God & Country: a Film Directed by Dan Partland

I'm watching "God & Country" on Tubi. It's a show about Christian Nationalism directed by Dan Partland. I also saw Rob Reiner as one of the producers of this film.

 

I'll be honest, it's terrifying how any sort of Christianity has morphed into this political machinery. Christianity is no longer about the belief system and the value of the religion, but is now about power and politics. The amount of money spent on revving people up to a political fervor and on creating a fear of secularism is terrifying. 

 

Is Christian Nationalism Christian?

I don't think so. it's not based on the values of the gospels or the culture of Christianity. But, rather, on a violent Jesus, a warrior Jesus...all of which brings on political violence.

There is no way you can look at what is going on and call it Christian. Humanity and the democracy are both in direct danger because of this movement. This movement condones VIOLENCE to get their messages across. We've all seen the increase of American Conservative religious-based violence in the past five years.

 

And it is all based on myths, fear, anger, and disinformation. One of the first and major mythologies spread by this movement is the belief that our country was created and based on a Judeo-Christian ethic. You can read in ANY secular and accurate history book that our brilliant and brave founding fathers created this nation free of an from religion as they were escaping a religious-based religion in England.

 

I'm convinced that most people who are swept up in the fervor will regret their actions very soon as our nation falls into decay and absolute craziness, all kinds of things that have nothing to do with religion or their belief system and everything to do with oligarchical power, authoritarianism, and racism.

There is NO historical example where a religious government was successful or anything other than dangerous. And our nation has embraced Christian Nationalism which is violence.

WATCH THIS FILM!

Have you seen this film?
What do you think?

How Can I Convince Them?

I spend YEARS of my life trying to convince someone that they were wrong about me.

It was someone determined to believe what he wanted to believe. Reality, truth, emotion, evidence. NOTHING convinced him otherwise and, worse, he spread stories and his opinion about me far and wide. To this day, I still feel it in some people when I interact with them. There is very little I can to do change it.

Why am I talking about this?
Because I see it on Facebook all of the time.

HOW can I convince my loved one to see that BL really do M?
What can I say to explain to my loved one how horrible the current president and his administration are?

Good people are constantly looking for the perfect words and phrases to convince their loved ones of fundamental humanist beliefs, of the belief in the goodness of all people.

So what are those words?
I'm sorry, but the answer is there are no special words.

There is nothing you can say.
These people aren't lacking in evidence; they are lacking in desire to believe what you believe or know to be true.
That is racism and that is a choice.

Do not be dismayed by the brokenness of the world.
All things break. And all things can be mended.
Not with time, as they say, but with intention.
So go. Love intentionally, extravagantly, unconditionally.
The broken world waits in darkness for the light that is you.
~L.R. Knost

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Here's How These 80's Actresses Look Now

It's one of those social media tropes that you will find everywhere. Special click bait. Click here and see what that gorgeous woman from the 80's looks like now. What Time does to a person. It's unkind.

Have you seen even ONE of these pieces telling us just what Time will do to a male hottie? I haven't and I have specifically looked. This goes beyond a feminism thing. It's about humans!

I find these clip bait pieces infuriating. It's the shock value that they are going for and that's the low-hanging fruit of click bait. Who doesn't look older after thirty years? Thirty years are hard on a person's appearance. 

Eyes sag, puff, wrinkle. Skin fades, ages, wrinkles, discolor. Hair loses shine, greys, changes texture, grows in places other than one's head. Bodies gain weight, lose weight, lose their vitality, get out of shape. Clothes stop fitting so sweet, stop looking svelte, droop, get super tight. Voices thicken, crack, weaken, get gravely. These things are normal, perfectly normal.

Photographers cheer when they get a bad shot of a former beauty. As though beautiful people gall we average folk. As though we're happy to see the mighty fall. Our country rewards gaffs, falls on stairs, doughy middles, evidence of child birth, crows feet, nerves, lip sag, or grey hair with shame and derision. And the masses enjoy it. Why?

The gratuitous showcase of the ravages of time must be a huge draw for those who click. 

