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Title: The Faces of Rebellion Author: MobiusFrame Date: 1996–2010 Language: en Topics: chaos, creativity, guilt, law, Psychology, rebellion, the law, youth Source: Rebels & Devils: The Psychology of Liberation
There is but one law: OBEY; and if you don’t obey you will be kidnapped
at gunpoint, stripped of your belongings, and held for ransom.
— C.S. Hyatt
Now is the time for me to rise to my feet, wipe your spit from my face,
wipe these tears from my eyes.
— Hatebreed, I will be heard
Re·bel·lion, n: opposition to one in authority or dominance.
Rebellion is one of the most important characteristics of the human
species.
The first of the ubiquitous periods of human rebelliousness occurs
during adolescence and early adulthood. As a teenager develops a
distinct identity, he (yes HE, fuck your political correctness) feels
obliged to separate from parental methods, morals and rituals. This is a
time of trying new things. Often, for the first time the adolescent
human encounters sex, drugs, religious choice, the ability to earn
money, and the ability to travel. Less time is spent under the aegis of
the parental world-view. Rebellion is the engine that leads one to try
new things.
Symbolizing plays an important role in rebellion and the generation of
personal identity as separate from filial identity. The adolescent may
want to wear clothing or listen to music or read books not acceptable to
the parents. The identity of the individual as part of a broader group
of other adolescent rebels becomes appealing.
The study of Neanderthal teeth shows that they grew to adulthood much
more rapidly than humans. The truncated periods of childhood and
adolescence in Neanderthals may also have reduced or eliminated the
adolescent rebellious period.
Some archeologists say that the paucity of Neanderthal symbols and tools
may be related to the shortened adolescent period. If the spirit of
“your stone axe sucks, I can do better” was missing, this might explain
why the Neanderthals did not advance technologically beyond the stone
axe, and apparently did not develop symbols.
Cro-Magnons were not content with a primitive, stone axe. They continued
to improvise and test new tools and symbols at an astonishing pace. The
creation of projectile weapons exponentially increased hunting
efficiency. The use of symbols and language allowed for the passage of
construction and application data to future generations. Ostensibly,
each human generation took a look at the previous generation’s tools,
technology, and symbols and decided to push the boundaries.
Interestingly, in modern “culture” the rebellious and gutsy hubris of
the adolescent and young adult is only supported in specific forms. In
current society, sports and academic success are essentially the only
two options (and poor options they are) for rebellious outlet in
adolescents. However, the young adult is expected to drop the rebellion
altogether, stop thinking outside of the norms, get a job and a spouse,
and conform to lawful society. Society sees the human being as a human
resource: a tool and mechanism for the accomplishment of work, the
paying of taxes, and the generation of more workers for the future.
Under such pressures, most rebels watch their swords melted down and
turned into shovels. The adolescent herd of rebels is rapidly liquidated
by the next set of emergent genetic drives: to nest (house), digest
(food and cash), and congest (squeeze out babies). Those who do not
conform in a timely fashion are either carted off to jail (kidnapped and
held for ransom by their government), or experience a period of
self-implosion where they realize how alone they are in the world
(neurosis, depression, insanity). That is, they glimpse the abyss. The
realization of their mortality and the punishments and seizures that can
be inflicted by the state’s dogs becomes burdensome—especially after
children are born.
The confluence of these factors sends most “rebels” running back to the
stagnant, tepid bosom of family, church and state. The desires to
explore the unknown and push the boundaries of knowledge and the arts
are largely exchanged for the desire to be part of a group. Acceptance
of societal norms and morality blooms as they are expedient to the
accumulation of “stuff.” One finds that success in a job is largely
dependent on fitting in, that the happiness of their children is largely
dependent on fitting in, that success in adult relationships is largely
dependent on fitting in. By the late 20’s to early 30’s, life becomes
cow-time.
Creativity and imagination are outsourced. The adult no longer draws,
paints or creates poetry. There is only time for work, sleep and kids.
Even sex is pushed to the periphery. Monogamy: turning the infinite,
loving human heart into the slave-whore we see today. The adult has no
desire to push the boundaries of anything other than his golf swing, or
how many hours of pro-football he can watch on television. Learning
essentially stops as curiosity is seen as a generator of trouble and
creativity yields no cash. This phase of intense herd activity, work and
the subjugation of creativity and joy to the banal world of work, wives,
rearing children, and house-work ultimately comes to an abrupt end with
the onset of the most ubiquitous form of second rebellion: the so-called
mid-life crisis.
