I am too. I am glad I subscribed to your site. I feel in a way like a citizen of the old Soviet Union at a time when we are endless propagandized but few really believes it. Everyone in power seems like bad faith actors and no one seems to know what the truth is. You're a voice of clarity
Oh God, Tessa. It is extremely rare to find so many insights into the current situation like in your texts. They are not just essays, they are dissertations.
If, hopefully, people come soon to their senses and realize what a sinister and disgusting game is being played on them and the situation, is, in some way, reversed, your essays will be a treasure trove for the historian of the future in order to get accurate snapshots of what the world looked and felt like from the point of view of intelligent persons who managed to evade the mass hypnosis taking place.
As you say, it is sad to see people from the Left - in this case, the European Left, a totally different animal from the American Left – falling so easily into the covid “moral” trap. I am talking about honest people with exemplary critical thinking skills developed since their young age and who have fought against injustice from the ‘70s to now. Now they look like empty shells, mindlessly repeating what they hear in the mass media.
It looks that it is becoming more and more difficult to resist the constant bombardment by the media. This must be the result of more than one century of psychological research into the masses, both in the West (Bernays et al), as well as in the East, the Iron Curtain being (until now!) the biggest experiment in mass manipulation in human history.
Your way of resisting is better. Exposing them from multiple angles. Avoiding identification with any ideological structure – ideology, at this moment, only causes more fragmentation, divide and conquer.
My only suggestion is to add, occasionally, more sarcasm to your essays. Because, if you think about it, the people promoting this agenda look and sound ridiculous like the narratives they represent. And, for some reason, humor seems to clear up the mind and dispel the irrational fears that they are using against us.
I’m not sure how I found you, but am sooooo happy I did. Thank you for distilling and clarifying through the chaos and confusion. Standing with you in open hearted solidarity!
Thank you Tessa! You write so well and distill the feelings that so many of us have. I am always happy when I get a notification that you have written something! This essay was/ is my best Christmas present. :-)
Those who can think and articulate like yourself are in a small minority. A large section of people (of all age groups) are perfectly content during these times with self-medicating via social media, video games, and mind-altering substances.
A sincere fist-bump to you as kudos for taking the time to post such well thought-out observations.
Thank you Tessa Lena. Every word in this piece lands solid, truthful, and melds mind and heart. I copied, pasted, and shared wherever I could. Kisses and hugs, from Greece (EVEN HERE those are almost disappeared in public). FOR THE MOMENT.
The late David Graeber came to similar conclusions as you.
Our current strictly hierarchical society is a weird anomaly in human history and it is leading to all these bizarre excesses and mental breakdowns we witness today.
People used to ban together in all kinds of social structures, according to circumstances. People could organize as an family based anarchy one day only to choose to change into an absolute monarchy the next. Swinging back an forth when the need arose.
As Graeber discovered - We seem to have lost that social fluidity and now we are stuck in a dysfunctional top down social system. We don't seem to be able to swing back to a better social order.
Even the roots of out modern hierarchies are bizarre. The earliest kings appear to have been physical freak shows - dwarfs and handicapped giants. And that top down freak show is what we now call the status quo.
Count me out ;)
Some of David Graeber's writings "On Kings" and on what we call power (link to pdf in the article)
Thanks Tessa. I recently came to your poetry of mind, and it finally nudged me past some block I had been having about writing about all that I have been feeling this last year. So I composed this message to my friends, and if there is any borrowing from your inspiration, I hope you'll forgive me and take it as as a complement, as it is intended:
I’ve found it hard to write this year, and not from lack of thoughts or subjects worth exploring; if anything, it’s been just the opposite. The world needs help, and of course that’s not a new thing. I have carried a profound sense that things are not well for years now; it’s just more in our face in this moment. Most people that I know feel the same, even those on entirely different sides of a growing political and social divide, which tells me that picking a side is profoundly the wrong thing to be doing. Of course, we have choices to make and decisions to face at every turn, but these things need to be addressed from our hearts and not from any ideology, knowing that mistakes will be made and we will keep learning if we are open.
