I fear that no matter who is elected, or, I believe, more accurately, selected, things will get worse for most Americans and for folks in the rest of the world. In 2012 an academic study learned that no matter who is president, and despite the will of the people, the will of the sociopathic oligarchs will prevail. I believe that is even more true today. I also believe that presidential election campaigns too often serve as a distraction, trusting that one candidate or other will actually work to improve our lives. Therefore, divide and conquer prevails, and very little independent thinking and/or organizing take place.
I agree. I'm disappointed those in the freedom movement pay no attention to the fact the sociopathic oligarchs have ALL THE MONEY. Elections do matter, We're better off with politicians like Ron Johnson than Chuck Schumer, no doubt. But money is power. Without a mechanism to take their money/power they'll rule. Absent that mechanism, we can only wait for generational changes in the ranks of the ultra-wealthy and hope the heirs are less competent at societal destruction, less evil, or both. Which is far from guaranteed, and that's a long time to wait for unlikely improvement. Until we devise a way to take their money, and execute it, they rule, we suffer.
In point of fact, the generational tendency is to be geometrically worse than the one that raised you, when evil is the motivational factor in a family. Best not to hope for better there; it generally requires professional help to break that cycle, and these days the professionals are as broken as everyone else. Until, and unless, we bring Yhwh God back into all the equations, we can realistically only expect worsening conditions and "leaders", and that's the secular psychiatry evaluation, as much as the religious view.
I'm all for bringing a benevolent religious dogma back to primacy. Christianity has been the best platform ever, as far as I can determine. I'm not a scholar in that area, but the ascent and descent of Christianity parallels the trajectory of the societal well-being of the West. There are plenty of logical reasons to think that it would. Even with a resurgence of Christianity, they'll still have all the money. They must be stripped of the power that gives them, even in a Christian society.
I don't share your faith in "professional help", in any era. IMO it's broken worse today, but was always flawed and practiced by some pretty weird characters. And some very good ones who helped many a great deal. It's always been a crap shoot. But if a person is at the end of his/her rope, gotta try something. Ideally, you find it within yourself, maybe with spiritual help. The right romantic partner can turn things around too.
Our Founders, not all of whom were Christian, even nominally, agreed it gave the best platform upon which to build our Constitution, back in the early 1780s too, having had dealings with others already. That was why they used its principles.
I'm well aware many, if not most, who go into psychiatry and psychology are "broken" themselves and looking for answers, but when they recover, they're in a better position to help others, through their practical experience. None the less, much of the sheer psychosis prevailing today was never that prevalent among them, 40-50 yrs ago. Many things, now called "normal", were recognized openly as unhealthy, and in need of therapeutic care, as they still should be.
I agree with this except for the pessimism. The answer, in my opinion, lies in doing our best but then purposely diverting our energies away from politics and appealing instead to a higher power, who is able to operate in and through all power structures - and cultivating all the good and beautiful things that the halls of power lack, believing it will radiate out.
I don't argue with Trump haters. I simply say, you're not going to like Communism, if you survive their wholesale slaughter to depopulate the world to what they consider a manageable level.
Love this piece. I would broaden it further to say that choosing the lesser of two evils is accurate if you want to go the route of total realism, knowing that the outcome will surely be that one of the two “choices” will win.
But another kind of misplaced vitriol (besides pouncing on the flaws of the other’s preferred candidate) is always aimed toward those whose following of conscience leads to a third party or independent candidate. They are shamed for as being the “cause” of whatever undesired outcome results from through eyes of that particular beholder.
It assumes all those people would otherwise vote for the “correct” candidate, which in my case is not true. Even though my preferred independent candidate was pushed out, I still will not be bullied into choosing from the two.
And this, too, is a kind of sacrifice. It sacrifices the immediate (of which I have
No control anyway) in favor of a longer-term shift that can happen when people use their voice to weigh in about what they really think.
“A vote is not a valentine.” Watch these smart pastors lay out why it’s always been a contest between two evils (sinners) and how to think—rationally and Biblically—about it.
I had the conversation with my hubby this morning about the “Cult of Personality” regarding the election. All of the players have a “book deal” tv shows and Netflix movies that have funded their rise to fame (AKA money laundering). They are all cogs in the wheel.
As a child, the books that affected me the most were "The Little Match Girl", by Hans Christian Andersen & the Nancy Drew books. The "Little Match Girl" truly humbled me, though I was only about 8-years old when my mother gave it to me to read. The Nancy Drew books are probably responsible for my questioning almost everything. That questioning is most likely what kept me from succumbing to all of the hogwash associated with the scamdemic, the injections in particular.
