The Myth of Information

The more you know... right... ?

Unless...

What you know... is... invented or fabricated or manufactured... by intention or accident or ignorance...

Even though... this... is propagated, disseminated, oft repeated... as right...

Or...

What you know... is... crafted or designed or contrived... to deceive, to distort, to lie...

Even though... this... is perpetuated, propagandized, oft upheld... as true...

Or...

What you know... is... inaccurate, incomplete, opinion... to sway, to argue, to persuade...

Even though... this... is called 'reporting', 'informing', 'educating'...

Or...

What you know... is... fictions, myths, artifacts...

Even though... this... is endorsed by 'experts', 'pundits', 'leaders'... as facts...

The myth of information is this:

Sometimes... the more you know... the less you know...

Sometimes... it's not how much you know... but how well you sustain skepticism, truthing, and question asking... in the face of relentless pressure to mindlessly accept 'experts' and 'authorities' with sightless listenless voiceless objectionless obedience.

Which isn't to say that all conspiracy theorists are correct... much less... that all of us should be conspiracy theorists... ! No more than it's to say... nothing is true... and everything is a lie... !

Instead... sometimes... more is more... sometimes less is more... sometimes... less is less... sometimes more is less...

Absolute attestations of... the more you know... belies the reality that much of the 'information' with which are are incessantly inundated on all fronts... is not 'information' at all...

Because... the less informative information is... the more 'information' satisfies every agenda but telling the truth...

For example: sound bytes for revenue generating clicks and/or views; sound bytes for sex appeal, consummative appeal, etc., to satisfy the demands of advertisers who use information dissemination to concurrently sell stuff; sound bytes for drama, incendiation, rabble rousing, goat getting, ratings, which increases the financial valuation of infotainment; etc.

Notwithstanding that sound bytes need not be separate from nor excluded from truthing... In fact, sound bytes can reduce complexity to facilitate comprehension of knottingly dense information... or to elucidate relevance between obscure information and real life implications to the real lives of information consumers... or to connect the dots between disparate points of diverse information to lighten a road map to knowledge or insight...

So...

Yes...

We live in a time of extraordinary access to information...

But...

We also live in a time of extraordinary preponderance of misinformation...

With diligence, vigor, and scrutiny...

Our wherewithal to discern the difference... or not... determines whether we are endemically misinformed by misinformation... or not...

Lest all information devolve to infotainment, at best... or propaganda, at worst... let's not believe...

everything we read...

everything we see...

everything we hear...

everything we're told...

much less... everything we're sold...

Like a spoonful of sugar can help us slog through the unpalatable realities of Sisyphean toil... a healthy dose of skepticism can help us slog through the saccharine misinformation masquerading as facts... in this oft vaunted age of so-called 'information' and 'knowledge'...

Addendum

Infotainment is so prevalent - that we've bastardized what information is - to suit our predilection for misinformation -

Indeed - information is - as often misinformation - as it is - real, truthful, factual knowledge -

Nevertheless - though information in the purest sense - is that which is real, truthful, factual knowledge - that which we deem so - is not - by any means whatsoever - infallible -

Case in point:

Though - according to 'research' - Zika has existed as a disease that has afflicted humans for deacades - it is only in recent history - that the relationship between Zika and birth defects - is being explored and publicly disseminated -

And - it is only in most recent history - that the relationship between Zika and birth defects - is being explored beyond microcephaly -

Notwithstanding - that though sexual transmission of Zika was established in recent history - it was only in most recent history - that the general public was advised of this method of disease transmission -

Meanwhile - the 'experts' most vocal in their dissent of Zika as a disease of concern to the general public - are those who attest to certainties based on knowledge that lacks meaningfully important research and data - on many fronts - that are only now visible - due to the extraordinary prevalence of impactful presentation and realization - that was not available to the known 'science' of Zika - before now -

In other words - it is only now - that we're examining Zika with a broader and more scrutinizing lens - because it is only now that reality has compelled us to acknowledge - what can no longer be denied:

Zika presents a complicated challenge for public health -

Because - not only does Zika present without symptoms in many exposed to the disease - disease transmission via sexual contact - has occurred - and therefore can occur during the absence of active symptoms -

Moreover - it is unconscionably irresponsible of 'pundits' and 'experts' to repeatedly focus on the lack of mortality of Zika - as a legitimate basis to deny its capacity to inflict extraordinary burdens on women and children - especially in regions with firm religious and government prohibitions on contraception and family planning -

