Those who are familiar with The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood would recall that it depicts the fictional Republic of Gilead as a misogynistic and theocratic dystopia, not a utopia. And in it, Women were often their own worst enemies in that they enforced such repression and oppresion on other Women. That was primarily the role of the group of Women known as the Aunts, led by Serena Joy (who was loosely based on Phyllis Schlafly, Mary Pride, and most likely a bit of Tammy Faye Bakker thrown in for good measure). They apparently wanted to create a Matriarchal society through a sort of back door, by controlling Women in order to indirectly control men (by keeping the "cost" of sex artificially and arbitrarily high), and that of course backfired mightily on Women collectively as a class (even if a few individuals like Serena initially benefited at their expense).
The Handmaid's Tale is a work of fiction, of course, but the real-life wannabe Serena Joys do exist nonetheless, in that awkward space between the far left and far right, between fascism and communism, between extreme radical feminism and the Religious Right, and thus between extreme patriarchy and reverse patriarchy that is the hallmark of Horseshoe Theory (where ideological extremes are fat more alike than they are different). Phyllis Schlafly and Mary Pride were infamous historical examples, but there are plenty of others as well such as Beverly LaHaye and her followers.
So what does this strategy supposedly look like? It is NOT limited to just banning porn and prostitution, as that is just the start. It also involves banning or severely restricting birth control, abortion, homosexuality, and Women's sexuality in general, particularly that of younger Women (but ultimately all Women). The control of Women's sexuality and reproduction is crucial to their agenda, and they basically seek to restore rigid, "traditional" gender roles in which Women are mere brood mares and men are the work horses, but of course only when it's convenient for the powers that be. In other words, it is basically the same old-school patriarchy with some Women taking the place of the men in charge, albeit behind the scenes. No one is really free when others are oppressed. Thus, is it really any wonder that this strategy has NEVER brought about any sort of actual Matriarchy in practice?
Clearly the back door does NOT work. Thus, Women need to charge through the front door instead. Yesterday.
So let this be a warning, NOT a newspaper! The master's tools will NOT dismantle the master's house, and you really can't stop coercion by coercing. Liberty is NOT a zero-sum game at all. In fact, liberty is like love: the more you give, the more you get. So what are we waiting for?
Let the planetary healing begin!
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Monday, September 30, 2019
Neoliberalism: The Religion Of The World, Flesh, And Devil
Neoliberalism. It is a rather obscure-sounding term with a somewhat nebulous meaning. It's anonymity and vagueness shroud it in mystery. And yet, it is the very ideology at the root of most, if not all, of the modern world's problems.
So what is it, exactly? It is best defined as a dogmatic belief in the inherent superiority and supremacy of unfettered free markets and privatization (and commodification) of nearly every single thing in the universe. Inequality, however extreme, and even greed itself is recast as virtuous. The rich and the poor deserve their lot in life, because reasons. Poverty is in fact a feature, not a bug. People are just objects to be used, as are animals and Mother Nature herself. Citizens are reduced to mere consumers and wage-serfs, if not full-blown slaves. And like the robber barons of old, today's high priests of neoliberalism are totally fine with robbing from the poor, giving to the rich, and torpedoing what's left of the middle class. The only difference is that nowadays they typically do it with a smile and a veneer of pseudo-progressivism, while laughing all the way to the bank.
Neoliberalism's warped and twisted code of pseudo-ethics harbors a massive, gaping void that is essentially a moral black hole, since this ideology lacks a truly moral and spiritual component underneath it all. Its entire foundation is shaky, empty and morally bankrupt, totally rotten to the core. And yet, it has such mass appeal on both the (pseudo-)left and right of the political spectrum that it transcends that very spectrum. And while neoliberalism is clearly the darling brainchild of patriarchy, it is such a wily and devious shapeshifter that it even transcends patriarchy itself as well.
From Reagan to the Clintons, Thatcher to Blair, Milton Friedman to Thomas Friedman, Greenspan to Powell, Facebook to ExxonMobil, Purdue University to Perdue Chicken to Purdue Pharma, Trump to Trudeau, and Boris all the way to Natasha, it seems like no mainstream or pseudo-alternative politician, ideologue, technocrat, maven, or tycoon has been able to avoid being infected by neoliberalism to one degree or another, and sucked into its lifeless, soulless abyss.
