A billionaire, an industrialist and investment banker, stepped in front of a speeding train a few days ago. His suicide note said he was distraught over losing his empire, to the unfeeling economic winds he had helped all his life to blow, so he took his own life, saying he was unable to see any reason to continue being alive, in a world where he would be just another poor victim. It made all the papers and wires. At the same time that the freight train was putting an exclamation point at the end of a man's biography, in a store across the ocean, a man was buying a lottery ticket for his wife, playing the same numbers he had always played, even though they never won anything... still, he had faith that his numbers were right. He died of a heart attack later that day, not even knowing that his numbers would be coming up big in the next lottery, as grand prize winners that would have him set up for life! His widow is eternally grateful, and plans to put up a grand memorial for him. It made all the papers and wires. Meanwhile, in the same tick of the clock, in the Gaza strip, a 4 year old boy has not stopped sobbing, while clinging to the chest of his mother, whose heart stopped beating a few minutes ago, after she lost too much blood from a shrapnel wound inflicted by a bomb dropped on a "suspected insurgent's hideout", which was in fact, a small restaurant specializing in fallafels, and goat cheese pitas. The boy has just simultaneously lost his mother, and father, and two aunts and uncles, six cousins and seventeen neighbor's to an airstrike, which will be internationally condemned as unnecessary, and he now has no family left, and no hope, but the kindness of strangers, and the United Nations. When he speaks later on in life of this, he will not be speaking in kind words about his plight. But for now, he can only cry for his mother to wake up, though she can no longer care about anyone. It made all the papers and wires. While this was going on, in a particular city, somewhere in the USA, several hundred grown men, all over the age of thirty, were moved to tears by the outcome of a football game. The men were thanking numerous saints and deities and lucky charms for their blessing of a winning season, and the priviledge of another additional game for posterity, as a reward for accumulating more points than their opponents. As these tearful men realized the beauty of their lifelong dreams, in another particular city in the USA, several hundred grown men, all over the age of thirty, were moved to tears by the outcome of a football game. The men were cursing their bad luck, and wondering how to correct their deficiencies, both theistically and socially, as well as militarily if necessary, and lamenting their status as inferior competitors, unrewarded by the benefits of higher point accumulations, in the wake of their opponents. It made all the papers and wires.
that my friend is just beautiful. not like the dark sided events are beautiful, but just the realization, or reminder of how many people there are in the world experiencing a whole plethora of feeling, hardships, joys, and other experiences. some how as a human you want to reach out and help that little boy, but you know its too late. you want to tell that guy dont eat the cheeseburger that gives him a heart attack but hes too far. you want to give the business man a big cheque but dont have the money. is just aknoweledging their problems and feeling for them enough? or must we change the negativity of the world? how can little palestinian boys suffer so much while american men cry over a football game? does nobody care? does anyone send so much as a prayer or good thought? i dont think as many people who should do... lets all think about it for a second and just appreciate life, knowing that at the same time were banging our girlfriends, hittin the bong, or buying a burger, theres an innocent kid dying because of some war between two nation focused too much on past events and biblical babble.
Compassion, compassion, compassion. At some point, a person can't help wondering if the world isn't learning because it has lost the capacity to learn.
I found it walking around in my head, so I wrote it down for gc posterity. As the Grateful Dead once sang so eloquently... "Think this through with me, let me know your mind, Whoa-ooh, what I want to know is... ARE YOU KIND?" A question we must all answer everyday, in a minute, on earth.
Hell yes to busting out the GD quotes. As a student, I find it somewhat pathetic that other students judge kids on their role in the school's society. As in, if some kid isn't very popular, kids will acknowledge the fact and then try to stay away from them so they themselves are not associated with the "not being popular". I wish everyone in the world saw each other as beings rather than some dumb labels.
I think labels are one of the hardest things a person has to go through in thier life. Everyone feels like they have to comform to what the world tells them. I have fallen victim to this many times. Imagine if the coolest thing to do was to actually be different than anyone else. People try to be different but even "being different" is still just another fad. Imagine if everyone was actually different.
everyone is different but it isnt the difference that they are exactly proud of. people like to belong to groups so they forsake all their unique characteristics and take on the likings and styles and music and everything of that sort from the people who they want to belong with, inturn losing themselves as individuals and becoming a slave to society. now if every being was to be proud of their individuality, and every person loved the diversity and the similarities as well, they will find a different type of acceptance greater than if you were to compromise yourself
It is nothing but a simple parable about perception. These stories were taken from the news, this shit all actually happened. No joke. Take it how you wish, I wrote it in about 15 minutes, if it means anything, it just means that we should always try to expand our perspectives, since we now have the technology available to create the worldview at our fingertips that would have qualified us as gods, not too long ago. All I had to do to write this was to watch the news, and read a few wire service pages, and I felt empathy for all these people, and when I did, I entered the expanded consciousness. Empathy can be the vehicle, by which we live more than one life, in fact, if you increase the empathetic sensitivity inside your self enough, you can become able to visualize the lives and circumstances of everyone on Earth at once, while remaining within yourself. It's easy, since we have so much in common. The punchline then, is empathy. It's cheap, and effective! (Like Cannabis)
Think about it, watch closely, and this shit happens everyday, or something just as amazing. A simple man lands a Jumbo Jet on the surface of a river so easily, that not only is no one killed, but no one is even seriously hurt, meanwhile, on solid ground, in a shower stall in Queens, an old man is slipping and falling to his death, reaching for the rogaine cream. The Jet has a hairy, but safe landing, while the old man is sent to his eternal reward for trying to grow hairy on his head. Crazy times out there, man. Watch the wheels go round.
Bump this old dog for the children of gaza and israel both. You are one big family, please let love rule. Bring the wisdom, not the pain. Bring empathy. All are equal in the light. It is time to let go of the pain, and bring truth from the veil of lies and tears. From this day forward, from where the sun now stands in the sky, I will fight no more, forever. -Chief Joseph-