Transcending False Dilemmas with Living Income Guaranteed – Part 5 - Kill or Be Killed

This post is a continuation to the blog-posts:

Transcending False Dilemmas with Living Income Guaranteed – Part 1
Transcending False Dilemmas with Living Income Guaranteed – Part 2 – Sustainability vs Full Employment
Transcending False Dilemmas with Living Income Guaranteed – Part 3 – Tools of Intervention
Transcending False Dilemmas with Living Income Guaranteed – Part 4 – Abundance of choice vs Sustainability

Please read them first for context.
 
Example 3

‘If we don’t maintain our military forces and curtail individual freedoms, terrorists will have free reign and come to destroy our beloved country.’

Here we’re looking at the false dilemma presented to justify military forces to remain active, for funds to be invested in them, by feeding the fear of terrorism and war visiting upon us.

It would seem to me, that so long as there are guns, so long as machines of warfare are produced and placed in the hands of some or other military force – that then, we can expect these arms to be utilized at some point in time. Even if they are said to only be meant for ‘peace operations’ – to go to some other country and break up quarrels there – you’re trying to fight fire with fire. So-called legitimate armies only perpetuate the production of arms – which can really end up anywhere. What use do we have in the 21st century to shoot people with bullets? Why have we not yet stopped global weapon production? If Human Rights are at all regarded as important – and if you value your own life – you have reason to do so – then isn’t the production of deadly weapons the first gross violation of these rights? Really – if we were actually interested in peace operations – we wouldn’t shoot bullets –but we’d use tranquilizer guns. When people revert to violence to solve a conflict, obviously, they’ve been unable to communicate and direct their problems effectively. Is it really going to solve ANYTHING to go kill them? Is it really those individuals that are the problem that they must be taken out, done away with – or are they just so tired of a particular problem that they see no other way than to take out their rage through aggression on others? Are we solving anything by taking out the individuals without addressing the real issue? If you must bring guns – then at least just use tranquilizer guns – it will stop the fighting all the same – people can’t kill when they’re sleeping.

Anyhow – we’re not going to create peace on Earth if we’re going to continue producing the means with which to wage war. We suggest within the Living Income Guaranteed proposal that all countries dismantle their weapon-production industries and declare an overall ban on weapons. We should be ashamed of ourselves that we haven’t done so already – it’s the minimum requirement for peace AND the first step in honoring the right to life. Military spending could then be re-allocated towards funding a Living Income Guaranteed, or taxes could simply reduced.









Rather than meddling in foreign affairs under the banner of ‘promoting peace and democracy elsewhere’ – would it not be more productive to stand as an example within one’s own country first – to create a political and economic model that is sustainable and honors the rights of each citizen – and show other countries how they can achieve the same?

One can point at the waves of democratization, but they were never genuine – western countries going to undemocratic regimes and forcing them to ‘democratize’ or else they won’t receive any more funding – and what’s more – “please arrange your economy so that it will better suit our needs”.

In the meantime, which of the countries maintaining armies for so-called peace operations and which of the countries ‘helping other countries become democratic’ has in fact eradicated poverty at home? None.

One cannot claim the right to instruct others when one hasn’t absolutely proven to stand as an example of peace, support and care oneself. Allowing poverty and destitution within one’s own country deprives one of this right.

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Day 203: The Mockery of Democracy Continues - Dead People Voting in Zimbabwe

"Two thirds of the six-million voters on the roll are dead," said Biti, discussing irregularities with the crucial list.

"But unfortunately those four million who are dead have had a tendency to resurrect on election day."



(Source: http://mg.co.za/article/2013-03-09-mdc-two-thirds-of-voters-on-zim-voters-roll-are-dead)


LOL! And this is why democracy without equal economic power is absolutely meaningless. Economic power is the only power that counts, because if you have money, you can control and manipulate everything and everyone - to the point where you can be voted back into power by 4 million dead people.

A political system where each one is assumed to be equal is meaningless if that equality is not solidified through ensuring equal economic power. Allowing inequality in the economy makes democracy a true mockery - a play - a show - to keep up appearances of our apparent 'caring' nature. It is done to appease the masses and suppress guilt. Whose guilt? Of those in power? Not really - as it is unlikely they have a conscience. But of us - we who see the crimes being committed in the name of profit - and do nothing, say nothing and tell ourselves things may get better with the next vote.

And yet we know nothing will change with the next vote because no policy so far has proposed to equalize economic power. Equality has become a fancy word that is being thrown around as though that is what Jesus intended us to do with his message - to preach it but not live it.

There is a reason the Jesus message is being taught to children in school - because it is how we would want our children to be - to grow up to be honorable people, caring people - and yet, except from telling them stories, we do nothing to be honorable and caring ourselves - to lead them by example - to show them what the Jesus message means and how we organize our society in alignment with these honorable principles.

We have nothing to show for ourselves and so every parent must be prepared to disappoint their child when they ask one day why there are children that don't have food, or why some people don't have a house, or why some don't know how to read. Can you then look your child in the eye and say 'I'm doing everything I can to change that' - or will you just deflect your gaze, sigh and say 'it's complicated'.

The thing is, it's not that complicated - you can read up on the simple solutions of Equal Money Capitalism at http://economistjourneytolife.blogspot.com/p/emc.html.

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• Day 196: Market Mechanisms and Equal Money
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Day 109: Politics as a Double-Faced Game

I forgive myself for accepting and allowing myself to believe that if I change the face/the appearance of something, that that something actually changed.

I forgive myself for not accepting and allowing myself to realise that to change the form of something does not mean that that something actually changed.

I forgive myself for not accepting and allowing myself to realise that any political reforms can get away with changing the form/face/appearance of the government and way of ruling, but in its essential character can remain unchanged.

I forgive myself for accepting and allowing myself to be satisfied with numbers and superficial facts of how elections are being held in African countries and opposition parties are allowed to be formed, etc. - without looking further than the surface and actually investigating what the practicaly daily living reality is of the politics in Africa - where corruption and neopatrimonialism contitute the rules of the game.

I forgive myself for accepting and allowing myself to believe that the international community is genuine in its efforts to facilitate the democratic transition in Africa instead of looking at what they have to gain from this change - where states and economies are being assimilated to the ones in the rest of the world, and so facilitating globalisation, which is a necessity for continued exploitation of the developing nations.

I forgive myself for not accepting and allowing myself to question why the international community is turning a blind eye to these virtual democracies, where, despite international monitoring of elections, the results are often invalid and the result of rigging and manipulation - where the international community proves that they don't really care about the well-being of the local populations, but only care to uphold an appearance of care - allowing them to entrench themselves further in the policy making of foreign states, giving them more control over their economies and, thus, resources.

I commit myself to change the interaction between nations from being tricks and manipulation, to genuine communication and support.

I commit myself to encourage people to see the hidden agreements and interactions happening within politics.

I commit myself to stop politics from being a double-faced game where what it seems is never what it really is, as what it really is is always driven by self-interest and personal gratification.

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• Day 108: Control and Self Control Character Self forgiveness statements continued...
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