Codex Politic Posts

By this time, you are likely to think, Americans will be tired – of, exactly the same – old, same – old, not enough genuine, meaningful leadership, from those, they elect, supposedly, to provide, and represent, their utmost interests! Too often, politicians, avoid, doing precisely what is right, needed, and necessary, but, rather, make use of empty promises, rhetoric, blaming and complaining, and, even – worse, denying! If, hopefully, being better – prepared, and capable, of handling the appropriate, sustainable, challenges, in the future, we should, be responsible voters, and, fully – examine, candidates, according to concrete plans and solutions/ actions, as opposed to, populist politics! With, that in your mind, this information will attempt to, briefly, consider, examine, review, and discuss, 5 things/ areas, where, we require, well – considered, proactive ideas, etc, as an alternative to denials!

1. Dangers of Climate Change: We have a lot of, who, have a tendency to, have confidence in conspiracy theories, etc, especially, when considering, to Climate Change! They seem to get it, easier, and/ or, more convenient/ comforting, to deny, it exists, and is also a danger, inside a real, sustainable manner, than, to proactively, plan, to make changes, in how you live our way of life, etc! Nearly, every scientist and expert, states, not merely, is coffee, real, but, represents an obvious danger, to your future, and sustainability, for the following generation! We have already seen, some impacts, including the melting, for the planet’s poles, and, a tremendous increase, in primary, climatic conditions! However, when, a politician, denies the existence, and claims, taking suggested steps, can be too costly, etc, he or she is equating, not able to our planet, with immediate, economic ramifications, etc!
2. Need to protect environment: In the past Presidential administration, we witnessed, for that first – time, in numerous decades, hard work, to reverse previous gains, in protecting the environment. After – all, what could, possibly, be important/ urgent/ relevant, than prioritizing, environmental protections, especially, inside the areas of beautiful, and water?
3. Public health, and safety: The recent, horrific pandemic, should, clearly, demonstrate, how essential, paying keen focus to public health matters, should be! President Trump, seemed, to a lot of, for being, either, unprepared, ill – informed, in – denial, and/ or, believing, his approach, was better, for his personal/ political agenda, and/ or, self – interest! He minimized, denied, blamed and complained, but didn’t take, timely action, when indicated! Isn’t that similar, to how, this nation, has behaved, when it comes to gun safety, especially, once we consider, the volume of incidents, deaths, etc, inside past several years?
4. Need for sane gun safety/ controls: We license automobiles, and drivers, but, do little, if this applies, to gun owners! Many politicians, always, avoid, addressing this challenge, by stating, Guns don’t kill, people do. However, the truth is, is it not, people, with guns, who, actually, kill! While, responsible people, ought to be allowed to own a gun, nobody needs an assault weapon, nor should, certain individuals, be looked at, fit, for being gun owners!
5. Our elections/ political system: Either, the American political system, is broken, or, it deserves, thinking, regarding making people, feel, more confident, in their results, etc. In reality, we’ve got to rehaul, the machine, no individual, really should be able, to generate irresponsible accusations, without evidence, which we witnessed, in, and also since, a final election!

Wake up, America, and turn, proactive, addressing, genuine needs, and priorities, and avoiding those, who turn to, the politics of, blaming, complaining, denials, and lies! We must do, so, sooner, as an alternative to, later, or this nation, will probably be harmed, perhaps, forever!

I am not sure, which can be more concerning, that, a great number of politicians, manage to not care, don’t thoroughly think and analyze, placed their personal/ political agenda, and, self – interest, before the common good, or, if many of them, actually, believe, many of the apparent – nonsense, they articulate! Although, many have thought about, politicians, to get less – than, trustworthy, previously, the amount, and extent on this, recently, exceeds, anything, in recent memory! It, probably, came – to – a – head, over the administration of former – President Trump, when political fact – checkers, state, the telephone number, and rate (in addition to degree), of, lies, and misstatements, was alarming, and may have been concerning. Consistently, rather than reversing a situation, any time a lie, was exposed, Trump, often, double – downed on his version of reality! With, that under consideration, this document will attempt to, briefly, consider, examine, review, and discuss, 6 truly, concerning, areas, where such things happen.

