That said, humanity still has a lot of growing to do. We are like little children, pursuing whatever makes us happy, yet throwing tantrums when we cannot get our way. We will do what we are told if told forcefully enough, otherwise we do what fulfills our desires … and MAYBE feel bad about it if someone else gets hurt in the process, especially if we are called out on it. And we pretty much believe whatever we are told. That is much easier than figuring things out for ourselves.

When a child first opens their senses to the world, there is no fear, no hatred, no categorizing … only simple wonder and curiosity. Sure they may react by crying, but that is ironically more from the change in circumstances. They have been taken out of a relatively comfortable and peaceful environment and suddenly thrust into overwhelming … CHANGE. Of course this causes a reaction. Fear, judgement, separation … that is all taught to the child. And how we react to these negative influences on our growth is the true testament to our character as human beings. Do we respond instinctively, as the child does when change is suddenly thrust upon them, or do we actually CHOOSE our own reaction?

Or do we let someone else decide for us?

The sad truth is, all too many of us either react instinctively, or let someone else do the choosing for us. We need to reclaim our own minds, and learn to take responsibility for our OWN growth as human beings.We need to stop letting those who would divide the world to promote their own personal agendas dictate our morality, when the simple truth of the matter is we all entered the world the same way. Everything after that is really just ideas being thrust on us by the rest of the world. It is up to US how we let those ideas shape us.

It comes down to this. Either life is precious and worth protecting or it is not. The value of a life has nothing to do with the circumstances that the life lives under. It has nothing to do with where it is lived. It has nothing to do with the physical differences, or any of the other superficial differences that separatists use to place more value on one life than another for their own gain. We either value life or we don’t.

I am not here to tell anyone how they should think. That is up to each of us. But please don’t tell me that you value life if you can so easily dismiss one life as having less value than another simply because of arbitrary boundaries designed by man. Or because they fall into a category that is somehow unacceptable. to us, as dictated by others who tell us what is acceptable and what is not. There is only one reason that poverty and hunger exists in this world. It is because those in power do not truly value life. There is only one reason that refugees exist. Because those in power do not truly value life. Stop blaming the victims for the actions of those who victimize them. And don’t tell me how strong you are when your strength lies behind locked doors and weapons. Not helping another because of the possibility of risk to yourself is nothing other than placing the value of your life as higher than theirs. And who exactly are YOU to make such a judgement?

The actions of OUR governments are the cause of homelessness and the refugee crisis. Whether the person in need is a starving child, a discarded veteran, or a family fleeing for their own safety is immaterial. The ultimate cause is the same people. So don’t deny one group of lives in need because you think another group deserves the help more. Help them ALL. And remove the causes from power.

We either value life or we do not. It is time we make our OWN choices.

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The post What is the value of a human life? #1000Speak first appeared on thrumyeyes.

What defines the value of a life?

Is it the number of limbs one has? The place one is born? The potential financial value one could represent? Maybe it is the belief system one subscribes to? Or is it simply the name one bears?

I guess we each have to decide the answer to this question for ourselves.

Here is MY answer. Whether you believe that life is the creation of some omniscient sky daddy, or a simple accident of chemical reactions, it is a truly amazing thing. Life is the difference between a large barren rock floating through the “ether” and a globe of infinite wonder and change. It is the flavor in the stew that is the universe. Without life the wonder that is existence would go unnoticed; the ultimate masterpiece totally unappreciated. Life is what makes EVERYTHING worthwhile.

So where does that put the end of life?

Ultimately when that end is part of the pattern it is no bad thing. Part of what makes life so unique and notable is the fact that it is ever-changing and evolving, as the old makes way for the new. It is also all the more precious for its shortness relative to the rest of existence. Life comes and life goes, and the wonders continue.

However mankind, in its ultimate arrogance, has given itself the responsibility to decide when life is to be given and when life is to be taken. What exactly gives humans the right to make such profound decisions? Some claim a special connection to the infinite, as if the are somehow superior than every other miracle of being out there. Others just do it out of mismatched pride or ego, or maybe it is simple greed. But life is totally beyond our understanding, let alone our rights. How can we determine where life can exist if we don’t even fully understand what it is?

Humanity has little chance of coexisting with itself let alone the rest of life until we recognize this very simple fact. We can’t pick and choose which deaths are acceptable and which are not. The basic reality is no death is acceptable if it is not part of the pattern. If one kills another for no reason other than personal gain or over reaction to something we choose as immoral… then that killing is wrong. There are no two ways about it.

It does not matter if it is Israel, or Hamas. It does not matter if it is Syria or Iraq. It does not matter if it is Christian or Jewish or Muslim. It does not matter if it is Black or White. It does not even matter if it is child or adult. Taking another life simply for political or financial game is nothing other than WRONG. WE need to stop selectively moralizing when it is ok and when it is not. We need to stop playing the US and THEM game; allowing our own prejudices to say that man should die but this one should not. Politics in NO justification. Greed is NO justification. And most importantly, and most hypocritically, religion is NO justification.

Just stop the killing. Every hand on a trigger is attached to a living deciding being. If everyone decided NOT to pull the trigger, we would actually have a chance. It is up to each of us.

STOP THE KILLING!!

The post STOP THE KILLING!!! first appeared on thrumyeyes.

In my journeys of late, I have been fortunate enough to explore the wonders of rural America. I have been invited into homes. I have enjoyed great food and wonderful music. I have witnessed loving families, joy and laughter. I have hobnobbed with those whose life experiences are more exotic than fiction, primarily because they were not my own. I have also witnessed pettiness, greed, anger, aggression and bigotry. I have seen the extremes and everything in between.

