Duck Dynasty and the War on Christianity in the Marketplace of Ideas

 Unless you have been living under a rock, you have probably heard the news that A&E indefinitely suspended Phil Robertston after giving his opinion on homosexuality for an interview with GQ Magazine. linked here: GQ Interview with Phil Robertson

You have probably also heard that as of yesterday, a mere 9 days after A&E announced their decision, leading to what can only be described as all hell breaking loose, they retracted their decision, and have since allowed Phil Robertson back onto the show, and plan to resume filming, with all cast members included as normal.

I suppose I really shouldnt be surprised by this sort of thing anymore but I truly can not get over the hypocrisy, oppression, and "group think" of the liberal mafia. Does a company have the right to hire and fire whoever they want based on their beliefs; of course. I believe companies should be able to hire, fire, serve, or not serve whoever they please. I believe very strongly in that because I believe in property rights. The issue is more than that, who needs a government to silence the population when we have a culture and a media that silences, vilifies, and minimizes all those who do not "fall in line", or anyone who has an opinion outside of those force fed to us in public schools?

I didn't really care if A&E reinstated Phil or not, seeing as if they did not allow him to return, another network would simply pick up the show. I absolutely support Phil Robertson, and even joined the facebook group to boycott A&E unless they reinstated him, but regardless of their decision, I knew the family and show would be fine and simply move on to bigger and better things if it was infact cancelled (due to the fact the family would not continue the show without him), I believe Phil has every right to say and express his beliefs, just as A&E has every right to hire and fire whoever they please. my issue was more so with the demonization and hatred hurled at him in the subsequent days following the interview for speaking basic christian beliefs. 

Liberals and the LGBT community have a free pass to say whatever they want. They are applauded by the mainstream media as "heros" while bashing christians, calling them bigoted, hateful, and speaking about how  christians destroy society and culture. Yet the one time a christian respectfully and lovingly shares their view, they are demonized. I have never even seen people react so violently to one man's opinion. If you claim to be a christian, and believe the bible in regards to homosexuality, these people literally want to destroy your life!

They want you fired and ostrasized from your job and any potential employment, by this, I mean, they want you living on the streets begging for a penny!

They want your friends to disown you

Your kids to hate you

Your wife to leave you

and for you to die alone and miserable covered in boils.

What is wrong with these people? 

Not only is the LGBT community the most falsely "oppressed" group I've ever heard of, (although feminists claiming all the injustices done to them by men are a close second) but they stand for zero diversity in ideas.

This reminds me of Carrie Prejean, (The Miss USA contestant) who simply answered a question when asked about her opinion on gay marriage. She was clearly a very classy and respectful woman, and the media truly wanted to destroy every aspect of her life. They dug in her past and released sex tapes of her, pundits spouting diversity and "tolerance" went on national media calling her a whore and a bigot. She was robbed of her title and called every vile utterance known to man. - This is the LGBT activists idea of "stopping hate"?

Why would it matter anyway? People are far more than a few opinions they may have. Even if there is a horrible belief someone has for example: A man raised in a super health conscious family having a disdain for fat people and expressing that.  - Do you really believe because of his one opinion he deserves to die by knife wound to the heart? That same man could be a loving husband, father, a great provider and brilliant thinker.

Even if Phil Robertson believed something horrible such as racism, so what? Trust me I hate racism more than almost anyone you can think of, and plan on adopting children from both Africa and Asia, but I am certainly not going to hate a sweet old man, simply going along with the way he may have been taught. Many racists are that way because it simply was what they were taught growing up. They can still be loving husbands, providers, thinkers, and loving kind people. They just have a backward world view of some issues. What is wrong with people that they would attack someone for a belief that most in his demographic and age range hold? There is no tolerance here for other backgrounds or beliefs, no compassion for humans, no human dignity.

How can we evolve and solve problems like war, famine, racism, and debt, when the politically correct police seek to destroy anyone who dares to have the "against the grain" thinking that could solve many of our problems?

When Natalie of the Dixie Chicks spoke out against the Iraq war in its onset, she was destroyed for her belief. She  only wanted to see an end to killing and war, and didnt want innocent people dying for unjust reasons, and yet because she stood for peace her record sales dropped, she was banned from radio stations and Dixie Chick memorabilia was burned at the stake (literally).

What if instead we had just let her hold her view, giving others the strength and confidence to hold their own without fear of reprimand or chastisement? We probably would have woken up to the disgusting nature of the United States military much sooner, and hundreds of thousands of lives would have been saved. Women who are now widows and children who are now fatherless would have their husbands, and fathers at the dinner table with them right now.

It is very apparent these groups don't even care about the cause they claim to care for so dearly. If they truly cared, they would be open for discussion, they would want opposing viewpoints to be heard, because discussion is a way that leads to the truth. These people do not stand for truth.  Their true cause is to see the death of Christianity and everything wholesome, pure, and productive that has led our nation into prosperity. Their support goes instead to everything that has led our culture to the morally bankrupt, vapid, debt ridden country we see now.

Why would A&E feel as though it even has to consider removing the words "In Jesus" from the family prayer? - We are not even to mention the name of Christ? The culture and media has made it top priority that so much as the very confession of being a Christian should be deemed as "politically incorrect"

What is most appaulling is that his statements really were not even controversial, he simply stated that to him the fact that a man can be attracted to another man doesnt even seem logical, because women are so much more desirable to men.

wow - Scandelous!!!

I am pretty sure any man who is not gay feels that way, otherwise they themselves would be gay because they would find men more desirable. People all across America are probably sitting at home thinking "wait, Im a christian, I agree with what he said, wow, I didnt realize my beliefs were so controversial and offensive, I better never share them."  The media and the left are sending a message, and using Phil Robertson as their example. "Fall in line, deny the bible, agree with us, abandon your convictions, or be destroyed."

This truly saddens me, especially because this country was founded so people could have freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and the ability to believe what they want.You would think the result would be a culture who cherishes diversity and unpopular opinion. The mainstream media is so out of touch with the demographic of society that goes to church and has family values that they don't even realize we exist. I think they thought all of America would jump on the bandwagon, at the evil, bigoted, racist, mean, christian Phil Robertson being "exposed" as the scum he is. I imagine groups such as Boycott A&E Until Phil Robertson is Returned to Duck Dynasty came as a complete shock to networks, for generating over 1,700,000 likes, 1,000,000 of them within the first 24 hours.

Now the media is trying to turn the knife on this guy, they must somehow turn him into a villian, because anyone who is a christian and doesn't support homosexuality has to be painted as a "bad guy" He is not only being painted as hateful and ignorant, but now also as a racist. Reporters take simple statements such as this:

“I never, with my eyes, saw the mistreatment of any black person. Not once. Where we lived was all farmers. The blacks worked for the farmers. I hoed cotton with them. I’m with the blacks, because we’re white trash. We’re going across the field.... They’re singing and happy. I never heard one of them, one black person, say, ‘I tell you what: These doggone white people’—not a word!... Pre-entitlement, pre-welfare, you say: Were they happy? They were godly; they were happy; no one was singing the blues.”

