This is a collection of 4 pieces I'd written awhile back, now all collected in one place. Honestly just thoughts on the world and its contents.
A FRUITFUL FUTURE
By Christopher Michael Carter
*A Nation Extreme
Paranoid paramedics parachute from the skies above into the land of capitalist and communist cannibals alike to give aid where needed only to be eaten for their service. We often drop into a dangerous situation that many of us don’t fully comprehend with the intentions to help (in a way that WE feel necessary) and often get killed for our efforts; some sacrifices, some martyrs, and some caught in the crossfire. Capitalism, communism, coexist co-dependently in a spherical world we still treat as though it is flat. The planet is a chessboard to most, though unassuming. The kings move at their own pace one step at a time. The queens go where they please. Their royal guards of bishops, knights, and rooks do the real dirty work while the expendable pawns serve as a barrier between coalitions. Where is our modern day savior who will take the extremists down a peg? Extremism of any kind is indeed more of the issue here than any of the individual points of view. The world, in this dimension or any other, requires a push and pull so it will always remain; however there are many who push and pull too much.
Give an inch and there are those who feel it’s their right to take a mile. People fight for their rights but never think about everyone having rights shared equally as they try to put theirs over others’. Greed is among the worst of the seven deadly sins however there are those who want all of the rights for themselves and less, if not none, for others and that’s as greedy as it gets. The extreme right will thump their Bibles speaking of rights but never notice this. Extremists on the right and the left do the same thing. It starts with a complaint of the off balance, off kilter, and often off putting scales of what we consider justice in this society. Many in the world feel they’re owed something; an artificial sense of entitlement. So many say “I am an American, so these are MY rights” however will complain when one of fame will feel a certain sense of entitlement from their celebrity status.
It’s in the air, in the water, and all around us. People will protest and lash out whilst desecrating the American flag and speaking out against their country while others will attack them for being un-American or “traitors”. In other countries these acts would land them in prison or dead and we, as Americans, look at the actions of those other countries as extreme, often overly strict, or even crazy. We as Americans have the right to voice our disdain for how things are handled but others who claim to be “Real Americans” and “Patriots” will try to steal those rights away. In many ways the protesters who complain and act out against the way they see things done are MORE American than the self-proclaimed patriots who try to abduct their right to do so. The way things tend to go is someone will express their rights by saying what they feel is corrupt and then someone else will step in and say that they shouldn’t say that or feel that way. This reacting person, whether they realize it or not, is attempting to strip the plaintiff of their American rights, which is counterproductive to their goal. It could be argued that the real war we’re fighting as Americans isn’t that of racism and bigotry but other Americans trying to steal our rights. It would seem we’re entering a new Civil War. We should all have the right and ability to express our disliking for government doings (in nonviolent ways unlike the rioters, looters, and assassins) without someone stepping in and masking their belligerent tyranny as patriotism. I’m not for the defacing or the defiling of our flag however I’m not going to fight to have these peoples’ rights removed. If you remove the right to protest we’ll start to unravel and no longer be a democracy but push us more towards totalitarianism. There are fine lines everywhere we step. We’ve always been a very sensitive nation whether we choose to believe so or not but that’s also part of what makes us the United States of America.
People will say, “If you don’t like it here, leave.” Well for one, that’s easier said than done, as most people find it hard to just move out of their house let alone country. For two, if you don’t like something, you have an opportunity to change it and that’s what a lot of activists and such work for. While unaware, the extremist “Real Americans” have a defeatist tone in saying such as it comes across as “This is the way it is, just deal with it.” Finally, for three, the relationship one has with their country is like that of a marriage: you can work together and prosper together but you’ll also fight, argue, and disagree, but they’ll still hold that place in your heart and, on top of that, it’s something you fight for, not give up on so easily as some would have you do.
We are America. It is still the land of opportunity. We can all make a change. We can all leave a mark. A poor child in the ghetto can use their passion to change their status in life just as they can work to change the national, if not global, status. If you want something, you work hard and go get it. If you don’t like the way something is being done, you work hard to change it or at least work to understand it. You’re not owed anything because of where you’re from. You can’t say “I am an American so this is what I deserve” and turn your nose up at the rich children of celebrities who feel the same sense of entitlement because of where or what they come from. It’s not your place of origin that dictates who you are, nor your beliefs, but your actions.
While life is without question easier for some than it is for others, we all enter this world the same: small, naked, vulnerable, unaware, unassuming, without opinions, without a skewed sense of belief, and without a sense of entitlement. We grow and over time develop these things but some people decide to stop growing. Some people have a ceiling to their beliefs and opinions and will come to a halt refusing to learn and grow anymore. That’s life. Not every flower comes to full bloom. We need to continue to grow, to evolve, and to learn. We need to see things from all perspectives; only THEN can an honest opinion or hypothesis be formed. Some people have with each other the mentality that is “This world isn’t big enough for the both of us.” Well, newsflash: in the universal scheme of things we’re all mere particles, specks of dust. There’s no one side of our arguments that is the Be All End All. We can all coexist, we just need to do the work to make our surroundings suit us. When one wants to begin building something but their house’s structure doesn’t lend itself to such tasks, they don’t say “Oh well, I guess I won’t build,” instead they make a workshop. We shouldn’t let our surroundings (or the way they are, rather) dictate how we operate but the other way around.
