Looks Good From Far, But Far From Good

Who are the people who wield the cameras? Are they all mindless schmucks? It seems that the folks who are recording the images and soundscapes that inform our collective attention are either completely devoid of morals/ethics or are entirely motivated by greed. If it isn't vitriolic, invasive or prurient, it certainly isn't chosen by the editors to see the light of day, much less the overly produced shock imagery of the media as it exists today. With a tiny sliver of humanity, those on the ground floor of media-making, the camera people alone, could wield substantial power over the media's unethical twisting of imagery that i contend is equivalent to domestic terrorism. We all know the adage, X% of all statistics are made up on the spot. The lower number you substitute for X, the more you want the listener to consider your "truthiness" in a positive light, often making the point that you would never do the making up of numbers on the fly. The higher number you substitute for X, the less viable you want your listeners to think the numbers are. My problem is that I often use existing figures from reputable sources, but the hostile, hyper-mediated culture that we exist within makes my calculations seem impossible.

For instance, who has not seen relatives scarred for life in a foreign conflict that was ill-conceived and useless, except for corporate welfare for dubious corporations? One third of families have at least one member in the military. most people who speak plainly on their return from war explain that there are no good ones and that if you are not a mental case before you go (and it helps) you will be one when you get home. Why then do we continue to hear stories that somehow our "freedom" depends on doing that to them? My own family bears several scars of war and I can tell you plainly, we are perpetrating crimes against humanity each and every time that we glorify aggression. Every single dollar that we spend on defense is perpetrating destruction, of property, of lives, of our own economic interests around the globe. Power and control issues need to be taken on wherever we find them. This is 100% about giving massive government help to economic structures that, on their own, would collapse. We are funding the powerful at the expense of the weak.

In my personal experience, the first strike close to my heart, was the loss of a neighbor's son. I saw him outside, playing basketball and hanging out, riding his bike and playing board games. He never came back from Vietnam and his parents got a flag, the one that draped his coffin. In that war, we fought against people who had brought education, sanitation and health care to the impoverished people of the region. We poisoned vast acreages, forever, sterilized fields, firebombed whole villages, etc. We also snuffed out a vibrant life and forever handicapped a family, pruning off an entire family tree. When my mother married a vet, she did not know that he was addicted to the pain meds that he associated with his deliverance from the front lines. Let me tell you, the worst thing you can do with a pedophile is to send them to a place where conscience is a liability. Closer still to home, my brother has described his whole life "like living in boot camp." My eldest daughter has married a military man as well. Since the suspension of the draft, there is less corruption down at the draft board, but the bite that the military has taken out of society continues to be disproportionately out of the fabric of the poorest classes. The more dismal you make a person's life and the less vibrant their options, the more desperate for security people become. Even playing the lottery of death or dismemberment seems worth it when you look at the imagery that we are fed on a daily basis.

To appreciate the desperation fully, you need to imagine that there is a world out here that is full to overflowing. We have so much abundance that we throw away about 40% of our food supply in these United States of America, yet people go to bed hungry every night. We spend more on health care, than any other country (18% of GDP. the next closest spends 12%) and have worse outcomes than any other developed nation. Yet, we are told by our illustrious media that health care reform will cost "more". We are asked to turn our heads and cough while insurance companies are emptying our pocketbooks. That's not scarier than Obamacare? The mileage that the right has gotten out of the threat of "death panels" is only sickening when you realize that right now, today, there are rooms where non-doctors are deciding reimbursement rates for every kind and type of procedure and what they will and will not allow people to "have". People are dying each and every day because they have been denied coverage or have gotten the wrong treatments, simply because insurance would not pay for what people really needed.

The real world America has nearly 100,000 public schools. The average school year is 180 days. Even if we had one school shooting per year, there would be a one in eight million chance that your child's school would be the site of the attack. Within that statistic lies another, if twenty out of several hundred children got killed, the chances would increase exponentially. One chance, perhaps, in one hundred million. Now, there are companies selling "bulletproof backpacks". Only three hundred dollars or so can allow parents to rest easier when they send their children into harm's way. Please, people, let's try for one moment to get our collective head out of the sand. The facts will not lie, let's try to look at them! Let's try to get a grasp of the situation. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) is lobbying the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) to classify motorcycle use as an epidemic, because of avoidable costs that are posed to our health care system by motorcyclists. Several hundred thousand people die in car crashes each year. Less than one percent of those deaths are people who were on two wheels, yet the motorcyclists are the problem. It seems that we are again having a hard time understanding the reality of our situation.