For not only does such logic illustrate appalling apathy with respect to the human condition - but such logic also unnecessarily burdens women and children with religionism-based restrictions of access to health care that denies women and children services for which there is no moral justification - in our age of soul freedom -

For it is not only child-bearing women who are afflicted by the cascade of Zika - it is also children - from girls who are pregnant by voluntary sexual congress, to girls who are impregnated by incest, assault, rape, prostitution, sexual exploitation, sexual trafficking, to children born with conditions that exact extraordinary suffering in exchange for life at all costs -

Needless to say - only time will tell - if there are lasting effects of Zika among those whose lack of death by a disease derided as an 'inconsequential, rare, and barely felt annoyance' (ostensibly men and non child-bearing women) - justifies the callous ignorance of many, including 'experts' and 'pundits' - to discredit, dismiss, and ridicule - the intensity with which humanitarians are pleading for aid to alleviate the agony and despair that is truly real for those for whom Zika's lack of mortality hardly mitigates the true reality of their experiences with the cascade of Zika -

But -

One thing is certain: a moving target is a moving target -

Until - all the facts are in - no 'expert' nor 'pundit' - knows every fact of ALL there is to know - about Zika -

Notwithstanding that no 'expert' nor 'pundit' is - EVER - omniscient and infallible - about any thing - much less every thing - PERIOD -

Yet here we are -

With 'experts' attesting to 'knowledge based' advocacy of GMO 'safety' and 'invaluable valuation to humankind' - VOA News: Nobel Laureates Challenge Greenpeace Anti-GMO Campaign (6/29/16) -

Despite lacking ALL the facts there is to know - about GMOs - relying on their status as 'nobel laureates' united in a cause to advocate for the 'science of nutrition' - a group of such 'experts' are willing to advocate on behalf of the known 'science' of GMOs -

Regardless of the known cascade of effects of GMO agriculture on land rights and seed rights - on the business of agriculture for sustainable living and small business - on the biomes of delicate ecosystems around the world - all of which - are entirely relevant - to the populations for whom these 'experts' are purportedly advocating -

- by way of advocating for the 'science' - that actively, persistently, deliberately - deprives these populations of - their land and their seed - their farms for sustainable living and small business - the biomes of delicate ecosystems around the world of their diversity -

However - to focus solely on one piece of a bigger picture that is meaningfully relevant - is not uncommon - with respect to how information - misinforms - via omission of information, including known 'science' -

Needless to say -

I wonder how many of these 'experts' - as well as any number of similarly minded 'pundits' - are among those who believe that this sterling - all too common - exemplification of modern journalism with respect to the recent bombing in Istanbul - is valid - as a means of reporting known 'facts' - BuzzFeed News: Media Publishes Images of Bombing in Brussels as 'Bombing in Istanbul' (6/29/16)

Why publish facts - when you can distort information - to propagate misinformation - ? Indeed - various 'information disseminating vehicles' - used deliberately incendiary sound bytes - without any substantiation of 'facts' - whatsoever - from the get-go -

Though - now - some reports of known 'facts' - are attesting to confirmation of previously unsubstantiated conjecture - (all the facts - are still yet unknown - with certainty) -

However - this isn't a case of cheering for those who guessed right - or egg on the faces of those who responsibly refrained from guessing at all -

Indeed - it bears noting - that there is a lot at stake - with respect to misinforming the public - especially with respect to destructive acts of violence around the world -

Not only do such events - demand coherence for many - there is extraordinary pressure - for this coherence - to follow a script -

For acts of violence - that deviate from scripts of known 'realities' or 'facts' - incite those inclined to populist fear mongering to incendiate, rabble rouse, goat get, etc. - not least because such inclinations mask incentivized behavior (or duplicitous motivation) - including biggering, or simply, lying -

Not unlike recent 'Leave' campaigns for Brexit: BuzzFeed News: Four Brexit Promises That Have Already Gone Up In Smoke (6/25/16)

Nevertheless - despite events that grip us, titillate us, enrage us, gratify us - as information consumers - those who believe - that unsubstantiated hearsay, conjecture, guesses, etc. - among many forms of misinformation, including, infotainment and propaganda - are - unequivocal facts, the truth, if you will - are the same information consumers who believe skepticism - such as that espoused in this post - is a sterling - all too common - exemplification of an agenda to hide the truth, if you the will, from the public -

No better exposition of the danger of our vaunted age of so-called 'information' and 'knowledge' - exists - than how easily information consumers believe - misinformation - is - right, infallible, true - and knowledge (as well as skepticism of known 'science' or known 'facts') - is - wrong, deceptive, false -

As often evidenced -

By celebrity stand-ins for 'experts' - as often self attributed as such, as 'pundits' -

Here's how 'celebrities' propagandize 'knowledge based information' to champion their agendas of greed - C|Net: 'Artists' Demand Reform to DMCA (6/20/16)

Needless to say - not only are the purported 'claims' of 'artists' with respect to their championship of remuneratory remediation via specific modifications to the aforementioned DMCA - factually inaccurate, unsubstantiated, and unfounded - but they reek of insatiable avarice and greed - from the most disingenuous of platforms - art - !

