Culture

*** CULTURE & LIFESTYLE & PHILOSOPHY ***

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. My Basic PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY (balance of extremes, uncompromising compassion, humanistic libertarianism, and emotional, intellectual, and social responsibility).

II. Based on a Balance of CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHIES (Judaism, Feminism , Paganism, Environmentalism , Libertarianism, Humanism, Psychology, and Existentialism).

III. Resulting in a Balance of LIFESTYLE (Hinduism, Goth, and Straight-Edge).

IV. Sources of INSPIRATION (spiritual, psychological, scientific, parenting, housing, political, and artistic).

V. a few OTHER of my own ideas and personal interests.

I. MY BASIC PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY:

* LIVING ON THE RAZOR'S EDGE *

** FEARLESS UNCOMPROMISING COMPASSION & COMMUNITY ACTIVISM **

*** CONSEQUENCES OF ACTIONS
MOST IMPORTANT FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL & SOCIETAL HEALTH ***

**** TRUE BEST FRIENDSHIP

CONTAINING ALL OF THE IDEALS -

TRUTH, LOVE, JUSTICE, FREEDOM, & BEAUTY -

IS THE STANDARD FOR ALL HUMAN BEHAVIOR & RELATIONSHIPS ****

***** BALANCE OF EXTREMES, NOT MODERATION *****

LIVING ON THE RAZOR'S EDGE: I dedicate myself to facing full force, without compromise, and with full consciousness the CHAOTIC STRANGENESS OF REALITY simply because THAT IS WHAT THE TRUTH ACTUALLY IS - the absurdity, unpredictability, paradoxical, ironic, mysterious, chaotic, overwhelmingly relativistic complexity of reality no matter how painful, scary, lonely, or uncomfortable that may be.
Reality was not designed for the comfort and enjoyment of our minds. Our challenge is to learn the most, and enjoy the best we can the wild ride that reality takes us on.
The unimagineable range and scope of reality is a mirror of both (1) the extreme limitation of our mind and ego, and (2) the infinite potential and nature of our spiritual being.

FEARLESS UNCOMPROMISING COMPASSION & COMMUNITY ACTIVISM:   I dedicate myself to caring for, and identifying with, without compromise, and with full consciousness, all people, all living beings, and the entire environment, no matter how overwhelmingly tragic, traumatic, cold, inhumane, and unfair reality and the wheel of life and death may seem.

CONSEQUENCES OF ACTIONS MOST IMPORTANT FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL & SOCIETAL HEALTH:   But this should be applied with great compassion so that there is a minimal of unneccessary suffering - thus I believe in a minimal societal welfare safety net. And.... this should be accompanied by maximum access to psychotherapy, vocational training, and social support (hooked into a community-type supportive network). I believe this model should be applied to the welfare system (with the poor, disabled, and unemployed), in the schools, in the prison system, amongst employees, and in parenting.

TRUE BEST FRIENDSHIP AS THE STANDARD OF ALL HUMAN RELATIONS: True best friendship CONTAINS THE IDEALS - truth, love, justice, freedom, and beauty, and thus IS THE MEASURE of the health of a person's behavior and relationships. This includes allowing people to experience the results of their actions as described above.  I believe the American Myth of Romantic Intimacy is not valid because it is based on illusions of pretend images rather than on how people actually are - that will very often lead to trouble as people find out who each of them really is. In true best friendship, people are themselves, there is emotional and financial self-sufficiency, there is trust, and there is honesty, and people are truly concerned for what is best for their best friend.

BALANCE OF EXTREMES, NOT MODERATION: This involves a life filled with BALANCES, but not moderation. This is important - I believe in BALANCE. I do not believe in moderation. I believe in living a balanced life to the EXTREME, INTENSELY, FULLY, UNCOMPROMISED, and definitely not moderately.

SAMPLE BALANCES OF EXTREMES
* Truth, Justice, Beauty *

In the midst of such a reality, I thus believe that the only worthwhile thing for us to do is to dedicate our lives to the realization and communication of Truth, the compassionate enforcement, defense, and spreading of Justice, and to support the creation and sharing of Beauty.