And turning it into statements about his character such as "He is claiming to know exactly what the black experience was like during that time" or " I didnt realize he was an expert in the experience of blacks"

wtf?

The message is, if you are Christian and believe the bible,  you are ignorant, arrogant, racist, and a horrible person who needs to be "told" (For things you more than likely didn't even say)

When did he claim to be an expert in anything besides duck hunting? He was just talking about what he witnessed in his youth. This is him claiming to be an expert?  His words are manipulated and twisted by media outlets to make it appear as though he said things he simply did not say. Hell even if he had claimed to "know the black experience", even if had said a diatribe of "ignorant" things, who cares? Why are you getting mad at and bullying someone who very clearly is a loving, gracious, and kind person - something the author of the GQ article himself even recognized.

Anyway, after the Robertson family released their statement, saying they would not continue the show without Phil, and after the ratings dropped, A&E made the decision to bring him back on.  :The Robertson Family's official statement

I suppose this is a somewhat "happy" ending to a story that serves to show how marginalized and hated Christianity has become in modern culture. Let this be a reminder to us to brace ourselves, hold on, and stay strong.

"The fact that the Illuminati and the mainstream media mind controllers hate Christians, Jesus, Conservatives, Christmas and Family Values, speaks volumes about their Satanic agenda and why we should oppose these demons with all our strength". - Mark Dice

SHAME on you

Shame is absolutely one of the lowest vibrational states in existence, it's power to paralyze is paralleled to none. Shame may seem like something that merely controls people on an individual level. It may seem it has nothing to do with our society as a whole. Because shame is something we feel so personally, it's hard to see it for the tool of control and manipulation that it is. It is hard to see how it is used by the government, society, and major corporations as a means to keep us quiet, obedient, unquestioning, and consuming.  Sure, it may seem like I am over reaching here, but how else can you describe an entire nation of people who don't even question going into endless wars with people who we do not even hate?

 How is it that several generations have bought into the idea that government is always right no matter how much it serves to strip us of our peace and prosperity? How did we become a nation that was once willing to give up everything we had for our freedoms, yet we now hand over our liberties and freedoms at even the slightest hint of a "threat"? How is it that we have created an entire generation that is losing its individuality and diversity? Everyone is to have the same values, the same morals, believe the same about historical events and how they went down, students are poured into public education where rooms full of children are taught the exact same things interpreted the exact same way. No questions please.  We have nation whose houses were once filled with talks of political revolution, world events, religion, love, and philosophy, and now those same homes are filled with their new generational counterparts, where speaking of such things is "rude" and one should instead talk about the shoes they want and where they are going for vacation.

This did not happen overnight, but through a very gradual slope of shaming those who question and stand out in any way, and a very gradual slope of shaming the very things that keep a nation and peaceful world running. I'd like you to take note of these various forms of shame and you will see, it's no "wild theory", but something that happens to us constantly, every single day of our lives. Let's begin with the media, and you can see for yourself how this slow yet consistent shaming has served to completely destroy the culture and diversity of our nation. 

The Media

One of the first ways the media serves to shame you is through fashion and and idealized vision of what "beauty" is. If one is ashamed of their own self image, it is far less likely they will feel as though they are even a capable or a worthy enough tool for creating change in the world. Fashion is the perfect tool for shame, it changes every season and is completely subjective so there's no way to argue.  If you are out of date you are no longer "cool and hip" but outdated and "stupid". So incase you were wondering... all of your clothes suck.

 To prove it, we will bombard you with thousands of images a day of ridiculously good looking people wearing clothes that are better than yours. Want some nikes? Are you going to the sale at Macys? Are you really going to let your friends at school make fun of your jeans? Of course not! What's a few dollars if it can help avoid public humiliation and who knows, maybe even make people like you? Who cares about Syria, when we are having a JEAN CRISIS here people! 

Ok, so now that we have established your clothes suck, it's time to let you know you are also fat. You think you are in good shape and your doctor tells you are within a healthy weight range?... haha thats cute. You're still fat. So now spend alot of your time on gym memberships and diet pills, this *may* lead to eternal bliss. 

So, now that your shirt is stupid and you are fat, it's time to tell you how ugly you are. I know your husband tells you, you are pretty, and when you go out into the "real world" it actually seems like you are downright attractive, but you are just comparing yourself to other ugly people. Beauty only exists in .5% of all human beings. They have perfect symmetry (and lives) and somehow these .5% of people make up 99% of the television and advertising you consume on a daily basis. You don't look like that. You are ugly. 

So, now that you are ugly, fat, and your clothes suck, what was your opinion on our education system again? What was that philosophical stuff you were saying earlier? You actually think as a fat, ugly, stupid person you have the right to an opinion? You should be way too ashamed of how you look to worry about things like having an opinion, please leave that to the prettier more qualified people, K thanks. 

You can say this is an exaggeration, but its not. I can not even tell you the times I have seen videos of people sharing the most beautiful words I've ever heard about life, the world, and the betterment of our society, only to look down at the comments section and see a slew of comments telling this person "You're fat, shutup and go eat a cheeseburger"  or "What a stupid tacky shirt" or "he's/she's ugly"  As though you don't even have the right to speak unless you fit some idealized vision of beauty that those criticizing you do not even possess. However, since they do not show their face, we all of course know that *were* these criticizers to ever post a video themselves they would look absolutely perfect, but it just so happens they haven't so we arent able to see how "perfect" they are.

 As long as they don't try anything, as long as they never put themselves out there, as long as they never form long developed opinions on issues, there's nothing to criticize, they hold the "moral high ground" and are the "perfect" people who pass judgement on those who are actually in the ring, being present to the world, and living a life. It is much easier to criticize someone else's work, to sit back and say "you could do something, if you put your mind to it" than to actually do it, As long as you never put forth effort you can still live under the umbrella of illusion that were you to ever put forth effort, YOUR work, your thoughts and your appearance would be perfect. 

moving on.... 

So now that the media has you educated on your terrible wardrobe and fat ugliness, its time to make sure you stay down, waaay down. It's time for us to make sure you spend most of your spare time watching garbage, when one flips through the channel they are given choices between reality sitcoms and base entertainment that makes us feel ashamed just for watching it. At the same time we subconsciously know we are wasting our time filling our heads with fluff and garbage and the details of someone else's life that we will never meet. While such shows are something no one really WANTS to want to watch, they still watch, and  vast majority of what is on fits the description of shows we dont want to want to watch, but want to watch..