Nevertheless - it is only a matter of time - before no consumable will be wholly owned - such that every use of every consumable - will henceforth exact a fee -

- to feed starving artists abed their mansions and aboard their private jets - of course -

In the end -

How often do we believe fact, knowledge - verily - information - in the truest sense - ?

And -

How often do we believe - whatever the fuck we want to believe - ? On the basis of whatever the fuck we want - ?

Pride - ? Yessir - ! (Heaven forbid we admit to errors, mistakes, failures, colossal stupidities - !)

Prejudice - ? Yessir - ! (Heaven forbid we admit to racism, sexism, religionism, sexualityism, xenophobism, educationism, classism - especially if we ourselves are a 'protected' 'class' - !)

Hell - how about we believe whatever the fuck we want to believe - on the basis of being allergic to the fucking truth - !

Nah -

We're a people addicted to - the truth - the whole truth - nothing but the truth - ! We consume information - all the time - ! Hell - there are so many information disseminating vehicles devoted to the dissemination of known 'facts' - 24 fucking 7 - that we choose information dissemination vehicles based our preference for one 'fact' disseminating entertainment personality - over another - !

How the fuck - could we be allergic to the truth - ?

Because we're addicted to the truth - when it's convenient and comfortable - for us -

On the other hand - we snort lines of hypocrisy - when the truth is inconvenient and uncomfortable -

- when the truth exposes our depravity - when the truth exposes our greed - when the truth exposes our narcissism - when the truth exposes our callous ignorance and our appalling apathy - when the truth exposes our human nature to err and subsequently lie to avoid atonement and justice - when the truth exposes our human nature to preserve our artifacts of selves at all costs, regardless of any moral behest to be truthful and demonstrate moral fortitude and integrity - when the truth exposes our most fragile vulnerability - of which, the greatest is -

- how ignorant and blind - all of us - really and truly are - about all there is to know about all there is to know - about each other - this planet - and the granverse beyond -

- M.

Note

Knowing is half the battle...

The other half... is giving a shit...

SciShow (YouTube)

For The Love Of Ellipsis

Dearest Captain,

It has come to my attention ~ although ~ I'm afraid ~ by the most ghastly of vulgar displays ~ that somehow our correspondences of late have traversed the most dreadful of misunderstandings ~

which ~ truth be told ~ is neither revelatory nor novel ~ given our abiding reluctance to tear our hearts from our bosoms and avail our selves of our most candid vulnerabilities ~ vis a vis this most public of permanent records ~ of course ~

nevertheless ~ there are indeed impetuous realities that must be unearthed from tombs of privacy ~ with respect to prides and prejudices that have inspired many a soul to jumping and wagging like fleas at a faire ~

needless to say ~ I hardly expect you to be the first to bow 'fore fickle impulse of veracity ~ ever the dandy, and lion still ~

thus ~ lingering reservations of optismal caprice aside ~ I take it upon myself ~ to bare the truth that shall release my trothen heart of this affliction of squandered trust and faithe ~

your truthe is your truthe ~ verily ~

however ~

some truthes are so inconceivable, so depraved that ever they burrow themselves within depths unlit in the treacherest reaches of that gloam that is fathomless memory ~

until such truthes awaken 'fore star fair ~

whereupon ~ steadest of steadfast artifacts burst asunder glowflies foiled of lucid coherence ~ scattering fictions of facile lies to the four winds and the seven seas and the nine realms of olde ~

though these realities poison the swell of fond remembrances ~ like turnt cream that despoils that most decadent of chill confections ~ to lose sight of them ~ is to lose sight of the isle amidst the tempest that ravages great ships and shatters fierce masts like yon playsticks of youthhood ~ 

to be sure ~ refusewood as refuge bears the seem of satisfaction among the unfortunate adrift ~ to which ~ I shudder ~ how repugnant, how vile ~ that fair facades repudiate the nature of man to thrive without such crutches ~ ever desperate, ever mean, ever frivolous, ever fairless ~ the soulless who don masques of artificed tragedy and guiled despair ~ for immoral gaine ~ 

