Tuesday, November 07, 2023
Wednesday, November 01, 2023
Stormtroopers of narration control
It is always exhibition of power,
and wanton greed, that use common people as fodder. There are no effective
multilateral agencies nor efficient mechanism for synergic response to
safeguard against transgressions, most countries are ruled by authoritarian
leaders with almost no democracy while others are ruled by hereditary despots
using religion or controlled by army or feudal ways to control the herd, and
those that are democratic are mostly controlled by greedy psychopaths trying to
amass their influence. In such scenario we can only be appalled and hope for
better sense to prevail. We can only pray for unfortunate people who face worst
of the world, and also feel fortunate for not being in such situation. In the meanwhile, we can also respond by
making every attempt at our disposal to see that power that sustains such
dehumanizing systems are weakened, people presented with egalitarian choices
and enlightened ways so that they can assert and protest against transgression
on their liberty and freedom. They get educated and understand the importance
of being a human and not reduce to herd. They become vigilant compassionate humans
and not compliant segregated herd (snarling and vandalizing only for ‘our’ herd
and ready to kill ‘other’ herd). There are devious forces trying to trap human
being to frozen histories, fixed identities, and classify for benefits and
control.
In the aftermath of barbaric
attack on Israel -that saw massacring for more than thousand people within few
hours, the scale of brutality should shudder any human being. But what we saw was
appalling display of people in support of this horror. Primitive societies
nurture brutal people, and that is the norm, and always a threat to the world,
more they grow more is the threat. But what was shocking was that these parades were happening in
democratic societies that values liberty and freedom, and as always compromised
Britain leading the way. These appalling celebrations of horror were also seen
in many cities that pride in liberal values, accepting environment and egalitarian
spaces. That some people, despite all the opportunities provided by open societies,
think that brutalities against other humans is to be celebrated is a horrible
statement on values nurtured. It is a caution and a lesson. Each and every
person who supported/supports hamas must be weeded out and face full force of
law (indeed in Australia -of all the place -indicating how things have
degraded, some people were seen shouting ‘gas the jews’). There are videos
available, liberal societies cannot nurture such people among its midst they
are termites, they eat from inside. This was hours after innocent people were
massacred and kidnapped by barbarians. Ofcourse now scene has changed. Brutal bombardment
of Palestine and massacring of civilians has become serious concern, and those
in support of plight of Palestinians -and against Israel state, are on the side
of humanity. What also need to be understood is that terrorists have created
massive underground network in gaza against Israel and are using civilians as
shield. There are complexities but what cannot be denied is that civilians,
specifically children, must be given safe passage to leave the area and
extended all humanitarian aid. Meanwhile Israelis must revolt against state,
and demand complete stoppage of war on Palestine. They can eradicate hamas but
they leave vacuum for increasingly hostile people like what they did in Iraq
and Afghanistan. Death of single innocent human being is a colossal tragedy on
life. Netanyahu has no moral right to be the prime minister.
There is another sinister presence
that needs to be identified and dealt: The leftist intellectual. Let us make
one thing very clear. Marxism is a powerful and liberating idea, and it has
contributed much to the understanding of dynamics of society and power matrix
within. It is an insightful presence and a check on crony/neocapitalism, wanton
consumerism and feudal control through neo colonial agencies. Communism in a
democratic society is a pitch towards socialism and distributive justice. It
has nurtured and consolidated democracy through grassroot social movements all
across the world. Grassroot consolidation leads to high level of literacy hence
awareness of rights and progressive values, efficient public health and
distribution system leading to better quality of life and possibilities. Kerala
is an example of grassroot consolidation of democracy significantly through communist ideas and
socialistic values (ofcourse entrenched feudal ways, corrupt values and lack of
ethical contexts have severely limited the progressive intents). While Bengal is
an example of failure of communism, a failure due to lack of grassroot democracy.
Bengal remains low on social indices but high on left intellectuals and amazing
level of hypocrisy that it breeds. There is a reason why communism in Bengal
was uprooted without any trace. It is a study on depravities of left
intellectualism. Abstraction into theories that alarmingly loses any connection
with reality, essentially an ego ride, so much so that humans are abstracted
for elitist indulgences -the kind that has roots in Britain. In some market
driven circle it is also fashion statement, and with gandhian mix it becomes extremely
virile power display for the sake of proletariats.