(Trump, with the notable exception of opposing some of the "free trade" component of neoliberalism, otherwise supports essentially all of the rest of their evil and demonic agenda in practice, his disingenuous rhetoric to the contrary notwithstanding. And ALL neoliberals, Trump included, are largely anti-union in practice, if not also in theory as well.)
Though secular in nature, neoliberalism has all of the zeal of a religion, even a fundamentalist one. And its dogmas have basically become the new orthodoxy from about 1980 onwards. And we can thus conclude that neoliberalism is essentially the religion of the world, the flesh, and the devil, filling the voids left by the implosion of the mainstream patriarchal religions. One can even call it a cult as well.
In Christian theology, the "world, flesh, and devil" have traditionally been considered the three primary enemies of the soul, as a sort of "unholy trinity". Now, I believe that there is some nuance to this in that the world is only evil because of who rules it (i.e. the devil who works through men, particularly the oligarchs and their sycophantic lackeys), and the flesh is only evil when we choose to make it that way, since matter is essentially just a slowed-down form of spirit. Neither of these first two are inherently evil in themselves. But under the current regime of patriarchy, living exclusively for these two is believed to ultimately lead to the third member, the devil. Or wetiko, if you prefer. Whatever it is, it is pure evil energy that cannot ever be redeemed. And neoliberalism, in its sheer vileness, vainglory, and wanton idolatry of money and worldly power above all else, effectively worships all three members of this unholy trinity.
The rise of selected flavors of Christian (and other religious) fundamentalism since the 1980s has not stemmed the tide of neoliberalism, and the two increasingly seem to be joined at the hip nowadays. And while patriarchy is currently in its death throes as we speak, the implosion of patriarchy and patriarchal religion is clearly non-linear, erratic, and chaotic.
So what is it, exactly? It is best defined as a dogmatic belief in the inherent superiority and supremacy of unfettered free markets and privatization (and commodification) of nearly every single thing in the universe. Inequality, however extreme, and even greed itself is recast as virtuous. The rich and the poor deserve their lot in life, because reasons. Poverty is in fact a feature, not a bug. People are just objects to be used, as are animals and Mother Nature herself. Citizens are reduced to mere consumers and wage-serfs, if not full-blown slaves. And like the robber barons of old, today's high priests of neoliberalism are totally fine with robbing from the poor, giving to the rich, and torpedoing what's left of the middle class. The only difference is that nowadays they typically do it with a smile and a veneer of pseudo-progressivism, while laughing all the way to the bank.
Neoliberalism's warped and twisted code of pseudo-ethics harbors a massive, gaping void that is essentially a moral black hole, since this ideology lacks a truly moral and spiritual component underneath it all. Its entire foundation is shaky, empty and morally bankrupt, totally rotten to the core. And yet, it has such mass appeal on both the (pseudo-)left and right of the political spectrum that it transcends that very spectrum. And while neoliberalism is clearly the darling brainchild of patriarchy, it is such a wily and devious shapeshifter that it even transcends patriarchy itself as well.
From Reagan to the Clintons, Thatcher to Blair, Milton Friedman to Thomas Friedman, Greenspan to Powell, Facebook to ExxonMobil, Purdue University to Perdue Chicken to Purdue Pharma, Trump to Trudeau, and Boris all the way to Natasha, it seems like no mainstream or pseudo-alternative politician, ideologue, technocrat, maven, or tycoon has been able to avoid being infected by neoliberalism to one degree or another, and sucked into its lifeless, soulless abyss.
(Trump, with the notable exception of opposing some of the "free trade" component of neoliberalism, otherwise supports essentially all of the rest of their evil and demonic agenda in practice, his disingenuous rhetoric to the contrary notwithstanding. And ALL neoliberals, Trump included, are largely anti-union in practice, if not also in theory as well.)
Though secular in nature, neoliberalism has all of the zeal of a religion, even a fundamentalist one. And its dogmas have basically become the new orthodoxy from about 1980 onwards. And we can thus conclude that neoliberalism is essentially the religion of the world, the flesh, and the devil, filling the voids left by the implosion of the mainstream patriarchal religions. One can even call it a cult as well.
