Repression And "Morality"

"happiness is when one's thoughts, expressions, and behavior are all in sync" this is paraphrased and attributable to mahatma gandhi, according to something i just read. regardless of it's authenticity, which i'm not bothering to try to check, it resonates as true to me, for it describes a state of being quite opposite to what i'm accustomed and have been accustomed to for as long as memory serves. that is, not being repressed.

i saw a young woman today. i say woman because by my definition that's what she was, as she was clearly post pubescent. however upon close examination i doubt if she would qualify by current american socially and legally acceptable definitions of adulthood. even though i didn't get a good look at her face, i could tell she was very pretty. long dark hair. she was relatively tall, nearly 170 cm,. wore tight pants which accentuated very slender legs and a firm little jutting ass. she was with an older woman, perhaps her mother. she was probably about 15 years old. i wanted very much to meet her, but of course, being repressed thanks to living in a very repressive society, particularly with regards to teen age sexuality and being attracted to "jail bait", i did no such thing.

such events as this have been happening to me since i myself was a teenager nearly a half century ago. countless thousands of times.

i think repression is what "conservatives" think of and refer to as "morality". although i can't speak directly for others. i consider it to be the chief cause of unhappiness among sheeple. it certainly is for me, for it's the reason there's such a deep divide between, what i think and desire, and what i allow myself to express and how i allow myself to behave publicly. in my youth i wasn't as articulate or understanding of this phenomenon as i am now, although deep down i was no doubt just as resentful and unhappy about it.

i think what makes my world especially dystopian is the view that unlike me, most sheeple embrace repression, or "morality", as just an aspect of their lives, not to be questioned or resisted. some even embrace it with apparent relish, those more inclined to puritanical dogmatism, a.k.a. "conservatives", fascists, or authoritarians.

i yearn for a world without repression or "morality". i think such a world is possible, and indeed existed before civilization came along and fucked everything up. i write this because of things i've read contrasting "primitive" cultures with civilized ones.

it's too bad that the coming collapse will likely result in human extinction, for it would be nice to be able to return to a time when people weren't sheeple, there were no laws to be obeyed, no "authorities" to fear, and no "morality" to repress.

Eyewitness Account Of George Floyd's Murder

with the trial set to begin of the cop who murdered george floyd, i came across this raw account from an eyewitness to it, made just hours later by the young woman who recorded the event and posted it on the web. it's worth taking 5 minutes to listen to, as she comments on the brutality and depravity of it, and how it was affecting her.

i posted this comment to it on youtube:

'america is a sick police state. the killer cop's trial is set to begin as i write this. sickeningly, i and i'm sure many others won't be shocked if this killer is acquitted or only convicted of a much lesser offense. the other cops involved ought to be up for murder too, but that's not how things work in a dystopian police state. facts get twisted, abusive criminal 'authorities' often get acquitted when they do stand trial (which is rare).

i want to add my heartfelt thanks and compliments to the courageous young woman who shot the video that exposed this murder by police, darnella frazier. if not for her, no doubt, this murder would have been covered up, wrote off as 'justifiable in the line of police duty'.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrqVElXDTQk

i posted another comment which included a link to a great book about another infamous case of murder by police, this one totally premeditated and political in nature, which i'll post again here, even though i've posted it b4 in this blog:

https://www.amazon.com/Assassination-Fred-Hampton-Chicago-Murdered-ebook/dp/B07XSGL8YX/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2UM1VKGBZI5ZD&dchild=1&keywords=fred+hampton+book&qid=1616113975&s=books&sprefix=fred+hampton%2Cdigital-text%2C172&sr=1-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExRjlZTzRDSVRITkJFJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDA5NzU0MUdTN0wwRVlKOTEwTSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwOTM3ODg1Vjk2TTQ4R1g5NUswJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

Drug Use For Grown-Ups

i wish i could make everyone in favor of drug prohibition read dr. carl hart's books, but alas, there's no fixing stupid, or educating the willfully/smugly ignorant. i just read a great review of mr. hart's most recent book, titled Drug Use for Grown-Ups, which is linked below. 