** Integrity, Responsibility, Love, Humility **

I attempt to apply these principles ,but only governed by uncompromising INTELLECTUAL INTEGRITY, EMOTIONAL RESPONSIBILITY, LOVING, EMPOWERING BEHAVIOR, and the willingness to HUMBLY admit that I will ALWAYS have a lot more to learn and improve on, and that I can learn these things from ABSOLUTELY everyone and everything no matter how primitive or childlike or insane that one or thing might be.

*** Inspiration, Intuition, Intelligence, Character Strength, Talent ***

To accomplish these things, I am thus transforming my personality so that I live only as an INSPIRED being - focused on, and guided only by spiritual guidance and insight, and emotional fulfillment and freedom, and am no longer ruled by fear, pain, or deprived feelings, neediness, off-centeredness, loneliness, and the need to feel comfortable. This will then guide my use of of extraordinary gifts of INTUITION, INTELLIGENCE, CHARACTER STRENGTH , and TALENT only toward the reduction of suffering, and to spread love and deeper understanding of each other and reality.

II. BASED ON A BALANCE OF CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHIES:

* Judaism / Feminism / Paganism / Environmentalism / Libertarianism / Humanism / Psychology / Existentialism *

1. I believe the highest calling for the human being is the search for truth and knowledge with integrity, which means that it takes priority over personal pain, ambition, comfort, anxiety, hopes, and fears. I learned this in my childhood and adolescent studies in Reform JUDAISM.
2. I believe that the best society is a FEMINIST society, guided by the Feminine Principle which embodies softness, inclusiveness, connectedness, and caring... and is very practical when neccessary ...
3. ... deeply connected to the earth and nature both spiritually (PAGAN) and scientifically (ENVIRONMENTALISM);
4. ...while encouraging a balance between community responsibility vs. the freedom of self-expression while helping citizens experience the results of their good and bad actions (JUDAISM & LIBERTARIANISM);
5. ...but that the application of this belief must be guided by the compassionate, inclusive, life-respecting morality found in HUMANISM, so that unneccessary suffering, degradation, and trauma does not occur;
6. ...and designed based on the most modern of scientific thought and theory (most importantly ENVIRONMENTALISM & PSYCHOLOGY), and the most realistic philosophical view of the human condition, the limits of the human mind and the infinite expanse of Spirit (EXISTENTIALISM & HINDUISM), so that the most effective guidance can be given to teach and encourage self-sufficiency, while also building the most effective of social safety nets.

Judaism: MY POV: a philosophy with an emphasis on integrity, especially in intellectual pursuit, which means giving the search for truth and knowledge the highest priority in human activity. Integrity means the pursuit of knowledge and truth no matter how it hurts, scares, threatens, provokes anxiety, confuses... no matter what. Thus there is the sense of an objective truth, knowledge, integrity and law, which is separate and even beyond personal issues, and thus guides the person to transcend their smaller self-image and seek the highest, with courage and with integrity. And this emphasis on intellectual excellence and integrity is balanced with the pure joy of beautiful poetry (as found in the prayer book) and joyful spontaneous dance (as found in Hasidic tradition). So there is the principle that intellectual integrity and achievement must also include and/or take into consideration the heart and human creativity.
In addition, Judaism teaches responsibility as a logical and natural bi-product of integrity, because you cannot enjoy the bounty of society and the earth without helping maintain and protect it. So fo me this has come to mean social, environmental and psychological responsibility as part of my personal ethics. This has led to my passion for politics.

FOR ME: the principle of intellectual integrity in the pursuit of knowledge and truth is the foundational concept behind my identity and lifestyle and life priorities..

MISSING: knowledge of the mechanics of transcendence and the mind and the heart. Jewish teachings only know about the principles but don't know how it actually works. Also, it seems that the emphasis on intellectual integrity has not survived the trauma of the holocaust, and thus has lost out in the pursuit of the survivial of Israel no matter what - no matter how many lies must be told, laws broken, people hurt, environment damaged.