Life is evolution and adaptation. There are those who fight the concept and simply the word Evolution without taking its definition into consideration: Any process of formation or growth; development. We grow, we learn, and we adapt. There are those who fight natural change by saying “But that’s not the way it used to be”. Well if we go back to the way things used to be African Americans and Women alike (just to name a couple) would all still be persecuted for being who and what they are and would never have the rights to do anything they can do now. Women would still be treated as property and would not be seen as equal. Women would be seen as housekeepers and maids that pump out children. Men would still beat women whenever they feel like it because it was okay back then in some citizens’ “Golden Age America”. African Americans would still be enslaved in a free country. Different races would not be able to mingle with one another let alone be in relationships together. These are just a few points of the way things USED to be. We have a horrid history of segregation and it's a notion that a lot of Americans wish to keep and are unwilling to budge. These are the Americans with low ceilings over their growth.
It’s always been clear that we fear what we don’t understand and become defensive. Just as a man who is approached by an animal; his initial thought is that the animal might be approaching to cause him harm. We don’t understand it and often times won’t take the time to do homework on the subject matter at hand and instead lash out. All of this leads to extremism. Instead of learning and growing we plant our feet firmly and refuse to understand why the other is there. We protect ourselves from something that MIGHT be. I’m not saying to be ignorant, naïve, or unaware; I’m saying to pay attention. We can grow and learn a lot just by paying attention. We won’t always agree, and that’s fine. That’s the push and pull needed. If everyone felt the same and if everything remained the same we’d cease to be what and who we are but we’d become robotic; a universal machine. We are made in the image of our maker and so we in turn create, whether it’s procreation, art, architecture, societies, religions; however it’s hard to keep building and creating when so many of us want to spend our short time on this earth as destructors. There are those who believe in order to build, some things must be torn down. I understand this wholeheartedly, but some things aren’t given a chance to build before they’re demolished. Those same people who want to tear down others in order to build society the way they see fit don’t understand that many of the attributes of the “Old America” need to come down so we can endure. The tread on our tires have worn down and the wire has been showing for some time now and if we don’t change them we’re going to have a blowout.
A stone is a great foundation to be built upon but it can also weigh you down. Explorers of yesteryear had drowned in shipwrecks because they refused to give up any of their heavy goods, their treasure. As babies our umbilical cord tethers us to our motherland and it provides for us but it’s cut and we then need to sustain without it. When children we lose our little teeth so that more stronger teeth may grow back to aid us. We outgrow our clothes and construct more to fit us as we do so. Some of us outgrow our surroundings and beliefs and construct more as we go. Others don’t like this, usually the stubborn ones that refuse to grow.
We, as a nation, are a lot like a group of strangers in a movie theater: everyone’s in tight quarters viewing someone else’s creation while having various opinions on it (from mild to extreme) and everyone fights for an armrest, a good spot to see, a level of comfort while having an opinion or belief. How do we rectify this crowded theater of opinionated viewers such as ourselves? Well, one could say “Give everyone equal space and be respectful” but at the same time that kind of goes back to that defeatist thought of “It is what it is so let’s just get through it as comfortable as possible.” Another, and more progressive, outlook is to say, “Let’s build a bigger and better theater where we can all have our ideal seats, vantage points, and room for comfort in our contrasting opinions.”
Some will look at life as a situation of right or wrong, black or white. “I’m right. You’re wrong. This is the way it is.” Although, in a lot of ways, it’s more about comfort. “Are we comfortable with this being done? At which point does the comfort stop and we have to speak up?” We’re comfortable with this over here being right and that over there being wrong, but everyone’s different. What is comforting to some is quite discomforting to others but where does the discomfort come from? Those who are against certain groups of people getting married, what does it matter to you if people who are complete strangers to you get married? Those who are anti-abortion, what does it matter to you what complete strangers decide with their bodies? You point to your beliefs and say that your problem with these things are that they’re not living according to those guidelines, but in all honesty, not only should you make sure YOU are living by those guidelines before casting stones but you should also keep in mind that those are YOUR beliefs and will not be shared by all. Those of you who are against people owning guns, what does it matter to you if a complete stranger wants to own a weapon? Because one owns a weapon does not mean their intent is malicious; it’s their personal choice of personal property. There’s nothing wrong with guns or wanting to own a gun. A gun is a tool and the problem that comes from shootings are that of the intent and mind frame of the individual using the tool, not the tool itself. If someone is killed with a hammer will we ban hammers? After a hit and run nobody stands up and says to ban or boycott motor vehicles. We’re so afraid of the sheer THOUGHT that someone might push their beliefs on us that we, again, as said earlier, become defensive. We’re often reactive whilst being proactive simultaneously. We’re so afraid of what people are going to do with what they have whether it’s a gun or a mind. When people are in power others tend to be afraid of the change that will come, what they will DO with said power.
We’re all strangers in some way or another and we all make executive decisions in our personal journeys. What does it matter if someone is doing something that is against your beliefs? It never occurs to us that the way WE live is going against someone ELSE’S beliefs. Many people go through life with blinders on. They see the little world they’ve constructed for themselves and have no interest at all in seeing other worlds but instead will watch from their window and criticize their neighbors for THEIR decisions that they feel they’ve had to make in THEIR lives. We live our LIVES, not LIFE. We are all individuals. To put people in categories, to me, seems to deny the concept of the soul. To generalize and say “This group of people are like THIS and they act accordingly” is to say “There is no individual soul but one entity and they’re all the same”. We can say “I’m an American” but that doesn’t fully encompass who or what we are. There is so much more to each and every one of us. We need to stop treating each other and, in turn, ourselves as one dimensional. Life is full of texture and it’s texture that makes us stand out.
