Francis Berger

Can Beauty Save the World?

18/8/2019

I have been thinking a great deal about Dostoevsky's The Idiot, more specifically, Prince Myskin's uplifting but ultimately enigmatic claim that "beauty can save the world." This quote popped into my mind after I began thinking about how utterly necessary Beauty - as one of the transcendentals, with a capital 'B' - is for us to appreciate, comprehend, and aspire toward the Divine in this mortal world.

In another of his novels, Demons (also translated as Devils or The Possessed), Dostoevsky has a character proclaim that beauty is the one thing humans could not live without. Of course, Dostoevsky would include God under the banner of Beauty, which implies that Beauty is an impossibility without God. This draws forth an intriguing connection - the connection between the Divine and Beauty. It also suggests that the recognition and celebration of Beauty in this world can, to some extent, help to save it.

Now, I do not believe this can applied to the world in general (at least not yet), but I do believe that we can save the world through Beauty at the individual level - that we can redeem the world from evil in our own individual lives through Beauty. I plan to explore this idea in more detail in future posts. In the meantime, I have included an excerpt from Alexander Solzhenitsyn's Nobel Lecture in which he addresses the enigma and latent possibilities in Dostoevsky's conviction that 'beauty can save the world."

One day Dostoevsky threw out the enigmatic remark: “Beauty will save the world”. What sort of a statement is that? For a long time I considered it mere words. How could that be possible? When in bloodthirsty history did beauty ever save anyone from anything? Ennobled, uplifted, yes – but whom has it saved?

There is, however, a certain peculiarity in the essence of beauty, a peculiarity in the status of art: namely, the convincingness of a true work of art is completely irrefutable and it forces even an opposing heart to surrender. It is possible to compose an outwardly smooth and elegant political speech, a headstrong article, a social program, or a philosophical system on the basis of both a mistake and a lie. What is hidden, what distorted, will not immediately become obvious.

Then a contradictory speech, article, program, a differently constructed philosophy rallies in opposition – and all just as elegant and smooth, and once again it works. Which is why such things are both trusted and mistrusted.

In vain to reiterate what does not reach the heart.

But a work of art bears within itself its own verification: conceptions which are devised or stretched do not stand being portrayed in images, they all come crashing down, appear sickly and pale, convince no one. But those works of art which have scooped up the truth and presented it to us as a living force – they take hold of us, compel us, and nobody ever, not even in ages to come, will appear to refute them.

So perhaps that ancient trinity of Truth, Goodness and Beauty is not simply an empty, faded formula as we thought in the days of our self-confident, materialistic youth? If the tops of these three trees converge, as the scholars maintained, but the too blatant, too direct stems of Truth and Goodness are crushed, cut down, not allowed through – then perhaps the fantastic, unpredictable, unexpected stems of Beauty will push through and soar TO THAT VERY SAME PLACE, and in so doing will fulfil the work of all three?

In that case Dostoevsky’s remark, “Beauty will save the world”, was not a careless phrase but a prophecy? After all HE was granted to see much, a man of fantastic illumination.
And in that case art, literature might really be able to help the world today?

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High School is a Deliberate Waste of Time

17/8/2019

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When I was a high school student, I found myself constantly questioning the usefulness of high school. I had looked forward to secondary school while I was still in primary school, but my enthusiasm for high school and all it encompassed quickly faded in grade nine and disappeared altogether by the time I began grade ten. My experience of secondary school education can be summed up in one simple sentence – it was a monumental waste of time. Oddly enough, the decade I later spent working as a high school teacher only confirmed my earlier and rather bleak observation. Despite some benefits, the four years students spend in high school is generally, and quite deliberately, a waste of time.

Now, before I venture any further into this topic, allow me to stress that the opinions I shall express here are not based on pedagogical or psychological research of any kind. Nor are they supported or inspired by any education or learning theory. In addition, my convictions do not take sociological theories or frameworks into mind. I must add that I do not hold most theories and research in high regard. My assertion that high school is a tremendous waste of time is based almost exclusively on my experiences as a student and as a teacher and an intuitive sense that secondary education is a broken paradigm, one in need of a long overdue transformation, but that is currently being utilized for the overall purpose of time-wasting during an individual's formative years.

My first problem with secondary education is its curriculum. Though it may have served a useful societal function in the past, secondary school is little more than an unnecessary extension of primary school, and as such delivers limited returns on investment. With the exception of a few specialized science subjects and more advanced concepts in mathematics, high school students continue learning the same sorts of things they spend eight years of their lives learning in primary school. It’s no wonder most students check out altogether sometime in grade ten.

Much of what is taught in high schools could easily be shifted down to the primary school level, especially in years seven and eight, and yes, this includes more advanced skills such as algebra and calculus. We spend too much time babying kids in primary school, and this babying continues in high school where students are often fed challenging concepts and subjects too late. Though I am sure most would disagree, I believe primary school students are capable of learning a great deal more than what the primary curriculum currently offers.

Nearly all high school curricula also lean heavily toward indoctrination. Rather than teaching students solid, tangible skills, most high school subjects concentrate on discovering how students “feel” about things. Hence, a high school English class reading Romeo and Juliet will spend more time discussing how students feel about patriarchal oppression or the lack of women’s rights or diversity in Romeo and Juliet’s Verona than it will analyzing Shakespeare’s ingenious use of language.

Whether it is based in humanism or pragmatism or post-colonial anti-racism-pro-diversity-it’s a small-world-after-all–ism, secondary education is far more focused on getting students to think and feel “correctly” about things than it is about getting students to think. Though not many observers or critics make the explicit connection, the safe-space/snowflake culture dominating most university campuses in the West today bleeds into contemporary secondary school curriculums.