So, although Marxism is an incisive understanding on society it is flawed as model for governance and can only complement within the democratic framework. Leftist intellectuals worked on binary narration of society as class, and as they abstracted these into spheres of dealing in their zeal (and characteristic indifference) they abstracted humans too. So in the absence of individuals empathy had no value. Theory and control over narration was the game. Unique context of human condition was systematically ignored in favour of the narration. Left thinkers are therefore perpetually trapped in the binary narration of historical dialectic. For them every contemporary event has to be controlled and evaluated through this narrative prism. They already have semantics abstracted to fill narration, carefully abstracted words that is used to compress class wars from history to the present, hence presenting a neat version of contemporary that they parrot devoid of the complexities. With this characteristic positioning, that essentially lack empathy, they can easily side with barbarity since it suits the leftist narration. Like capitalism, which only values humans as profitable cog in the system, communism has created binary of collective where human is lost in abstraction. This abstraction is now their only concern, to work their narration, and since leftist intellectuals almost always emerge from feudal frames with all the benefits and regressive values intact, a high level of sense of entitlement over fellow human being, they work their abstraction through comforts of debating clubs and increasingly narrower coterie of writings and dehumanized esoteric arguments dangerously disconnected from sense, this then is applauded by the group. Enthused they pretend to be in the pole position as moral arbitrators on all critical issues. They eventually get trapped in the hypocritical justification of their own loop of narration. Abstracted ideas and narrative control becomes more important than basic ethics or even decency. A normal human being will shudder at brutality on another human being but for leftist intellectual this is a paradigm justifying moment, they do suppress their winning smile though -a glimmer of humanity. Meanwhile any deviation from prescribed narration is taken as a personal failure, an affront on theory, and lacking compassion they hedge their emotion on ego. Thus, what we get is a boorishly rude person as left intellectual, lacking empathy or concern for contemporary or compassion for human predicament but ever ready to elaborate with high sounding words and exceeding articulate performance that do charm the youngsters. Idealist youngsters are susceptible, and by the time they unravel the layered chicanery they have already compromised their soul. Ofcourse, I do agree deeper involvement with ideas are important and a necessary stepping stone to understand world better. Or else there is always the herd hauling abyss of religion and mediocrity of market capitalism. Marxism is a compelling viewpoint to evaluate the world. It though is woefully limited and dangerously insidious like religion and neoliberal values. In the end it too is virulently dehumanizing and segregating. What is sinister is that it poses as an anti-thesis to market and religion, and glimpses a better world -that is a mirage. Communist atrocities that have led to mass killing and misery are rarely condemned by left intellectuals. It is not about compassion or reevaluating their worldview or position but a personal failure to communicate. Dead people could easily be explained with abstract words into abstract humans. Hence it is about chiseling the ideology, against the binary of imperialism. What they don’t realize is that they are increasingly the worst side of the coin. Leftist intellectuals have made Faustian deal with power. Be very concerned.
As thoughts get sophisticated words get evolved to express the nuance of the complex world we live in. Ideas get evolved and consolidated through words. The problem is when it loses connection with reality -importantly with humans and environment that are essential part of it. It is a passion devoid of humanity or habitat. It therefore becomes sinister manipulation to sustain their position in the argument. You will see how least concern left intellectuals are when some humans don’t fit their narration -even when they are brutalized or killed, concern is to articulate the logic. Since marxian world is a historical struggle of binary, they will also rarely show any concern for environment -it is not something that is factored, and like its adversary capitalism, nature is an exploitable means. Abstracted human as an agent is their concern everything else is usable for bigger cause. They see human as an abstraction in historical progress -struggle. This also makes them extremely sensitive about history. The use of abstract words and thoughts are therefore not for awareness of contemporary reality -the complexity of which has miniscule connection with history (past is exaggerated by devious forces to work the status quo of misery and trap humans for power struggle). There are therefore ‘colonial’ forces. If Israel-Palestine conflict is frozen as ‘colonizing’ -that is sought to go back to early last century, then there are many colonial angsts all across the world. Hindu herds will say it was colonizing forces that divided their land, it was an injustice that they would like to rectify. And they have ample history to prove their claim for pure land, extending from whole of south Asia and beyond. So why not invade Pakistan and rectify colonial injustice (some nutcases do hold this view, as an unfinished agenda). Vice versa, muslim herd from Pakistan would claim that India is part of their pure land, since muslim king ruled for centuries. So they have compelling reason to attack India and free their pure land. What kind of ridiculous arguments are these? Left intellectuals are notorious for working history to bring their besotted godforsaken dangerous narrations. Abstracted human herein is no longer struggling against historical exploitation but is a conduit to power that nurture herds into their pre assigned ascribed roles to repeat and replicate historical dialecticism. Intellectualism essentially boils down to ego ride of psychopaths who use humans as fodder for narration.
It is through semantics of
abstracted meaning that we try to understand, and then attempt to deal with the issue.
Words helps us to understand the complexities of the world we are in. We really
need to therefore critically analyze these crucial words that keys the issue as
also the power play within. Most thinkers, in their growing phase atleast, are
influenced or have engaged with left -since left had deeper involvement as
their concern is collective struggle against power, so words gets accepted and
with that the context. Now this is problematic. When you control the context of
the word you also control the narration and intricacies of engagement. The
narration of abstracted collective lacking humanistic concern, as a mass of
people evolving in the binary struggle. History therefore is the lynchpin of
context from marxian viewpoint. Historicity their weapon of choice to cleverly
work into leftist narration of struggle against power. The problem here is
history is always incomplete, manipulated, controlled, and significantly, has increasingly
limited value (indeed nuisance) to understand the complexities of contemporary
-we live in an increasingly complex world with catastrophic challenges that
were inconceivable even few decades back. Since historical dialecticism is the
foundation of marxian history, history is the wound that has to be kept
festering. This is how you work the binary of us and them. The way left
intellectual look at the world one would think human beings are divided into
two unrelated species. And the one with which left intellectual sides are
essentially human while the other has to be destroyed -far left doesn’t rule
out violence the reason why they must be contained within democracy and strict
rule of law.