Interpreting data can be tricky, but for one minute consider the consequences of a myth, so firmly held by many motorcyclists as to be considered dogma. they even make bumper stickers and t-shirts that say: "Loud Pipes Save Lives". Many, most noteworthy, Harley owners subscribe to the belief that the roar of un-muffled explosions within the motor, somehow makes them more noticeable on the highway, or in traffic. In the jurisdiction I live, if you can hear music coming from a car more than fifty feet away, it is considered a ticket-able offense. I have heard Harleys from well over five hundred feet away, but no "crime" has taken place. Add to this the flinch factor when the same idiot blows by a blue haired old woman on the highway at eighty and you have potential for disaster. The damage done to both the rider's hearing and that of those around them in traffic costs society billions per year in lost hearing alone, yet the "liberty" of the idiot dishing out the damage is considered sacrosanct. I once again call Bullshit!

When we look from afar, like Disneyland, there is definitely a complete picture being created for us to sit back and watch. However, unlike an audience who has cued up and waited in line for entry, expecting a show, we think what we see is real. We often forget that the bill of goods that we are being sold as consumers of media, has been massaged to show us only what the producers, and ultimately the shareholders of media conglomerates want us to see. Clearchannel has helped put our local theater on the ropes and continues to pummel them into submission which in turn requires that I drive hundreds of miles each week to work in a distant market, plying a craft that my family has participated in for three generations. The wealth continues to concentrate in the highest echelons of our economic system, but somehow, because I'm a member of a union, I am vilified in the media. When we come in close and get a long look deep into the eyes of the beast who controls our very discussion points and vocabulary on these and other subjects, seeing the fires stoked by greed and fed with our children's future, it is both mesmerizing and stupefying that we continue to be taken in by their lie factory. I'm sorry to those of you who tire of me saying it, but lies need to be constantly propped up, but truth stands alone. When we start to see behind the mask of media, no amount of made up statistics can take away the scars and depravity that we see underneath. Whether of not demons can be tamed remains to be seen, but their time has got to come to a swift end if we are to reclaim any part of the American dream that was worth saving.

The Latest Lies From Wisconsin's Governor

Bear with me for a moment. I would like to apologize to readers from other parts of the country, and world. Your government agents may be less despicable than Scott Walker, but the shenanigans that he has brought to his office need to be seen clearly if we are to avoid losing the tiny grasp we have on the democratic process worldwide. I believe it was Napolean who said, "I study my enemies so that I might hate them more aptly." Those familiar with my writing probably understand that I do not advocate hatred or misunderstanding, but by learning as much as we can about the modus operandi of the people who would enslave us and benefit from our pain and suffering, we can begin to find ways to remove them from their powerful positions and take back some of the wealth and dignity that they have stolen from the general public, me and you, through their exploitation and deceit.

As we enter the fourth recall election season in Wisconsin's history, it is well to look back on the reasons for the prior recalls and what was at stake so that we can realize how important our actions are today. In the early days, the only elected officials that served four year terms were the State Senators and the Judiciary. Until 1926, when the offices of  Governor, Lieutenant Governor,  Attorneys General and other offices were increased to four years, the window of opportunity for recall was too small to make it an effective tool against most elected officials. All that is required to force a recall election is signatures from 25% of the voters who turned out for the last election for that office. The idea that this is easy is often touted by the officials who face recall, but in fact, in my experience as a community organizer, the vast majority of Wisconsin residents are typically unwilling to sign petitions that force capricious extra expenses on the government. Certainly the cost of a statewide recall campaign costs many millions of dollars, but in the recall of Governor Scott Walker, the public has deemed the damage caused by his policies to be greater than the cost of another election process.