Every single human being ages. Every single beautiful person ages and loses some sparkle. Is this something to be shocked by? Other cultures worship, literally worship, age. 

I refuse to click on the bait. Do you?

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Political Ideologies

Capitalism. Fascism. Libertarianism. Democratic Socialism. Communism. Totalitarianism. Social Anarchism. Anarchy. Oligarchy. Monarchy. Marxism. Liberalism. *

There are many, many ideologies out there and I've been doing what I can to learn about the spectrum. Their main points, how they function, examples in the world, pros and cons, personal and economic issues related to each one, the grey areas, factions. There is so much to learn and digest, I'm sure I'm confused about nearly all of it. 
So pardon me if I sound like an ass:

But there is something that I'm certain of, a conclusion that I've come to on my own: they're all bullshit.

Every single political ideology can be explained and idealized on paper...by somebody. Every single one of these political viewpoint concepts can be rationalized...on paper. But when we take these ideals off of paper and attempt to apply them (all) to human behavior, every one of them goes off of the rails. 

Humans are the problem, I think. So many people, for some reason that I can truly not comprehend, are selfish, lazy, greedy, violent, unfair, dishonorable, corrupt**. It seems to me that anybody who wants leadership in this country, shouldn't have it because the desire for leadership suggests one or more of the previous list: selfish, lazy, violent, unfair, dishonorable, greedy, corrupt.
Power hungry.

I know this post is a bit of a ramble, it's past 4am and my eyes are bleary, but it seems to me that all of the political ideologies that I have studied seem perfectly reasonable and understandable--on paper. It's the carrying out of them in the real world that shows the tremendous deficit in each one of them.

Are you certain that capitalism is the strongest, healthiest, and most reasonable system on the planet? Why do you think this? This capitalistic country is plagued in corruption, greed, violence, selfishness ...our very planet is nearly beyond ecological redemption because of capitalistic notions of what is acceptable. Our very government is responsible for corruption and hateful actions around the world based on the principles of our nation's trade and industry being controlled and justified by what brings the most profit: capitalism. Misery and pain for most, a profit to a few.

Communism, are you certain that it is reprehensible? Communism is a state where the means of production, the trade and industry, is actually owned by the workers. That means that the profit is shared by the workers rather than by the elite 1% like here in America. How can that be wrong? The ideals make perfect sense and are, in fact, rational, and sensible. However, the attempts at actually carrying out this form of government has always resulted in human misery and pain to most, for the benefit of the state.
Because of humans.

Look, I am not smart and I am not erudite about political science or government at all. I simply have a basic awareness that governments of all kinds became necessary when humans began living in collectives, or large groups, in order to have order, fairness, decent living conditions, collective needs met. In the early days of our species, small bands roved around and whatnot until enough of them gathered together in such numbers that it became necessary to have some form of justice, rules to live by, good neighbor policies, I guess. Government. US vs. THEM.

What has happened?
Are there just too many of us on the planet?
Are humans who seek power simply the wrong humans to actually have in power. Am I simply too tired to be writing this blog post***?

I'm convinced that, just like religion, I suppose, governments cost us our humanity. I think people act in blatantly illogical, inhuman, inhumane, short-sighted, uninformed ways based on their political leaning. All political leanings. Are we, as a species, just too weak, scared, or unexamined to make communal living possible? Is there another way?

We all know of political systems in the ancient world that were no less power-hungry than our governmental systems are now and there were far fewer people on the planet at that time. The only thing similar between today's governments and those of three thousand years ago is us. It's our species. We're not at our best when it comes to living together. 

Somebody is always wanting to demonize somebody else. One guy is always trying to exert power or pressure on some other guy. This person needs you to believe as he does. That person needs to take your best stuff for himself. These folks want to take your land because they want it...and they think you don't deserve it as much as they do. These lines must separate us from one another. YOU are different from US. These people would rather close their eyes to problems than look at them clearly. Those people are just fine with treating other humans like crap. You've read history books; you know what I mean.