 Have you ever gotten up from watching the television and had a slight "guilty" feeling for wasting 30 minutes of your life, watching something you cant even believe you were bored enough to sit through?  You have? Wow, not only do your clothes suck, but you are fat, ugly, AND wasting your life?. what a pathetic loser. What were you saying about our currency again? Because we all know a fat ugly time wasting loser has *all* the answers. 

Modern Social Conditioning

Moving on to the second tool for shame: Modern Social Conditioning.

Being accepted by those around us is an important part of the human experience. No one WANTS to be ostracized or hated. We want the people around us to like us, "get" what we are saying and "get" what we mean, relate to us, and likewise share their thoughts and experiences. So what better way to do this than to assume anyone who disagrees with you hates you, shun anyone who says something you find "rude" and ensure anyone with a novel idea feels ashamed, humiliated, and stupid. Oh also, the sex tapes, don't forget the sex tapes. If anyone says something you don't like make SURE to find an old sex tape of them and broadcast it on national TV. K. Thanks. 

We have seen this time and time again. 

Natalie of the Dixie Chicks dared to utter the scandalous words "I'm ashamed to say George Bush is from Texas" as we were entering the Iraq war. A public figure sharing her genuine feelings about a knee jerk war that would end countless lives and cost Americans trillions of dollars? Wow, that's kind of cool, I'm sure a very thought provoking dialog on the issue among-st the American public ensued. 

Oh wait, that's not what happened?   

Calls flooded into radio stations demanding the heathen woman be removed from the air. Callers said very mature things like "We should strap Natalie to a bomb and blow her up over Iraq" There were public Dixie Chicks CD burnings where hundreds of people gathered to crush her C.D.s pour gasoline over Dixie Chick memorabilia and light it on fire while cheering and dancing. She was publicly chastised, ridiculed,called a slut and a whore. 

The message was clear, sure you can say your true thoughts about the administration if you really want to, but prepare to be destroyed. To see such hate hurled toward a woman for merely expressing her opinion taught everyone that such an opinion is NOT ok to have. Who needs to have a government enforcing censorship? Instead we can use an education system that teaches children from a young age that anyone who expresses politically incorrect opinion is an evil American hating monster, and get the people to mute the voices of dissent themselves like a bunch of programmed psychopathic zombies. 

Here's another example, in 2009 a beautiful young woman named Carrie Prejean took the stage of the Miss USA pageant. She was asked by one of the judges to express her personal opinion on the legalization of gay marriage in America. Miss Prejean answered the question with grace and tact saying that she thought it was great we lived in a country where people could choose, but in her personal opinion marriage should be between a man and a woman. A thoughtful dialog ensued over cups of tea, some saying they agreed with her response, while others said they disagreed and explanations were given as to why. Everyone respected her right to her own opinion, thanked her for her honesty and continued to treat her like a human being with basic dignity and respect.

oh wait...that didn't happen. 

Twitter went wild with people calling her bigoted, and an idiot. Her worth as a person was minimized as men wrote that the drop dead gorgeous blond was "ugly" and "not that hot anyway" The judged who had asked her for her opinion went on a viral rampage on the audacity of her to honestly answer the question. She was called a whore, a slut, a cunt, hateful, and a hypocrite. She was stripped from her title as Miss. California, and a sex tape was leaked of her to prove that she wasn't really a good conservative girl but a dirty whore who dared to have an intimate relationship with her boyfriend. Intimate details of her life were analyzed and broadcasted on national news. All this, literally for answering a question. She never once said she was "perfect" never once claimed to be a saint, never once even told people how to live their lives, just simply expressed the opinion she was asked to give. 

Again, the message was clear. Fall in line with this agenda, agree with the politically correct crowd on this issue or be crucified.You are a christian? You have conservative views? You should be ashamed. You should be ashamed of who you are, what you believe, shutup, and think about what you've done. Isn't it great to have a choice? 

At some point in our society, it became the assumption that "if you disagree with me, it means you hate me." This has destroyed dialog, and desecrated any possibility for people to discuss the important moral, religious, and political issues of our time with any sort of freedom or candor. Every opinion is given with the possibility of  severe harsh and detrimental repercussions. Topics of any weight are now riddled with anxiety and it simply does not even seem worth it to express your thoughts or exchange ideas, and the result is we don't. Instead we talk about football, and shoes or we discuss the "heavy issues" in a very superficial way without really delving deep or really saying much of anything, and as a result nothing much gets said. 

If you are against a war you are told to support, you should be ashamed, you American hating bastard. If you are a christian you should be ashamed for your bigoted disgusting intolerant world view, If you still support gun rights you are a closet domestic terrorist who is more than likely a closet homicidal maniac. Anything beyond milk toast pseudo "controversial statements like " I respect all religions" and " I respect my president" and "let's all volunteer together and sing kumbaya" "I stand for hope and change" is to be shunned and shamed as hate speech. 

Our society is now built on a basis of never speaking beyond broad generalities, a society that avoids discussing what these statements actually mean, and what the execution of ideas like "peace" and "diversity" really look like. This is shutting down discourse, shutting down diversity, and the end result is Justin Bieber.  

Truly, what our society upholds is figures who really don't talk about anything, are milk toast, and make us think "controversial topics" are "what team are you supporting? Do you agree with twerking? Do you REALLY like the new red Nikes more than the blue? 

Just because something is the "popular" opinion does not mean it is right by any means. Hitler was voted man of the year by Time Magazine during his reign. He was widely supported and praised.Those who dissented were viewed as unpatriotic cowards. Natalie of the Dixie chicks was crucified for expressing her disdain with our invasion of the middle east, yet we would all be much better off now, if we had just listened and allowed people the freedom to express ideas and discuss the issues without getting death threats. 

As in the case of Carrie Prejean, your past will be used against you. People will bring up that guy you kissed for 12 seconds in the 8th grade, the fact you got fired from a job 3 years ago (however they will forget to mention you immediately got hired at a much better job) They will use past opinions against you (because we all know human beings NEVER change their opinions or beliefs). In reality who cares? Is all this really worth destroying our society and world. Who cares who someone was 2 years ago, what matters is who they are now, heck who even cares who someone was 2 weeks ago! I have honestly had people hate me so much for my disagreement with the military industrial complex that they have told me they will not tolerate associating with me and blocked me from facebook, only to have the exact same person two years later re add me and say "oh yea, by the way, I totally agree with you now,  how ya been?"

I've had people taunt my religious views only to tell me months later that something I said "got them thinking" and now they agree with me. 

I've known people who were such hardcore christians that they went on mission trips abstained from sex and drinking only to stumble across them a few months later to find they are a hardcore atheist. 

How do I know people can change? Because I've experienced it myself. I used to be a hardcore supporter of the war on terrorism and the war on drugs only to find myself a hardcore advocate against those things a matter of years later...why? 

Because of discourse, because of the ability to freely express ideas and each passing day come closer to the truth. 

