Thursday,
July 17, 2008 at 12:30am
I want to make the case that as hard as we
work to push into the future and unlock all sorts of new secrets and
truths with our knowledge, this should not be viewed as progress. I
want to illustrate this idea with just basic examples from what many
people engage in on their paths to "grow" as human
beings.
First, lets take basic society. Society is not focused
on progress, it is focused on sustainability. You can sustain almost
anything by frequently insufficient means. The crime rate in Chicago is
resulting in a dead kid a day since June. The question isn't, "what
progressive line can we travel to maybe make the crime rate so low
that 1 murder a year would be a shock." The only thing people
seem to care about is immediately putting in the National Guard to
quell the fighting enough to look good in the eyes of the the 2016
Olympic committee. The truth is, Chicago will still survive as a city
if 1 or 10 kids are shot every day. The fact that it has
skyscrapers and tech savvy inhabitants does not mean its made any
progress at the level that matters. The individual human level.
We
have the basic human life. You are (hopefully) born into a family
where your parents remain together and you get your basic education.
You go to college and meet the girl who you'll marry and have kids
with. You'll work your job and be the model provider. You'll learn
from all the years of raising your kids. You may or may not be apart
of some job or activity that opens your eyes and mind to what matters
in life. Then if your lucky, when your're old your kids liked you enough
to refrain from putting you in a home. To me, I don't feel that being
born on to a "model track" of our day means that once you
reach a certain age or mustered up the courage to pop a question,
you've somehow achieved the title of progress. It's no secret we're
all "doomed" at some time or another, but that fact isn't
what impedes what I'm talking about.
I'll start with the area
I think the least amount of progress can be made. Take the person
above and imagine they've taken on the religious agenda. Their
progressive act is to save as many people as they can, or at the very
least put the name Jesus into everyone's head. For over two thousand
years these people have done the same thing their predecessors felt
as their moral charge, and what is the result? Whenever I watch some
early morning pastor or news report it's the pastor screaming
something about how far the country is falling. The non-believers,
but o-ho especially the believers! need to get their acts together
and settle in to the loving kind of society they should be passively
aggressively fighting for. Do you know how great Jesus's sacrifice
was, by the way it's the greatest gift you'll ever receive, hey its
also great to get gifts when you don't ask for them isn't it, o golly
gee greatness praise Jesus. This mindless pummeling of the same tired
words into people's heads. The breaking them down as pathetic sinners
that need to be brought back up by the same agenda that just broke
them down. Ever on his knees the believer waits idley by for when
Jesus will come floating from the sky.
Say we move on to the
philanthropist. Take the grand scheme of Dubai. What was it like
10-15 years ago there was nothing but a few scattered buildings and
sand? Now you'll find all the great progress in its new architecture
and happening night life. Here's of course where I have my complaint.
If the happening party scene in every city or town that's ever been
in existence has only served to distract people from depressing
thoughts about their meager lives, or served to contribute to alcohol
and violence problems, what is to be considered progressive about
making another hole to this five stars of fun golf course? People
need opportunities to let loose and express themselves, but should
those opportunities be grounded in places that have one of the
longest histories of negative results? I feel I should make note that
I'm not speaking against developing areas or new feats of
architecture. All that bugs me is that I know personally enough
people who are struggling with finding themselves in the fog of
partying and "modern thinking" and I don't see how simply
introducing others to the front door, after we've barely stumbled out
the back, contributes to the human agenda.
Here's my next
attempt to plug my hopes for science. We're all born as scientists.
We are fascinated with our hands and toes and test out what will
happen when we pull the dogs hair or plunge head first into a
birthday cake. To me, a broad definition of scientific practice would
be anything furthering your personal knowledge and ability to speak
on any given subject. Granted, I would never agree to that definition
when arguing with a creationist about what science is, but for the
sake of my point you can keep that one in mind. Assuming you don't
have some evil intent I have yet to find the negative by-product from
getting smarter or more comfortable with your understanding about the
world. I've never heard one scientist speak of his work like this, "O
well, this just is what it is, I guess I get by well enough, gotta
pay those bills you know." There is always this exuberance and
passion for the work. This is where progress can be made. When you're passionate. When you fuel yourself by the work your're doing. Some would
describe the discovery of the atomic bomb as the most terrible thing
we could ever unlock, and I would say those are the people who would
be the first to launch them, because they understand so little about
the nature of those who discovered it. I don't see the progress in
getting a handful of disgruntled nations to destroy some of their
bombs, because ultimately it comes down to the political pressure
they are facing, not their growth as human beings who no longer see a
point in initiating holocausts. The task of showing people how grand
and fulfilling their lives can be without the destruction of
themselves or others has always been the task of the teachers and the
scientists.
Why are religious icons so fervently idolized?
