It's Cool to have confidence in something 95% of the world would disagree with. Yes I'm an arrogent SOB in my beliefs. In all else I'm just like the millions of others who plod along following the crowd. Oh I disagree with popular world views on many things. It's just that I don't have any idea what the solutions are any more than they do.
War for example. There are many who would say, "But there is a solution." If people would just learn to reason there would be no war. That of course is not a solution. Why? Because we can never rid ourselves of that "if". I am convinced that war has been the nature of man since he climbed down out of the trees, and it will always be the nature of man.
War, and the glorification of war, it seems man will have war. That old squat about a war to end all wars is crap of course. As long as two humans survive so will war. Man is a carnivore, an aggressive territorial animal. Man loves war. It would be a boring uninteresting world without war. Even for us who can't participate directly it is brought right inside our living room, like the Sunday afternoon football game. Oh and thus far commercial free. I can't imagine a world without war any easier than I can imagine a God up there who gives a squat. But I disagree with the concept of war. I believe it is the most horrible thing imaginable.
( And what does being a carnivore have to do with the subject I am discussing here? Nothing! I just like the word carnivore. I thought it would be impressive and cool, so I included it. Maybe you will think it is cool too, if not, get over it. Just forget it and go on with the rest of what I have to say, which is equally unimportant. )
The children, women and men who are maimed by war, and doomed to live out their lives as invalids, the children who have to go through life without arms, or legs, or eyes, that is the tragedy of war. Oh I know that nations morn their dead, pay tribute to their dead, honor their dead. But the truth is the dead are of little consequence. It's the living who are the tradegy of war.
I don't think it's so strange for a 65 year old man to be thinking about death. I'm not in the best of health and can't have very much time left. But I guess I have did almost all the things I really want to do. I have been to war and survived with no permanent physical defects. Mental, now thats debatable. But I have managed to live a fairly normal life, only having to deal with domestic problems. But then I was one of the lucky ones.
If people could see. Death isn't really the tragedy of war. Death is just the thing which makes it so glamorous. God, now we can have our memorials, our celebrations of death to honor our fallen heroes. We can build our memorials which don't mean squat to the dead. We can have our parades, our festivals, our back yard barbecues. Memorials are for the living to prepare us for our next gloreous war for which we can build even more impressive memorials.
People say it's such a tragedy to die so young, look what he has missed in life. The dead hasen't missed anything. One has to have canscious thought to miss something. It is indeed tragic for their loved ones which are left behind, but only for a short time. He is soon forgotten and that's as it should be. The liveing have to survive and go on with their lives. But their lives all lead to the very same end. And is their death any less tragic? All death is tragic for the loved ones they leave behind, for a short time. But death is never tragic for the dead. The Tragedy is the children and people mamed by war.
I don't understand why people fear death. I myself have no fear of dying. But then I can't say how I might feel when death grows near. But at present, I feel I will be able to face it without fear. I'm not particulary looking forward to it, but I don't fear it either. All roads lead to the same end. One tragedy of death is those left behind who have to clean up the mess. As for me, just leave me for the scavengers.
The thing that worries me is the period of helplessness before death. I have never needed help in my adult life. And people keep trying to keep you alive even after you become totally useless. Even in a coma from which you can never recover they try to keep you alive. It's redicelous. Then perhaps I will be one of the lucky ones who die a sudden death.
I remember seeing a man die a sudden death. God the treatment they gave that poor guy to try and revive him. And I'm thinking, what a shame it would be if they did revive him and he had to go through a long period of suffering just so he could die again. I remember a time when the heart stopped beating they pronounced you dead, let you go, and didnt bother with you after that. But now they try to shock you back to life, pump your heart for you, anything to bring you back. God if im gone let me go. Don't try and bring me back so I will have to go through that shit all over again.
I don't know why, but it seams that Christians are the ones who fear death most. But why? When they are the ones who have the most to gain by death. Of course I suppose they are the ones who have the most to fear also. That is if they are not ready to face judgement. But most of them seam to have their defense well prepaired. And have all their excuses well rehersed in advance. But all of them seem to fear death nevertheless. Even those who swear they are headed straight for glory. They struggle for the very last gasping breath of life.
Now Muslims they seem to welcome death. Strange when Christians seem to think Muslims are the ones who are headed straight to hell. But then I suppose Muslims feel the same about Christians. Odd how people of one religion all feel people of another religion are children of the devil and are going straight to hell. Not my religion. I don't think anyone is going to hell.
But then I don't really consider Atheism a religion. After all how many people are so sure they are right about a thing that they are ready to bet ther life on it. Maybe that is why Christians fear death. Perhaps they are not so sure of their salvation that they are willing to bet their lives on it.
After King David's son died he went to his house and requested food and his servents served him. but asked him why he was acting this way. He answered. "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thougt, 'Who knows? The Lord may let the child live.' But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me." Afterwards Daved went to Bethsheba his wife and comforted her and she bore him another son, which David named Solomon.
Now all has been heard; adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things here is the conclusion of the matter: Death don't mean squat. It's only the living that matter. The dead have already did their part to assure the survival of the living. Now its up to the living to carry on and assure the survival of the generations of those to follow. for only through survival on earth can we all survive, for we live on in the living. We are connected through eveloution to all life on earth. Not conchously of course, but thats what makes it so cool. |