Feminism: MY POV: a philosophical/political/scientific school of thought that considers the feminine principle more important than the masculine principle - that softness, sensitivity, openness, inclusiveness, etc. should be the lead in society over the goal and tool-oriented mentality which definitely still has it's place but in a submissive position.

FOR ME: emphasis and focus on the feminine experience which is so warm, compassionate, inclusive, and soft, and yet so strong, universal, and practical when needed.

MISSING: a spiritual dimension.

Paganism: MY POV: a spiritual philosophy that is focused on the all-pervasive, endlessly complex, magical, living connectedness of everything in nature. Paganism attempts to bring this into the consciousness of its adherents through rituals and celebration.
FOR ME: the emphasis on connectedness to nature and all her mysteries and dualities is extremely moving.
MISSING: balance with scientific method and theory.

Environmentalism: MY POV: a philosophical/political/scientific school of theory that proposes that as human beings have succeeded to a limited extent in transcending the wheel of life, while still mostly remaining dependent on it for survival, and can also have an overwhelmingly negative impact on its processes, that they then need to adopt an activist "Stewardship" role in relation to those processes - taking care of them and protecting them while allowing them as much as is practical to follow their own evolutionary course.
FOR ME: provides a very constructive, clear way for humans to live within a natural system that they dominate.
MISSING: advanced systems for societal processing.

Libertarianism: MY POV: a philosophical and political school of thought that believes that people need to get the results of their actions - whether it be pay based upon accomplishment, or punishment/prison term based on severity of the crime. This also teaches this as the guiding principle for parenting.
FOR ME: experiencing the results of my actions is essential for sanity.
MISSING: societal safety net for human error and/or bad luck, and protection of minority rights and environmental health. This philosophy also tends to encourage adolescent selfishness and self-centeredness in its insensitivity toward others which I strongly disrespect.

Humanism: MY POV: a philosophical school of thought that proposes that caring for, and including all life is the most important basis for action.
FOR ME: compassion and connectedness with all life is a major characteristic of the sanity I seek and believe in.
MISSING: scientific know-how to aid with application.

Psychology: MY POV: a philosophical/scientific school of theory that explains the human mind from a variety of points of view (all of which are at least partially correct). I believe the most important are the Existential, Cognitive, Analytical, Behavioral, and Humanistic Schools of Psychological Theory.
FOR ME: clear scientific explanation and technique concerning sanity, its maintenance, and its growth.
MISSING: heart, soul, and passion.

Existentialism: MY POV: a European-based philosophical school of thought that ponders the absurdity, chaos, vulnerability, insignificance, strangeness, unpredictability, mystery, arbitrariness, fragility, and emptiness of life, and the pre-eminence, inevitability, and proximity of death, while still living a fully compassionate & loving, ethical, and productive life. Believe or not - this is a very positive philosophy!!!.
FOR ME: absurdity, chaos, alienation, mystery, etc. fill my life and consciousness. Only this philosophy really helps me with it.
MISSING: knowledge of and appreciation for the Feminine Principle that is neccessary for helping this philosophy happen (see FEMINISM above) and the true cosmic nature of Consciousness which transcends the mind and is the Spiritual basis of everything.

*** FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT ***

III. RESULTING IN A BALANCE OF LIFESTYLES:

* Hinduism / Goth / Straight-Edge *...

1. HINDUISM FOR ME: I believe in the HINDU theological explanation of the Universe, and practice Yoga as the main way to maintain my sanity, strengthen my mind, and facilitate my continuing development toward realizing my potential as a human being.
MISSING: Cultural Symbols that I identify with, feel comfortable with, and that inspire me.

2. GOTH FOR ME: I am an active member of the Atlanta GOTHIC Community largely because of my beliefs in Existentialism, and I love the European Gothic Cultural Symbology.
MISSING: disciplined approach to life, and community consciousness and activism.

3. STRAIGHT-EDGE FOR ME: I practice a highly disciplined politically active anti-drug/ tobacco/ alcohol/ meateating/ casualsex STRAIGHT-EDGE Lifestyle.
MISSING: a logical, consistent explanation of how and why all this works, and effective psychological techniques for helping maintain such a rigorous lifestyle (which Hindu Yoga has).