I wish I had known about that series, as I also loved horses. Every year, I would ask for a horse for either Christmas or my birthday. When it never materialized, I decided to ask for a magic wand. That way, I deduced, I could get my own horse, without having to ask for one. Needless to say, I never received a magic wand either. As far as the scamdemic, absolutely nothing was adding up. For me, it was one "Columbo" moment, after another. I could not understand why others were not similarly scratching their heads. Four years later, little has changed in that respect. The average person still believes all of the hogwash that they were told back in 2020.
Thank you for an excellent article. It helps to put it in perspective. Go Trump. He may not be ideal, but he is a good person inside and he cares, (AND CAN ARTICULATE POLICY) about our country. It all comes down to common sense, our ability to find the truth instead of listening to Morning Joe, Rachel Maddow and the idiots on "The Spew" program, as well as others, and taking their rants as our own truths. It gets weirder as the years go by.
There can only be 1 truth, a fixed unchangeable standard, or there is NO truth at all. We HAVE that Standard, but far too many reject Him: "I am THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Life."~ Yeshua, aka Jesus (emphasis mine). The, a definite article, was used, no a or an, the indefinite, meaning possible others. But each of us has free will to choose to accept or reject; just so you understand anything not that fixed, unchangeable standard is a lie, when you make that choice, and all our choices have consequences.
The Good Book tells us that humans are flawed sinners (who literally “miss the target”) and there is no health in us. Growing up, we fight with our family (who love us) and seek allies (who are just as ignorant as we are) to justify our positions. If you are smart, eventually you see that making our family wrong vs. “hooray for our side” are two sides of the same human coin. You cannot fight with a loved one without making them wrong. There is a difference between the two and I think it has something to do with the fact we all come from a long line of survivors.
Right and wrong are code for that which works vs. that which doesn’t work. Brilliant vs. Stupid are similar. Survival involves charting a successful course in life and each decision leads to an ultimate consequence, which you will accept, whether you are willing to or not. This sacred truth becomes contaminated when mixed with the profanity of modern politics.
Lies, deception and verisimilitude would not exist if they did not work, at least for a time. The problem is how to detect falsehood; the difficulty lies in speaking truth while avoiding making others wrong. Try it, it’s almost impossible. Almost. Though flawed, at least we do possess a biological computer capable of sorting right from wrong, like our ancestors did. After all, where would we be without them?
Right and wrong are also fixed standards, based in that same person as Truth is, under "THE Way" (the path we need to follow, not necessarily the 1 we wish to follow, or the 1 that "feels" right at a given moment).
It's unlikely there would ever be a candidate who takes helpful positions on all issues. Not since Ron Paul in 2012, anyway. And the 100% tariff idea, if implemented, would lead to major inflation and lower living standards for working Americans. Not as bad, however, as the alternative.
Every sElection is a choice of the lesser of two evils. Please join me in breaking that stronghold instead of joining it like every other stupid person in America that can't break the brainwashing.
Surely you can agree that there are far better and much less evil ones we could sidle with.
Psychology 101. People cannot help presupposiung that others who exhibit attributes of wealth and power are admirable.. This is the automatic default position, determined by our subconscious. Rational reflection readily dispels the illusion, but must be constantly renewed.
Christianity 101. God exalts the humble and meek. Wealth and power get no-one anywhere with God. The one to admire - against all your carnal instincts - is the one who sacrifices self for others, like Christ.
Good question. But how many stand up to scrutiny? Australia's former Depouty Prime Minister, John Anderson, is a leader I adnire. He is a farmer, a man of integrity, intellect and wisdom. His website at johnanderson.net.au currently features an excellent conversation with the Stanford historian Niall Ferguson on the reasons for supporting Israel.
Anybody capable of ADMIRING any of those up to populating and running the D.C. Sewer is as rotten as the sewer...AGREE, it is a matter of choosing the less of the evils.
I fear that no matter who is elected, or, I believe, more accurately, selected, things will get worse for most Americans and for folks in the rest of the world. In 2012 an academic study learned that no matter who is president, and despite the will of the people, the will of the sociopathic oligarchs will prevail. I believe that is even more true today. I also believe that presidential election campaigns too often serve as a distraction, trusting that one candidate or other will actually work to improve our lives. Therefore, divide and conquer prevails, and very little independent thinking and/or organizing take place.