There is a lot of fear in our world, which is only amplified by the type of media that we have allowed to evolve. Foremost now is fear of disease, but the other fears compound things: fear of terrorism, fear of climate change and environmental destruction, fear of overpopulation and famine, fear of socialism or capitalism or any other political/economic ideology. Not that any of these things are not real, and that we need to make changes in the status quo to address them, but fear hinders good decision-making, and panic never helps in a crisis. These feelings are easily manipulated however, and those who hold power and want hold on to it will use these feelings to their advantage.
Our first inclination when confronted with feelings of the world being out of control is to want more control, in order to fix things with concentrated power. However, I would suggest that most of the problems that we face are the result of humans having too much control one way or the other, and that doubling down with more control will only increase the probability that worse problems will arise in the future.
We are at a turning point, and any study of history will show that empires get more complex over time, take more and more energy to sustain, and that diminishing returns are eventually superseded by the forces of entropy before inevitable collapse. We have yet to see an example of a power structure recognizing this and voluntarily choosing to cut back, release control, and settle for a lesser but more equal spot in the sun. Yet I would suggest that this is the very thing that we must all choose to do, for the stakes are that much higher than they ever have been in the cycle of civilizations on this planet.
There is a tendency among those with power to assume that technology will allow for more and more “smart” ways of cutting the margin thinner, of balancing all the inputs and flows of human exchange on the planet, so as to maintain the ever-increasing complex human ecosystem in such a way that those in control of business and governments can stay in control. These ideas are packaged in such a way so as to seem like they are for the greatest good for the most people, and for the good of the planet. This is an illusion, and will only result in greater disaster in the future. Better technology will not solve the problems that technology has contributed to, because the problems are the result of human power structures coupled with technology.
Technology can have a role to play, but it will not be the “savior” of our way of life or our position on top of the world. What we need to do is find ways to de-centralize power, to spread it back out horizontally to smaller and smaller groups of people, and to accept that some of these groups will make mistakes or choices that we do not agree with, but they won’t be civilizational-level mistakes. We don’t need geoengineering on a planetary scale, new financial “instruments” with which to trade impacts to earth’s resources, AI-controlled military, or massive databases of our individual choices for someone else to use, even for our own supposed good. While all sayings are over-simplifications of human tendencies, there is enough truth in “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” that we should take heed before acquiescing to any over-arching scheme to solve the problems of humanity.
I think we need solutions that are rooted in nature, in the heart, in the messy uncertainty of something beyond our control, that can be driven by good examples rather than top-down dictates. War and famine and extinction are not inevitable if we don’t control things immediately, but are actually more likely if corporations and governments and technology monopolies gain more power. It is hard to let go, but all spiritual traditions embody some notion of faith in the innate goodness of the human heart, and that essence is what is needed now, not the dogmatic power structures that evolved around each kernel of truth. We don’t need to threaten or use force or tell others how to behave, but we do need to set a better example ourselves, both individually and collectively as a nation, and let that magic have a chance to work.
The part about the conquest of the new world by broken people reminded me of the analysis of a friend of mine who died in 2018. This is a really illuminating analysis. All the parts fall together sensibly in this context. How Debt Conquered America, Jada Thacker
The original 99% in America did not occupy Wall Street in protest. They occupied the entire Western Hemisphere as original inhabitants of North and South America. After 20,000 years of Occupy Hemisphere, an Italian entrepreneur appeared, having pitched an investment opportunity to his financial backers in Spain.
Soon after Columbus launched his business enterprise on the pristine beaches of the New World, each native discovered there above the age of puberty was required to remit a “hawk’s bell’s worth” of gold dust to the Spaniards every two weeks. The hands of all those failing to do so were cut off and strung about their necks so that they bled to death, thus motivating the compliance of others.
Inspiring and beautiful as ever.
I am too. I am glad I subscribed to your site. I feel in a way like a citizen of the old Soviet Union at a time when we are endless propagandized but few really believes it. Everyone in power seems like bad faith actors and no one seems to know what the truth is. You're a voice of clarity
Thank you. In an age of social distancing, hugs are a revolutionary act. We all need to rediscover our humanity.
You write beautifully.
