"So how do the best of us, how do the rest of us rekindle an intensity passionate enough—our lowercase “r” rapture—to counterbalance the extremes, and take a stand for our lives and our future?"
Prudent preparation of logistical items, trusted networks of resourceful humans at the local level, and a sense of the sacred grounded in humility and a pluralistic grace.
There needs to be some human or humane praxis thrown into the ‘prudent preparation of logistical items’ which from your description sounds like we need Jeff Bezos more than we need our *Jesus* — I’m not sure what ‘pluralistic grace’ means. Will Jesus be prepared to save whoever stumbles into the camp? I’m not so sure about that.
I’ve done community building. It’s not much different in a neighborhood, city, state or region. Most people I meet are not particularly passionate souls. There’s no fire to be ignited. You could light a firecracker under many people’s asses and they still would not be moved. You could point to Jan. 6th or BLM protests, but that wasn’t passion — it was rage, blood curdling rage — rage against the machine — suggestive of the need for healing or reconciliation. We’re still feeling the repercussions of unhealed intergenerational trauma which is being acted out on a global scale. Andrew Thomas Hübl has done work in this area which might be worth considering. Without healing, there is no ‘community’ only a facsimile which is what many of our neighborhoods and cities have become. It’s not only logistical consideration that matters, but soul tending.
Most people are followers looking for Jesus or resemblance of that — logistics are not even on the radar. JW is our best bet as far as many are concerned. He’s not only a published author, he has proven leadership skills. JW can certainly lead us to the promised land. Maybe JW will run for President once people become disillusioned with fascism — when their emancipator becomes their oppressor.
One scenario in which I envision (which doesn’t necessarily involve JW) is the zombie masses lined up for bus rides to the ‘community’ in a setting filled with rolling hills, plenty of nature, green grass and wild mustangs roaming freely — a quasi Osho 2.0 sex cult — ‘not only FREE love, meditation, sex and drugs for everyone — but freshly prepared vegan meals and Athletic Green supplements’ will be the branding in exchange for hard labor — tending to farms, building houses. Nothing is ever FREE. It will be a peaceful, loving, polyamorous community except for the occasional squabble or human drama, including accusations of sexual exploitation. Par for the course. There’s your prudent preparation of logistics (including guns and weapons and those equipped to use them to protect these communities from malevolent outside forces)— part of that ‘trusted network of Human Resources’ if you’re committed enough to the cause.
Passion is not a requirement of followers as a general rule. When has it ever been a requirement of any community? If you demonstrate sufficient humility, conformity, devotion and sacrifice to the leader, under such conditions, you will not only be rewarded in heaven, but you’ll have access to all the IPA beer you could ever consume spiked with haldol.
If we’ve destroyed the plant and all its natural resources — this is easily remedied as we’ll create our own virtual communities. Elon Musk has that one figured out.
Btw — I also appreciate what The CEO Whisperer @anthonyhoward wrote (which Adam liked in his feed) in ‘The Rise of the Disposable Customers’ as it speaks to the fact that we’ve all become less citizens or members of shared humanity or community. Rather we’ve become disposable consumers — easily dismissed, abused, neglected, forgotten and silenced at the mercy of forces we cannot control. You cannot appeal to passion or feelings or compassion when pitted against pure heartlessness or cruelty. Some people are truly kind and full of good will and compassion. Unfortunately, their hands are often tied because they work for organizations that are often run by tyrannical sociopaths and narcissists.
Dr. Anthony Howard writes: “Why is it that the people and organizations I pay to care for me rarely do? Why do companies like Amazon and Amex treat us like numbers while someone with no financial incentive can show such compassion? The solution lies in a choice: companies can care if they want to. And it starts with small, simple acts of humanity, like that call from the detective. If we demand more, and remember the power of genuine care, maybe the tide will turn. After all, real care doesn’t require an algorithm—it just requires someone to take the time to listen.”
Where does corporate responsibility fit into all of this?
Pardon me for being unclear. When I say "logistics", I mean that you physically possess some items which are good to have around in a "decomplexification" event, not ordering Uber Eats. Weapons, tools, material to sustain yourself for a period of time. Pluralistic grace just means that I can accept that you view a relationship to the divine in a different way, and I can still get along with you.
It’s okay. Thanks for responding, Adam. I was just free associating. I hope I wasn’t being offensive. Thinking about this a bit and seeing where my thoughts led me. I do that some times. ;)
Instead of investing in our destruction (military and war spending), can we find ideas and motivations that will make it more lucrative to invest (our time, energy, resources) in life-giving, regenerative, and healing endeavors? Each of us has our own personal role in this, driven by our individual gifts and needs, beliefs and values, things that light us up. Duke Ellington spoke of writing music that allowed his musicians to shine. What does the cosmic music sound like that let's all 8 billion (that's 8000 million) of us shine? Can it change us so we start acting out of love and dedication to each other, and by extension, to our planet? We have these incredibly evolved physical manifestations in the human body and mind, and only this beautiful yet terrifying world to keep us alive. Our individual existence means nothing outside of the context of the evolution of our species on this one little patch of dirt within the gadzillion galaxies whirling through our universe. What picture, what sound, what idea, what meme can fill each and everyone of us with enough love to accept and engage what's unfurling around us? What would be the critical mass that would tip the scales towards dealing realistically and enthusiastically with the problems we have created for our world? I'm open to a download.