Historically, there have been nearly a dozen attempts to garner enough signatures to force recalls, but only four have resulted in actual recall elections. The first, in 1932, against Otto Mueller for his opposition to a tax proposal made by the Governor failed in the ballot box by nearly a two to one vote. The two prior successful recalls were both in relatively recent history The 1996 removal of State Senator George Petak, over his double-cross of the voters on the issue of taxing Racine residents to help pay for the new Milwaukee Brewers Stadium. He had claimed to be against the tax during his campaign for office and supported it when he got in. Again, the recall was utilized to remove State senator Gary George, in 2003, just prior to his imprisonment on corruption charges. The people of Wisconsin have now embarked on a serious campaign against big money, the influence it has wielded over our current representatives and with the election of Governor Walker, there has been a groundswell of sentiment that wishes to have the right to know what an elected official will do before they are elected, rather than having to sit on the sidelines while the big dogs run the State House. Repeatedly, the shouts and cries have gone up around the State Capitol, here in Wisconsin, "This Is Our House!" and the people mean it!

To see and hear the heinous fallout that has come from the policies and pen of a single man is to know the ire that exists in Wisconsin right now. Just yesterday, it was revealed that with a single stroke of the Governor's pen, a loophole that had been closed, that allowed corporations to funnel their activities through shell corporations in other states that have no income tax, was reopened. This single change will take over 300 million dollars out of the state coffers in just the next two years. That is equivalent to 1/3 of the "savings" that Governor Walker has been touting. He says that he has cut the cost of state government and created jobs, but when we look around, we see a different story. Layoffs are in the news almost daily, and as the government programs are cut further, more and more citizens are being forced to live on less. Wisconsin leads (and that is a terrible word) the nation in job loss. We are dead last in job creation and as we look around the state, many of the standards that we have worked for decades to establish are being undermined and eviscerated. One of the most dramatic steps back occurred after the election of Governor Walker, but before he even took office. He pledged to cancel plans for high speed rail between Milwaukee and Madison. Thirty years of hard work had gone into the planning and enabling legislation that would lead to 21st century transportation in the most populous part of the state. Now, the congestion and danger that exist on the highways, as well as the cost in time, fuel and automobile purchase, maintenance and repair will continue to increase for those living in that corridor the foreseeable future.

We need affordable transit, not only in the urban south, but through the Fox River Valley as well. The most dangerous and deadly highway in the state runs through my neck of the woods and because of that, there have been groups trying to get a high speed rail option here for three decades. The current governor has proven to us by his actions that he not only does not care about our wishes, but that he has contempt for them. Rather than entering into any serious dialog, he has sequestered himself from the public and entertained no possibilities for listening to anyone who opposes his quest to turn Wisconsin citizens into tools for the production of increasing corporate power. We the people, must no longer stand by, while our environment is sacrificed, our children and elderly are abused and neglected, teachers vilified, and the voters of the state are spoken to in condescending ways or fed lies that are constantly "propped up" by more lies.

I offer this information as a call for everyone, worldwide, to stand for truth, demand responsibility from our elected officials and command respect from those who are supposedly leading us into the future. We cannot turn the clocks back to the age of Ozzie and Harriet anymore than we can affect the tides of history. We are embarking on a pilgrimage to one of two futures. One, appears to be more in harmony with nature, one another and able to support everyone at a higher standard of living at less cost. The other, I routinely call "business as usual" and involves more money flowing into ever-fewer hands and the power that comes with it keeping ever-greater numbers of us as wage slaves and in poverty. Stand for all that is right and good with the world, Lord and Lady know, we need to change the direction that we have been heading for the past few generations.