Another problem with high school curricula is high and low-achieving students – high achieving students often stagnant and become bored, while low achieving students become apathetic. Some high schools attempt to address this issue by including AP and other advanced courses for the higher achievers and technical and vocational training for the non-academically inclined students. I believe this is a good strategy overall, but then again the inclusion of AP courses and vocational training high school undermines the validity of high school to a certain extent. For example, what if high-achieving students were offered bona fide university courses instead of Advanced Placement courses? Conversely, what it non-academically inclined students were placed in long-term apprenticeship programs instead of being mandated to attend high school to read Audre Lorde poems?

One way to achieve this would be to extend primary school to include grade nine and scrap grades ten, eleven, and twelve altogether. If this were done, all students would stay in school until grade nine, or until they were roughly fourteen years old. After that, academically-inclined and gifted students would have the opportunity to enroll in university while those with more practical interests could pursue technical, vocational, or on the job training to learn skills and begin careers.

This kind of system would allow students to finish a BA or have useful job skills by the time they were seventeen/eighteen. This would instill a sense of responsibility in students and present them with meaningful challenges at a time in life when most hunger for meaningful challenges. It could also eliminate much of the apathy, indifference, and passivity high school education tends to breed by shortening or eliminating the perpetual state of adolescence, which extends well into adulthood for most people today. It would also allow students to get an earlier jump on life, by getting married at a younger age, entering work at a younger age, and having children at a younger . . . well, we certainly cannot have any of that can we?

Of course, the main problem with the kind of criticism I am indulging in here is the assumption from which one starts. My notion that high school is tremendous waste of time does not imply that I believe the rest of our education system is admirable or wonderful; nor am I suggesting that eliminating or reorganizing secondary education alone will lead to anything net-positive in the West. The West is corrupt to the core, and Western education plays a massive role in this terminal corruption. Reforming education would require a complete dismantling of the system, not just the elimination or restructuring of one of its components.

Regardless, in my opinion the chief purpose of secondary education in our contemporary system appears to be time-wasting and extending adolescence into perpetuity, and there is no evidence that this approach to secondary education will change in the future, especially when our contemporary obsession with "lifelong learning" is added into the mix.

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Is Personal Branding a Harmful Practice?

16/8/2019

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Many people advised me to build, launch, and maintain a personal brand after I completed and self-published my novel back in 2012. Though I had some inkling of what the term personal branding meant, I did not know what to make of the whole concept. Residing firmly in the realm of the old-fashioned, my original marketing plan was to emphasize my book rather than myself. After all, the book was the product I wished to sell, not myself.

Yet when I explained this approach to others, especially those who were hip to all the latest marketing trends, my explanations were often met with rolling eyes and deep sighs. The product, I was informed, is of secondary importance. What counts today is the producer. The creator is more important than the creation; therefore, marketing should be skewed toward building and maintaining a “package” that defines and gives an impression of the creator. “What you have to do above all else,” one individual told me, “is create a ‘Francis Berger feeling and experience.’ When people hear your name, they will associate your name with certain emotions and thoughts. This in turn will carry over into your products, which consumers will buy solely based on your personal brand rather than for any merit of the products themselves.”

Though I understood how personal branding could and does work, I more or less rejected the endeavor. I just could not get into the whole idea of manufacturing a ‘Francis Berger feeling and experience’, nor did I have any solid notion of what the Francis Berger feeling and experience could be. In my mind, personal branding was just a fancy (and misleading) substitute for good, old-fashioned reputation, with one distinct difference: Reputations are also built upon what others think and feel about us, but these opinions are formed directly as a result of our actions, our character, and our integrity. Reputations may not always be accurate, but they tend to originate from a place of authenticity, and they allow for interpretation. Personal branding, on the other hand, is a far more synthetic process. We are essentially telling the world what we want it to feel and think about us in lieu of our actions, character, and integrity. Personal branding seeks to persuade and manipulate through presentation, packaging, and positioning. A personal brand is a show onto itself, and as such is often less authentic than reputation.

Though I understand it may lead to success in the marketplace, personal branding, as a concept, does not appeal to me, and I have avoided presenting myself as a brand on this blog and elsewhere (at least I hope I have). Nevertheless, personal branding is extremely popular. Unfortunately, it also seems to have become a prerequisite for success in most fields and endeavors, especially since the advent of social media, which is saturated with personal branding of all kinds. Yes, this is what the world has become – a vast marketplace in which selling oneself takes precedence over any service or product one may wish to sell.

Personal branding does not appeal to me because it renders subjects into objects. In many ways, it is a reversal of the trick corporations and organizations play when they, as objects, try to pass themselves off as subjects. Personal branding does the opposite. It takes a subject – a human person – and purposefully transforms this subject into an object. In this regard, personal branding is an objectifying force. It transforms people into things. Relationships with personal brands of people are not the same as relationships with the people themselves. The latter is based on a subject-subject dynamic, while the former becomes a subject-object relationship. Relationships formed from contact with personal brands are impersonal and unfree because personal brands lack an authentic existential center. A personal brand is a commodity – something to be hyped, bought, and sold.

In addition, a personal brand is, in essence, a false self. True spiritual development and learning entails attempts to uncover and become aligned with the Real Self in order to discover one’s purpose, realize one’s destiny, and establish a dynamic relationship with God. Personal branding is a purely materialistic concept and as such acts to draw people further away from their Real Selves. Rather than help us become more attuned to who we really are, constructing personal brands likely only build illusions of who we really ARE NOT. Personal brands are basically persuasive fantasies – they are manufactured, inauthentic representations of who we wish we were or who we feel we have to be to win acceptance in the marketplace of impressions and ideas. It does not take much thought to realize that personal branding has the potential to be spiritual harmful. In light of this, I suggest those who embark on any personal branding quest be particularly wary of the choices they make.

