TahitiNut
TahitiNut's Journal5,000 years of "Law of the Jungle" conditioning vs. 4,000 days of DU? No contest.
Look. When the women of the tribe strayed into Lion territory while gathering berries and firewood, the elders could ONLY say "don't go there." The same counsel would follow when they wandered into another tribe's territory and were kidnapped by the young hunters of that tribe.
Part of humanity's social "evolution" was to appeal to a diety and to go to war. Nonetheless, the counsel to the women of the tribe remained the same.
One could argue that humanity wouldn't have evolved at all without the potential victims of predation having learned how to avoid and evade such predations, no matter how 'unfair' they might regard it.
Yes ... every ethical cell in my body rebels at the notion of blaming the victims. Yes ... we cannot regard ourselves as "civilized" without deterring and punishing predatory behavior. But it must be observed that predatory behavior in general is richly-rewarded in our society. That's what much of Capitalism has become. Predation.
They think of employees as a COST, not an INVESTMENT.
On top of that, executives at the Fortune 2000 are held by their nuts by the investment bankers and other Wall Street types. THOSE people truly regard employees as fodder ... a COST. The focus on the stock market, the availability of investment capital (nobody thinks about corporate bonds anymore), and the "Quick Ratios" that measure "productivity" in terms of direct labor employee compensation (NOT executive overhead pay!) are symptoms of a CAPITALIST attitude that regards Labor as an "evil" (even though it's labor that CREATES wealth).
Once upon a time not really that long ago, we regarded investment in corporate stock as a long-term method to preserve the value of capital -- not some roulette wheel for instant riches -- and we evaluated stock on the basis of fundamentals. No more. Folks who "play the market" don't even know what that means. (Warren Buffett does.) It's about the quality of the product and the reliability of the processes that create the product and the longevity of the work force and the operational background of the executives and the education and training of the workforce and how all that compares to both the market and the competition, foreign and domestic. Why? Because it was about the long term! It was NOT about the "quick kill"!! Companies once invested in on-the-job training! Because of that, they hired employees with a track record of LEARNING. Now, they look for "plug-and-play" workers who're already experienced in some proprietary (i.e. vendor's) technology and without an interest in advancing to a level where they did other things. (God forbid any insecure, wet-behind-the-ears MBA hire someone who might be able to do his job! Better!)
The "traditional" Thanksgiving is supposed to begin with a welcome of the God of Consumption.
Santa Claus. He's coming to town ... on Thanksgiving morning! We're a nation that fails to distinguish between two deities upon whom we layer our wishes and appetites. Immediately after His arrival, the children are rushed inside the Temple of Retail to sit on the pervert's lap and engage in prayer (much like the Catholic Church today).
The next ritual is attendance at a combat between two groups of gladiators, competing to see which can injure and maim more of the others. This attendance frequently became participation as supporters of the conflicting groups engage in their own combat. (Alex Karrras and DIck Butkis competed on the tally of those players they each caused to be carried off the field.)
The climax of the Thanksgiving ritual was an orgy of self-indulgence, engorging ourselves on enough food to feed a third world nation for a month, and throwing away enough to feed them for a week. Members of the family would have belching and farting competitions and present obscenely distended bellies like sweaty Buddhas.
Finally, the Day of Indulgence would culminate with a trek to the local movie house to witness the season's latest celluloid circus for the masses.
Yeah ... let's lament the intrusion of "Black Friday" into our treasured reminiscences of a Norman Rockwell image that we never actually lived in reality.
The sense of Betrayal is profound.
I speak from experience. Among the "slings and arrows" I received after returning from Viet Nam, was homelessness (thankfully short-term) and PTSD (which wasn't called PTSD then). There was NO "welcome home." None. Nobody in my family and none of my friends. My "bride" was sleeping with her lover. Her first words to me: "What the hell are you doing there?"
It was a nightmare ... and recurring nightmare (literally) for years afterwards.