https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2021/feb/18/book_review_drug_use_grownups#comment-413474

Assata Shakur

Who is Assata Shakur? Learn more from Democracy Now with Amy Goodman:

Assata Shakur in Her Own Words: Rare Recording of Activist Named to FBI Most Wanted Terrorist List: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvYqYlvboEg

Eyes Of The Rainbow - a documentary film with Assata Shakur. only about 40 minutes long, this beautiful film allows her to tell a little bit of her story, interspersed with african musical and dance interludes. I was particularly impressed with what she had to say about living in Cuba, where she has been in exile, contrasting it very favorably with life in the U.S..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hsp5LEtcb0

Finally, here's a little excerpt from her autobiography.

"Like most poor people in the United States, I have no voice. The Black press and the progressive media, as well as Black civil rights organizations, have historically played an essential role in the struggle for social justice. We should continue and expand that tradition. We should create media outlets that help to educate our people and our children, and not annihilate their minds. I am only one woman. I own no TV stations or radio stations or newspapers. But I believe that people need to be educated as to what is going on and to understand the connection between the news media and the instruments of repression in America. All I have are my voice, my spirit and the will to tell the truth. But I sincerely ask those of you in the Black media, those of you in the progressive media and those of you who believe in truth and freedom to publish my story.' 

I've only read the first chapter thus far, in which she recounts a prolonged brutal, harrowing, and traumatic experience with American police.

https://www.amazon.com/Assata-Autobiography-Shakur-ebook/dp/B018W1FUWQ

Hope For Monsters

While the concept of god is somewhat reasonable (how did everything get here?), it's clearly artificial, and varies from culture to culture. How unorthodox one's views are in the matter is generally a pretty good indication of how independently and critically one thinks (or fails to). Shersonally, i have long thought that any god that's judgmental and punitive, such as those of 'conservative' christian sects, is a monster, and anyone who believes in and worships such a god is too, to the extent it colors their thinking and behavior.

This has caused and continues to cause me great consternation. Although i'm inclined to hate such sheeple, i'm not inclined to wish them suffering, for unlike them, i don't believe humans possess free will, and thus shouldn't be punished for 'bad' behavior (being held accountable is another matter). I don't want anyone to burn in hell for eternity.

I don't even wish to see such sheeple dead, because humans are capable of radical change, at least sometimes. A great example of this is Megan Phelps Roper, a woman who was raised in a very cultish christian fundamentalist church which became famous for it's hatred and intolerance. She gradually changed and left her church. In this 15 minute TED talk, she briefly explains how and why, and what she learned from it. I think it's well worth a listen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVV2Zk88beY

Stunningly Full Of 'It'

(this was written just prior to media reports that trump has contracted covid 19)

the great george carlin once said on stage that america was 'stunningly full of... something which can't be printed in a 'family' newspaper, so let's just say 'it'. this was in reference to our founding fathers, most specifically thomas jefferson, slave holder and author of the declaration of independence and it's famous words 'all men are created equal... with inalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness'.

decades of independent thinking, reading, and observation have led me to the same conclusion. here in 2020, after 4 years with a president who has been accused by over a dozen women of rape or lesser sexual assaults, a president who likes to promote himself as a great businessman in spite of having filed for bankruptcy for failed business ventures almost as many times as cats are said to have lives (9), who claims to be a genius in spite of having an obviously limited vocabulary and intellect, who sides with white supremacists, abusive and murderous police officers, and oligarchs of all stripes against the interests of common people... i could go on and on... who expresses admiration for murderous right wing dictators and contempt for activists like those in black lives matter, who smears all of his opponents with labels which often can't be backed by any facts or reasons... who brags about being a tax evader if not an outright cheat...

it's difficult to believe that america's president has ever been more stunningly full of 'it' than right now. it's incredible to witness how broad and loyal his base of support is. one can only conclude that these supporters are as stunningly full of 'it' as he is. which is downright scary.

i think our situation may be perilously similar to 1932 in germany. we may be on the precipice of a plunge into fascism and a right wing paramilitaristic reign of terror such has not been seen in our world since that infamous 'third reich'. a potential nightmare scenario not only for america, but the whole planet.