Ultimately, I believe it is probably best to forgo personal branding altogether and merely go into the world as person. As far as I know, Jesus paid no heed to notions of personal branding, so why should you?

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Voltaire Missed the Big Point In His Criticism of Leibnizian Optimism

15/8/2019

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At its most basic level, Voltaire's Candide is an open assault against Leibniz's philosophical optimism encapsulated in the phrase "this is the best of all possible worlds." Though Voltaire's satirical rejection of the notion that all is for the best draws attention to some of the dangers inherent in an optimistic philosophy, I cannot help but believe Voltaire's missed the big point Leibniz had made when he declared the world to be "the best of all possible worlds."

If we believe the world to be divinely created by a loving parent (or parents), and if we believe we are souls that, with the help of God, chose to incarnate into the world for the purpose of spiritual development and learning, then Leibniz's "best of all possible worlds" declaration begins to sound less and less outlandish. We chose to come into the world at a specific time as incarnated individuals, under unique circumstances, and with the potential of unique experiences tailored specifically for us and our spiritual development, experiences that include suffering and evil.

Though Voltaire saw no redeeming qualities in the evil and suffering his characters encountered in the novella, evil and suffering can, in fact, have redeeming qualities for us as individuals if we view these negatives through the lens of our spiritual development. Of course, we cannot always consciously know what these redeeming qualities are, nor should become Panglosses and make attempts to find the good behind every cause in this world because there may not actually be any residual good that comes from a specific episode of suffering or evil in this world. The 'good' an episode of evil and suffering contains may reside entirely outside of our world.

Voltaire does not consider these possibilities at all in Candide, which is why his criticism of Leibnizian optimism, though overwhelmingly convincing and entertaining at the surface level, becomes increasingly strained when deeper metaphysical considerations are included in the mix.

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Facetiousness is Not Wit, Nor Is It a Virtue

14/8/2019

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Most people define wit as the natural aptitude for employing words and ideas in a quick and inventive manner for humorous effect. Though accurate, this is only a partial definition of wit because it omits the nature of the humor created, which is crucial to understanding the difference between wit and facetiousness, a distinction that has all but disappeared in our contemporary world.

Aristotle considered wit a virtue, but took great pains delineating the boundaries of wit, which he separated from what he termed buffoonery and boorishness. In his Nichomachean Ethics, Aristotle noted wit arises from a state of relaxation and leisure – which he considered necessary elements of life – and that its chief aim was to provide tasteful amusement. Adhering to his overall philosophy of remaining within the golden mean, Aristotle defined the ideal form of wit as that which avoids vulgar buffoonery (carrying humor to excess and striving at humor at all costs) and boorishness (the inability to create or accept humor). In Aristotle’s mind, true wit was a matter of good-breeding, self-control, and taste.

My notion of wit aligns with Aristotle’s idea for the most part. For me, true wit is humor that brings joy. It is light and sweet; it reveals, exposes, or expands a simple truth, thereby expanding our understanding of the world and ourselves. It is a clever play on words, but more than that, it is a clever play on words that makes us pause with delight and say, “Hey, I never thought of that before” or “I never looked at it that way before.” Also, in the most ideal sense, true wit rests upon solid metaphysical assumptions about Reality and Creation, assumptions that instantly and intuitively mark the boundaries of what Aristotle defined as the limits of taste and tact. In my opinion, the best kind of wit draws its inspiration from love, more specifically Christian love.

Having written the above, I believe Aristotle’s concept of the employing the golden mean to wit – of being tactful and ready-witted – has been rendered practically impossible in our contemporary world, and if it has not been rendered impossible, being tactful and ready witted today means something altogether different from what Aristotle intended. Most of this stems from the contemporary West’s flawed, dying, or non-existent metaphysical assumptions, though much could also be attributed to what is current notions of being “well-bred”, to use Aristotle’s phrase. Encountering true wit – wit that exudes intelligence, shrewdness, insight, and understanding, wit that brings delight and joy, wit based in love and faith –is increasingly rare today. What we tend to encounter instead are the extremes Aristotle mentions – buffoonery and boorishness. Today, the former is passed as off as wit, while the latter functions to exclude true wit from the public sphere altogether.

Contemporary vulgar buffoonery resides primarily in facetiousness, which is erroneously equated with wittiness. In my mind the key difference between wittiness and facetiousness is motivation. One displays wit when one treats a serious issue in a deliberately appropriate way through humor or clever remark. Facetiousness, on the other hand, treats serious issues in a deliberately inappropriate way through humor and clever remarks. In other words, a witty person can be genuinely funny or insightful about a serious topic while a facetious person can only be inappropriately funny and, usually, rather witless about a serious topic.

In my opinion, the chief cause of this may be rooted in metaphysics. Facetiousness has effectively replaced wit in the West because the West has turned its back on meaning, logic, sense, reason, and Reality and has instead embraced illogic, nonsense, un-reason, and Absurdity (or Virtuality). Such conditions lead to relativism and meaninglessness, both of which challenge the seriousness of any issue. Ultimately, this state of mind demands serious issues be treated inappropriately. Facetiousness is the hallmark of those for whom life is nothing more than a massive cosmic joke. Very little can be taken seriously when this perspective is adopted, and everything must, by default, be approached with flippancy and frivolity. Wit is reduced to jeers and sneers rarely rising above hostile sarcasm, vitriolic irony, or open contempt at the ridiculousness of veritably serious issues. In the end, this is all supported by a solid foundation of scorn and derision, perhaps even hatred.