The State Killing People To Teach US That Killing Is Wrong Is Not Justifiable

The case that occurred this week in Georgia blemishes our image as a shining beacon to the world, our validity as a "developed" nation, our capacity to learn, grow and to become fully human. It goes without saying that this man, who was put to death was an accused "black, cop killer" but seven of nine eyewitnesses recanted their testimony which had been the most compelling evidence in the trial that led to his conviction. Some other person took responsibility for the killing, actually confessed, we all know that two people can see the same exact event with different eyes, but for seven of nine people to agree that this was not what they saw is pretty stark information to ignore. In addition, there were over one million signatures on petitions to grant clemency because the system had gotten it wrong. If I believed in God, this would be the straw that would break the back of my faith. The people of the great state of Georgia have been sold out by their leaders and the evil demon of hatred has tainted their leaders' very souls. There is no justice in killing, especially in the hopes of being a deterrent to crime.
In Merry Old England, when the punishment for pickpocketing was hanging, the most likely place to have your purse lifted (yes, yes, I know, back then, their were no wallets, everyone carried a purse.) was at the hangings! The juggernaut of hate that drives our society to do these vile and reprehensible things to others  needs to be understood as an out-dated agent of misunderstanding based on lies and deceit. Although it is not the cheapest, best or most effective way to handle accused or actual murderers, we still get told that this killing will somehow "give closure" to those who have lost a loved one. That would be a shallow sort of love, if the loss of the loved one could be ameliorated by revenge. The only real assurance we have, when we kill to teach that killing is wrong, is multiplying the pain by a factor of two. The families and friends of the deceased are sure to feel the loss just as fully as the family and friends of the victim. Perhaps, in an odd way, they might feel it more acutely. The victim can always believe that it was all just the result of a senseless act, perhaps motivated by desperation or passion. The victims of the state all die by the hand of slow and supposedly well-reasoned and calculated horrors meted out with cold and unfeeling precision. It makes the crime committed by the state, in some ways, far more heinous. The only people who can ever feel vindicated are the people participating in the charade we call justice. It is a travesty. If there is adequate physical evidence to convict without a doubt, perhaps relegating the perpetrator of heinous acts to life in prison would be a true deterrent, perhaps not, but at least the punishment would not subject the state to committing crimes against humanity that the punishment is supposed to stop..
Especially in this case, the killing of someone when overwhelming doubt about their guilt exists degrades us all. Death to the state (any state) that believes killing is ever permissible in cases that are called into question by evidence. It is time to put an end to state sponsored terror perpetrated by our own "officials". Let this post explain, if I am ever murdered, please do not kill the person who kills me, I would like them to live with the idea of what they did to me for as long as possible. Whether or not they feel justified, they need to have the time to reflect on their actions and I certainly don't want them to have evil perpetrated on them by the state in my name. Similarly, our far flung warfare needs to stop because I'm tired of my nation killing in my name.

Look Who Is Using The Term Class Warfare!

Shame on the Republican shills for big oil, big energy and big media! In all the coverage of our President's new economic recovery plan, the lap dogs of the ultra wealthy have once again dominated the airwaves. Whoever owns this country, or whoever thinks they do, keep telling us their corporate line BS and expecting us to swallow it hook line and sinker. Well my friends, the American public just isn't that hungry. Class warfare has been going on in our country for generations. Just look back at the early attempts unions made in bringing humanity to the workplace. The American worker is still not treated much better than slaves. In some cases they are treated worse. At least slaves got three hots and a cot. After a long day of work for most employees, their paltry wages are still dwindling down to nothing as the costs of food, transportation and housing continue to outpace wages. The same plutocratic minority is in charge, the same dangerous workplaces exist and the same rampant disregard for the lives of those who create the wealth of our nation are looked upon with disdain and suspicion.

I work in a place where the wealthy elite come to play. I see it routinely. From concerts with two tiered distinctions between VIP seating and VVIP seats to the ordinary and bizarre distinctions between "going to see the game and having luxury boxes. Now how can we say there is not class warfare when the extraction of capital is practiced against the impoverished while the amazing majority of that extraction flows to fewer and fewer hands? For instance, as with the luxury boxes at our local football stadium, the five thousand dollar price per game equates to 71.5 regular seats. Don't you think that the fellow buying that sky bow knows that he is worth 71.5 times as much as the peons who are seated down below? Just as we denigrate the poor in the media, blame them for our country's economic woes and for their own lack of "education" paired with sexual and drug induced immorality, we have the nerve to make sweeping judgements about the entire class of poor people, just as we used to do with Italians, Poles and yes even the Hungarians. you know, I have a friend who is poor, and he's not like the others...

The sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that started when the news covered an ignorant and duplicitous agent of industry who has floated to the top of the shit heap of young Republicans in the House of Representatives continues to nag at my sensibilities. For one, I have been on the lower end of the income scale all of my life. I maxed out near the end of Clinton's time as President at 32K. From there, it has been a long slow fade out. I work at least as hard, at least as long and at least as often as I did back then, but the rewards are less because capitalists find ways through any rules one might put in place to protect them from their bosses. They know what they want, more money, and have the talent of being able to work around any attempt to secure a better livelihood for their workers.