Since the world is complex, and with profusion of technology and comfort as also social media and easy access to global world, individuals have found their voice and have become assertive to express their reality. Simultaneously lacking deeper engagement, or nuanced approach, to whatever is there to deal. The world is increasingly attention seeking, superficialities rivet. This is where words become even more important. People are not reading long incisive articles and insightful understanding but throwing words at each other which carry deeper meaning -many a times without realizing it. Words that invoke history is what we need to be beware of since it brings in fracture of the past that surely has no, and must not have, relevance to contemporary. Systems that invoke these words are persistent threat to the world we live in. Communism and religion are systems that seek relevance from past. They really have nothing much to offer for the contemporary. The binary -us/them, segregation, dehumanizing values lacking compassion or concern is how these systems consolidate. They persistently bring words from the past to degrade the present. With words they bring the context of dead past as festering wound, and so the world loses much of humanity. So, eventhough communism steadily lost its influence across the world due to its incapacity to abstract human for their collective dialectic they are able to control the narration through the words used that percolate into common parlance and claims of historical wrongs and counter claims -that use same semantics of deal devoid of contemporary context.
Communism spread in 20th century and held hope for better world but very soon major flaws were apparent. In the last few decades, it has failed or had to morph from core ideology to garner support. Failure to abstract human for collective dialectics is a fall out of the changed world. Technology leading to individual assertion and increasing awareness of nuance of world we live in -individual context and human condition. Communism though has much left to offer against work place exploitation through unionizing collective voice against neoliberal neocolonial power structures spreading through market capitalism and their nefarious attempts to control through insidious technologies. Socialism remains a significant understanding for public policy. Technology, and easy access to world, has also led to lack depth in dealing and understanding. In this superficial, and increasingly fake and manipulated, world human seeks collective -being social animal as also dreading loneliness, isolation or incapacity to face frightening human condition and absurdities of life. Superficial values of unthinking minds find juvenile premise of religion comforting, its assured association with other compelling. There is also primal subconscious angst for known that get satisfied, as also fear of unknown assuaged through fantastical claims and grand stories. The reason why religion despite its anachronistic degrading values gets primacy. Laughable claims that don’t stand basic scrutiny is found acceptable, and in complete horrifying dehumanization are ready to kill another human to justify the absurd. Such absolute lack of connection to reality of existence and faith in fantasy is what religion presents. More the number of herds increases more it stands as a challenge to humanity.
The paradox of lacking followers
but firm control over narration is where left intellectual workout their
devious plan to establish their entitled self on the world. Instead of high
stand of abstracting humans for collective struggle they now find readymade
collective -albeit herd with entirely different concern but equally dehumanized
and segregated. So, the left intellectual doesn’t have to dehumanize people
into abstract human collective, herd is already dehumanized and incapable to
think. The binary of imperial forces, colonial atrocities and fascist agenda
are words that are freely used. Herd has to be a victim. While herd controlling
state is the aggressor, indeed, imperial fascist force. There are no
complexities. Period. Left intellectual has his or her work cut out. And in the
luxuries of feudal trappings, they pronounce the verdict in spellbinding
semantic flourish that encompass vistas of history to how we landed into
the present. This is the danger we face.
The essential and abiding identity
of human being is to be a human, a vibrant life with all unique possibilities. There
is providence of race and gender which shouldn’t matter if societies have
evolved. Any other identity is a choice. It cannot be imposed on people, to classify
and segregate. Ofcourse societies can be primitive, individuals insecure and
crass, but that is not the reason to dilute progressive thoughts and evolved ideas.
Being a social animal human being must have the all the option to associate
into collective of their choice and identify as they wish. What matters is
humanism and understanding, and a connection with reality of life. If you
persistently classify people -and piece of land, under religion then you take
away the choice of being a human -it is an assault, and ofcourse also the absurdity
of branding land as a claim for religion. These absurdities are deviously worked
into history, and then into contemporary to create recurring loops of misery
and wasted future. It places humans as replication of past generations and as
such lack faculties to think or express, or the capacity to identify with vibrant
present. It is an attempt at negating human, and bracketing into preconceived
identities. The reason why progressive societies must actively remove religion or
its influence from education space that impress young minds. Education is meant to
equip to be a human and assert one’s unique individuality.
To relegate crisis to past -the history,
as definitive reference is to trap people in a sinister loop wherein devious narration
control act as arbitrators and moral authority. The claim of history can easily
be challenged since it is based barbarism of past -which shouldn’t be a
reference for present. To claim victimhood from past is spurious attempt at obfuscating
complexities of present. Victims were in context to time and space in which
they lived. Their choice were denied. The claim of victimhood from history is based
on the fallacy that you represent the victim and that you don’t have choice, or
that past is about you. What is needed is to deny the past, and attempts to
invoke it. What is needed is to see that systems that denied choice in past is
relegated. Feudal structures and regressive values that denied humanity is dismantled.
Democratic ideals and institutions are nurtured, freedom and liberty asserted.
Recently there are calls made to apologize for colonial atrocities of past from british monarchy. This is precisely the ridiculous level to which narration are controlled, without any care for contemporary. Where do you draw the line of where history ends or begins? Or to whom do you apologize? Where the societies democratic with each individual enjoying freedom before western colonization? As we stretch history back in time the list of apologies will grow. Similarly, many religions and faiths controlled land over centuries, and much before that early human settlers from hunter gatherers. If anybody has claim on land then it should be early humans, much before any contemporary religions existed. Where do you freeze the line of history, and why? And who decides? This invoking of history is dangerous and futile. There is no doubt that monarchy is a regressive presence and sustains feudal values and carries the fractures of past and must be dismantled. Its continuation is an insult on each and every human being on earth. Colonialism is a source of festering wound across the world. It is however failure of society to blame the past, it shows incapacity to deal with the present. Many societies, specifically in east Asia, were poor swampy regions only a few decades back but through investment in education as also progressive values are able to reclaim. Britain need not apologize for its past, it is absurd. It must surely apologize for the present.