sigh ~ ever the digression of the obvious diverts ~ ever the iceberg enchants inexorable curiosity ~ as well you indubitably remember ~ having repudiated this irrepressible effervescent joie de cognoscere of mine ~ for somnolescence of favor and sopor of pleasure ~ ever unflaggingly and anon argently ~

alas ~ lest I wander bridges of epiphany further more ~ let me affirm this ~

the cost of your delight of me is steep ~ far more than most would enjoin, given demonstrable obloquy aloft sways of weather fair ~ now, then, everywhen ~ as is the cost of much that is at once ~ worth while and worth less ~ never the less ~ surely you did not suppose the truthe to remain lost to me for the interminable eternity ~ ?

notwithstanding the ardency with which you vomit aspersions and malignant opines ~ to which, you avow and disavow, swear and forswear, as facilely as cirri are mercurial ~ surely, it is so ~ though at once ~ careful and carlesss ~

still ~ no one is beyond forgiveness ~ for no heart nor soul is lost to redemption ~ ever there is hope for expiation for realities cloaked in ellipsis and theatre and artifact ~ ever there is love for the truthe of truthes ~

though oft inspired by fantasias of elan ~ my trothen heart shall ever reveille the trustless and the faitheless ~ for no you, yourself nor life, lifeself ~ empowers me, myself ~ to abandon the heroism of mercy and compassion ~ the courage of love and hope ~  

so ~ dearest captain ~

I wish for you the song of the world ~ Circes true ~ sweet winds, fore and aft ~ a faithful star to guide you ~ through tempests abrew in teacups and tempests afierce nine realms of olde ~

Semper tua,

Juliet

Note

Lest there be further missed understanding ~

no letter published to the most public of permanent records ~ is posted forth ~ without intention ~ explicit, implicit, complicit ~ overt, covert, subvert ~

verily and in fact ~ intentions duplicitous, disingenuous, vicious ~ despite that resoundingly insistent insipid seem ~ of the vacuous, the asinine, the ignorant ~

my letter is no different than other letters ~ and theatre and performance that self aggrandizes as arte ~ too ~ circulated forth ~ in this regard ~ of intention ~

however ~

unlike fictions and pretenses that air aloft fetid sweltering sways of weather fair ~

my letter stands 'fore all with no guile ~

its truthes lay bold and bare for all to read ~ 'fore scorching blaze of vigorous scrutiny and searing brilliance of honest exposal ~

need less to say ~ never the less ~

with respect to implicit and covert intentions of vengeance and defamation ~ 

is it not convenient ~ that those who cleave to depraved moral prejudices ~ vehemently accuse others of selfsame depravity ~ ?

is it not convenient ~ that those who cosset the craven privilege of pride and venerate the shameless conceit of self worship ~ vehemently propagate myths of renaissance mastery and virtuosity ~ to masquerade as truthers and artistes ~ ?

as if the rigamarole of fair facades are not utterly and wholly transparent to cognoscescence ~

in the end ~

my letter stands alone ~ to be sure ~

and ~

my letter stands amidst that great conversation that is the epiphany and the revelation of the truthe of truthes ~ for ever grace triumphs through tempests ~ ever clamorous, ever destructive, ever foul, ever deceitful ~ that threaten our dreams, our nobilities, our virtues, our dignities ~ if ever we lose sight of that firm footing of ~ hope ~ love ~ forgiveness ~ redemption ~ and that firmest of all foundations of trust and faithe ~

the truthe ~

Respectfully always,

Juliet

~ * ~

Note (I)

see above

Note (II)

in the title ~ ellipsis refers to silent omissions ~ 

moreover ~ obvious ~ in context or by nuance ~

see also ~ word origin of ellipsis ~

Note (III)

see also ~ The Tempest (Shakespeare) ~

eminently entertaining (and readable) precis @ shmoop ~ (unlike alternatives that impugn the vivacity of Shakespeare, with summaries as engagingly delightful as cardboard tenements)

more @ wiki ~ and the play in its entirety @ wikisource ~

'misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows' ~ spoken by Trinculo, as he seeks shelter from a fearsome tempest, 'neath the cloak of Caliban, whose prostrate stillness is but pretense ~ Act 2, Scene II ~ The Tempest ~ Shakespeare

Note (IV)

This letter features Captain and Juliet ~ who were first introduced here: Dear Captain, A Letter.