Our nation is so much like a sports team: we go through different seasons, different rosters, coaches, owners, fans, etc. Sometimes we have a winning season and sometimes we don’t. Your favorite team will go through the worst season of their career but you still back them. You say “Man, they sucked this year. We need to change this or improve on that.” It’s exactly how people are with our country. “Man, that decision sucks, they need to change this or improve on that.” Like sports, there’s always going to be different seasons and things change. There’s never going to be the same lineup forever. Whenever there’s a new administration there’s always a group who throws a fit and says “That’s it! Our country is over! They just ran it into the ground!” Everything is for a season. Nothing is over. Things will always change. It goes back to that defeatist attitude of “Well it’s done. That’s it. I don’t like it but it’s the way it is.”
Again, things change. Every administration going back to the beginning of presidency has caught the same flack. Every time there’s a new president there’s the ones who say “He’s going to destroy everything! He’s the antichrist!” and then it’s time for them to step down and new people come in and catch the EXACT same treatment. The world is full of conspiracy theorists and doomsday preppers who are all looking for the end instead of A) Understanding the way things change over the years and B) Attempting to make any changes themselves. If you stare at one brushstroke or blot of paint the whole time you’ll never see the whole painting; never see the big picture. They’re so busy with their apocalyptic tunnel vision that they fail to see what good can be done and, by that, fail to see what good THEY can do.
We often see the world through windows and the wonderful thing about windows is not only do you see what’s out there but you also catch a reflection of yourself. So while we’re looking at others thinking about what they’re doing and why they’re doing it, we need to remember to look at ourselves as well. Every time you point your finger there are more than a hundred fingers pointing back at you. Some take their finger pointing to extremes and the extremism IS the problem with this country. The mind goes from 0 – 100 on some things: One group says, “We want equal rights! We want to be treated like you!” and another group replies, “They’re trying to take our rights away!” Sadly, that’s just how a lot of people think. Fighting for rights is great, one of the many textures we hold as a country, however we need to keep in mind (and for some people, learn) that just because one has rights doesn’t mean it reduces or eliminates someone else’s. The scales of justice are easily off balanced especially when so many of us are as greedy as we are. We want more, it’s only natural, but we do need to find a balance. How do we attempt to complete a race when we’re constantly shooting ourselves in the foot?
Presentation is always key. The old saying “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it” applies greatly to our country. Just be smart about things. You don’t have to agree but you don’t have to be a raving, violent lunatic to get your point across. We need to nix the extremism, on the right AND the left, and start using our minds. Just use common sense and THINK; give it a shot at least...
*In Fear of the Divided States of America
I was giving some thought to the idea of a neo-segregation in light of our recent racial flare-ups. I understand these problems have always been there but that's usually the way it works with most issues: there's an underlying issue brewing over time and then POP! Something jumps off and the problem is put out on front street, warts and all. I thought about what the purpose would be in such a neo-segregation in this day and age of mixed races and biracial people in the world. But then it hit me: the double dip. Usually seen in entertainment home media, the practice of putting out, let's say a DVD, only to release a different, more packed version some time later. It's the same with games: gamers buy a title, play the game and eventually buy the upgrade or expansion pack. All of this very easily could have been released in one go. I do, however, understand that it's a money and distribution issue. With the neo-segregation that a lot of people would love to vote for if available you'd have the same double dipping. "Whites Only" "Blacks Only" all the same product, food, etc. The top of the food chain corporate bosses don't care who's eating where as the only color they care about is green. It’s not really about greed; it’s business. So while managers and whoever will say "We only serve white people" THEIR boss doesn't really care as long as Somebody buys Something. Gasoline companies, oil companies, restaurateurs, internet/phone providers, they all shouldn't care however the racial separation of years past would come in handy financially as it Would be another form of the double dip. But it's not just racially, no, it's gender related as well. How many times have we seen products in stores separated as "-For Men", "-For Women", " Men's Formula", "Women's Formula" and upon closer inspection it's %99 the same product.
Where does our growing population of transgender citizens fit in? If this recap separation is instituted they seem to be lost in the shuffle. Our neo-segregation has even spilled over to sexual preference. A lot of places won't serve gay customers. Now, again, the higher ups beyond the resident manager don't care. They want product pushed. It goes on to affect religious views as well as now, more than ever, the country is split on Muslim acceptance and trust. This world we live in doesn't grow. It's not going to expand with time. I can't really say it shrinks either. More than anything what isn't reshaped by our construction and landscaping is reshaped by climate change (be it storms, droughts, or other). In terms of the Earth's existence the human race in its modern "civilized" incarnation hasn't been around that long and we're still figuring things out apparently. But the financial "elders", the big wigs, the empirical pencil pushers have it figured out: serve the same product to many different groups and markets at various prices with different advertising and marketing. Everyone buys said product in one way or another and the pockets stretch like a womb. The world we live in is very much high school on a global scale with everyone in their varying cliques. And the overseers will be the ones to profit from the neo-segregation, not any of the opinionated so-called patriots who want walls up everywhere to protect their sanctuary for personal rights. Keep everyone separated; charge them different fees for different packaging all holding the same ingredients. It would seem as though we could all find a common ground in consumerism.
All of us in the maze aren't seeing a cut of what we pay for. We just keep moving through life in hopes to run out of dead ends. We're all in this together. If we continue to be placed into categories and boxes then we will all continue to fall for the double dip, the triple dip, and so forth. We're often so blinded by our bickering and differences that we fail to see this for what it is. Imagine prison: cells and cells of inmates of different viewpoints fighting constantly... But they're all in the same place, just different boxes with different numbers. You can fight about what's right and wrong all you want but in the end of the day it doesn't matter. Insects fight all the time while we're unaware and step on them in passing. A lot of people are programmed from youth that it’s best to keep people separated, disillusioned that it solves problems when it’s evading problems instead of facing them head on. Segregation will help salesmen who pander to various chapters... But it won't help us, the segregated. Stay United, America.