I mean, with human beings like this, how could any governmental system succeed?

 What do YOU think? 
 How wrong am I? 
 I'm willing to learn 

 *   All discussion and definitions and other stuff on this blog post is in general and not specific.
      You must do your own research.
**  YES, I do recall my last blog post. 
*** YES to this last question, for sure.

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My Own Mind

I don't know if you've ever spent any time looking at the masthead on my blog, that part at the top of the blog page with my cheesy pic on the right, next to the quotation by Ralph Waldo Emerson. The quotation reads Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. I chose that quotation in my life and for this blog very deliberately.

Emerson was a 19th century philosopher, writer, lecturer. He wrote and spoke about something called the Transcendentalism movement, a school of philosophy that gained some intellectual popularity in the early- to mid-1800s, probably in response to the anti-intellectualism brought on by various strains of religion. You can read about Transcendentalism in many great places online, so check it out if you are interested in this. Absolutely inherent in the belief system of Transcendentalism is a belief in the goodness of people and of nature. 

Furthermore, these folks believed that society and its institutions, mainly religions, actually impair and undermine the goodness of each individual. If you've ever read Emerson's series of essays called Self-Reliance, that is what he is referring to, the idea that individuals should rely upon their own thoughts, instincts, and opinions rather than conform to those of other institutions. Emerson would say that individuals are best when they are independent, that, were we, as individuals, to rely upon our own minds rather than those of past authors/philosophers/lecturers, we individuals would create our own independent thought and be better people, thus, self reliance.

Don't blindly follow the thoughts and beliefs of others, true independence comes from self-reliance, and nothing can bring you peace except for yourself. That's what Emerson was saying.

SO, I love the basis of Transcendentalism, though, naturally, I don't follow anyone or any doctrine...kind of like what Transcendantalism says to do.  LOL The quotation at the top of this page reflects exactly how I feel about the necessity for questioning, for continued learning, and for absolute respect for the process of exploration and of the unknown. 

The quote is an incitement, a catalyst, an inducement to myself and to all of those who read this blog to cultivate a life of free thought, of questioning, and of integrity.

Good night, Folks.

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I Know Who I Am

I'm all for the government staying out of my damn life, if it can also make sure that people in need have the support that they need to survive. I'm terribly extroverted, unless I'm not. I'm deliciously introverted, unless I'm not. I've got get out of the house; when I'm not snuggled up on the couch. I'm extremely friendly, unless I'm just keeping to myself that day. I'm feet on the floor, until those days that the existential thoughts, again, swirl my mind. And I'm connected to some exceptionally people, as well as being completely in my own bubble on some days. I feel tranquil, yet driven.

I'm all of these things.
And do you know why?
Because I'm finally me. Me, in all of my varying degrees of things.

For many years I'd thought that I'd really known myself...turns out, I had no idea! But I can say that I'm finally beginning to know me. How weird is that? Turning fifty was a real turning point in my life. It was such a freeing thing, such an empowering thing. I've often heard older women talk about feeling empowered in their fifties, but I simply could not conceive of such a thing, until now.

How could I know that the freedom of reinvention would become a real presence in my life, that the deep love that I feel for people in my life would deepen, widen, develop quiet violence? Rather then sliding down that slippery slope, I feel like the world is opening to me. Rather than paddling and paddling to stay in place, doors open to me and people welcome me in as legit, no need to prove myself anymore. I own literally every single thing that I'll ever need and have no need to accumulate any more stuff. I am both invisible and powerful beyond belief out in the world.

Yes, I am that person who talks to you in the grocery aisle. I'll drive up, roll down my car window and have a chat with you on the roadside. I'll stop and give you the time you need. I'll greet the mailman at the box. I'll drop everything to spend time with you, with your kids, with your kids' friends. I wear comfortable clothing, hair up in a do, eating healthy, wearing sneakers and a cozy, warm sweatshirt with dangling earrings. I'm fitting into the smaller sizes and I often choose to dress up just for fun. I think fondly of high school rather than thinking of it as a cesspool of neurosis. I look at my slightly-greying husband and fondly think He's getting to be a grumpy bugger. I can identify with several different generations and I feel like I fit in comfortably with almost everyone. But mostly, I don't give a FUCK what anybody else thinks.
 