Simply put, I have experienced people being people.

Just because someone’s upbringing and life path has been different from mine does not mean that I am in any way superior to them. Just because they may make choices that I would not make; decisions I consider flawed; even judgements that I find objectionable … does not make me a better person. Nor does it make them somehow morally corrupt.

EVERY preconception; EVERY stereotype is based on real perceptions. Face it, humanity thrives on negative press. We seem to find it easier to accept that wich pushes THEM into the negative light then to accept the fact that maybe THEY are just like you and me … in other words we all have our flaws and our beauties.

“I hate closed-minded people!”

“Those poor, uneducated people are so backwards in their beliefs. Dumb as rocks. The are all just ignorant haters!”

“We should kill all the terrorists.  They are all evil psychopaths!”

This question is for the open-minded. It is for the highly educated; the ones who KNOW that all people are worthy in their own right. If you think such thoughts as listed above … how are you ANY less bigoted then those you are judging? Just because someone has been fed information that may be incorrect; just because someone may have been raised with some unhealthy and even wrong-headed ideas (at least by our OWN thinking), does not make them any less of a good person than we think we are. “They” love their families as “we” do. “They” do what they need to get by in a crazy, mixed up world … just like “we” do.

Do you fully agree with EVERYTHING those close to you think and do?

And how far would YOU go if you thought they were threatened in any way?

It sure is easy to condemn another’s mistakes from the comfort of our own armchair isn’t it? Educational and moral superiority is bigotry too. At least those who do what we call atrocious acts are actually trying their best to IMPROVE the world around them, even if “we” don’t like their ” improvements”.

Can you say the same?

The post What do YOU want from The Wizard? first appeared on thrumyeyes.

The first and basic definition … right from the internet (which of course never lies) … is “the governing body of a nation, state, or community”. Or in even simpler terms … the ones in charge. So the next question for me is why exactly do we need a government? In small groups, the reality is we don’t. But as population grows, it becomes more and more necessary for some sort of regulatory force, humans being what they are (which is basically selfish and contentious). So the way I see it, government serves one basic purpose … to guide those that it governs in such a way that the community can be a healthy and productive community. In my mind that is the soul purpose of a government.

It is how this purpose is accomplished which ultimately causes all the problems.

There are basically two types of people who SEEK to be in charge. Those who genuinely have the welfare of the community in their mind and think they know how to achieve it … and those who seek personal power. The two goals are not always mutually exclusive … but it is rare to find someone who seeks both goals. The form the government will take is very dependent on the specific goals of those who take the power in the first place, and, frankly, the size of the population being governed. Since more often than not those who SEEK the power want it for their own benefit … the easiest form of government to start is basically one led by strength and fear. Over time this will become ingrained in the very structure of a given society … and dynasties are formed. Some tyrannical, some not so much … but still the power lies in the hands of the few instead of the many.

In those instances when the community actually takes precedence over personal agendas, democratic style governments emerge. Democratic governments may ultimately seem the most enlightened and socially conscious form of governments, but they are really rather impractical when the population gets beyond a certain size … unless everyone begins seeing the world the same (an unlikely scenario at our current level of human awareness). So over time, again … dynasties are formed and the true power ends up in the hands of the few instead of the many. The ONLY way to combat this trend is education. It takes thinking minds capable of making informed choices to allow a democracy to STAY a democracy.

So what is my point? The world is currently made up of 196 governing forces, each of these often broken up in to smaller governing forces … and maybe even broken down even further. I can’t give a specific percentage, because such a statistic does not exist (and statistics are basically flexible facts anyway), but I can safely say with little argument that MOST of the governing forces in today’s world are …

… FAILING US!

Governments are there for one of two reasons only: to take care of PEOPLE or to serve a personal agenda. Which kind of government do YOU want to live under. As far as I can see, these days the majority of governments do not care about people. They care about profit. They care about lines on a map. They care about THINGS. They care about who has the biggest gun and the loudest shout. What they do NOT actually care about is their whole reason for being.

And WE are letting it happen!

War is a horrible thing, but unfortunately sometimes it becomes necessary. Pacifism in the face of violent aggression is like trying to cure a cancer with a cup of water. That said, it is only necessary under VERY SPECIFIC scenarios. Those who choose to be combatants in war (the soldiers) are aware of what they signed up for … that is their CHOICE. But the non-combatants do NOT choose to die for their government … rather they want to live their lives. So when war starts to kill non-combatants, it has already stepped beyond possible necessity into simply WRONG. When that war is within the bounds of your own realm of influence (i.e. the people you govern), and non-combatants are STILL dying, you simply prove that you have no care for the people you govern (or seek to govern), and that it is ALL for personal gain. At that point the war has become downright EVIL.

So what does that say about a world of governments that looks on and chooses to do NOTHING about it?

The US has decided that a line was crossed when chemical weapons were (supposedly) used. In what sane world is it ok to simply kill children and unarmed families … but only become wrong when the weapons used happen to threaten us too? The UN … United Nations … which is really far from either … decided that it is none of their business, and is condemning the US for deciding it IS their business … meanwhile secretly hoping that the US will do as it says. The US has a moral compass that has been spinning for a long time now. We have been in several wars uninvited … and now we are actually being ASKED for help and everyone is saying “leave em alone !”

The simple truth here is that those in power in the world are generally on personal agendas, and really do not care for those they have power over. And WE are letting them get away with it! If we want a chance of peace in this world, we need to step beyond the borders of maps, and join together as HUMANS and teach our governments what their purpose actually is again. We can’t just wish or pray for change.

We need to MAKE it happen![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/12″][/vc_column][/vc_row]

The post What is important? first appeared on thrumyeyes.