  

            I do believe most Christians strive to live Christ's teaching, loving all life and all people.  But most religious organizations on Earth, no matter which faith, tend toward domination and judgement.  The religious denigration of women is widespread.  The Taliban in Afghanistan keep their women in bags when in public, and now prohibit speech if any but family can hear.  In the US, with generations of empowered women, the radical fundamentalists can only insist they bleed to death in a parking lot if they miscarry, but they expect to make more "progress" under Trump 2.0.

            Democracy is subverted to profit and power, and organized religion has lost its way.  Trump is a consequence of this perversion, and has nothing to offer as a real solution.  We do live in interesting times.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disappointed And Sad

                                                                                   written 10 November, 2024

                                                                               published 17 November, 2024

     

            Now we know.  A majority of the voting public picked Trump.       

            I believe the world is whole, despite not yet being reflected in our dominant culture.  But inexorable social change is happening, and like it or not, we are all in this together.  I was optimistic this election would demonstrate a majority of people felt the same way.  I was mistaken, thus disappointed, and sad for the missed opportunities and disruption that is coming.  

            There is a deep anger in America.  People feel economically left out, and threatened by the rapidly changing reality of the world.  The status quo doesn't address their needs.  Trump recognized that rage.  But he is a corrupt, greedy, chronic liar, operating on hate, misogyny, and revenge, and can therefore offer no real solutions to the fundamental structural problems.  Supported by billionaires and hard right conservative groups, the damage to come, at home and across the world, is mind boggling.  But I don't want to add to the litany of doom, so I am casting about for some place to stand, with any kind of hope going forward.  

            Each day we read some uplifting spiritual material, reminding us of the loving unity that we all arise within.  That helps.  My view has been a minority opinion most of my life, but it is still relevant.  These times seems more dire, but the fundamental issue is the same.  Can I live my life, from moment to moment, experiencing the calm joy of unity reality, or do I spiral into a dark pit of despair, believing myself cut off, an isolated individual in an infinite, hostile world?

            I have experienced both joy and despair at times in my life, and I prefer joy.  I know my personal power lies within the choice of responses I make in each moment, which determines what I experience internally, despite the exterior reality.  That is not to say that I am always able to remember that power, but it is there, and I have experienced it enough to give me confidence in the truth.

            Another technique for being calm in a storm is meditation.  After multiple failed attempts over my life, I now have a strong daily routine.  It is an internal refuge, a familiar place I go to practice experiencing a still mind.  This capacity is part of my human birthright, accessible to everyone, should they choose.

            Unity reality understands we all arise from the same source, which includes not only all of manifested material form, but also contains wisdom and information, which we experience as inspiration and creativity.  Our active personality mind, always focused on exterior world events, dominates, so the quiet voice of inspiration is easily overwhelmed, like trying to hear a soft-spoken person during a loud musical concert.  Creating an inner calm makes this inner communication more efficient.  Anxiety is reduced.  With less stress, the physical body is healthier.  Life becomes more graceful, even amidst turmoil.  From a calm, inspired center, I can examine our situation more clearly, with less knee-jerk patterning.

            Our society has problems.  The consumer economy keeps people dissatisfied with their life so they will constantly buy the next new thing.  Is chronic dissatisfaction healthy?  Is infinite consumption sustainable on a finite planet?

             Housing is increasingly unaffordable.  Corporate Real Estate Investment Trusts own 40 percent of all single family home rentals.  Does treating a home as an investment increase prices?

            America is 4 percent of the global population, but we consume 24 percent of the energy and resources, 6 times our share.  Is it any wonder people from other parts of the world want to come here?  How long can we keep this imbalance going?  At what cost?  Even within the US, the benefits are not evenly distributed.  Three families control about half the total wealth, and our culture believes greed is good.  Is it a surprise there is wide spread anger?

