Author: eejoseph

Lifeless Activism

eejosephLeave a comment

I am beginning to put a little more confidence in ancient sayings, commonly called proverbs, adages or generally labelled as “wisdom literature”.  One saying that recently was thrust into my conscience was “There is nothing new under the sun”.  Popular interpretations of this adage run along the lines of “everything that is happening has happened before”,  “new inventions are not unprecedented”, etc.   This line of thinking was probably behind the sage’s saying “All is vanity”, but in the modern age people like to think that they are pioneering in every field of human endeavour.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Humans are waxing worse and worse, even while claiming to be activists for the nobler ideals.

Development is technlogy are questionable as new with regular discoveries of ancient cultures and their truly fantastic inventions.  Did ancient man have flying machines and powered vehicles?  The jury is still out.

The moral ills and debates about evil are certainly not new.  Did ancient man have debates about imperialism, capitalism, homosexuality, clean water for all, protection of the vulnerable (widows, orphans, foreigners, old and young women and girls)?  It is hard not to notice that there certainly were more than debates.  Destruction has visited many cultures over the millenia and  those cultures that have not addressed these issues are paying the price with mounting unrest and calls for reform.

Where are today’s activists for the perennial concverns of human survival and progress?  They are locked in clique-ish caucuses, conspiring against the masses, denying their colleagues what they fight for most valiantly for themselves.  They sneak and hide to pile up evidence to convict their closest allies.  They unleash increasingly vicious attacks on ther fellowman.  They see the world through the tinted glasses of their ancestors without a thought of taking the gains to the next level.  They claim to have the right to first place in everything and refuse to acknowledge their equals.  Such is the world of activism.

Whole nations are in the grip of unspeakable vanity and atricities.  Recently the Canadian people voted into power a party whose leader was twice found in contempt of parliament.  The Israeli PM goes to Washington to ridicule the US government’s call for a just resolution of the Palestrinian Problem.  So-called Islamic states are mired in 13 centuries  of religious revision of ancient wisdom while their people cry for the one thing that every hiuman has the right to: freedom.  Who is applauding today’s actors and activists?

It seems that activism has become focused on a club mentality, where monetary gain has trumped service.  Activists regularly circle the wagons and array themselves to deny others a chance to achieve and contribute.  To fit in with today’s activists, one has to simply admire and commend the activist who have been on the scene for decades or face exclusion and harassment.

There is no maxim or constitution that has ever transformed human attitudes.  In fact creeds, and vision statements are usually a cover for dastardly endeavours.  People can recite or read their  mottos and creeds, and these types of activist have failed to make a lasting dent on their communities.  The use of sound bytes is equally futile.  This generation needs to be be re-educated on what the real gains of our forebears have been, and then to commit to furthering the cause in the widest sense possible.

We have reached the river of no return.  Every day, lies are being exposed with absolutely certainty.  Many activists are “walking dead”, holding forth nothing more than mob-rule, bullying and twisted rhetoric.  Today’s activism needs a life: life rooted in reality, and aimed at a new reality.  Would it be too much to ask if activism is not something more than  tribal, religious, racial, political and patriotic self-aggrandizement? Let us ask the corporate organizations – churches, synagogues, mosques, unions,  and political parties –  the answer will invariably reveal a lost and lifeless activism.

The Real Colours of Civic Society

eejosephLeave a comment

Behind the rising of cries for freedom in the Middle East and Africa is a centuries-old denial of reality.   Many societies have hidden behind layers of xenophobia and puritanical elitism, until now.  Self-determination is not  a game for anyone, least of all, religious extremists.  The fall of Libya’s leader is indicative of the real nature of non-democratic governments.  To add to the outrage felt by observers across the globe at the denial of the right to protest, the African Union is joining the cry to save the Libyan regime from the well-deserved thumping that is in the cards for every murderous regime.  The UN Security Council vote that gave life to Resolution 1973 is a beacon for the exposure of the real colours of civic society.

