DittoOriginally Posted by Getchi
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday
Ditto
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday
We were talking on another thread about Kensho (smensho) and how it is not necessarily a big thing with bells and horns, but more often a series of small awakenings. One of those for me was the realization of, "OH MY GOD, our minds are ALL this way!!" No matter how many times I tell my teens, "everyone is struggling in high school, everyone is worried about being the only one not cool, not smart, etc" they can't seem to feel it. We all walk around feeling like our minds are so separate from everyone else's. Then you look at the posts in this forum, and realize that every single person--brown, white, Asian, young, old, male, female, Christian, atheist, liberal, conservative, athletic, disabled, whatever--has the same dukkha, samsara, desire to end suffering, along with seeds of wisdom and anger and compassion and fear. As Kyle said, Zazen is the great mediator, (or I might say equalizer).
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday
Hi,
Generally law is the USA is made by this process:
The House of Representatives (republican) come up with with a proposed law (takes 51% of the House of Representatives which is republican). The proposed law then goes to the senate (more than 50% republican but less than 60% republican) for any proposed changes and is sent to the president (republican) to sign the proposed law into actual law. So, it takes 51% or greater in both the house (republican) and the senate (republican) to get it to the president (republicans) to make something into law.
Here is the primary problem for republicans even though the control the house, the senate and the presidency:
Cloture rules. Cloture means shut up, we are going to take a vote so that we can send a proposed law to the president for signature.
The senate republicans do not have and are far from having > 60% senators required to tell the democrats to shut up so that we can send this proposed law to the president so he can sign it into law.
Unless something drastically changes in the USA, it's business as usual. Lots of talk, no action because the talk can not become law.
That said, the executive branch of government can create immediate and also long lasting changes.
My 2 cents.
Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_
Thanks Jishin, I feel a little safer.
Following the markets, I can not see much seriously changing. Ex; the cost of the wall ultimately will be passed onto American consumers. I assume most will be rather upset by that situation.
My friend won Student President by promising Mac ca's in the can teen. He ultimately blamed the teachers for tag failed policy. He now advised govt on environmental law. (McDonalds burgers, not sure if you have them over there.)
Jakuden exactly! We all "know" the beauty and fragility of this life, but even I want to wrap my neighbors stupid clarinet around sadistic skull. I settle for quiet music and an impromtue Zazen instead.
We truly are better together, and we do make this world great already i mo.
Gassho,
Ge off.
Satagaintoday.
Nothing to do? Why not Sit?
Kyonin,
I have to say your post has stuck with me as well for a number of days and every time I check this thread it is one I reread. It seems you are looking at a trade off of security vs. Speaking your mind. In light of this it seems like the most radical and beautiful act you could do and preserve your safety is to just sit. Sit beyond the ups and downs and manifest compassion. It's like playing the long game where kindness is the great facilitator. Then again I may have over romanticized it.
Anywhos, my thoughts are with you.
Gassho
Chelsea
Sat2day
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Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_
That is priceless, Jishin.
I love the bad lip reading series. Thanks for bringing an element of humor to this topic.
Gassho--
--JimH (SatToday!)
Gassho!
Jakuden
SatToday
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The Rick Santorum one is rude in parts, but funny. .... "I'm living for donuts and venison"
Gassho
Daizan
sat today
Thank you all for your kind comments and PMs.
All I do is sit and look at life as a mutant
Gassho,
Kyonin
#SatToday
Hondō Kyōnin
奔道 協忍
I haven't laughed this hard in a long time!!! Thank you!!!
Gassho,
Tanjin
SatToday
探 TAN (Exploring)
人 JIN (Person)
Hello, I agree with what seems to be the overwhelming view of those who have posted here that we must show compassion, respect and understanding to all, regardless of their views. Hate comes from fear and ignorance and compassion the main antidote. A respectful exchange of views is also important. As a UK citizen, I will also sign petitions, write to my MP, donate to activist charities and, when I can, march against the abuses of human rights, civil liberties, environmental destruction and animal welfare. And yes, most important of all is our everyday interactions with other sentient beings.