            Extreme wealth represents a mental disorder, much like extreme hoarding or extreme obesity.  Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, overworks his 170 thousand employees and fight against unions, but squandered $33B turning Twitter into the hate saturated "X".  If he had given that same amount to his workers, would his employee moral have improved?

            It's profitable to kill the planet.  What could possibly go wrong?

            Rebuilding our society is essential, but Trump expresses the worst excesses of the present system, so he won't be bothered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once Upon A Time

                                                                                     written 3 November, 2024

                                                                               published 10 November, 2024

      

            Once upon a time, people believed the Earth was flat.  It was obvious, just look around, especially when looking at the ocean.  Some people feared if they sailed too far, they would fall off the edge.  Eventually, as adventurous people sailed out and returned, the understanding of Earth as a sphere became common knowledge, even if not directly experienced.

            Once upon a time, people believed the Earth was the center of the Universe, and everything rotated about it.  It was obvious, just look around, and watch the Sun, Moon, and all the stars move across the sky.  This perspective was enforced by the Church.  

            But astronomers noticed that planetary motion did not follow the perfect circles dictated by the Church.  Copernicus was one of the first to suggest the Earth is a rotating sphere, and orbits the Sun.  Although he was a canon of the Church, his heliocentric ideas were revolutionary.  To avoid criticism and social turmoil, he remained relatively unpublished until his death in 1543, 

            A few decades later, Galileo, one of the first scientific astronomers, championed Copernican heliocentrism.  By then, the growing scientific revolution threatened the Church, so an inquisition in 1615 found Galileo guilty of heresy, spreading "opinions contradicting Biblical interpretation", and held him in house arrest until his death in 1642.

            Despite Church efforts, reality prevailed.  Social evolution continued, and today most people know we live on a sphere, rotating over 800mph (in Ukiah), traveling around the Sun at 33,000mph.  Since everything around us is moving at the same speed, and we only notice differences, we don't experience the motion.  But one of the most widely reproduced photographs, shows the brilliant blue and white sphere of Earth against the deep black of space, viewed from the moon.

            Once upon a time, people believed matter was solid, discrete, irreducible atomic chunks.  It was obvious, just look around, every "thing" has a unique location in place and time, each clearly different.  Thousands of years of culture supported this idea.  But a little over a century ago, the inexorable scientific revolution demonstrated that atoms are made of even smaller parts.  Additionally, all these material parts, when examined correctly, are just little waves on the surface of a vast energy ocean.

            Like most human discoveries, the first application was to blow up our enemies, but the door had been opened, and the consequence of this new way of thinking now manifests as the powerful smart phone in your pocket, putting access to the entire world at your fingertips.  We are fundamentally connected.

            But even the idea of "connected" is misleading, as it starts from the perspective of individual pieces in relationship.  Imagine going to the ocean, and thinking that all those waves are somehow "connected" to the ocean from which they arise.  While superficially accurate, the deeper understanding is that the vast ocean IS, and the waves are only tiny expressions on the surface.  While each wave is unique, it never exists apart from the oceanic unity. 

            At the sea shore, we can experience both the waves and the ocean, and grasp the relationship.  With matter, we only experience the difference of surface waves, not the unity of the immense ocean of energy underlying everything.  That is why we go around thinking one color of skin is "better" than another, deluded by the surface, without regarding the content.  They say, "don't judge a book by its cover", but we are locked into the superficial differences, a naive consideration of reality.  Gender, race, age: none of these determine the deeply human nature of an individual, yet, based on our culture or religion, we will hate, even kill, based on such limitations.  As we begin to experience the common ocean, rather than being distracted by the surface waves, we will see that any attack on the "other", is an attack on ourselves.  War is suicide.  Hate is self-loathing, no matter what your religion teaches.

            All through time, some individuals, and some cultures, have known this truth.  However, the culture dominant on the planet today, ignores this truth, honoring instead selfish greed at the expense of everything else.  Is it any wonder that people despair?  Or that the climate is out of balance?  

