The post title is thematic but also to serve as a caution or warning to anyone that moves in haste without weighing up a situation and thus, having evaluated the variables and potential outcome(s), can be more confident of a satisfactory outcome. I have said before that "many a foolish move was made in haste" - I think it is attributed to Shakespeare, but I cannot be sure. To quote B.B. King though; "Never make your move too soon". There are many proverbs that offer similar advice; "Don't be so quick to judge", "marry in haste, repent at leisure" etc. etc. Another proverb that springs to mind is the one that says; "A foolish man speaks all his mind". I believe this to be true. Very true. This blog will say something or other but not all of my mind. I don't wish to be foolish. There is an old Chinese saying that states; "Drops of water will in time wear away a stone, but a rainstorm will leave it unchanged". To anyone with common sense, this is obvious.
Throughout history there have been predictions that "the end is nigh". This has never been so true as today though, somewhat paradoxically, one could have made the same utterance a century ago or less and it would have sounded just as relevant. Since the rise of the internet during the past twenty or so years there is more information available about many different things. The variety of subjects is as diverse as human knowledge itself and the internet - as a means of disseminating knowledge - has turned many people into "experts" (I use the term
very loosely). There is no doubt that it has helped educate people and hopefully it will continue to do so but INFORMATION, be it accurate or not, can cause problems. In the first instance it can enable a person or persons of a certain mindset to "do" things. There are two sides to the coin; are these good or bad things? Then, in the second instance, will that information (the inaccurate kind) help or hinder a person? Returning to the coin metaphor; will a life be saved or not owing to the use of the information? This is another big question in the field of ethics and moral philosophy - look up
"The Trolley Problem"...
Worldwide, security agencies and others in social sciences have - in my mind - perfectly legitimate concerns about the availability of information, both the accurate or inaccurate kind. Some have questioned the liberty of the internet with plausible arguments regarding the restriction of various kinds of information. A radical individual could use certain information to do terrible things. Now, terrible things
are being done and have been since the dawn of history but the growing world population, the radicalisation of certain groups of people, nutters acting "in the name of God", perfectly intelligent people also acting "in the name of God" and others have an almost inexhaustible supply of information available. This information is not just the recipe for a good curry or how to knit socks but also how to build machine tools, or mix up various chemicals and... well, you get the idea.
The question of whether it is right to withhold information is a subject of hot debate amongst philosophers, social scientists, peace activists, warmongers et al. I believe that it is important to allow
"most" information to be available as it can help humanity as a whole. It is those that seek to manipulate humanity with information - "good" and "bad" - and create an "uber class" (regardless of the political ideology behind them) that have earned my suspicion. In Nazi Germany, book burning happened a great deal in the early years of the regime. Those scientists that did not manage to escape were forced to work against their own personal principals. In Soviet Russia, Lenin expelled or ordered the execution of intellectuals, others that "may" or "may not" have shared his ideals, those considered a threat. There were also the Romanov's. The control of information has been historically a "tool" to further a particular aim. Stalin (along with sending perhaps millions to their death in "social experiments" and the notorious gulags) was said to have kept a copy of Machiavelli's "The Prince" at his bedside.
There are numerous other examples throughout history. In particular, I am also brought to the thought of the destruction (there were several attempts) of the
Great Library of Alexandria.
There are perhaps forces at work in the world that see these things as being of good but I believe that they may be misguided in their motivation. It is of the greatest importance to humanity and all else that dwell on the only habitable planet we (as ordinary folk) can be sure of. The desire to "be the rulers", "to act in the name of God", to "make the world a better place" is what may be the main difficulty facing us and our fellow beings. Radical activism can draw its' own share of nutters (regardless of their "good intentions"). Political radicalism can disenfranchise huge numbers of perfectly good, reasonable and morally sound people. In fact the phrase "the road to hell is paved with good intentions", springs to mind. The things I describe happen all of the time. One only has to watch/listen to the news and see that not is all as it should be. The REAL issues are conspicuous by their absence. To quote Orwell;
"Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power." (Nineteen Eighty-Four, 1949)
In recent times many have railed against certain large corporations owing to their activities. This is legitimate in many cases but without LED technology, Rocketry, Cavity Magnetrons (in your microwave oven and also the basis of certain types of radar), Optics, all manner of radio technology and electronics etc. etc. Jimi Hendrix might have played a great acoustic guitar but without amplification and electronics he would not have sounded the same at all nor have been able to perform to the large numers of people he ultimately reached - be it via radio or recording technology or playing live. I could add many other players to that list. The entertainment industry today relies almost entirely on technology as well as, obviously, human effort.
