A Lethal Weapon

There are ways to corrupt people and then there are the ways to corrupt people. Most of the inhabitants of the terrestrial globe seem to believe that power and money corrupt people more easily than might do other things. Indeed, power and money tend to alter, dramatically in some cases, people’s behaviors, but rhetoric is a far more powerful device because it can pretentiously modify people’s thoughts, otherwise known as mind contents.
Power and money, which seem to be interrelated, have for centuries been considered the major source of corruption for men. People who are believed to be drunk in power are thought capable of anything and everything. Since power structures are an intrinsic part of how society works, it becomes easy to attribute them responsibility for many of the terrible happenings in the world. It is a widely held belief that if someone acquires too much power or has a substantial economic fortune, then those people have long been lost to the dark side. Of course, it is true that such can be the case, but there is much more to corruption than what money and power can do whether alone or combined.
Language and its persuasion power are far more compelling. Money and power are but two of the tools it employs in order to achieve its varied ends. Actions do not matter much when people speak of what others do. Deeds are more important than words it is said, but one must not forget that people also believe what they hear more easily when they have not seen actions taking place whether these words speak positively or negatively. Most importantly, however, is what someone’s speech can do to someone else’s mind directly. Ideas can be planted on people’s minds and can be cared for in order for them to grow healthy, as do seeds planted on the soil. In the same way that when the soil is not good enough to grow the seeds that have been planted, the soil is manipulated in order for it to produce so can people’s minds be twisted through language in order for the newly acquired ideas to developed into attitudes. There is precisely where the danger can be detected. Persuasion can be an evil power not only a good way to encourage others to improve and continue on their path however difficult it might seem.
Persuasion is a tricky device because it is difficult to detect as well as difficult to master. Yet, when used correctly it can have both positive effects and negative ones. Its positive effects are, however, well known since among them there is the renowned practice of persuading people to believe themselves capable of things beyond their reach. The negative ones are more devious since at first glance they appear to walk the ranks of the good intended. Hence, persuasive abilities are utilized in diverse ways that sometimes go beyond the expected. One can make people accept as true the unexpected if worded correctly. In that same category, is included the fact that one can change people’s minds contents if only one has a more convincing filling to place in the emptied space as soon as its former contents begin to drift out. In this way, language can corrupt minds, which is a capacity that money and power alone do not share.
Thus, the power rhetoric exudes is not comparable to anything else because it can control the mind. The mind is the most significant part of the human body as means to control a person because the body follows the instructions the mind provides. If through language one can achieve control over a human mind, then one has acquired complete control over the person. Money as well as power only allow for limited time control over someone. But with language, one empties the mind and fills it with whatever one pleases. The rest is history, but with money and power one must constantly work to distort people’s ethics. There is a need for reassurance. Rhetoric does not necessitate such practice.
It is imperative to pay close attention to what people have to say in order to learn how to understand the power of oratory. In such a way, one can at least attempt to prevent others from slowly converting us into puppets without our notice. It is key to be able to differentiate between our ideas and who we are and whom others try to make us become.

xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

The Guilt in Celebration

The holidays are the one thing for which everyone patiently awaits because whatever occurs previous to their arrival does not prevent said appearance. They are bound to come around punctually as if they had a permanent date with humanity every twelve months. The problem lies, however, in determining why one’s excitement about certain days of the year is so great when the rest of the year simply passes by without receiving any special attention. So why are the holidays so special? The most common answer to such inquiry is as follows. The holidays are the perfect time to spend time with the family. But are they really an excuse to spend time with the family that is mostly neglected the rest of the year, or, are they a capitalist creation to coerce the public to spend money on commodities that more often than not are not necessary?
It is, indeed, difficult to reach a consensus about this interrogative since there is evidence that supports both cases. The holidays serve an important role as far as family time is concerned. It is well known that during the holidays there usually is also vacation time, in most cases because there are certain occupations that do not allow for said leisure time. The time that would then otherwise be spent working or at school is projected towards other activities. Family tends to become the number one priority because it requires a considerable amount of attention and there is the free time for attending to familial necessities. This occurs whether it is only one day off due to an obscure holiday or during the extensive winter holiday season. Thousands of students head home during holidays, as do thousands of people who have not been at home during the year due to their job location. This seems to suggest that family takes precedence to any other matters that could occupy the time of those who travel home during holidays.
On the other hand, holidays are the days that report the greatest profits as well as the times during which most companies or retailers offer items at reduced prices. Is it a coincidence that this happens during holidays? Of course, it is not. It is rather a plan to persuade people to buy more of which they would otherwise not do so, or simply to buy items that would not be on their list of articles to acquire. The situation correlates. The inhabitants of the world experience a certain ecstasy as a result of the time off from school or work, and they seem to think that anything is possible because their routine has changed for the time being. People then tend to forget that a reality check will come. Later, indeed, but it will materialize. In the meantime, they buy anything and everything that they can afford to whether the cash inflow or their credit card limits allows them to. It does not matter much the medium of exchange used to pay for the items that captivate their attention at the store.
The holidays are indeed an opportunity to enjoy an extended period of time with the family. This is proven by those who cannot wait for the holidays because otherwise it seems close to impossible to enjoy a sunset drinking hot chocolate while conversing with the other members of the family that have not been seen in months. Yet, that is not their sole purpose since those same people who enjoy a conversation with the family over hot chocolate, also take trips to the nearest mall in order to make purchases together as means of spending precious moments with the much missed family in order to make sure they do not forego the sales.
Are holidays then really necessary for family bonding purposes, or is that only a contingency because the actual beneficiaries are the retailers, which can always find an excuse to make people spend money? The consumerist society that we inhabit suggests that deriving family time from holidays is only part of a long forgotten instinct. If the need presented itself, there would not be any event whether work or school that would interfere with spending time with the family that we seem to miss so much when the holidays arrive. Then, family time is only an attempt to purge the guilt for the money unnecessarily splurged because we are easily influence by publicity but not by those who have spent most of their lives at our side.

xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

A Possible Mask

Through out life, there is a question that always manifests itself one way or another, but it amounts more or less to asking who one is. The problem begins because being able to clearly advocate an identity is a very complicated issue. It requires not only time to figure out what that identity must be, but also energy to accept and establish it from within and then step in it and show it to the world.
As a child, one attempts to conceal who one really is in order to be accepted in a circle of friends that is in the process of being built. A mistake made from the beginning because one fails to understand that one can show oneself as one is since there is not anybody in that circle who already has a set idea of whom other people should be. Unconsciously, one hides those characteristics that one feels will not be accepted by those whom one associates oneself with it. At such age, one is unable to recognize what one is doing as positive or negative. It is automatic, even normal for the adults that surround the child. But in reality, it is abnormal because from an early age one builds the idea that one is not good enough as one is to form part of a group of people. One feels as though one does not fit, so one tries to fit. Then, as one moves on to adolescence, one moves on to the conscious concealment of those traits of one’s personality that one judges as unacceptable for others as well as those features of one’s life that do not fit in to what one wants to portray. At this time, one does not only feel as if one is unfit for having a relationship with certain groups of people, but one seems to be sure that if one does not change a certain mold, then one would not be acknowledged. As a result, one becomes an image of whom one thinks others would accept one for, which means that over time one might successfully cover up one’s true identity. One is not longer who one was when one first stepped into the preschool classroom, rather one is a combination of who one thinks one is and who one thinks other people want one to be. There is always the question of who can one be also present. At times, the inquiry is not about whether one wants to be someone, but who can one afford to be.
The passage of time makes this issue more difficult to clarify. Every step one takes along the way, takes one further inside a labyrinth from which one might not be able to walk out. One becomes entangled in one’s own creation that one forgets who one really is underneath all the layers of representation one wears. Besides the internal modifications one makes in order to persuade oneself that one is whom the mirror reflects and not someone different hiding in the depth of the eyes the mirror also reflects, which are ultimately reflected externally, there are also physical changes that are in turn illustrated by one’s actions.
One of the most important physical changes that can take place is relocation across an international border. Such change raises many questions that were not previously present and simply complicate more the idea of who one is. The quest for identity now takes on a political side. Now one must also consider the fact that other people judge one based on the color of one’s skin and the like. One finds so many different labels that did not exist on a formerly used vocabulary. But one ultimately finds oneself repeating what one did as a child: constantly trying to become. The story replays itself. Whether one has come across a border as a child or as an adult, does not matter because one endeavors into acquiring the suitable characteristics through which one will be accepted at the different location. It does not help that one never really knew who one was because it has always been hidden.
One must learn to not be afraid to show one’s true identity because with or without the mask, one will always be criticized and judged unworthy at times. Yet, if one’s identity is concealed, one could simply become a bad replica of what others wish one to be. Thus, forgetting whom one is, which ultimately renders one as nonexistent.


xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

Superficial Appreciation

There are those who believe that life is much better enjoyed from the said top of the hierarchical socially constructed pyramid. There are also others who believe life to be actually better appreciated from the base of that pyramid. Both views have strong support even when society has educated us to believe that life at the top is indeed better. Isn’t this debate a bit superficial, however?
Obtaining a place among the very top is what society teaches every inhabitant of this world to strive for. There are indeed many qualities that can be considered as worth the effort to reach the top. On the other hand, there are also many features of life at the bottom that make it worth the struggle which is experienced everyday in order to simply remain in the fight. This raises the question of how at the bottom is the bottom, which is portrayed here. Of course, the bottom portrayed here is not the floor of the pyramid but rather the middle of said structure.
The place to start would be education. The so called middle class has a much harder time providing their children with the easy access to education that is enjoyed by the higher class. In this sense, life would be much easier from the top since education seems to be the way for improvement. Education is the answer to how to step into a better level in the pyramid. It is said that money does not buy class but education seems to do so. The only way in which a middle class individual will ever be able to achieve such status is through education. Education is the way in which to acquire slowly but steadily a position next to those who oversee the world from the higher levels of the pyramid. But this is a place where that difference is marked. Those that come from the top do not appreciate education. They have access to it and that is what matters to them. Education becomes a tool to remain at the top. For those who come from the middle class, education goes beyond. It is appreciated and seized with great enthusiasm.
There is another critical issue at hand: healthcare. Those at the top undoubtedly have complete access to the best healthcare available while those at the bottom must conform themselves to barely having access to said right if at all. Hence, another reason to strive for reaching the top. Healthcare is a detail that is very important to enjoying a long and decent life, but which eludes those at the bottom.
There is also the idea of housing. It is unquestionable that those at the top have access to better housing by which is meant better quality houses as well as better neighborhoods. That, however, has never stopped those at the bottom from taking pleasure in the place where they live. One becomes accustomed to what is available and strives to improve. But a bigger house is not necessarily at the top of the list of necessities that are lacked by those at the bottom. There are more important articles such as food which is indeed sometimes not present at the table of those at the bottom, but that is never even considered as important by the top because it is always there.
Nevertheless, the above-mentioned are not the items of focus when judging the quality of life that is most valued. Luxury is at the top of the list. But luxury possesses such a superficial definition that it becomes difficult to distinguish it from mere excess. Everyone wants to have a luxurious life, but when such is acquired then there is a sense of emptiness because there are more important things that money cannot buy despite all its power. If one achieves that state of complete economic accomplishment the need to continue the struggle ends. Everything becomes pointless because there is not anything else worth fighting for. There are more important things in life than luxury, yet even those fixations are relative to who is questioned about them.
At the end, perhaps life at the top is better, but those who are at such position fail to appreciate it whereas those at the bottom precisely do the opposite. From the bottom one can value every single detail that makes life worth experiencing while at the top one merely sees life as one more possession. There is indeed a difference between simply enjoying and appreciating that same phenomenon.

xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

Children and the Sciences

It is said that as members of the animal kingdom, human beings should reproduce in order to ensure that the species remains alive. However, such statement should not be taken to mean that every member of said species should engage in reproduction. There are some who are not physically nor psychologically fit for bringing children to life. Such individuals instead of improving the race would bring about a steady detriment that is sure to take the human race into its complete demise. At the same time, there are others whom regardless of their potential to bear perfectly healthy and capable children decide not to although based on different yet appealing reasoning.
First, there is a moral commitment to bearing a child. Parents are expected to love their children unconditionally. Yet, this is a principle which not all people are capable of following. There are many who can indeed love but they can love from a distance even if those who are the objects of said love have the same blood running in their veins. There is also a moral duty to that emanates from consequentialism to maximize goodness in the world and if there are those who will not be able to love their children a with the unconditional love that is required of them, then they should not engage in such practices. By the same token, it is better to undergo the prevention of a good thing, than to allow a dreadful one to happen. For which one can borrow from a physical theory, one can expect for children to become either a positive or a negative force in the world. But there is not any assurance that all children would be positive forces. In addition, there is the same question of whether the chemical reaction that the child would bring to the world would be positive. Some might argue that one should be willing the take the risk; yet, consequentialism argues the contrary. Sometimes it is necessary to abide to the rules of consequentialism whatever form this might take.
Further, there is also an expectation to provide shelter, food, and education, which is not something everyone can afford despite their physical and psychological wellbeing. In other words, if one is not economically able to, then one should not have children. But this is a well-known argument, which leads to another very important point.
Biologically the planet earth will reach its carrying capacity. This will indeed lead to the so-called end of the world. Those who understand such precept should indeed take it upon themselves to dilate such a state as much as possible. Thus, the surplus of people should work as a call for a slower reproduction at least for those who, as just mentioned, understand the situation. Then, there is another objection, which says that the lack of quality of those who currently walk he world should be enough motivation to reproduce. That, however, is not a valid objection since if a higher quality is more readily available, then its marginal utility will more rapidly diminish rendering it wasteful considering that there is not a guarantee that demand will rise. At the same time, the opportunity cost of having a child is excessively high for those who never factored such variable into their life plan.
There is another reason, which is rather important although widely disregarded: selfishness. Some people have children in order to feel better about themselves, or to have something, someone in this case, to feel proud of considering that their personal accomplishments fall short of their own expectations. There are those who say there is certain pleasure in having a child because one teaches them how to navigate the complicated roads that life presents them, this is an example of said selfishness. Teaching something of this magnitude to someone is a rather great achievement, thus could be considered rather egotistic in nature to want to guide someone for almost two decades. There are others who simply argue that having a child brings a joy to their heart, which begs the same remark: it is not about the life that is born rather a selfish need for personal happiness provided by someone else’s existence.
While humanity appears to have become accustomed to the available supply, the demand for a better quality still remains. Nevertheless, reproduction should be a personal choice. Still, the new generation does not much care for real contentment, mesmerized by the smallest spark of artificial bliss.


xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

The Same Words

There are three words in the English language (the number of which varies depending on the language in question) which many spend their lifetimes waiting to hear: I love you (some will argue that the correct form is “I am in love with you”). But are those words enough as proof for said proclamation of love, or rather, is it enough to hear them from the object of our affection or is it necessary to read them in order for them to obtain a life of its own? What do written words posses that makes them so powerful and is lacked by spoken words?
Before continuing, a clarification is in order. When I speak of a love in a written/material form, by no means I am referring to a certificate of marriage or expensive gifts. The more accurate interpretation of such reference would be a simpler item: a love letter as a representation of what many consider love. The question raised by such statement is quite controversial: Why do certain people have the need for said item in order to believe what another person had to say? Yet, the answer is quite clear: to write of such sentiment elevates its importance.
Nevertheless, the inquire is further complicated by the fact that there is absolutely not any prove that written words are more logically valid than are spoken words. Many people, in fact, would argue that simply hearing the so yearned for declaration of love is enough. For others, however, it is necessary to see them written in some form. When a person states the love felt for another out loud, the words are gone the second they are uttered. They disappear with the wind and will never come back, only the memory of having heard them remains. But even memories are lost with the passage of time. Those words are, of course, not meaningless in said cases in which they are only voiced. But when someone says, “I love you,” it is necessary for those words to be repeated often. Otherwise, the person who was the object of such assertion will forget very easily, specially, if there is not anything that will materially serve as a reminder. That is not to say that there is an intrinsic necessity for more than listening to those words, on an everyday basis, perhaps. Yet, when those words can be found in written form, the universe seems to be conspiring with a good end in mind.
Love letters have a very special significance because they have been used for centuries as promises of a love that, although it might never be fulfilled due to unpredictable circumstances, they are a breath of life to those who receive them. In that way, in the present day love letters are a symbol of that romantic kind of non-existent love that millions dream of encountering at some point during their lives. That is precisely the reason they are so important: whether the love for which many await exists or not, those letters serve as an indication that it real. When a love letter reaches the hands of the intended recipient, the world seems to stop if only for the minutes it takes to read the words printed in the paper. Then, life goes on. Whether said letter expresses a true state of affairs or not, does not matter much since the very letter is evidence for what it expresses.
There is, evidently, a difficulty with such assumption. There is clearly not any possible way for the reader to corroborate what the words in the letter seem to covey. It is a rather sad conclusion considering that the feelings entertained by the receiver of said letter tend to escalade in proportion after the letter is read. At the end, a love letter is a simple paper with words written on it. There is not much more to it. In fact, anyone can write a love letter because it does not require for the writer to observe the interlocutor by which to judge the way in which what is been expressed is discerned. The challenge lies precisely in standing in front of the person who is to receive the message when one expresses it since that is the most accurate way to confirm the veracity of what is said.
Therefore, whether written or verbally expressed words are not enough to provide the intended message. Suffice to say that images say more than a thousand words.

xoxo,
Poison Drops

©Copyrighted 2008

Method in Madness

The world today is on a constant state of crisis that we have come to accept as simple everyday events. Thus, after the numerous catastrophes occurring on the minute, it becomes inevitable to question the mental status of human beings. Why wonder why people go crazy when the correct inquiry should be why people do not?
There are not any specific criteria to follow in order to classify someone as insane. Yet, a very well known writer, Paulo Coelho, said that, “a madman is he who lives in his own world,” which is rather appalling since it implies that all humans inhabit their own separate worlds. This is precisely why one should not wonder why certain characters go crazy, but why more people do not. While on this issue, one should also consider why it takes so long for those who do so. If all people dwell in different worlds, then there is not connection between them, which ultimately means that we are all alone. Loneliness is a good thing given that we all need to learn how to coexist with our bittersweet selves. However, experiencing a long lasting constant state of solitude can also have negative effects.
After a deeper look, one will find that there are more important concerns in the world than individual matters. There are hundreds of diseases that millions suffer for which humanity is still unable to provide cure or simply has not yet classify them as diseases at all. That world is unknown to most of the human race since most of us do not know what it is like to be under the vicious hand of a deadly ailment. The majority are only used to dealing with the flu or the like. Then, there are those millions who do not have the means to subsistence among whom there are many children while there are others who have so much they are unable to appreciate the small things in life. It seems impossible that as the world advances as a whole from an economic perspective, the majority of its inhabitants do not receive any benefits from such improvements. There are many who do not have enough for a decent meal while there are others who have more than they deserve. At the same time, countless minds go wasted because the family funds, if any, are not sufficient to provide them with a proper education, which becomes another point of interest since there are those who have the means, but not the drive.
Of course, one must not forget about crime. The world has become so full of criminals of all sorts, not only those who steal or murder, but those who discriminate or deteriorate the environment are also included in this category. The list of possible crimes one can commit extends beyond the physical realm. By destroying the only world we have to live in, a crime is committed: not only is our only home dying a little every second, but also masses are murdered not individuals. Those who perpetuate psychological crimes must also be held responsible for the many who become senseless everyday. Sadly, the madness can also cause its victims to lose control and execute said crimes themselves. These acts are far more powerful than their physical counterpart because they hide the real injury and they don’t leave any visible wounds.
Simultaneously, this problem extends beyond such boundaries because one might also marvel about whether an authentic insanity is a mere variation of a self-inflicted madness. People who are medically considered insane are only considered so due to certain characteristics that have been socially deemed as symptoms of such disorder. Nonetheless, there is absolutely not anyone who is qualified to make said judgment because the human race as a whole could perfectly well be suffering from a self-inflected madness. The purpose this madness serves is not yet clear, but if there is in fact a purpose then one must definitely be questioning why are not more people precisely becoming mad, and populating those lonely spaces which are waiting to be claimed.
Perhaps there is something good in the insanity that the world experiences even if it is difficult to understand. Possibly there is a method that is brought to life through the madness. As marvelous as it might seem, the method embedded in this practice could be one of the best inventions: a tactic to normally avoid reality. After all, psychosis is the loss of contact with reality.

xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008

Spiritual Addiction

There are certain chemical substances, which are said to be addictive due to the effects they tend to produce in the person who ingest them. Yet, chemical substances are not the only causes of addiction in a person. Relief is a powerful drug. The strongest form of relief someone can experiences comes from thinking that all her problems are not longer dependent on her to be fixed. Religion, through prayers, presents the gateway to such relief. When one prays, one has the sensation that god, whomever she might be if she in fact exists, will take care of everything. This raises the question of whether prayers are an addiction. I am afraid so.
From the early stages of childhood until death is eminent, one always prays. When a child has started to talk, her parents want to accelerate the process of teaching her how to pray. It is at this time that the “addictive item” is introduced to the child. The child is told that in case of fear of any kind a prayer will prevent such fear from growing, in fact, it will rather decrease it. The child quickly learns this information; and, as she grows old, she starts to make us of the prayer in a different way. If it should occur that she finds herself in trouble, then she prays in order for this god figure to intervene in someway to preclude her parents from inflicting any punishment in her as a result of her wrong doings.
A pattern can be observed with as time passes by. The child then prays for insignificant things. She prays for her mom to cook her favorite meal and so that her chores are reduced. She also prays so that she might be allowed to go to bed at a later hour. She prays not to go to school, but she also prays not to fail her classes. The child also prays not become ill. As the years grow old, what the parents have installed in her, as what they thought was a good custom; such practice has become part of the addiction her parents share.
Throughout her adolescence, she prays to graduate from high school with a good academic standing so that she might be admitted in the college of her choice, which she then repeats in college. In early adulthood, she prays to find her perfect job, and the perfect life partner. She prays for her children to be good and successful people as well as for their health. As she grows older, prayer becomes her only way source of better expectations. She has by then internalized the idea of an afterlife. She wishes to achieve the pure spiritual state that would allow her to go to heaven. She prays to be forgiven for whatever mistakes she made in order to be worthy of entrance. However, while she waits for the moment of her death, she prays in hopes of recuperating her health.
The life of constant prayer does not seem reasonable. Prayer is something immaterial to which a person recurs in order to decrease or nullify afflictions. There are perfectly possible material ways in which one could fix those problems that cause one to pray desperately. A simple study time everyday could, for example, increase the chances of passing the class for which the child prays not to fail. In the same way, leading a healthy life could, for the most part, reduce the chances of becoming terribly ill in which case there will be not any need for frantic praying nights to be healthy again.
Nonetheless, it is always easier to pray, than to act accordingly in order to prevent circumstances where the need to pray is found. Prayers become life long addiction, one that is socially acceptable because prayers do not harm anyone, from a physical perspective. The harm the addiction inflicts is mental since the person praying can become so deeply involved that reality is not longer correct from that person’s point of view. The world is and its inhabitants are incompetent. All her possibilities become limited to what a prayer can do.
Prayers are only a way to help hopeless people feel better about their wrong doings, or those things they cannot mend. However, even though people have been praying for thousands of years, there has been little change in the world. And, the change that has been experienced has been achieved through action. So, do you pray or do you act?


xoxo,
Poison Drops


©Copyrighted 2008