General Descriptions

Hinduism: MY POV: ancient religion originating in India with an oppressive orthodoxy, but also strong surviving pagan-like strains (Tantra) which gives logical, sensible descriptions of the relationship between God, humans and all life, the world, and the rest of reality. This side of Hinduism also includes a highly workable theory and application of psychology (Yoga). One also finds here the unification of transcendent philosophies, earth-based natural spiritualities (Paganism), existentialist philosophies, modern psychology, and modern western science. I find this most clearly accomplished in the theology of Trika Shaivism, a mono-theistic Tantric philosophy originating in aproximately 1000 AD in what is now the Indian State of Kashmir.
Goth: MY POV: an alternative lifestyle found mainly in modern USA and Europe that is strongly based on the philosophy of existentialism, which it romanticizes in music and the arts centered on themes of darkness, chaos, irony, and paradox which so strongly characterize the human existential delimma. Goth is extremely different from the sub-cultures found around the modern interests in Death Rock Music, Vampires, devil worship, and Marilyn Manson although it does share much symbology with them. A major difference is that Goth is about being introspective, thoughtful, quiet, alone, and often strangely, ghostly beautiful. These other sub-cultures are about being shocking, loud, scary, often violent, and rebellious. Goth-like sub-cultures are found throughout history and throughout the world.
Straight-Edge (sXe): MY POV: a warrior-like lifestyle centered in alternative music scenes (for me this would be Goth) which takes a strong anti-smoking, anti-drugs & anti-alcohol, vegetarian, and political activist (primarily focused on environment and community organizing) stance. Such a stance keeps the mind clear, strong, and sharp to best enable it to face the challenges of reality. Straight-Edge originated in the 1980's with certain bands who expressed this point of view in their music in reaction to the destruction they were witnessing in the alternative music scene from drugs. But warrior-like lifestyles that include austere practices and community involvement are found in all cultures in all times.

Me at night ...

IV. SOURCES OF INSPIRATION FOR MY PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY:

* Spiritual Theory & Practice - Trika Shaivism (form of Hinduism), & Paganism (primarily Wiccan).

* Psychological Theory & Practice - Existential Psychology & Psychosocial Rehabilitation.

* Scientific Theoretical Stance - Complex Systems Theory

* Parenting Philosophy & Practice -

Attachment Parenting theory of Dr. William Sears.
Dr. Laura Schlesinger's philosophy of parenting (although I vehemently OPPOSE her views of Homosexuality, based on her blind, unthinking faith in Fundamentalist Orthodox Judaism).

* Housing Theory & Practice - Cohousing.

* Political Beliefs & Practice - Pro-family Humanistic Liberal - environmentalism, civil rights, raddical feminism, animal rights, pro-World unity and peace, anti-death penalty, pro-gun control, and anti-abortion (except where death or severe injury to mother will result). But I also believe in a strong military and police because of my professional experience treating sociopaths and fanatics.
My activism takes place in the following priorities:

TOP PRIORITY: Pro-Palestine activism (pleases see ILRC) - because of the way the Israeli government has systematically undermined the United Nations and International Law efforts for 60 years (and the Zionist movement before that) to overcome racism and colonialism, through the repeated commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Thus this is one of the most serious problems in the world today because Israel thus sets an example of how to ignore the peace and justice efforts of the United Nations, and also itself stimulates worldwide anti-Western, anti-Semtism and anti-Democratic sentiments and world-wide terrorism.
Environmental Protection (please see PEER and Watershed Protection movement)
Space Travel & Life: please see my website on life in space.

* Artistic Preferences - Music - Ethereal Goth because it carries you through a full emotional range from the darkest horrors to soaring emotional heights. Movie & Writing Genres - Psychological Horror and/or Intensely emotionally inspiring. Art - Dark Disturbing Art because of it's rich emotional impact both in terms of range of emotion, and psychological depth of impact. Experiencing Ethereal Gothic Music AND Disturbing Art at the same time is an amazing, inspiring, and very thought-provoking experience.

V. for more info on other ideas of mine and personal interests - please see my Resume.

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