You must be an idiot if you care about anything at all.

Originally posted by XxNightAngelusxX

Do you see why it looks like all strong beliefs and movements end in disaster? Who's to say we, the people rebelling against our current government, won't become some inbred psychopaths controlling the governments of the world four generations from now? When there are people in power, there is the potential for the abuse of power. And as long as people walk the earth, someone will be in, or searching for, power. Fighting evil is a never ending war... the other side will never fall, so why fight? What's the point of caring about anything political or conspiracy related? What's the point in anything...?

Without suffering the idea of freedom has little or no meaning.

Do you remember the Occupy Wall Street movement? It was the main feature of the nightly news not so long ago. In short order a solidarity movement began to spring up in over 1500 cities from coast to coast. No one knew where this spontaneous 99% Movement was going, but most agreed it appeared to be the beginning of a global paradigm shift if not an outright revolution. For weeks the observers and commentators in the media keep asking, “What do they want?” The talking heads complained that the movement did not articulated a list of demands.

Over 100 hundred years ago Gustave La Bon observed, “The beginning of a revolution is in reality the end of a belief.” That is what we are seeing today—the end of a belief. What these observers fail to see is these people are disillusioned with the system, making demands seems to bring no last change and so they are done with that approach. For now, they just want to bring attention to the fact the system is broken. Why try to reform a political system that doesn’t work? More to the point, it appears to only work for that 1% in bed with a government which no longer represent the people. Yes, what we have here is the loss of belief and with it a mood of rebellion and revolution—that is why people were in the street.

This movement, like those to follow, was rooted in suffering. It is often said that Americans are freedom loving people, but how can a people who do not know suffering truly value freedom? The fact is they cannot. However, in recent years the American people got a taste of suffering in the form of unemployment and housing foreclosures, the result is what we are seeing unfold. The insurrection against banker occupation has spread all over the world with one unspoken demand: FULL STOP to political corruption and economic injustice.

Will this demand be met? In a word, no. Injustice and corruption will always be with us, but at least for now there is a demand for freedom—a burning desire for liberty. Why? Because the suffering reached a point where the people were no longer content to endure it. Ultimately, however, this human cry for liberty is more than a political demand for social justice. In order for real liberty to come into being it must be manifest in the life of the individual. This means it is our own responsibility to bring it about; it is not the magical fruit of government, it is the product of our own labor and spiritual discipline. As needed as a mass political awakening may be for society at large, unless and until we free ourselves spiritually—there can be no lasting personal fulfillment and no genuine individual liberty.

How then does one attain liberty? How can the individual be free of suffering? This was the question that a man named Siddhattha asked—and we would do well to study the answers he found, for they apply today as much as they did 2600 years ago. The answer he gave was neither political nor religious but rather he pointed to an ancient wisdom called “the dharma” and to a spiritual path he called “the Middle Way.” This man was a rebel against the status quo, but his call to arms was not against government, rather his focus was on self-government. What he brought was enlightenment, empowerment and revolutionary change in the consciousness of the individual mind.

Specifically, Buddha said as long as we hold tightly to our cherished ideas, our beliefs, our memories, our emotions, our thoughts, our cultural memes, and our childish ego, then the self-inflicted pain of dukkha is ever with us. If we understand that this pain is self-inflicted, then it stands to reason that liberation is our responsibility. This is the core teaching of Buddha; it is a call to self-awareness and self-government. It is an individual path, not a collective one, which leads to liberty.

reply to post by AlreadyGone


Good post. I try to do that. But then my mind just wanders back to the endless crap of life. Seems like there's no getting away from it. Just when you think somethings resolved more crap comes up.

reply to post by r2d246


I hear ya... my life is full of my own load of crap. BUT, it is important to keep a good outlook on life. I might suggest... if possible... moving to where the crap is less overbearing... or change your lifestyle.

Even if you can't, our minds and bodies are like a glass... we get out of them what we put in. Start by changing what we put into our minds and bodies...

My friends laugh, but I believe if we fill our lives with positive things... positive waves... good kharma... that is what we get back. Positives draw a positive... negatives draw a negative.

In the Bible it is described as ..." cast your bread upon the waters, and it will come back to you."

I stopped watching all of the explicit, gotesque horror movies... stopped with all the dark metal music... try to stay focused on the positive. I also find creative outlets for creating and self expression. Another tip is to just go out into nature and spend some down time... not on vacation, but everyday... every day off... time alone.. to see nature and realize how small we are.

Suddenly, the reports and files and e-mails are not so important. Get unplugged. Ride into the country and stop somewhere you have never been.. an old hardware store... maybe a mom n pop diner or grill... go to the beach and build a sand castle. Have a midnight cookout with a few close friends.

Example... we have a tradition... Noctoberfest... we have a cookout on the night of the Leonid Meteor Shower... sit out in a big field behind the house... crank up the grill and have our lawn chairs and blankets... we cook "Knockos"... German Knockwursts grilled and then wrapped in flour tortillas with hot mustard and kraut. Maybe a bonfire if it's cold...

Something fun and stupid like that makes us kids again... positive waves, man.