Being in my fifties is wonderful and freeing and expanding and, as soon as this Advil kicks in, I'm going to kick my heals up and party like it's 1999!

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I'm No Economist...But...

Please bear with me; I'm no economist or political science major or business major. Heck, I'm an absolutely terrible person with maths. It's just that I've been thinking about somethings and I keep coming back to a weird conclusion again and again. Surely there is something to my thoughts.
Or maybe not. I do promise to do some research on this idea...

It's Just That...

It seems to me that our economic system in this country, capitalism, isn't working. Over the many years that I have paid any attention to the news, to our economy, to our communities, to our social policy problems, to our environment, so many problems come down to our economic system where money is king. Not just Trickle Down Economics. But so many of our decision seem to be made de facto  due to the fact that money is made somewhere. As though there isn't a good rebuttle to that. It's a bad decision but someone is making money from it or they own that property, therefore we have no right to suggest a better solution.

Yeah, like, still bear with me here. I'm trying to be clear but I'm not sure that I am clear. I'm not even sure that I'm right about this...

I first started thinking about this about thirty years ago when Dad and I were driving down a particular highway that was lined with abandoned factories. The buildings were rusted and idle and truly an eyesore. Not to mention unsafe. I said to Dad something about how the owners of those buildings seem to have some responsibility to leave the land in a cleaner condition before abandoning a lot like that. Dad just sushed me and told me that I didn't have any idea about things and didn't know the real problems. 

Well, I guess I still don't because I still wonder how factory owners (the wealthy ones who build and own the place) can just move their operations to another location, leaving the leviathan abandoned buildings standing there with no other use. I can look around the the St. Louis metropolitan area and see dozens of buildings that fit this description. Then, who has to remove the buildings in order to clean up the place? The city? That makes no sense to me.

Am I missing something?

How about how we are polluting entire riverways and lands from our mining operations and fracking. But because there is cash to be made it's ok? How can such decisions make any sense at all? Why does the bottom line seem to carry so much weight in decisions like this? I'm not convinced that it isn't a mental illness of some kind to require more more more in spite of the obvious needs of humanity and our world, for resources to be used elsewhere.

Deforestation? Removing large swaths of old forests, new forests, rain forests in order to make room for more human expansion. Illegal logging, wildlife's loss of habitat, loss of green spaces, loss of space for indigenous peoples. There might be a quick buck to be made, but at what cost? Who can and will stand up and say no more, OF COURSE NOT?!

I swear, I'm not on a rant. I'm trying to explain what I've finally figured out for myself about capitalism, not that I have any idea what would be a better system than capitalism...

Here's an obvious one.
The wealthy 1% do not use their money. They store it away, leaving less to circulate, putting less into the economy, making the possession of the cash itself to be a goal. I don't get that, is it an issue of monetary hording(?), but that's neither here nor there. The result is that the people with the disgustingly large loads of cash do not spread it around in ways that make sense for any community. Except for a few notable people, money is horded away instead of put into useful, admirable places. Investing in people, communities, causes. Making this world a better, more peaceful and green place. Instead, their money is hidden somewhere... And that's OK, admirable, even, because they have earned it. (supposedly)

These same wealthy people, then, pay off political machines to watch out for their interests. Like they need that, except to gain more money. I mean, why not pay off political machines to support policy that makes this world a safer, more equitable place? I'm not sure that capitalism actually supports ethical decisions like that. I even wonder if there is a level of wealth that should never be reached by human beings or corporations...but I don't know...

Maybe I DON'T KNOW SQUAT and I'm sure I'm showing my ignorance here. Again and again, though, I see humans whose acquisition of cash is obscene and whose use of that cash is equally obscene. These people tend to have connection to the power sources in our country. Why does their wealthy equal power? Is that a typical part of capitalism?

