Culture Realy is Your Operating System

Terence McKenna said it, and I do believe it is true. In the west this time of year we have a preoccupation, Christmas. In the hustle and it's easy to forget that at the core of Christmas is a magical figure flying the courses of the night sky spreading cheer and good will where ever he goes, but we also have the Jesus birth story coinciding with this sleigh driving, cookie gobbling, ambassador from the north pole.  We willingly perpetrate the lie while telling ourselves it's good for children. While we know it is untrue, it is easy to not think anymore about the effects on our culture and the world around us. I would not be the first to say that Christmas has become overly commercial and lost it's true meaning.

Speaking anthropologically, culture is learned behavior passed down though, story's, songs, pictures. These learned story's, and songs. create the world and give meaning to it. We all know there is no Santa living at the North Pole, who employs elves and rides magical Reindeer into town to drop down chimneys and deliver the goods to good girls and boys. I think there would be no dispute, there. Yet the retelling of the story has consequences all over the world. In China where Christmas is just another day of the week leading up to the massive celebration of Chinese New Year, it would be impossible for the average Chinese citizen to imagine what we regard as normal Christmas celebrations. And really, that works out pretty well for all of us over here, because if they did know, they might decide that making all our stuff was not worth it, that polluting their country (and it is polluted beyond what most of us can understand) is not worth it. They already know they want to live our western lifestyle. If that happens we are doomed.

I am not a doom and gloom type person. But I must talk about these things, I know others are, as well, And I can't, not I would be doing myself a great disservice by shutting up, because I want to scream.  I live in a place that is death to the soul. Suburbia, not just any suburbia, a smallish, farming town in the central valley of California. Once boasting the great title of most churches per capita, this town is a monoculture of the mind.
Not that Christianity doesn't do great things for people, It also makes a non questioning populous of blind allegiance. Allegiance is safe, doesn't hurt anyone around you. But It's all there is here, Who ever decided that suburban living was the right way to go was a sadistic fuck. It's painfully apparent to my that it sucks peoples creative energy. Maybe it's true every where you go there you are, or maybe if your not living in a place close to nature, super progressive art and thinking, with common space and a forum, your more likely to get pulled down into a negative pattern. Maybe.

I think Christmas is an interesting tradition, we do it for our kids. But I am finding it hard to believe that I am going to be able to give my kids the kind of life I had. And I grew up poor. What if there was another way. I like to make things spend time with family, eat, drink, and be marry, what if that was enough. Our culture would make that appear a little sad. What if I wanted to eat psychedelic mushrooms on the solstice and dance around a fire. By all accounts that was a large part of century's of celebrations on the winter solstice. Before Catholics came along and adopted pagan deities and celebrations, solstices were celebrated and why not. We still do we just have "safe" deities and magical beings to go along with it. Only it is still a MAGICAL belief that we lost 2000 years ago. What are we to believe that back then all the dudes who could get in touch with this magic god, died and that's it.... NO Bull shit. Riligion and Western Culture need some revision folks. there is no doubt in my mind. And not Scientology and Not Mormonism, You stupid..... Sorry No. Grass roots, spiritual revival.

Hoping For Light and Love.