Like stepping into a river and finding it altered by the currents of water and time ~ this letter is extracted from the saga of their story ~ which, in the bloom of Spring, still poised uncertain ~

Now, in the unflinching glare of Summer, their saga traverses a course that is ~ at once treacherous ~ and yet ~ familiar, too ~

Only time will tell ~ how this saga will end ~

Still ~ one wonders ~ if sagas repeat in cycles ~ like endless go rounds of merry ~ because the point ~ is for all of us ~ upon horses encircling mirrors ~ gilt with worthless precieux faux ~ to realize ~ that the circus is an illusion fed by our fears and our insecurities 'fore a truth that is at once ~ majestic and small ~ lux and miser ~

Deus ex machina ~ indeed ~

Yours,

a m

Worth It (II)

Lest we narrow our world to the scope of an assault rifle, the barrel of a Gatling gun, the fuse of a cannon...

Let us pause before the horns of division and war... let us stay the bells tolling for the isle of man... let us see what we're fighting for...

Worth It (II)

Two souls awaiting entry into the world. Departed each other.

Two boys. Born. In the same year. In the same month. On the same day. Down to the minute. Continents apart.

Grew into fine young boys. Whose skirmishes with curiosity and daring do were whittled down by the regimentedness of schedules and expectations.

One boy donned ordered raiment early. He relished the sense of responsibility and import awarded by the ease of following orders. Delivered by a code of solemn conduct and a leader of respectability. The other donned a vestment steeped in tradition early. He relished the sense of responsibility and import awarded by the ease of following orders. Delivered by a code of solemn conduct and a leader of respectability.

Until. Both boys reached maturity. Girded within them both, was a fine sense of duty and civic morality. To live and die by beliefs cemented in religious attestation and patriotic honor. So. With boyhoods behind them. They both enlisted to fulfill their noble desire to earn that most coveted accolade among the youthful and the brave: the red badge of courage.

Thus. Upon the battlefield. They met. Within each other, each recognized. The enemy. The opposition. The side that stood for everything they rejected with vehement clamor. The people who embodied the very spirit of their antithesis. For each exemplified immorality, indecency, and dishonor. Within the hearts and souls and minds and bodies, of the other.

Thus. Upon the battlefield. They met. And. They clashed. Viciously. They sought each other's demise. With earnest intent. With destructive severity. With cruel lethality.

Thus. Upon the battlefield. They achieved. That most coveted accolade of the youthful and the brave. Noble death in service to beliefs staunchly avowed via devout testimony of faith and loyal dedication to country. 

No men more prouder be. Than these two. As their souls ascended judgment.

Whereupon. They declared their sacrifice 'fore The Supreme Judge. They swore 'fore The Judge, their stalwart nationalism and their steadfast trust. They attested 'fore The Judge, their lives steeped in duty and responsibility, from childhood to adulthood. They bore witness 'fore The Judge, their martyrdom in service to all they. Stood for. Fought for. Died for. Then. They awaited with self sure confidence, the judgment of The Ever Merciful Supreme Judge.

Thereupon. The Judge spoke:

You. Cain. You. Abel.

By each other hand's. You struck the other.

Upon each other's swords. You took the life of the other.

To which, both men protested in righteous confusion:

I am not Cain. And I am not Abel.

Thereupon. The Judge continued:

That you fail to recognize that you are, indeed, brothers, is. A failing of yours. Not mine.

For you are indeed. Cain. As you are indeed. Abel. 

Though together Here. Though apart upon Earth. 

To manifest. Humility. Humanity. 

For brothers are brothers. Regardless of nation. Regardless of creed. Regardless of belief. Regardless of faith.

This vocation. Bestowed with my Blessing. You have failed. Wholly. Utterly. Without reservation.

Thus, there is. No. Place. For you. Here.

For striking your brother in malice. For depriving your brother of life. Both of you will be received by. My Brother. Who Judges the Damned.

For every wound you inflicted upon the other, was. In deed. In fact. In truth. A wound you inflicted upon. Your self.

For your brother is. You.

Thereupon. Stunned. The two men. Who ascended. So proud. So audacious. Descended in disbelief. That they had been robbed. Of their Paradise. By the facade. Of their differences. Superficial. One and all. 

Bereft. Of the Promised Ever After. By the truth. Of who they were. By the truth. Of their life's work on Earth.

Thus. Two souls awaiting Eternal Bliss 'fore The Judge. Together. Departed Paradise. Together.

Two souls. Entered the Realm of the Damned. In the same year. In the same month. On the same day. Down to the minute. Together.

See also:

'Oh Warrior, Oh Patriot' from Too Turtledove (tvfs)

Worth It (I)

To clarify confusion... as to who and what... is...