I suggest https://mises.org/library/anatomy-state/html
On vaccines, here's an important video https://www.corbettreport.com/futurevaccines/
Oh God, Tessa. It is extremely rare to find so many insights into the current situation like in your texts. They are not just essays, they are dissertations.
If, hopefully, people come soon to their senses and realize what a sinister and disgusting game is being played on them and the situation, is, in some way, reversed, your essays will be a treasure trove for the historian of the future in order to get accurate snapshots of what the world looked and felt like from the point of view of intelligent persons who managed to evade the mass hypnosis taking place.
As you say, it is sad to see people from the Left - in this case, the European Left, a totally different animal from the American Left – falling so easily into the covid “moral” trap. I am talking about honest people with exemplary critical thinking skills developed since their young age and who have fought against injustice from the ‘70s to now. Now they look like empty shells, mindlessly repeating what they hear in the mass media.
It looks that it is becoming more and more difficult to resist the constant bombardment by the media. This must be the result of more than one century of psychological research into the masses, both in the West (Bernays et al), as well as in the East, the Iron Curtain being (until now!) the biggest experiment in mass manipulation in human history.
Your way of resisting is better. Exposing them from multiple angles. Avoiding identification with any ideological structure – ideology, at this moment, only causes more fragmentation, divide and conquer.
My only suggestion is to add, occasionally, more sarcasm to your essays. Because, if you think about it, the people promoting this agenda look and sound ridiculous like the narratives they represent. And, for some reason, humor seems to clear up the mind and dispel the irrational fears that they are using against us.
I'd like to have a mask that says:
"I only wear this when I'm out to stock up on food/drink/ammo.
Feel safer, comrade?"
But damn! - the font size would have to be so small.
I'm with you, Tessa.
I might have to get vaccinated in order to get back to Costa Rica.
It's too far to walk and my kayak's in the repair shop.
But I'm not going to be first in line.
P.S. Yes, I also wear a mask so others can *feel* a little bit safer.
I’m not sure how I found you, but am sooooo happy I did. Thank you for distilling and clarifying through the chaos and confusion. Standing with you in open hearted solidarity!
Thank you Tessa! You write so well and distill the feelings that so many of us have. I am always happy when I get a notification that you have written something! This essay was/ is my best Christmas present. :-)
Very well stated Tessa.
Those who can think and articulate like yourself are in a small minority. A large section of people (of all age groups) are perfectly content during these times with self-medicating via social media, video games, and mind-altering substances.
A sincere fist-bump to you as kudos for taking the time to post such well thought-out observations.
Thank you Tessa Lena. Every word in this piece lands solid, truthful, and melds mind and heart. I copied, pasted, and shared wherever I could. Kisses and hugs, from Greece (EVEN HERE those are almost disappeared in public). FOR THE MOMENT.
The late David Graeber came to similar conclusions as you.
Our current strictly hierarchical society is a weird anomaly in human history and it is leading to all these bizarre excesses and mental breakdowns we witness today.
People used to ban together in all kinds of social structures, according to circumstances. People could organize as an family based anarchy one day only to choose to change into an absolute monarchy the next. Swinging back an forth when the need arose.
As Graeber discovered - We seem to have lost that social fluidity and now we are stuck in a dysfunctional top down social system. We don't seem to be able to swing back to a better social order.
Even the roots of out modern hierarchies are bizarre. The earliest kings appear to have been physical freak shows - dwarfs and handicapped giants. And that top down freak show is what we now call the status quo.
Count me out ;)
Some of David Graeber's writings "On Kings" and on what we call power (link to pdf in the article)
https://haubooks.org/on-kings/
Exquisite - "the enchanted urban forest of slogany compassion"
Thanks Tessa. I recently came to your poetry of mind, and it finally nudged me past some block I had been having about writing about all that I have been feeling this last year. So I composed this message to my friends, and if there is any borrowing from your inspiration, I hope you'll forgive me and take it as as a complement, as it is intended:
I’ve found it hard to write this year, and not from lack of thoughts or subjects worth exploring; if anything, it’s been just the opposite. The world needs help, and of course that’s not a new thing. I have carried a profound sense that things are not well for years now; it’s just more in our face in this moment. Most people that I know feel the same, even those on entirely different sides of a growing political and social divide, which tells me that picking a side is profoundly the wrong thing to be doing. Of course, we have choices to make and decisions to face at every turn, but these things need to be addressed from our hearts and not from any ideology, knowing that mistakes will be made and we will keep learning if we are open.
