It seems there is a consensus among my readers about avoiding response to emails from right-wing think tanks. While I do believe in the Law of Attraction, I wish I could see the value in ignoring these conservative fanatics. Pressing delete could lift my mood temporarily, but the people who believe all this nationalistic nonsense do not disappear with the message I send to my virtual trash bin. What truly disturbs me about emails like the one I posted is that there are REAL people who stand behind the BS. I do know who sent me the email and she is a close friend who expressed her support for the ideas presented there. Sure, I could have just sent her a quick reply affirming my disagreement or even just deleted the email without a second thought. But she is not alone. Millions of Americans ACTUALLY think like this, and the TERRIFYING reality of it all is that they aren’t like an email I can simply delete. They live in my town. They attend my classes. They vote, and they spend money to support politicians who espouse similar viewpoints. I do realize that my energy is best spent focusing on the postive change I want for the world, but sometimes I think we have a responsibility to call attention to the ignorant and destructive patterns that stifle our spiritual evolution. Part of BEING the change we wish to see in the world involves a commitment to educating those who stagnate a movement toward enlightenment.
HOWEVER, I am very clear that my method of education (as delieverd in my most recent post) is less than effective. Again, I need to mold my message into one that does not alienate the audience I wish to educate. I’m working on that. It’s one of the most difficult challenges I face as an imperfect human being. “Love thy enemy. “ It sounds good in theory, but the practical application requires serious self-control.
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January 14, 2008 at 11:08 pm
mrschili
Yeah, well, here’s the thing; in order for you (or anyone else) to engage these kinds of people in a conversation, they first have to be willing to entertain that their perspective might be a little off. Most people I know who think this way do NOT believe that they need any more information, thank you very much, they believe what they believe and no amount of sense is going to make them change their minds. That’s one of the lovely things about “faith”: there doesn’t HAVE to be proof.
I, too, am terrified of the number of people who do believe the kinds of things put forth in the email, and of how easily manipulated many of them are. I actually heard someone, in an interview on the news, say something to the effect that now that the crazy and ignorant liberals in Iowa and NH are done with their processes, the REAL voters (i.e., the conservative evangelical Christians in the south) can have their say.
The net effect of all this is that we’re still a deeply divided country, and the people lately in power have been very savvy at using “people of faith” to forward a certain type of political viewpoint that supports their agenda. I can’t help but see a certain parallel between the direction our country has been moving and some of the socio-political happenings in pre-war Germany. When we start identifying ourselves as a “Christian nation,” we’re completely losing sight of the purpose of our Constitution and are headed in a bad direction.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that these people have and will always exist, and the best way to counter their influence is to rally together like-minded people to stand up for what WE believe. Their greatest strength isn’t their faith, it’s their organization and their ability to mobilize.
January 15, 2008 at 2:43 am
david
You know its an uphill battle due to exploitation of the reptillian/caveman brain. Appealing to hate, racism, nationalism, religion, fear, ignornace of history, and domination is much more effective than love & hope.
The sad truth is that if Rupurt Murdoch & Pat Robertson keep increasing their media ownership, few could stop the inevitable slide into absolute facism.
I believe that a more aggressive defence of progressive views, like the views that you write, is the answer… but we also need the real media to stop shilling for the right.
Without a serious coordinated effort to dislodge Fox News & the right-wing echo-chamber, we’re only swatting at flies.
January 15, 2008 at 3:12 am
Dad
When we encounter someone or something that is not in harmonic vibration with us, we often perceive a need to change that vibration to conform to ours. It is not possible to change the vibration of another person. Only they can change their vibration. Depak Chopra offers seven laws dealing with success in life which could be defined as the continued expansion of happiness and the progressive realization of worthy goals ( http://www.shareguide.com/Chopra.html ).
The important thing is not to let your vibration change in response to the offending vibration unless it increases your happiness and feeling of success. If you are not happy about something, you are probably not observing one of the seven spiritual laws. There are a lot of unhappy people who are not aware of these laws and do not have a clue why they are not achieving success or happiness. Become an expert in the Seven Laws.
Love, Dad
January 15, 2008 at 3:34 am
Dad
One more thought … “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” — an old Chinese proverb.
January 15, 2008 at 2:11 pm
nakedmessenger
Just a thought, Dad… so, why write letters to the editor directed at those who disagree with us? (:
January 15, 2008 at 2:53 pm
twoblueday
How do you engage dumbasses?
January 15, 2008 at 11:22 pm
Dad
Two good questions! Why write letters to the editor, and how do we communicate with logic challenged people? Basically, this is covered under the second law (Giving) and the seventh law (Dharma). When you act in the best interest of mankind, as you perceive it, you are putting your vibration out into the Universe. You will resonate with some and not with others. I am not interested in the others, but rather in creating a wider awareness. As I have said before, people act in their own self-interest, as they perceive it, or the window to the mind opens from the inside. The power is in the intention, or as Chopra says, “the quality of intention on the object/subject of attention” is what brings about change.
Why did Gandhi protest the British Empire? Why did women protest for the right to vote or blacks fight segregation? It was the right thing to do for mankind. Difficult people (i.e., dumbasses) are a gift to teach us something about ourselves that we will need to cope with the future. The sixth Law (Detachment) is key here. We do not communicate with people who do not share our vibrational frequency. Communication requires a sender and a receiver. If the receiver is not listening or understanding, there is no communication. Rejection simply means I have not provided the information in a format that is compatible with the receiver so self-interest becomes self-evident. My intention is not to change everybody, only to increase awareness in the Universe. This is known as the Avalanche Theory of Change. If you pile up grains of sand, you create instabilities that result in little avalanches. It is the same with thoughts and ideas. This is the basis of marketing.
Love, Dad
January 16, 2008 at 12:52 am
Mom
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.
Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction….The chain reaction of evil – hate begets hate, wars producing more wars – must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Strength to Love, 1963
I do have a choice, as difficult as it may be at times, I choose to be the Light. When I forget, I don’t beat myself up about it, but try to center myself and remember who I am so I can choose again.
Namaste, Mom
January 16, 2008 at 5:46 am
david
Yeah, dad is right… the seventh law ‘Dharma’ pretty much lays it all out there for you. Now get yo’ vibration on!