In Christian theology, the "world, flesh, and devil" have traditionally been considered the three primary enemies of the soul, as a sort of "unholy trinity". Now, I believe that there is some nuance to this in that the world is only evil because of who rules it (i.e. the devil who works through men, particularly the oligarchs and their sycophantic lackeys), and the flesh is only evil when we choose to make it that way, since matter is essentially just a slowed-down form of spirit. Neither of these first two are inherently evil in themselves. But under the current regime of patriarchy, living exclusively for these two is believed to ultimately lead to the third member, the devil. Or wetiko, if you prefer. Whatever it is, it is pure evil energy that cannot ever be redeemed. And neoliberalism, in its sheer vileness, vainglory, and wanton idolatry of money and worldly power above all else, effectively worships all three members of this unholy trinity.
The rise of selected flavors of Christian (and other religious) fundamentalism since the 1980s has not stemmed the tide of neoliberalism, and the two increasingly seem to be joined at the hip nowadays. And while patriarchy is currently in its death throes as we speak, the implosion of patriarchy and patriarchal religion is clearly non-linear, erratic, and chaotic.
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Rasa Von Werder Is Back With A New, Women-Only Religion
In case you missed it, the legendary Guru Rasa von Werder is back with her website "Embodiment of God" having recently been updated for the first time in a while. The latest updates to this side are essentially the genesis of Rasa’s new religion for Women only. No offense, fellas, but it really has to be this way. And besides, there are plenty of older posts and sections on that very same site designed just for you, that you should check out, and be sure to share far and wide.
Readers, please share it far and wide. Also don't forget to check out Rasa’s (and William's) new/old blog as well, along with William's own new blog. And please share those as well.
NOTE: This blog, The Chalice and the Flame, is NOT written by or directly affiliated with either Rasa or William, and opinions expressed on this site are not necessarily those of mine, or vice-versa. Nor is it affiliated with Riane Eisler, who wrote a book with a similar name to this blog, The Chalice and the Blade. And for all third-party sites, caveat lector.
Readers, please share it far and wide. Also don't forget to check out Rasa’s (and William's) new/old blog as well, along with William's own new blog. And please share those as well.
NOTE: This blog, The Chalice and the Flame, is NOT written by or directly affiliated with either Rasa or William, and opinions expressed on this site are not necessarily those of mine, or vice-versa. Nor is it affiliated with Riane Eisler, who wrote a book with a similar name to this blog, The Chalice and the Blade. And for all third-party sites, caveat lector.
Saturday, September 7, 2019
Against Moral Relativism
One thing I have noticed among various schools of thought, both inside and out of the Matriarchy movement, is the concept of moral relativism (also known as ethical relativism or cultural relativism). That is, the idea that there is no objective truth in morality, period. And while on the surface it may sound enlightened and progressive, please be advised that it is actually a very dangerous slippery slope towards egoism, amorality and moral nihilism. And the logical conclusion to such a dubious moral theory turns out to be anything but enlightened and progressive.
In his famous essay, "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism", the late secular progressive philosopher James Rachels does an excellent job thoroughly debunking the specious arguments that underlie moral relativism. Scratch that, he debones, slices, dices, and juliennes such arguments, and then fully lays waste to their remains. And most notably of all, he does it all from a secular progressive perspective.
In a nutshell, the conclusion that there is no objective truth in morality at all (itself an absolute statement, ironically) does NOT follow logically from the premise that there are differences in moral codes between various cultures and time periods. And if one were to attempt to make a valid argument justifying such a specious conclusion, we would also have to essentially tolerate not only various horrific evils because "culture", but also intolerance itself as well. Nothing at all enlightened or progressive about that. So much for relativism being a philosophy of tolerance and kindness.
In another chapter of his book, The Elements of Moral Philosophy, having already debunked moral relativism, he also then debunks the closely related idea of moral subjectivism in similar fashion. This idea basically says that morality (right vs. wrong, good vs. evil) is merely a matter of opinion, again not objective. And in essentially the same way that relativism fails as a moral theory, so too does subjectivism as well.
This is not to say that moral absolutism (such as the views of Immanuel Kant) is necessarily correct either. We know that numerous gray areas do exist, of course, and both relativism/subjectivism and absolutism can thus be seen as two sides of the same fundamentally flawed coin. Thus objectivism (with a lowercase "o", to distinguish it from the egoistic philosophy of Ayn Rand) is essentially the way to go.