Thank you for this thread.
Gassho
Cathy
Sat today
Gassho,
Cathy
Sat today
I believe that I feel compelled to say something soon on the refugee issue, and barring people from entry. This seems as one area that has crossed a line of basic human dignity and compassion.
I need to collect my feelings on the issue.
Gassho, J
SatToday
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
This is an interesting site:
https://impeachdonaldtrumpnow.org
Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_
I did. Of course, my little voice means nothing, but I felt it right to say something. Some may choose to disagree.
A Step too Far: A Way for Refugees and Deserving Immigrants
http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...ing-Immigrants
Gassho, J
SatToday
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
I think it is important for us to remember that even as the Buddha Way is beyond all views, it is not neutral on views, and the prevailing views of the day. Just because many people hold some views does not make them ok. Buddhism is not moral relativism. Morality, right and wrong, are empty like the mountains and rivers, but like mountains and rivers, they return. Form is form.
It is important for this sangha to take a stand, without rancor or hatred, for "right view"' free of racism, nationalism, and nativism. The mindset of a generalized "Us vs Them" cannot stand in the light of practice.
This is not just another political season. There are atavistic impulses with great political power now, and we have a responsibility to offer an alternative view, and to oppose when nessecary without hatred.
On a personal note, here in Canada these impulses are also playing out, which is a shock for us. Tomorrow I will be tutoring a wonderful Muslim art student. What do I say, except that she belongs to my community, has so much to give, and is loved.
Gassho
Daizan
Sat today
Last edited by RichardH; 01-30-2017 at 02:43 PM.
Love and peace to all.
SAT today
Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
_/_
Rich
MUHYO
無 (MU, Emptiness) and 氷 (HYO, Ice) ... Emptiness Ice ...
https://instagram.com/notmovingmind
Hello,
today I didn't sleep well, I even had a nightmare regarding a destruction of the world we know. This might explain my somehow negative emotional level. In the morning, I read someone mentioning "Trump building a dictatorship" and some very negative news. Some internet users I know always have a negative view about the future and get extremely emotional, some of them are buddhists, too. First, I didn't think Trump would be that bad, but I slowly begin to believe them. In the end, that's what it is: a belief. The last few weeks I felt great, but today I got a little bit overwhelmed by all this negativity. I don't know what I want to ask you or what my text should express, I just wanted to write this down. Today I feel pretty hopeless. Maybe I just need something uplifting like Kyonin's text.
This, too, shall pass.
Gassho, Max
Last edited by Makkusu; 02-02-2017 at 04:39 PM.
Yes these days we could all use a good dose of Koi pond and a break from the news once in awhile! Right there with ya.
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday and am on a reduced-Facebook diet
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•sat2day...合掌
Troy
That was great! They speak the truth. No worries. ☺
SAT today
Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
_/_
Rich
MUHYO
無 (MU, Emptiness) and 氷 (HYO, Ice) ... Emptiness Ice ...
https://instagram.com/notmovingmind
Don't confuse the world outside with the "might be/could be/what if" world we create in our head. They are not the same. The first will turn out as it turns out. The first may be good bad or somewhere between. But is not helped very much by adding on the second in your mind. In fact, we can never quite separate our experience of the two, but we should be aware that the latter colors how we experience the former.
Maybe it is a good time for the broken leg story?
I will also bump a talk with a philosophy that keeps me going sometimes ... The perspective is a little different from just "look on the bright side" ...There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years.
One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "May be," the farmer replied.
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed. "May be," replied the old man.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune. "May be," answered the farmer.
The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. "May be," said the farmer.
SIT-A-LONG with Jundo: gratitude & Great Gratitude
http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...reat-Gratitude
Gassho, J
SatToday
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
May be, May be not. Perhaps the recent daily events we agenize over that are so apposed to our altruistic nature are actually in the long run the energy that will pull us together. May be, may be not.