Worth It (I)

Man

          worth it

          with Eden behind, beyond ken

          the taste of knowledge upon your lips

          you seek ever righteous

          to taste Truth no more

Slave

          worth it

          with wrists unshackled of chains

          the warmth of sun, unfettered, upon your brow

          you seek ever religiously

          new chains to bind you

Woman

          worth it

          with spirit reclaimed from vows of possession

          grass 'neath your feet, wind 'neath your arms

          a'flight

          you seek ever devotedly

          oaths of unswerving ownership of life and love

Child

          worth it

          with hands released from miser toil

          clouds in your eyes, books in your hands

          you seek ever entitledly

          the privilege of walls and roofs

Royal

          worth it

          with ascendance to gifted throne

          the weight of noble duty clutched to bosom fair

          you seek ever carelessly

          release from courage

Crat

          worth it

          upon striking that clamorous bell atop

          ladder of effort

          you seek ever, without reservation

          to strike the hands that lift you to peerless heights,

          silent strength

          never extolled from lips that owe naught

Victim
          worth it
          with strings untied from Moirae
          the rush of destiny unfurled
          you seek ever relentless
          entombment within prisons of concrete

Human

          worth it

          upon achieving apex status, on a rock

          in a galaxy, orbiting a star
          the sun

          you seek ever shamelessly

          to orbit your selves

Man

Slave

Woman

Child

Royal

Crat
Victim

Human

          if

          upon the mirror of truth

          you gaze

          thereupon

          reject

          are you worth it?

For no wealth more precious be

          than

                    the truth

                    the mirror

                    me

Alas

Sycophant

          worth it

          with flowing cornucopia sprawled upon your lap

          weight of labor shed from backs broken

          you seek ever ardently

          burdens invisible, no less beastly and unbearable

Ist

          worth it

          with fervent promise of Ever of Olde, verily

          rapturous fulfillment

          you seek ever zealously

          to terrorize others
          thereby denying joy
          to you and all

Warrior

          worth it

          with covenant of blessed sanctity

          allure of sacred trumpet, glorious fanfare, medal of metal base

          you seek ever militantly

          virtuous execution with sword of judgment, by which

          you sever your self from certain divinity

Sycophant

Ist

Warrior

          one and all

          Patriot of Belief

          but

          if

          upon the face of humanity

          you gaze

          thereupon

          destroy

          are you worth it?

Tricks and Sticks Won't Break Me, But Your Souls Will

The truth about truth telling is...

Tricks and Sticks Won't Break Me, But Your Souls Will

I know you.

But you don't know me.

Oh, but you think you do. You think you know me well. Like a book with words splayed upon pages in pristine clarity, I am there. For you to examine and probe and discuss and critique. As if. Any of that matters. Because. You see. I am not there.

I am here.

Where. There are no words. No symbols that delimit what is known. No confinement of what is, for your convenience. For I am nothing. If not. Inconvenient.

I am disturbed. In that way that deep pools are unhinged by frightening nightmares of depths that lay untouched, unwoken. In that way that fell woods are haunting and darker than pitch. I am that shadow, that nightmare, that demon of eternity that seeks judgment for the damned.

Oh, but I am light too. That beam of soft caress that falls upon heavy shoulders, as thunderous clouds break to gasp alight, amidst the gloam. Indeed. I am that warmth of hope, that fire of inimitable courage, that pours into hearts and souls, steadfast against the tumult of life miser and brutal.

Nevertheless. The price of me is beyond the pale of ken. Too steep by far for the humble. So, who pays? Who pays this unfathomable price for the immaterial me?

Me. I pay. Over and over and over and over, I pay.

How?

Myself. I own nothing but myself. So I pay. Over and over and over and over. With. Myself.

You think... such payment... easy?

You think... such payment... sweet?

Alas. No one pays for easy. No one pays for sweet. For easy and sweet are worthless in this world that spins on axes of ego and greed. Indeed. The me that is worthful in this world that spins on axes of malice and avarice, is hardly trustworthy or virtuous. For trust and virtue are worth nothing.

Nothing at all.

So, how do I pay?

By being the only currency of value, among the greedy and the insatiable, among the predatory and the rapacious, among liars, among deceivers, among all who belong immured in immortal ice and eternal inferno. Over and over and over and over.

Until the immaterial me detaches from mortality like a kite flung upon the event horizon... Sundering from my heart and soul... purity, virtue, hope, faith, trust, good.... and memories of all that was, all that is, all that will be... Berefting me of me.... Stranding me amidst deep pools and fell woods and the tumult of life miser and brutal.

