Q&A #3: Tales that aren't true.
Questions (Q) & Conversation (C) With the Master Grizzly
This is the gist of a conversation had, over the weekend, with a younger gentleman I’m mentoring, locally. The sentences starting with C: (Conversation) are me!
Q: I read your latest post… the one about where you advise supporting yourself and focusing on your own personal freedoms. Isn’t that selfish, in light of all the shit going on in the world?
C: Do you feel you’re adequately equipped — financially, physically, emotionally with enough resources and time — to ‘stew in’ or ‘fix’ those outward problems?
Well, nooot, not reaaally. I just think you’ve got to take a side, at least.
C: A side? For what purpose?
You know, to show your followers that you care about the heinous events going on in the Middle East.
C: Let’s get real now. After knowing me for this long… do you really think I write to appease my tribe? [Note: Jacob has been reading my bulletins, and occasionally meeting up for coffee with me, for 4 months]
There is a reason, if you remember, I wrote an entire page titled ‘Do I write for you?’
For the last two decades+, I have always said that extrospection ignites passion; but it is introspection that fuels it over time, and brings about consistent changes in your life.
Yeah, without a doubt, it’s important to observe and have convicted opinions about external events. But, if you’re looking over the cliff of world events without pulling yourself back and taking inventory of what you can / can’t control… you’re going to get lost quick!
Q: I personally feel the desire to solve some issues in the world. So, where’s action and my responsibility come into all this?
C: Look, maybe you should just sit in a dark room, with no noise, and simply ask yourself:
Who I am to positively affect stuff that I can’t control? Or, am I in a position to know what is / isn’t true for things far removed from my circle f influence?
I know that in my rant post, Andy Frisella (via the embedded video clip) essentially is trying to get across the same point. Which is: Be willing to understand society's issues (through critical thinking filters) without becoming consumed by them. And if you are going to get consumed by distraction, then do it close to home — where it matters!
You can get-involved, and make change, by first ensuring you’re not letting atrocity propaganda turn your mind into mush. The spreading of misinformation, or sensationalizing real events with deliberate half-truths, is a great way for ‘The Man’ to get the masses sucked-into his sociopathic geopolitical games.
It’s been used all throughout history, as a way for the Elite to justify war. The Nazis, for instance, used atrocity propaganda to justify their invasion of Poland in 1939, claiming that the Polish army had attacked Germany first.
As pointed out here (~15-min to ~30-min mark), it’s now being used in this Israel conflict (I’m not currently buying into the “war” rhetoric).
What I’m really saying to you, Jacob, is to ensure you’re PAYING ATTENTION. That taking action can also mean to stay healthy and focus on staying vigilant… with your critical-thinking cap on. It means, in the words of my longtime buddy Jared, “get busy livin” — at home, where it counts!
Or, in the grounded words of mystic-poet and social activist, Thomas Merton:
“You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith, and hope.”
🔗 Related Links:
My Q&A archives:
https://bearsbulletins.substack.com/t/q-and-a
An Open Letter to Ambitious Men:
https://bearsbulletins.substack.com/p/less-talk-more-action