A Funny Thing Happened To Us On The Way To The Revolution

The Industrial Revolutionary Wasters Of Life!

We've been blinded by greed. This is perhaps unavoidable. As we learned to manipulate law, we learned how to create super loop holes in the system we created. Like this one. A corporation is designed to protect the owners from being personally liable. Ok. Nothing wrong with that. The corporation is seen by law, by the supreme court, as an individual. An entity with the same rights as a person. The corporation can sue, or be sued. Starting to see a problem? The corporation lacks some very important components for it to function like a person. A conscience, morality & ethics. Why? Because it's not human. Not that all human beings are in possession of these fine attributes. And yet the Supreme court treats the corporation, for all intents and purposes, as a person. The reason I'm writing this today is to illustrate some aspects of the system we live by. The system which is systematically dismantling our health by severely polluting our environment, therefore our food, water & the air. Yes, redundant, I know. I don't want to blanket with words the important factors being listed here. The oceans are under threat of irreversible damage. Our atmosphere has over six-hundred times the amount of Carbon Dioxide than any other time in earths history. Still, we cut down trees.Why do we kill the things that aid in the process of life and practice the things that shorten our lives? We do, in deed see trees as things and not trees. We see food similarly. If it tastes good, we call it food. We even joke about it. We are creatures of the great Biosphere known as EARTH. But as our Biosphere declines, so do we. Simple, straight-forward, uncomplicated truth. We are a production of the biosphere not the other way around. We live as though we have no respect for our origins or home. Funny that the American Indians were called "uncivilized" and "savage" in their nature. Yet they wouldn't pull a weed out of the earth without thanking the plant for its service, then apologize to the plant for shortening the plant's life! I'm not suggesting we live in this fashion. But to approach life with respect might earn us some better results. We're like a dog that craps in its own crate (home). Have you ever noticed that pets never do that unless they're dying and aren't mobile! We figured out plumbing and live more hygienically as a result. Yet we let the corporations (people by law) CRAP WHERE EVER THEY WANT!

1984

In the United States we encourage people to "go out and make their dreams come true!" "Create your fortune!" "We" equals the image of an "Uncle Sam" or fatherly voice we've given to the powers that be. The personification of our "father country." We separate ourselves from this voice as though it is not formed by the collective population. It's someone else. It's government. It's an idealistic image of the great and powerful AMERICA! The voice of Big Brother. As George Orwell coined it in his legendary and quite profound and accurate portrayal of this country in 1984. The entitled book "1984" shows a world where nothing happens without the people being watched and relying totally on Big Brother for everything. Therefore being controlled and contained by the government. The people were told how and when to eat, when and how to exercise, and what to think and how to feel. Or not to feel. You see, if we are separate from the "voice" or soul, which drives hard working people to prosper in this country, we are also separate from the voice/soul that kills, maims and tortures people. We can also separate ourselves from the mistreatment of animals. We can justify polluting and poisoning the environment. Because it's not us. This separation makes it easier to deal with some of the ugly facts about the system we created. Now heres something to ponder. We as people are expected to contribute to society by working hard, and the better we do the better the country does. Really, all that matters is that the individual workers, business people, investors, and so on, make more and more money and therefore spend it. The message is: make as much money as you can! That's the American way! If the Supreme Court sees the Corporation as an individual with rights like a human being, then "its" goal and purpose is to make as much profit for the owners of the corporation. Every worker provides a small function to reach the final product or goal, which ultimately results as profit. It does not matter what the corporation produces. Because the sole purpose of the corporation is to produce profit.

What happened to the nice blogs about the fruits and vegetables?

I'm getting to that. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE NATURE IN WHICH THE CORPORATION OPERATES TO FULFILL ITS GOAL. When viewed as a person. Right? PROFIT is the goal! In fact, since the corporation is held or owned by the shareholders, the corporation is by law, required to profit and make that the central aim/goal. Failure to show profit can bring lawsuits? Therefore, little pesky, annoying things like environment, safety, ethical treatment of the worker, or THE QUALITY OF THE ACTUAL PRODUCT BEING PRODUCED, goes right out the window. In fact, the safety of the product or the ramifications of producing the product are not considered. How does this apply to food? The food in this country is produced with profit only in mind. Not the quality of the food! Not the nutritional integrity. Not safety for the workers, environment, livestock. Not the environment? The very thing which houses us? Not the PEOPLE? The quality of the food only comes into consideration when profit is threatened. Duh! Are we that stupid? No, I don't think WE are. But that voice, that BIG BULLY, I mean BROTHER, IS! Remember the bacteria I mentioned in an earlier blog? The mere act of eating and passing waste (which was oxygen) contributed to the death of that species and many other microbial life forms, all of which die in the presence of oxygen. This was long before even mollusks were alive. Billions of years before that even. Look at the "big brained" humans go. Making things we do not need. Creating synthetic chemicals to do so. Does anyone care that these chemicals, which never existed in this world, cause cancer in human beings. Are we blind? I think not. Are "they" blind? I don't know. I think they see clearly. Like a computer performing the tasks it is programmed to carry out. Like a robot. The robot can only carry out the tasks it was programmed to do. This is the corporation! This is who makes our food. This is who augments the seeds, which grow our so-called foods. Hello, Monsanto!