SAT TODAY
Shozan
I don't like Trump except for one thing.
To his credit, through winning the election he managed to reveal a good deal of deception and bias in the media and government. Now he seems to be introducing his own brand of deception and bias, but I suppose we can only accuse others of things we recognize within ourselves. Right now the future is uncertain in ways it never seemed uncertain. And yet the future has been uncertain the whole time.
This new social and political climate is testing the complacency of people of both right and left wing persuasions. New ideas are being brought into the White House that are hiding in plain sight masked by the insane antics of both the Trump administration and the media across the board.
Behind Trump's incoherent, offensive, and careless ramblings about Black History Month or how big his inauguration audience was or the blitz of poorly thought out executive orders are new concepts about what an American is. Namely in the form of Steve Bannon and the right wing propaganda he and Andrew Breitbart dedicated their lives to. Those ideas define what an American is in very specific terms.
But if they get to try out and promoted new ideas that means the WE ALL DO TO. For the next four years America will not be a battleground of bipartisan politics, but a battleground of ideas. We all have a responsibility to meditate on our values and learn how to communicate those concepts to anyone. When we encounter an idea we find toxic we must find ways to dismantle it within the hearts and minds of our communities regardless of the outcome.
If we are diligent as a people, including all y'all who aren't from the US, and relentlessly strive to promote our ideas within our communities, refining over and over along the way, we may have a golden opportunity. As Buddhists who don't proselytize our beliefs, I feel now is a good time for us to promote that sentiment. Not to convert others to Buddhism, but to promote the wisdom and goodwill that comes from religious tolerance. Americans have a very narrow view in what a religion is and isn't. We can help broaden the definition far beyond just Buddhism. We have to challenge others but if we don't savagely challenge ourselves we can only expect regret.
And of course there are many facets of life that will need our attention. Eleanor Rooselvt wisely pointed out that small minds talk about people. Medium minds talk about events. Great minds talk about ideas. Trump is a person. His election is an event. We have to pick the ball up with ideas or get run over by other people and events beyond our control.
I've lived my whole life with my back against a cliff. The ups and downs have been intense. America now seems to be getting a taste of the disappointment and uncertainty I've known since I was a kid. It's not so bad. And yet it really sucks and is terrible.
Even if the government does attack us with killer robots. And they do have killer robots.... Might as well stand up for ourselves. What other choice is there?
If a violent upheaval happens will Americans be able to trade in their prescription meds for bullets?
Gassho
Sat Today
I am with you there. Over saturation of the media is a real thing. Also the political climate seems to be a fear of loss on either side where one acts and the other reacts like the law of physics.Yes these days we could all use a good dose of Koi pond and a break from the news once in awhile
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday and am on a reduced-Facebook diet
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Gassho
Chelsea
Sat2day
Lion's Roar has released their second instalment of "Conservative Buddhists Speak":
https://www.lionsroar.com/conservati...peak-part-two/
Gassho,
Sekishi #sat
Sekishi | 石志 | He/him | Better with a grain of salt, but best ignored entirely.
Hello,
Thank you for the link.
Gassho
Myosha
sat today
"Recognize suffering, remove suffering." - Shakyamuni Buddha when asked, "Uhm . . .what?"
This was difficult for me to read. I just wanted to argue with these people.
Gassho
Hoseki
Sattoday
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
lol I agreed with a lot of them.This was difficult for me to read. I just wanted to argue with these people
Gassho
Hoseki
Sattoday
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Gassho,
Jiken
Thanks for the link Sekishi! It really is good to hear their rational explanations and viewpoints... I so wish we could come together on a much larger scale in this country to recognize the valid points of each perspective. But it's a start.
