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Warning: Sermon ahead.
Jan. 15th, 2004 10:10 amA luscious night, a day that feels sweet, too much to do and then I look through LJ and pagga. Wow.
I can't stress enough that these are only my personal opinions. Having said that, I am not going to LJ cut this, cos I feel strongly enough about it not to be embarrassed by it's length. The scroll facility can rescue those who can't bear my yammering!
So much about hate. Nobody likes hate, everybody hates hate. People feel united in hating hate. They love to hate, as long as it is something they can justify hating, like hate itself. Can they give up their own hate? Should they?
Hate is an interesting emotion. I'm certainly prone to it, as I am to most emotional excesses.
It's powerful fuel for a lot of things. Hating injustice is the goad to actively changing things,hate-sparked comedy can be brilliant for showing up the hypocrisies around us, hate is necessary and effective for charging curses, for keeping out the bad guys, or sending them to Hell where they belong. It keeps groups together if they can have an outsider, a big baddie to joke about, to fear, to plot about, to busy empty minds and empty hearts.
Hate is useful and attractive. It feels horrible but nice too, cos the link may be negative but it is powerful, you can feel it. When you can't feel anything else, you can always rustle up something to hate. Hate is cheap.
It's also the biggest link next to love there is. And if you don't let it go, it won't let go of you; its effects can be mental, emotional, even physical. Hate, not translated into something more constructive, is purely an eater. Stick around in its company for a while and it becomes a case of Welcome to the Trip. At best it's entertaining, at worst, it's the very worst.
I believe the world is no better than the individual. If the individual enjoys hatred, so will the masses. If the individual feeds off personal prejudice, so will politicians/terrorists/the media. The world around us is a reflection of ourselves, not just as a mass of wallets and votes but on the most personal level. Our feelings, mine and yours shape this world. It was made before, we are re-making it now, even by default when we choose not to act. No use protesting about bigotry against Arabs if we hate (and love to hate) Americans. Same beans, different can.
I think there are two ways to deal with hatred. Either take its raw force and turn it into activity useful to the development of the self, or give it up. Cos if the self doesn't change, the world surely won't.
OK, that'll do, that's what I wanted to say. Final Caveat for the sensitive, this is not written with reference to any particular individual, on or sans LJ.
I can't stress enough that these are only my personal opinions. Having said that, I am not going to LJ cut this, cos I feel strongly enough about it not to be embarrassed by it's length. The scroll facility can rescue those who can't bear my yammering!
So much about hate. Nobody likes hate, everybody hates hate. People feel united in hating hate. They love to hate, as long as it is something they can justify hating, like hate itself. Can they give up their own hate? Should they?
Hate is an interesting emotion. I'm certainly prone to it, as I am to most emotional excesses.
It's powerful fuel for a lot of things. Hating injustice is the goad to actively changing things,hate-sparked comedy can be brilliant for showing up the hypocrisies around us, hate is necessary and effective for charging curses, for keeping out the bad guys, or sending them to Hell where they belong. It keeps groups together if they can have an outsider, a big baddie to joke about, to fear, to plot about, to busy empty minds and empty hearts.
Hate is useful and attractive. It feels horrible but nice too, cos the link may be negative but it is powerful, you can feel it. When you can't feel anything else, you can always rustle up something to hate. Hate is cheap.
It's also the biggest link next to love there is. And if you don't let it go, it won't let go of you; its effects can be mental, emotional, even physical. Hate, not translated into something more constructive, is purely an eater. Stick around in its company for a while and it becomes a case of Welcome to the Trip. At best it's entertaining, at worst, it's the very worst.
I believe the world is no better than the individual. If the individual enjoys hatred, so will the masses. If the individual feeds off personal prejudice, so will politicians/terrorists/the media. The world around us is a reflection of ourselves, not just as a mass of wallets and votes but on the most personal level. Our feelings, mine and yours shape this world. It was made before, we are re-making it now, even by default when we choose not to act. No use protesting about bigotry against Arabs if we hate (and love to hate) Americans. Same beans, different can.
I think there are two ways to deal with hatred. Either take its raw force and turn it into activity useful to the development of the self, or give it up. Cos if the self doesn't change, the world surely won't.
OK, that'll do, that's what I wanted to say. Final Caveat for the sensitive, this is not written with reference to any particular individual, on or sans LJ.
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