They were the teachers and the holders of knowledge. If you wanted to
be happy, just follow their ten step program and forgo those hopeless
selfish urges. I used the term in one of my last blogs, but it needs
to be brought up again, second-handers.(Yes, I ripped this from The
Fountainhead) I see the religious institutions as one of the most
destructive ideas to ever hit our race. They've racked up enough
bodies with holy wars or suicide bombing, but I fear more for the
type of mind they instill in their followers. They teach you that
knowledge can only be found in what they are selling. The sweet taste
of understanding only exists in crackers and wine. The thing that
makes a scientist proud and tireless in their pursuit, is point blank
exactly what religion tells you to redirect, after they've soiled it
with sin, towards Jesus or Allah or some righteous and pious task.
You do not have the opportunity or right to say "This is me, and
this is what I am doing." Every sentence has to be prefaced with
"We are charged with the task, I am working within the confines
of my belief in."
I just read a blog of a girl who felt saved
form depression by drinking, which obviously didn't last long. I have
no doubt that people are feeling saved by Jesus to this kind of
extent. The band aid for cancer. In this context depression is easy.
Pills, new friends, and a hard fought will can put you on a different
track. But think about the religious context. Every time you say the
devil had his role, you're reinforced. Every time you say you're going to
pray and cry instead of fight and change, you're reinforced. When an
edict or piece of advice is handed down to you, for all those
concerned the question has been answered, you are alleviated from
your duty of thinking, peace unto you. You are not taught to be an
individual with rights and feelings, you are a sheep. Your
motivations and deductive reasoning are not allowed in the kingdom of
God. Everyone one of your friends and family tell you the same things
from the same collective viewpoint. I can't imagine a worse kind of
suffering.
I've watched two interviews now on A.J. Jacobs who
lived for an entire year as literally by the bible as he could. what
I think is interesting is, here is man who has taken the book more
seriously than any fundamentalist, has read it more deeply, and
literally made his life about following its tenets, and yet when you
hear him talk about what he took away from the experience, it's ideas
and habits that transgress many religions, customs, or mantras
throughout time. Being forgiving of people and yourself, i.e. letting
go of things. Prayer, in what it does to calm you down and keep you
focused. The exuberance of just being alive and able to experience
things. He refers to himself as a "reverent agnostic" now.
What I find most striking is in his motivation. He'd never been
raised in a religious household and considered himself to be Jewish
to the same extent that Olive Garden is Italian food. He alone wanted
to do this. He wasn't inspired by a god. His "selfish" want
of knowledge and personality type that has to focus and take things
seriously is what allowed him to progress as a human being. Did he
piss off his wife and weird people out, sure, but where does that
deter from what he's learned?
I'm asking for you to be a
scientist. Growth and progress can only be obtained when you work to
understand the world around you, ipso facto yourself along with it.
Test yourself, observe and be honest about the results. When you can
do that, I predict you'll start being the person you always knew and
expected yourself to be.
Updated
about 4 months ago
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Billy
Bowman
(Bloomington, IN) wroteat
8:17am on July 17th, 2008
You are
(hopefully) born into a family where your parents remain
together and you get your basic education.
Like, 1 in
1000 Americans? Maybe your lucky to get a basic education, but
your parents remaining together? I can't think off the top of
my head of 1 family i know like that. |
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Nick
P.
wroteat
8:23am on July 17th, 2008
Meh, just
an overall hypothetical. Not like mine are together either. |
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Billy
Bowman
(Bloomington, IN) wroteat
8:27am on July 17th, 2008
"You
are not taught to be an individual with rights and feelings,
you are a sheep."
I'm fairly certain parts of the bible
actually say this out right. Jesus is the Shepard, etc. etc.. |
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Billy
Bowman
(Bloomington, IN) wroteat
8:28am on July 17th, 2008
I
completely agree with you here, and find that "reverent
agnostic" quite interesting.. |
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I love the
picture. As humorous as it is, its unfortunately true. Luckily
my dad finally started a business that is making some good
money, so I fall under the privilaged I suppose.
Anyways,
the way I see it is society today is too worried about
economics. Progress today means expanding, building,
researching, profiting, etc. Religion can't help you make
money. Now sure, religion can make you more happy or hopeful
and give you faith, but today, people would rather have money.
We can't really make religious progress right? I mean
sure, in a historical aspect we can by trying to find proof it
happened, but this goes back to science, research, expanding
(our knowledge), for most likely profit.
Your example
of Chicago is perfect. Will losing some kids from the ghetto
kill the city? As inhumane as that may seem, no, it won't.
People will still live and work there. My entire W131 summer
english class was writing about sustainability, and it's right.
If something will sustain, nothing will be changed. Humans are
too distracted by dangling money (haha, jew gold) to make
"progress."
IMO, I believe a majority of
society's problems are related to profit. Thats just how I see
it.
You should seriously like, compile your short
essays into a book, or work on getting them published in a
paper or something.
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Billy
Bowman
(Bloomington, IN) wroteat
4:21pm on July 17th, 2008
"You
should seriously like, compile your short essays into a book,
or work on getting them published in a paper or
something."
And sell it, there by proving his
point.. haha |
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Bowman has
proven the cycle at work!! Brilliant! |
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Nick
P.
wroteat
7:05pm on July 17th, 2008
Lol as much
of an ego boost that would be I generally just report on things
where people have already said it or said it better. I blog to
stay sane. If I wanted to make money, there would be a lot more
sources and exciting information. |
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