I had a friend come to me once telling me he was ashamed and embarrassed because he had supported harsh treatment of immigrants into this country. He was one of those "go back to your own country" type guys. A few years later he had completely changed his mind on the issue, and regretted his previous actions and beliefs. I responded by telling him he had no reason at all to be embarressed, that as human beings we grow and evolve and that is nothing to be ashamed of, its something to be proud of, that even when he was supporting the wrong thing atleast he had picked a side, atleast he wasnt afraid to stand up for what he thought was right, atleast he was still out there, involved in my society and community and trying to make the world a better place the only way he knew how at the time.

The things I was wrong about slowly became revealed to me and when that happend, when the facts proved otherwise, I didnt scoff and pretend I didnt know better, I simply changed my position. So dont let people make you feel like you do not have the right to believe something you believe simply because 7 years ago you believed something else, 

 Whether it is bringing up your past, calling you names, or minimizing you, the truth is if you stand for anything these days, you will at some level feel the wrath of our modern societal conditioning. Most likely the novel ideas of our time that could truly turn around our economy and lead us into a more peaceful and loving society, are ideas that the vast majority of people will initially be averse to, and hate. Why? Because they are different. You can not get out of a situation with the same level of thinking you had upon entering it. We have to stop the shame. Expressing a belief should never cause you shame, it should make you proud, make you happy, make you free, that you are a person who can stand by the courage of your convictions and possess the patience to understand it will take time for people to understand you and see the truth of what you say. Your truth will be shown over time. 

I love the way this is expressed in the novel "Atlas Shrugged". The heroine, Daphney Taggart was a well educated woman who was confident enough to trust what she knew to be true. She risked everything she had on building her railroad line with the "controversial" rearden metal. She knew what good metal was, she knew rearden metal was the strongest, cheapest, most durable metal on the market. Scientists told her she was crazy, that "studies show" the metal is unsafe, and the entire scientific community was in 100% unanimous agreement that the metal was dangerous. None of it mattered, because she knew it wasn't true, she knew time would show she was right, and took on the challenge of proving the world wrong. 

"Never Apologize For Being Correct 
Many people, especially ignorant people, want to punish you
for speaking the truth. For being correct. For being you.

Never apologize for being correct,
or for being years ahead of your time.

If you're right and you know it, speak your mind.
Speak your mind.

Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is still the truth."


~Mohandas Gandhi

Success (Or lack thereof)

 Our third and final tool of shame used in American culture today is a distorted view of success and failure.
This is the belief that in order to have value as a human being, in order to be a person worthy of thoughts and opinions you must first rise to a certain level of "success" One problem, This success actually has only been attained by maybe 4 people in the history of all the world (one of which is Bill Gates, and maybe Mark Zuckerberg). By all means, listen to these guys, they are the only two people in the world today who have any intelligence or are worthy of an opinion.  Our culture has us so convinced that we must attain some high measure of success in order to be worthy of a voice, an opinion, love, and happiness.  Let me shoot out a few examples....

I was watching a really inspiring and insightful video by Will Smith, (you know, the multimillionaire actor) His advice could have been given by anyone and still rung true, because the subject matter of his discussions were universal truths. I scroll down to see comments expressing in various forms the following:

 "Who does this guy think he is? All he is is some stupid actor and he thinks he has the world all figured out."

So if Will Smith, a multimillionaire with fame, fortune, health, and a beautiful family is not "successful" enough to have a voice, then what does that say for you and I?

In order for the state to continue its power we can not feel as though we are worthy human beings, with infinite value. The goal is to make the standard of success seem so high, that no one can reach it, Then our society will be so filled with people scraping and clawing to reach some sad form of validation that they don't have time to care about the world around them. It is completely self absorbed. What does an unconfident discontented person do? They buy and consume.

Who cares who Will Smith is? Why does it matter? Who does he have to be in order to be worthy of an opinion? The truth is he can be anyone, he does not have to obtain some level of success to be allowed a voice, and neither do you. Our voice is our birthright, it is not something earned. 

Did your boyfriend break up with you? loser. Did you lose your job? Have you considered suicide? You lost all your money in that "dream business" of yours? haha, I knew you'd never amount to anything. Have you ever accomplished anything in your life? I know you have a beautiful family, and all your needs met, and your standard of living is higher than 90% of all people in the world's population (many who live off $2 a day), I know you say your so "fullfilled" from all your "mission work" and volunteering,  but have you reeeally accomplished anything?? Did you invent facebook? yea, didn't think so, go kill yourself.

Exaggeration? This was actually a comment from someone on an article I wrote on peace in the middle east:

 "Wow, there are people in the world who have actually accomplished something like Mark Zuckerberg who invented facebook, what have you ever done? NOTHING!!! go die!!!"

What is it that I need to accomplish in order to be worthy of an opinion? Especially now that facebook has already been invented. Humanity is screwed!! No one will ever be worthy of an opinion again! Except maybe Bill Gates...maybe.

What do people do who do not think they are worthy of a voice? What do people do who think they are failures? They get a job they are overqualified for, they clock in, they dont ask questions, they acquire just enough intelligence to complete their assigned job in order to pay their taxes, They become completely consumed in their own drowning pathetic lives and die having never stood for anything, never really having done anything, and never actually accomplishing anything because what is the point in trying anyway? Its not like you will ever be as rich as Bill Gates.

Even me, who enjoys a very high standard of living, a beautiful family, and tons of friends is called a "failure" by these standards, don't get excited, you are too. (unless you are Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg) then your ok.

People who are confident and happy with their lives, people who understand the blessings they've been given in life, people who see their lives as valuable, people who see themselves as a minority of one, people who see themselves with the power to change the world, don't shut up and follow the status quo if hey think it is wrong. This is why the state and the media will do whatever it takes to ensure you view yourself as a failure, as inadequate, Who are you to say anything? Who are you to change anything?

Who are you not to?

Career gains, a beautiful family, health, vacations, accomplishments, believe me, are wonderful, but they are not the be all end all of happiness. Jesus Christ started a religion that would spread across the world and he died single, broke, and hated. Do not let anyone make you buy into this notion that unless you've achieved some great accomplishment you don't have the right to a voice. You were born with that right and don't let others shame you into thinking otherwise. It is a huge lie, the more you gain, the more you will want, as we simply get accustomed to new standards of living and that becomes our "normal" causing us to need more to get the same high. If you are depending on such things for your value or self worth, it will never satisfy you and will never be enough. ever.

The shame is used to control you, to keep you in fear, to keep you from thinking you are valuable enough to make a difference. The power of a single human being is infinite, that is something that if we all realized this world would be a very different place. It starts with you, yes you the poor kid, yes you the overweight girl, yes you the girl with sex tapes on the internet, yes you who used to have dumb beliefs, yes you with last years fashion, yes you who didn't invent facebook. You.

