This is not about race; it is about oil and lessons not learned, warnings not heeded, opportunities missed, and a future that is black. Have you noticed that the news is full of accusations, promises of investigations, formation of commissions, warnings of prosecutions and basic accusations? What is the subject of all this attention? Obviously, it’s the ongoing Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

There should be no need to recount the events or even bring you up to date on the planet’s worst environmental disaster since the biblical flood. Just turn on the news and get all the latest. My concern is not the loss of entire ecosystems, how many millions of gallons of oil are destroying the entire way of life in the Gulf, how the spill will reach the East Coast and perhaps Europe, the senseless loss of wildlife along with their homes. , habitats and breeding sites, or the economic destruction of the Gulf. Rather, my concern is whether or not the finger is pointing in the right direction.

It’s certainly easy to target BP. And, there is no doubt that at some point, they will pay the piper. There are also those who made faulty equipment and failed to ensure that all of that equipment would work at such depths. Of course, we do not want to forget about those who issued permits when all the facts were not known and compliance was not guaranteed. No doubt heads will roll, jobs will be lost and fines will be paid. However, it must be remembered that those who have financial power, at least historically, never really lose the power of money.

The United States, and most of the world, is at the crossroads of a major crisis. But is the crisis an oil spill or something more fundamental? Here’s the thing; we have developed a universal culture of blaming others for our problems. As a result, we have a complementary mindset that says problems like oil spills, climate change, refugees, peace, pollution, and other pressing world problems cannot be solved by the average person because it is beyond the scope of their ability. ability and power to do so. . While pointing fingers at another, we think that we are blameless and not responsible for solving problems. But let’s be clear, our insatiable appetite for oil, energy and disposable consumer goods has allowed the walls of the very home we live in to be breached and pillaged. As long as our cars run, the lights are on, the food is on the shelves, and we can get our hands on the latest disposable device, the black gold purveyors can do whatever they want. Certainly someone is watching them and if a problem occurs, ‘someone’ will deal with it.

Critics of concepts like the Law of Attraction like to point to disasters like genocide, disease, oil spills, rape, and a wide range of other seeming disasters and argue that “certainly, people don’t attract these things to themselves.” themselves, are much more important.” too horrible.” Ah, the pointing figure syndrome strikes again. Clearly, people don’t allow dictators to come to power. Clearly, we don’t allow nations to commit genocide. Clearly, we don’t overconsume so there’s food for everyone Clearly we don’t consume most of the world’s energy resources Clearly we treat everyone with respect and dignity and help everyone in need so there is no need to commit crime Clearly the oil companies are greedy and get away with theirs with all sorts of machinations, but that’s not our problem.Clearly someone else is always responsible for the world’s problems and there’s nothing we can do about it.

In a way, all of the above are what are called “memes”. If you haven’t, I highly recommend reading “The Mind Virus” by Richard Brodie. A ‘meme’ is a unit of information in one mind that influences events in such a way that more copies of itself are created in other minds. A virus of the mind is something that infects people with memes which, in turn, influence the behavior of infected people in such a way that the virus spreads. Dictators are experts at using memes to alter public behavior, as are corporate advertisers. After all, look at all the new diseases out there and look at all the stupid stuff people buy because they’re convinced they must have these things. This is how those who ‘know’ use the Law of Attraction to get rich. All of this brings us back to the oil spill in the Gulf. The reason the oil rig is there in the first place is because we are convinced that we must have oil; that we must obtain it at all costs so that the Arabs cannot control us. or turn off your supplies, and that even if there’s a disaster, you’ve thought and there’s nothing you can do about it because you really need the oil.

When we point a finger, we should discover that we are pointing at a mirror. We allow ourselves to be controlled and manipulated by the masters of memes. We bring into our lives what someone else says we should have. As a result, the Law of Attraction is fulfilled and we attract what we deserve, what we think, what we fear. There is a growing sense of futility, an emerging blackness in the American psyche. It is a mental virus that is spreading everywhere. Biologists tell us that one of the main causes of evolution is environmental stress. There are also those who say that humanity is on the verge of spontaneous evolution. While change doesn’t require negative stress, it seems humanity only rises to the occasion when faced with disaster. These disasters are now occurring in the environment, the economy, religion, education, politics, and in almost every aspect of human life. Many forces are flowing together in what seems to be an interesting scenario for 2012. Perhaps we will wake up and discover that we don’t have to “suffer the stones and arrows of outrageous fortune.” Perhaps we will discover that if we can create such grave injustices towards ourselves and the place we live in, then we also have the capacity and power to create a world that makes sense.