That being said, I have to qualify the statement with information that is also true and to some extent growing in the minds of a sliver within the corporate world. Some employers take a different tack altogether. Some workplaces, and they are mostly in the small is beautiful movement, mostly made up of folks who were disillusioned with their own status when trying to climb the corporate ladder. They have turned to the marketplace as producers with conscience and are attempting to give their workers a better lifestyle as well as better wages and benefits. Frequently these companies realize that their workers represent whole people with needs and families that are important to them. One company here in Green Bay wanted their workforce to be educated and therefore paid tuition for up to three credits per semester for anyone employed full time. Sadly, when the company was purchased by a multinational corporation, that was one of their first cost cutting measures. small business has a chance to do the right thing, but once you get a chance to play with the big boys, your focus changes.

Of course there is class warfare going on in our country, it has been with us for centuries. to deny it is to fly in the face of fact, but it is not contained in the recovery plan which has so recently been targeted by the Speaker of the House, no, the President is trying to reign in the top dogs who have not only fared the best in our economic collapse, but who have consolidated their wealth beyond comprehension. Of course the agents that they hired to raise holy hell in Washington are squawking about it. That's their job. If they only realized how beholden to the super rich they are, perhaps they would rebel against them as surely as we all must. for without the stranglehold the wealthy have over the rest of us, change would not only be possible, but unstoppable. Through the systematic separation of goods and services from sources of capital and the estrangement of our population centers from sources of income, we have marginalized greater numbers of people than ever before. After 9-11, we had a brief moment to reassess our decisions to live further and further from where we work, where we play and from those who really matter to us. Having neglected the opportunity to make sound decisions for the future, we have mostly relegated ourselves to focusing more and more of our time and  ever more effort to support the wealthy as opposed to the poor in our country, no, in fact, the world. We are being tormented by those who would use true words being applied to false subjects and subjecting truth to the ultimate crime, being rendered as falsehood in spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. In time, I hope we can all look back on this dark period in our history, see it for what it truly is, and guard against this sort of rhetoric and misunderstanding ever making their way into the minds of our leaders.

The top 10% of wage earners are still doing quite well and if they are not going to spend their money, then we need to find alternatives to getting the over 4 trillion dollars that they are holding hostage back into the economy. i understand that they are afraid of a black man being President, but taking their marbles and going home is simply not patriotic. Spouting lies and trying to scare the general public has been generally accepted as heinous enough to be considered terrorism. In this case, we need to seize their assets and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. I don't care if they hold public office or not, duly elected or not, those who inject fear and lies into public discourse are dangerous and need to be stopped. The media who claims to be even-handed in their coverage without even understanding the issues is even more dangerous and thanks to them, we have a situation in which truth or lies are less important than how stirred up we can get people. It is a sad day for democracy when the rich get whatever they want and the poor have to find their own way to cope, with little help for the government and none from their neighbors because they have fallen on hard times as well.


Corporate Welfare = Class Welfare

Hard Rain

My time on Earth would have been far less exquisite if not for the experience, I had today at the very end of my forty -eighth year, hearing this phenomenal Bob Dylan piece. When I was young, I was raised by what I thought to be the most cynical people imaginable. In their infinite, but supposed wisdom, they cordoned off vast areas of human experience as bourgeoisie pap, mediated fluff or politically motivated distraction. Some of their guidance was of course helpful, but other parts of their lexicon were filled with their own brand of vapid slogan shouting and half-truth. One example was my stepfather, who frequently talked about free love and really meant subjugation of as many females as possible. Much to my delight, my mother was commiserating with a young woman at the Laundromat one day about her suspicions that her husband, John, was sleeping around. See love is only free when given without the attachment of sex. Her new-found friend said that her man was married and would not think of leaving his wife for her. Strangely, her man’s name was John as well, and she asked, Andries? Well, if there had been super glue back in the sixties, it may have gotten used on his genitals that night!