The mid-life crisis is precipitated by the second glimpse into the
abyss. One sees the most powerful and courageous men rendered helpless
and infantile by disease, and the most conformist, health-fanatic,
church-attending sheeple rendered soil by agonizing cancers. There is no
escape. There is no getting out of here alive. Playing duck-and-cover
with the herd, or praying to a projected papa sky-ghost are as
ineffectual as a chest swollen with rage and resistance to the status
quo; neither will stop the stolid-faced march from the shopping mall to
the grave. Society is a scarecrow, a broomstick wrapped in a trash bag.
Its soft, rotten pumpkin-head smiles blankly down at the eroded topsoil
of human creativity and individualism. All the promises of comfort and
security were lies in incubation. There is no security. The games, the
frantic frittering away of time on meaningless goals and tedious
busywork only served to numb the human during his 30’s–40’s. There is no
escape from the chancrous maw of death. With the stereotypic mid-life
crisis comes the last great suckle at the breast of possibility,
creativity, and joy—the last great attempt at rejection of the cultural
consensus metaphor.
⁂
The cop is in their heads. The most effective form of control is to
inculcate the punisher-authority into the mind of the sheep. Every
action, choice and fantasy is criticized by the superego. Each feeling
of dissatisfaction, desire to accomplish more, or creative urge is
filtered through a matrix of parental-societal-religious values, and
what is left is largely detritus. Infinitely more pernicious is the
self-brutalization that necessarily results from the attempt to turn a
human being into a “model citizen” by putting the
warden-jailer-cop-parent-priest inside the mind of the monkey. In this
way an internal rebellion is born, wherein the self is set in opposition
to itself. Internal conflict reaches fever pitch, neurosis ensues,
self-hate blooms. The conflicted sheep is unable to act effectively or
to relieve the intense feelings of guilt and failure for not living up
to the barrage of idealisms, “thou shalts,” “should haves,” and
impossible promises. Bargaining with the internal cop only worsens the
schism between a genuine, responsible self and a whimpering wretch, with
the genuine self being discarded for fear of punishment. Obeisance is
born. On bended knee with arched back and head bowed comes the sheep to
his masters. A broken man. A servant. A coward. Treacherous and
decadent, capable of infinite hate and harm to his fellows by practicing
the penances and heavily taxed payments to the superego known as
altruism, piety, patriotism, and a host of other societally sanctioned
behaviors that earn him the desperately desired pat on the head from the
masters, and thereby alleviate the torture of the cop in his head. A
sheep of this nature will perform any act of violence to ease the terror
of the internal police.
The writhing mass of humans are largely passive-aggressive as a result
of having been robbed of a sense of personal power in infancy, youth,
and young adulthood by parents, religious leaders, law enforcement,
government, and nearly every other human in their vicinity. The stunted
and twisted forms of indirect and passive rebellion appear as simple and
petty acts such as showing up to work late, running a stop sign when no
authority is present, skipping church every so often, or the occasional
drunken binge or love affair. The reasons for such subdued rebellions
are obvious: modern humans are predominantly sheep. No one wants to look
at their actions and the consequences and say, “Yes I did that, so
fucking what?” They simply haven’t the internal testicular fortitude to
put the crown on their own head and bless their own actions. The guilt
would drive them to insanity.
I see the monkeys around me raped by politicians and police again and
again, and their rebellion takes the form of getting a good drunk and
bitching about it. I often ask them when they are bitching, “When will
you pick up your rifle and take to the streets?” How much of your life
and your wealth must others take from you before you become activated?
Well, the answer is: “Everything.” The sheep will lie quietly before the
slaughter. The sheep will put golden stars on their breasts and rape the
other sheep. The sheep will sit in the gilded halls of government and
plot how to slowly suck the life from the other sheep. I would rather be
killed by a bear or a worthy opponent than watch my life, health and
wealth be drained from me by the miasma of frothing sheep.
Laws are arbitrary. “Justice,” “liberty,” “right and wrong”: these are
the words of a slave. Laws are made to support those in power and keep
the workers working. Every single law is simply made up. Like the games
you played when you were a child, making rule after rule until the game
became too onerous to enjoy. Laws are enforced only when broken by the
powerless.