Why DUI Checkpoints are Unconstitutional and Wrong

The issue that many constitionalists, libertarians, and limited government supporters have in regards to DUI checkpoints is not that they "prevent drunk driving" because of course no one wants drunk drivers on the road. The issue is that checkpoints are a violation of our forth amendment rights. And if stopping all drivers on the road is ok then so is police randomly raiding old ladies houses to make sure there are no drugs, or patting down everyone who enters a mall to make sure they don't have a bomb. If the forth amendment is not respected there is no end to how intrusive things could get in the name of keeping us "safe" as there are millions of dangers in the world.

Most who oppose checkpoints believe that police don't have the right to stop a car unless they have reason, Ex: the car is swerving. If they are pulling everyone over then it's not BC the car is acting suspicious but bc they are doing it to everyone. It's very disrespectful to both the individual and our constitution to interrupt drivers who are on their way home or work without cause. But most are up set BC of the violation of the constitution it's kind of like that Ben frank quote "those who would give up essential liberty for security deserve neither and will lose both.

Syria

I would describe myself as a conservative libertarian. I am personally conservative but believe the government should be as limited as possible and stay out of peoples everyday lives and be as decentralized as possible. This is even more apparent in my views on foreign policy, especially in regards to the issue right now regarding Syria.

I do see this going full force, and unfortunately see our government stretching its imperialism even more into other countries, however this action is so blatant that it is serving as a catalyst to wake many people up. Conservatives and liberals alike are banning together to say enough is enough, one war was able to be explained without people raising eyebrows, two wars with a few questions and objections, but this situation with syria is showing people how insatiable the us military's appetite truly is. they can no longer "explain these things away". Let's use this as an opportunity for waking people up.

There is talk of a draft being reinstated in order to support the U.S. war machine, I do see a draft being reinstated, as more people wake up and want no part in a system that meddles in every country and serves as policeman of the world. However, I do not see a draft happening anytime soon, as there are still many willing volunteers, a draft would be many many years down the road, however when it happens, the results will be catastrophic. The parallels between Iraq and Syria is that the United States is sticking its nose where it does not belong, and once again using its military for a purpose it was not designed for. The purpose of the united states military is to fight and kill enemies who are an imminent threat to us and attacking us. Not to get involved in other wars, not to nation build and not to be policeman of the world.

When it comes to war issues, I honestly see no difference between libertarians and (principled) left liberals. Both want to see an end to the endless unjustifiable wars and crimes against humanity committed in our name. There not only is a "possibility" for meaningful and effective cooperation, but it is already happening. I have seen people at anti war and peace protests of all different political backgrounds. we are being brought together by the belief that human life is important, and we no longer want these atrocities committed in our name.

Both the anti war movement and our youth that would like to see peace in our lifetime need to realize that change starts at the individual level. We need to stop promoting the U.S. military and enlistment in the military and instead encourage entrepreneurship and education. We need to spread the word that there is nothing noble or honorable about joining the military in 2013. I think too many people are afraid to say this because it is so taboo. But you can not say you are against war, while at the same time congratulating and idolizing those who sign up to fight in these wars. It takes us all standing up as individuals and saying we will not take part in these wars at any level. Military service should be avoided and not looked at as a means of providing for ones family and paying the way through college. We also need to start paying attention to voting records of congressmen and make sure to hold those accountable who support military intervention and either vote for those who have a long history of supporting peace or not vote at all.

Why Do Men Commit to Less Attractive Women?

I decided to write a blog on this subject because I have often asked myself this question.

 We all understand when we see a man who is a "great catch" with a gorgeous woman, it makes sense, all seems right in the world, but what about when we see the opposite?  I want you to put aside what the media says on this subject and look realistically at your own life. The idea that men are only obsessed with looks is simply not true. Do not get me wrong, men don’t want a woman who is ugly, but looks are simply a perk and not the determining factors for most men in relationships. Think of all the men you know who have casual encounters with many beautiful women only to never call them again, then you look at that same man two years later and he is married to a woman who is relatively plain in appearance. I’m sure all of us know at least one man who fits into this category.  The answer to this phenomenon is simple. Regardless of all the stereotypes out there, men to this day still DO truly care about what is on the inside, and the ones who don’t, you are not likely to be interested in anyway. 

While men may SAY and truly believe they want women who are all dolled up and spend hours on their appearance, the reality is that women who are not obsessed with shopping, fixing their hair, and caring for their appearance are often more confident and independent than their vain counterparts. Men SAY they want a beauty, but secretly wonder who the “dolled up” woman is trying to impress, and it ruins the chase for them.  More plain women must rely on their virtue, intelligence, and kindness to attract men, and therefore attract men who are looking for wives or serious relationships because those are qualities men want to carry on throughout the generations (yes even more than good genes). Women who treat themselves as objects, wearing short skirts, loads of makeup, and spend hours fixing their hair, end up getting treated as objects. Often these women are admired for their beauty, and no matter how untrue it may be, because of their looks, men assume they are not “serious” potential life partners.

Due to years of cheerleading, sorority life, and work as a part time actress, I have been surrounded by beautiful women most of my adult life. Throughout my years of observation I began to see a pattern develop, the most beautiful women I knew never seemed to have a shortage of “male problems” and heartache. I saw it time and time again, the class beauty would observe in shock, as the man they adored would leave them in leiu of a chubbier, plainer girl who had a “frumpy” sense of fashion.  All this after the beautiful girl had done “everything right” spending hours at the gym, confining themselves to the strictest of diets, and obsessing over their clothes and appearance.  

One theory explaining this is discussed in “why men marry some women and not others” by John T Molloy. Men would have to worry more about the attractive woman cheating on them, and know there will always be other men vying for the beautiful women’s affection.  You always know in the back of your mind other guys want her. So when it comes to settling down, men aren’t necessarily looking for the most attractive woman, but one who will be faithful.  By the very fact a woman does not put “much thought” into her outward appearance, it shows she is not looking for attention, and therefore less likely to stray.  (Again, I am not saying any of this is true, but what men subconsciously think and judge).

Askmen.com did an article titled, “An Ugly Wife: The Benefits”  The article served as a way to explain, how a man can date so many gorgeous women, yet end up marrying a woman who is merely attractive or even less than average. Here are a few of the reasons the article gave.

1) A benefit of marrying a more plain woman is that she will be more likely to appreciate you, as she doesn’t feel entitled or expectant of your attention the way a beautiful woman would.

2. You will be seen as more genuine, as people will think you are the kind of guy who cares about inner beauty.

3. A good personality –She will have to develop a personality, this can also be found in late bloomers.  The models I was friends with had no desire or need to “work on their personality” as men flocked to them,  when you get constant reinforcement through laughs and kind gestures from men, on every social outing you go on, it makes it difficult and far less imminent of a need to work on ones personality. Hence why the men would ALWAYS be immediately drawn to them, only to stop calling and go for another girl a mere few weeks later. Under all the beauty there is often times simply no substance.

