All too often I turn on the pages of Indy media to find a dismaying amount of negative literature. By this i do not mean that the vast array of well thought out and provocative postings that amount to the majority of “newswire”. The postings i am referring to are to be found within a small portion of the comments to those articles.

As David Edwards pointed out in his book “free to be human”, psychologists advice caution when we find either ourselves or other dismissing something out of hand, as absurd or in-comprehensible. It seems there are several different motives for doing this.

First it may be a rational response to a demonstrably irrational argument. Secondly, it may be triggered by the accurate but uncomfortable nature of the argument; it may be just a bit to close to home. Thirdly it may be so contrary to our normal commen-sense view of the world that it seems ridiculous. Fourthly, we may just be lying when we dismiss an argument that we perceive as dangerous.

It seems sad to me that When someone expresses an opinion, however elaborate, that he should be met with calls of `"Babylon" or “infiltrator” or told to basically shut up!

What is the difference between a policeman’s indiscriminate lashing out at peaceful protesters, and our own verbal beatings we all too often dish-out amongst ourselves?

It seems to me that if a person has a valid question/thought, to share in the hope of getting some reply. To meet it with un-founded abuse and out right dismissal can surly not be the answer. I mean shit that what governments are doing to us all the time.

I really think that we need to see the depth of our social conditioning, the true level to which "their" control over us reaches. There is a middle way between Hopelessness and violence. Between blind conformity and insanity, But they do not want us to know that either.

Every time we dismiss someone or something out of hand, or meet it with violence (even mental or verbal violence) we are playing into their hands. We are succumbing to their Philosophy; we are showing just how much like them we really are.

Perhaps this is the real source of much of our anger...the frustrating realisation (however subtle) that we are not so different from that we despise.

To quote Gandhi (badly): “Whenever i am dismayed, i remember that through out history Truth and love have always won. At times the odds against you might seem over whelming. But in the end it is Truth and love that remain victorious.
We should remember that, always...”

We need to struggle inwardly as well as outwardly if we are truly to overcome all our captors.