The Writing of Roddy on FB- cont'd

Now that it has been a bit more than a month since I launched The Writing of Roddy on FB, I am beginning to find some satisfaction with it. Rather than being some pathetic and shallow page where one could shamelessly peddle stuff to those who just don't care anymore, it's taken on a sort of personality I see developing, growing, becoming, reaching out.

The page features several excerpts of novels and short stories, so this way people can gather a few examples  of the work before they commit. Between such excerpts one can find momentary thoughts on what's occurring during the moment of the day, some rants, and some of my clever and amusing observations. There is certainly a tinge of me in these posts, and one who is otherwise unaware can gain some insight into who this fellow, Roddy, really is.

They may not be entirely comfortable with that.

That is, in part, much of the point.

FB is pretty good at gathering some rather clever pictures and images hitherto unavailable to an unsuspecting public, and I feel good in sharing some of those I find suitably entertaining. Particularly the ones featuring something twisted. I just adore twisted. All things twisted provide such confirmation of life, don't you think?

This page is still a work in the making, and one still growing, maturing. Now little more than a month old, there is still so far to go. But I look forward to seeing it develop into something truly worthy of everything it purports and supports. Hopefully, it can be something worthy of growing into something worthy. In fact, because of the way things are changing in today's world, this just might be a part of the new norm for the writer of today.

I caught onto doing this through a couple of other writers doing the same thing. Lance Manion is a very imaginative and creative writer, creating mostly humor and somewhat odd perceptions. Jonas Samuelle writes some extraordinary literary fiction and is so recommended, but his writing page mostly consists of a few excerpts and daily observations. These fellows do enough to keep you in tune with their name and writing at least once or twice a day, and this keeps them fresh in the mind. So, I copied their lead and did what I did, capitalizing on the fact that my name, Roddy, is somewhat rare and easy to recall.

I didn't want to peddle the page far and wide during those first few formulative weeks, mainly because I desired to see it develop into something worth seeing. Sure, the page is still quite young and definitely needs some tweaking and growth, but we're at a point where the word needs to spread. So, I'm at a point where it's time to start inviting folks to the party.

I have been writing for quite some time, and I've seen a few changes along the way. Once upon a time, it seemed the way to go was continually submit unsolicited work to the myriad of literary magazines out there. Then, the self-publishing world continued in its growth and evolution, and the process keeps moving. There are wondrous places like smashwords for people to express their voice, and everyone is on the eBook bandwagon. Plus, FB is historically profound. So, I publish my blog (you are here) and several articles on the internet, and now I have this new page to start a new chapter.

For those reading this now, please check out my writing page and click that Like button. I will do what I can to make sure you're glad you did.

The Money God

It amazes me how, in this day and age and after all that has gone on regarding budget issues, recessions, crime, unemployment, financial crises, and threats to cut Social Security and other benefits, why haven't more people asked some rather simple but poignant questions.

Questions like: why does money and finance have to work this way? Maybe, just maybe, the way we do this finance and economy thing needs a tweak. Why are there people worth tens of billions of dollars in a world literally risking annihilation because of a significant lack of economic prosperity?

Isn't funny how some talking heads go on about 'take control of your destiny' and 'grab your life by the horns' when the vast majority of human beings on this planet can find little more than simple labor, often because they’re constrained by their individual budget. But they're working hard, right? They're working honest, right? That’s how you get ahead, right?

There is a big, ugly gorilla in the room being intentionally ignored, and his name is Mammon. This god of money has our entire species duped. While the vast majority of us are duped into thinking this is all there is, the others are duped into covering that gorilla ass in exchange for some serious benefits.

The truth of the matter is that, while the people in control whine about the crises and financial debacles putting our world at risk, they know what they're doing and doing it just the way they intend. Nobody with an average intelligence should accept these lies anymore. The solutions and potential improvements are simply too numerous to count, too easy to implement, and too obvious to deny.

But why does this not occur? Human predation. It is just that simple. It has nothing to do with any of the economic woes and dramatics they claim; it is simply and easily better for those in power to wield power through economic and monetary weaponry.

When they say the world is at stake unless we figure something out, they are lying. The economic, monetary and financial issues are a human issue and no other separate or higher external entity is forcing these methods on us. The only ones doing it are the very wealthy and that's the end of the story.