Contemporary boorishness tends to appreciate and encourage vulgar buffoonery, but it mostly challenges and restricts real wit, which is regarded as offensive and in bad taste. The simple truths real wit reveals and expands are anathema to the boorish. Unlike buffoons, boors are incapable of making jokes, and even more incapable of taking them. Contemporary boors rarely experience relaxation or leisure. They are forever tense and wound-up. In keeping with the inversion inherent in the West, contemporary boors support attacks against real serious issues, but will not tolerate any jests against their own inverted “serious” issues. Within this framework, meaning, logic, and reason are open targets, while absurdity, nonsense, and stupidity are heavily protected.

To sum up, much of what accounts for wit today is really nothing more than facetiousness. The best kind of wit displays intelligence, shrewdness, insight and understanding all emanating from an honest recognition of Reality. True wit provides joy and delight, but more than that it reveals and expands truth in a playful and amusing way and helps increase our understanding of the world and ourselves. Conversely, facetiousness strives to ridicule and mock truth. Facetiousness also works to support lies. Facetious people refuse to treat serious issues appropriately because they cannot accept the truths serious issues contain. At its core, facetiousness is a thin veil for nihilism – the outright rejection of all moral and religious principles and the belief that life is essentially meaningless.

Aristotle’s advice to be tactful and maintain the golden mean in matters of wit are essentially meaningless within the context of our contemporary milieu because most attempts to do so would immediately be regarded as offensive or in bad taste. In light of this, Aristotle’s notions about the golden mean must be discarded and replaced instead wit based on proper metaphysical assumptions. Though this will be considered untactful and ill-bred by most contemporary people, to do otherwise would be to render oneself a buffoon or a boor.

It goes without saying that true wit will be mocked, ridiculed, and misunderstood if employed in the wrong circles. Nevertheless, I believe true wit is needed in life. It serves a valuable purpose. Thus, facetiousness should be avoided and the sharing of true wit must be restricted to certain individuals and groups of people, more specifically, those whose metaphysical assumptions align with Reality. To do otherwise is pointless today – not only would it dispel any sense of leisure and amusement, but the act would be akin to casting pearls before swine.

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The Obligatory Cat Post

11/8/2019

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Our seven-month-old cat, Rebecca, posing with the fifth mouse she has nabbed in the past month.

Though I have resisted the temptation for years, I am finally caving in to the old internet cliché about cat videos and photos by posting a photo of the family cat. My son had been pestering me about getting a pet over the past two or three years. At first he wanted a dog, but I was adamantly against the idea knowing the amount of attention and care a dog requires. When canines were off the table, my boy began badgering me about getting a feline.

We live in a small village in the countryside and mice are everywhere. Last summer I noticed dozens of holes in my yard, and I also caught occasional glimpses of mice scurrying about near and inside the unused barn, so when my wife announced her coworker had kittens to give away, I finally gave into my son's pleas for a pet - with the condition that the cat we brought home had to catch mice - otherwise . . .

My boy picked the little black kitten out the litter himself and we brought it home in April. Once the kitten was in the house, I told my kid to find a name for it. I expected him to rattle off something like Fluffy or Whiskers, but after a few minutes of contemplation my boy named the kitten Rebecca. Yes, Rebecca. He quickly added that we could refer to the kitten by the name's abbreviated form, Becky. This made me laugh because the words "be" (pronounced "beh") and ki (pronounced "key") mean "in" and "out" respectively in Hungarian. Thus, my son's choice of the name Becky reminded me of an old joke from childhood - the one about a poor, confused dog named "Come here - Go away."

In any case, Becky quickly made herself at home and to my absolute delight, has proven herself to be an exceptional hunter. She began hunting mice about a month ago and has managed to bag five already. Not bad for a seven-month-old cat. The photo above shows her proudly posing with her fifth mouse (and yes I do feel a little sorry for the poor mouse, but pests are pests). I imagine Becky's already impressive hunting skills will only improve with time, which increases the chances of having a mousehole free yard next summer. When all is said and done, I am happy I capitulated to my son's demands for a pet, not just because Becky has proven herself useful around the house, but also because she is somewhat of a character and adds considerable fun and happiness to our days.

There . . . obligatory cat post complete.

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A Non-Post About Nope Francis, And Why Writing Topical Rants Against Evil Comes So Easily

10/8/2019

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I had planned to write a lengthy post criticizing Pope Francis this morning. My intent was to demonstrate how this No Hope Pope is completely aligned with the aims and goals of the Globalist Agenda (anti-nationalism and equating nationalists and nativists with Hitler, unequivocal support for the EU and its values, support of open door mass migration policies, climate change alarmism, lauding cute, little Greta Thornberg and Earth worship, etc.), but I have decided against writing the post, based partly on this recent post at Bruce Charlton's Notions.

Dr. Charlton concludes his excellent post by questioning the usefulness of arguing against the enemy's abstractions:

"And then suddenly death looms, and we realise that have wasted our lives discussing The Enemy's agenda...
Just exactly as They wanted us to..."

This is an important insight, one I more or less stumbled upon myself a few months back when I declared I would no longer waste my time writing what I termed "outage du jour" rants. Since then, I have made a concerted effort to avoid writing topical rants; nevertheless, I believe I have written some posts over the past few months that possess all the qualities that define a classic "outrage du jour" post. Even worse, the temptation to consistently write topical rants still lingers despite my conscious decision to avoid writing them (as was the case this morning with my planned post about Pope Francis). This constant temptation reveals something crucial about the nature of topical abstractions. All of this made me pause and reflect about topical abstractions and the purpose they serve.

To begin with, I believe Dr. Charlton's observation about demons trapping people in discussing topical abstractions is accurate and important. Topical stories promulgated by the media and through other sources are engineered to stir up a frenzy and provoke a reaction. These abstractions are purposively manipulative and serve many goals, but the overarching objective is to get people to engage with the topic at some level, in a process Charlton describes as "analysing, redefining, reframing . . ." In other words, once the topical abstraction triggers engagement, the trap springs and you become ensnared. It does not matter if you support, oppose, or are unbiased toward the claims within the abstraction. The main thing is that you engage. From that moment on, you have taken your eye from the ball and end up expending your precious energy discussing the Enemy's Agenda rather than focusing on more important and meaningful matters.