Healthy crops? Healthy profits!

The U. S. produces, primarily Soy and Corn. Or the idea of those foods. Side note: Soy is a bean. All beans are high in protein, high in starch. They cause gas. They are undigestible. They also need heat to be eaten and therefore are not food for humans. Corn never existed before mankind. We made it from Maze. Which is now used as a decoration for that holiday when we celebrate ghouls and ghosts. Odd that the American Indians cultivated maze and we use it for Halloween! Corn is not food for many reasons. It never existed and yet now it's one of our biggest crops! These corporate people aren't doing anything wrong, really. Are they? When large corporations pay peasants 39 cents for making a sweater that sells for fourteen dollars, the corporation is a hero. The peasants can feed their family some rice. The fabric for the sweater costs pennies and the labor cost pennies and still the item sells for what we consider a cheap price. The profit is huge. Apply this formula to clothing with "high-end labels" for some insight to the insanity that is high-fashion.

To Serve Man

This subtitle is borrowed from "The Twilight Zone"

Imagine this model when applied to food production. Do you really think these corporations are run by conscious people? Of course not. Not because they are bad, but because they are not programmed that way. Product quality is secondary to profit. Do you think these companies care whether they make sneakers or toothpaste? NO! Because profit can be made on anything. "The big fish eat the little ones." A line from a Radiohead song. Are they mean fish? No, they're hungry fish. Is the lion mean for attacking, killing and eating the pretty zebra? No, the lion is hungry, therefore eating and surviving. Nature, doing nature. Life doing life. Business doing business? Corporations doing people! Is it then okay for gigantic corporations to consume small businesses? With whom are the corporations doing "business" with? Each other? Yes. Yet, who is the mindless, endless conveyor belt, production line, producing for? You and me. I must evoke a seventies term. BOYCOT! The only message these corporations receive is LESS or NO MONEY. There is this great concept put forth by Eckhart Tolle, author of "The Power Of Now" and many other works. He describes the ego as a never-ending, wanting/needing machine. This is my interpretation of his explanation. Like a paper shredder with no container, which never fills. The ego wants and wants but does not ever feel satiated, never fulfilled. Never reaching or achieving anything but more wanting, needing, wanting, must haves, and so on. We actually believe we need these useless products designed for our comfort/convenience. WE DON'T NEED ninety-nine percent of everything sold in most stores. But why not buy these items from small business. Lets feed the little fish. Have you figured out yet that nothing ever lasts. The good feeling you get from buying or acquiring things, never lasts. Even great success will not erase the pain of the past. The thoughts that have plagued us our whole lives remain. No amount of money, success, acquiring of things, will ever take pain or suffering away.

Okay, I'll try to make sense out of this rambling. You see the collective ego, which runs all corporations, and the world, which you and I are a part of. As human beings, we contribute to the collective unconscious, the collective mentality, the collective ego. We may agree or disagree but we are a part of everything. So the corporations just keep producing and we keep buying. Their goal is to decrease spending and increase profit. Our goal is to acquire as much shit as we can before we die. You've heard this one, "the one with the most toys wins!" Yeah, then you, I die. Taking nothing with us. All forms die or return to dust. Nothing material remains forever. So why all the fuss about shopping. It's just another drug to take our blues away. We feed the silent, lurking beast, which preys on our pain and weakness. With every useless product we purchase, the beast grows in size, strength and efficiency.

The "Super" Market

Ever notice there's nothing "super" at the super market? Take into consideration the way we buy food. We often buy way more than we need. We store our foods in cold boxes and often throw away that which has rotted. We are so busy being busy that we can often only shop for food once a week or twice a week. So we buy more and waste more. Industry gives us the necessary convenience of the refrigerator, hence, a lot more waste. We build up without thought or foresight. Why are we complicit in this game which has us on a conveyor-belt? Because we are allowing ourselves to be the victims to these "corporate citizens." First we visit the insurance company (enabling, mob-like figure/investor), they provide us with "protection/money," then the conveyor-belt takes us to the doctor ((used-car salesman/charlatan), convincing us something is wrong and they know what we need to make our lives wonderful, blah, blah, blah). Then the belt takes us to the pharmacist (the drug dealer). War on drugs? My ass! We're handled, we're packaged, we're drugged, we're sold down the toxic river. Pawns in a game that we think we can't escape or think is happening to us. Here's the truth. WE ARE THE GAME, PEOPLE! We call the shots. We are the buyers! Does that make bells go off in your head? If you don't water your plants, or feed the cat or dog, they die! Simple. Lets starve the beast living in the heart of this country, which devours and destroys, and is never satisfied. It eats money. Our money! Would you continue to water a plant if it ate your cat? I know, that was a bit of a stretch. Did it make you laugh a little? Hope so.