*The Future of Our Canvas
I grew up a science fiction fan. My love for sci-fi films grew more as I grew. I love all kinds; all of the cross genres of sci-fi + horror, comedy, drama, fantasy, etc. Almost more than anything else I love the designs of the worlds created in the genre. One of my favorites is that clean, sterile, blank look; real minimalist. I always wondered where the idea of that look came from; how did the designer think that’s what the world would look like? How did they come to that particular look? And then it hit me… We’ve hit a world now where everyone’s offended by something. The offenses aren’t new offenses by any means; we’ve all just decided to be more vocal about them. Within the past decade, almost more than any other, more people are realizing their voices and standing up saying “Hey, I don’t like that. Don’t show it.” Art has always been scrutinized for its content but it seems that the intricate and expanding ratings systems on every piece of entertainment isn’t enough and people still want to speak against it, and that’s just merely an example.
Today we’ve hit a point where people have no qualms about stating what offends them and that said offenses shouldn’t be shown. It’s much like children and how they operate. The more vocal child speaks up and throws a fit about how much they dislike something and it’s removed. So the next child says “What about me?” People use examples and state “Well if we have to change THIS then why shouldn’t THAT be changed as well? It’s only fair.” People tend to fight for what’s fair on a personal level. We’ve lived with the same list of rights for so long people think if there are more rights given that it somehow changes the list instead of the thought of EXPANDING the list of rights. Conservatives are offended by the rainbows and what it represents; free love and equality. Liberals are offended by symbols that are most commonly associated with oppression and segregation. You can tell a lot about a person by what they stand against. People tend to weave their religious views and beliefs with their constitutional rights when, in all honesty, they don’t always go together. Sure, we have the right to believe what we choose but it doesn’t negate or cancel out the rights of others. Our personal rights are near and dear to us and we tote them with us wherever we go even if it’s out of our jurisdiction. As Americans we get upset when we have to “Press 1 for English” however when we find ourselves in another country we expect some things to be in English and the people to speak English fluently.
We’re always going to be rubbed wrong by another’s belief system or turned off by their actions. As said, we’ve come to a point where people are standing up more and more and saying “This bothers us; why must we be forced to look at it on a daily basis?” Everyone wants an equal piece of the pie and the fight for those pieces is getting stronger, but at what cost? The colorful décor of the country is fading by each individual offense taken. There was a cereal commercial that featured a family of mixed race and people freaked out. “How can they show this on TV? Why can’t the family be all one color, one KIND?” Instead of growing and expanding their national pallet people want to fight for the way things were. That’s the way it works for people who these rights work for, of course, the ones in which these rights work against don’t feel the same. A lot of people want to CONSERVE their way of living and are threatened by the thought of expansion while others want to LIBERATE us from the chains of yesterday and move forward anew.
In this fight it seems that our solution is to remove everything that is deemed offensive, and what is righteous and just to some is offensive to others. What is peace to some is chaos to others. It would seem that a lot of times people aren’t actually offended by what they claim but are more offended by someone else getting their way and then, whether we realize it or not, it comes out “What about ME?” Much like school, often times one child won’t get punished but the whole classroom will take the heat. We’ve all heard “Okay, class, if the one who did this doesn’t stand forward, I have no choice but to punish everyone.” And that is exactly what is going to happen: eventually every bit of décor that makes this a colorful country will be taken down and we will be left with a blank, sterile, “safe” exterior to appease the masses. Surely homes will still be granted the right to have their interiors however they see fit, however, it would almost seem as though it won’t be long before our interiors are dictated as well. Even though I enjoy the look of these sci-fi films with their view of a cold world, the thought that it’s becoming a reality is a little scary and with everyone fighting to take down what bothers them we’re edging closer and closer to that “futuristic” Earth. I now understand why so much science fiction holds such a view of the future however the “fiction” in this genre’s title is slowly fading and it’s becoming a harsh desolate view of the blank expression of a catatonic nation. While it’s smart to stay alert, we needn’t worry as much about outside forces as much as our infighting in that we will all kill each other (ourselves) over how we all personally see our individual rights. We are a strong willed bunch and we will fight (outsiders AND each other) for rights to the bitter end although I’m afraid in doing so we will eventually erase what we have worked so hard for.
So to appease the ever growing sensitivity of the first world everything will come down and what will be left is a blank canvas in which painting on will eventually be outlawed. Of course, this is all in theory…
A FRUITFUL FUTURE
By Christopher Michael Carter
*A Nation Extreme
Paranoid paramedics parachute from the skies above into the land of capitalist and communist cannibals alike to give aid where needed only to be eaten for their service. We often drop into a dangerous situation that many of us don’t fully comprehend with the intentions to help (in a way that WE feel necessary) and often get killed for our efforts; some sacrifices, some martyrs, and some caught in the crossfire. Capitalism, communism, coexist co-dependently in a spherical world we still treat as though it is flat. The planet is a chessboard to most, though unassuming. The kings move at their own pace one step at a time. The queens go where they please. Their royal guards of bishops, knights, and rooks do the real dirty work while the expendable pawns serve as a barrier between coalitions. Where is our modern day savior who will take the extremists down a peg? Extremism of any kind is indeed more of the issue here than any of the individual points of view. The world, in this dimension or any other, requires a push and pull so it will always remain; however there are many who push and pull too much.