Saturday, October 28, 2023
Wednesday, October 25, 2023
Failure of collective will
We are facing existential crises that
needs collective global response. Technology has made it possible for global
collective actions the kind never seen in human history. The possibilities this
offer is tremendous. But there is a failure of intent. There is a failure of
collective will. It’s a colossal failure of humanity. Consequences are dire.
There is urgent collective action needed to prevent climate breakdown
-indications are pointing to growing fracture, how fast this will cascade into
runaway climate is to be seen. With this the collapse of biodiversity and resilience
of habitats and all that we care.
If Bush hadn’t taken the megalomaniacal
path of retribution world would be a better place. What was needed was
precision targeting terrorist hideouts and infrastructure with intelligent
input. Carpet bombing Iraq as a personal vengeance against Saddam Hussain and
all the mass killing and mayhem led to an unsafe world. Netanyahu is playing
the same text book of incompetent leader trying to redeem himself using crisis
as an opportunity to consolidate. He is unhinged. His bravado has serious consequence. What Israel
needs is a new leader who doesn’t take this as a personal failure but a
collective failure and works this crisis as an occasion for transformation. Enough
of bombing Gaza, message is communicated that such barbarianism against state
has dire consequences. But this really cannot go on. It has well past the
retributive intent. It is now a crime against humanity. Those supporting this
military action by Israel in Gaza need to pull the plug. This will have to
stop.
Meanwhile supporters of terrorist
groups must face full extent of rule of law. What also need to be understood is
that when we support Palestine against, what is now essentially a crime against
humanity, assault by Israel we are not morphing this as trap of Islamic brotherhood
nonsense and the vicious narrations that it spreads, nor supporting Israel
earlier has to do with zionism or stand against antisemitism. Suffering humans anywhere
is a concern for all and we extend our support. Some suffering, it seems, has
more traction than others among opportunists because it has more number of herds.
Religion should have no place in identifying what suffering to associate to. These
kinds of easy narrations are dangerous and meant to segregate and dehumanize,
and undermine complexities and essential human condition as also devious forces
at play. Democratic countries should have space for protest against massacre unleased by Israel but if it is calling
for annihilation of Israel -very much orchestrated by islamic radicals as some kind
of medieval war against jews, then we have to be very cautious and weed these
out. The call for ‘free palestine’ seems to be couched in euphemism for annihilation
of Israel. People must really make it clear what this means, or is it like what
they are shouting in Britain; to ‘remove’ jews. One would avoid using words
like antisemitism or islamophobia since these are trigger words for wider narration
and counter narration of grievances that has absolutely no relevance in contemporary,
indeed it complicates and vitiates. Beware of those who use these terms. It is
a criminal lack of context and complexities of contemporary and an attempt at
easy narration of control. Left movement, which was expected to provide vibrant
viable option against wanton market capitalism and cronyism with assertions of
socialist values that strengthens democracy, is seen with suspicion for associating
with worst of humans as victims hence playing into revivalist regressive right.
You cannot use common people as fodder. Collective will need intent of
sincerity and concern.
What is urgently needed is to defuse the situation in middle east. Israel must cease its military actions. Hostages must be released. Outside forces must stop its meddling and let civil society meet and work it out. Negotiate without falling into the semantics and pitfalls of the past. This is not about history. This is not about religion. It is about human beings. It is about the contemporary reality we live in, and only this awareness can help find some meaningful attempt at peace.
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
Israel need to stop
ENOUGH. Israel must cease its attack on Palestine. Message is conveyed. Terrorist will be pursued for their crime against humanity (ideally multilateral international agencies must be involved), their infrastructure and safe havens destroyed. Israel has no reason to stretch it beyond this. This cannot becomes vendetta of failed leadership to justify its fringe element at home. This is akin to Bush's personal war against Iraq. It is now crime against humanity. Netanyahu has no reason to continue as decision maker. His government has catastrophically failed to protect Israel's border. Ofcourse Hamas is terrorist organisation and all its infrastructure must be destroyed and each and every supporter pursued and dealt severely under rule of law but that doesn't exonerate Israel of its amazing failure to protect its border and citizens.
President Biden, and USA, is therefore now responsible for this continuation of attack on Palestine. This will have to stop immediately. Declare Palestine as separate country but with restriction to arm itself or right for defense force which should be strictly monitored by international agencies. Israel has existential fear from extremely hostile neighbors and from dangerous herd indoctrinated to see 'Jew'/other humans as eternal enemy, network of terror. There seems to be no other solution to this carnage perpetuated by worst of people against humanity. The world cannot sit back and ogle at 'viral videos' of death and misery that numb sense. This horror will have to stop.
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
Human misery and semantic traps
As war mongers trap ordinary
people through devious systems and work the fracture for opportunities, to
gather power and influence, what is being lost at an alarming rate is space of
sanity, of liberal values and egalitarian contexts. Complacency of elites in open
societies (that provided democratic progressive spaces, individual liberty and
freedom) has become a significant source of this degradation. Their proprietorial
authority over common people through medieval feudal structures, nepotistic
association and neo colonial control has severely damaged the social contract.
