People so eagerly embrace the belief that one nation (of people) is somehow superior to other nations. They invest in the false notion that somehow "their people," as a national collective or cultural identity, is somehow separate, blessed, worthier, more deserving, and therefore, justified in acts of moral indecency against others. Statements can be heard in every country on earth, of course some more than others, that our country is "number one" or "the greatest nation on earth." This insensitive and bellicose claim accosts the kind ear of reason, as a piercing screech of national supremacism. Nationalism is the world's most accepted form of anti-humanism. It is that type of supremacism that leaves no room in the world for equality and justice; only equality, for just-us. The most unpalatable of these phenomena is the patriotic blather and banter over appointed and anointed sacred symbols; such as historical mythologies, anthems, mottos, flags, and victory remembrances. Far from mere reverent homage, the ceremony, fanfare, and hysteria over these idols points to a deeply emotional and frightening, nearly religious fervor of belonging, that at times even resembles worship. It is upon these spiritual, intellectual, and moral deficits that master manipulators apply their craft to sway the hypnotized and unthinking populaces into further engagements of moral indecency for the exclusive benefit of so-called national interest — and to hell with the rest of the world.
Take any concept you believe in deeply and say out loud, and with full conviction, that your dearest belief may be totally flawed. Say, "There is no doubt that I could be wrong." If you cannot do this, then you do not possess the idea, the idea possesses you. Change will never happen when people lack the ability and courage to see themselves for who they are. An intelligent person is never afraid or ashamed to find errors in their understanding of things. We must evolve beyond our limited thinking in terms of exclusion and inclusion regarding people. Human nature seems to drift so easily into, and hold so feverishly onto the insane mentality of intensely competitive, us-versus-them rivalries of black-and-white and good-and-bad thinking. His-story is steeped in a dark misery, that stems from the phenomenon of social identities, that arises from even the most trivial characteristics. These thought-forms of social identities then become the class war-platforms, from which privileged groups work for greater power consolidation through favoritism. This is how class, privilege and prejudice converge to become a master's heel of control on a modern slave class. These divide and control thought-forms are the basis of our deepest moral crisis. Male and female, black and white, citizen and non-citizen, Christian and Muslim, Protestant and Catholic; it seems there is no end to the dichotomous splitting and oppositional thinking of we and us, versus they and them.
There are many worlds we can create. One world is nothing short of hell on earth. It is a place where the unlimited creativity of humanity has been bridled and abducted by fear, creating a real-life nightmare of cruelty and indifference so chilling that death itself has become a welcomed and kind benefactor. The other world is a world held in your hands. You and those who love peace are the keepers of the bright torch of hope, and the guardians of its tendril flames that burn in the hearts of every soul throughout the world, no matter how oppressed and downtrodden. Those who see the world through the lens of love are the true visionaries. They carry the vision for all who yearn in their deepest sinews, that all children would live in a world of limitless possibilities, where each soul could reach the heights of their potential to love, and to be loved. The only difference between these two worlds, that will ever exist — IS YOU.
The overt and subtle crimes committed against people around the world are enough to send us desperately searching for the solid ground of meaning and sanity in an insane world, for malevolence and apathy of 'sane' people is the truest form of insanity. What do we do when the world seemingly lacks the wisdom to live in the grace and peace, choosing instead to exist in a state of dis-ease? How can we break free from the chains which shackle each soul through the binding links of fear, greed and indifference? There is no problem that greater consciousness and compassion, enjoined with positive resolve of will cannot solve. The voice of reason tells us, that while great horrors exist in the world, we are all one, and there is still hope through love. Love and respect changes everything.
The realities of human suffering are utterly monstrous. Even the "first-world" so-called bastions of prosperity, justice and law, are rife with corruption hidden in plain sight, which has been carefully crafted by the unwitting populace's hidden masters. Orwellian times of universal deceit are upon us, where many an injustice, is presented as solution and gift. It seems that everywhere you look, you see the same tyranny wearing different costumes; some more transparent than others, but underneath, it is the same dark and selfish spirit.
There are too many problems in the world to enumerate: government abuses, genocide, starvation, human trafficking, slavery, economic and currency manipulation, usury, false shortages, resource hoarding, unjust wars, class warfare, arms proliferation, the molecular pollution of the biosphere, corruption, child labor, sexual slavery, rape and vicious crimes against women and children. In the context of extreme injustice, some of the problems we face, are trivial by comparison. It is easy to believe that the large and distant distant problems do not apply to us, but make no mistake, we are only momentarily in the eye of the hurricane, from which no one can escape through vain indifference.
As far as the eye can see, we observe divisiveness, separation and isolation. Fear is the greatest enemy; the father of all suffering, and love is the only cure for humanity's great afflictions. Anyone who looks deeply and honestly at the world today is surely confronted with the grisly realities of human life on earth; realities from which most people try to remain unattached. The pain of humanity's most maltreated victims echoes deep within each of us, in the form of our shame or ignorance. Those who suffer are always there, pleading for help, and the voice of reason within each of us tells us to reach out and help. We must not ignore this voice, for it is the very anchor of conscience in the turbulent seas of suffering, which suggests there may still be something noble in the human soul. Listening to this voice is the last, thin thread that gives us hope that we are, in fact, not beasts.
One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say. Do not make the mistake of thinking that you have to agree with people and their beliefs to defend them from injustice. Listening is just. Listening is the way. Listening is the beginning. The voice of reason is speaking to us all, and now is the time to listen.
Without love and compassion, nothing is sacred. No marketplace, free or otherwise, is good when it fails to consider the basic human state of needs at every stage of life. No political body is sacred, sustainable or under protection, which allows the exploitation of its people, or capitalization from the subdued life-force of its weakest members. No nation's flag is great or glorious if it flies over the weak and downtrodden, even if they raise and protect it out of misguided allegiance. No belief or idea is sacred, unless it treats all people as sacred. And no construct on earth will stand, that does not stand for the least among them, as their advocate and humble servant.
Respect is the lifeblood of progress, and the safe harbor of humanity's great aspiration — that all people have human rights affording them unfettered access to liberty and justice. Respect is that great spirit of good, which creates the beautiful space giving all souls the simple room to breathe. Every blood-soaked patch of soil in the world came from the grotesque attempt to surreptitiously or overtly control others by imposing selfish will over the broad consensus desires for safety and respect, and by failing to recognize universal human commonality. Any act of violence creates resentment and resistance, because humans were meant to be free. This includes passive violence, which is ubiquitous in today's current world construct we have chosen for ourselves. The most deadly silent killer of passive violence, is the everyday social menacing of people into silence. Any being or group of beings seeking to silence the voice of reason, or ignore her nurturing will of protection, are traitors against humankind's deepest and most revered and sacred impulse — the desire to be free. All people desire to be free from the molestations against the soul of intimidation, violence, force, coercion, deceit and injustice.