Now, your boss or company owner is likely quite sincere when they cry uncle in these issues, but those wielding global and national influence are not. The Terminator franchise was correct in that a human creation would control and continually threaten humanity, but the creation isn't self-aware. Those operating its controls are the ones doing exactly what they desire.

We are right where suckered, ancient tribesmen were when they were solemnly informed they had to hand over yet another virgin daughter, who was to be thrown into the mouth of the volcano at dawn, to appease the rain gods and save the crops. Never mind the horrific night she endured at the hands of her captors before this final torment. We are continually informed the way things are now are that way because there is no other way...yet the wealthy of today are the wealthiest ever and today's poor are more numerous than ever. It does not add up.

What to do? Well, the obvious questions need to be asked, repeatedly, to start. We need to make it clear we know this economic system is ours to tweak towards a greater benefit to the whole, even if those who benefit don't like it. They cannot present a force or entity overpowering us with this, so we can freely claim it should be modified to benefit everyone (reasonably and with intelligence), and resistance to modification is only due to reasons of power and manipulation based on predatory behavior. If we call a spade a spade and point right at the gorilla, then at least some measure of coping will have to be employed.

We're not buying into your rain god bullshit anymore, and our daughters are no longer yours to harm. In fact, we have a few hard feelings to sort out...

The primary challenge here is gaining enough widespread support and a minimization on the part of minions who believe whatever they're told. We simply have to inform the influential that we know they have more than enough influence to influence our situation in beneficial ways. We all know we must act with intelligence and that those working entry-level positions cannot live a millionaire lifestyle, but the attitude that ‘there just isn’t enough to go around’ is a blatant lie. I am not saying we should provide the wealthy less in order to give the poorer more; let the wealthy have all they want while we pay more for honest work.

We would simply have to make more money. And no, we don’t have to reduce the value if there is more; that is another contrived lie based on protecting the elite. Doesn’t it make sense to boost the economy in such a way that fewer people are struggling so we can see more spending on the part of more people? I know that everyone have zillions to spend would inundate the supply and create chaos, but the status quo as it sits now is nowhere near any better.

Overall, let’s have the common man point to his political servants and point out what we know is true. From there, we can put our heads together and make some positive changes. But for as long as we allow them to shrug their shoulders and play dumb, things will remain dumb. 

Clockwork Oranges, are We?

Well, so it seems. We desire to state we know what we’re doing, but an honest look at the state of (human) things prompts some serious doubt. We believe we’re moving headlong into the future, but signs only show us spinning in circles.

We want to appear civilized and intelligent, but yet we don’t do it. We still continue playing the game stating those other people are so different than us simply because of their geographic placement, political views, cultural or religious beliefs and convictions. We are still very much so a territorial creature. We claim we desire to value the head and the heart, but shamelessly place high value on the crotch. We desire to be right, but it feels so wrong, or it just comes across as so difficult.

It appears humanity can only harbor a calm and peaceful society for but so long, and then things must boil over to chaos. We lose significant tolerance (while tolerating the most shallow and silly things) of so much for reasons we consciously fail to recognize but for purposes of grand importance soon to be mentioned, some day. We feel justified in value-judging one another incessantly, with either looking down on the struggling as lazy and weak or look upon the wealthy as greedy and selfish. So many will lie back and take advantage of a system once designed to give safe harbor, but now that safe zone is filled with poison apples whose only goal is to do as little as possible before dying. In short, we trust those different from us less and less while struggling to justify while we feel in such a way.

It appears our governmental abilities shift to greater and greater needs for totalitarian control and then to occasional liberty (but only for very short periods), without fail throughout history. This is a magnificent development because it encourages human development, but in fits and starts, maintaining a balance in order to allow for normalization. Caged animals, we know, cannot just be let free. They’ll die, much through indecision and complete ignorance. So, they must be trained to succeed in the wild before being set loose or they’ll just be sent to their deaths. Off-leash train your dog and it will stay with you, under threat of trouble should it wander too far. But keep a dog on a short leash and then unleash it, and you’ll never see it again. That is, until you see the vultures picking its bones clean on the side of the road. But what remains most fascinating about this aspect of human interaction is how Humanity (yes, it seems it’s a human condition) believes it owns itself when in high authority. All high government leaders globally see the masses as their property they can do with as they please. This is as widespread a human condition as the allure of young women. It seems to be a human condition to perceive those doing poorer than us is poorer in mind and soul. It does seem arrogant, but it certainly is global. Liberty, while many assume is something desired, just tears at the patience of those who feel they know better.