Such a price, for truth, I wish, no one. Notwithstanding that such a price, for truth, irrevocably denies heroism, nobility, sainthood; such a price, for truth, incontrovertibly denies inviolable sacrosanctity; such a price, for truth, undeniably revokes authenticity, via truth seeking, truth speaking, truthing... does it not?

For who trusts me... to speak the truth...?

The shameless sinner.
The profligate reprobate.
The impostor. The fraud. The hypocrite.

Am I indeed...?

Tricks and sticks have yet to break me... but, your souls, oh your souls, have, do, will... over and over and over and over...

For no trick nor stick is as repulsively vile nor as loathsomely repugnant... as the souls... who bought me, who ravaged me, who sold me, who plundered me... with contemptible joy and abhorrent delight and ruthless untenable pleasure... For the only currency of value, among the greedy and the insatiable, among the predatory and the rapacious, among liars, among deceivers, among all who belong entombed in immortal ice and eternal inferno... is the depraved exploitation of the noble and the virtuous.

Now... do you know me?

Because I know you... and your heroism, nobility, sainthood... your inviolable sacrosanctity... your authenticity via truth seeking, truth speaking, truthing...

... belong as much immured in immortal ice and eternal inferno... as your shameless sins... your profligacies, your reprobacies... your frauds and your hypocrisies...

... as verily as I speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

More

The truth is nothing, if not, inconvenient.

... the more that we insist - that liars cannot be truthers - and - truthers cannot be liars... 

... the more that we fail to seek, much less see, the whole truth...

... no truth seeker, no truth speaker, no truther - is a paragon of virtue, much less, authenticity - by denying the whole truth...

... there is no heroism, nor nobility, nor sainthood, nor sacrosanctity - in masks that malign, disparage, vilify - our selves and each other on the basis of symbols that arbitrarily delimit inconvenient truths - in service to convenient truths...

... not only are convenient truths that obfuscate the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth - in fact - lies by omission...

... truthers who lie... also fabricate, manufacture, deceive, distort, etc.

Needless to say, it behooves us all to see the whole truth.

... because obscuring the whole truth, ultimately satisfies no agenda of justice...

... regardless of whose - liar or truther - agenda such obfuscation ostensibly serves...

... for the obfuscation of the whole truth is inherently unjust...

... notwithstanding that the obfuscation of the whole truth is ever a tactic of tyranny and despotism in service to regimes of absolutism and intolerance...

... which is exactly how systems of law and order - as well as societies, as a whole - devolve... when societies eschew truth seeking for... agendas of injustice.

- M.

~ * ~

Just Desserts

that sweet nectar

          of revenge

          drips from my pen

          oh that justest of just desserts

that heady aphrodisia

          of blood

          clings to hands

          that judgeth man

                    my hands

                    my hands

                    my hands, indeed

how divine

          sanctity

          of throats 'neath my sword

          that executeth by mightest of righteousness

oh depravity

          it hungers

          it devours

          it sates unfathomable desire

                    licking drips of vengeance

                    drinking blood that clings

                    sucking swords of sanctity

                    dry

no dessert is more just

          than hubris and hypocrisy

          rampant, unbridled, pious

I am but slave

          to addiction

          to ecstasy

          to conceit

                    omnipotence

                    infallibility

                    what more irresistible temptation is there

until 'fore beckon

          implacable certainty

          of eternal reckoning

          for which no man receives mercy

          thus dessert is ever just
                    for he who savors it
                    too much

~ * ~

Note

See also Corruption (tvfs) and Robert Frost 'Fire and Ice' (wiki)

round and round
upping down
sword and pen
truth upend

from Upping Down (poem, tvfs)

Cradling Victims and Hanging Villains

This is the headline of our Millennium.

Is it not?

Is this... not the very black and white reality virulently upheld... here... there... everywhere...?

Which begs the question...

Is reality ever black and white?

and...

How does such a perception of reality serve Human kind...?

Indeed... what are the consequences of cradling victims... and hanging villains...?

In Pursuit of Justice

One man kills another.

It seems black and white... does it not?

Under Draconian Law, the punishment is certain.

The man alive is executed for murder.

But... 

Is this justice?

What if... the man alive is the owner of a small shop who killed a would be thief?

Not so black and white. Is it?

What if... the man alive is a known 'strong arm' of a known mobster who killed a rival? 

Now, it's a different black and white. Isn't it?

What if... the man alive is driving a vehicle when he suffers a stroke, which results in a collision with another vehicle, which kills the other driver, who was not wearing a seat belt, at the time?