We Are Now Preparing For Our Final Decent/Rant!

No march, no activist, no banners and certainly, NO EMPTY-HEADED, BULLSHIT, SLOGAN BASED, PATHETIC, WHINEY, WEAK, RIBBONS OR BUMPER-STICKERS, WILL EVER DO A DAMN THING TO CHANGE ANYTHING, EVER! But it worked in the sixties??? "We were wasted in the sixties!" To evoke my (impersonal) mentor for the purposes of this point, from some bad eighties movie with Bette Middler and Shelly Long, and Sir George Carlin. Yes I just Knighted him. What the hell, they gave Obama the Nobel Peace Prize, for waging war in two countries and escalating the one in Afghanistan. And of course, the one in Iraq is totally illegal, which he promised to bring home the troops. Slight detour, boys! Before we bring you home, we're dropping you off in Afghanistan! Ah, welcome to the great land of opposite meanings. The United States of Orwellian Principals! War is peace, folks. Eternal war for eternal peace. The only thing we as a people can do is to teach the "dopey dog" how to behave more appropriately and get along better with the other dogs. You see, the corporations don't want to produce this or that. They don' t care what they produce. They just want to make as much money as possible, every quarter. That's it. This is not evil. They don't need or want to make toxic waste or synthetic chemicals, which kill. But if that increases profit, so be it. They want to make money. Bottom line. We need to reroute our money. Watch the movie "The Corporation." See for yourself how we are secondary to these legal, "pseudo people" and that they are primary to the concerns of the government (fast becoming more like a corporation/company then a country) and we are a distant second or third. That's the spin, the illusion created by the great and powerful blOZ! As our bellies distend, our brains contract and slow. As they convince us we need to eat and use their garbage, we become products of the producers. Or products of the product. We begin to feel we "need" that which we do not and that which is unhealthy. It is an illusion to think we are secondary to the process of capitalism. We are capitalism. You see? They can make, make, make but if we don't buy, they are screwed. Start making sacrifices. Sacrifice wearing leather or eating a steak, for the greater good. Are you comfortable running around your metropolis in "the best" running shoes money can buy? While some child in El Salvador, works for twelve hours-a-day for pittance? The parents of these kids are half dead from the conditions of the sweat-shops they worked in for decades and can no longer work. So the children, often under twelve years of age are the supporters of the families. Is that okay with you? You and I feed this machine, daily and for our entire lives. You are entitled to say yes, if that's what truly you feel. Keep it to yourself, if you choose. We do still have some "freedom" in this country. Just as long as you don't publicly knock one of the BIG CORPORATIONS! We are all entitled to choose the life we want. As human beings go, we are clan based. We are social creatures. Not reptiles. We can do very well in solitude, but we are story tellers. Entertainers. We love the company of others. Yet as we choose the life we want, we MUST consider the other. And often do not. Most of the time through ignorance. We can no longer function from ignorance because there is too much truth out there. We now know that every single item we purchase either harms us, the people making it, the environment, and ultimately our BIOSPHERE, but still we MUST HAVE IT. We must consider our children, their children and so on. These so -called peasants may eat and not starve, but in comparison to the profits made by mulit-national corporations (protected by the laws of multiple complicit nations) for their efforts, deserve more. Don't these poor countries deserve to pull themselves out of poverty, like we have? Isn't there something we can do to just change the bar-line and not destroy in order to create? Not really, because the countries, corporations involved simply won't and cannot allow that. The U. S. won't let a peasant nation be anything but a peasant nation. That's how we profit. These small countries have tried to raise the economic status of their country. Until we bombed them. Read "Confessions Of An Economic Hit Man." By John Perkins. You'll understand this idea better.

Waste Not, Want Not—Waste Life, Want What?

The individuals which make up the corporations. Meaning the owners. Are willfully killing their own great-grandchildren. There have always been genetic abnormalities throughout natural history. We now can see that deformed creatures, people and plants are increasing in number. Some of this is not the result of pollution or the blind use of synthetic chemicals. Plants and animals are being purposely genetically modified. While we are being subtly, or secondarily genetically modified. The so-called captains of industry myopically create, rapidly pollute, profit blindly, while they attempt to genetically alter nature. You have to laugh at that one. Once again, I must recall the TV commercial for margarine, where the voice of a woman (mother nature) pronounces, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!" Hey you! Yes, You! You cannot improve upon that which created you! Of course I'm speaking to the representation of the "pseudo-people," the corporations, the clever, sell-out scientists, the marketers, the so-called innocent people, just trying to eek out a living. We cannot be considered innocent. Not any more. However I am not addressing you, the reader. You and I are making the change. We are living the change. But, the number needs to grow so the community can grow, too. The more of US means less of THEM. You see there is no difference between us and them. We were once them, perhaps. And they WILL become part of us, soon enough. In conclusion, lets stop feeding the machine (industry), which is transforming our food into poison. Lets kill it before it kills us!

Be well.

Tom DeVito