So all progressives, leftists, feminists and/or matriarchists reading this, take note. You really do NOT want to cede the moral high ground to the opposition, lest you fall into quicksand and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
In his famous essay, "The Challenge of Cultural Relativism", the late secular progressive philosopher James Rachels does an excellent job thoroughly debunking the specious arguments that underlie moral relativism. Scratch that, he debones, slices, dices, and juliennes such arguments, and then fully lays waste to their remains. And most notably of all, he does it all from a secular progressive perspective.
In a nutshell, the conclusion that there is no objective truth in morality at all (itself an absolute statement, ironically) does NOT follow logically from the premise that there are differences in moral codes between various cultures and time periods. And if one were to attempt to make a valid argument justifying such a specious conclusion, we would also have to essentially tolerate not only various horrific evils because "culture", but also intolerance itself as well. Nothing at all enlightened or progressive about that. So much for relativism being a philosophy of tolerance and kindness.
In another chapter of his book, The Elements of Moral Philosophy, having already debunked moral relativism, he also then debunks the closely related idea of moral subjectivism in similar fashion. This idea basically says that morality (right vs. wrong, good vs. evil) is merely a matter of opinion, again not objective. And in essentially the same way that relativism fails as a moral theory, so too does subjectivism as well.
This is not to say that moral absolutism (such as the views of Immanuel Kant) is necessarily correct either. We know that numerous gray areas do exist, of course, and both relativism/subjectivism and absolutism can thus be seen as two sides of the same fundamentally flawed coin. Thus objectivism (with a lowercase "o", to distinguish it from the egoistic philosophy of Ayn Rand) is essentially the way to go.
So all progressives, leftists, feminists and/or matriarchists reading this, take note. You really do NOT want to cede the moral high ground to the opposition, lest you fall into quicksand and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
Tuesday, September 3, 2019
Rasa Von Werder's Website Is Back
The legendary Guru Rasa von Werder is back with her website "Embodiment of God" having now been updated for the first time in a while. The latest updates to this side are essentially the genesis of Rasa’s new religion for Women only. No offense, fellas, but it really has to be this way. And besides, there are plenty of older posts and sections on that same site designed just for you, that you should check out.
Readers, please share it far and wide. Also don't forget to check out Rasa’s (and William's) new/old blog as well, along with William's own new blog. And please share those as well.
Readers, please share it far and wide. Also don't forget to check out Rasa’s (and William's) new/old blog as well, along with William's own new blog. And please share those as well.
Thursday, August 22, 2019
2030: The Final Countdown (Updated)
Let's face it, fellas. Women are taking over, and it will likely happen sooner than you think. So few men seem to see it coming, despite the fact that we are increasingly becoming the redundant half of humanity. But there are several reasons for my prediction that Women will take over politically around 2030 in the USA at least, and likely by 2050 worldwide:
- Women have already crossed the proverbial Rubicon in terms of education. Since the 1990s, there have been more Women than men earning college degrees each year. Women now outnumber men on most college campuses, and since 2010 there are now more total Women than men who possess college degrees in this country.
- Not coincidentally, in a growing number of cities, single women in their twenties and early thirties are out-earning men, in spite of the overall gender wage gap in general. Women are well on their way to becoming the richer gender.
- The number of Women in high-powered careers continues to rise, especially for CEOs.
- Automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI) are predicted to eventually take most if not all jobs from workers by 2060, and a large chunk of which taken by 2030. This is especially true for traditionally "male" jobs, meaning that men will be hit the hardest and soonest by such trends.
- Men, on the other hand, continue to lag behind, and are getting poorer with each generation these days. And as the saying goes, whoever has the gold makes the rules.
- The next economic crash, which will happen sooner or later, will be devastating to men. Consider the previous "mancession" to be the warning shot.
- Patriarchal religions and cults, at least most of them in the West, are imploding at warp speed these days.
- The #MeToo movement, which in part was spurred by a reaction to the abomination that is the current occupant in the White House, may be catalyzing a quantum leap in Women's power and evolution.