1. The Big Lie: Never – before, in recent memory, includes a loser of any Presidential election, continued, lying, making excuses, and false accusations, declaring himself, since the real winner, and stating, his opponents committed, stealing the election, employing a slogan, Stop the Steal! His campaign, filed, more court suits, demands for recounts, etc, previously, before, and, all, confirmed, the legitimacy with the election. He continues this, even now, plus the Republican Party, is just about the Party of Trump, accepting the Big Lie! I am not sure, whether, when they, truly, believe this, it isn’t really, even, more concerning!
2. Trickle – down economics: No major country has ever benefited, from any version, of Trickle – down economics, which, basically, means, rewarding the wealthiest, believing, it’d encourage, more hiring, etc. Instead, we witness, today, perhaps, the greatest/ largest, wage/ income gaps, in recent memory! We, first, witnessed, this method, in the administration of President Ronald Reagan, and, while, the wealthiest, significantly, benefited, the remaining, failed to! The 2017 tax reform, largely, passed, along party lines, also, predominantly, benefited, the greatest corporations, and wealthiest individuals, despite claims, the guts – class, could be the major winners!
3. Does enhanced, unemployment insurance, discourage, seeking jobs?: Many Republicans claim, the other $300 for enhanced, unemployment insurance, is harming the economy’s recovery, because, it discourages people, from time for the workplace! However, if it amount discourages, exactly what does it, really, indicate, about worker’s wages? Since, unemployment insurance, pays, at most half (to a cap), only, those, earning under $600 every week (about $30, 000 each year), would consider this to be, and, for most parts on this nation, people can’t live, in almost any quality manner, on that little amount!
4. Excessive use of labels: Many politicians make use of, using, simplistic, labels, to spell it out their opponents! How often, do, so called, conservatives, call, those, they disagree, with, names, for example Socialist, Communist, etc?
5. Health care: Should, quality medical (and, affordable), certainly be a right, or, simply, available? We hear claims, by many Republicans, the Democrats are attempting to make heath care treatment, socialist!
6. Minimum wage: Claiming, businesses, do not want to pay a greater wage, ignores, the very fact, the Federal Minimum Wage, has always been, at $7.25 per hours, for approximately 13 years! There is no place, with this nation, it’s possible to afford to live, on that amount! Consider, what this amount, equates – to, when adjusted, for inflation? Wouldn’t an improved approach (fairer), be, to make a new minimum, in increments, over about several years, and, then, once set, automatically, adjusting it, in accordance with the cost – of – living)?

Declaring, many politicians lie, is just not, newsworthy, but, if, they, actually, believe many of, the things they articulate, it has to be concerning! Wake up, America, and grow better, and demand integrity, etc!

In the last post we considered a few of the major myths created to guide people toward living a purposeful life in Western Civilization. In this post we’re going to consider a volume of myths of what is now the United States. They took us in the darker direction and have an effect on our civilization through the earliest days to the current time.

Karen Armstrong in the book, A Brief History of Myth, stated that “we need myths that can help us perceive all our fellow beings, not alone with individuals who belong to our ethnic, national, or ideological tribe. We need myths that assist us to venerate the world as sacred yet again, as opposed to merely with it as a resource.” Such lofty ideals usually are not always appreciated, such as principles discussed by our Founding Fathers (no mothers included.) Instead the main objective was on wealthy male landowners.

One unfortunate myth inside North was the preoccupation with witches, paralleling hysteria about witchcraft in Europe. The Reverend Parris, a trader inside the Caribbean, brought home with him a slave couple. The wife finished up spending a great amount of time together with the Parris girls, often devoted to stories in the islands including those involving Voodoo lore and practices.

The remaining story is just not entirely clear. It appears that the women started telling fortunes inside them for hours “fits.” Suspected witches were brought before the women. If the presence in the suspects was followed be the women having fits, this became taken as being a sure sign that this suspects were witches. Although pretty much everything appeared to begin with child’s play, it took a deadly use the point that one hundred forty one “witches” were arrested and nineteen hanged.