Almost our entire technological prowess is either devised directly from or straight to military use and strategic defense. Against what and whom? Well, our own kind. Each other. Because they, whoever they are, are after us, want to eat our babies alive while they scream. They want to take what we have and they must be stopped at all costs. All other uses of technology and innovation are secondary and only for the purpose of economic prosperity; a prosperity maintaining the military machine and those it protects. Humanity battling Humanity for superiority is truly and literally all around us, at national levels and then on down to local levels, in business aspects and then even gangs. The fact that not more is done about the gang dynamic, a condition against all that is decent and civilized, is one of the most bizarre aspects of society.

Bureaucracy and simple arrogance overshadow virtually all of human interaction and daily conduct, and before we know it, we can’t stand virtually anything about governance. That is, unless we’re a part of it, and then it is all. Those who lied their way into leadership must create a cacophony of complex difficulty in order to make their daily affairs appear complicated in order to convince the rank and file they need them or else all is lost. The world is duped into thinking the monetary and economic systems are immutable in order for those who continually influence the fluidity of these marvels do so only on their terms. In fact, the arrogance is so significant a part of this that it merits being the primary subject of discussion or article because arrogance is the primary foundation/emotion of all of human suffering and difficulty. If it wasn’t for this prehistoric emotional state, we would be living in societies akin to what we see in the science fiction movies. When Humanity recognizes arrogance is the true ball and chain, the miracles will be as common as the laughter.

But those days are not on the radar, because there are those among the marginalized and shunned who drift into greater clouds of anger and despair, and then into simple evil. (This is not to imply this is the primary source of evil). Our weaker people are forever at risk, and children are being taken and attacked and killed every day, and the proliferation of slavery is at its greatest height, ever. There is no room for debate in the perception that Humanity preys on itself at numerous levels. No woman, no child, nobody is safe from harm and evil without being surrounded by a fortress of protection. The most bizarre aspect of this is we merely shield ourselves from it rather than meet it head on. It is equal to allowing packs of marauding rabid dogs to run the streets and as long as we can avoid them, as long as they’re not eating our vulnerable, there’s nothing else to worry about.

Because of the weakening of the peaceful in a peaceful society, everywhere, the authorities maintaining control and lawfulness must do so with greater force and a minimum of tolerance. Soon, everyone is among another people, those guys, those from the other side of the tracks, the bad part of town, the filthy rich or the robber barons, the perpetual losers, the culturally elite, the kind your mother warned you about, the bad seed, the hill people, those in constant denial, the puddle-shallow, the poor and downtrodden, the unwashed, the rank and file, the haves and have-nots, the ones that just don’t really matter anymore. The collateral damage. The undocumented alien either a liability or an asset, depending on who you ask. The threat to NIMBY.

Everyone knows they’re right and have all the answers, and if everyone else would just shut the hell up and do things the way they think they should, and would believe the way they think they should, and say what they think they should say, and be content with what they’re allotted while the truly worthy receive the rest, then things would be fine. After all, we’re the ones who are human and intelligent enough to recognize what’s proper and best for them, and they just need to have the sense to accept it. Isn’t that right, Mayor Bloomberg?

We pretend to whimper about the attacked or stolen women and children, but staunchly refuse to do anything about the proliferation of slavery affecting the planet today, because after all, that’s the greatest economic gear in the machine. Sorry, but things are best for the survival of the fittest in this dog-eat-dog world, and get used to it because it ain’t changing. Life sucks, so get a helmet. Eat or be eaten, but keep your elbows off the table. Wipe the blood from your chin with a linen napkin because we’re good people. Now, young man, don’t you know hiding bodies in the cellar is bad manners similar to drinking straight from the bottle? Savor the screams, but refrain from being gauche. Hey, the chainsaw movie is okay, as long as we don’t see a breast.