this brings to mind a quote i don't recall precisely, something like 'for evil to triumph, good men must remain silent'. i'm not entirely happy with that idea. i think it places far too much responsibility on the shoulders of 'good men', when in fact throughout history there have always been at least a few very brave individuals, women and men both, who at great personal risk have spoken out against powerful evil. there have been many martyrs without any substantial, permanent change for the better. yet, that call to action can't be silenced, or completely ignored.

so this is my feeble, pathetic effort to slay evil as i see it by speaking out. living in n.y., a state which is believed to be solidly democratic in this presidential election, i feel free to vote my conscience, which i intend to do by voting for the green party's superb candidate (who happens to be from syracuse), howie hawkins. however, if i lived in pennsylvania, a state believed to be hotly contested in this presidential election, i think i'd hold my proverbial nose and vote for 'the lesser evil', joe biden. i believe what's going on in america, this movement under trump towards a xenophobic, racist, ultra-nationalistic fascist state (with the most powerful military capable of destroying all life on the planet many times over) must be stopped!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXRA-RgADeg

Pleasure And Violence

this refers to the work of james w. prescott,, a neuropsychologist whose main topic of interest and study was the inverse relationship between pleasure and violence in human societies, focused on childhood and early adult developmental influences like mother-child bonding and 'adolescent' sexual freedom. i just came across another one of his highly recommended articles. an excerpt is posted below, followed by a link to the whole article.

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Unless the causes of violence are isolated and treated, we will continue to live in a world of fear and apprehension. Unfortunately, violence is often offered as a solution to violence. Many law enforcement officials advocate 'get tough' policies as the best method to reduce crime. Imprisoning people, our usual way of dealing with crime, will not solve the problem, because the causes of violence lie in our basic values and the way in which we bring up our children and youth. Physical punishment, violent films and TV programs teach our children that physical violence is normal. But these early life experiences are not the only or even the main source of violent behavior. Recent research supports the point of view that the deprivation of physical pleasure is a major ingredient in the expression of physical violence. The common association of sex with violence provides a clue to understanding physical violence in terms of deprivation of physical pleasure.

Unlike violence, pleasure seems to be something the world can't get enough of. People are constantly in search of new forms of pleasure, yet most of our 'pleasure' activities appear to be substitutes for the natural sensory pleasures of touching. We touch for pleasure or for pain or we don't touch at all. Although physical pleasure and physical violence seem worlds apart, there seems to be a subtle and intimate connection between the two. Until the relationship between pleasure and violence is understood, violence will continue to escalate.

As a developmental neuropsychologist I have devoted a great deal of study to the peculiar relationship between violence and pleasure. I am now convinced that the deprivation of physical sensory pleasure is the principal root cause of violence. Laboratory experiments with animals show that pleasure and violence have a reciprocal relationship, that is, the presence of one inhibits the other. A raging, violent animal will abruptly calm down when electrodes stimulate the pleasure centers of its brain. Likewise, stimulating the violence centers in the brain can terminate the animal's sensual pleasure and peaceful behavior. When the brain's pleasure circuits are 'on,' the violence circuits are 'off,' and vice versa. Among human beings, a pleasure-prone personality rarely displays violence or aggressive behaviors, and a violent personality has little ability to tolerate, experience, or enjoy sensuously pleasing activities. As either violence or pleasure goes up, the other goes down.

Sensory Deprivation

The reciprocal relationship of pleasure and violence is highly significant because certain sensory experiences during the formative periods of development will create a neuropsychological predisposition for either violence-seeking or pleasure-seeking behaviors later in life. I am convinced that various abnormal social and emotional behaviors resulting from what psychologists call 'maternal-social' deprivation, that is, a lack of tender, loving care, are caused by a unique type of sensory deprivation, somatosensory deprivation. Derived from the Greek word for 'body,' the term refers to the sensations of touch and body movement which differ from the senses of light, hearing, smell and taste. I believe that the deprivation of body touch, contact, and movement are the basic causes of a number of emotional disturbances...

http://www.violence.de/prescott/bulletin/article.html