Their sense of entitlement has seen to it that they use common people as fodder
to cover up their irresponsible ways for easy fixes. They let egalitarian
values and democratic ideals to be diluted as they nurture primitive systems. Instead of letting humans thrive and reach their potential they
authenticated systems that dehumanizes and degrades humans. They patronized religion
and wanton consumption-based capitalism to play havoc while they used semantics
of higher morals to consolidate their positions as representors of better
world. They sold themselves as smart operators and aspirational figures.
Democracy therefore is reduced to a conduit of brutal power plays. The reason
why charlatans and psychopaths have such influence.
Democracy needs constant
vigilance, it took centuries of effort to reach this stage of human progress,
to consolidate this humanism based endeavor and value systems to take root in
societies, into individuals and the way they think and influence their
surrounding and world, and is therefore preferred across the world as optimal
way of governance. It guarantees individual right and provides freedom to pursue
one’s dream and aspirations. This is what progress means, this is the most significant and abiding achievement of
humanity, all scientific and technological achievements are byproducts, and
this is where the future is hinged. This has come with great sacrifice and tribulations. The
forces that sought to undermine were always active and still are. If we are not vigilant then
this progress will wither away. There are grassroot movements that seek to
consolidate the gains of democracy into individual relations and social
institutions. They work under tremendous odd as obscurantist regressive forces
gain across the world. Unfortunately, in the name of vigilance what we are increasingly
having are rant rakers and activist opportunists who create the binary noise
against the leaders without ever wondering why are certain type of people getting
elected or that people are preferring them. These opportunist choose the easy narration and play local guardian to herds -as oppressed, without pointing out the reason. They failed to critically
scrutinize systems that churn out these herds, whether religion herd or market
herd or herds of circumstance who became incapacitated to apply their mind
since they are too much coopted by the system. Vicious forms of religions are
gaining control while some are searching viciousness in benign beliefs to match
the threat and counter threat. These have severely eviscerated egalitarian intents and weaken
democratic institutions. Regressive dehumanizing religions, feudal systems that
nurture crony capitalism and consumption and provide base to neo capitalism
have become serious threat to humanity. These are not accidents or providence;
they are culmination of sinister forces working the fracture.
It is matter of grave concern
that egalitarian liberal values are confined to few spaces across the world,
and in the last few years sought to be further reduced thus a significant setback to
progressive values. With technology and awareness one would have thought liberal values will spread and world would be happier place with all possibilities. Unfortunately that is not what is happening. There are also efforts made to subjectify and degrade democratic
institutions to let in primitive systems as a case for inclusiveness without scrutiny. West is severely
compromised by its complacence and sense of entitlement. In the schizophrenia
of self-assured superiority and self-loathing angst they don’t realize
they are being eaten from inside. The rise of China doesn’t hold much hope, and
will be a constant source of regressive consolidation across the world. This is
not what China is -indeed could have been a source for progressive forces but
is shackled by devious authoritarian forces making them a serious threat, so is the case of Russia -and opportunist elite
in West have much to blame as they gained from crony capitalism and strategic influence with fall of USSR. NATO has no role in the contemporary and is invoking fractures of cold war. Instead of strengthening multilateral agencies like UN they made it ineffectual to deal with global challenges. Much of Arab
world is barren land of medieval religion/values and competing feudal forces presenting
not much hope. There is money and glitter, but nothing really progressive.
Pathbreaking ideas comes from spaces that nurture excellence -it is necessarily
based on liberal values that provide freedom to question. Inquisitiveness
doesn’t thrive in closed society.
Humanity progresses by not
falling into the traps of past or sustaining systems that nurtures these. As
humanity gains more awareness meanings of the words used must assimilate the changing
context, or else we need new words to factor the evolved awareness and stop using words of the past. We really cannot repeat the same words and expect the
world to be different. Just like science, as the knowledge is updated meanings
changes and therefore the reality changes. So, it is matter of serious concern
that western leaders and commentators are falling into semantic trap of the
past and thus nurturing fractures of past hence persisting the misery. Meanwhile
authenticating vicious obscurantist forces seeking to segregate and trap humans into fixed narrations lacking any complexity or regard.
We fall into the well-set trap and carry the burden of history, and keep
looping the misery without much learning or any control over fate. Hence what shouldn’t repeat
repeats with appalling frustrating regularity. Words are incapacitated to convey iterating understanding or awareness
of contemporary. History can only repeat when societies are static and dead
while humans are incapacitated as herd to be manipulated by devious forces and
everyday charlatans. A world in status quo will necessarily repeat the tragedies of the
past.