Give an inch and there are those who feel it’s their right to take a mile. People fight for their rights but never think about everyone having rights shared equally as they try to put theirs over others’. Greed is among the worst of the seven deadly sins however there are those who want all of the rights for themselves and less, if not none, for others and that’s as greedy as it gets. The extreme right will thump their Bibles speaking of rights but never notice this. Extremists on the right and the left do the same thing. It starts with a complaint of the off balance, off kilter, and often off putting scales of what we consider justice in this society. Many in the world feel they’re owed something; an artificial sense of entitlement. So many say “I am an American, so these are MY rights” however will complain when one of fame will feel a certain sense of entitlement from their celebrity status.
It’s in the air, in the water, and all around us. People will protest and lash out whilst desecrating the American flag and speaking out against their country while others will attack them for being un-American or “traitors”. In other countries these acts would land them in prison or dead and we, as Americans, look at the actions of those other countries as extreme, often overly strict, or even crazy. We as Americans have the right to voice our disdain for how things are handled but others who claim to be “Real Americans” and “Patriots” will try to steal those rights away. In many ways the protesters who complain and act out against the way they see things done are MORE American than the self-proclaimed patriots who try to abduct their right to do so. The way things tend to go is someone will express their rights by saying what they feel is corrupt and then someone else will step in and say that they shouldn’t say that or feel that way. This reacting person, whether they realize it or not, is attempting to strip the plaintiff of their American rights, which is counterproductive to their goal. It could be argued that the real war we’re fighting as Americans isn’t that of racism and bigotry but other Americans trying to steal our rights. It would seem we’re entering a new Civil War. We should all have the right and ability to express our disliking for government doings (in nonviolent ways unlike the rioters, looters, and assassins) without someone stepping in and masking their belligerent tyranny as patriotism. I’m not for the defacing or the defiling of our flag however I’m not going to fight to have these peoples’ rights removed. If you remove the right to protest we’ll start to unravel and no longer be a democracy but push us more towards totalitarianism. There are fine lines everywhere we step. We’ve always been a very sensitive nation whether we choose to believe so or not but that’s also part of what makes us the United States of America.
People will say, “If you don’t like it here, leave.” Well for one, that’s easier said than done, as most people find it hard to just move out of their house let alone country. For two, if you don’t like something, you have an opportunity to change it and that’s what a lot of activists and such work for. While unaware, the extremist “Real Americans” have a defeatist tone in saying such as it comes across as “This is the way it is, just deal with it.” Finally, for three, the relationship one has with their country is like that of a marriage: you can work together and prosper together but you’ll also fight, argue, and disagree, but they’ll still hold that place in your heart and, on top of that, it’s something you fight for, not give up on so easily as some would have you do.
We are America. It is still the land of opportunity. We can all make a change. We can all leave a mark. A poor child in the ghetto can use their passion to change their status in life just as they can work to change the national, if not global, status. If you want something, you work hard and go get it. If you don’t like the way something is being done, you work hard to change it or at least work to understand it. You’re not owed anything because of where you’re from. You can’t say “I am an American so this is what I deserve” and turn your nose up at the rich children of celebrities who feel the same sense of entitlement because of where or what they come from. It’s not your place of origin that dictates who you are, nor your beliefs, but your actions.
While life is without question easier for some than it is for others, we all enter this world the same: small, naked, vulnerable, unaware, unassuming, without opinions, without a skewed sense of belief, and without a sense of entitlement. We grow and over time develop these things but some people decide to stop growing. Some people have a ceiling to their beliefs and opinions and will come to a halt refusing to learn and grow anymore. That’s life. Not every flower comes to full bloom. We need to continue to grow, to evolve, and to learn. We need to see things from all perspectives; only THEN can an honest opinion or hypothesis be formed. Some people have with each other the mentality that is “This world isn’t big enough for the both of us.” Well, newsflash: in the universal scheme of things we’re all mere particles, specks of dust. There’s no one side of our arguments that is the Be All End All. We can all coexist, we just need to do the work to make our surroundings suit us. When one wants to begin building something but their house’s structure doesn’t lend itself to such tasks, they don’t say “Oh well, I guess I won’t build,” instead they make a workshop. We shouldn’t let our surroundings (or the way they are, rather) dictate how we operate but the other way around.
Life is evolution and adaptation. There are those who fight the concept and simply the word Evolution without taking its definition into consideration: Any process of formation or growth; development. We grow, we learn, and we adapt. There are those who fight natural change by saying “But that’s not the way it used to be”. Well if we go back to the way things used to be African Americans and Women alike (just to name a couple) would all still be persecuted for being who and what they are and would never have the rights to do anything they can do now. Women would still be treated as property and would not be seen as equal. Women would be seen as housekeepers and maids that pump out children. Men would still beat women whenever they feel like it because it was okay back then in some citizens’ “Golden Age America”. African Americans would still be enslaved in a free country. Different races would not be able to mingle with one another let alone be in relationships together. These are just a few points of the way things USED to be. We have a horrid history of segregation and it's a notion that a lot of Americans wish to keep and are unwilling to budge. These are the Americans with low ceilings over their growth.