The world waits to see how many more despots (Africa has its share!) will come under the gaze of the international communty, but no-one should be holding his/her breath.  It could be a long time before the brats and thugs  of Africa get their kick at the can.  They will, eventually, learn that brutality has its judgment: you cannot use force to intimidate popular protest.

Canada and the western nations have their judgment coming too for behaviour like the police actions during the recent G20 conference held in Toronto.  Racism and hatred are still the fuel for a lot of what is problematic in the world, and while people are waiting in line to line their pockets with the proceeds of economic manipulation, the basic rights and needs of people are being swept under the rug.

The path to an acceptable level of human rights realization is hampered by the fact that the UN’s Human Rights council is dominated by states that routinely violate human rights. The fox is guarding the hen-house!  Does anyone expect the Human Rights table to suffer mass resignation?  Sorting out the colours of civic society will take a lot of character and courage.

I Would be a Fool

eejosephLeave a comment

The wise truly know that they have something, but the fool pretends that he has everything and expresses the opposite.   According to Hebrew wisdom, the fool is not really the atheist, as is commonly assumed.  Atheists are openly saying that they have  no belief in God or a god, while the fool is not necessarily someone who makes such a public declaration.  The fool says so in his heart.  The fool would seem logically then to be the religious people.  Is that too wide a sweep of the brush?  Aren’t the professedly religious people usually implicated in unneighbourly and destructive thinking and behaviour?  As a religious person, I would be a fool to elevate religions in general to the kind of pedestal that the  some religions occupy.

None of my leaders claim to be God.  They dare not claim that their word is law.  They do not claim to have the power of life and death over the religion’s adherents.  In fact some religions do not have adherents; one is either born into it or not.  Entire populations, born into imposed belief in the existence of God this become weapons of mass distinction.   We do have the right to follow our ancestor’s God, provided, I would argue, that we take His worship to the next level, forward we would hope.  This would be an appropriate application of wisdom.

In the search for wisdom, people take on loyalty to a person, like Mohammed, or Moses or Messiah, as the infallible guide, but frequently and increasingly we see a preference for a less than reasonable robotic compliance.  We see an imposition of oppressive edicts on one’s peers.  We see less intelligent and reverent interpretation of the instruction (from the guide) and equally reverent interpersonal relationships (as exhibited by the guide).  There is some kind of inner-man denial (play-acting?) taking place.

On the inside is where fool or the wise person is born.  It is on the inside that we get our label: fool or wise.  If the fool is one who says, in his heart, that there is no God we should not take the public or audible saying too seriously.  he fool is essentially fooling himself.  If my heart was denying God’s existence I could be an a lama, a rabbi, an imam, a guru, a prophet, a pastor , a priest or a pious Christian, but I would still be a fool.

Kingdom without a King

eejosephLeave a comment

The State of Israel burst onto the stage with not much of a flourish, even though it is claimed that the return of Jews to Palestine was a fulfilment of a host of divine prophecies.  The manipulation of its colonies in the Middle East by Great Britain seemed like a good idea to everyone except the people on the ground at the Partition of Palestine.  Even more disturbing is Jewish blindness to the nature of their new state, and the conflicting interests of  Jew and Gentile powerbrokers.  It defies explanation how Jewish leaders can still affirm the viability of Mosaic religion without the installation of its central components: ritual worship and the monarchy.  Israel without a visible king is a loonless loonie.

How much more misguided can a people be?  Israel is a poor facsimile of the entity envisioned by their true Monarch.  Israel needs to retreat, take time to evaluate its roots and branches, and arrive at the Branch that holds out the promise of fruit.

Jewish identity may sound like its source is Judah or Judea.  This would cover up the fate of the northern kingdom of 10 tribes which was exiled and dispersed following the sacking of the capital, Samaria.  A Judahite or Judean origin reveals the same dispersion, exile and sacking of the capital, Jerusalem.