Another way of gauging the manipulative essence of these topical abstraction traps is the relative ease with which one slips into arguing for or against, redefining, reformulating, and reframing. One of the main reasons I wrote "outage du jour" posts in the past on this blog was the little effort it took to write them. It did not take a great deal of imagination, or thinking to object to or rail against whatever evil nonsense the global corporate media had dumped upon the world on any given day. My engagements with topical abstractions came so easily and swiftly, they seemed to write themselves.

This, in my opinion, reveals something very significant about the manipulative aspects of topical abstractions. Whenever I wrote outage posts, I could not help but feel that I had surrendered a part of myself, given up a small slice of my freedom, and conceded a portion of my thinking all in exchange for a few posts that were not difficult to write. I believe the same holds true for merely reading topical abstractions on a consistent basis - you unwittingly become a part of the Enemy's orchestra and demonic forces begin to play you like a musical instrument.

Of course, we cannot be oblivious to Evil nor can we ignore its abuses or be blind to its strategies, but if we do nothing but engage with the topical abstractions Evil launches into the world for the purpose of ensnaring and trapping our minds, we essentially do nothing more than play into its hands.

Which is why my planned post on Nope Francis today has become a non-post. This planned post of mine would have accomplished little more than give undeserved attention to the Global Agenda itself. I would have made myself a willing partner in the Global Agenda, and a willing partner is the last thing I wish to be (or wish you to be). I also doubt my post would have provided anything positive or meaningful for those who seek Salvation or deeper spiritual understanding.

Besides, you don't need me to convince you that No Hope Francis is completely aligned with the Globalist Agenda - it's all right there in the open, in plain sight for those who have eyes to see.

But not many people have eyes that see these days, or even desire to have eyes that see, which is a rather bleak and depressing problem in of itself. Regardless, it is highly unlikely that constant rants against evil do much good for those who do seek Reality - this foremost includes those who write or spew such rants on a consistent basis.

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Corporations and Institutions Are Objects, Not Subjects

8/8/2019

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Christianity is about relationships between subjects. You are a subject; God is a subject. The relationship between you and God is a relationship between two subjects. In other words, it is a personal relationship. Christianity is focused on Beings, not Things. Christianity seeks to build relationships between Beings, not between Beings and Things, and certainly not between Things and Things.

Corporations and institutions are objects uninterested in subjects. Corporations and institutions pretend to be interested in subjects by declaring themselves to be subjects, but in reality they are merely objects masquerading as subjects.

Corporations and institutions thrive only in the object world. They are Things and are only interested in Things. They refuse to acknowledge subjects and seek to change subjects into objects, that is Beings into Things. Corporations and institutions seek to objectify. Corporations and institutions strive to weaken the personal and replace it with the impersonal.

The end goal of all corporations and institutions is to destroy relationships between Beings and replace them with ones between Things. Because relationships between Things lack all semblance of the personal, they are relationships in name only, but these are the only kinds corporations and institutions wish to see or are willing to nurture.

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The Triumph of the Genius of Destruction

7/8/2019

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TheTriumph of the Genius of Destruction - Mihály Zichy - 1878

Mihály Zichy (1827 - 1906) was a Hungarian painter and graphic artist who was a representative of the Hungarian Romantic movement. His Triumph of the Genius of Destruction was banned from the Paris Exhibition due to its controversial subject matter and antimilitarist message.

Zichy was a strange character - a perpetual vagabond, he lived in Hungary, France, Austria, Georgia, and Russia and a few other countries during his lifetime. He strikes me as a quintessential nineteenth-century Romantic with all the positive and negative connotations of nineteenth-century Romanticism intact. For example, he strikes me as having been a libertine, which is reflected in a series of erotic (more like pornographic) illustrations he completed some time in the 1880s, but also as someone obsessed by religious themes. Zichy's paintings never attained "greatness" status, but his illustrations continue to live on, most notably in Imre Madach's epic "The Tragedy of Man." To be honest, I don't know what to make of Zichy, either as an artist or as a person.

Take his Triumph of the Genius of Destruction for example. On the one hand, I am drawn to his critical depiction of the bloodletting that stained the nineteenth century. On the other hand, I am wary of his pacifist message, especially from my twenty-first century perspective. The painting contains many precise historical details and symbols marking the various conflicts of the 1800s. The far left side of the painting features the backlit, silhouetted figure of Christ who stands in a portal, arms outstretched in a pleading gesture. No figure within the painting seems aware of His presence, especially the two demons who feature prominently in the center of the composition.

I would not say I like Zichy's painting, but I do find it interesting. It attracts me and repulses me at the same time. Perhaps this is because I sense a touch of the demonic within the painting. I am not referring to the two demon figures when I say this, but rather to the colors Zichy chose and the images he decided to depict. Zichy himself appears to have been touched by the demonic in some sense, and this bleeds through in this particular painting. I can only imagine what Zichy would have painted if he had lived long enough to witness the mass carnage of the twentieth century.

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Corporations as Embodiments of Evil - A Few Stray Thoughts

6/8/2019

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Many people are still under the illusion that Western democracies are of the people by the people for the people. The reality is closer to this – Western democracies are of the corporations by the corporations for the corporations. A simple examination of what Western governments actually do and the interests they actually serve makes this readily apparent. Hence, Western democracy is essentially corporatocracy – that is, corporations, not people, dominate, control, and govern society.