In the nineteenth century, President James Polk championed the speculation (myth) of Manifest Destiny. This belief or doctrine held “which the expansion with the United States through the American Continent was both justifiable and inevitable” based on the compendium, Oxford Languages.

Long prior to the term Manifest Destiny was invented, early northern European settlers viewed that which was to became America as ripe for the taking despite centuries of civilization on the part with the native peoples have been living here well before Europeans even knew this land existed. The history from the United States includes pushing the native people out from the way. Although there was some tries to negotiate using them, in most cases these people were described as obstacle plus an inconvenience. They first were pushed towards the western areas from the continent and in the end confined to reservations. Even then, reservations were consolidated and reservation land was minimized because the lands these folks were given came into existence seen as ripe for development or appropriating natural resources. Manifest destiny was thought to apply and then “white” citizens. Manifest destiny obviously was a myth to justify expansion during the entire land. There was no legal or moral justification for doing this but like a self serving “truth.”

Although the concept of white supremacy looks like it’s of our making, or imagining, it absolutely was alive and well in Europe prior to first Northern European settlers reached America. They viewed the American territories as intended for them as superior people for the exclusion of Irish, Italian, Asian or African people, unless we were holding brought in as servants and slaves. Slavery existed through the early days of America. It was considered in our Constitution to help make southern states feel relaxed being part from the American experiment.

Slavery inside of it was not a myth but instead a stark practice associated while using myth of white superiority. Struggles on the institution of slavery continued during the entire early days individuals nation, ending ultimately within the Civil War which banned slavery but wouldn’t end racism which is constantly on the divide us even now. Racism isn’t in itself a myth either nevertheless depends on racial superiority due to the justification. People kidnapped and taken to this country were considered as having forget about rights than livestock. The most equality Blacks from the South made it possible to manage up towards the Civil War ended up being have each counted as three fifths of an person which benefitted Southern White landowners into their representation in Congress but would not benefit Black people in any respect. There were free black people from the North. When I visited Charleston, I found there were some free Black slave owners.

Black people following the civil war started making some progress throughout the years of reconstruction which eventually came to a close, giving way to your Jim Crow era, the remnants which linger until today. Great strides are actually made toward racial equality on the years, but significant pockets of racism still pervade our society in accordance with all the myth of white superiority. Educational and occupations, housing opportunities and police protection for example are still additional readily available to whites instead of people of color including Native American people, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians and also anyone else not considered white enough thrown in the less desirable basket.

One final myth remains for being discussed which now threatens the actual existence of the democracy, that relating to Trumpism. We will address this inside next post.

This is the second in the series of posts checking out the classical purpose of myth throughout prehistoric and historic times as well as current perversion in America. This post considers a number of ways in which myth is expressed.

In the initial post with this series, I described myth to be a folklore genre composed of narratives that play an essential role in society. Myth is usually a way of expressing the biggest thing to individuals, groups, tribes and cultures throughout history. A whole book could possibly be written about these traditions. In this post, I will focus on a few Western traditions that you and I could possibly be more familiar.

Tradition within the Jewish belief is Midrash, writings relevant to the interpretation of biblical texts. This includes the purpose of the words, precisely what is behind the link and what’s beyond it. A body of Midrash is compiled by Jewish biblical scholars in the past, an essential part of which were compiled from the early centuries A.D.

Christianity possesses its own traditions and explanations on the Hebrew scripture, known as the Old Testament and also the more specifically Christian bible the New Testament. The Church Fathers was comprised of writers also residing in early centuries AD. Their work dedicated to explanation and interpretation of the purpose of the Christian bible still prominently revered and called in scholarly discussion on the bible by Christians. The main fathers were Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine and Gregory the Great.