4. She is more likely to have similar interests. Women who are gorgeous often come from families who put a lot of thought into appearance and beauty, hair products, surgeries, pageants, balls etc. Women who are more plain tend to value other things and come from families who do as well. A plain woman may be extremely devoted to her religion, extremely passionate about a political cause etc.  While the beauty can entertain a man for a time, when it comes to picking a life partner, these things are extremely important to a man. If it comes down to it, a man would gladly choose a woman who shares his faith and interests and activities over a woman who is beautiful but which he has nothing in common with.

In the end, despite all the media hype and stereotypes Men are just humans looking for love and companionship in a mate. They truly do look for qualities such as virtue, whether or not a woman will be a good mother, kindness, and compatibility.  If you are a beautiful woman this is not an article “dogging” you, Men would LOVE to have a beautiful wife, but not at the expense of more important qualities.

An exception is in the case of obesity. While a man may not mind a few extra pounds, ( Trust me Brandon sticks by my side regardless of if I am 100lbs or 120lbs) most men, whether they are a “great guy” or a “shallow guy” do not want to be with a morbidly obese or even regularly obese woman, ESPECIALLY when looking for a life mate as those dangerous and destructive eating habits could be passed on to further generations, and can highly effect the kind of lifestyle and activities a couple can share.

This has shown to be evident in my own life as well, while I certainly think I am attractive, I am by no means a model or dropdead gorgeous. However Brandon has dated Hawaiian tropics models, models, gorgeous women who are 6 feet tall, and all around very beautiful women who are ten times more attractive than me. Yet when it came to who he wanted to share his life with, he chose me. Why? Because he truly values the interests that we share, he values that we come from similar backgrounds, and that he can talk to me and feel at ease with me. So there you have it, for those of you who have wondered why men simply don’t just marry the prettiest girl they’ve dated, its because they are looking for more than that. What a nice surprise.

If You would like to read more on this subject, I have attached a few interesting articles below.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2063997/Too-sexy-laid-independent--Why-women-just-ARENT-wife-material.html

http://thestir.cafemom.com/love_sex/152214/why_men_marry_some_women

Just Jump

Due to our location, we are only minutes away from mountains that are several miles high, waterfalls, natural pools, and extreme hiking trails. As a natural result, much of our free time is spent rock climbing, and hiking in the abundant natural playground around us.  On this particular day, we dropped our daughter off with the sitter, because we were doing a trail that was not so “kid friendly.” There was a group of 7 of us hiking along the trail on our way to go cliff jumping. Anyone who knows me, would say I am “adventurous”, “outgoing”, and “brave”..but what these same people do not know about me is that I am deathly afraid of heights, and thrill rides and activities such as roller coasters.  I absolutely love exercise and hiking, and even amateur rock-climbing and activities such as skiing, but when it comes to anything even remotely dangerous, I'm out!

  I cant tell you how much this bothers me, and what a betrayal it is of my character as someone who “just does it” in their life.  You want me to tell someone how I really feel even if they’ll hate me for it? I’m game. You want me to sing karaoke in front of 200 people doing a song I’ve never sung before? Count me in! You want me to move across country for that great promotion? I will pack my bags and be there in an instant… How can this same person be afraid of a rollercoaster? How can this same person be petrified about speeding on the highway?  It doesn’t make sense and it doesn’t fit into the character I want for my life as someone who “just does it” in life.  So the other day I decided to change all that. As we reached our destination of a beautiful natural 20 foot pool at the bottom of a waterfall in the mountains, I saw my enemy right before me: a large giant cliff.

The day was perfect, I had spent it working on my tan, kissing under the waterfalls, swimming for hours in the deep natural ponds, it was paradise. It would have been perfectly acceptable for me to say the day was as amazing as it could ever be, and to go home tired, a little sunburnt, and blissfully happy, but that wasn’t good enough for me. I knew today was the day I had to face my fear.

One by one, members of our group scaled the side of the mountain and made their way to the edge of the cliff where they dove off into the deep waters. Most of them had finished diving and were now sunbathing, by the time I got the courage to scale my way up to the cliff, The rocks were extremely hot and slick, one false move, one slip and I could easily be killed or seriously injured on the jagged rocks. I stayed looking forward.  By the time I reached the edge I was exhausted and petrified. I crawled my way to the edge and erected my body and I stood up straight looking down at the waters below.  My entire body was shaking, so much so, I didn’t even know how I was able to stand, and it didn’t even seem like my body would function enough to swim once I hit the waters I was shaking so hard.

I stood there shaking looking over the edge, with each passing minute it became harder to breathe, what had I gotten into? Why was I doing this? Maybe this just isn’t for me, and isn’t “My thing”, maybe I should just scale my way back down the cliff, and go home. A line of cliff jumpers started behind me, they had seen me standing there for nearly 30 minutes by this point. I told the man behind me to go ahead, and that I will go after him

“Oh no” he replied,” You have been saying you will jump for the past 30 minutes and haven’t done so, I do not trust you, I will go after you go.”

The people sunbathing at the rocks below called up to me “Just do it! Just count to 3 and walk off”

The man standing next to me, said the following “You know the water is plenty deep, you won’t reach bottom, it is safe.”

“yes I understand” I responded

“You understand, this is a petruding edge, you won’t hit any jagged edges as you jump?”

“Yes, I understand I responded, Im not worried about that, I know I will be fine if I jump.”

“then what is stopping you?” He asked

“Fear” I responded “irrational fear”

Saying it outloud, made it seem all the more absurd.

“Are you going to let fear stop you?” He asked

“think of how liberated you will feel once you reach the water, once you have overcome this fear”

“I know”  I responded, as I looked over the edge at the waters far below and went through a series of expletives in my mind. This was something I did NOT, let me repeat, did NOT want to do. But I was tired; I was tired of letting this fear define me.

Suddenly all the people on the rocks below started screaming and cheering for me “ You can do it!” and “go go go!”

I turned back, petrified, to the man behind me, he said “The crowd loves you, you’ve got to jump.”

I knew he was right, there was no way I was getting off of this cliff, any other way than by jumping off it right here, right now. I looked forward held my nose, and with a leap and a loud scream propelled my body off the cliff into the deep waters below. The water sucked me in like a vacuum, and as I emerged from my jump, I had no other emotion but elation.

 My body was still shaking, my heart was still beating a mile a minute, but I was blissfully happy, I felt liberated, I had done something I didn’t think I could ever do,  I had overcome my fear and was now on the other side of it. 