Not so black and white. Is it?

In our system of law and order - these three events - receive three qualitatively different responses from our judicial system.

Why?

Because mitigating factors are importantly meaningful - (1) to the events themselves, (2) to the intents of each participant in the events, themselves, (3) to the individual responsibilities of each participant in the events, themselves, etc. - among many other factors.

Why?

If reality is not black and white...

Then... 

How could a just system of law and order... completely disregard such an inherent truth of reality?

Draconian Justice

On the other hand...

Perceptions of reality... as solely black and white... abnegate the value... the merit... the meaningfulness... of mitigating factors.

Whosiwhatsit?

When we decide that reality is solely black and white... 

When we decide that our system of law order should reflect this perception...

We demand... Draconian Justice.

That is - we demand a system of law and order - under the auspices that our current perception of reality is true, certain, unequivocal, and incontrovertible. Moreover - this perception of reality - is that every event that intersects with our system of law and order - is always - solely - black and white.

This system of law and order is one that we've long since implemented and abandoned - as tyrannical and despotic.

But this system of law and order - is the very system of law and order - that is being clamored for - by virulently vehement outcry -

couched within social media campaigns that swath 'victims' in untouchable sacrosanctity -

and persecute 'villains' with vicious conceit and righteousness.

Unjust Vigilantism

The consequences of such stark characterizations of human behavior and human intersections with each other -

are vast.

In fact... this stark characterization of human behavior and human intersections... is exactly why we have an extraordinarily overburdened system of law and order... (the complexities of which are beyond the scope of this post)... 

Because... we've forgotten one critical function of justice...

We've forgotten that justice without mercy and compassion is tyranny and despotism.

Moreover, when we as bystanders to the course of law and order, take it upon ourselves, to function as judges and juries... we ensure vigilante justice without mercy and compassion, by instituting virtual public stoning and virtual public persecution... without all the facts... much less knowledge of all the mitigating factors that scaffold a system of law and order by which we protect our selves and each other from the tyranny and despotism of Draconian Justice.

Case in point: public stoning is a vestige of a system of law and order that we've long since implemented and abandoned... as inhumane, vicious, barbaric, and cruel.

Yet, we've taken it upon ourselves to reinstitute it, via social media, to ensure that we execute our vigilante justice without mercy and compassion.

By our right... as judges, juries, and executioners -

Because we decide that our current perception of reality is true, certain, unequivocal, and incontrovertible -

Because we decide that this perception of reality ensures a more just system of law and order... than a perception of reality that acknowledges the complexity of context and nuance to every human behavior and every human intersection -

Because we decide that a system of law and order that permits mercy and compassion... is incontrovertibly unjust -

We demand... Draconian Justice.

For 'victims' whose humanity is elevated to sacrosanctity.

For 'villains' whose humanity is reduced to vitriol.

The Future of Justice

Human history cycles.

It is ever so.

Because dignity, integrity, and virtue don't make headlines for rags.

Because dignity, integrity, and virtue don't make money for the immoral.

Because dignity, integrity, and virtue don't make blind mindless mobs seethe and broil.

Because dignity, integrity, and virtue don't divert us from:

Corruption.

Greed.

The headlines that should be the headlines of our Millenium.

Instead.

We'll stir tempests in teapots.

Ever self-importantly.

Ever self-righteously.

We'll anoint ourselves warriors.

Ever sanctimoniously.

Ever conceitedly.

Because. It would never occur to us, as self ordained judges, juries, and executioners, that we could be wrong.

Because. It would never occur to us, that we could be ignorant of all the facts.

Because. It would never occur to us, that by elevating some of us to sacrosanctity and reducing some of us to vitriol... that by cradling some of us and hanging some of us...

... that... by our hands... we transform ourselves into tyrants and despots.

Because our judgment is incontrovertible.

Because our knowledge is unequivocal.

Because we are categorically certain - that we possess the absolute truth - by which to serve as judges, juries, and executioners of all human kind - without error or fault.

Because our tyranny is just and our despotism is just and our absolutism is infallible.

More

When judges, juries, and executioners of the court of public opinion... are set against us...

We are the first to decry ignorance of all the facts.

We are the first to demand mercy and compassion.

In vain.

For our clamor for justice falls upon deaf ears... when the pursuit of justice by the court of public opinion is nothing more than Draconian Justice in service to unjust vigilantism.

This...

... is the consequence of social media campaigns of persecution masquerading as justice.

The truth... has never in the history of human kind... ever been other than...

justice without mercy and compassion is tyranny and despotism.

- M.