I agree. I'm disappointed those in the freedom movement pay no attention to the fact the sociopathic oligarchs have ALL THE MONEY. Elections do matter, We're better off with politicians like Ron Johnson than Chuck Schumer, no doubt. But money is power. Without a mechanism to take their money/power they'll rule. Absent that mechanism, we can only wait for generational changes in the ranks of the ultra-wealthy and hope the heirs are less competent at societal destruction, less evil, or both. Which is far from guaranteed, and that's a long time to wait for unlikely improvement. Until we devise a way to take their money, and execute it, they rule, we suffer.
In point of fact, the generational tendency is to be geometrically worse than the one that raised you, when evil is the motivational factor in a family. Best not to hope for better there; it generally requires professional help to break that cycle, and these days the professionals are as broken as everyone else. Until, and unless, we bring Yhwh God back into all the equations, we can realistically only expect worsening conditions and "leaders", and that's the secular psychiatry evaluation, as much as the religious view.
I'm all for bringing a benevolent religious dogma back to primacy. Christianity has been the best platform ever, as far as I can determine. I'm not a scholar in that area, but the ascent and descent of Christianity parallels the trajectory of the societal well-being of the West. There are plenty of logical reasons to think that it would. Even with a resurgence of Christianity, they'll still have all the money. They must be stripped of the power that gives them, even in a Christian society.
I don't share your faith in "professional help", in any era. IMO it's broken worse today, but was always flawed and practiced by some pretty weird characters. And some very good ones who helped many a great deal. It's always been a crap shoot. But if a person is at the end of his/her rope, gotta try something. Ideally, you find it within yourself, maybe with spiritual help. The right romantic partner can turn things around too.
Our Founders, not all of whom were Christian, even nominally, agreed it gave the best platform upon which to build our Constitution, back in the early 1780s too, having had dealings with others already. That was why they used its principles.
I'm well aware many, if not most, who go into psychiatry and psychology are "broken" themselves and looking for answers, but when they recover, they're in a better position to help others, through their practical experience. None the less, much of the sheer psychosis prevailing today was never that prevalent among them, 40-50 yrs ago. Many things, now called "normal", were recognized openly as unhealthy, and in need of therapeutic care, as they still should be.
I agree with this except for the pessimism. The answer, in my opinion, lies in doing our best but then purposely diverting our energies away from politics and appealing instead to a higher power, who is able to operate in and through all power structures - and cultivating all the good and beautiful things that the halls of power lack, believing it will radiate out.
Well, I look to El Salvador as hope, that our country can overcome as they did, the evil residing in the shadows.
I don't argue with Trump haters. I simply say, you're not going to like Communism, if you survive their wholesale slaughter to depopulate the world to what they consider a manageable level.
Love this piece. I would broaden it further to say that choosing the lesser of two evils is accurate if you want to go the route of total realism, knowing that the outcome will surely be that one of the two “choices” will win.
But another kind of misplaced vitriol (besides pouncing on the flaws of the other’s preferred candidate) is always aimed toward those whose following of conscience leads to a third party or independent candidate. They are shamed for as being the “cause” of whatever undesired outcome results from through eyes of that particular beholder.
It assumes all those people would otherwise vote for the “correct” candidate, which in my case is not true. Even though my preferred independent candidate was pushed out, I still will not be bullied into choosing from the two.
And this, too, is a kind of sacrifice. It sacrifices the immediate (of which I have
No control anyway) in favor of a longer-term shift that can happen when people use their voice to weigh in about what they really think.
Anyway, this was a great piece.
“A vote is not a valentine.” Watch these smart pastors lay out why it’s always been a contest between two evils (sinners) and how to think—rationally and Biblically—about it.
https://youtu.be/fpmMvPhjGlU
https://youtu.be/3PM5nlHhLiw
I had the conversation with my hubby this morning about the “Cult of Personality” regarding the election. All of the players have a “book deal” tv shows and Netflix movies that have funded their rise to fame (AKA money laundering). They are all cogs in the wheel.
Ignorance is bliss......sometimes
As a child, the books that affected me the most were "The Little Match Girl", by Hans Christian Andersen & the Nancy Drew books. The "Little Match Girl" truly humbled me, though I was only about 8-years old when my mother gave it to me to read. The Nancy Drew books are probably responsible for my questioning almost everything. That questioning is most likely what kept me from succumbing to all of the hogwash associated with the scamdemic, the injections in particular.
Interesting, a bit of history. You were insightful for a little girl. I liked the Trixie Belden series, because of the horses.
I wish I had known about that series, as I also loved horses. Every year, I would ask for a horse for either Christmas or my birthday. When it never materialized, I decided to ask for a magic wand. That way, I deduced, I could get my own horse, without having to ask for one. Needless to say, I never received a magic wand either. As far as the scamdemic, absolutely nothing was adding up. For me, it was one "Columbo" moment, after another. I could not understand why others were not similarly scratching their heads. Four years later, little has changed in that respect. The average person still believes all of the hogwash that they were told back in 2020.
