Let’s Fucking Go.
I was talking to an older gentleman yesterday. Shit, the stupid thing he believed. The dumb shit older people believe is amazing to me. What amazes me the most is just how much political bullshit they have ingested. I mean, yes, you can smell it on them, but when they speak, the odor not only come out, some spray in your face, like a toilet flushing. Not worth an argument, so I listen. I listen to what they think the problem is as if they hadn’t been an adult for the last 50 years. But they have been conditioned to think a certain way and believe what they are told. But goddamn, these thoughtless people raised other people, who raised this new generation of adults, and where I live- thinking hasn’t caught on. History to them is something that happened a hundred years ago, but they can’t even trace back to forty years, when shit started to hit the fan. Like they didn’t watch corporate greed take over everything and vote for it. Corporate greed by the way is the worst kind of greed. It is in the Good Book. Anyway, this conversation that was a funny smear campaign pushed by right wing media, worked. He a well respected, smart enough individual, believes the bullshit. Believes all the right wing talking points and shares them. There was no room for discussion about what causes the problems we have and what should be done to fix it.
It is easy, in our own lives to believe our own bullshit. It is easier to look at life and accept that the problem comes from someone else. It is much harder to look at our personal history and say, “there it is, this mis-belief got me here.” Tax breaks for the wealthy, keeping wages low for decades, and encouraging debt consumption really fucked everyone. Let’s not forget the sue craze that led to higher insurance premiums- without the benefits. But that is just a flick on the tip of what happened. In our own lives, it could have been believing school didn’t matter. It could have been taking on debt for a career that wouldn’t earn back the money. It could have been living in the now and have to face the consequences forever- like getting hurt, tickets/fines, consumer debt, or just not pursuing a career. It is easier to look at this moment and try to blame something recent, instead of looking at a history of personal decor based on beliefs that don’t line up with reality.
No matter the case, looking back on why we made certain decision will help us. It will give us clarity into our own thinking. It will open us to consider how we should act going forward. But the most important thing it can do is give us a chance to examine what and why we believe certain things and what life could be like if we believed something else. All belief is, is a hope that life works a certain way, the actions we take are just steps of faith.
Later Gator 🐊
Nino
Nino Olson 