All this said, there were times that I wanted to learn things that the adults in my life wanted me protected from and just as often there were things I needed sheltering from that I had to learn to deal with sooner rather than later. The first Earthday celebration was off limits because my parents said that it was all just a media ploy to distract people from the injustice being perpetrated in Southeast Asia. I was not allowed to watch any media coverage of the war because john had been accosted by newsmen while he was serving in that war, asked to act like his unit was being fired upon and to shoot off a few rounds for the camera.

Bob Dylan fell into the category of things they suspected as manufactured for the masses by the establishment. I don’t think either of my parents were educated enough to understand much of what Dylan wrote, but even more disturbing was their absolute vehemence about his inability to sing. I heard the same tripe about Woody Guthrie, Roy Orbison and Elvis, although for some reason Arlo Guthrie and Frank Zappa made the cut in our house. The stinging in my eyes that brought tears welling up out of nowhere at the sound of Hard Rain came not from the fact that Dylan can’t sing, but perhaps because he can’t sing, but was willing to enter the recording studio anyway. When each of us has something to say, the vast majority would rather hold their tongue, let someone else take center stage, or just fight the urge to speak, or sing, back down inside, hiding their light under a bushel basket. For many of these same silent ones, the prevailing sentiment of their insular sub-culture fills the void that their own ideas have left in public discourse. Ban the bomb sounds catchier than stop poisoning my children, free love sounds better than I’m a fuck machine and so on.

I understand that we all must do the best we can with what we are given, but the time has come for each of us to begin thinking for ourselves, not jumping on either the politically expedient bandwagon or the let’s overthrow the government  one either. Surely there are those who would lie and cheat and steal from the rest of us, many are powerful men with evil intent, but it is time to realize that by shirking our own responsibilities, we are cheating ourselves of a life of richness and beauty beyond words.