To add to that, there would be no hook and loop fasteners, cinema, paint, frozen concentrated orange juice, television, the internet itself, hybridised high strength cannabinoids (with clinically proven medical benefits), certain life sustaining biochemical technologies and millions of other things. All of these things had their origins in nature (obviously) but were developed by the intellectual power of human effort, with persistence, experiment and success (after much failure usually) EVENTUALLY.
The difficulty with the huge corporations is that the powers that control
them are motivated by the desire to profit monetarily, and as has been said; "It is the
love of money that is the root of all evil". The management of the power of intellectual activity by those that seek profit may well be a big problem as if we all grow poorer (monetarily), AND we will all grow poorer in spirit, and, in turn, those that seek profit will not profit monetarily UNLESS there is a far more sinister goal; to return huge swathes of humanity to slavery. Slavery was, after all, what built the Great Pyramids of Gizeh (along with some great intellectual power and engineering prowess - at least as far as I know). One must ask oneself; How was this power managed, and to what end or goal? Do those that seek to enslave see their role as a form of destiny? Sanctioned by God? What does this make you think of?
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Paradoxically in writing what I have above, I may have classified myself as something of a radical but I am not (except perhaps on guitar ;-)). I may even be considered naive or idealistic but I would prefer to consider myself pragmatic and hopefully practical. I aspire to tenacity but also being "real" and by that term I mean more genuine as a human being and certainly more realistic. I also aspire to cultivating a greater quality of what might be referred to as common sense. I would like there to be an end to human suffering, hunger, poverty, deprivation, warfare motivated by profit - I have zero problems with engaging with some "radical" marching towards me with the express intention of killing me. BUT it is INFORMATION that informs my descision making process. AND who or what controls the information as well as the sources from which it is obtained. The privatisation of news services is a chilling threat to human "development".
In the main though a nice cup of tea, a decent meal, some good art, the sharing of respect and love for each other - the GOOD stuff basically, is what I like. I don't need a €5,000 suit, a €200,000 car, a mansion on the hill (or two or three) or any of that stuff. It is not about being in a competition (in a truly "crush the opposition" approach), it is about doing our best to be better human beings. Love thy neighbour etc. Unfortunately MONEY and the love of it will motivate all but the most stoic individual to do ANYTHING. And I mean ANYTHING. Possibly driven by fear of poverty, vanity to be a "have" rather than a "have not", or vanity to look "good" in front of others. One only has to look at the desire of many of the young to become "rich and famous" rather than a scientist, engineer or artist. A self delusional smokescreen to blind ourselves to our truly inherent and hardwired human nature. A sad and regrettable return to primitive behaviour. A behaviour that still exists amongst the uneducated and those that are deprived of REAL information that potentially could enrich the existence of all living things.
Regrettably we may have been conditioned throughout the ages, to keep the other guy down, win at all costs, look good etc. Have we unwittingly been subject to the distortion of messages of peace by those that seek to control? It is VERY possible. From the deserts of the Persian Gulf to the football fields of the kiddies league this may be happening. Our moral laziness prevents us from being the potentially super beings we KNOW we can be. No matter how much we try to distance ourselves from that knowledge.
This post has been a bit of a rant but I hope it has some clear meaning. I will offer with the words of Mohandas. K. Ghandi...
"The world has enough for every man's need but not every man's greed"
I wish you all of the best dear reader. I hope that my post has not offended. I do not seek to motivate ANYONE to do
anything more radical than to ask themselves a few simple questions and be honest with themselves. This post has been a bit of a mish mash but it was done in "one take", it could have done with better structure and editing perhaps but I have tried to express myself clearly. To end with a previous pair of quotations I have posted...
"Love all, trust a few, hurt no one" - William Shakespeare
"It ain't braggin' if you can back it up" - Jaco Pastorius
To end, for now, be careful what you wish for.