            But an awakening is happening.  Our unity reality is more clearly manifest all the time.  There will be a time when we look back at how foolish humans were, and shake our head.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cultivating A Calm Center

                                                                                       written 27 October, 2024

                                                                                 published 3 November, 2024

            I believe in science.  The Earth is a sphere, orbiting the Sun, and the climate crisis is real, already destroying our economy.  Trump and his MAGA followers believe it is all a hoax.  Everything else follows from there.  

            In my opinion, Trump is selling fear, divisiveness, and increasingly demented rage, while the alternative is effective democracy.  However, I understand Trump supporters are just as concerned about a Harris victory, convinced by their leader and Fox News that evil is afoot.  

            This article is first being published two days before election day, but most Californians who plan to vote have already done so.  It will be reprinted elsewhere after polls have closed, but in a close race, the results may still be unclear.  Which side will prevail?  The stress and anxiety are affecting everyone.  What is a person to do?   

            I suggest the solution abides within. 

            Start by sitting quietly, and listen to your heart beating.  My heart has beat steadily more than 3 billion times so far.  When it stops, I stop.  While I can do things to affect the rate and duration, I have no control over the fact of that continual beat.  It is a gift of life to me.  I have done nothing to earn that gift.  Feel your own heart beating, and be grateful.

            Without breath, we expire.  I have taken about 750 million breaths so far.  Breathing is where the involuntary muscular system intersects with the voluntary system.  While I can hold my breath for a while, or change my breathing rate, during sleep, breathing continues.  Each inspiration draws in essential oxygen molecules, powering the biochemical carbohydrate combustion system that keeps me going.  But a free oxygen molecule only last about 6 months before being chemically reacted into another molecule, and must be constantly replenished for us to live. 

            In my entire life, I have never paid anything for this essential life ingredient, nor have you.  It is a gift from other life forms, mostly produced by phytoplankton in the ocean and trees on land.  Notice your next breath.  Feel it passing through your nostrils or mouth.  Take another breath.  Give thanks, and be grateful for the living planet that freely offers you this gift. 

            Paying attention to my beating heart and my breathing, brings my awareness into this eternal moment.  I have the immediate essentials for life, and am at peace.  As I continue to focus on my breathing, this calmness endures.  I AM, part of the larger living holism of life.  From this sense of internal sufficiency, simply being, I can contemplate the outer world.  

            Those who cultivate fear want to induce anxiety in other people or our society.  Perhaps they are fearful themselves, and unwilling, or unable, to deal with it and want to spread it.  Some choose to sow fear as a tool of domination, because fearful people are more easily controlled.  Physiologically, fear depresses the digestive and immune systems, as well as the higher brain functions, so decision making passes to the more primitive reptilian brain. Our individual challenge is to choose a different path.

            Most fears are concerns about what might happen, not what is happening right now.  Things happening right now can be dealt with right now, but the future hasn't happened yet, so fears of the future can linger, get amplified, and fester.  In every moment, we decide where we put our conscious attention.  Rather than indulging in fear, either externally generated, or more insidiously, internally generated, we can focus awareness on this present moment, now.

            In the calm awareness of the moment, pick a desired outcome, and hold that focus instead of allowing fear to run amuck.  Even if we forget, and fall into fear again, each instant, we have the opportunity to choose again.  With practice, our quality of life improves, becomes calmer.  

            Additionally, we all radiate energy.  You have experienced being with an anxious person, whose energy adversely affects everyone else.  Being calm radiates as well.  This is something we can do, with wide ranging, and unknown, consequences. 

            Like it or not, we are all in this together.  Even MAGA Republicans are oxygen breathers with beating hearts.  We can choose to live our reality inclusively.  It is simple, but not easy, because of life times of patterning.  Repeatedly choosing calmness over anxiety is an act of empowerment, which can be done anywhere, without needing permission.