Mantus

I am terribly depressed. Everywhere I look I see the same pattern repeating itself. No mater how hard we tried, no matter what rules we made, we have not been able to contain the damned instinctive nature of the human being. A nature some would call evil.

Religions failed all over the globe. No matter what doctrine they advocated whether it be threatening people with eternal damnation; forcing all politicians to learn social and philosophical values; advocating love towards all humanity; or showing people that material wants and passions are but an illusion, in the end society remained unchanged.

Social codes and orders did no better. Be they of the bushido code, the knightly code, the musketeers, or modern day police. In the end they all fail to hold at bay the claws of corruption.

Political systems are no exception. Be it monarchism, communism, fascism, dictatorship, or even democracy; corruption always seeps in.

The recurring theme is always the same. No matter what rules we create, those that are good will use them for good and those that are evil will find a way to use them for evil.

The best that society has been able to do is to amputate the infected doctrine and create a new one in its place. In the end, it only buys us time. Usually its only a matter of years; sometimes even decades. Yet sooner or later the foundation becomes corrupted and society is once again divided into wolves and sheep. The corrupt can never sedate their greed, always wanting more they take all they can until society could give no more. In what is often a violent spasm rips society proceeds to rip out the cancer.

So I am at a loss. How can we possibly end this vicious cycle? Can we keep out those who would use any laws, any morals and any values we create in the name of good for their own personal gain, which is nothing but an instinctive drive to be the alpha male/female. Can we change change the very nature of a human being?

ARTelevision

Probably not.
It seems to me it makes more sense to focus on oneself.
There's always room for improvement there and it's within the realm of possibility.

It doesn't make much difference what everyone else is like.
But what we ourselves are like makes a lot of difference.

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create evolution

wilbjammin

There is a general issue of power and what humans think gives them power. There is always going to be a portion of the population the values power-over more than power-within. The weakness of dependency making others weak and maintaining their weakness...

I think we can make a difference if want to change things; but to hold out on mass structural change is a wish for disappointment, unless you have the courage and time and connections and resources to get things moving. One thing at a time, one person at a time - change can happen.

Definitely focus on yourself. Make yourself an example for the human race!

I think this is more of an issue of socialization than you might think. The more people you have in a society, the more variance you're going to have, the more you're going to face this. You cannot change the nature of the human being (whatever that is), but there are always steps you can take to limit those who would from abusing the system for gains at other's expenses. All is never lost, and it is a cycle... it gets worse then better. It takes vigilance.

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Innominate.

John Henry

Wilb has it here. The best you can hope for is to look after yourself and your own and be kind to people yourself.

Voltaire's 'Candide' is very instructive on this issue. Just look after your own patch of the garden. If everyoe does this, we'll all have a nice garden. If not, at least you'll have something pretty to look at.

Words and ideas can never change the nature of the human being. The tail does not wag the dog, but we are delicately evolved into a niche. Even the evil bastards have a rightful place.

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"No one was behaving from very Buddhist motives. Then, thought Pigsy, he was hardly a Buddha, nor was he a monkey. Presently, he was a pig spirit changed into a little girl pretending to be a little boy to be offered to a water monster. It was all very simple to a pig spirit."

tecoyah

Give us about 500 years and there should be some progress.....the brain is evolving more than the body now. maybe there is some hope if we dont blow ourselves up first.

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Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned. - Buddha

chavos

raise a child with love. give birth, adopt, foster child, whatever. its the best way i can think of do something for the future.

KellyC

Uhhh...I'm a little slow, you mind explaining this a bit further?

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Him: Ok, I have to ask, what do you believe?
Me: Shit happens.

:::OshnSoul:::

THe thing is we keep doing the things that cause "problems" in our lives and in the world. We ask "why is this happening?" but the key is to reflect back on the things you did/do not like in the current situation of yourself or the world and ask "what don't I like about it?" "Why does it bring the results it does?" Then ask "What can be done to change that so that problems won't consist and have history repeat itself over and over, digging a deeper hole each time.
The change ONLY comes from within- even if the situation at hand is other people or the world in general.
The best thing to keep in mind is BE the difference that MAKES a difference. Whatever it is that is going on that you do not like, don't choose to do it yourself! You can only change you and then perhaps have others look up to you in that way. They admire that you are standing tall, commited, strong, and calm- not giving in to the situation.
YOU CAN CHANGE. Remember that.

jumpingbeans

It all boils down to survival og the fitest. While we may want to be nice & good natured it is easier to be mean. It comes more naturally. We did not get to where we are as humans by playing nice, nice.........( yes I would like to see people get along better )

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tiberry

OshnSoul has the right idea. I'd take it a step further and say don't think about the problem at all. If we could just think about what it is that we desire, we could achieve it. No need to dwell on why we haven't gotten it yet...that's a waste of time and engergy.

Fundamentally, I think everyone wants the same things. The problem is that we all have the same fears. We all view the world through similar illusions of Need, Disunity, etc and that breeds fear. Fear is the cause of all that you call "evil" or that which is NOT "love". I suppose generally speaking, Love = Good, Fear = Bad.

As long as humans hold tight to these illusions that foster fear, we will always experience "evil". Not until we realize that there is always enough, there is no failure, etc. will we be able to achieve the utopia that we all so desperately seek.

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My life's work is to bridge the gap between that which is perceived by the mind and that which is quantifiable by words and numbers.