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Hi guys,
So I was thinking about this thread over the weekend and I think its time for the :O Actually I did want to talk about some of the thoughts I had while I was thinking about the thread. Politics can be derisive and this isn't a left or right issue. When groups form there are usually boundaries. When someone crosses one or is perceived to be outside the reaction can be unpleasant.
I think if we look at some of the policies that are advocated on the left will see that they resonate with our practice (at least as it is here.) If we are to save all sentient beings wouldn't universal health care be something we would push for? Or access to clean water (Flint, Michigan)? I don't see how fostering compassion for others wouldn't lead to include measures to promote their physical well being. We vow not to kill but we would allow someone to die because they couldn't afford their medication? We would chalk that up to being their own responsibility to look after themselves? (that's the vibe I got from the last correspondent.)
I have other thoughts on the issue but trying to sit down to write them is like trying to catch a fart in a butter tub. I know the fart is there but I can't seem to contain it
Anywho just some thoughts. What do you guys think?
Gassho
Hoseki
Sattoday
I think universal health care would be awesome. I don't think anyone disagrees with that. But we can't make any intelligent votes in the US because the numbers are never laid down.
Exactly how do you define universal health care?
How much does it specifically cost in our taxes? All the specifics, any increase in tax cost, how much of an increase, what % of tax money goes to it? This is for everything. We never get the details; that's why I can't vote yes or no. A 2000 page bill is insane; lawyers don't even get it.
If Universal Health care has a fixed cost, does this mean that all doctors get fixed salaries, and if that is so will that impact the quality of the physicians? No one works for free, and the elite in any field deserve to get paid more than their underperforming counterparts.
Just some questions; I think it's a great idea to take care of people, but we all need to know what that means specifically. The devil is in the details, and expecting a populace to vote on emotion rather than facts doesn't lend itself to a well-informed vote.
Gassho,
Risho
-sattoday
Hi Hoseki,
I think if we look at some of the policies that are advocated on the left will see that they resonate with our practice (at least as it is here.) If we are to save all sentient beings wouldn't universal health care be something we would push for? Or access to clean water (Flint, Michigan)? I don't see how fostering compassion for others wouldn't lead to include measures to promote their physical well being. We vow not to kill but we would allow someone to die because they couldn't afford their medication? We would chalk that up to being their own responsibility to look after themselves? (that's the vibe I got from the last correspondent.)
I have other thoughts on the issue but trying to sit down to write them is like trying to catch a fart in a butter tub. I know the fart is there but I can't seem to contain it
I might personally feel so (and I would add gun control to the list) as my personal belief.
However, it is unclear to me how much the Buddha, Dogen or most Buddhists of the past were interested in such issues. This world of samsara was an ugly place, and the point was not to fix it (that seemed even more impossible back then) ... but rather, to transcend the ugly or not be reborn in it again. Engaged perspectives (meaning calls for progressive social reform) are a development in Buddhism largely of the last century. Sorry to burst anyone's bubble on that, but the response of most monastics of the past from Thailand to Tokyo to Tibet (there are some noted exceptions) was to build a wall and close the door on the outside world. "Compassion" did not mean necessarily involvement in big social charity, but rather understanding of the suffering of life in general and the need to transcend/escape this life.
Furthermore, I do not know any Buddhist who would support polluted water or denials of health care per se. However, I do know conservative Buddhists who might advocate, for example, small government, reduced government regulations of the free market, right to life, gun rights (for sports and defense), military action as necessary to ultimately protect life, who might oppose the specific structure of Obama care or government involvement in insurance, and many other conservative causes. In Asia, most Buddhists I know tend to be rather politically conservative (not unlike conservative Christian church people in the West). The Lionsroar links above give voice to such people, and I am not prepared to say that they are acting outside the Precepts.
So, I personally feel that being a Buddhist means that, for example, someone should support stricter gun control. However, I also see that not all Buddhists agree, and if a weapon is held for sport or defense of self and family, I am not prepared to tell them "you are not a good Buddhist." Nonetheless, I may personally support gun control as one voice. Likewise for various other issues.
