My buddy Joe and I have known each other for about two years and love to get into socio-political-religious conversations. We finally decided that maybe we ought to start recording them into a podcast. Here’s the inaugural episode, which I’ve dubbed Getting to Know You.
Being someone who loves to get into political discussions–especially with those that I consider to be on the extremes of issues, I’ve encountered my share of “it all has to come crashing down” attitudes.
On the left, they seem to see unregulated free-market capitalism as this seven headed hydra that has to come crashing down and usher in a new depression so that a new FDR can rise from the ashes to renew the social contract. Some seem to see the flooding of New York ala “Inconvenient Truth” as the wake up call we need, and that things will all simply work themselves out on global warming.
On the right, I have friends who have truly begun to believe that we are seeing the End Times, who may not believe but do receive emails about Obama being the Anti-Christ, global warming is a hoax perpetrated by Al Gore and super-secret scientists to form a One World Government under the oppressive rule of a ruthless Carbon Tax. They see the degradation of morals on TV and in the news and blame all of society, it’s all bad and only God can sweep it away. To them, if New York floods it isn’t because of global warming, but global whoring.
I’m someone who loves to play devil’s advocate, usually from the center, but sometimes part of being an effective contrarian is to adopt the views of your opponent and help them to fully imagine them. So to the lefty whose fetish is a stock market crash, maybe you ought to ponder more how that would come about and what the true ramifications could be. All my other “friends of Jesus” who think that God is about to give us another spanking, maybe you’d better start playing nice with the greens and helping them remain skeptical of “global warming” becoming as impervious to criticism as religion was in the Dark Ages. The point is that if either of you are remotely correct, the best solution to preserving our way of life is to nurture and foster communities.
Extreme Lefties: An economic collapse and ecological disaster may well bring reforms, but only if we don’t have a sizable portion of the religious community who believe that Obama might be a demon and Al Gore a dictator. You have to talk to them and reassure them that you will always be willing to be critical of your own leaders. You must tell them that you have learned from their mistakes with Bush. Be gentle about how you say that, ask them questions about how they feel about Bush. Most decent people will be elated to have the opportunity to admit to their mistake. Tell them that you don’t ever want to make that mistake, but that you can understand how people can become convinced of anything if enough of their piers feel the same way.
Extreme Righties: A little less fear, a little more love, please. Regardless of what the cause of a natural disaster may be or your likelihood of being wafted up to heaven like an angel fart, isn’t the Christlike path one of comfort for all us poor sinners who will have to rebuild the Earth? If there is an Anti-Christ on the rise, shouldn’t we all open our doors and our hearts and prepare to sacrifice more to offer one another comfort during a dark age? And no matter if Al Gore and the scientists are all dirty liars, the poor saps that they’ve deluded into “going green” are still gonna be interested in planting a garden on their front lawns. Why not bring them some lemonade and talk about flowers?
This is a very optimistic and bright letter for me. When I get on my eschatology kick, it’s not about global conspiracies or biblical prophecies, it’s all about the details. Mechanisms that exist such as the PATRIOT ACT, warrantless wiretapping and data mining, and the unitary executive are the things that make my hair stand up on end. Because while I can’t say for sure that the men in charge have nefarious ends in mind, as long as those mechanisms exist, it seems dangerous to never imagine that they can be abused. Because if we go too long without imagining so, someone will come to power who will imagine it for us.
Barring sprouting horns and a tail on live TV, I’m going to vote for Obama this fall. I’m not saying that I don’t wish I could vote for Nader, but there just aren’t enough other people for that to happen. I can imagine a lot of things, but I don’t see a way of Ralph becoming president in our current system. Since I will be putting my good name behind the O man, I want all my friends and enemies on the right to know that by voting for him I will be holding his feet to the fire and urging every decent American to do the same. We need to write letters, talk to our friends, and rebuild our local communities, no matter who wins.
Tomorrow night is the Solstice and the Moon Illusion will be occurring. This will signify a major shift in the lunar cycle and if enough people are out looking at the sky admiring the same magnificent natural event, I have no doubt that an amazing shift will occur in our collective consciousness. That may sound pretty hippie-dippie, but if this cold-hearted pragmatist can see the mystic value of sharing a little romantic moonlight with friends then I have little doubt that you do too.
So before the sunsets tomorrow, call or email your friends and loved ones and let them know that something wonderful and natural and good is happening in the world for once. Invite them to join you, even if you’re just gonna peek your head outside to take a glance. The important thing to remember is that as you stare up at that majestic celestially sexual body is that you won’t be alone.
Best of all, it’s FREE and EASY! The price of admission is merely eyes and a view of the skies.
OooowwwoooooooooOOO!!!!!!
bd
p.s. Anyone in NYC who’d like to join me and my friends, I’ve decided that my best vantage will be Corlears Hook Park. I’ve never been there, but judging by the map, it should be a fantastic view, plus I dig the vibe of its history. According to the U.S. Navy’s site, the moonrise is set to occur at 8:07, so I’m thinking of getting down there at about 7:45 to stake out a spot. Drop me a line if you wanna join the caravan.
To quote one of my favorite authors, David Brin, from a lecture entitled “Evaluating Horizons” regarding how twisted these false prophets have it as far as Biblical precedence in support of science:
I mentioned the passage from the bible, here’s an example: In Genesis what is the very first thing that is requested of us by the lord? It is something that was asked of us before we fell from a state of grace, so it can’t have anything to do with sin. It was even before asking not to eat from the tree of good and evil. No, it was to name the beasts.
Now look at that passage, it’s actually expressed as a favor, as an act of curiosity. All through the rest of the bible, it’s all about, “you guys are gonna have to hard scrabble and work your way out of sin”. It’s the one moment when god asks us a favor–and it is to name all the beasts.
Can you think of an allegory that better suits science?
What could be more extraordinary or awe-inspiring than the idea that everything that sets us apart from other living organisms, such as our consciousness & sentience, our arts and technology, are all the result of a completely random set of unlikely circumstances? That’s the sort of thing I’d be more inclined to base a religion on than any one of the infantile, unimaginative, and egotistical deities that many people currently subscribe to.
I don’t understand the negative connotation so quickly ascribed to this explanation of our origin. If there really is a God as the major religious believe, how does belief in a complex biological system such as evolution do ANYTHING but make the Big Cheese look like even more of a cosmic badass!?
The people who refuse to accept evolution because it condradicts the Bible are really making their God look like a cheap magician. Especially when you compare the fairy tale story of the Garden of Eden to the well thought-out and self-sustaining system of natural laws that actually guide the world around us.