You are so right...
Thank you for an excellent article. It helps to put it in perspective. Go Trump. He may not be ideal, but he is a good person inside and he cares, (AND CAN ARTICULATE POLICY) about our country. It all comes down to common sense, our ability to find the truth instead of listening to Morning Joe, Rachel Maddow and the idiots on "The Spew" program, as well as others, and taking their rants as our own truths. It gets weirder as the years go by.
There can only be 1 truth, a fixed unchangeable standard, or there is NO truth at all. We HAVE that Standard, but far too many reject Him: "I am THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Life."~ Yeshua, aka Jesus (emphasis mine). The, a definite article, was used, no a or an, the indefinite, meaning possible others. But each of us has free will to choose to accept or reject; just so you understand anything not that fixed, unchangeable standard is a lie, when you make that choice, and all our choices have consequences.
I’m Right, You’re Wrong; Now Go to Hell!
The Good Book tells us that humans are flawed sinners (who literally “miss the target”) and there is no health in us. Growing up, we fight with our family (who love us) and seek allies (who are just as ignorant as we are) to justify our positions. If you are smart, eventually you see that making our family wrong vs. “hooray for our side” are two sides of the same human coin. You cannot fight with a loved one without making them wrong. There is a difference between the two and I think it has something to do with the fact we all come from a long line of survivors.
Right and wrong are code for that which works vs. that which doesn’t work. Brilliant vs. Stupid are similar. Survival involves charting a successful course in life and each decision leads to an ultimate consequence, which you will accept, whether you are willing to or not. This sacred truth becomes contaminated when mixed with the profanity of modern politics.
Lies, deception and verisimilitude would not exist if they did not work, at least for a time. The problem is how to detect falsehood; the difficulty lies in speaking truth while avoiding making others wrong. Try it, it’s almost impossible. Almost. Though flawed, at least we do possess a biological computer capable of sorting right from wrong, like our ancestors did. After all, where would we be without them?
Right and wrong are also fixed standards, based in that same person as Truth is, under "THE Way" (the path we need to follow, not necessarily the 1 we wish to follow, or the 1 that "feels" right at a given moment).
It's unlikely there would ever be a candidate who takes helpful positions on all issues. Not since Ron Paul in 2012, anyway. And the 100% tariff idea, if implemented, would lead to major inflation and lower living standards for working Americans. Not as bad, however, as the alternative.
"he is the lesser of two evils"
Every sElection is a choice of the lesser of two evils. Please join me in breaking that stronghold instead of joining it like every other stupid person in America that can't break the brainwashing.
Surely you can agree that there are far better and much less evil ones we could sidle with.
Psychology 101. People cannot help presupposiung that others who exhibit attributes of wealth and power are admirable.. This is the automatic default position, determined by our subconscious. Rational reflection readily dispels the illusion, but must be constantly renewed.
Christianity 101. God exalts the humble and meek. Wealth and power get no-one anywhere with God. The one to admire - against all your carnal instincts - is the one who sacrifices self for others, like Christ.
Why do you view the desire to (be able to) admire the leader of one's country as irrational?
Good question. But how many stand up to scrutiny? Australia's former Depouty Prime Minister, John Anderson, is a leader I adnire. He is a farmer, a man of integrity, intellect and wisdom. His website at johnanderson.net.au currently features an excellent conversation with the Stanford historian Niall Ferguson on the reasons for supporting Israel.
Anybody capable of ADMIRING any of those up to populating and running the D.C. Sewer is as rotten as the sewer...AGREE, it is a matter of choosing the less of the evils.
You're right!
Please see this old 12 min video that LAYS OUT THE REAL WAY WE CAN CLEAN UP POLITICS AND OUR MESS:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JS3SyB37uM0&t=2s
The Gift Outright
The land was ours before we were the land’s.
She was our land more than a hundred years
Before we were her people. She was ours
In Massachusetts, in Virginia,
But we were England’s, still colonials,
Possessing what we still were unpossessed by,
Possessed by what we now no more possessed.
Something we were withholding made us weak
Until we found out that it was ourselves
We were withholding from our land of living,
And forthwith found salvation in surrender.
Such as we were we gave ourselves outright
(The deed of gift was many deeds of war)
To the land vaguely realizing westward,
But still unstoried, artless, unenhanced,
Such as she was, such as she would become.
Robert Frost, “The Gift Outright” from The Poetry of Robert Frost, edited by Edward Connery Lathem. Copyright ***1923**