Eh, it's a bit of a wandering rant that I began to write up. It isn't finished, and I'll probably lengthen it into something much much longer then this simple essay.



If there is an omnipresent God as many religions claim, why has the God not shown itself to the modern peoples of Earth? But if there is no God as atheists claim, what force created the Universe as we know it? It seems safe to consider that creation force as God, or Gods, no matter its intelligence of nature. If we consider the force as God, which God is it? Is it singular, or is there more than one? Is it a God as we know it, or an alien concept?

These are questions that we cannot answer with certainty. We can look at the world around us to seek our answers, but in doing so we must keep an open mind. Most religious groups will look at the world, their minds already made up. In this way they can manipulate what they see, to fit their preconceived beliefs. This is a trap too easy to fall into. It is nearly impossible for the common man to avoid this trap, so it is the duty of the enlightened man to ask questions of the world with a clear and open mind. Unfortunately there are few enlightened men left in the world. Without this rare resource, how can the common man migrate from the blind faith of organized religion?

In order for the common man to become enlightened he must have a way to ask and answer questions for himself. Any such system for the common man is a grave threat to the organized religions of the world, which have thrived for centuries on the ignorance of the common man. These religions have enforced ignorance on the masses in such a way that enlightenment is often considered heresy. The task of the enlightened man is not to dictate religion to the common man, as once thought, rather it is his duty to help the common man to find a way to safely question the tenets of his religion.

In an ever-changing world, like ours, stagnation leads to death. Religions advocating blind faith lead to stagnation, while religions asking questions lead to change. It is this change that allows our culture to survive in a world where technology brings new ethical challenges every year. The rigid codes of organized religion can no longer cope with the changes in our world. These codes are often draconian, and have little meaning in today’s world. Where rigid morals once served to help a culture survive, such as in lands with no rule of law, they now serve only to breed radicals and fundamentalists.

It is these two groups that can set back a civilization by hundreds of years, signing its death warrant, even as they shriek of protecting the very culture they’ve destroyed. This can be seen most clearly in the backlash against Islam, caused by a small group of radicals who commit grave crimes in the name of their faith. The actions of these self-proclaimed holy men have brought death to thousands, and just as chilling is the as the actions of these Islamic radicals is the counter from American radicals. Both are examples of the results of rigid morals, independent of law, and their affect on the common man.

Thus it can be seen, the dire need for the common man to migrate from the cultivated ignorance of the religions of old, and to find his own way to enlightenment. It is only when the common man has learned to judge himself, to better himself rather then degrade himself in the name of religion, that society can evolve into something better then a medieval theocracy.

Sadly a new religion has spread, one which encourages the common man to strike down his neighbor. Capitalism has spread like a plague through the cultures of the world, bringing with it the idea that exploitation is the right and proper course of action. The common man finds himself ruled over, not by priests, but now by bankers and money lenders. Where once holy men ruled from ancient temples, now bankers and creditors rule from elegant banks. And through their rule the common man is set back to a level of barbarism one would expect to find in a lawless land of savages. Neighbor turns against neighbor, husband turns against wife, and even siblings turn against one another all in the name of money. Capitalism is much like the religions of old, preaching intolerance of other beliefs, while keeping the common man in the mud so that a few powerful men may rule over their serfs. Through the all-encompassing power of money the rich have increased their wealth, and the poor have sunk further into poverty. Not only has the common man suffered in his own nation, but in other nations as well. Wars are fought for economic gain, just as they were once fought for religious zealotry. And worse, the common man is taught to hate himself for his lack of riches, he is taught that it his somehow his fault, that he has not worked hard enough, that he is not smart enough, that something is wrong with him to create his lack of wealth.

Hand in hand with the teachings of capitalism are the teachings of racism. No longer is it taught that the black man should work beneath the white, but rather it is taught that the white man has no culture, no place in society. Hatred is perpetuated by the ‘minority’ cultures toward the white man, a misplaced hatred. The current generation of white men, excepting an insignificantly small portion of the population, has neither intent nor desire to enslave those of other skin colors. Yet, the minorities scapegoat this generation of white men, and will continue to do so for as long as they are allowed. Despite the misguided malice of the minorities, the white men are not innocent of their own racism. They discriminate against themselves, and even the minorities who they claim to view as equals. In a world where the lines between races are clearly defined, where the black man ensures that everyone knows he is black, there will always be racism. This racism is enforced by the industries of capitalism, which take advantage of the feuds between races. The industries perpetuate the image of the poor black man, whose only chance to succeed is to live a life of crime and moral decadence.

Just as evil, if not more so, are the sexist movements of the world. Feminism, just as much as male chauvinism, has brought down the culture of the common man, and woman. Counter-sexist movements serve not only to attempt to equalize the genders, but to rip a gender from its accepted place in society. This is not inherently a bad thing, but almost always the counter-sexist movement becomes sexist itself, as it seeks to take vengeance on the gender which dominated the culture before its arrival. So the cycle continues, with gender suppressing gender, all in the name of what is right.

Through all of this a culture of inequality, racial, sexual, and financial, is perpetuated. Those who benefit from the ignorance control the education of the ignorant, and those who benefit from their poverty control the financial future of the poor. The common man is taught to hate his neighbor, and distrust the words of any who claim to be enlightened. Intolerance is bred so that the common man will not accept any ideas about any other way of life but the one he currently knows. Change comes rarely, and does not last long, and society stagnates.

It is the task, and the responsibility, of the educated, and the enlightened, to better the situation of the common man. In order for culture to advance beyond a feudalistic society where corporations take the place of noble houses, and bankers take the place of priests, the common man must be encouraged to question the world around him. The weapon in the fight against stagnation and ignorance is, of course, logic. Without logic, there is no use to asking questions. And so the common man must be taught to ask questions of everything, and to find his own logical answers.