It’s always been clear that we fear what we don’t understand and become defensive. Just as a man who is approached by an animal; his initial thought is that the animal might be approaching to cause him harm. We don’t understand it and often times won’t take the time to do homework on the subject matter at hand and instead lash out. All of this leads to extremism. Instead of learning and growing we plant our feet firmly and refuse to understand why the other is there. We protect ourselves from something that MIGHT be. I’m not saying to be ignorant, naïve, or unaware; I’m saying to pay attention. We can grow and learn a lot just by paying attention. We won’t always agree, and that’s fine. That’s the push and pull needed. If everyone felt the same and if everything remained the same we’d cease to be what and who we are but we’d become robotic; a universal machine. We are made in the image of our maker and so we in turn create, whether it’s procreation, art, architecture, societies, religions; however it’s hard to keep building and creating when so many of us want to spend our short time on this earth as destructors. There are those who believe in order to build, some things must be torn down. I understand this wholeheartedly, but some things aren’t given a chance to build before they’re demolished. Those same people who want to tear down others in order to build society the way they see fit don’t understand that many of the attributes of the “Old America” need to come down so we can endure. The tread on our tires have worn down and the wire has been showing for some time now and if we don’t change them we’re going to have a blowout.
A stone is a great foundation to be built upon but it can also weigh you down. Explorers of yesteryear had drowned in shipwrecks because they refused to give up any of their heavy goods, their treasure. As babies our umbilical cord tethers us to our motherland and it provides for us but it’s cut and we then need to sustain without it. When children we lose our little teeth so that more stronger teeth may grow back to aid us. We outgrow our clothes and construct more to fit us as we do so. Some of us outgrow our surroundings and beliefs and construct more as we go. Others don’t like this, usually the stubborn ones that refuse to grow.
We, as a nation, are a lot like a group of strangers in a movie theater: everyone’s in tight quarters viewing someone else’s creation while having various opinions on it (from mild to extreme) and everyone fights for an armrest, a good spot to see, a level of comfort while having an opinion or belief. How do we rectify this crowded theater of opinionated viewers such as ourselves? Well, one could say “Give everyone equal space and be respectful” but at the same time that kind of goes back to that defeatist thought of “It is what it is so let’s just get through it as comfortable as possible.” Another, and more progressive, outlook is to say, “Let’s build a bigger and better theater where we can all have our ideal seats, vantage points, and room for comfort in our contrasting opinions.”
Some will look at life as a situation of right or wrong, black or white. “I’m right. You’re wrong. This is the way it is.” Although, in a lot of ways, it’s more about comfort. “Are we comfortable with this being done? At which point does the comfort stop and we have to speak up?” We’re comfortable with this over here being right and that over there being wrong, but everyone’s different. What is comforting to some is quite discomforting to others but where does the discomfort come from? Those who are against certain groups of people getting married, what does it matter to you if people who are complete strangers to you get married? Those who are anti-abortion, what does it matter to you what complete strangers decide with their bodies? You point to your beliefs and say that your problem with these things are that they’re not living according to those guidelines, but in all honesty, not only should you make sure YOU are living by those guidelines before casting stones but you should also keep in mind that those are YOUR beliefs and will not be shared by all. Those of you who are against people owning guns, what does it matter to you if a complete stranger wants to own a weapon? Because one owns a weapon does not mean their intent is malicious; it’s their personal choice of personal property. There’s nothing wrong with guns or wanting to own a gun. A gun is a tool and the problem that comes from shootings are that of the intent and mind frame of the individual using the tool, not the tool itself. If someone is killed with a hammer will we ban hammers? After a hit and run nobody stands up and says to ban or boycott motor vehicles. We’re so afraid of the sheer THOUGHT that someone might push their beliefs on us that we, again, as said earlier, become defensive. We’re often reactive whilst being proactive simultaneously. We’re so afraid of what people are going to do with what they have whether it’s a gun or a mind. When people are in power others tend to be afraid of the change that will come, what they will DO with said power.
We’re all strangers in some way or another and we all make executive decisions in our personal journeys. What does it matter if someone is doing something that is against your beliefs? It never occurs to us that the way WE live is going against someone ELSE’S beliefs. Many people go through life with blinders on. They see the little world they’ve constructed for themselves and have no interest at all in seeing other worlds but instead will watch from their window and criticize their neighbors for THEIR decisions that they feel they’ve had to make in THEIR lives. We live our LIVES, not LIFE. We are all individuals. To put people in categories, to me, seems to deny the concept of the soul. To generalize and say “This group of people are like THIS and they act accordingly” is to say “There is no individual soul but one entity and they’re all the same”. We can say “I’m an American” but that doesn’t fully encompass who or what we are. There is so much more to each and every one of us. We need to stop treating each other and, in turn, ourselves as one dimensional. Life is full of texture and it’s texture that makes us stand out.
Our nation is so much like a sports team: we go through different seasons, different rosters, coaches, owners, fans, etc. Sometimes we have a winning season and sometimes we don’t. Your favorite team will go through the worst season of their career but you still back them. You say “Man, they sucked this year. We need to change this or improve on that.” It’s exactly how people are with our country. “Man, that decision sucks, they need to change this or improve on that.” Like sports, there’s always going to be different seasons and things change. There’s never going to be the same lineup forever. Whenever there’s a new administration there’s always a group who throws a fit and says “That’s it! Our country is over! They just ran it into the ground!” Everything is for a season. Nothing is over. Things will always change. It goes back to that defeatist attitude of “Well it’s done. That’s it. I don’t like it but it’s the way it is.”
Again, things change. Every administration going back to the beginning of presidency has caught the same flack. Every time there’s a new president there’s the ones who say “He’s going to destroy everything! He’s the antichrist!” and then it’s time for them to step down and new people come in and catch the EXACT same treatment. The world is full of conspiracy theorists and doomsday preppers who are all looking for the end instead of A) Understanding the way things change over the years and B) Attempting to make any changes themselves. If you stare at one brushstroke or blot of paint the whole time you’ll never see the whole painting; never see the big picture. They’re so busy with their apocalyptic tunnel vision that they fail to see what good can be done and, by that, fail to see what good THEY can do.