There are times in life when we are afraid, afraid to face an issue, afraid to be who we are, afraid to make the move; afraid to jump. Why even face these things? It is so much more peaceful and happy in the “comfort” zone, no shaking legs, no chattering teeth, no anxiety. But life BEGINS at the end of our comfort zone. There is a bliss, there is a happiness, there is a joy that can only come from jumping off that cliff, and emerging from the waters below.  It is with fear, it is with trembling, it is with resolve that our greatest destinies are shaped, you can see that destiny to its reality, or you can be happy, comfortable, and safe. You can live a good life in the comfort zone, a happy life.  But, there is a life on the other side, it is a little more uncertain, but it is a great life, a powerful life, a life that changes the world, and it can only be found, when you walk to the edge of the cliff, and despite all your fears, all your reservations, you put one foot in front of the other and “Just jump.”

"If it scares the sh** out of you, if your heart starts beating all over your body when you think of it, if you start to vibrate with energy from your head to your toes, you are on your Path...keep going." – cora poage

I Stand in Solidarity with the California Inmates who are Starving for Human Rights

On July 8th, California Prisoners began an indefinite hunger strike for basic human rights such as sunlight and human contact.  They have asked for our support. I am here to say, I stand in solidarity with the prisoners fighting for human rights.

I would like you to read the following passage from our declaration of independence. Truly read it.

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies;

Our founders felt it as their duty as moral men to care for their fellow man, and that when government became so overbearing and grotesque that it endangers the livelihood of its citizens, it is the citizen's responsibility and moral obligation to take a stand.  Who are we if we do not stand for the weakest among us? for those who do not have a voice?

Just as in the writings of Martin Niemoller many can argue, that "Hey! I didn't mess up, I'm not in jail, why should I care?" You should care because these are human beings. If you want to fine a person then fine them, if they are sentenced to the death penalty, then give them the death penalty, if they are to serve 5 years then let them serve five years, but you don't lock a human being in solitary confinement for more than 20 years. No human is meant to endure torture or cruel and unusual punishment.

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out--
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out--
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out--
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me--and there was no one left to speak for me.

So Please, I ask of you, help us be a voice for the voiceless. If you would like to help these prisoners stand with us on saturday as we take a stand with these prisoners for basic human rights.  If you would like to help, Here are a few ways.

The 400 prisoners have just 5 demands:
1) End long-term confinement 
2) End group punishment & administrative abuse 
3) Abolish the debriefing policy & modify gang status criteria 
4) Provide adequate and nutritious food
5) Create & expand constructive programming While hungry, there's plenty to do besides eat. 
1) Call Governor Jerry Brown at (916) 445-2841 to let him know why you are participating.
2) Call your state representatives to let them know why you are participating and that you just called the Governor. http://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov/  
3) Call up an old friend, preferably living in California, and let them know why this is important to you. Also ask if they wish to fast with you for the rest of the day. For more information: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/09/california-prison-hunger-strike-inmate
4) JOIN THE FACEBOOK EVENT https://www.facebook.com/events/196927767149865/?notif_t=plan_edited

For more inspiration and ideas, watch the video at the top of this blog! 

Let Your Light Shine

 In life, many of us live afraid of a physical death, or of something "bad" happening to us. We live afraid of persecution, afraid of death, afraid of outside circumstances hindering us, or of robbers or murderers. Yet, these are not the threats we should most fear, we should fear as Victor Hugo once said, what hinders the soul, whatever it is, whatever leaves us disempowered from standing for our beliefs and letting our glorious God given light shine. I would like to throw the following quote by Martin Luther King out there. 

 

“You may be 38 years old, as I happen to be. And one day, some great opportunity stands before you and calls you to stand up for some great principle, some great issue, some great cause. And you refuse to do it because you are afraid…. You refuse to do it because you want to live longer…. You’re afraid that you will lose your job, or you are afraid that you will be criticized or that you will lose your popularity, or you’re afraid that somebody will stab you, or shoot at you or bomb your house; so you refuse to take the stand.

Well, you may go on and live until you are 90, but you’re just as dead at 38 as you would be at 90. And the cessation of breathing in your life is but the belated announcement of an earlier death of the spirit.” 

- Marin Luther King Jr. 

 

I wanted to share this as a reminder to all, the true tragedy, the true horror, is not the persecution that comes with standing for who you are, but allowing that fear to paralyze you. The true tragedy is not in the death of the living, but the living of the already dead.

Good Read on Why Anti- Authoritarians are diagnosed as Mentally ill

This was an amazing article by Bruce Levine, if you have some time it is definitely worth the time for a read.  These issues have absolutely become relevent in my life, and others I know who think for themselves and refuse to view the government or other worldly authorities as God.

Why Anti-Authoritarians are Diagnosed as Mentally Ill

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Bruce Levine, Ph.D.

