Usually I do not start new topics but this time I will, but it is not really a new topic, but is a reply to many threads on this board in the last few days. I am winging it, answering from memory, so I do not break my line of thought by looking for exact quotes or refernences.
First of all, in reply to my question, of What in Hell is going on? I see a thread 170 replies long on assholes, I even contributed to it. Facinating subject, even for Fred Hall. I see someone telling someone to go hang himself, and I have read his sincere appology, which I applaud. I see the pages flying by so fast that I can't even read them all. Maybe because I live on the West Coast of NA, the time zone question, puts me always dragging up the rear. Australia first, flowing westward to Europe, east coast of NA, then three or four hours later to me. No Matter.I see the questions: Why do many leave JWs and become athiests, why do some swerve over to fundamentalism, why profanity, why holier than thou language, why wannabe Messiahs? I see people, like Rick, clinging desperately to their point of view, as if their very life depends upon it, and maybe it does, financially, mentally or physically. Flame Wars. Turbulent waters, compared with the little trickle over at H20. Is this a long enough description of What the hell is going on?
Now to the second part of this post, Plato's cave, yesterday and now, today, right now while I am typing, and now, the living present while you are reading. I wish to write not just about H20, H2S or WBTS. I am writing about THE FORUM OF LIFE ITSELF. It impossible to transfer every event happening in the Forum of Life, to a discussion board or a book, movie or any other media. We can only present bits and pieces of it.
To give you my point of view, incomplete, inaccurate probably, but I hope it will stimulate thought in whoever reads this, wherever and whoever you may be. I will give you an anaology, Plato's cave from the past, brought into preseent terminolgy.
I have a son, in his early twenties, he is into mountain climbing, whitewater river rafting, and exploration of caves. I try to share these activities and his interest in them as much as I can. In discussing caving with him and reading books he brings home, we learnt the following. How does one take photographs in the darkness of caves? Does one bring in expensive and bulky lighting equipment? Where does the power come from, miles of extension cords? Many cavers each with their own headlamps? No , there is a much simpler way. In the dark you set up a stable camera with the shutter wide open, then you take a spot light and start flashing it continuously over all parts of the cave, you can take as long as it takes, minutes hours, days if you want. Eventually the total cave will show up in the pictures when developped.
So it is in the Forum of Life. Each one of us has a flashlight, our consciousness. We shine it out there, An athiest projects atheism, a fundamentalist: Jesus saves, a Jehovah's witness: Jehovah saves if you are in the WBTS, other wise you are shit out of luck. But not only do we have a picture of the cave in the present, but also, from times past courageous ones have shone their understandings of the mysterious dark universe, and recorded it not on film exactly, but in the written words. You want an understanding of What Is It All For?? To Whatever, to Wherever, Whenever your consciousness turns, it is illuminating a small portion of the vast universe, at times dark and mysterious,;and if we are attentive enough, at other times we get a picture of the eternel now and the eternel presence.
Belbab, who strives to live up to these words,
I stand in no-man's-land,
May all men stand in mine.
I stand in all men's land,
Who can stand in mine.