Reader Rites

Getting widespread distribution and having a provocative topic is both a blessing and a curse.  As a writer, it's always exciting when your work is read and even more exciting when it evokes immediate reaction from readers.  I know from many years in network television and marketing that when people take pen to hand, something has moved then deeply enough to put forth an effort.

The curse is a full inbox and I'm not the fastest responder in the East, at that.  But many of the email I received deserves to be heard, as much for what they say, as for what they don't say.

With that, I'd like to share some of them with readers.  Be forewarned that some of the language is adult in nature, so more sensitive readers are cautioned up front.

The first one I want to share speaks volumes in so few words:

The problem with you is you have more brains and balls than the rest of us.

In my case I screwed around chasing money and pussy till I got too old to be worth a shit to anyone. Now, all I can do is distribute the work of better men than I ever was or will be, and it takes me 80+ hours a week to do even that. Then again at 71 what the fuck else is there left within my abilities to do in this totally unexpected clusterfuck?

I have determined to create enough noise so they come looking for me, and find an old man with a shit load of ammo. That beats the hell out of rotting in some cell.

 This letter is so indicative of our culture.  That anyone can believe they are lesser or useless means that we have failed as a society to find the value in every member of it.

There was an time when the older folks were revered for their experience alone.  This writer learned some valuable lessons from his life that would be excellent teachings for younger generations.  Yet he feels left out and rejected, unable to do more than 'forward' other peoples' work.

First off, getting the message out in any form to anyone is a valuable service in itself.  Those who have the time and inclination to educate and awaken others is a positive and worthwhile effort by any standard.

Second, in these few short words are clear examples of what we are doing wrong.  We have allowed a small group of evil elite to dangle sparklies in front of our eyes and tell us that the pursuit of these things is the meaning of life.  We;ve been snowed into thinking that having vast selections of sparklies is freedom, but it's nothing more than a gilded cage.  Teaching others about this is a fundamental necessity.  If we can't see the bars, we will never know we are in a cage.

My heart bleeds for the world today especially your homeland of the USA. I know if Scotland ever needed me I would be there in a second. But that too is awash with deceipt and corruption. I must make a stand from where I am.

I get so confused a lot of the time listening to people who profess to have the answer and nothing happens.

I believe in TRUTH and JUSTICE. Deep down in the heart of every human being lies the truth. It cannot be coerced by media, newspapers, governments, friends, schools and colleges etc. It is self evident.

I am just starting on my journey in trying to awaken people around me for make no mistake its coming to the UK too, albeit at a slower time frame. I see it happening with each passing day, and

i,m not having it without the fight of my life!!

Its time I feel for heroes to arise both in the USA and here in Europe. Heroes stand for TRUTH, JUSTICE and LIBERTY, not just for themselves but for every innocent human being that suffers anywhere.

This letter brings up some excellent points.  One, the battle isn't anywhere in particular, it's everywhere and nowhere.  Next, a lot of people feel the need to fight something, but they are confused.  This isn't two armies meeting on a field to duke it out.  It's shadow boxing.

I've mentioned before, and it bears repeating, there's nowhere to run and hide.  But it works both ways.  Both sides are stuck on a single globe and there are few frontiers left.  Some folks have suggested that I ran away by leaving the States.  Au contraire.  I simply changed position because the one I was in was drawing a lot of fire.  There is no place to run away.  No matter where you are, it will come if it isn't already there.

Many of the letters ask where's the target.  They want to fight back, which is a natural impulse when you first wake up to this mess, but they don't know from which direction the sorties are coming.

That's because the war is in our minds and spirits.  The enemy is trying to break us, trying to turn prize stallions into draft horses.  The battle is taking back your mind and your culture.  This makes it the worst kind of war, because so many of us are ill-prepared for it.  We can shoot, or throw a rock, but how do you fight a shadow?

The answer is begin with good information.  Educating yourself makes you less vulnerable to the siren songs of the media and consumerism that have replaced our true culture with the veneer of sophistication.  As our first writer found, it's all empty once you get it in your hands, like cotton candy.  It just melts away leaving hardly a residue behind.

This one from someone with parallel experiences to my own, it seems.  The poem mentioned is quite good and if I get permission, I would like to share it at a later time.  Also need to meet up with this guy!

Liked the article on Henry's site, I am an Australian who has come to the same conclusions, had huge life changes after 9/11. Now live in East Java with my newly married wife. I am currently in Australia but return in late Jan. I have found new direction and meaning in Indonesia and feel more productive with my time and energy.I am a cottage industry film maker and much of my work deals with personal freedom. I have experienced similar observations in Australia with the TV watching population. After years of bewilderment I sat up one night and wrote a poem about this terrible weapon . It's brutal and angry but i hope u like it. 

I can't stress enough the need to turn off the TeeVee.  Most folks are ill-prepared to grapple with the issues surrounding this one device.  With 40 years of experience in mass media, I can speak with authority when I say that TeeVee is the most dangerous, insidious and ubiquitous weapons in the War on Mind.

People have withdrawl symptoms when they cut it out of their lives.  They feel empty and restless, and will actually stare at a blank screen for hours.  Folks are faced with nearly a third or more of their lives that they didn't know existed, once they turn the evil thing off, and it's scary to a lot of people.

There's a proven hypnotic effect from TeeVee that leaves viewers susceptible to suggestion and sub-conscious manipulation.  Even with my considerable experience in producing mass media, and a degree in the subject, I still find myself occasionally being taken in by it.  That's why the TeeVee in my house is rarely on more than two hours a month.

The reader's letter shows that there are many experts who are aware of this problem, and it should give pause to anyone before clicking the ON button.  Trust me when I say that this one act of turning off the TeeVee is revolutionary in itself.

There are many more fine letters waiting for me in the in-box.  It will take a considerable amount of my weekend to answer them all adequately.  I must say, though, that I am humbled and edified by the responses, and deeply grateful to the many websites that have picked up this and other articles.

We are faced with a War of Ideas, and getting good ones out there is half the battle.  It's the classic ripple effect.  When something you do or say sparks action in others, then we are on the road to victory.  We must be very cautious, though, to avoid violence and destructive acts.  They only serve to feed the Beast, which thrives on such things.  Self-education and teaching are our most effective weapons, and they require nothing more than genuine human contact.

The key concept I was trying to get across in previous articles is something we all learned in grade school.  Whenever the teacher turned her back is when the mayhem broke out.  In many ways, that is how we fight this enemy.  Wear them out.  Overtax their tools of control.  Keep them running in so many directions trying to stop us that they give up.

In Texas, we call it herding cats.  The Chinese call it the death of a thousand cuts.  Whatever you call it, the important part is to do anything in your power to confound the enemy.  The best part is that groups of one are impossible to infiltrate.

Be creative.  THEY hate that!