Of course, this is hardly a new or profound insight, but many fail to grasp the fundamental goal of a world dominated by corporations. Many believe corporations exist purely to maximize profit and value for their shareholders, which helps explain most of the actions corporations take – expanding market share, offshoring labor, minimizing expenses, influencing regulations, etc., but these activities are secondary to a corporation’s main objective, which is to incorporate. What corporations seek to do above all else is to absorb, assimilate, and integrate everything within society into an indistinguishable whole under the guise of diversity, competition, and particularization. This indistinguishable whole can be called The System, and the primary goal of The System is to create a totalitarian one-world government. Corporations expand and empower The System by acting as unifying and assimilating forces. Hence, corporations are of The System, by the System, for the System.

Corporations are legal entities that are separate and distinct from their owners. Corporations enjoy the same rights, responsibilities, and privileges individuals supposedly do in Western societies – they can enter into contracts, lend and borrow money, take legal action and have legal action taken against them, own assets, assume liabilities, and file taxes. Corporations are literally considered physical manifestations – that is, as tangible and visible entities representing an idea or quality.

As physical manifestations, corporations are bodies (from the Latin, corpus). They are incarnated beings (from the Latin, carne meaning flesh). But what exactly has been given a body? At the metaphysical level, they can easily be confused with human beings, save for a few distinct differences. Human beings are incarnations of the Divine; we are the spirit made flesh. Corporations are incarnations of the Mundane; they are the temporal made flesh.

This brings forth another distinct difference – human beings have a “body” presence in the world – we possess actual flesh. A corporation’s “body” presence is purely legalistic; it possesses no real flesh, no actual body. Perhaps one way to think about corporations is this – they are the embodiment of the Luceferic within the Ahrimanic. The fuel driving corporate ambitions (and the ambitions of The System corporations serve) is white hot, frenzied, and passionate in nature, but the means of achieving these ambitions are cold, crushing, and technocratic.

Corporations are also lopsided mockeries of Divine Creation. Everything within Divine Creation possesses a spiritual element, but corporations lack this attribute. They are purely material beings. Spiritless. Soul-less. The soullessness of corporations helps explain why they are the System’s weapon of choice in its war against Divine Creation. Entities possessing souls (corporate owners and employees) can hide behind the façade of a soulless entity and manipulate the soulless entity into completing the most soulless of tasks and goals. This helps diminish notions of wrongdoing and also aids in the alleviation of personal responsibility.

Corporations are purely “abstract” material entities driven by purely material motivations. They exist in the physical and exist to serve the physical. They lack a metaphysical dimension, and as such are unconcerned with metaphysical realities or assumptions. Corporations do not care about eternal life in the spiritual sense – they seek eternal life in this world, and they are more than willing to sacrifice or assimilate themselves into The System in order to make that happen. The soullessness of corporations make them the perfect vehicle for the implementation of evil, which is what most corporations today are – this despite the good they might be doing in the world, actual or perceived.

Note added: Perhaps it is wrong to claim corporations lack metaphysical qualities or dimensions because The System corporations serve is fundamentally focused on the metaphysical - opposing and subverting Goodness, Beauty, and Truth. The System is interested in the Damnation Game and uses corporations to achieve its aims. However, I am uncertain how 'aware' individual corporations are of the System's explicit aim. To some extent, I assume they must be, but I doubt this in interpreted in an explicitly metaphysical sense, but rather somewhat obscured behind the veil of "doing business." Then again, it is conceivable that the directors of any given corporation are, in fact, completely 'in' on the game as it were.

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The Best Fiction I Have Read This Year

5/8/2019

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As is probably the case with everyone, I occasionally receive emails from unknown scammers who try to convince me that there is a veritable windfall to be had, usually in the form of some unclaimed bank deposit account. All I need to do is initiate a process to "free" up the money so that I may rightfully claim it as my own. Normally, I flag these emails and then just delete them, but the one I received in my junk folder today was so elaborate and over-the-top, I simply had to share it here (cömplete with all errors intact). It truly is a wonderful piece of (deceptive) fiction - a veritable masterpiece within the scope of its genre.

Dear Friend,

I am sorry to contact you unannounced through this medium. I am Mr. Ala'a Eraiqat , C.E.O. at Commercial Bank of Abu Dhabi here in UAE. I write you this proposal in good faith hoping that I will rely on you. In january 16th 2012, one Mr frank Willaims who has your country in his file as his place of origin, made a fixed deposit for 36 calendar months, valued at $18,400,000.00 with my bank. I was his account officer before I rose to the position of the Auditor General. The maturity date for this deposit contract was 16th of january 2015.

Sadly, while on a business trip in 2014, Mr frank Williams
was among the death victims of A 6.5-magnitude earthquake that hit Zhaotong in China’s western Yunnan province on August 3, The third of four quakes to rock that province at that year, it killed more than 600 people and displaced about 230,000. Nearly 155,000 homes and 268 schools, plus roads and other infrastructure, were damaged/destroyed.

Since the last quarter of January 2015 until today, the management of my bank have been finding a means to reach him so as to ascertain if he will want to roll over the Deposit or have the contract sum withdrawn. Since 16 January 2017 that I learnt of his death I have tried to think up a procedure to preserve this fund and use the proceed for charity .

Some directors in my Bank have been trying to find out from me the information about this account and the owner, but I have kept it closed because I know that if they become aware that Mr frank Williams now late they will corner the funds for themselves/their selfish use. Therefore, I am seeking your cooperation to present you as the one to benefit from his fund at his death since you are from the-same country with the Late Frank Williams so that my bank head quarters will release the funds to you as the rightful beneficiary/next of Kin.
I have done enough inside bank arrangement and will only have to put in your details into the information network in the bank computers and reflect your data as his next of kin.

I am not a greedy person, so I am suggesting we share the fund equal,50%/50% to both parties after the bank release the fund to you, My share will assist me to start a charity organization to help the poor and also own a company of my own which has been my dream.