Rare is the relationship where one with more power teaches one with less
power how to attain power. In fact, an overwhelming majority of humans
are engaged in multiple, continuous power struggles and domination games
every day.
Bitching about injustices is not rebellion. It is
passive-aggressiveness. It is feminine and weak. It is strangulated
will. Free your will, unleash it.
DO something about the things you find distasteful. After all, your
tastes and desires are just as important as anyone else’s. Right now,
there are serial killers and child molesters sitting around feeling
perfectly confident and happy with their selves. And yet you sit and
simmer and stew in your hate. Nothing is ever good enough. The world
feels empty, cold, lonely, purposeless and pointless. And, it is. And,
it is not. SO WHAT?
Violence is best reserved for necessity. Generally speaking, overt
violence is unnecessary and ineffective. Countless violent, bloody
rebellions have occurred over the millennia. No change has occurred in
the soul of mankind. Man is still the dumb monkey he always was, only
with better weaponry, and possibly, a deeper hatred for everything. But,
the deepest hate is saved for his Self. Unfortunately, this deepest hate
is most inappropriately NOT pointed at the cop in his head. Alas, the
man will not recognize this. He will seek outer causes. They are called
scapegoats. Jews, Nazis, women, neighbors, the church, the bank, the
government, ad nauseum.
There is a time for taking up arms, and as H.L. Mencken said, “Every
normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist the
black flag, and begin to slit throats.”
I propose that a rebellion that does not start inside the heart and mind
of a man will have little long-term consequence on external environs and
circumstances. You want to rebel? You want change? Start with yourself.
The internal cop is everywhere. Everything you perceive is tainted by
its poison. This leads to a life of constant turmoil. Nothing can have
deep, deep meaning when it is filtered by the internal cop. But, what to
do? How does one go about removing the virus in one’s mind? How does one
kill the cop in one’s head?
The answer is simple, but the process is life-long and never complete.
Nonetheless, there is no greater joy, no higher goal, than freeing your
will, your power, from the internal censor.
As Maynard said, “Balance pain and comfort deep within you.” Very few
things in this life are entirely “good” or “bad.” This means that in
binary terms almost nothing is a zero or a one, but rather fall on a
continuum, or a scale, somewhere in between. The predominant weakness of
binary thinking is belief and gullibility. If I can persuade you to
believe that something is entirely good or bad, then it will be easier
to manipulate you.
Belief is the primary weakness of the human mind. Given the chaotic
nature of the universe, and the fact that you cannot see the future,
your beliefs will repeatedly prove unreliable. Some things that seem
terrible at first, may later prove to be the healthiest thing for you.
Some things that seem delightful at first often decay into the most
wretched situations. You cannot know what will happen in the future.
The simplest human mental operating system upgrade to remedy this binary
thinking is to consider the Hindu concepts of the three Gunas, known as:
This ancient ternary system of thought, like the I Ching, has relation
to cybernetics and computers. In assessing the value of a ternary human
mental operating system, consider the thermostat on your wall and its
association with the null function (Sattva). If you set your thermostat
at 70°F, it will turn on a cooling system when the temperature rises
above that set point, and a heating system if the temperature falls
below that set point. What happens when the temperature is 70°F? Without
a null function, without a setting that involves balance, when the
temperature reaches 70°F, both the heating and cooling system would
switch on. This would be extremely inefficient. Therefore, to be
functional, even the simplest cybernetic intelligence must include a
null setting, a balance setting. So, in reality, there is a range of
temperatures around 70°F at which your thermostat will turn off both the
heating and the cooling. This is balance, or Sattva.
You’ll find most humans operating on a simplistic binary system of
good/bad. Without the null value, the human, like the machine, lives in
a constant state of turmoil and is easily controlled and owned.
The inner observer is a function of the aforementioned Sattva
consciousness. It is a non-attached, objective observation of your
experiences, moment by moment, without application of subjective values
(good/bad).
“There are hands typing at a keyboard. There is an itch on a nose. There
is a cramp in a neck. There is a sensation of thirst.”
There are many techniques for generating and strengthening the inner
observer. However, I recommend checking out the Mahasatipatthana Sutta.
