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Some of us use gods, guns and guts while the rest of us use our purchasing power to consume what’s left.
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In the beginning man created gods. The perfect tool for power and control over fellow man. Over time, as mans numbers increased our gods decreased. Many of us became monotheistic. Gods became a God created in our own image. Today in a world dominated by white supremacy and patriarchy the God of the dominant cultural narrative is a white male with his white male son. From here, we created the firepower and mindset to rule all and eliminate anyone who opposed our way of life.
Gunpowder was a real game changer. What began as a means for fireworks quickly became a harbinger of death. We could now eliminate people on a massive level very quickly and efficiently. This threat allowed us to pursue a course of action we refer to as colonialism. Colonizing people and forcing them to be like us was our mission. After all, we had God on our side and for Christ sake … he looked like us.
The absolute machismo it took to colonize the globe is and was often confused with guts. Instead it was a response to a fear and a desperate insecurity. We became and remain conquerors. Conquerors are the result of being conquered themselves. Once conquered our humanity is taken from us. We ultimately become conquerors ourselves. We believe we have nerves of steel and the guts required to carry out our God’s plan. Conquerors have a conquer or be conquered attitude. As a result, constant fear drives us. Our basic human needs are replaced with our wants and desires. We consume everything in our path, including other people and cultures. Conquers require mass consumption.
Today we live in civilization. Like all previous civilizations, this one is just another response to a condition created long ago in our thoughts. The thought that we are separate from the rest and therefore superior came from a place we can only imagine today. Separateness and superiority have become the fabric of who we are. Only a few remain liberated from such a trap. Eventually they will be conquered as well,
Man has created a dominant culture so fearful of death that it kills everything in its path to avoid it. Some of us use gods, guns and guts while the rest of us use our purchasing power to consume what’s left. Either way, a good man has a hard time shedding the skin he’s grown accustomed to. We think it’s normal when in fact our insides tell us otherwise. Will we have the guts to listen and follow that feeling? I’m not sure we want to embrace that kind of change.
Over the years, I have developed better holistic vision. I can see our false narrative. How am I able to see this illusion? I continue to shed my skin by letting go of the idea that I can control things. Now I trust what gives me life and knowing my gut feeling is part of a relationship I’ve had to reestablish with everything. I am becoming a good man … a lifelong project.
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