Aren't these things a part of a capitalistic society because the wealthy humans, families, and corporations seek to keep a hold on their money or seek to provide profit to investors? Child labor, intolerably low wages for families, lack of access to health care, lower access to positions of power for those not in the upper 1%, poverty, homelessness, things like Puerto Rico and Flint, Michigan not getting immediate care from our country, massively underfunded schools, war, building up munitions and bombs to ridiculously frightening levels, the wealthy getting away with crimes that they are able to hide, not to mention the huge and powerfully wealthy corporations that actually affect unfair change in our policies, the leap for young adults from living with parents to becoming independent, unemployment, enormous gaps between the classes of people, the lack of research into better fuel sources and other things that might improve the quality of life, the fact that large corporations control what we see on the news and in social media which gives them huge control of public opinion, HUGE environmental crises due to industrialization and product creation, massive life-threatening trash problems, huge hurdles to overcome for small businesses to get a toehold in the economy, people who hunger and thirst for more more more, entire nations are deeply set in poverty, healthcare becoming so ridiculously expensive that most people can't afford even the most basic of care much less life-saving procedures, exploitation of those living in poverty, only those industries that get investment money will make it in the marketplace, the overall devaluing of human life and of animal life and of all life, people living with physical, emotional, or mental health issues are living in poverty and those with money disparage these people as leeches, lazy, or unworthy. Why should our country be so wealthy when the source of that wealth is so obviously from mistreatment of other countries and other peoples?

And I'm not even trying hard with this list.

As a nation with a capitalistic economic system, we look at so many of these things and lament, sad, but that is the way it is. We can do nothing to repair these systems because it is too expensive. All the while, large sums of money are held by large multinational corporations or extremophile wealthy families and we think well, they earned it (or inherited it) so it's ok.


I don't know.
I'm not smart.
But some of these things seem like no-brainers.
I know of no solutions, only more questions. Just that this is worth thinking about and learning more about...

 What do you think? 

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The Apocalypse

I'm not trying to be particularly provocative or negative with this post, 

it's just something I've been thinking about. 

With the continuous human global unrest, I'm sure that a part of all of us wonders what a nuclear blast would be like. We've had at least 2,624 nuclear explosions worldwide since the technology was developed during WWII, detonated by at least eight nations. 
Did you know that? 2,626. 
Think of it.
Isn't that simply ridiculous?

Our species has found 2,626 reasons to release the explosive, concussive power of the atom. This count doesn't even count unknown blasts, underground blasts, and some other types of bombs. It's almost like we can't help ourselves...

Add the infinite number of years that our universe has been in existence, during which time continual annihilation of matter has occurred. It stands to reason that our little haven of a solar system will experience cataclysm some time.

Add other scenarios besides nuclear Armageddon that humans could intentionally or unintentionally bring upon ourselves including ecological disaster, particle accelerator accident, pandemics of all possible origins, 
or some sort of advanced AI scenario not in our favor 

And that brings me to my point.

I'm actually quite OK with the idea of total annihilation of human beings from this planet. With some very marked and noteworthy exceptions, our species has been quite destructive over all. We have poisoned our own planet, our own backyards. We spew toxicity directly into our life-giving atmosphere. 
We have divided ourselves into ever-increasing divisions. We treat our own teeming masses with derision and disrespect. We depersonalize anyone different from ourselves. We remove human rights with personal bias. We show exceptionally cold contempt for other life forms on our planet. We are extremely myopic. And many of us are so confused by various ideologies that we are unable to think our way through the morass.

Thanks to some biological developments and some serendipitous timing, our species is sentient and capable of knowing all of the above issues that allow us to threaten our own existence. I simply don't get it how we don't take this as seriously as possible. 

I don't want an apocalypse, I simply can see it as a distinct possibility. 
And if it happens, with some very market and noteworthy exceptions, 
it won't be a huge loss on this universe.

But it COULD be a loss.
Our species could be incredibly positive in the cosmic universe if, and only if, we can learn to put aside our differences and to value this planet.