This was explained to me by Christopher S. Hyatt who called it “The You
Meditation” (available on video from Falcon Press). You can also find
the original Mahasatipatthana Sutta at numerous websites.
Per Dr. Hyatt, “Guilt = I OWE.” Guilt is the most facile form by which
you are manipulated by your family, friends, spouse, children,
government, anyone. If you are easily prone to guilt, you were probably
raised in a very religious family setting as most religions include some
form of “original sin.” Basically, this is the earliest implantation of
the Cop-In-Your-Head virus. A child is initiated into this form of
control by learning that he or she was born fucked up, born bad, and
owes to GOD and his representatives, everything.
The damage done to a human mind with this virus is inestimable. You must
take the time to figure out who and what you owe. I propose that you owe
yourself the benefit of self-acceptance. If you have children, you owe
them. If you have made agreements with others, you may owe them, too.
But why are you living with mountains of assumed, unnecessary, and
unconscious guilt? Guilt serves no useful purpose. It is a manipulation
virus and must be destroyed.
You cannot “know” anything in the objective world. You can, however,
know what makes you happy. You can know your preferences. But these
things are subjective and internal. What people call “knowing” of the
objective world are facts, or data points. The veracity or “truth” of
data points and facts are subject to the limitations of the system by
which they are collected.
Your human body is experiencing trillions of incoming nervous signals
(sensations) from both inside and out. It is theorized that a part of
your brain called the Reticular Activating System (RAS), is responsible
for filtering those trillions of signals into the handful of signals you
can pay attention to at any given moment. Such an inefficient sampling
rate can hardly be expected to yield high quality data. Moreover, what
little data makes it through the RAS is then filtered through the
emotional centers of the brain, and supplied with a positive or negative
valence (“I like it,” “I don’t like it”): that is, it is given an
emotional hue, further adding bias to the unfiltered data. By the time
the original signal arrives at your frontal cortex for your
consideration, it has been truncated, processed, filtered and
pre-labeled.
Decisions and points of view based on such data must be very carefully
considered, and must, as always, remain suspect. Your brain is a
physical instrument. It has limitations. Even the most cursory
consideration of these limitations shows that your points of view are
not you, and are mostly random and based on your environment and the
socio-religious viruses you have operating, and are subject to a
cacophony of influences both internal and external.
Learn to question your opinions, values and points of view. A sickening
majority of them were implanted into your mind before you had the
cognitive ability to think about them. So now, as a person who can
think, it is time to question all of your values, and select those that
bring you power, strength, happiness and success. Like any good
antivirus software, when you identify a belief, value, opinion or point
of view for which you cannot identify the source, you must isolate and
examine that value. Drop those which hinder you.
Sitting here reading these words, you likely feel safe and comfortable.
I assure you, you are not safe. You never were. The cows in the pen,
waiting to have their throats slit, feel calm and enjoy the delicious
corn. Same for you.
At any moment, something terrible, wonderful, wonderfully terrible, or
terribly wonderful can occur. We live in a slumber, a haze of warm
titty, only awakening when pain or suffering stimulates us out of the
opioid bosom of false security. Then we panic and pray and do magickal
rituals, struggling to reestablish the illusion of our safety.
This fact is not lost on those who seek to own you. The average human
will throw away almost any right, liberty or responsibility in exchange
for guaranteed security. This is why Hyatt said, “Security is
limitation.” Security—safety—can never be guaranteed. In fact, you are
guaranteed to be unsafe: You Will Die!
And yet, you live day-to-day with relative comfort and ease. The point
is to realize that regardless of your situation, your safety, or lack
thereof, you need to function and accomplish your goals.
Release the illusion of control. You think you know what you are doing,
don’t you? You think you know how you will react if someone asks you for
a dollar, attacks you, or insults you.
Philip Wylie in his delightful book A Generation of Vipers said, “Status
quo does not exist in nature.” My good friend George Groddeck said, “If
it exists, it is natural.”
Experiment, play, and make yourself uncomfortable once in a while.
Stay away from sheeple. “You do not owe an enemy the truth.” Who said
that?
Let yourself off the hook. You will die. Done. Failure is guaranteed.
In regard to rebellion this means: invade the systems you find
distasteful and change them from the inside. On the larger scope this
means your prayer becomes “Power is my Only God.”