Max Beckmann- Self-Portrait with a Cigarette. Frankfurt 1923
“Dear Readers,
This political opinion was written originally on the 5th of May, 2013. I feel there is continued relevance today.
Now that I have concluded my M.F.A. program I plan on writing more of these kinds of opinion pieces, as well as research pieces.
I hope you enjoy my point of view from back then. Being open minded allows me to revisit these thoughts and to consider new ideas constantly. It’s an exciting time to be a writer.
Jenny K. Gilman”
Harmony: A Political Opinion
By Jenny K. Gilman
We are at war, and it's not what you think at first glance.
Before I explain this, I want you to sit back and reflect for a moment on who you are and why you are who you are, politically.
Human beings are amazingly complex creatures. I imagine all beings are complex. I appreciate that because the earth has such variety of beings, my life is richer. I understand the value of diversity.
To get to my point, I believe in balance. I have faith in balance. There is evidence all around us when we choose to notice it. You've probably heard of Yin and Yang. What you may not know is that the definition of Yin means, "without Yang," and the definition of Yang means, "without Yin" and they are bound together. On the surface it's simple, but the philosophy of Yin/Yang is particular because, in order to know light, we know darkness. In order to hear a perfect note, we have also heard the resonant squawk. We know the depths of hate but desire to love and be loved, and we also know which is which though sometimes we get lost.
There exists good and bad. Bad is bound to exist from time to time, and I believe humans have an internal correction device inside themselves to handle the bad as best as they can while rewiring and rebuilding the good. As you read this, please don't confuse my meaning of bad as evil. Evil has a powerful, otherworldly connotation and if you believe in balance, like I do, then the only hope of conquering that kind of trouble is out of our hands and in the hands of another powerful, otherworldly being of light. While this may exist, or not, is a fine topic but that argument isn't always necessary to solve problems that we are capable of solving as human beings. If this belief guides your soul, if it defines you, or if it helps you to solve the bad problems, then it is a part of who you are. You must use your judgment as to whether right or wrong is also good or bad. Just be extra careful of deciding for yourself what is evil and what is merely bad and can stand correcting where you have the power to do so.
There is beauty in balance. Imagine a sphere containing sand. If all the sand falls to one side, it tips and starts spinning over and over itself until it gets pretty hard to reverse. In politics, we are so different because if we all stood to one side, we'd all make ourselves sick from the leaning and spinning. Someone has to run over to the other side to correct the balance. If we work together, we stand on solid ground.
There is a phrase that has been used for years called, "Divide and Conquer." Politically it means if you divide a large group into smaller, more controllable groups, you gain power. You can even get those smaller groups to work against themselves enough to stifle or purge an entire position, an entire race (think Macedonia and the Roman conquest, think genocide by the Nazi's and in Rwanda. Eventually, the people did it to each other).
We are at war.We think we are at war with each other politically, and what we do to each other unintentionally, I believe, benefits those who profit from our inherent complex human differences. But who are those benefiting?
Here's something we should seriously consider:
Are politicians feeding us divided talking points that are easy to remember?
Do we favor so heavily the right or left ideals, that it's easy to repeat their talking points rather than to think through them?
Do we feel our own values need protecting without justification or that opposing values are uneducated or misguided? (Ideals aren't necessarily misguided in our hearts, they can be our opinions, but the talking points can be very misguided. Do we believe them if they're similar enough?).
Do we imagine ourselves of higher status because others' ideals sink lower, in your opinion?
Do we live in fear?
Sadly, I think both the right AND left are suffering from the points above. Those of you who know me know that I favor left thinking, and I lean so because it's inherently who I am. But I also know that without other ideals, my philosophy would topple right over. What good do my ideals have if there's nothing in contrast? It would be unnecessary and a moot point. There would be no need for ideals at all.
We are at war with those who profit from our separation. We are not at war with each other. If anything, I need my left ideals to balance out someone's right because I need that harmony in my life. I need the beauty of contrast. I need the beautiful pink flower on a delicate blue background so I can see it, and so I can appreciate its shape and form as it is separate from its surrounding. While I know that politics isn't a painting, that there are somber issues, and there are so many people suffering- I believe the suffering is made worse by our division.
Problems can't be solved by using talking points because that means we're not thinking and that we're not even open to it. We become dependent on those who feed us simple statements to be the ones to come up with the "only" solutions and, sadly, when the solutions oppose each other (which they do, due to human nature and balance) the "only" solution becomes no solution. And yes, I mean both sides do this. Some innocently, but some, as profiteers. I've seen postings on Facebook from organizations whose philosophies I tend to agree with use other people's talking points that are wrong. It upsets me when I see opposing views using distorted facts as well because I'm afraid those who trust them will believe them. It becomes a much bigger problem that's harder to fix and in turn, becomes more reliant on those that feed us our information.
Closed minded comes in all forms, and you know why?
Because it's easier.
We need to be careful whose talking points we're using because it carries with it our responsibility of relinquishing our power to them. We need to be careful to hold on to what our inherent ideals are, and not let talking points confuse us into harboring new, wrong ideals.
"Those who have been intoxicated with power... Can never willingly abandon it." – Edmund Burke
Even though we think differently from each other, we sill need to respect each other and work together. We need to preserve the good and correct the bad. If we don't, we will suffer. We already are, and I can bet there are people set to profit from our behavior by using our inherent and sacred philosophies against us. Love who you are, and love the differences in each other. Be still and hear the beautiful harmonies that only we can hum together.
“The Party seeks power entirely for its own sake. We are not interested in the good of others; we are interested solely in power. Not wealth or luxury or long life or happiness: only power, pure power. ...We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now do you begin to understand me?” – George Orwell, “1984″
There is so much love in the world and so much beauty.
Think about this and start by doing one thing today:
Find one good thing about someone else's difference.
Then find another.
And next week, find another.
It will end a war and stifle the profiteer.