Somehow, many self-righteous 'opponents' of the War in Viet Nam chose to scapegoat those who'd experience far greater loss than THEY even risked. After 1972, they didn't even 'risk' being drafted... and the interest in protesting disappeared like a fart in a windstorm. The boat people saw almost nothing from the vast majority of those self-righteous folks.
The sense of betrayal comes from the very nature of National Service ... which is a profound act of faith in The People and the system of self-governance upon which we all must rely. The "body politic." It's a subordination of one's self-indulgence to the "enlightened self-interest" of a civilized society.
The MOST meaningful response to such service isn't "Thanks" ... it's "I'm glad to have you back home." That's all. After all, that's what every guy LIVED for ... getting back to "the world" ... to the PEOPLE in his life who represented "The People" for whom he subordinated his own life.
Kicking a subordinate is a cowardly act.
It was betrayal.
And I get the 'joy' of remembering it every November. Accompanied with nightmares. I'm grateful for the 11.5 months of nightmare-free sleep. I'm grateful for those good folks who later were most helpful in "getting my head straight." I'm grateful that I never stopped knowing how to love. There are so many things I'm grateful for ... even knowing the meaning of the word "betrayal." What I'm most grateful for is never having done this to another person ... for not "going postal" and living a life of regrets. So, to those who betrayed me, I say "Thanks" ... which is the Booby Prize. First Prize is "I'm glad you're back home and part of my life."
Happy Veterans Day! 
{I post this for those who can't and for those who won't ... who have parallel experiences.}
REMEMBER: The wealthy get 100% of ANY tax cut, whether it's on <$25,000, <$250,000, or <$2,500,000!
We MUST do something about the media rhetoric that implies the wealthy don't benefit from tax cuts on income below $250,000. That's BULLSHIT! They get 100% of the benefit!
But it just ain't enough for the greedy motherfuckers!
What's life-changing for Working Class people is chump-change for the Ruling Class.
They demand tax cuts that ONLY benefit them! "Trickle-down" is a myth -- a fraud -- unless they're talking about urine.
Please ... remind folks of this FACT whenever you hear the implication that the wealthy don't benefit from tax cuts on lower and middle class income.
[font size=3]HINT: When they say "tax cuts for 98% of the American people" it's a FALSEHOOD![/font]
It's 100%! The wealthy get those tax cuts, too!!
It's always more about how WE see the President than about him (or her, hopefully soon).
JFK wasn't a 'great' because of his accomplishments in office, which were few. He was a 'great' because of the FEELINGS of the population of the country ... what "we the people" projected upon him and invested in him. That's what it's all about, really, about the feelings and optimism and mythologies and aspirations and confidence and respect THE PEOPLE have in the individual. Yes, the person must behave in a manner that isn't overtly contradictory to the values projected upon him, but when push comes to shove it's NOT about him -- it's about US.
Obama knows this. He's said it. It's just one more reason we can choose to be confident in him -- he's "keepin' it real." To the degree that right-wingers invested such feelings in Duhbya (choosing NOT to see his clay feet), there is a valid basis for elevating his ranking. (That does NOT prevent me from regarding him and the Dick as War Criminals who belong in prison.)
But it IS about US ... and whether WE choose, in concert, to adopt a confident, optimistic, unified attitude. There are a LOT of "players" in creating and maintaining this mindset, but virtually every "player" is so because THE PEOPLE choose to be affected by them, whether they be the media, other politicians, or the Ruling Class. In the final analysis, absolutely NOBODY can have power over THE PEOPLE'S attitudes without THE PEOPLE'S consent.
It's said that Nobody can make you feel bad about yourself without your permission. (I agree.) Likewise, nobody can affect the feelings and attitudes of We The People without the Consent of We The People.
That Consent comes with a price ... and an even bigger price for refusing to give it anymore once given.
Profile Information
Gender: MaleHometown: Body in Michigan - Heart in California
Home country: Born in USA ... Reborn in Tahiti
Current location: Right here, under my hat
Member since: 2002
Number of posts: 71,611
