Utopia Lost

Hello once again my friends and fellow knowledge seekers, this is the one and only Quiet Mouse coming at ya with more ideas that you might not have thought of previously. For all those who enjoy reading like I do, I would highly encourage you to look up "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" by Ursula K. Le Guin.

This discourse she wrote really got me thinking about the American society and how other cultures see this country much like a Utopia. The FACT is that this is further from the truth than most want to admit. For the sake of argument, we will suggest that THEY are correct in their assumption that this is ACTUALLY the best place to work and live in the world. The mass media do their best to cultivate this image of the "American Dream" through movies, magazines, radio, and television. We can't help but escape these images that are force fed to us. I cannot deny that to an outsider, I can only imagine how alluring it must be, this idea that you can start from pennies to be a millionaire. Hollywood likes to portray this image, but it is an illusion, carefully crafted by those in power. Holly wood, if broken down into two words, actually has much meaning in and of itself. For those who do not know Holly wood was used in ancient times to make magic wands. Hollywood together as one word, is a play on words, simply illustrating the illusion or "magic" of the wool being pulled over your eyes in a major fashion.

The problem, as we can look at other cultures and testify to the fact that in order for there to be an elite, or upper class, SOMEONE has to SUFFER! Look at the caste system of India. The higher classes, much like this society, enjoy an opulent lifestyle while the lower class suffers the burdens of the wasteful, irresponsible elite.
The majority of people in this nation chose to ignore and turn their backs on those less fortunate, as if they chose to be where they are. What is worse is that people have the ability to rationalize their wasteful ways by saying that even if those unfortunate ones were by happenstance able to come by the "finer things", well, they just wouldn't appreciate them anyway. This is NOT my belief.
The constitution grants us the right to the PURSUIT of happiness. It does NOT guarantee us actual happiness, because it is all subjective. One person's garbage is another's treasure. In my opinion the problem arises that we, as Americans have lost our personal satisfaction because we are constantly seeking something we do NOT have, rather than living modestly and enjoying the things we DO have.
So, I guess to understand things, we have to get down to the brass tacks of what actually makes us happy...
Is it sex? Well, we ARE one of the most repressed cultures in the world, which has led to new levels of perversion and debauchery.
Is it drugs? Who can say? I believe that use in moderation can lead to SHORT-TERM happiness, but it is NOT sustainable and continued, repeated use leads to abuse and physical as well as psychological harm (allegedly, again, I think this is up to the user and personal tolerance levels and this funny idea called responsibility).
How about music? It seems that when we are engrossed in the music, as I have blogged about before, we have the ability to find a certain level of happiness, losing track of time.
So if it's not sex, drugs, and rock and roll, then what is it that makes us happy? Little things I think are the ones that make it all worth while. Adversity allows us to have a contrast for what is really important and truly makes us happy.
So, is it possible for there to be a Utopian society in this day and age. The terms for this type of society are STRICT and ABSOLUTE. The political and corporate interests are busy and publicly now trying to convince people that a New World Order is in the best interest of all. I do not agree. As I wrote before, in order for them to live their lifestyle, someone has to suffer and it is generally US, those who do not have all that much. Money aside, why are we constantly willing to give away MORE of our rights?
Feigning ignorance and denying the underlying social and economic problems plaguing this nation do not change the fact that they DO exist. I am gonna quote from this discourse I mentioned above because I believe what it says.
"The trouble is that we have a bad habit, encouraged by pedants and sophisticates, of considering happiness as something rather stupid. Only pain is intellectual, only evil is interesting. This is the treason of the artist: a refusal to admit the banality of evil and the terrible boredom of pain. If you can't lick 'em, join 'em. If it hurts, repeat it. But to praise despair is to condemn delight, to embrace violence is to lose hold of everything else. We have almost lost hold; we can no longer describe a happy man, nor make any celebration of joy."
The passage continues, but this one part really gripped into my very being. I personally strive to understand the complex idiosyncrasies of human behavior.
How does this passage make YOU feel?
Do you believe that it is possible for people to live in peace and harmony in an Utopian society? If it is based on MORE than lies and deception, perhaps... but if it is based on turning your back on one group so another can prosper, than I don't believe it is REAL.
What is REAL? Buddhist thought teaches that our entire existence in this "reality" is for the sole purpose to experience SUFFERING. It teaches that the "reality" we believe in and hold in such high reverence is an illusion for MEN to manipulate other MEN. When I say men, much like any theological text, I refer to MEN as humans in general.

It is a terrible paradox that we live in, having lost the basic building blocks of family, LOVE, and empathy that divide us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom, ruled only by basic instincts. Is this then, indeed, a vapid, irresponsible happiness that we are living in? Are we indeed FREE, knowing that our success has come at the sacrifice of so much, at such a high cost?

In "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" the discourse ends with those who cannot accept the "reality" or at least chose NOT to accept it, they just walk away. In this country, we do not always have this option, especially with BIG BROTHER in an Orwellian, often destructive, control of society. Some chose to accept the system, repressing their guilt, turning a blind eye to the reality that is facing us daily. Some chose to get "off the grid" and live like the olden days gone by, much like the Amish still chose to live.
Is either side wrong for their beliefs? It is not my place to judge, only to inform. I can state my own opinions about the unjustifiable and reprehensible acts that we, as humans, have the ability to do against one another. All I want you to do is wake up and open your eyes and see the world around you for what it really is... FUCKED UP!!

This has been the Quiet Mouse once again. I hope that some more people will read this and wake up from this Matrix of illusion that has been pulled in front of your eyes to distract you from what is REAL.
Peace. Love. TRUTH. Respect. Empathy.