Comments on: Immunity Against Fear http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/2009/05/13/immunity-against-fear/ Fri, 06 Jan 2012 03:12:05 +0000 hourly 1 By: Judith Acosta http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/2009/05/13/immunity-against-fear/comment-page-1/#comment-16 Judith Acosta Wed, 20 May 2009 20:43:26 +0000 http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/?p=476#comment-16 Prisoners who think we are free... Yes. That is it. A fella once complained that he was angry he had to go to AA because he felt "brainwashed." I turned and asked him, half-amused and half-impassioned, "And all this time you haven't been?" That's the cultural delusion. It's very hard to stay grounded and aware in that hog swill. Prisoners who think we are free… Yes. That is it.
A fella once complained that he was angry he had to go to AA because he felt "brainwashed." I turned and asked him, half-amused and half-impassioned, "And all this time you haven't been?"
That's the cultural delusion. It's very hard to stay grounded and aware in that hog swill.

]]> By: Suzanne http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/2009/05/13/immunity-against-fear/comment-page-1/#comment-15 Suzanne Tue, 19 May 2009 15:45:56 +0000 http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/?p=476#comment-15 Bigger…better…faster…more… It’s the American way! No matter how much we have, the message that what we have is not enough assails us from every direction – jobs to sexual pleasure. There is always an easy fix – just buy this product, it is quick, easy, painless, and will only cost you a bit. The accompanying greed makes us, like the man with the fancy ankle bracelet, prisoners who think we are free. Our culture is fraught with escapism – money, power, drink, greed – all are egress to other, less painfully real places. The steps you outline are a perfect beginning. The path may be long and bumpy, but we can start to heal ourselves and our culture one step at a time. Want what you have and accept what you are given with grace. Bigger…better…faster…more… It’s the American way! No matter how much we have, the message that what we have is not enough assails us from every direction – jobs to sexual pleasure. There is always an easy fix – just buy this product, it is quick, easy, painless, and will only cost you a bit. The accompanying greed makes us, like the man with the fancy ankle bracelet, prisoners who think we are free. Our culture is fraught with escapism – money, power, drink, greed – all are egress to other, less painfully real places. The steps you outline are a perfect beginning. The path may be long and bumpy, but we can start to heal ourselves and our culture one step at a time. Want what you have and accept what you are given with grace.

]]> By: Judith Acosta http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/2009/05/13/immunity-against-fear/comment-page-1/#comment-14 Judith Acosta Mon, 18 May 2009 15:28:48 +0000 http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/?p=476#comment-14 JP: Insightful and frighteningly accurate! The first one sums it up. Everything good has to be sacrificed at the altar of ambition. That is what is extracted: love, spirit, presence. Your comment about culture was the point I was hoping to make. The culture of greed has permeated every facet of our lives. Who knows how long the "democracy" of internet communications will last. They're already working on changing that. And if it hadn't spread out as fast as it did, I'm sure it would have been a great deal less egalitarian than it is. JP:

Insightful and frighteningly accurate! The first one sums it up. Everything good has to be sacrificed at the altar of ambition. That is what is extracted: love, spirit, presence.

Your comment about culture was the point I was hoping to make. The culture of greed has permeated every facet of our lives. Who knows how long the "democracy" of internet communications will last. They're already working on changing that. And if it hadn't spread out as fast as it did, I'm sure it would have been a great deal less egalitarian than it is.

]]> By: Jim Peloquen http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/2009/05/13/immunity-against-fear/comment-page-1/#comment-12 Jim Peloquen Fri, 15 May 2009 13:38:44 +0000 http://www.wordsaremedicine.com/?p=476#comment-12 "I'll keep it short and sweet:Family. Religion. Friendship. These are the three demons you must slay if you wish to succeed in business." Charles Montgomery Burns "Greed--for lack of a better word--is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed cuts through, and captures the essense of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all it's forms--greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge--has marked the upward surge of mankind." Gordon Gekko The above quotes from extraordinarily successful businessmen (as featured in ESQUIRE's Spring Style Manual) reinforce our understanding of the ruthlessness of huge companies, many of whom have earnings in excess of some developed countries GDP. Increasingly, this power controls governments (rich and poor alike) and the ever more integrated popular culture. A still democratic Internet (blogs like this one) and interpersonal interactions are the main countervailing forces to this. "I'll keep it short and sweet:Family. Religion. Friendship. These are the three demons you must slay if you wish to succeed in business." Charles Montgomery Burns

"Greed–for lack of a better word–is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed cuts through, and captures the essense of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all it's forms–greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge–has marked the upward surge of mankind."
Gordon Gekko

The above quotes from extraordinarily successful businessmen (as featured in ESQUIRE's
Spring Style Manual) reinforce our understanding of the ruthlessness of huge companies, many of whom have earnings in excess of some developed countries GDP. Increasingly, this power controls governments (rich and poor alike) and the ever more integrated popular culture. A still democratic Internet (blogs like this one) and interpersonal interactions are the main countervailing forces to this.

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