"Dialogue disappears when we are burdened with belief systems." This statement comes from Osho one of my favorite non-conformist spiritual teachers. When I read this I immediately thought of our political system and why politicians, extremist in religion, and those with big opinion in general can't get along with those who question them. They cannot get along because there beliefs have closed them down to communicating openly with others. Think Washington DC and the gridlock of inflexible beliefs that run so many who seem unable to look past their rigid points of view.
Over the last month or so I have kept my social critic in check because I don't like to focus on what isn't working. There are some things that have to be questioned so that reality wins out over the blinding beliefs of others. Here are a few obvious blindspots at the top of my list.
The GOP refuses to support extending the unemployment benefits and yet they want to continue the tax cuts for the very wealthy. This seems like the working of minds stuck in a belief system that does not work for 95% of the people. It is confusing that many don’t question it even thought this trickle down economics has been thoroughly tried and failed over the last 10-15 years. The GOP actually want the economy to fail no matter how many it hurts so they can get back into the White House. This ignorance of beliefs blocks dialogue that can help all of us.
Mr. Limbaugh is sounding more like a KKK member in his attacks on the President, George Steinbrenner and others. He seems to not be concerned about facts because his point of view is skewed by anger, hate, fear and a hugely inflated ego. Why would people listen to him unless they were locked up by their own thinking?
The US Chamber of Commerce has their solution to the economic crisis. They want to deregulate, cut taxes and social security, drill more oil offshore, privatize roads and cut down our national forests. Who do they represent, the needs of the people or the greed of the corporations? Yet masses of people sheepishly will follow these ideas because their minds ignore the facts and instead follow unquestioned beliefs.
The Tea Party links President Obama to Lenin and Hitler and calls them all socialists. There seems to be a misfire of the brain going on here. Obama is far from a socialist in any definition. Lenin was a communist, which is a political system and not a socialist which is an economic system. Hitler was a fascist and had nothing to do with socialism. This party is all plugged up in their mixing facts with their belief system.
The Birther’s can look directly at a copy of President Obama’s birth certificate and still not see the reality of it because they are blinded by their beliefs and run by their emotions all charged by faulty thinking. Religious beliefs have the same blindness driven by the condemnation of those who believe differently.
It is scary to me that even very intelligent people follow blindly their beliefs even in the midst of facts that completely question and contradict their thinking.
The saddest loss of all humanity may be the loss of an open mind.
PS. I don’t know how come this idea popped into my head: The best form of Ex-lax for the mind is mindfulness.