Let me know your mind on this proposal and please do treat this information as top secret for security reason. At the receipt of your reply of interest, I shall then give you every details concerning the transaction.
Anticipating your response.

Ala'a Eraiqat

Somehow being from the same country as "frank Willaims" entitles me to half of the nearly twenty million in cold hard cash.

Right.

Of course, freeing up the funds always incurs some kind of fee - usually a few thousand dollars. In any case, I have to tip my hat to this scammer - he really has quite the imagination. I especially like the death by earthquake in China detail.

I trust readers of this blog are intelligent and shrewd enough to discern these types of emails for the obvious scams they are, yet some people out there still must fall for this sort of thing. If they didn't, scammers like "Ala'a Eraiqat would not waste their time writing such elaborate and exquisite works of fiction to achieve their petty, evil goals.

If Mr. Ala'a Eraiqat had any integrity or morality at all, he would focus his energy on writing trashy detective pulp fiction instead of squandering his considerable talents on these kinds of scams.

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Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction - Small Part; Big Pain

4/8/2019

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The injury I suffered while running last Thursday, which was initially diagnosed as a pinched nerve or a herniated disc, has been identified as sacroiliac joint dysfunction. Having suffered a few back problems earlier in my life, I was skeptical of the original diagnosis of the injury the second I heard it. I suspected something else was at play, but I had no idea what this something could be. As bad as pain from a herniated disc or pinched nerve can be, it is nothing compared to the sheer agony of an injured sacroiliac joint, let me tell you. In all honesty, I did not even know this part of the body can be injured, let alone how awfully painful it is when it is injured. Well, here's to new experiences.

Simply put, sacroiliac joint pain is no fun. I have spent a little over a week recovering, but my convalescence will be a long one. Fortunately, I can walk and stand without too much discomfort, but I have not been able to sit for longer than a minute or two at a time since last Thursday. Suffice it to say, my inability to sit has dampened my enthusiasm for working on the computer (I am standing before my laptop as I write these words). The pain also interferes with my sleep patterns, which has not done wonders for my creativity or thinking. Nevertheless, I am not wallowing in self-pity and I certainly do not desire anyone else's pity. I am in high spirits and am actively working toward escaping from the grips of this unexpected injury. It's only a matter of time.

One thing I have thought about a great deal is pain. Pain ground you, imprisons you, and forces its perspective upon you. If nothing else, it provides uninvited moments of introspection and contemplation. Needless to say, I have spent a large part of the last week looking inward because I do not believe things simply happen "by chance." I have been poking away at the slight misfortune that has befallen me in an effort to discover its essence and meaning. It has not been easy, but looking inside rarely is.

One obvious realization I have had is that my running days are over. Runs With Rabbits is hanging up his running shoes and exchanging them for a good pair of walking shoes. He will also change his name to Walks With Weasels, or something to that effect.

In the meantime, all I want for Christmas is to be able to sit at a desk again while I write (and sit down at a table and eat a meal like a human being, not standing up, like a horse)! Here's hoping the coming days will bring some progress in that department. And if you happen to be experiencing any mild symptoms associated with sacroiliac joint dysfunction, do yourself a favor and get them checked out as soon as possible to avoid suffering through the intense pain I felt last week and the annoying discomfort I have been experiencing since.

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Hungary Will Be Lost if it Remains in the EU

2/8/2019

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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán possesses a solid understanding of the dangers mass migration poses to his nation and to Europe. He has taken extensive and decisive actions in an effort to protect Hungary against the waves of migrants that have crashed over the continent this decade, actions that have included the construction of a nearly 200 kilometer border fence, which effectively helped choke the seemingly endless flow of people traveling into the EU through Balkans. Orbán is perspicacious and pugnacious politician. He is not afraid of locking horns with the EU on the issue of migration and has been flouting and rejecting Brussels’ pressure for the better part of five years.

Orbán knows Hungary – as a nation and culture – would be utterly overwhelmed and eventually diluted out of existence if it threw open its borders the way some Western European countries have or if it signed up for the various migrant relocation schemes the EU is perpetually cooking up. He understands the dangers of unlimited mass migration and has frequently called out the EU’s actions for what they truly are – strategic evil. Orbán is right about mass migration, but his efforts to spare Hungary from the ravages of “desirable, inevitable, and necessary” migration will come to naught in the mid-to-long term if he keeps Hungary within the EU.

Orbán had hoped the most recent European parliamentary elections would turn the tide in Europe against migration. Though anti-migration parties made some slight gains, the revolution Orbán had hoped for failed to materialize. Nevertheless, Orbán relentlessly continues his attempts to change the EU from within – to make the EU an organization of nation states rather than a unified and totalitarian superstate. As noble as these efforts may seem, especially to those with nationalistic sensibilities, I have come to the conclusion they will effectively achieve nothing in the long term. Despite Orbán’s apparent beliefs to the contrary, the EU is far too corrupted and far too evil to be changed in any meaningful way from within. Hence, the only way Hungary, or any other EU country for the matter, can hope to save itself is by leaving the European Union.

Deep down Orbán knows this, but he is unwilling to consider the option for two reasons. First, leaving the EU would be political suicide for him domestically. Though Hungarians are wary of the EU and everything it stands for, they are surprisingly in favor of remaining within the organization. Second, leaving the EU would cause significant economic hardships for Hungary in the short-term, and it seems no one in Hungary is willing to face that possibility. As a result, Orbán’s current politicking amounts to little more than a massive case of wanting to have your cake and eat it, too.