All of this is because we are Lemmings and Clockwork Oranges. While we harbor enough sentient thought to thrive more than we die, there must be a balance keeping us in check. Nature allowed us to be at the top of the food chain, but with a clause. If nothing else is going to eat us and maintain the balance preventing us from overrunning the entire globe at the expense of the remainder of the globe, then we have to do it ourselves. We are allowed to proliferate to a certain extent, to gain a few steps, and then we must annihilate a certain percentage of our own kind in order to keep a proper balance.

It appears Humanity has been chosen by Nature to be the species able to reach a sentient and technological advantage in order to assist life on this planet within a dynamic and often turbulent environment. This planet has witnessed numerous mass extinctions, so it seems fair to assume Nature recognized that if life from this planet is to exist, or at least be remembered, then there must be at least one species able to escape the planet one day and migrate beyond the planet’s collapsing environment. After all, it is ultimately all about survival and the perpetuation of life, which is the universe’s greatest power and energy source.

But there must be a balance within the circle of life, and evolution must take place in its time. So, we will grow and achieve more, but the more our dreams come true, the more our nightmares must come to pass. Yea, so it seems there is a Yin & Yang. While it seems odd there is such a thing as those who hunt little kids for the sole sake of causing harm and seeking shallow thrills, such things are all around us and we damn well know it. During the time this is being written, the world is poised to embrace war once again, with everyone picking on their favorite scapegoats, the Jews, and we naturally coddle the least sentient, the extremists, because the base within us recognizes these amalgamations encourage violence sooner, facilitating the balancing of what has become unbalanced.

There is a dichotomous drama unfolding around us now, and we live in one of the most dynamic times in human history. Once upon a time, humanity was used to continual death and suffering all around, but the 20^th and 21^st centuries have allowed for greater and greater growth and prosperity. But, these historical periods have also seen flourish the greatest capacity for violence, intolerance, and slavery. It appears nature has kept the seismic disruptions rather quiet in the past and maintained a steady level of humanity for a long time, but the past two centuries allowed humanity to flourish and grow to numbers hitherto unimagined. We can assume the pressure has been allowed to build to an uncharacteristic intensity so that once it does break, there will be a massive, broad-sweeping act of self-destruction throughout humanity for the sake of achieving an almost complete collapse of the species. Why? Because the developed sentience and civilization would recognize the insanity and savagery and propel forward towards a finer species, potentially achieving planetary or at least space migration. For as odd as it seems, humanity must always be a phoenix force.

After all, we know migration is a common method employed by nature to move various species to more accommodating ecosystems. Birds fly south for the winter, wildebeest and buffalo move to richer pastures, butterflies traverse incredible distances to breed and recuperate, and humans build ships allowing us to carry necessities across wildernesses where we’re unsure there are any. The wind-driven ships of long ago carried fresh water, food and other supplies across a very hostile sea that offered minimum sustenance, and the space shuttle is merely an advanced version of that.

The stoic, calm moon awaits our development and advancement with patience and serenity, should we achieve the state to get there and then thrive via our advanced abilities, because it is the first step to true space migration for a truly civilized creature. But it remains to be seen if Nature’s first choice for sentience succeeds. After all, Nature chose a predator first, creating drama within the advancing construct. However, should Humanity fail and collapse rather than succeed, Nature could try sentience with another species. Nature does not mind trial and error. Remember that this planet has seen numerous mass extinctions in the past, so it could potentially receive several species vying for sentience in order to harbor ultimate custodial duties of bringing the historical record of this planet beyond this planet once the planet is no longer fit for life, but others are.

We do live in what must be one of the most fantastic times in history, because we are on the cusp of witnessing Humanity pass or fail Nature’s test of our development. We will either soon witness Humanity collapse into disarray and societal dismemberment, or we might witness Humanity overcome the temptation and reach the next level. Unfortunately, the odds are against us, so those reading this will soon likely witness horrors and tragedies unleashed on this planet unlike any it has ever witnessed. But let not your heart be troubled, because Humanity just might emerge like a phoenix and rise from the ashes to become an even greater civilized society. Yes, millions and perhaps billions will have to suffer and die horribly, but the future matters more than the past.

So strap in, keeps your hands and feet within the vehicle at all times, and get ready for the ride of all rides, because this band of Lemmings is about to embark on the greatest leap into the depths of all time, and there’s no way to know where it all ends.