Gassho, J
SatToday
Last edited by Jundo; 02-16-2017 at 07:39 PM.
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
PS - Tibetan Buddhism teacher Ken McLeod has an interesting piece on this for Tricycle advocating Buddhists' non-involvement in social issues. He writes:
I don't happen to agree with him (or with my Dharma Bro. Brad Warner, who sometimes expresses like opinions). I feel that one can work on the world as one works on oneself, and make this world a bit better even as we try to know its True Nature.I was never taught that the practice of Buddhism was about making the world a better place. It has always been about coming to and giving expression to a different relationship with life—essentially a mystical path. My teacher was a mystic who followed the examples of Milarepa and Khyungpo Naljor.
One way to articulate the essence of mystical knowledge in Tibetan Buddhism is that we forget the self, the felt sense of “I” that permeates our perception of life and confines us to a life of reactivity and confusion.
... On the basis of that insight, some people are inspired to devote their lives to freeing themselves from the tyranny of emotional reactions associated with the sense of self. It is no easy task, unless one is endowed with a special talent for such pursuits. For most of us, it requires years of effort, and a complete retraining of the mind-body system and how it functions.
Given the serious problems in the world today, some people regard such an approach as self-centered, if not selfish. I’m not sure about the selfish part, if only because most people who engage in this pursuit are not selfish people. Self-centered or self-involved? Possibly, but no more so than an artist, a musician, or a dancer. Artists devote themselves to years of arduous training for the sake of their art. Why are those who devote themselves full-time to practice considered differently?
There have always been problems in the world. Granted, the problems now facing humanity are different in scale and in kind, but the idea that one has to be engaged with the problems of the world to be a real Buddhist is a very recent notion. It negates the lives of many of the great masters that inspire us and whose teachings we study and practice.
Obviously there are personal choices to be made here. But I think it is reckless and presumptuous to tell others how they should live their lives. Chuang Tzu describes a crooked, twisted tree that grows near a road. It is so crooked that no woodworker would ever think of cutting it down. It is just there. It may be that one day, a traveler stops beneath it to find shelter from the rain or shade from the sun. Or maybe it just stands there, because that’s what trees do.
https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/dont...aged-buddhism/
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
Hi Jundo,
This is a very important topic for me. I understand that as long as there are humans we are bound to create problems out of solutions thanks to our self deluded minds.
However I also believe that there is a way to transcend the ugliness but at the same time we can work for the benefit of all sentient beings. It only takes a little of your time to change someone's life! An act of kindness here, another there change the world in many ways.
Maybe the ugliness will never go away, but we keep on trying because seeing others smile, happy and peaceful is a great motivation to just keep on going in this practice.
My belief is that we can work educating the young in compassion and unity. And maybe in the future we could end up with ethic minded politicians that actually care for the people. Gun control laws could spring out of that.
There is away as long as there is one crazy mutant willing to set the ego aside and work for the benefit of others.
Gassho,
Kyonin
Hondō Kyōnin
奔道 協忍
This is so right, Kyonin.
It is one reason that we will be working at Treeleaf in the coming weeks and months to juice up and kick into high gear our "Engaged and Charitable Projects Center" of the Sangha, which is currently very quiet. With all that is going on in the world, one response will be for our Community to put good and charitable actions at the center of our Practice with Zazen. In fact, it is Zazen "off the cushion".
We can sit and find the Truth even as we work to fix what we can in this world.
Stand by in the coming weeks for news of this. It is in planning now.
Gassho, Jundo
SatToday
ALL OF LIFE IS OUR TEMPLE
Nicely said Kyonin thank you! =)
Yes there is ugliness in this world, but also beauty. Let us just keep doing what we are doing in trying to make a better world for all - hopefully one day the others may see the errors of their ways and too make the change for a more loving and peaceful world.
Gassho
Shingen
s@today
Hi Jundo,
Thank you for the responses. This discussion aroused strong feelings I will probably need some time to let this settle.
