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Showing posts with label kill. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kill. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

how to die : the read - dead confusion

After reading another news item about mad men murdering a writer for speaking certain facts, I have to admit I got a little bit scared. But then the thought that I do not have many readers, actually less than 20, should have given me some comfort. It did not. And when I read this passionate essay calling upon people to stop writing, (in desperation),and by extension, making movies, music, and art in general, that sounded pragmatic. Sensible. Burning the existing troves of creative and philosophical works would be the next step. Lest people should be tempted to do it all again.

Still, as in the case of those lovely full body scanners in airports that slowly invade our bodies, for our own good, as they tell us, let us look at the positive side of this whole business of attacking freedom of expression. Isn't that what we, as enlightened beings, are supposed to do these days? So, let us not be so depressed at the whole situation that we lose sight of the silver lining. First of all, is there anyone, even a handful of people who  could benefit from this state of affairs? Forget the murderers - the benefit that they imagine they get out of all this, is just that - imagined. They die too at some point. What about the rest of us? I am talking about some of those creative beings, or  the ones who pretend to be,  say, myself. Before that, we have to define "writer", or "singer", or any "artist". What makes one a writer? Am I a writer, if  no one reads what I write? Or if what I write are stupidities, inanities? I think that some of these  may prefer death to that kind of anonymity and mediocrity, or something less than that. So this set could actually benefit from these attacks. However, they will be the last to be done away with, since no one reads them! Vicious circle.

Second, I agree that not all of  these same set of writers would benefit. Unless we are really disappointed in our situations, in our pathetic little lives, or they just want to be in control of how it all ends.  Especially, the older we are. After all, we do have to die, and isn't it better to die, than live as if  we are already dead?  Face it, no matter what you see or read, old age is no picnic. Then this kind of ending might be welcome. On the other hand, the older we get, the more we  tend to cling on to life. And the more we read, we tend to not commit murder, hopefully. In other words, be well-read, or be well-dead.

To sum up, looking at the positives, for those who want to put an end to their life, when they have had enough, here are some options:

1. take a trip to, say, the south side of, and/or all sides of, certain cities, after having been read by many or not
2. be homeless in another, is the same as
3. walking around waving a toy gun in  yet another
3. just be the wrong color or the wrong sex
4. wear the wrong head dress (or not wear ) in a particular place at a certain time.
5. scribble something (even  if it's in the safety of your ivory tower, like me) about how certain factors tend to incite violence using religion.
6. And pray hard that you'll be read, sorry, dead.


In any case, the culprits or the warmongers would have to change their mode of doing away with those elements that they do not like. After all, they are all tech savvy, the way they use the internet proves that. Machetes and guns and bombs are too primitive, in any kind of war, in any kind of violent endeavor - imperialist, or religious. If they want to show their advanced level of thinking, they should find other means. Or the more advanced set should give them the means to do it with empathy, with a sense of humor. More or less like in assisted suicides, under the care of doctors. More humane on the whole. I hear some of us can talk people to death! Words can kill. I have tried to look at the positive side of it all - but regrettably, still fail to see the need for killing another human being, for any reason, imagined or otherwise. It just breeds more killings. Now, if you start talking ... .
So, why do we need to kill each other with writings, with machetes, with guns, with drugs? We all die anyway.

Can't we just talk? Please? :)