There is a lot of fear in our world, which is only amplified by the type of media that we have allowed to evolve. Foremost now is fear of disease, but the other fears compound things: fear of terrorism, fear of climate change and environmental destruction, fear of overpopulation and famine, fear of socialism or capitalism or any other political/economic ideology. Not that any of these things are not real, and that we need to make changes in the status quo to address them, but fear hinders good decision-making, and panic never helps in a crisis. These feelings are easily manipulated however, and those who hold power and want hold on to it will use these feelings to their advantage.
Our first inclination when confronted with feelings of the world being out of control is to want more control, in order to fix things with concentrated power. However, I would suggest that most of the problems that we face are the result of humans having too much control one way or the other, and that doubling down with more control will only increase the probability that worse problems will arise in the future.
We are at a turning point, and any study of history will show that empires get more complex over time, take more and more energy to sustain, and that diminishing returns are eventually superseded by the forces of entropy before inevitable collapse. We have yet to see an example of a power structure recognizing this and voluntarily choosing to cut back, release control, and settle for a lesser but more equal spot in the sun. Yet I would suggest that this is the very thing that we must all choose to do, for the stakes are that much higher than they ever have been in the cycle of civilizations on this planet.
There is a tendency among those with power to assume that technology will allow for more and more “smart” ways of cutting the margin thinner, of balancing all the inputs and flows of human exchange on the planet, so as to maintain the ever-increasing complex human ecosystem in such a way that those in control of business and governments can stay in control. These ideas are packaged in such a way so as to seem like they are for the greatest good for the most people, and for the good of the planet. This is an illusion, and will only result in greater disaster in the future. Better technology will not solve the problems that technology has contributed to, because the problems are the result of human power structures coupled with technology.
Technology can have a role to play, but it will not be the “savior” of our way of life or our position on top of the world. What we need to do is find ways to de-centralize power, to spread it back out horizontally to smaller and smaller groups of people, and to accept that some of these groups will make mistakes or choices that we do not agree with, but they won’t be civilizational-level mistakes. We don’t need geoengineering on a planetary scale, new financial “instruments” with which to trade impacts to earth’s resources, AI-controlled military, or massive databases of our individual choices for someone else to use, even for our own supposed good. While all sayings are over-simplifications of human tendencies, there is enough truth in “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” that we should take heed before acquiescing to any over-arching scheme to solve the problems of humanity.
I think we need solutions that are rooted in nature, in the heart, in the messy uncertainty of something beyond our control, that can be driven by good examples rather than top-down dictates. War and famine and extinction are not inevitable if we don’t control things immediately, but are actually more likely if corporations and governments and technology monopolies gain more power. It is hard to let go, but all spiritual traditions embody some notion of faith in the innate goodness of the human heart, and that essence is what is needed now, not the dogmatic power structures that evolved around each kernel of truth. We don’t need to threaten or use force or tell others how to behave, but we do need to set a better example ourselves, both individually and collectively as a nation, and let that magic have a chance to work.
Max Licher
The part about the conquest of the new world by broken people reminded me of the analysis of a friend of mine who died in 2018. This is a really illuminating analysis. All the parts fall together sensibly in this context. How Debt Conquered America, Jada Thacker
https://consortiumnews.com/2016/01/08/how-debt-conquered-america/
The original 99% in America did not occupy Wall Street in protest. They occupied the entire Western Hemisphere as original inhabitants of North and South America. After 20,000 years of Occupy Hemisphere, an Italian entrepreneur appeared, having pitched an investment opportunity to his financial backers in Spain.
Soon after Columbus launched his business enterprise on the pristine beaches of the New World, each native discovered there above the age of puberty was required to remit a “hawk’s bell’s worth” of gold dust to the Spaniards every two weeks. The hands of all those failing to do so were cut off and strung about their necks so that they bled to death, thus motivating the compliance of others.