Now many who admire Orbán might be quick to point out that his anti-immigration policies have worked and will continue to work into the foreseeable future even if Hungary remains firmly within the European Union. I find this assessment of circumstances wildly optimistic to say the least. Hungary’s hastily-erected, patrolled fence along its southern border has been immensely effective in stemming the tide of illegal migration from the Balkans, but it is the only fence Hungary has. There is no fence or border patrol along the western border with Austria. But, why would there be? No migrants wish to travel from the west to the east. Very few migrants that manage to make it into Hungary from Romania, Serbia, or Croatia have any intention of remaining in Hungary. Nearly every single one of them wants to travel farther west to countries like Germany, Sweden, or Holland. Hungary has also rejected every single migrant relocation initiative the EU has tabled. But what if all this were to change?

Here’s a possible scenario. The EU, in cooperation with the UN, is dead set on continuing migration into Europe permanently. Leaders like Orbán may be able to stop undocumented migrants from entering their countries, but how well will they fare against a tide of naturalized migrants all bearing European citizenships and passports? Sound outlandish? I don’t think so. Orbán’s current perceivable success in thwarting the EU’s migration schemes is based mostly on his government’s ability to wield the EU’s laws against the EU itself. Nevertheless, the European Union could easily turn the tables and begin using the same play book. For example, it could take a few hundred thousand migrants, grant them all EU citizenship, and with the provision of adequate housing and funding, it could begin to incentivize an endless stream of new “European” migrant citizens into Hungary. The country could then be overwhelmed within a decade, and there would not be a thing Hungary could do about it as long as it continued to remain within the Union.

This speculation of mine may sound far-fetched, but the events of 2015 appeared far-fetched as well, yet they occurred. If Orbán is serious about saving his country and defending Christianity, he will have no choice but take Hungary out of the EU. His current attempts to “change” the EU are futile. Demons tend to be quite inflexible and do not respond well to requests for change.

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The Sermon on the Mount - Károly Ferenczy

30/7/2019

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The Sermon on the Mount - Károly Ferenczy - 1896

The Sermon on the Mount, a collection of Jesus's supposed moral teachings, appears in only in two gospels, Matthew and Luke. I have mixed feelings about the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes it contains. On the one hand, I have deep respect for the image of Jesus speaking to a mass of people who sit and stand before Him in rapt attention. On the other hand, I have always been somewhat wary of the teachings contained within the Sermon because they are so open to misinterpretation and misunderstanding, so much so that they have been actively used against Christians by non-Christians and anti-Christians both of whom have earnestly employed Jesus's "blessed are" teachings as justification for Christian acceptance and tolerance of evil and stupidity.

Nevertheless, the purpose of this post is not to analyze the teachings within the Sermon of the Mount, but rather to share some brief thoughts about Hungarian painter Károly Ferenczy's depiction of the scene. As mentioned above, I have always harbored a deep appreciation of the image of Jesus teaching on the mount, and I particularly admire Ferenczy's rendition of the Sermon.

To begin with, the lush undulating forest dominating the top half of the composition has all the qualities of a classic landscape painting. It's almost as if Ferenczy initially planned to paint only a landscape, but then changed his mind halfway through the painting to include the figure of Christ who is the obvious focal point even though He is not perfectly centered within the composition. The scene exudes a tranquil, pastoral quality I find quite enchanting, a quality Ferenczy seems to have been able to conjure only be including the landscape qualities above the figures gathered around Jesus.

I admire the choices Ferenczy made in his depiction of Jesus - Christ is seated, occupying the same level as the people to whom He is speaking. Though His back is slightly turned and no Halo marks His head, He is instantly identifiable among the other figures who all focus their rapt attention upon Him. The upturned open hands signify gentleness and calm, but His presence holds enough power to enrapture even the knight seated to His right hand side.

As for the crowd, Ferenczy shows what I interpret to be a cross-section of predominantly nineteenth-century European or, more specifically, Hungarian society. There's a man in a top hat and peasants in straw hats; a woman in upper-class dress her head uncovered, and women in modest dresses wearing headscarves. Ferenczy sprinkles children in among the adults and it is rumored the two on the right were his own.

Ferenczy's painting contains obvious anachronistic qualities and the setting does not make one think 'Middle East', but this is what makes the scene so captivating for me personally. Ferenczy is able to transfer the essence of the Sermon to a more familiar time and place, which saves Jesus from being trapped in history and reinforces His active and ongoing presence in the contemporary world as Ferenczy depicted it.

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Christian Freedom Versus Liberalism - Viktor Orbán

27/7/2019

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"We are going to spend the next 15 years on the mission of our generation to confront the liberal spirit of the era and liberal internationalism."

"It's not about setting a goal for a certain time period, but rather about giving meaning to our lives within a period of time."

"Once liberal democracy started breaking the ties that bind man to reality and life, started questioning gender identity, devaluing religious identity, and deemed national affiliation to be redundant, it contents radically changed. This is the zeitgeist of the past 20-30 years in Europe."

"The lay of the land favors the liberals, but there is something on our side nonetheless that can be said to be beautiful, free and just; something that can be summed up as Christian freedom."

“Policies geared towards Christian freedom are about working to protect everything that liberals neglect, forget about, or despise."

These quotes were taken from a speech Viktor Orbán gave today at an annual gathering in Baile Tusnad, Transylvania, Romania. I have found Orbán's annual speeches at Baile Tusnad to be engrossing since I began following them four years ago. An interesting mix of politics, philosophy, and religion, Orbán uses the annual speech at Transylvania to reflect upon the year that has passed as well predict the course of the year to come as it regards Hungary and Europe.

I am not a big fan of politics in general, but I am becoming increasingly convinced that Orbán not only understands things are coming to point, but has committed himself and the nation he serves to a side - a side flies in the face of Western liberal democracy and everything contemporary liberalism stands for. It was especially intriguing to listen to him contrast liberalism with what he termed "Christian liberties."

This year's Baile Tusnad speech was a truly hopeful one. I will work to get my hands on a transcript, which I will post here in its entirety, even if I have to translate it myself.

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