Gassho
Hi Risho,
Those are good questionsI was thinking something along the lines of what's in Canada, the UK or New Zealand. It could be potentially modeled after one of those systems. I don't know how they started but I'm sure they started with an idea. As for pricing, I would imagine services would have a fixed cost but which services are performs and the number of patients one sees would influence their pay. Here in Canada many physicians are small business owners that bill the government.
Gassho
Hoseki
Sattoday
Thank you jundo, I have wondered more and more as I age what to actually do with any freedom I experience through Dharma practice. Coming from a tradition focused mainly on self-realisation (silent or selfish bud ha lol) it has been eye opening to study the boddhisatva ideas of this Northern (mahayanna) school.
I feel Dharma is Dharma, everything else is politics and social political activism is informed by my Practice, but is not particularly "buddhist". Division is never strength.
Its an interesting read from LR, and i hope it continues. Though personally it feels like just a list of complaints from people, rather then conversation about multiple views of buddhist thought.
Gassho
Ge off
Sat today.
Nothing to do? Why not Sit?
Ha! I know there are solutions; I think we have to not give up and think in new ways and not close ourselves off to solutions that we never thought possible. Funny, after I wrote that elite practitioners should get paid more, I realized that is my biased view of the world. I hope one day, we get beyond money; I know it's a star trek ideal, but I have hope that one day we may get to that point where we drop off the monetary system. And no, I don't want to address any specifics. lolHi Jundo,
Thank you for the responses. This discussion aroused strong feelings I will probably need some time to let this settle.
Gassho
Hi Risho,
Those are good questions
Gassho
Hoseki
Sattoday
Kyonin - I think you are right. In the end, I think we have to be the crazy mutants that we wish to see in the world :P
Gassho,
Risho
-sattoday
I always think: which countries have successful programs for healthcare or education, etc.? Let's try their method!
Gassho, sat today
求道芸化 Kyūdō Geika
I am just a priest-in-training, please do not take anything I say as a teaching.
Try as I might, I can't keep from watching the news (and feeling a little bit frustrated more often than not). However....despite the "bad" that is going on, and the apparent disarray, I think there is definitely an upside to all that is going on. People in America are becoming more involved in politics, are checking facts and finding out things they never knew before (and maybe never cared about before). People are taking an active part in the discussions, and are maybe even learning more about the world as a whole. It would be nice if we were all to do these things without such a forceful impetus, but I think it is a good thing, no matter what spurs it.
Personally, I may grumble about some of the things I hear, but I grumble knowing that the grumbling is just that -- it won't fix anything, and complaining to the TV is like complaining in a wind storm: they both have the same effect. I just have to do the things that I can to make my immediate surroundings (my family, friends, neighborhood, city) a better place as much as I can, and realize that my version of "better" may actually be someone else's "worse". As Buddhists/Zen practitioners/humans/etc., we have to do what we think is right, and trust that things will work out the way that they are supposed to. Life has a funny way of seeing that this happens, I think.
Above all else, I think if some of the recent issues and events are bothersome, treat them as you might thoughts during zazen: notice them, acknowledge them, and let them go. If you can act, then do; if you can't, then don't....but either way, don't let the issues rule you.
Sometimes much easier to say than to do....and I'm guilty as much as anyone else. At those times....back to the mat!
Gassho--
--JimH (SatToday!)
Thank you for your post Jim. I feel much the same way you do.
Gassho,
Shugen
Sattoday
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Meido Shugen
明道 修眼
Watching steve bannon at CPAC.
Watching Steve Bannon being affable and well spoken, listening to what he said and especially his bearing, has reframed a few things for me. First of all I think it is a mistake to say he hates the mainstream media, or has a grudge or a chip on his shoulder. He is confident in his worldview, and his skills as a political operator.