Although Muslim belief and tradition is really a recent newcomer in Western society, additionally, it plays a tremendous role inside thinking and belief of some Americans. According to Muslim belief, the goal of life is to reside in complete submission to Allah whom Muslims believe to get the same God as those of Jewish and Christian traditions. People are liberated to follow or otherwise not to follow Allah’s will for the kids but there eternal consequences to make the wrong choice. They believe that Allah’s will is revealed inside Koran provided by Allah to Muhammad, the Torah presented to Moses, The Gospel of Jesus, the psalms to David, and scrolls to Abraham.

That leaves atheists. They do not have any belief in divinely revealed truth. Perhaps the best characterization with the atheistic approach is incorporated into an incident involving George Bernard Shaw. Someone once asked him what could happen if when he dies he discover there is often a God. His reply was “If there is really a God we’ll sit down and discuss it man to man.”

Among the psychological thinkers with the last two centuries, Alfred Adler wrote around the concept of “guiding fiction.” He saw this to be a personal principle which people depend upon to guide their comprehension of life and rehearse to form the foundation of how they act. It does not appear a large number of people are necessarily aware with the principles they live by. Yet most of them act consistently as though in line with a collection of beliefs. This group of beliefs can often be more evident to others rather than the individual. Ideally the guiding fiction is realistic and adaptive based on Adler. In other words these are in tune together with the true nature of these culture and necessary to them in living a meaningful life.

Nicholas Shumway has extended the concept of guiding fictions to nations where their peoples look to understand what they’re about and what their dreams are as nations. The United States has among its guiding fictions “the American dream, the melting pot, and government in the people, with the people, for that people.”

These fictions represent the perfect but we don’t always meet it. Yet we still see these fictions as our goals therefore we would like to think we are now living in accordance with these. We have often failed over the history of our nation. At the time our nation was founded, “We the People” in reality meant white men in most cases to the exclusion on the native people living during the entire continent, people of several color and traditions and marginalization of ladies. More recently we have now marginalized those with other than traditional sexual orientation and identity although we now have made progress with this area. We have also marginalized the indegent to some extent, sometimes blaming them with regards to predicament and leaving these to their own devices.

Despite this we’ve a new method of looking at 1 another on the horizon as well as the prospect of utilizing the needs with the earth into mind as we proceed. We may also move closer to your original guiding fiction or myth for that country and maybe for the world. In the next post, we’ll look some historical distortions of myth along with the harm they’ve got done.

This is the first in a very series of posts checking distortion in the classical concise explaination myth throughout prehistoric and historic times. We will commence with the original purpose of myth.

Wikipedia defines myth as “a folklore genre made up of narratives that play an essential role in society, including foundational tales as origin myths.” Examples of such myths include bible stories in the Jewish and Christian faith and also stories from various religious and cultural traditions all over the world. People over the millennia have clung about bat roosting stories to clarify where we originated in, why we’re also here and where we’re also headed.

Although we were looking at meant as teaching stories with lessons in case you listened to them and browse them, many adherents have got these stories literally and so are offended by efforts to portray them as only stories.

In my reading about myth, I have found Joseph Campbell one of the most articulate writer within this topic. His thinking is the most suitable revealed in a very book, The Power of Myth, composed of a combination of interviews with Campbell by Bill Moyers. It almost reads such as a meditation on being human.

Myths for example we have considered until now are meant to offer a framework for considering humanity, our relationship using the universe, the divine and what human our life is about. They were intended to serve as a guide for human living. The original myths were invented and produced by small bands of wandering people and differed widely from a single group to an alternative although they often had similar themes. As civilization developed myths became more widely shared by larger groups of people.

All of such myths try to create a larger framework for the specification of being human at night basics to be born, living and dying. As Campbell puts it, myths exist “to harmonize our way of life with reality in the search for truth, meaning and significance.” At times during human history, competing myths took over as the source of conflict between peoples clinging to their own personal myths which triggered persecution, crusades and also wars inside the name on the myths people followed. These are deviations from the initial purpose of myth. We will consider some of the deviations inside next post.

The next posts would include discussion of myths that contain guided people in understanding from the world, myths which may have been destructive, The myth of Trumpism, and also the future when controling Trumpism.