The true origin of Jewish identity is Abraham, a man whose role as father of the faithful cannot be annulled by Mosaic tradition.  The temple is history and will be history if rebuilt.   Fulfilment of the Israelite family’s hopes rest with the one appointed to rule.  It cannot be the Chief Rabbi or some mortal Davidide.  Israel needs its king.  A Davidide and outward-looking king is Israel’s salvation.  Dependance on the United States or the force of arms is futile.

Israel’s elevation of Mosaic traditon over the patriarchal wisdom has put the modern Jew into an untenable position.  David and his son Solomon were willing to do the one thing a Jew is most reluctant to do, as long his teacher is Moses; include Gentiles in every aspect of life.  Every kingdom needs a king.  Watch out for the rabbinic discussions (and arguments) about Israel’s Davidide king and the unravelling of Mosaic Judaism.

Human and Urgent Needs

eejosephLeave a comment

As the world turns, States with significant Muslim populations are turning on their leaders and calling for the one undeniable need, freedom.  Some leaders are slow on getting the message, others have either gotten out of the way of their young citizens or are making reforms as fast as they can.  The surge of protests have uncovered a fatal flaw; there is no urgency among the leaders to breathe the air of jubilee.

The Saudi kingdom, long hidden behind xenophobic regulations, has been reported declaring all protests as violations of Islamic law.  Loathe to admit that what is most attractive to all humans has been denied the majority of Muslims, the Saudi Kingdom has shown its ignorance of human nature and its tampering with the divine rights of every individual on the planet.  How could denying one individual’s human rights not end in the denial of the rights of all?

The die is cast.  Saudi citizens cannot protest except when the state say so.  The Saudi state is always right.  There are no miscarriages of justice in the land of the Stone.   One can only wonder what happens when corruption and nepotism explodes within the House of Saud.  Maybe then humans in the Saudi kingdom (read royal family) will have their urgent human needs recognized.

I can protest and say no to any offer or proposal.   I can also predict that Canada will never become an Islamic state.  Stay tuned for the unmasking of Islam –  sitcoms and separate schools nothwithstanding – and the shock of Canadian Muslims relinquishing their right to protest, and sharing that space with other religious robots.  Such is the power of religion that poses as governance and likes to be known as the guardian of  the most urgent of human needs.

Pharaohs Tumble

eejosephLeave a comment

Every faith and political system has an aura of superiority. The proponents don’t even have to say it.  Since almost every organized faith or political system makes claims of divine revelation and authority, and the leaders or founders are invested with a supernatural authority, leading to conflicts between the traditions.  There is no way for religion to exist without an effect on daily life and religion does great harm if its ritual and participation are rooted in and can only thrive by means of segregation.  Young people can afford to be nation-less but never vision-less.  This is their heritage.  The young people of every nation will inevitably deny failed religion the right to become parents of failed states.

 The idea of a revolution in Egypt is becoming more and more fascinating.  Are observers deluding themselves into thinking that Egypt is at risk if the political strife ends with the demise of the Mubarak regime?  It takes time and there is a time for regimes to fall. 

Will change in Egypt mean a departure from the UAR?  Transparent democracy cannot be found in any Arab Republic and freedom is the last thing on the minds of autocratic rulers. Egypt may divide into Christian and Muslim entities: a disastrous outcome.  There must be a unified face of Egypt.  Egyptians have no choice now but to put the inclusive face of civic society on their revolution.

Observers are using the term revolution to describe Egypt’s upheaval and the question remains “What revolution?” Will Egypt become a secular democracy?  The inclusion of foreigners into ancient Jewish society – Ruth and Naomi, David and the Jebusites, Solomon and his foreign wives – was not the cause for Jewish exile and dispersion.  Ancient Israelites were, from the start, hooked on Baalism and the Asherot. Allowing Muslims and Christians to operate, side by side will be the test of what Egypt’s new religion will be.  If Egypt’s upheaval needs xenophobia and repression to thrive the present revolution is stillborn.

