Morphic Resonance

Let’s step back for a moment. I’ve written about it before: ‘morphic resonance', a term coined by Rupert Sheldrake to explain some instances of paranormal experience. Sheldrake notes that there are ‘morphic (memory) fields’ that surround organisms; that these can and do bleed what can be termed knowledge stemming from the ‘memory’ of collective experience. He came upon it when he noted that a particular species of birds in one part of England had learned to pry the tops off of milk bottles. Shortly thereafter, a group of the same species in another part of England were doing the same.

There may be other explanations for such phenomenon which have since the publication of Sheldrake’s first book on the subject (1981) been developed and expanded, touching other areas; and argued about - both by Sheldrake and his numerous critics - and may not really represent anything more than a shorthand - ‘a way of talking’, if you wish - about something for which there are as of yet no words. Nevertheless, it’s a fascinating subject and does make sense to some degree.

Linguists too may have something to say in parallel when claiming that the human brain is hard-wired for language - not for any specific language (otherwise there would only be one language) but for the grammatical structure that supports it.

As we look around, the world seems in great upheaval. All of us sense that something is afoot. The optimists among us welcome it, trying hard to fall in stride; while the pessimists fear and resist it. The fatalists are content to absorb whatever buffeting may ensue.

This (what’s coming) seems bigger than just the traditional conflicts that have arisen here and there in the past. The modern explanation for it is that the world has grown smaller (metaphorically speaking) and that what happens in heretofore inaccessible parts is now instantly known to all (via the internet). But this approaching storm seems bigger even than a quarrel between nations. It is like the shadow of the spaceship ‘Armageddon' that all but eclipses reason and civility. And we scurry hither and thither, struggling to explain it. There are conflicts on the brink of breaking out all over the place.

Some might point to the inexplicable, seemingly voluntary withdrawal of the United States from the world stage. Surely, they claim, this would cast ripples across the globe as nations scramble to re-tune their alliances. Others point to the Mayan calendar. But this still falls short of explaining the ubiquitous nature of the thing. It is shallow thinking to finger some individual part as a cause when this part, and every other part, are parts of a whole.

Enter ‘morphic resonance’. The divide appears to be between the privileged - the self-proclaimed (often illegitimate) - leaders and the masses that feel themselves somehow disconnected from their leadership and oppressed. We see it in the Middle East; we see it in Asia; we see it in America itself with the rise of the Tea Parties. There appears to be a universal dissatisfaction with leadership in general.

Leadership, in turn, desperately seeks to preserve the status quo. It cajoles; it threatens; it paints any departure from the norm as ominous. Nevertheless, most of those now in power, know that their days are numbered. Chinese leadership knows. They are preparing, as we speak, to hold back the tide. We watch them prepare and think that they are planning to attack us. Clearly, we both know that neither we nor they are a threat to each other. So, we are puzzled. China knows that the threat comes from within. It is already palpable.

While we are still in the process of finishing off what remains of our individual soma rations, our president concerns himself primarily with staying in power. To this end, he has falsely co-opted the idea of ‘change’, never considering that he himself is its target. The next two (or six) years will bring change alright, but it will not be due to Obama.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Winner Takes Nothing

Like it or not, whatever strides the U.S. has made since WWII has had a tremendous impact on the rest of the world. In every way, America has defined the standard of modernity. Every success, every setback, receives huge coverage in the foreign press. Often our political travails influence the policies set by governments around the globe.

It is normal for us - even regarded as inconsequential - when our political parties bad-mouth each other. Republican administrations are regularly attacked by Democrats who have been known to say anything they think they can get away with. We pretty much expect as much: Bush accused of favoring the rich; Bush labeled as war-monger; Bush blamed for Katrina; Bush blamed for the World Trade Center bombing. We take it all in stride, even if The New York Times, standard bearer for the Democrat Party, presents it as truth and then retracts it on page 47 a month later. Then there is ‘global warming’, a clever send-up to label America as excessively wasteful, even to the detriment of the planet. There’s the perennial issue of the poor, the homeless, the hungry (never mentioned during Democrat administrations) and, now, the overtly greedy that are said to deny the rest of the planet its daily bread.

Every bit of such claptrap originates from within our own borders. We can identify it as an effort to score points against the opposing party. Much of it is eventually discredited as pure rhetoric. But once its out there in print or on the net, others pick it up and build their case against America.

A prevalent notion abroad, for instance, is that America is a racist country. In fact, any opposition to Obama’s policies, for whatever reason, is liberally portrayed as racist sentiment against a black president. The fact that we elected a black president in the first place is conveniently forgotten.

You hear it everywhere - in India, in South America, in Africa - that America is a racist nation. They get it from reading the likes of Paul Krugman and Frank Rich, whose opinion columns are read widely throughout the world. It is only those who have actually traveled and lived here who know that race is not an issue for ordinary Americans; that England and Russia are far worse when it comes to that.

We’ve been accused often enough to understand it’s just a political ploy. We no longer take it seriously and tend to ignore it completely. It’s simply our own political operatives attempting to score points, points that are then picked up overseas to serve more sinister purposes.

It might have been good if we had nipped our tendency for engaging in some of our more extreme rhetoric in the bud sooner. Democrats, now turned Fabian socialists, in particular have succeeded in turning the domestic propaganda wars into a worldwide crusade. What started as domestic political rhetoric has grown hotter and is now threatening to topple the very foundations of our way of life. They have recruited allies among the ranks of our enemies; and, now, we are finding our nation in peril.

To a large extent, what we are experiencing today has been self-inflicted. The poison wells up from within our own institutions which have been infiltrated (by ourselves) and corrupted. Our present troubles are a consequence of our two-party system being at war rather than cooperating. It’s a repeat of Sherman’s (march to the sea) scorched earth policy. Winner takes nothing.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/