War

Entering the fifth year of an open-ended conflict in Iraq, a few things are certain:
The Iraqi's don't want democracy, it simply not something they desire or require.
Oil is the main reason we are there and there are no immediate substitutes for our energy needs save for conservation and decentralization of energy.
Billions of dollars and thousands of lives will continue to be drained by the conflict because the people we have hired to run the government have neither the imagination or the incentive to effect a resolution of the crisis.

faith

Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith, I consider a capacity for it terrifying and absolutely vile!
Kurt Vonnegut (1922 - )
Belief systems are based on faith that is based on dogma that is usually derived from ancient writings based on an ancient belief system। Faith in god is a very nebulous term and an article of reverence such as the Bible is replete with opposing interpretations।Religious systems have dominated the collective thinking of nearly every known civilization of Human Beings. The acceptance of a concept or an entire set of rules based on faith has some justification in the way we have invented and implemented our societies. It has been the oligarchy of knowledge that has left the mass of Human Beings to accept dogma as truth. Without the physical or intellectual capabilities to challenge authority, it becomes prudent to accept and submit to that authority. Throughout nearly all of the history of Human civilization, religious precepts have dominated not only the Human view of the Universe but the laws governing behavior within a collective. The roots of all cultures are grounded in the religious belief systems that have proven the most successful at survival.

fund of econ

The fundamental aspects of money and supply and demand in economics produce a system that in some ways emulates a survival of the fittest scenario. The goal for every nation is not economic survival but economic prosperity. Economics is a Human invention and as a result does not follow exactly a Darwinian evolution. Rules of economic behavior are created by the national community. These rules are written by and favor those nations who will be able to realize the greatest gain from their implementation. Economics is much like a sport in which the rules are enforced by the home team. In order to succeed, economics must be played according to the current rules. Whether or not these rules represent an equitable exchange of value is irrelevant. Either poor nations will remain in poverty until the rules for economic prosperity change or a poor nation can play the game by the rules.

controlling the collective

The amount of aberrant behavior within a collective result from the flawed system of reward and punishment. In order to obtain the full cooperation of all the individuals of a collective it becomes necessary to provide a coherent and intellectually defensible set of rules. When the law is based on politics, race, economic status, or religious beliefs, there will always be ample room for variations in the concept of right or wrong. Rule of law that is based on concepts that are accessible to every literate person and can be defended on the grounds of empirical evidence and reason will inevitably lessen the burden of misinterpretation. There will exist an element of any collective that will be in opposition to a law for which the evidence is lacking to make an informed choice. The collective must provide a means of expressing discontent and create an arena in which the voices of the minority can be heard. When the laws of any collective are based on dogma, the defense of the status quo depends on physical violence. The opposition to any dogma can only achieve change through the use of physical force. If successful, the overthrow of any dogmatic system is usually replaced with equally dogmatic, albeit conceptually different, rules of behavior.

the collective

The creation of collectives and the power that arises from guided collective action develop into its most potent forms during times of war. Given the life or death scenario involved, solders are prepared to commit acts that would be considered horrible in the context of nearly any civilization. There are boundaries to war. These rules of war exist only to ensure that the combatants will be able fight each other some time after victory has been decided. Until this century, the expectation of completely obliterating a society has not been a reasonable possibility. Nuclear weapons have changed irrevocably our ability to destroy an opponent. Nuclear weapons have created the possibility of being defeated in victory. The destruction of the already tenuous stability of the ecosystem on which our survival depends could destroy an aggressor who had successfully obliterated an enemy. We are, however, quite prepared at this time to engage in such a scenario. Most of the nuclear forces of the world are ready to attack on a moment's notice. While the probability of nuclear conflict is low, there exists no lower boundary of probability that is sufficient to allay the fear that accompanies the potential use of nuclear weapons. It would not be nearly as reprehensible to possess nuclear weapons technology if Human Beings fully realized the potential for self-destruction inherent in such weapons. If it were a matter of policy that the survival of the Human species is the ultimate goal of any collective, we would not possess nuclear weapons. War would be an unfathomable relic of a previous age.

transcendence

Perhaps the most pervasive doctrine among all the world's religions is that of transcendence. This is also an assertion that is by its very nature unavailable for direct inspection. The lack of evidence to the contrary is in no way vindication of the premise. When a Human Being or any other living thing dies, its metabolism stops and it ceases to be alive. Human Beings find other explanations to death that are an integral part of any religious system. Whether it is reincarnation, transformation, or ascendancy, religious beliefs assert that what we are able to perceive of the physical Universe is only a small part of our existence on this planet. Most religions base the results of transcendence on the behavior of Human Beings before death. Most positive afterlife experiences occur as the result of pre-death compliance with the rules of behavior dictated by religious doctrine. Like the religious tenets of creation, most people are brought up with the notion of life after death. With no evidence to support the notion, this belief is still considered valid. Without some concept of transcendence religious philosophy can become indistinguishable from secular philosophy.The concept of transcendence is accompanied by the rules of behavior necessary in order to produce a positive experience in the purported existence after death. There is also the promise of a negative transcendence when the religious doctrines are not followed. This concept is very useful in controlling the behavior of a large number of people for whom justice is not a reality in their own experience.