Words that are critical of religion
cannot carry the burden of past. There is nothing wrong with anti-Semitic nor
is there any problem with being a religiophobic -islamophobia or hinduphobia or
whatever, these are western narration of compromise that is devoid of contemporary
understanding and has dangerous ramifications. Anachronistic juvenile context
of misery spreading religions must be critically scrutinized and ridiculed. Followers
are not special, and indeed are major source of degradation all across the
world. Recent scenes of support for horrendous violence of terrorist group Hamas
(that surely has pattern of a religion which has not been scrutinized critically
and is relativized with other religions. Clearly, large numbers spread across
is holding some kind of blackmail call hence precious values are being
compromised and common people fed as fodder) is not anti-semitic nor attack on
innocent people in Israel anti-semitic. Nor does these horrible attack invoke history of genocide of jews. This
horrible violence is not anti-semitic, giving into this narration is to prise
open the wounds of history that has no comparison or relation with contemporary
realities whatsoever. It is playing into the hands of devious forces who seek
to control and segregate through religion and attaching sins of history. Attack on innocent people in Israel
is an assault on humanity. It is a deep wound on collective psyche of humanity.
It is not anti-semitic. To reduce it to attack on jews is an affront to the
world we live in. These horrors are reflection of complexities that we face,
and religion can only be given minor significance. Complexity of changing aspirations,
of widespread technology and access, of toxic social media, of weapons with tremendous
destruction power, of shifting geopolitical complexities and depravities so on. Complexities
also include actions of Israel as also present reprisals that surely needs to
stop.
Sunday, October 15, 2023
Indigenous voices need protection and representation
Today’s rejection of referendum by
Australia to give political rights to indigenous population is a serious setback.
Some common pattern needs to be recognized here. Countries like Australia, New Zealand
and Canada have conducted genocides against indigenous people, to decimate quaint cultures and enslaved them into their religion and way of life. While no real
attempts were made to give political rights to voices of these oppressed
uprooted vulnerable voices, they showed devious vehemence to showcase degrading
religions and regressive values as exotic hence minority and showered with kindness -that these religions
surely do not deserve while they usurp minority voices and ideas, weakening democracy
and individual rights. Canada was, and continues to be, extremely violent towards indigenous
population while they encourage worst of religions. What is significant is that
these nations i.e. Australia, Canada and New Zealand are headed by british monarchy, white people/christianity. This should shudder the soul of humanity that this
colonial legacy -that necessarily represent wanton exploitation of land and
people, is still carried on without any irony while indigenous people are
denied their voice. Compromised political system -that places centrality to feudal
values and christianity, has led to misplaced and easy redemption seeking through
feeding other religions -as minorities and exotic presence, for deviant compulsions
of multiculturalism. Worst of people and values are being nurtured. It is not
at all surprising that these nations are breeding ground for religious extremism
and active source for misery across the world. Britain has done immense damage
to the world, and continues to do so.
Over the last few centuries indigenous
people, tribes and aborigines were brutalized by powerful competing forces
across the world, and sought to be decimated. These are original
people of the land. They have deep connection to the world they live in. They carry
the wisdom of centuries. They are soul of the land. They represent the entirety
of biodiversity of the land as they are intricately connected to it unlike dehumanized
people slaving for power and money while destroying their own habitat and
nature with impunity. As earth is reaching a point of no return for human existence
it is the indigenous voices that matter most. They are not exotic presence with
colorful attire to fill in the gala of photoup. They need active representation
not only at national level but at all international forums. Voice of indigenous
people is the voice of earth. We need to listen. We need to listen carefully.
*Many years back I spent time with various tribes across India, mostly trying to understand their world view as also language and poetry/oral traditions. There maybe bit of romanticism here, mundane and disappointments, but yes there is lot to learn. You could easily sense deeper connections through language, poetry, certain aspects of way of life and thoughts.
Saturday, October 14, 2023
Thursday, October 12, 2023
Sins of 20th century
Herd kill each other for the sins
of the past. They kill because they are trapped in the systems of past
controlled by sinister forces. They kill because they are incapable to be
human. They are the sins of 20th century that raises its ugly face to
shadow the hope of future. They are kept trapped in semantics of past as they
are incapacitated to live the realities of present. Herd is a profound lost possibility of
humanity. More they grow more they end up wasted.
Land is about power. The control changes with time. To claim that land eternally belongs to a particular religion doesn’t stand the scrutiny of time nor civilized expectation of contemporary reality. The claim of religion over land cannot be allowed to be normalized. There is no Islam land or Jew land or Hindu land. Land belongs to people who inhabit, and not of eternal control of religion. People have different identities and claims, to straight jacket identities of vibrant people into staid religion is the biggest racket orchestrated by sinister forces in the recent times, to divide, distract and control. There were sacred sites in the past and as the power control shifted the site became irrelevant. This has been the history of homo sapiens for thousands of years unlike blessed herd want to believe from the assumed security of their eternal trapholes. Invading marauders, religious nutcases, colonizing psychopaths captured land and claimed to be theirs. Narration controlling historians authenticated these simplistic versions and thus seeped it into common knowledge which now becomes rallying point for herd claims and counter claims, hilarious and horrible. History is much complex than what historians with limited access can perceive. Indeed, it is difficult to comprehend history, and is as difficult and meticulous as paleontology. Atleast paleontology doesn’t suffer as much conjecturing as history does. We need to be humble about our lack. At the most we can get a glimpse, and to claim the glimpse is the whole is initiation of simplistic version leading to ever simplified occupation of herd mind. History is sought to control the present, the reason why narrow version of history is fed through control of medium. One would have thought that with dilution of control through social media they would acknowledge the humbling complexities hence work together but instead what we get is rabid ranting hawkers of little glimpses they carry arrogantly as their version of whole world while cheered by ever polarizing herd. They fight with each other to impose their superior glimpse of history over other hence control and claims. While sinister controllers evaluate the situation for opportunities.
