As a human being here on earth, just like you. I’m trying to understand where I stand. In an effort to process this senseless madness, let’s think about where we stand literally. When I say we, I mean all of us. Every living being in the universe.
We exist in this thing — it’s a colossal cosmic ocean of vast black space. Within that space are 100’s of billions of galaxies. That’s a big number. And within those billions upon billions of galaxies are 100’s of billions of stars. Now, within the one galaxy where we exist is one humble star we call the sun. Rotating around that sun are a couple of handful of planets, some belts of space rocks, and moons. One of those planets is the earth. A place where every human being that ever lived was born and died. To riff Carl Sagan a bit, it’s where every emperor, every queen and king, every politician, it’s where every war, every nation, every ideology… yadda yadda yadda — it’s where it all happened — every love story, every meatball ever made, every idea, every word spoken or written or blogged… you name it — everything that has ever happened in the history of humanity, it happened here, on this little dot that we call home.
Now in these recent weeks of the recorded year of 2022, we have groups of humans who are in conflict. There are two “countries” fighting. Countries from an observer's perspective are mere ideas, territorially defined plots of land, and imagined constructs of the human collective.
In this conflict, both stand for their own opposing ideas of freedom and the future of their imagined ideals. Both have what could be described as “passion” and “love” for their country. To act on its fear and its feeling of being threatened one makes a bullying move which it feels necessary to survive. Its leader sends men who have but one chance at life, to risk their own precious source of being for the idea of a country. One man's eye-watering passion for his country's well-being and survival puts millions of irreplaceable lives at risk. Pretty damn stupid, if you ask me.
The country being bullied responds by rallying to make a stand. Acts in ways that are cherished and pronounced with words like bravery… sure it’s in defense, but it’s still fighting. Justified with self-righteousness and backed by the majority’s megaphone of opinion. There are occasionally talks of peace. But the bullets still fly, the bombs still fall, the people keep perishing. Of course, I can empathize, their idea of home is shattered, peace and hope have become frail and thin because of an egomaniac’s idea to destroy and perhaps capture their land. What if they don’t take a stand? What if they don’t fight back? Who would stand up to the tyranny? Is there any other way? I wonder. Is there any way to preserve freedom and ideals without risking the lives, irreplaceable human lives, to fight?
What I am able to see is the human suffering that ensues, families are torn apart. Women and children fleeing some dying on their escape. And fathers, brothers, and sons are forced to fight, and encounter the awful dilemma to kill or be killed.
Countries are things to be proud of, but what I also understand is that a country can be built, just like a company, just like a house… I am sensitive to the gravity of the significance to which country and national identity mean to people and their sense of belonging, but I question, why are we forcing the fight? For what? From the grand perspective and in the eyes of the stars that surround us, why does it matter whether you are Ukrainian, Russian, American, Chinese… whatever you may be. The insanity of believing you are narrowed into the bucket of a nationality blinds you from the truth of your existence. Your race, gender… whatever identity and sense of self you take on, on a deeper level, it doesn’t matter. What you are is this: You are the universe. A force of life. You are the same as we all are. And we’re all made up of the stuff that also makes up the entire universe. Every element of you and me exists in our universe. Your existence and the present moment is the only thing that is.
So, why do we go to war? There is nothing to win. At war, we risk something that we cannot lose, and in the end, we gain nothing but imaginary ideas. Our institutions of freedom, our ideas, and our ways of life are ever-evolving and never perfect. Protecting the institutions which have served humanity allowed progress to flourish and is important, but is there another way to keep the peace? Do we have to fight? Do we have to keep killing and giving birth to new deep-seated hatred that will fester in the hearts of the generations to come? Is there a better way?
It’s been said the threat of nuclear weapons kept the peace, and now we see almost global cooperation to choke an economy to the brink of collapse, frustrating its citizens, ripping away their cultural possessions and sources of entertainment and lifestyle in efforts to persuade them into an uprising and mass demonstration of dissent.
While we wait for that to take full effect. In the meantime, what I do know is that to end a war, or a fight of any kind, you must end violence, you must end the fight. We all know this. Personally, I’ll never be a fighter. I flee. I let it be. Fight for dreams, fight for love, fight for an education, and equal opportunity. Sure, I’ll fight for those. There are things worth fighting in a metaphorical way for. We all want freedom, love, happiness… but creating an environment of human suffering and escalating conflict beyond the level of debate and civil forms of discord, is pure insanity.
This fight, this war, this cycle of violence is a downward spiraling race to the bottom for everyone who exists on earth. It’s a distraction for matters of human progress and painful stress on the human collective psyche. Have we forgotten? How long before we see the light again? How many people will die in this senseless madness, how much blood will spill, how many buildings will be blown to bits, how much money and how many bright minds will be wasted spent on missiles and murder, before we come to our senses and realize peace is the only way forward?
I hope with the core of my heart that our American, liberal democratic propaganda machine isn’t constantly pointing out the imperial and aggressive Russian acts as a means to justify future retaliation, that this won’t become a dreaded WWIII. Because I won’t stand for that. If China wants to be China, let them be China. if Russia wants to be Russia, (end the fucking military operation) and let them be Russia, if North Korea wants to be North Korea let them be. I hope we stay steadfast towards peaceful resolutions and find common ground and the beauty in our cultural differences and the harmony that comes from realizing we are connected in one harmonious force of humanity. We are all humans, here on this humble rock floating through a wondrously humongous universe. If we are to survive and create a better future for our species, we all need to stand together.
Recommended further reading:
My thoughts stand on the foundations from philosophical thinkers political actors I’ve admired and have had the great pleasure in reading about. For thoughts and perspective of our place in the universe — Carl Sagan. For awareness and insights into the insanity that comes from having a sense of self — Eckart Tolle. To understand nonviolence as the only way to achieve peace and progress for humanity — Martin Luther King, Gandhi