Calling the mainstream media "the opposition" and "enemy of the people" and using every opportunity to drive home that message, is a strategy, not a defensive reaction or an emotional aversion. If it suited his strategy to embrace the mainstream media he would do so.
The point of this strategy is to consolidated the "base" and (just to be sure) the extreme right, and also to tell his and President Trump's soft support, that those who oppose the new Nationalism are either dupes of, or working for, the "Globalist Elite" . The final two minute long campaign commercial from 2016 covered this field, appealing to middle ground voters with an economic message, while clearly echoing the messaging of earlier Nationalists with what Sen. Franken called "a German Shepherd whistle" .
His appearance also reframes the bizarre news conference from two weeks ago. The accepted narrative around that event was that Trump was, against the advice of those around him, acting-out and being "unhinged" as he spent over an hour systematically attacking the sweep of mainstream news organizations. Given what Bannon has revealed, I think it is reasonable to conclude that the performance was on task, if not precisely on script.
Steve Bannon is a political "magus", to use a term applied to the current Canadian Prime Minister's father and former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Trudeau was a very different kind of person in every way, but certain qualities come through with certain talented political operators. A magus is someone who understands first of all the power of symbols and symbolism. He/she knows how to use them along with charismatic energy, and messaging-as-a-tool. With messaging-as-a-tool the value of the content is measured solely by its effectiveness at achieving a result, not its truthfulness. A lie is as good as a truth. Also, a magus will sow conflict or make peace as needed to achieve a goal. Polarization and conflict are not something to avoid, but a tool..
Steve Bannon has these qualities, and does seem to have a Rasputin-like hold on the Trump administration. He is using his skills to achieve goals that he has openly talked about, and that can be looked into further through his intellectual path in "neo-reactionary" thinking, which among other questionable assertions holds that Culture has a biological basis, and that "advanced" cultures are an expression of advanced races. You can google "neo-reactionary" and find much to read. This is all very open, including the various connections between prominent thinkers and the current administration in Bannon's fold. The harshest version of this worldview has been Naziism. The mainstream version has been the "White Man's Burden" of the British Raj. It may be fringe now, but at one time every ordinary British person, with the exception of socialist radicals and some religious communities, saw the world this way. My sense is that Bannon falls into the latter version, and is like a "normal" Westerner from several generations ago.
However, for practical political reasons he also "dog whistles" the former.
Bannon apparently sees "Judeo-Christian civilization" in a deadlock with "Islamic civilization" in a struggle for supremacy. At the very least pushing that view, exaggerating the threat from terrorism, and equating all Muslims with extremists, will serve as a self-fullfilling prophecy by playing into the narrative of Islamist extremists. The extremists and the new Nationalists both seek a separation and consolidation of civilizational blocks. The alignment looks like this... Terrorism is not blind hatred or nihilistic violence but a political tool, and the stated aim of the terrorist attacks in Europe by ISIS is to create a hostile environment for European Muslims, so that they will disidentify with European civilization, and identify with the "Caliphate". The new Nationalists exaggerate the threat of terrorism to the same end, representing Muslims as a fifth column of the Caliphate who are trying to impose sharia law on America.
This is the surreal picture that presents itself, to this mind at any rate. It seems unreal because it seemed impossible just a year ago, and nothing like this has risen up in my lifetime. I do not know what the world would look like if the new Nationalism prevails. I live in a multicultural city, where a "post colonial" perpective is a normal part of public education, and diversity is a self-evident good. I believe that the "Progressive" forces in human nature are like plate tectonics.....the continents are unstoppable if slow. I do not see the current U.S. administration as evil, and imagine they have the best interests of their children's children at heart. But I think it is possible they might unleash forces that will increase suffering in the world greatly, and that.. if what appears to be unfolding is actually unfolding.....the agenda and the strategy should be opposed peacefully by all means.
This is just one view. There was a need inside to take a snapshot of this strange moment and say something, so it is said, I would rather be painting.
Gassho
Daizan
Sat today.
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