One Thought For Life:part 60

Beware a noisy mob; it is rare that truth and beauty result from their riots.

I found the most violently hateful people were in the thick of mob actions, even back when it made sense to be disturbed about the draft and the war in VietNam. There were many angles for discontent. One undersung view was that the war was not being waged in any way directed at a conclusion such as "winning", and it cost a lot of lives just from that perspective. Never mind that the real objective was a little blurry, and that forcing people to go may be a little heavy handed.

But contrary to what we've since been told, a very large number of those who organized and waged demonstrations were not in any way full of peace and love. Just ask an innocent question. Try getting where you needed to go while they blocked your path shouting insults if your hair was too short or your attire did not fit the mold. I saw it.

That is how mobs work, and are worked. There can be legitimate stated objectives, which is great, but in any huge mob, there are those who want power and do not care who gets hurt. The noisier and more chaotic, the more you can bet less than pure ends will be served. The bulk of most big mobs could not even articulate their reasons for chanting in the streets. They do it because everyone else is and they have no faith in their own ability to think.

Dealing with a group is not like dealing one on one with an individual. A person in a group will do things he/she would not do normally. A group takes on a mind of its own, and can easily become a creature of no conscience. And there are usually those who want to scream in the megaphone and have the crowd repeat everything they say. That type of scene has always disgusted and saddened me almost as much as the drafting of young people to fight non-defensive wars.

People participate as much because of the feeling of power being with the crowd brings as because they are firmly against or for some policy, practice or condition. There are definitely times to rebel, but even then beware the angry mob.

The best rebellion is to make collecting the money to fund the evil doers very difficult. But that actually takes more guts than running with a pack breaking windows and setting fires.

The Genius of the Third World

I'm sill not sure what constitutes the basis of the numbering of worlds, 1st, 2nd, 3rd. But we all know what it means. 3rd world=better bring your own toilet paper, don't drink the water, and whatever you do do not get locked up. Not so different from our country any more. But different.

It used to be that standing in line for government red tape things like driver's license or title transfer, or trying to get on an airplane was indicative of 3rd world countries. Rights were questionable and use of authority seemed absolute and capricious. We are there.

The real genius of 3rd world regimes is how they manage to create a legal system which could be used to fry anyone for any reason, all under the gtuise of the greater good and making a better citizenry.

I think this story is a very good illustration of what the thinking typical of the 3rd world and, more and more, typical of our own citizens who see the state as God, lead to: Don't 'exhale' in Malawi

"The government of Malawi plan to punish persistent offenders 'who foul the air' in a bid to 'mould responsible and disciplined citizens.'"

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1351174/African-country-set-make-breaking-wind-crime.html#ixzz1CfAUmglP

Yes, it is true. They are pondering the necessity to outlaw breaking wind, cutting the cheese; no farting allowed. Since the US has steadily been taking cues from more troubled regions of the globe in creating new policies and laws, perhaps this is a glimpse at our own future.

It All Just Appears

Held hostage by unnecessary difficulties. That is the way of it.

That is how it works in my own existence and in the larger picture.

I know I am not happy to think that Egyptian instability could raise the price of fuel. I'm particularly not happy because the dependence on foreign oil is a false market, created by evil-doers and useful idiots. There is no reason we should be dependent upon that, and no reason we should be a little stretched in the refinery department.

Not only that, but had there been a truly free world without the government-business partnership which manipulates competition and demand, there may be more reasonable alternatives already at hand.

The main thing is that when the writing has been on the wall for fifty years or more, how shocked can you be when things come to pass? And how stupid is it to then look to the same philosophy and people who created the problem to fix it?

On the personal level, there is little choice. You make your problem you fix it. But you do have to fix the problem with a different approach from that which created it.