Par tay in the cantina

Strike back

That's right, it's Jay and Silent Bob.

On my blog.

I guess you must be wondering, "why, DF, why?" Well, it's quite simple really. Very, very simple.

But I'm not going to tell you.

Have you ever seen Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back? No? You should.

But get high first. That way you'll enjoy it, your dealer will enjoy it, and in the end, your addiction will have to be treated by a professional, who'll also enjoy it.

Plus of course the maker and producer of the film, the film company guys, the actors, the cameramen, the stuntcrew (they had stuntguys? for what?), and generally everyone else in the world will benefit, since your acceptance of cannabis has such influences on other people that they will smoke it too, and everyone will be cool and relaxed and not make war, but probably won't make love either - I'm not gonna explain, just listen.

Oh, and the reason I posted these guys? 'Cause they're cool. And 'cause I wanna.

No, not because I got high. Honestly.

Honestly!

*

Your own personal evil

I hope you all had a nice Valentine; mine certainly was.

Today I'd like to discuss "evil". Evil is bad, wrong, corrupt, rotten - right? Everybody seems to know, instinctively or by learning, what evil is, yet when one tries to define it, one can't. Evil is different for different people.

Evil, like good, is a point of view.

One person's death is another's bread, says a Dutch proverb and while this is obviously the case for undertakers, it's still true on a less morbid level. One sport team's defeat is another's victory. Granted, that defeat might not be "evil", but how about a war?

The majority of soldiers see the enemy as evil. Of course this is a necessity, for you can't fight someone you like and agree with, but the majority of the population sees the enemy as evil and wrong, too. There is an automatic response of interpreting one's own values as better and more noble. The misguided emotion known as "patriotism" is one form of this; people who voice their disagreements are seen as traitors to the country.

However, they can't all be right. How can both sides to an argument, to a war, be "right"? At least one of them is wrong, and probably both of them. Plus, there is the very real possibility that there is no right or wrong.

Like "wrong" is defined by "right", so is "evil" defined by "good". Evil begins where good ends; without evil there is no good. Evil needs good.

And good needs evil.

This view is symbolized by the yin and yang: one half is white and one half is black. They define each other. Eastern philosophy acknowledges the fact that evil cannot be exterminated - not without eliminating good. Without evil, there is no good - without the Dark Side there would not be a Light Side; without villains there are no heroes; without night there is no day.

Yet ironically, evil and good are points of view, and therefore they do not exist in reality. Don't get fooled by the zealous religious: evil is all inside our heads. And it needs goodness in there, too.

*

Soapblogs politics

Politics again - I swear it won't be boring. Well, I'll try.

Politics. What do you envision? A room filled with old men in grey suits talking and discussing? Young people locked in an epic battle of words? Puppets that dance for money? Leaders that decide how we should live our lives?

Regardless of where you live, there will always be politicians. Some of them cruel and selfish - we call them either "dictators" or "corrupt" - and some of them dedicated and selfless - we call them either "good" or "naive". Some will be self-appointed, others elected democratically. Some will be good and tactical, others blunt and offensive; some will do what the people want, some will do what the people need, and others will do whatever the hell they want.

Life is politics. Better learn it.

Democracy is said to be the best form of government, and I have a slight tendency to agree. Slight, yes. Because what democracy is currently coupled with is bureaucracy and layer upon layer of government agencies and endless debates over small matters.

Democracy is not these things. Democracy means the people have the power - literally. Like I argued in my last political blog, this power is entrusted to a small group of people expected to wield it in the best interest of all. That is what democracy, in its core, is.

What has happened over the centuries in most democratic countries, though, is that an increasing amount of people are represented by the same, unchanged amount of politicians, and an increasing amount of people do not feel represented by those politicians. This also works the other way: increasingly, politicians are forced to promote themselves and their sometimes impopular policies to the people, and pass popular laws that are not necessarily in the best interest of people. After all, the masses do not always know what is best - it's not their job, they're just the people who have put the government in charge.

People do not feel represented or even taken seriously by their governments. I feel this is because there are too many layers of government and that too few views are communicated to the audience through multimedia. Many political parties are rarely talked about on tv - intentional or not - whereas others are regular guests.

Governments should be more local than (inter)national and should be able to communicate directly with its people, as well as get things done quickly. Like the milkman regularly comes by to deliver his milk, so the politician should regularly come by to communicate about local issues. A small community with similar thoughts on matters - a hippy community, or a racist community, or a communist community, or even an anarchistic community. Likeminded people, with no need for debates in which neither side will ever give in.

Or, we could just create everyone equal using genetic engineering. And create a thought police to guard any rebel thoughts and use video surveallance cameras called "big brother" to watch you.

Hey, too much democracy can lead to a totalitarian regime. A people's regime.

*

Another shocking SW revelation!