Posted in Canada, Cats, Movies, Uncategorized

Everybody Wants To Rule The World

1funny898Why is everybody so gosh darn anxious to rule the world?
I guess the pay and benefits would be awesome, but I can’t imagine there’s any time off.
It would be high stress and thankless, well, unless you paid or forced people to thank you.
And look at all the decisions you’d have to make; I don’t always know what I want for breakfast.
Then there’s the meetings, slogans, pillaging, fear-mongering, plans, plots, the overthrowing, and feeling like you had to wear a fancy military-looking outfit and get giant pictures of yourself to hang up everywhere.
Sounds monotonous and a lot of work.
Tears For Fears might have been exaggerating, for effect, but humans do want what we can’t have.
We can’t seem to help ourselves, it’s a yearning that lives deep inside us.
We want what’s beyond our reach.
It’s what makes us magnificent, but can be our Achilles heel.

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Still, the applicants for ruling the world continue to line up:

  • Terrorists, dictators, villains, supervillains, megalomaniacs with delusions of grandeur, evil scientists, and smarmy government types, admittedly, life could be boring without them, but wow, I’m willing to give it a try.

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  • Corporate types who are working so hard on helping everyone, even the homeless, to give their lives a purpose, maybe as a Wi-Fi hotspot, hybrid car/cellphone recharging unit, or solar panel holder. The sky’s the limit!

  • Pirates and vikings, whom I suspect weren’t keen on hygiene, but apparently look like supermodels when portrayed on-screen.

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  • Supernatural beings and aliens seem to have an unnatural interest in ruling our world, hey, guys, go rule your own worlds!

  • Laboratory mice whose genes have been spliced, oh, wait, that might have just been a cartoon.

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  • Presidential candidates, sure, let’s include Donald Trump. I wonder, will future GOP debates come with a warning label: Watch at own risk, to your brain.

  • Criminals – I finally watched Lucy, unsure if it had a pro or anti-drug message, but there was a certain ‘be careful who you hang around’ feel to it.

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  • Hackers, who, for all we know, have tried to save us from some alien invasion or apocalypse and we’ve been all testy with them.

  • Scammers, who teach us how to weigh pros and cons just by sending us a weird email. Pro, click on it and the subsequent links until all curiosity is satisfied. Con, don’t open it, you’ll always wonder, what if, what if…

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  • Computer software makers who rule the world through versions, chat, and accessories.

  • Leaders in dystopian futures – I just watched Insurgent and Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1  – definite everybody wants to rule the world vibes and songs.

  • Cats and they’re doing a purr-fectly fine job.

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  • Vegetarians – unlikely world rulers, but sometimes we just want them to leaf us alone…see what I did there?

  • Hunters, ok, the loss of Cecil the Lion was sad, but humans directly or indirectly kill animals, humans, and other forms of life on this planet everyday, right or wrong.

  • Gamers, but at least they don’t care if it’s the real world.

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Don’t we all rule the world? You know, in that moment, that moment when you make someone’s day with a smile or kind word. Help someone. Do something you didn’t think you could do. Care. Answer that toy phone when a child hands it to you. Grow food instead of a portfolio. Don’t try to control, but to take part. Show patience, compassion, understanding. Offer help, comfort, support, or inspiration. Don’t give in to anger, greed, fear. To be part of something instead of needing to run it.

That’s ruling the world.

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Posted in Books, Political, Televison, Uncategorized

The Pursuit of Happiness Cult

 ImageAyn Rand conjured up the cult of Objectivism, which, to the best of my knowledge, is a philosophy whose principal doctrines include but aren’t limited to: reality is detached from consciousness; the practice of concept formation and inductive logic helps attain objective knowledge from perception; apt moral function is the pursuit of one’s own happiness, aka rational egotism; laissez faire capitalism is the only morally correct social system; and selective replication of reality into a physical form (ie. art) can adjust humans’ metaphysical ideas.

Objectivism was branded as a viewpoint intended to define not only human nature, but the nature of our world.The cult aspect of Rand’s work, to believe self-interest, said pursuit of self-interest, and the concept that people are somehow heroes for pursuing self-interest is beguiling. Logic ruling man is always an enthralling thought, but seldom happens, and rarely among Rands followers or herself. Like most, this philosophy has been so warped, exploited, and perverted it is a pathetic wraith of Rand’s intentions.

This book, Ayn Rand Cult by Jeff Walker (Open Court) is an interesting, fairly objective read although way too long and ragged at times (like this review), but consider the subject matter.

Many believe Rand’s ideas and beliefs are relics of a bygone era. It’s resurgence, while kept low-key is growing steadily, especially among the extreme right-wing political parties. Although their choice of prophet, an Atheist, Pro Choice woman is baffling. Image

Reason and logic are admirable, but they are susceptible to the whims, lies, and willful misunderstandings of humans who wield them as weapons against those who may resist.

As for the issues with laissez-faire capitalism, where do I begin? Look around the answers are attacking us each day.

While I have found the ideas of Rand’s work seductive at times, I find it improbable that my own happiness above all others is noble and absolute.Image