It is the illusion of powerlessness among the people which upholds every empire – for a time. But the illusion eventually wears off. No empire lasts forever. Every empire falls in the end. This last, and hopefully final empire, which I would call the global neofeudal corporate oligarchy, or corporate
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Writings of J. Todd Ring: The Sociology Of Delusion
Automation is going to eliminate most jobs. That could spell tyranny and neofeudalism, and the birth of a highly stratified society, where the priviledged few live in material comfort, the power elite live as global feudal lords and god-kings, and the vast majority are deemed useless and discarded, or rounded
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Retrieved from the memory hole: Our collective imagination
Here is a note from the memory hole, to jolt us back to a sense of reality: which means, a sense that all things truly are possible – with the will, the heart, and the passion, and the dedication, to create a better world for all. Memory artifact one: Henry
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Power Elite: What Every Thinking Person Needs To Know
C. Wright Mills’, The Power Elite, is unquestionably one of the most important books ever written in sociology, social theory, social philosophy, social psychology or political-economy – and it of course intersects deeply with all of these areas – ranking along with other must-read books such as Erich Fromm’s, Escape
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Global Co-op Movement: The Better Way – and, The Way Ahead
I used to think that co-ops were a nice idea, very practical, a nice little niche for a few people around the margins and the periphery, with strong ideals, doing practical, valuable things. But I, must admit, in this regard, I was quite ignorant, until just this year. The co-op
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Reclaiming Democracy In Canada – And Around The World
In the 1960s, there was a cultural awakening which spread rapidly around the world, and Chomsky is right in calling it both a cultural awakening, and also, an outbreak of democracy. The civil rights movement, the women’s rights movement, the gay rights movement, the native rights movement, the anti-war and
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Who To Trust: The Short Answer
Who to trust? That is always a perennial question, and particularly now, when not only government, corporations, politicians and corporate and state media have repeatedly been shown to have lied, grossly distorted or concealed the truth, and engaged in deceitful PR and propaganda; but also, alternative and progressive media, along
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: On Narcissism & Independence
The fourth of July….I realize only now, that is today’s date, as I finish writing this short reflection. How fitting. Independence Day. Now, let us talk about where real independence comes from. * The real pandemic, or one of the many that afflicts the modern world, is mass narcissistic regression
Continue readingScripturient: A Meeting of the Minds?
Niccolo Machiavelli and Michel de Montaigne never met, nor could they have — Machiavelli died six years before Montaigne was born, and they lived about 1,200 km (800 miles) apart — but imagine the conversations they could have had if they had lived at the same time and close enough
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Population Growth & The Environment
There has been a debate going on for over 50 years as to whether the primary cause of the growing environmental crisis is over-population or over-consumption. The debate still continues, even though the facts have been known conclusively for decades. Consider what we know to be the established facts. 60%
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The death and rebirth of Pelagius, and the (still unfolding) history of Christianity: A New Renaissance, or Hell On Earth?
Pelagius: it’s a soft g, as in germane, not a hard g, as in gorilla, but otherwise the discussion here in this podcast below is good. Here are a few thoughts, after four decades of study, research and meditation, on the still-unfolding history of Christianity. Know your history. The Emperor
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Rebooting Canada, eh!
Tax the rich. That would be a good start. Close the loopholes, implement capital flight controls, tax financial speculation, tax the richest 1% and the large, profitable corporations, along with the heavy polluting industries, and put a reasonable royalty fee on oil, gas, water and forestry product exports. That would
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Libertarian Socialism & The Rebirth of Freedom & Democracy
What is libertarian socialism, and why should we be interested? Libertarian socialism is a long term goal, I would say, agreeing with Chomsky, who is the most prominent libertarian socialist alive. That’s point one. Although, history is full of surprises, so it may be closer and more attainable in the
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The New Renaissance
There is a renaissance emerging now across humanity, as well as a paradigm shift in science; and a spiritual awakening is occurring, along with a political and cultural awakening. How do we best understand this historically pivotal shift? The trends are toward: 1. a non-dualist view of the interconnectedness, interdependence,
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Madness of Nietzsche
Nietzsche was either terribly misinterpreted, as my dearly departed scholar brother was adamant to say, or he was simply mad his entire life, and his philosophy was a philosophy of madness. But it ultimately matters little, other than to historians and biographers, which one is the case, because the philosophy
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Anarchism, Political Philosophy & D&D
Yes, I do love to play D&D once a week with my boy of fifteen. It’s great fun for us both, and I feel no need to apologize for it or be embarrassed by it. I love spending time with my kids, and this is one of many ways we
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Stoicism: A Philosophy of Powerlessness
Stoicism is recently faddish and in vogue, but it is fashionable only to those who don’t understand it. It is not surprising that Stoicism is attractive to many people now, in the same way that many people are attracted to a death fetish: Stoisism is a philosophy of fatalism, and
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Guiding Lights In A Collapsing World
Who are some of the guiding lights in terms of what must be done? I would suggest Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Emerson, Thoreau, Chomsky, Vandana Shiva, Bookchin, EF Schumacher, Aldous Huxley, George Orwell, Erich Fromm, Alan Watts, Allan Wallace, Joseph Campbell, Einstein, Bohm, Spinoza, Dickens, Blake, Anthony J. Hall,
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Decentralization Or Collapse
To halt the decline of our civilization and stop our race toward ecological, economic and social collapse, we must sow and create a paradigm shift, a shift in the dominant world view, a shift in consciousness. That requires consciousness raising, media activism, and education. But we also need a fundamental
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Freedom, Democracy & Education
If you value compassion or human decency, then you should value education – not indoctrination. And if you value education, then you must value truth above comforting illusions or denial, and you must value freedom, diversity, individuality, curiosity and creativity, because education becomes indoctrination without them, and freedom becomes tyranny,
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