Thanks, Jamie, for putting words to my thoughts. All indications suggest we've been given a terminal diagnosis. How we face our finiteness could make all the difference.
Ya’ll. People are figuring this stuff out and have been building towards a grassroots non-rapture, concretely, in the current paradigm, since Katrina. Look up Common Ground Collective. Common Ground Collective birthed Mutual Aid Disaster Relief, a network of people who are self empowered to work emergently in emergencies. Yes, we vet people. But also, mutual aid systems emerge everywhere. Look at micro-finance systems. Look at every disaster everywhere, look at protest encampments and even some homeless encampments. The problem seems to be looking towards the power structures and influencers amongst the privileged in society . You know… the meek shall inherit the earth… yeah?
I say let's encourage them (the 1%ers) to all hop on their jet to Mars ASAP, and we can get back to being compassionate humans who care about each other and love this beautiful planet :) I'm sure we can manage just fine (better?) without that particular 'niche' of folks who clearly aren't thinking about the rest of us or valuing what they have here.
When discussing this situation with friends, the thought that came to my mind was that this is how/why the meek could inherit the earth. The rich and powerful will be too busy pulling out of human-societal relationships to personal "safety" in bunkers, oil rig platforms, and Mars.
I would have loved to hear this topic explored in dialogos with Jordan P. earlier this week, but alas, active listening wasn't on the menu for him that particular day.
If we are created by an intelligent creator and saw fit to send us living examples on how to be peaceful, then it is up to us to surrender our weapons and love each other into our destiny..be that extinction, rapture, boom bust consciousness or the real God of our understanding giving us another way to love and peace.
When did truth become completely subjective? 2012 or so? Once we passed 50% adoption of smartphones?
If something bad happened that wasnt a total calamity, that might mobilize the majority of us that just want to live our lives without a bunch of numbnuts conjuring problems for all of us. Maybe.
"So how do the best of us, how do the rest of us rekindle an intensity passionate enough—our lowercase “r” rapture—to counterbalance the extremes, and take a stand for our lives and our future?"
Prudent preparation of logistical items, trusted networks of resourceful humans at the local level, and a sense of the sacred grounded in humility and a pluralistic grace.
There needs to be some human or humane praxis thrown into the ‘prudent preparation of logistical items’ which from your description sounds like we need Jeff Bezos more than we need our *Jesus* — I’m not sure what ‘pluralistic grace’ means. Will Jesus be prepared to save whoever stumbles into the camp? I’m not so sure about that.
I’ve done community building. It’s not much different in a neighborhood, city, state or region. Most people I meet are not particularly passionate souls. There’s no fire to be ignited. You could light a firecracker under many people’s asses and they still would not be moved. You could point to Jan. 6th or BLM protests, but that wasn’t passion — it was rage, blood curdling rage — rage against the machine — suggestive of the need for healing or reconciliation. We’re still feeling the repercussions of unhealed intergenerational trauma which is being acted out on a global scale. Andrew Thomas Hübl has done work in this area which might be worth considering. Without healing, there is no ‘community’ only a facsimile which is what many of our neighborhoods and cities have become. It’s not only logistical consideration that matters, but soul tending.
Most people are followers looking for Jesus or resemblance of that — logistics are not even on the radar. JW is our best bet as far as many are concerned. He’s not only a published author, he has proven leadership skills. JW can certainly lead us to the promised land. Maybe JW will run for President once people become disillusioned with fascism — when their emancipator becomes their oppressor.
One scenario in which I envision (which doesn’t necessarily involve JW) is the zombie masses lined up for bus rides to the ‘community’ in a setting filled with rolling hills, plenty of nature, green grass and wild mustangs roaming freely — a quasi Osho 2.0 sex cult — ‘not only FREE love, meditation, sex and drugs for everyone — but freshly prepared vegan meals and Athletic Green supplements’ will be the branding in exchange for hard labor — tending to farms, building houses. Nothing is ever FREE. It will be a peaceful, loving, polyamorous community except for the occasional squabble or human drama, including accusations of sexual exploitation. Par for the course. There’s your prudent preparation of logistics (including guns and weapons and those equipped to use them to protect these communities from malevolent outside forces)— part of that ‘trusted network of Human Resources’ if you’re committed enough to the cause.
Passion is not a requirement of followers as a general rule. When has it ever been a requirement of any community? If you demonstrate sufficient humility, conformity, devotion and sacrifice to the leader, under such conditions, you will not only be rewarded in heaven, but you’ll have access to all the IPA beer you could ever consume spiked with haldol.