We often see the world through windows and the wonderful thing about windows is not only do you see what’s out there but you also catch a reflection of yourself. So while we’re looking at others thinking about what they’re doing and why they’re doing it, we need to remember to look at ourselves as well. Every time you point your finger there are more than a hundred fingers pointing back at you. Some take their finger pointing to extremes and the extremism IS the problem with this country. The mind goes from 0 – 100 on some things: One group says, “We want equal rights! We want to be treated like you!” and another group replies, “They’re trying to take our rights away!” Sadly, that’s just how a lot of people think. Fighting for rights is great, one of the many textures we hold as a country, however we need to keep in mind (and for some people, learn) that just because one has rights doesn’t mean it reduces or eliminates someone else’s. The scales of justice are easily off balanced especially when so many of us are as greedy as we are. We want more, it’s only natural, but we do need to find a balance. How do we attempt to complete a race when we’re constantly shooting ourselves in the foot?
Presentation is always key. The old saying “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it” applies greatly to our country. Just be smart about things. You don’t have to agree but you don’t have to be a raving, violent lunatic to get your point across. We need to nix the extremism, on the right AND the left, and start using our minds. Just use common sense and THINK; give it a shot at least...
*In Fear of the Divided States of America
I was giving some thought to the idea of a neo-segregation in light of our recent racial flare-ups. I understand these problems have always been there but that's usually the way it works with most issues: there's an underlying issue brewing over time and then POP! Something jumps off and the problem is put out on front street, warts and all. I thought about what the purpose would be in such a neo-segregation in this day and age of mixed races and biracial people in the world. But then it hit me: the double dip. Usually seen in entertainment home media, the practice of putting out, let's say a DVD, only to release a different, more packed version some time later. It's the same with games: gamers buy a title, play the game and eventually buy the upgrade or expansion pack. All of this very easily could have been released in one go. I do, however, understand that it's a money and distribution issue. With the neo-segregation that a lot of people would love to vote for if available you'd have the same double dipping. "Whites Only" "Blacks Only" all the same product, food, etc. The top of the food chain corporate bosses don't care who's eating where as the only color they care about is green. It’s not really about greed; it’s business. So while managers and whoever will say "We only serve white people" THEIR boss doesn't really care as long as Somebody buys Something. Gasoline companies, oil companies, restaurateurs, internet/phone providers, they all shouldn't care however the racial separation of years past would come in handy financially as it Would be another form of the double dip. But it's not just racially, no, it's gender related as well. How many times have we seen products in stores separated as "-For Men", "-For Women", " Men's Formula", "Women's Formula" and upon closer inspection it's %99 the same product.
Where does our growing population of transgender citizens fit in? If this recap separation is instituted they seem to be lost in the shuffle. Our neo-segregation has even spilled over to sexual preference. A lot of places won't serve gay customers. Now, again, the higher ups beyond the resident manager don't care. They want product pushed. It goes on to affect religious views as well as now, more than ever, the country is split on Muslim acceptance and trust. This world we live in doesn't grow. It's not going to expand with time. I can't really say it shrinks either. More than anything what isn't reshaped by our construction and landscaping is reshaped by climate change (be it storms, droughts, or other). In terms of the Earth's existence the human race in its modern "civilized" incarnation hasn't been around that long and we're still figuring things out apparently. But the financial "elders", the big wigs, the empirical pencil pushers have it figured out: serve the same product to many different groups and markets at various prices with different advertising and marketing. Everyone buys said product in one way or another and the pockets stretch like a womb. The world we live in is very much high school on a global scale with everyone in their varying cliques. And the overseers will be the ones to profit from the neo-segregation, not any of the opinionated so-called patriots who want walls up everywhere to protect their sanctuary for personal rights. Keep everyone separated; charge them different fees for different packaging all holding the same ingredients. It would seem as though we could all find a common ground in consumerism.
All of us in the maze aren't seeing a cut of what we pay for. We just keep moving through life in hopes to run out of dead ends. We're all in this together. If we continue to be placed into categories and boxes then we will all continue to fall for the double dip, the triple dip, and so forth. We're often so blinded by our bickering and differences that we fail to see this for what it is. Imagine prison: cells and cells of inmates of different viewpoints fighting constantly... But they're all in the same place, just different boxes with different numbers. You can fight about what's right and wrong all you want but in the end of the day it doesn't matter. Insects fight all the time while we're unaware and step on them in passing. A lot of people are programmed from youth that it’s best to keep people separated, disillusioned that it solves problems when it’s evading problems instead of facing them head on. Segregation will help salesmen who pander to various chapters... But it won't help us, the segregated. Stay United, America.
*The Future of Our Canvas
I grew up a science fiction fan. My love for sci-fi films grew more as I grew. I love all kinds; all of the cross genres of sci-fi + horror, comedy, drama, fantasy, etc. Almost more than anything else I love the designs of the worlds created in the genre. One of my favorites is that clean, sterile, blank look; real minimalist. I always wondered where the idea of that look came from; how did the designer think that’s what the world would look like? How did they come to that particular look? And then it hit me… We’ve hit a world now where everyone’s offended by something. The offenses aren’t new offenses by any means; we’ve all just decided to be more vocal about them. Within the past decade, almost more than any other, more people are realizing their voices and standing up saying “Hey, I don’t like that. Don’t show it.” Art has always been scrutinized for its content but it seems that the intricate and expanding ratings systems on every piece of entertainment isn’t enough and people still want to speak against it, and that’s just merely an example.
