As you all know I love researching what is going on in our country and I am a very passionate person. When I believe in someone or something, I am all in. But there is one thing that I have never ever been into and that is politics. Quite frankly I don’t have the interest or the time to invest in something that I care very little about. I just wanted to be really clear on where I am coming from when I take the chance to write this blog. I am not a political person, but I am a person who deeply cares about other human beings and the world at large. I am psychologist who loves to study human behavior and in the here and now there is an abundance of behaviors to observe in our world especially in our own country. There is so much going on between the pandemic, the racial issues and the politicians it is hard to see what is behind the curtain to find the truth, if there is one. Sometimes I feel like we are all in the Matrix being manipulated by some big machine that is pulling our strings to influence us to do what they want us to do. By the way I am not the only one who feels this way and is willing to talk about it. I do my research and I have gone down enough rabbit holes in my searches to try to figure out what the hell is going on in the United States of America a country that at one time was well respected by the world and now seems to sit at the bottom of the list.

 I often think to myself I wonder what my immigrant great grandparents and grandparents would say about the chaos and disrespect for this country. My family lived in the Italian Ghetto of Chicago and they were proud to be American. I don’t think they would believe what is going on today. Americans are burning the flag, taking a knee to the National Anthem, pulling down statues with historical meaning and destroying and disrespecting private property and businesses, as well as killing each other in the name of politics. I don’t even think my parents would understand this because I am having a hard time with all of this change as well. Who would believe that we would put our faith in celebrities, social media moguls and reporters, about politics and who virtually tell us what to do and how to do it? Would they even fathom that we make these people some of the wealthiest people in the world just by following them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube? I doubt it! Sometimes I have a hard time believing that there are people out there getting wealthy by just letting others follow their personal lives. Why it’s absurd but is this now the new American Dream? What kind of dream is this? Just looks like another nightmare to me. Where does it all end and stop? Even Buddhist media is taking a polarized stand, it is not unusual to see articles in Lion’s Roar, Shambala, Sounds True, Spirit Rock, and beloved Buddhist teachers taking a political stance to sway the public to see it through their lens. There was even a list of 100 names of Buddhist teachers that was circulated to sway the vote to their position.  Where does this end and where is this going? This violence that we perpetrate against each other. This is a great example of one against the other, a kill or be killed world that is all about the haves and the have nots and we are all responsible for letting it happen by sticking our heads in the sand and letting them all take away our rights. Gandhi stated the following, “An eye for an eye will leave the world blind.” A truer statement has never been spoken the world is blind! We will never be able to solve this countries problem with violence.

I was reading an article today on the history of human Violence and how it has shaped the world, and something came up about a George Carlin video and I decided to check it out even though I have not really been a George Carlin fan he is a little too raw for me but he does tell it like it is. The article was titled, “This powerful new ad uses a 2005 George Carlin rant to drive home the ugly reality of 2020 America.” When I opened it up there were flashes of pictures of all of the major players in our congress, senate and social media exalting their rhetoric that we have heard over and over again in the last  6 months of being under siege from a pandemic and quarantined by the government because no one seems to know what they are doing. I don’t know about you, but I am really tired of hearing everyone harm each other with their words and actions just to get their own point across and X out the other point of view. The message although foul at times did speak to the truth even though it was from 2005. The point of the message was quite poignant. This country at one time had pride, and dignity, a moral code that respected others. Maybe it was not perfect but what is perfect. Instead of a country that is for the people we are now owned by big business, who also subsequently own all the big media companies that funnel us the information that they want us to hear and the politicians are in bed with them giving us a false sense that they care, and we have freedom to choose. We do not have freedom of choice and what are the choices that we are faced with two politicians that hate each other and care very little for this country and the people that live in it. If they did care they would agree to disagree and stop the violence that is taking place in this country instead of being two big cowards. But why should they do that because as long as we remain in the dark and afraid, we will fail to see what is behind the screen of their power, greed, violence, racial dissension and lack of respect for humanity. We are all in a great big illusion and we have a choice to make, will we choose the blue pill or the red one? The red pill reveals the truth about the illusion and the blue pill represents remaining blissfully ignorant. When presented with this choice I thought to myself what if I want to choose the middle way. If the red pill represents waking up from the dream, I choose it! This dream we are all living is a nightmare and my practice is exploding with anxiety, panic disorder, depression and other maladies. What is happening in this country is taking a toll on our humanity. Do you think the celebrities, the journalists, the social media moguls or the politicians care about the people when they are living in their protected ivory castles with guards while they are shouting defund the police and allowing riots in our streets? I don’t know about you, but this is looking pretty frightening and overwhelming to me no wonder my practice is inundated with an overwhelming number of new clients that I have to send away because I cannot take everyone in. Where does this end? The below picture was taken from the George Carlin page. I think it is befitting, don’t you?           

There is no doubt that inequality in this country is at the core of our deepest chasm. If we were able to understand it perhaps something could be done about it.  But the only way for us to understand is for us all to be able to look beyond what they want us to see into each other’s eyes and know that we are all in this together and we are interconnected. It is not me against you that is what they want us to think because then they win. Don’t let them win!