- The wonderful Marianne Williamson has announced her run for President of the United States in the 2020 election, a major 180-degree turnaround from her previously almost lifelong aversion to politics.
- And last but not least, we have demographic trends as well. Thanks to Women today living longer as well as having fewer kids than in the past, the population is aging, and soon the Crones (older Women) will have an unprecedented amount of power due to strength in numbers. No wonder so many men, especially conservatives, are scared of "demographic winter".
- Millennial Women will be starting to enter the Crone stage of life from 2030 on, in fact.
- And while there will be a surplus of Women in general relative to men in general, and thus more strength in numbers, there will also be a shortage of younger Women relative to slightly older men by 2030 due to the fairly steep drop in birthrates since the Great Recession began in 2008, thus increasing the dyadic bargaining power of younger Women as well. Such a one-two punch rarely happens, but when it does, it can be quite significant, especially when combined with the above trends as well.
And when Women do finally take over, they will remember how they were treated, so it really behooves us fellas to clean up our act yesterday. This last point absolutely cannot be overstated, for we all know what they say about karma.
Like the song says, it's the final countdown...
"J'Accuse!" Are Men Really Becoming The New Jews?
Short answer: Not really. And that is a LOT of chutzpah to even say something like that!
Longer and more nuanced answer: Just like the specious claim that the #MeToo movement is becoming a "witch hunt" (itself also a highly problematic term given its history), the idea that men somehow are being persecuted now and/or in the near future does not really jibe with reality.
For now, at least.
But what about in the somewhat more distant (or perhaps not-so-distant) future? The fear of KARMA, of course, is an understandably real fear among men. Of course, as I have noted before in my post "The Man Question", the idea of an anti-male Holocaust (with men taking the place of Jews) or Reverse Inquisition / Burning Times (with men taking the place of Women) is of course ill-advised (not to mention horribly unethical) and should never be promoted or encouraged, as it would backfire on Women, thus transferring some of the dreaded karma onto them instead. Though the risk of it actually happening is slim, it is not quite zero, so we do still need to be careful and defuse any such risk, however tiny, of it ever happening. After all, "Never Again" really means Never Again, period, with no asterisks or qualifications.
By the way, this also applies to what is happening right now to migrant children on America's southern border. This is how it starts, fellas. Scratch that, this is actually several stages along the way already. So why aren't you outraged about this? Because you know it never ends there.
So, my fellow brothers, instead of calling you OUT, this time I am calling you IN. Now is your time to apologize to the Divine Feminine, make amends, and "accept the unacceptable" (Hirohito's euphemism) by surrendering to Women. NOW. Because you will have to do it sooner or later, and the sooner you do, the better we will all be. And when Women do take over, they will remember exactly how they have been treated, so it really behooves us fellas to clean up our act yesterday.
Longer and more nuanced answer: Just like the specious claim that the #MeToo movement is becoming a "witch hunt" (itself also a highly problematic term given its history), the idea that men somehow are being persecuted now and/or in the near future does not really jibe with reality.
For now, at least.
But what about in the somewhat more distant (or perhaps not-so-distant) future? The fear of KARMA, of course, is an understandably real fear among men. Of course, as I have noted before in my post "The Man Question", the idea of an anti-male Holocaust (with men taking the place of Jews) or Reverse Inquisition / Burning Times (with men taking the place of Women) is of course ill-advised (not to mention horribly unethical) and should never be promoted or encouraged, as it would backfire on Women, thus transferring some of the dreaded karma onto them instead. Though the risk of it actually happening is slim, it is not quite zero, so we do still need to be careful and defuse any such risk, however tiny, of it ever happening. After all, "Never Again" really means Never Again, period, with no asterisks or qualifications.
By the way, this also applies to what is happening right now to migrant children on America's southern border. This is how it starts, fellas. Scratch that, this is actually several stages along the way already. So why aren't you outraged about this? Because you know it never ends there.
So, my fellow brothers, instead of calling you OUT, this time I am calling you IN. Now is your time to apologize to the Divine Feminine, make amends, and "accept the unacceptable" (Hirohito's euphemism) by surrendering to Women. NOW. Because you will have to do it sooner or later, and the sooner you do, the better we will all be. And when Women do take over, they will remember exactly how they have been treated, so it really behooves us fellas to clean up our act yesterday.
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