Today we’ve hit a point where people have no qualms about stating what offends them and that said offenses shouldn’t be shown. It’s much like children and how they operate. The more vocal child speaks up and throws a fit about how much they dislike something and it’s removed. So the next child says “What about me?” People use examples and state “Well if we have to change THIS then why shouldn’t THAT be changed as well? It’s only fair.” People tend to fight for what’s fair on a personal level. We’ve lived with the same list of rights for so long people think if there are more rights given that it somehow changes the list instead of the thought of EXPANDING the list of rights. Conservatives are offended by the rainbows and what it represents; free love and equality. Liberals are offended by symbols that are most commonly associated with oppression and segregation. You can tell a lot about a person by what they stand against. People tend to weave their religious views and beliefs with their constitutional rights when, in all honesty, they don’t always go together. Sure, we have the right to believe what we choose but it doesn’t negate or cancel out the rights of others. Our personal rights are near and dear to us and we tote them with us wherever we go even if it’s out of our jurisdiction. As Americans we get upset when we have to “Press 1 for English” however when we find ourselves in another country we expect some things to be in English and the people to speak English fluently.
We’re always going to be rubbed wrong by another’s belief system or turned off by their actions. As said, we’ve come to a point where people are standing up more and more and saying “This bothers us; why must we be forced to look at it on a daily basis?” Everyone wants an equal piece of the pie and the fight for those pieces is getting stronger, but at what cost? The colorful décor of the country is fading by each individual offense taken. There was a cereal commercial that featured a family of mixed race and people freaked out. “How can they show this on TV? Why can’t the family be all one color, one KIND?” Instead of growing and expanding their national pallet people want to fight for the way things were. That’s the way it works for people who these rights work for, of course, the ones in which these rights work against don’t feel the same. A lot of people want to CONSERVE their way of living and are threatened by the thought of expansion while others want to LIBERATE us from the chains of yesterday and move forward anew.
In this fight it seems that our solution is to remove everything that is deemed offensive, and what is righteous and just to some is offensive to others. What is peace to some is chaos to others. It would seem that a lot of times people aren’t actually offended by what they claim but are more offended by someone else getting their way and then, whether we realize it or not, it comes out “What about ME?” Much like school, often times one child won’t get punished but the whole classroom will take the heat. We’ve all heard “Okay, class, if the one who did this doesn’t stand forward, I have no choice but to punish everyone.” And that is exactly what is going to happen: eventually every bit of décor that makes this a colorful country will be taken down and we will be left with a blank, sterile, “safe” exterior to appease the masses. Surely homes will still be granted the right to have their interiors however they see fit, however, it would almost seem as though it won’t be long before our interiors are dictated as well. Even though I enjoy the look of these sci-fi films with their view of a cold world, the thought that it’s becoming a reality is a little scary and with everyone fighting to take down what bothers them we’re edging closer and closer to that “futuristic” Earth. I now understand why so much science fiction holds such a view of the future however the “fiction” in this genre’s title is slowly fading and it’s becoming a harsh desolate view of the blank expression of a catatonic nation. While it’s smart to stay alert, we needn’t worry as much about outside forces as much as our infighting in that we will all kill each other (ourselves) over how we all personally see our individual rights. We are a strong willed bunch and we will fight (outsiders AND each other) for rights to the bitter end although I’m afraid in doing so we will eventually erase what we have worked so hard for.
So to appease the ever growing sensitivity of the first world everything will come down and what will be left is a blank canvas in which painting on will eventually be outlawed. Of course, this is all in theory…
*The World in the Dish Rack
I'm washing the dishes and to the right of the sink is a canister of disinfectant wipes. I see that its top is open and, while I'd like to chastise my wife or daughter (or even dog), I know I left it open, twas I. My right hand reaches up and over and the one second before my index finger shuts the lid this runs through my mind: when cleaning wipes of any kind are left open they dry out. It doesn't matter how big the container or how small the opening. This then got me to think about our less than solid ozone layer. I thought with damages to the protective bubble around our planet how long before we dry out? It again took me to fiction as it usually does as I thought it interesting that most apocalyptic & post-apocalyptic stories involve a dry, desert like world. Putting it together that perhaps it's not just a textural aesthetic but a subconscious prediction. With war and aerial chemical expansion from pollution and other, constant traffic in and out of our atmosphere and mass temperature changes our bubble is bound to burst or at least rupture.
Our atmosphere/ozone layer/protective shield from the cold, noiseless, and weightless black yonder is much like the Earth's appendix: you don't really put a lot of thought into it unless you work in that field but you certainly think about it when it ruptures or, worse, bursts. So perhaps post apocalyptic stories aren't as fantastical as they seem. Perhaps we run the risk of drying out. If this is the case, it's inevitable, and there's no logical patchwork that can be done. I think our next big step would be coming up with a planetary pocket protector but some of the issues with such an idea would be ownership over the protective cover and traffic. Which country would own what fraction? Who funds it? How do we keep it and still travel off planet? If it's broken by a meteor shower what insurance covers that? Sometimes there will be the idea that could help change and prolong life however all the questions that could never be answered are put in the mix and the idea's legs don't seem strong enough to stand. Or perhaps because these questions seem so overwhelming, much is stopped before starting. How do we preserve our moist amphibian world and keep from drying out like the cleaning wipes? Is it futile to even give it a thought? Would the thought just bring on more paranoia, neuroses, and confusion of man's legacy?
The lid's closed. Second's over. Time to finish the dishes.
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