Disturbance in the force

@ Jestor

True the definition of disturbance doesn't suggest something bad it only suggest that something has changed from the norm. This could be a good thing. How ever is that what you feel? If it is well enough said enjoy. Then again there is that list... :dry:

@ Alex

A crusade wouldn't be very help full as there is nothing inherently wrong with our current culture. Except for one simple detail. It is believed that this is the ONE RIGHT way to live. A crusade isn't what I want because I dont want to force any one to live in "my" one right way to live.(I dont actually believe in a one right way)

Once again I have a hard time understanding the Tao. :S You say we can not change the world but we have changed the world and not just once ten thousand years ago but many times over. Each era/age is proof of that. If you still dont believe in how amazing our power is well look at it in terms of time. In a VERY short time we completely took over the entire planet. 3 Million years of hunting and gathering with little change yet within a fraction of that time we took over the entire planet and now have our eyes set on other worlds. Physically we've blasted mountains damned up rivers and adapted to most of the worlds environments. Now we kill about 200 species a day. Thats a huge change. OH! we can change the world and have. Only this time we dont have to do it from step one. This time we have technology and medicine to aid us. So lets change it for the better! :woohoo:

Unfortunately we dont have the choice of making no contribution since the contribution that we already made was so negative that now we have to take responsibility for it.

but no... i dont want a crusade I just know that saying something once is the same as not saying it at all. Thats why I repeat this stuff as often as I can.

"To be Jedi is to face the truth, and choose. Give off light, or darkness, Padawan. Be a candle, or the night, Padawan: but choose!" ―Yoda

And where did we come from? What gives us this power?

rugadd wrote: And where did we come from? What gives us this power?

We came from our tribal ancestors.

The ability to surplus our food through totalitarian agriculture fueled our power.

Daniel L. wrote: @ Jestor

True the definition of disturbance doesn't suggest something bad it only suggest that something has changed from the norm. This could be a good thing. How ever is that what you feel? If it is well enough said enjoy. Then again there is that list... :dry:

It is what I feel...

Positive feelings... Its what I feel, and give off...

Not that I dont slip and set pissy on occasion, but 98% of the time, all positive...

There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "May be," the farmer replied. The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed. "May be," replied the old man. The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune. "May be," answered the farmer. The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. "May be," said the farmer.

All examples of disturbance for this farmer...

Look at anything you want...

Judge it as you will...

I promise, you judge too quick...

This understanding of things has unfortunate blindness of taking the human factor out of nature. We are not separate from nature, nor are our 'powers' to change things our power at all ... We have somewhat the capacity to use/influence powers which have been around since the Big Bang, but it is only arrogance which lets us feel that it is 'our' power.

We may be causing a mass extinction ; we didn't cause the five which preceded it. So, mankind is an 'agent' of nature and it follows that only that silly Cartesian/Newtonian worldview makes us believe we can dominate it. We may have some influence on which of her options Nature pursues, but we are as much a part of her as all the rest. She may do with us as she does with all the rest ...

Peoples' action is thus 'natural', from agriculture to toxic waste and CO₂. The only thing we can do is arrange our ethics to conform to natural rhythms rather than to try and dominate them. We keep swimming against the current and screaming about the river being "f**ked up". If we were to flow with the current, we would most likely still have agriculture and toxic waste, just in more effective qualities/quantities respectively.

Don't try to understand the Tao - you can't. No one can. Just open yourself to It, follow It, accept It. You don't have to "find" It for you are already there.

These are all interesting points and relevant to this disturbance. My gut feeling is that there is something very wrong with the world and it's reached a tipping point. My own research(and others') has shown that the source of this is income inequality. Perhaps I feel it more strongly because I live in one of the most unequal societies on the planet and am reminded of it constantly. I also tend to tune in to several activist networks and get lots of info from the front lines.

As far as predicting the future, I can't really do that accurately but in large measure I can see what is most likely to happen. I've been following an economist R.D. Wolff who has been pretty good at explaining what's going on and clarifying events. He seems to conclude that our economic system is causing the inequality and it's just a matter of time before another crisis arises.

a point of semantics, almost: the World is fine. the People are screwed.

http://youtu.be/EjmtSkl53h4

warning: its george carlin.

Perhaps what you are feeling is empathy from the energy of the people around you. Feeling what they all feel. I know I am very sensitive and I think I am very sensitive to the feelings of other people around me, especially their negative feelings.

Jestor wrote: It is what I feel...

Positive feelings... Its what I feel, and give off...

Not that I dont slip and set pissy on occasion, but 98% of the time, all positive...

I promise, you judge too quick...[/color]

Ever hear of pollyanna syndrome Jestor?

First part of any problem is admitting there is one. This has very little to do with positive or negative judgment. It has to do with just judgment. Jestor you often fix problems here at TOTJO, do they often require you to be positive or negative? Or do the require you serious attention? This is all I hope for. Some attention on the subject. You dont need to judge it just know it. You'll make it your own automatically.

As for your story its a good one with meaning, value, and a lesson for any one that doesn't already know it. How ever the story doesn't end there for if it did than there would be nothing to worry about. Since the story of real life goes on you still have a horse that needs to be tamed and in many cases that horse would be put down. You still have a son with no leg and even though he is relieved that he didn't have to go to war he still has to live with that loss. :pinch:

Such positive thinking is refreshing and welcomed but some times frustrating to those that aren't able to see the silver lining in EVERY cloud.

First of all, Daniel, that story has a valuable lesson even if one knows it - anytime we find circumstances just suck or are wonderful. Life in stories doesn't really go on, but if so an untamed horse can be tamed later (or not) and the boy's leg wasn't amputated, it was just broken. The fortunate thing for the boy about not having to go to war during the time of the feuding states is evident ...

On the other hand, Maître Jestor, one may counsel caution for being positive at 98 % of the time. I personally do not feel it to be resumed by numbers, but that leaves about 48 % of negative left to come back and bite one in the arse.

:pinch: