In the beginning of Kurosawa's "Rashomon", a man sits at ruined temple gates bemoaning a witnessed evil. "I, for one, have seen hundreds of men dying like animals, but even I've never before heard anything as terrible as this. Horrible, it's horrible! There's never been anything, anything as terrible as this, never! It's worse than fires, wars, epidemics, or bandits!"What was he describing? Kurosawa called it the "human ego", the inability to be honest with ourselves. We have to believe we are good. Anything that threatens that must be destroyed. That's how Jesus was killed. Truth as the enemy. Perverts perpetrating perfidy. Calling it holy to betray oneself. Problem is, it isn't just that the truth will set us free, it's that only the truth can set us free. Can't pray/hope/wish or buy our way out otherwise.
Am I trying to enlighten anyone here? No. Everyone already knows the truth. It's not they we don't know, it's that we don't care to see. Everyone's so on about how we must get the truth out so we can save the day. But check out this quote from 60 Minutes last Sunday by the former CIA head of European operations. He had direct evidence of our administration ignoring information that Saddam was not a threat. "The American people want to believe the president. I have relatives who I've tried to talk to about this who say, 'Well, no, you can’t tell me the president had this information and just ignored it.'" Funny, huh? You can tell them and they still won't know.
This morning on the radio, local rednecks were mocking the idea of global warming. "Every time something bad happens like a hurricane, we've just got to blame somebody. That's what this is all about." By golly, I can get in my car, drive to the store, pick up cold beer(!) and drink it right there in front of my TV. Ain't nothing wrong with this world! Anyone who sez diff'rent is just a troublemaker!
Wow, what a cold, empty outlook that is.
Things will get worse as facts become more irrefutable. The need to divert blame will grow stronger among the unrighteous. Fears of the futureless path will invade our souls, driving us to further terror. So what do I say to those who have chosen both poorly and holy?
Dream on.
4 comments:
you are heard
To be heard is one of my most fervent desires. To be understood is one of my most fervent hopes.
You are both heard and understood. I am seeking the common thread of truth that I find in random locations. Mostly it is white noise, static, but every once in a while I hear a fundamental harmonic...Like hearing a glipmse of music on a staticky am radio while traveling deep in the wilderness. Thank you for your observations, they lighten the burden of mental and ethical solitude.
High praise indeed. I, too, search for the ring of truth among the cacophony of the world. To think I have contributed to that is an honor. But will success spoil Rock Hunter?
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