If we’ve destroyed the plant and all its natural resources — this is easily remedied as we’ll create our own virtual communities. Elon Musk has that one figured out.
Btw — I also appreciate what The CEO Whisperer @anthonyhoward wrote (which Adam liked in his feed) in ‘The Rise of the Disposable Customers’ as it speaks to the fact that we’ve all become less citizens or members of shared humanity or community. Rather we’ve become disposable consumers — easily dismissed, abused, neglected, forgotten and silenced at the mercy of forces we cannot control. You cannot appeal to passion or feelings or compassion when pitted against pure heartlessness or cruelty. Some people are truly kind and full of good will and compassion. Unfortunately, their hands are often tied because they work for organizations that are often run by tyrannical sociopaths and narcissists.
Dr. Anthony Howard writes: “Why is it that the people and organizations I pay to care for me rarely do? Why do companies like Amazon and Amex treat us like numbers while someone with no financial incentive can show such compassion? The solution lies in a choice: companies can care if they want to. And it starts with small, simple acts of humanity, like that call from the detective. If we demand more, and remember the power of genuine care, maybe the tide will turn. After all, real care doesn’t require an algorithm—it just requires someone to take the time to listen.”
Where does corporate responsibility fit into all of this?
Pardon me for being unclear. When I say "logistics", I mean that you physically possess some items which are good to have around in a "decomplexification" event, not ordering Uber Eats. Weapons, tools, material to sustain yourself for a period of time. Pluralistic grace just means that I can accept that you view a relationship to the divine in a different way, and I can still get along with you.
It’s okay. Thanks for responding, Adam. I was just free associating. I hope I wasn’t being offensive. Thinking about this a bit and seeing where my thoughts led me. I do that some times. ;)
Instead of investing in our destruction (military and war spending), can we find ideas and motivations that will make it more lucrative to invest (our time, energy, resources) in life-giving, regenerative, and healing endeavors? Each of us has our own personal role in this, driven by our individual gifts and needs, beliefs and values, things that light us up. Duke Ellington spoke of writing music that allowed his musicians to shine. What does the cosmic music sound like that let's all 8 billion (that's 8000 million) of us shine? Can it change us so we start acting out of love and dedication to each other, and by extension, to our planet? We have these incredibly evolved physical manifestations in the human body and mind, and only this beautiful yet terrifying world to keep us alive. Our individual existence means nothing outside of the context of the evolution of our species on this one little patch of dirt within the gadzillion galaxies whirling through our universe. What picture, what sound, what idea, what meme can fill each and everyone of us with enough love to accept and engage what's unfurling around us? What would be the critical mass that would tip the scales towards dealing realistically and enthusiastically with the problems we have created for our world? I'm open to a download.
Thanks, Jamie, for putting words to my thoughts. All indications suggest we've been given a terminal diagnosis. How we face our finiteness could make all the difference.
Ya’ll. People are figuring this stuff out and have been building towards a grassroots non-rapture, concretely, in the current paradigm, since Katrina. Look up Common Ground Collective. Common Ground Collective birthed Mutual Aid Disaster Relief, a network of people who are self empowered to work emergently in emergencies. Yes, we vet people. But also, mutual aid systems emerge everywhere. Look at micro-finance systems. Look at every disaster everywhere, look at protest encampments and even some homeless encampments. The problem seems to be looking towards the power structures and influencers amongst the privileged in society . You know… the meek shall inherit the earth… yeah?
Yes! All awesome examples of real folks connecting to GSD IRL
Thx for sharing and for doing
I say let's encourage them (the 1%ers) to all hop on their jet to Mars ASAP, and we can get back to being compassionate humans who care about each other and love this beautiful planet :) I'm sure we can manage just fine (better?) without that particular 'niche' of folks who clearly aren't thinking about the rest of us or valuing what they have here.
Brit comic Ben Elton wrote a prescient book about that in late 80's called Stark. Worth digging up if you can. Kinda Tom Robbins meets Kurt Vonnegut
well, it's certainly puts a few stones on the opposite end of e/acc optimism scales
When discussing this situation with friends, the thought that came to my mind was that this is how/why the meek could inherit the earth. The rich and powerful will be too busy pulling out of human-societal relationships to personal "safety" in bunkers, oil rig platforms, and Mars.
I would have loved to hear this topic explored in dialogos with Jordan P. earlier this week, but alas, active listening wasn't on the menu for him that particular day.
Great article Jamie. Lots of important concepts and questions in here.
If we are created by an intelligent creator and saw fit to send us living examples on how to be peaceful, then it is up to us to surrender our weapons and love each other into our destiny..be that extinction, rapture, boom bust consciousness or the real God of our understanding giving us another way to love and peace.
that's a mighty big "If"
When did truth become completely subjective? 2012 or so? Once we passed 50% adoption of smartphones?
If something bad happened that wasnt a total calamity, that might mobilize the majority of us that just want to live our lives without a bunch of numbnuts conjuring problems for all of us. Maybe.
Excelente