February 26, 2012

(Note: Read Bruce Levine’s latest post: Anti-Authoritarians and Schizophrenia: Do Rebels Who Defy Treatment Do Better?
In my career as a psychologist, I have talked with hundreds of people previously diagnosed by other professionals with oppositional defiant disorder, attention deficit hyperactive disorder, anxiety disorder and other psychiatric illnesses, and I am struck by (1) how many of those diagnosed are essentially anti-authoritarians, and (2) how those professionals who have diagnosed them are not.
Anti-authoritarians question whether an authority is a legitimate one before taking that authority seriously. Evaluating the legitimacy of authorities includes assessing whether or not authorities actually know what they are talking about, are honest, and care about those people who are respecting their authority. And when anti-authoritarians assess an authority to be illegitimate, they challenge and resist that authority—sometimes aggressively and sometimes passive-aggressively, sometimes wisely and sometimes not.
Some activists lament how few anti-authoritarians there appear to be in the United States. One reason could be that many natural anti-authoritarians are now psychopathologized and medicated before they achieve political consciousness of society’s most oppressive authorities.
Why Mental Health Professionals Diagnose Anti-Authoritarians with Mental Illness
Gaining acceptance into graduate school or medical school and achieving a PhD or MD and becoming a psychologist or psychiatrist means jumping through many hoops, all of which require much behavioral and attentional compliance to authorities, even to those authorities that one lacks respect for. The selection and socialization of mental health professionals tends to breed out many anti-authoritarians. Having steered the higher-education terrain for a decade of my life, I know that degrees and credentials are primarily badges of compliance. Those with extended schooling have lived for many years in a world where one routinely conforms to the demands of authorities. Thus for many MDs and PhDs, people different from them who reject this attentional and behavioral compliance appear to be from another world—a diagnosable one.
I have found that most psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals are not only extraordinarily compliant with authorities but also unaware of the magnitude of their obedience. And it also has become clear to me that the anti-authoritarianism of their patients creates enormous anxiety for these professionals, and their anxiety fuels diagnoses and treatments.
In graduate school, I discovered that all it took to be labeled as having “issues with authority” was to not kiss up to a director of clinical training whose personality was a combination of Donald Trump, Newt Gingrich, and Howard Cosell. When I was told by some faculty that I had “issues with authority,” I had mixed feelings about being so labeled. On the one hand, I found it quite amusing, because among the working-class kids whom I had grown up with, I was considered relatively compliant with authorities. After all, I had done my homework, studied, and received good grades. However, while my new “issues with authority” label made me grin because I was now being seen as a “bad boy,” it also very much concerned me about just what kind of a profession that I had entered. Specifically, if somebody such as myself was being labeled with “issues with authority,” what were they calling the kids I grew up with who paid attention to many things that they cared about but didn’t care enough about school to comply there? Well, the answer soon became clear.
Mental Illness Diagnoses for Anti-Authoritarians
A 2009 Psychiatric Times article titled “ADHD & ODD: Confronting the Challenges of Disruptive Behavior” reports that “disruptive disorders,” which include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and opposition defiant disorder (ODD), are the most common mental health problem of children and teenagers. ADHD is defined by poor attention and distractibility, poor self-control and impulsivity, and hyperactivity. ODD is defined as a “a pattern of negativistic, hostile, and defiant behavior without the more serious violations of the basic rights of others that are seen in conduct disorder”; and ODD symptoms include “often actively defies or refuses to comply with adult requests or rules” and “often argues with adults.”
Psychologist Russell Barkley, one of mainstream mental health’s leading authorities on ADHD, says that those afflicted with ADHD have deficits in what he calls “rule-governed behavior,” as they are less responsive to rules of established authorities and less sensitive to positive or negative consequences. ODD young people, according to mainstream mental health authorities, also have these so-called deficits in rule-governed behavior, and so it is extremely common for young people to have a “duel diagnosis” of AHDH and ODD.
Do we really want to diagnose and medicate everyone with “deficits in rule-governed behavior”?
Albert Einstein, as a youth, would have likely received an ADHD diagnosis, and maybe an ODD one as well. Albert didn’t pay attention to his teachers, failed his college entrance examinations twice, and had difficulty holding jobs. However, Einstein biographer Ronald Clark (Einstein: The Life and Times) asserts that Albert’s problems did not stem from attention deficits but rather from his hatred of authoritarian, Prussian discipline in his schools. Einstein said, “The teachers in the elementary school appeared to me like sergeants and in the Gymnasium the teachers were like lieutenants.” At age 13, Einstein read Kant’s difficult Critique of Pure Reason—because Albert was interested in it. Clark also tells us Einstein refused to prepare himself for his college admissions as a rebellion against his father’s “unbearable” path of a “practical profession.” After he did enter college, one professor told Einstein, “You have one fault; one can’t tell you anything.” The very characteristics of Einstein that upset authorities so much were exactly the ones that allowed him to excel.
By today’s standards, Saul Alinsky, the legendary organizer and author of Reveille for Radicals and Rules for Radicals, would have certainly been diagnosed with one or more disruptive disorders. Recalling his childhood, Alinsky said, “I never thought of walking on the grass until I saw a sign saying ‘Keep off the grass.’ Then I would stomp all over it.” Alinsky also recalls a time when he was ten or eleven and his rabbi was tutoring him in Hebrew:

One particular day I read three pages in a row without any errors in pronunciation, and suddenly a penny fell onto the Bible . . . Then the next day the rabbi turned up and he told me to start reading. And I wouldn’t; I just sat there in silence, refusing to read. He asked me why I was so quiet, and I said, “This time it’s a nickel or nothing.” He threw back his arm and slammed me across the room.

Many people with severe anxiety and/or depression are also anti-authoritarians. Often a major pain of their lives that fuels their anxiety and/or depression is fear that their contempt for illegitimate authorities will cause them to be financially and socially marginalized; but they fear that compliance with such illegitimate authorities will cause them existential death.
I have also spent a great deal of time with people who had at one time in their lives had thoughts and behavior that were so bizarre that they were extremely frightening for their families and even themselves; they were diagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychoses, but have fully recovered and have been, for many years, leading productive lives. Among this population, I have not met one person whom I would not consider a major anti-authoritarian. Once recovered, they have learned to channel their anti-authoritarianism into more constructive political ends, including reforming mental health treatment.
Many anti-authoritarians who earlier in their lives were diagnosed with mental illness tell me that once they were labeled with a psychiatric diagnosis, they got caught in a dilemma. Authoritarians, by definition, demand unquestioning obedience, and so any resistance to their diagnosis and treatment created enormous anxiety for authoritarian mental health professionals; and professionals, feeling out of control, labeled them “noncompliant with treatment,” increased the severity of their diagnosis, and jacked up their medications. This was enraging for these anti-authoritarians, sometimes so much so that they reacted in ways that made them appear even more frightening to their families.
There are anti-authoritarians who use psychiatric drugs to help them function, but they often reject psychiatric authorities’ explanations for why they have difficulty functioning. So, for example, they may take Adderall (an amphetamine prescribed for ADHD), but they know that their attentional problem is not a result of a biochemical brain imbalance but rather caused by a boring job. And similarly, many anti-authoritarians in highly stressful environments will occasionally take prescribed benzodiazepines such as Xanax even though they believe it would be safer to occasionally use marijuana but can’t because of drug testing on their job
It has been my experience that many anti-authoritarians labeled with psychiatric diagnoses usually don’t reject all authorities, simply those they’ve assessed to be illegitimate ones, which just happens to be a great deal of society’s authorities.
Maintaining the Societal Status Quo
Americans have been increasingly socialized to equate inattention, anger, anxiety, and immobilizing despair with a medical condition, and to seek medical treatment rather than political remedies. What better way to maintain the status quo than to view inattention, anger, anxiety, and depression as biochemical problems of those who are mentally ill rather than normal reactions to an increasingly authoritarian society.
The reality is that depression is highly associated with societal and financial pains. One is much more likely to be depressed if one is unemployed, underemployed, on public assistance, or in debt (for documentation, see “400% Rise in Anti-Depressant Pill Use”). And ADHD labeled kids do pay attention when they are getting paid, or when an activity is novel, interests them, or is chosen by them (documented in my book Commonsense Rebellion).
In an earlier dark age, authoritarian monarchies partnered with authoritarian religious institutions. When the world exited from this dark age and entered the Enlightenment, there was a burst of energy. Much of this revitalization had to do with risking skepticism about authoritarian and corrupt institutions and regaining confidence in one’s own mind. We are now in another dark age, only the institutions have changed. Americans desperately need anti-authoritarians to question, challenge, and resist new illegitimate authorities and regain confidence in their own common sense.
In every generation there will be authoritarians and anti-authoritarians. While it is unusual in American history for anti-authoritarians to take the kind of effective action that inspires others to successfully revolt, every once in a while a Tom Paine, Crazy Horse, or Malcolm X come along. So authoritarians financially marginalize those who buck the system, they criminalize anti-authoritarianism, they psychopathologize anti-authoritarians, and they market drugs for their “cure.”
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