Personality Calesthenics

When we say, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger, or still waters run deep, we are trying to shed light on the inexorable part of living that we often overlook or outright ignore completely. Like spoiled brats, we run the risk of get lost (from creating ourselves) in the shuffle, thinking we are the center of the universe and that all things, even personality should "come to us". Understand, coming from a child of certain privilege, I have also faced privation. I have been the minority, the bitch, the street person, but never forever and never for too long. I have learned that the world is most often a mirror, reflecting all that we are beholden too. Frequently, the reflection can be disturbing, but realizing that you are what you think has been driven home to me in many powerful ways recently that I will try to share.
I have just come from a place that is idyllic in ways that are hard to get a handle on. One local described "her people" as proud, of whatever they do, and in a most basic way, always willing to share, their time their talent and the many blessings they receive daily as residents of their unique environment. Those who know me know of where I speak. There is always a real risk of over popularizing fabulous areas, lest they become cesspools of exploitation and deceit and because of that I would not want to focus on where the place actually is. Instead, I want to focus on what qualities make it unique so that the unchained abandon with which life is lived can be experienced everywhere on Earth in the same way, or at least a similar one.
First off, I noticed that artists are taken seriously. They are a reflection of a culture's essence, a bonding of each individual to place, to human effort, to beauty, or at least the quest for it. On a related topic, I recently heard that the Japanese spend about 17% of their GDP on the arts. In my country, (USA) it is abysmally low, barely seven percent. Quizzically, that includes such big ticket items as the 24-hour news cycle and the movie and television industry, some aspects of which could be considered anti-cultural. Has anyone heard of a recent top story about the power of loving one's neighbor recently? The art of storytelling is appreciated. Virtually everyone seems not only entitled, but expected to occasionally engage in cogent use of story-telling, as a tool to enhance understanding and demonstrate lucid contemplation about whatever topic may be at hand. Food also is at the heart of creatively interfacing with the local environment. In many real ways, the art of cookery and the esoteric realms of herbs and their use are commonplace. Raising even the ditch-diggers labor to the level of art, through limber metabolism allowed only through the consumption of top tier veggies and local artisanal cookery.
When I was a youthful and opinionated art student, I spent countless hours degrading the very idea of craft as a blatant step into "commercial art" which was also snobbishly discounted, relegating it to the scrap heap of mechanism and rote practice of production. This idyllic place, more than any other single factor, has taught me the need for art to be practiced in both the commercial realm and what we refer to as craft. Recognizable and utilitarian objects need to be art-laden and as such, adjuncts to our making meaning in the world. Touchstones to humanity can accompany us on our journey at each moment, in fact without them, life can lose a sense of connection, to the land, her people, and our essential needs, wants and desires. For a place and a people to have the capacity to transform and old curmudgeon like myself deserves special mention, only because it is my trip and reflects a deep need we have in areas all across the planet.
When we are raised in and environment of adversity, there are two probable outcomes that seem mutually exclusive and polar opposites. Scientific research has proved, beyond the shadow of doubt, that humans are kind, helpful and compassionate, innately. Only through abuse or neglect can  they be turned into psychopaths, sociopaths and greedy, hostile organisms. On the other hand, the ability to persevere, trust and attain true greatness can come about through these same traumatic experiences. Who are we to deem such an amazing growth opportunity inherently "bad". Now the grist for our mill. If I had not suffered subjugation, sexual humiliation at the hand of a pedophile, been malnourished or worse, beaten with a dowel rod, would I be the "same person" I have become today? I can truly say "No!" Everyone has got to play Jesus from time to time, that is why his myth is so powerful for us. The moment when "he" has been attributed the saying "God Bless them for they know not what they do." Who has not had to bear that cross? The growth is not in experiencing the personality building events, but the grappling that takes place between who we think we are and who we are always in the act of becoming.
I am an unabashed theatre geek. Obsession with the idea that all life is indeed a stage lies at the heart of why so many give so thoroughly to our discipline. When I was growing up backstage, everyone we knew did theatre, we all believed that society's ills could be healed through the concerted efforts that we put to the art and science, as well as the rudimentary technologies at our disposal. By practicing the art of musicals and plays, we were consummate storytellers. Bending and stretching the stories allowed us to bend and flex the mirrors we had at our disposal to focus attention on who we are as a people, and as individuals engaged in a larger society. Without the constrains of having to live each and every mistake, we as story-tellers as well as our audiences, might learn better ways of being that would further the culture as a whole.
The passel of lighthearted comedies that has "gotten us through" the recent economic downturn notwithstanding, several of our recent long lived plays dealt with topical social issues, such as exploitation, class warfare, power and control and the tragedy of war. Sadly, too many still wink, wink, nudge, nudge their way through misogyny and patriarchy. Out-dated religious icons are in complete disproportion to their incidence in the lives of people I know. In most theater, perhaps because the only shows that bring in enough money to be produced, themes that somehow support the status quo will always carry the season.
I believe that we grow more, in both more robust and adaptive ways, when we stretch into realms that are not fully explored. Just as with our individual development, the same growth can occur in cultures, or societies. If I didn't see the discipline of theater from the inside, I could not fathom how to achieve beneficial social change. When I was young, I sat tables and handed out literature for dozens of causes and groups. During my canvassing days, I spoke to over one million individuals. During my 80 Day, Great Lakes Bicycle Trip , I sent a direct message to over 8 million folks. We can all live better and more lightly on the planet. Being a stand (as the Erhart Seminar Training, EST folks call it) for something grows the personality in unique ways. The growth that ensues when something other than yourself is the main focus of your every waking moment transforms even the most mundane acts into enlightening experiences.
Don't do these exercises as novel events, like a three-times per week exercise regimen. Take this approach to heart, seek constant betterment of all that you deem important and don't sweat the little things. Remember that everything you touch should have the hand of humans in it somehow, these people have their own creative expression to share. As we explore and define who we are, shaping ourselves into ever better folks, our truest natures can be ever more closely approximated. When we grow beyond our own fears and expectations, there are those who clamor to attribute our growth to a "higher power" or other miracle. This sort of mumbo-jumbo is superstitious nonsense exempting the speaker from realizing the truest potential of their own existence. Ultimately, we cannot be judged in "heaven" but by our actions while earth bound. Each and every one of them.
Blessings on your path and may you realize the depth of love I have for y'all, that is why I have attempted to express this. May your growth be uninhibited by dogma or expectations. The true you may shock, and occasionally misunderstood but without you, the world would be a bit more inhospitable and a little less balanced. If we all do our parts to change things, we lead by example and invite reciprocation.