 A Tahrir Square victory is an opportunity for Egyptians to open the door for a translucent and transparent civic society.  Will the youth of Canada rise up and demonstrate their PM out of office? It is probable that US President Barak Obama is on the list of turfed leaders?  Could the Tea Party pull it off?  Time will tell whether every individual in Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain, Libya and Iran will enjoy a genuine jubilee.

Egypt Builds Another Pyramid

eejosephLeave a comment

The events shaking the Islamic world are an essential part of the human need for freedom.  The very thought of freedom causes tremors in the halls of power where denial of freedom is customary, malicious and misguided.  Religious people are especially prone to fear real freedom, and they frequently join the political fearmongerers when they assume that freedom leads to chaos.  When people decide to march towards freedom there is no law that can stop them, and the only recourse the establishments have is violence.  Egypt, facing the loud and determined voice of its people, has an unprecedented opportunity to build a nation on the highest ideals, and will waste it by allowing the “Pharaoh” to build another pyramid.

Egypt’s value to the western powers is problematic.  Sadat, who set the bar extremely high, is clearly not Mubarak’s mentor.   Sadat was a hated man: a peace-maker who lost his life at the hands of Islamic militants.  Mubarak has his eyes on Pharaonic power: decades of police repression of his people, an increasing militarization of the government, and a Mubarak dynasty.  He is about to lose all.  His name ius already a faded entry in the so-called noble peacemaking process with the State of Israel and Islamic friendship with the United States.

Mobs, like the ones surfacing in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, are everywhere.  They pop up on Parliament Hill in both the senate and Parliament, on Capitol Hill, on the popular media, radio and television.  They incite anger and fear, foster division and ignorance, in their delusion that democracy is a sacred cow.  Their love of truth has little to do with a sense of community and faith or love, and they most certainly offer no hope but the endless conflict and debate that has characterized the trail of western powers.  A pyramid of truth wuld be helpful at this juncture in human history.   The pyramids of religion and capitalism are desined for the trash heap, and they will be lucky if anything is left to wow, puzzle and thrill archaeologists.

Egypt’s nation-building project is unprecedented.  There is no invasion,  no coalition of the willing, nothing more than mild warnings to an inveterate brutal dictator.  This Egyptian project uncharacterustically has only a handful of Egyptians on the job but a host of international helpers.  Whatever comes out of the fire will not last for even 7 years.  The Egyptian magnates and imams will ensure its demise through their interminable claims of superiority.  Alas,  this pyramid bites the dust.

Happy New You

eejosephLeave a comment

There are resolutions, revolutions, and remakes happening all the time, and people see New Year seasons as particularly opportune for changing their lives.  Even when the change is essentially external people often miss the opportunity to move their personal issues – character, desires, and intellect – to a new level.   We would be hard-pressed to find someone who wished to move to a lower level, so we assume that “Happy New Year” usually means happier, better and – I dare say – more challenging (than last) year.  Happiness in the new year, like beauty, is in the eyes of  the beholder, and ought to include a new you.

New homes, schools, partners and jobs are exciting transitions and steps.  They confirm our upward trajectory, but these kinds of changes also face the hindrance of an unchanged perspective.  People who take vacations in foreign lands usually come back to their residence to face the same problems with the same tools and resources.  Would it not be great it we really left our cold, busy world  behind?  With 21st century technology linking us to almos everything we leave behind on a vacation, it is no wonder that vacations are merely a distraction, because for many, life on vacation continues as usual.

The options for a new perspective, a new you/me, are not many.  The cosmetic remakes are not all they are cracked up to be, and we are NOT what we eat.  A new you may revolve around a weight reduction, a change in assignment, or an ideological shift.  Most individuals need a revolution, a reversal of their thinking, and the further one can move from “life as usual” the better the chances of a new person emerging. 

A happy and new you would make your peers and colleagues stop and say “Hmmm, I want what s/he has”.  If the new you is not surprising it is probably not worth the effort.  So, by all means, get the new things, but get (into) the new inner-you.  It is not as distant or difficult as most people imagine.  A happy new you is as big as your dream and as close as the words of fidelity you speak to yourself.  Go for it: a happy new you, yeah!