If humans were humans, alive to
the complexities of life, there wouldn’t be claims of ‘our land’ and ‘their land’
that juvenilities of religion feeds. So, people can move and settle wherever
they want while adhering to rule of law and basic decency. This synergic involvement for evolved expression is what democracy proposes. The reason why herd
has audacity to not only claim their unique sacredness but divine right to kill other humans, even
children, is what sinister systems does to people. Human take the extreme step
of killing another human being for possession, passion, to survive or is mentally ill. Human
is no longer a human when they kill for system. They become herd, and gain potential to do worst atrocities. Since they are detached to what is to be a
human, they objectify other into ugly version and abstract lessons of history. So, innocent children
could be massacred, women are stripped of any individuality (and as pointed earlier primitiveness
of religions vary, some haven’t really been scrutinized critically hence move
around with their depravities intact while well placed opportunists use this as
bartering tool for power and influence) and reduced to object of power display.
In the meanwhile, nature is as much vandalized. Sacred life is violated in
every possible way while herd claim sacredness of their land and their inviolable
right to destroy. A human being realizes that to destroy life is to destroy oneself. Herd is incapable for such nuance. Herd is eviscerated of any human qualities
hence works in the Manichean binaries of simple world of loyalties and punishments of horror.
Challenges of future can only be
faced by human being aware to human condition and vibrantly alive to complexities.
Juvenile fictions of holy hell books and anachronistic dehumanizing feudal systems
have no space in the future dealing, at the most they can be warily tolerated, ridiculed
and critically scrutinized. They cannot have any special ordained place. To give dehumanizing
systems a special place is an assault to humanity. Semantics of 20th
century cannot be allowed to be carried without scrutiny. These embed fractures
of past, and are meant to trigger the herd into set pattern of actions and
counter actions. Complexities of contemporary world cannot be confined to
dreary patterns of the past.
Those who are nurturing dehumanizing
systems and feudal values must be called out and held responsible. They don’t value
nor respect human life. They infect every egalitarian effort for their sinister
control. They know that religion can easily be used to trap and manipulate vulnerable
people hence nurture these as identities for easy control. Every thread that weaves
systems of control is responsible for degrading life on earth. They are responsible
for each and every violation on humanity. They are responsible for recent attack
on Israelis and now on Palestinians. This righteous posturing is sickening. As for
godforsaken sacred land. The Israelis and Palestinians must learn to be humans,
and yes if left to themselves they would easily find their humanity. There is more in common than systems like them to believe. This is difficult to achieve since there are sinister system controllers and depraved herd nurturers with laden
semantics and loaded guns keenly evaluating the proceeding for opportunities. As long as religion claims identity and feudal
values defines dealing people will be massacred with impunity -as semantics of past trigger horrifying pattern of brutal past, and while we watch in horror sinister posture for moral high grounds and opportunities. These patterns had it
run in the past. This cannot be allowed to repeat. Hence looking at history for lesson or input is
futile. Freeze the border as it is now. Declare Palestine as a country with specific
safeguard for provocation against Israel -use of land for terrorism -since herd
controllers have grand plans of depraved world. Meanwhile every attempt must be made to weaken herd
controlling systems. Religion cannot be identity nor given any sacrosanct
space, the more it encroaches more humanity loses. Not only religion must be critically scrutinized and denied central role in human dealing but also herd must face stringent rule of law to make them realize the importance of evolved collective will -any violation is violation of humanity. Also, dismantle feudal systems
of West that has left these regions severely compromised and vulnerable to deviant
value systems of high moral ground stampeding fattened fluffs. They have nurtured
the worst and are persistent threat to the world as they wallow in their colonial
luxuries while lazily seek angst guilt redemption from next exotic estimation.
Meanwhile take a look at what could be possibly middle-east “sacred” region in few centuries from now
Sunday, October 08, 2023
Friday, October 06, 2023
A serious breach
I go in, in behind the
stones, and I sit down. I sit and look at the stones. I see that it’s me. I am
the stones: it’s not like me, but like what is I in me. I go out between the
stones and take my place, I stand there with outstretched hands, like a cross.
I see a cross. I look down. I look up. I sit down. I look at the stones, so
beautifully laid, stone on stone, in a wall. I get up. I stand.
And then you hold my hand. And the stones
say that love exists, love is.
Weren’t you
scared?
No, never.
But you almost
died.
I wasn’t afraid
to die.
I am not afraid
to die either.
No.
Clearly the implication here is of dying moment of the protagonist. There is a reference of cross, and holding of hand -essentially God -in the context of cross it has to be interpreted as Jesus, and Christian preaching of love, so on. A writer not restricted by religion would have worked to elevate into spiritual experience of universalistic timeless value resonating with eternal longing of reader hence leaving an abiding impression. The above, although extremely skilled, doesn’t resonate with me, nor with anyone who is not a practicing christian -to moved by this you need to be a devotee -a follower. The reason why Beckett’s ‘Waiting for Godot’ -located in time and space without any social or geographical reference is still brutally social and political rooted in every time and every space of human life, has such everlasting connection of emptiness and existential absurdity.
Let me take another example that could be much relevant to context of Christianity.
Raymond Carver was a brilliant writer. There is a short story titled ‘Cathedral’
-and those who have read it will never forget, it’s a deeply moving story that
brings in the same framework of Christianity through the sacred building -cathedral,
but swiftly move into realm of everlasting beauty of universalism of human angst
and yearning. The sheer beauty of this story elevates much beyond restrictive
views of religion into ephemeral moment of connection. This is how the story ends, and
those who haven’t read it I am spoiling it, the condescending man is trying to show
the blind man what a cathedral looks like by drawing it with both holding the
pen. What happens is entirely unexpected…
“Keep them that way,” he said. He said, “Don’t stop now. Draw.”
So we kept on with it. His fingers rode my fingers as my hand went
over the paper. It was like nothing else in my life up to now.
Then he said, “I think that’s it. I think you got it,” he said.
“Take a look. What do you think?”
But I had my eyes closed. I thought I’d keep them that way for a little
longer. I thought it was something I ought to do.
“Well?” he said. “Are you looking?”
My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn’t
feel like I was inside anything.
“It’s really something,” I said.
This story left me bleary eyed. This wouldn’t have happened if there were references of Cross or Christ or whichever God, I dare say ‘silent voices’, indeed there is not even cathedral. It’s an open space that connects humans to their primal bearing and longing. That is why this story has so much compassion and deep awareness of human condition. One can also see this in Dostoevsky, especially The Karamazov Brothers (and let us be clear his context was limited world of 19th century, unlike sinister context of religion now), even questioning Jesus like figure (the grand inquisition discourse is best of world literature), "You didn't do well, there is suffering". The idea of god unable to fulfill basic needs -of food, security, while propounding high sounding virtue and freedom. Indeed people are ready to give up freedom and don't have problem to follow or somebody to tell what to do. This is failure of god and miracles -why not bread from stone every time? The devil is able to do much better. People will barter freedom for happiness -to reduce suffering, and for security. Dostoevsky was able to see human mind and what makes totalitarian forces rise to undermine freedom. It cannot happen without consent of people. This is where he places the blame on God -Jesus, abstractness of faith moved away from realities of life. This is what is expected from best of literature. The reason why I had such a bad taste when I started with Indian literature -trapped in its own self referral loops of self obsessed grandeur. Where the writer is incapable to see waterfall as waterfall and verdant nature but dreadlocks of god and divine designs. Where human condition is joke of fate, blessing, entitled position as writer hence arbitrators of sacred narration to correct and guide fellow humans and hapless people, pedantic righteousness and festering sickness of mind. There are ofcourse rare occasions where the soul of the sensibilities channelized through centuries sprout out. Kolatkar's Jejuri is one such occasion. There is so much compassion and awareness of predicament of people that is rooted in the land that effortlessly uproots for universal acknowledgment of human condition. The irony of lives of suffering fatalistic people makes ridiculous a portal of deeper understanding."...he popped a stone/in his mouth/and spat out god/what is god/and what is stone/the dividing line/if it exists/is very thin/at jejuri...scratch a rock/and a legend springs". When I first read it I was blown away (and told as many people to read. Visited the site few times and even took pictures working on the references of poems. You may visit me at https://iseeebirds.blogspot.com/2013/09/rise-of-sparrow.html. I abandoned this blog about a decade back. I would like to correct few typos but forgot password/phone link hence no longer in my control).
I am also upset since in the same line where Fosse claims to be christian (infact a “good christian”) he also identifies as post-modernist influenced by Derrida. O dear. How can a man -indeed a skilled writer, entrenched in primitive system claim to be postmodern? If there is no fixed meaning then how can there be a fixed system -that too hinged on ridiculous? There is an unbridgeable contradiction here. It’s insane. The fixed ideas of religions are persistent threat to humanity.
Derrida
had elemental influence on me, ofcourse I took it to extreme to work my context,
indeed even my name. There was a time when I was really into Derrida, and took deconstruction
as weapon of choice! What is neglected by systems and its dominance is where
the worth is. There is a world beyond the neat solutions of religions. Nature thrives
in chaos and entropy is the eternal reality. There is more to life in confused
chaos than in clarity and quick fixes of religion. This attempt at using
Derrida to create binary of respectability for religion is 20th
century. I seethe in anger at this breach.
Tuesday, October 03, 2023
Attosecond: Real time vision
Nobel prize in science are
reference for knowing about the best in scientific achievements. You come to
know about significant steps in research that you never knew. Today’s Nobel prize
in Physics is for methods to “…generate attosecond pulses of light for the
study of electron dynamics…”. It’s about observing electron dynamics in real
time thus providing insights into how electron move and interact at quantum
level, timescales previously inaccessible. It is like having a new sense at
attosecond level. This access to nature is quite similar to Gravitational Waves that gave us a new sight to observe space. The implication of attosecond is set to revolutionize fundamental
science -imagine most people (including me, and I like to keep myself abreast
with latest in science and technology) were not even aware of this, and
numerous technological applications with this real time ability to control and
harness properties of electron.
What would be interesting to know is whether
species have evolved through the 3.8 billion years of evolution of life to tap
the potential of attosecond (indeed, a question was asked about photosynthesis
during the Q&A session today. Few years back I happen to see Prof. Jim Al Khalili's documentary that had reference of quantum level jiggling during photosynthesis. Or the process of mimicking by species). Will awareness of attosecond help us to study survival
strategies of species better hence insight into potential applications and understanding nature?