Is Fred Owen's Life An "Embarrassment" Filled With "Wasted Decades?"

Dear Fred,

You ask: "How can I explain the wasted years and wasted decades? My life is an embarrassment."

What you perceive as "waste" is enforced marginalization by a System that rewards lickspittle sheep and despises "anyone" who spotlights the emperor's lack of clothes. 

Here is a recording of Kurt Vonnegut's "Harrison Bergeron" that epitomizes "how things really work." https://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2017/09/harrison-bergeron-and-other-self.html

Uncle Sam has submerged the nation in a swamp of perpetual warfare whose twofold purpose is 1.) to muddy the waters so "no one" can see, and 2.) to do the bidding of Deep State Plutocracy which profits from never-ending belligerence and prolongs its profiteering by poking people eyes out or, as is currently the case, imposing a blinding blizzard of bullshit.

Although there is infrequent need for coordinated, international police action, almost all warfare serves the self-aggrandizing purposes of corrupt politicans and "The 1%."

Good friend AWC, a retired Air Force general (whose first assignment was China during World War II) confided -- and I quote verbatim -- "It seems we haven't fought a good war since World War II."

Consider the following list of U.S. military interventions and ask yourself, "How much of this contributed to The Good?"

Or, simply ask yourself "WTF?!?"

Timeline Of U.S. Military Interventions

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_military_operations

Against the backdrop of "American success," it is notable that neither you, nor I, nor any friend smart enough to see through the charade would ever be employed as a high-level policy-maker because every one of us would point out (amidst our banshee laughter) the patent absurdity of starting these decerebrate military-industrial-complex conflicts which, in our lifetime, have sent countless trillions - and an entire Holocaust of pointless war dead - down the shithole. 

The SOBMFs who "run the show" (and it is almost entirely a "show") want "successful" people -- buttoned-down, lickspittle suck-ups -- to serve as their public face. 

Conjure an image of Sara "The Huckster" Huckabee, "The Mooch," "Michael Cohen" or "The Deplorable One" himself, and you will glimpse the whole sordid scam.

Like most issues, "success" is largely "definitional." 

Here are a few definitions I would pose for the "successful" careerists in the Bush-Cheney administration and the Trump administration, people who, despite their church-going platitudinousness -- and whether or not they are conscious of the havoc they wreak -- collude with bloody murder.

"Moral Flabbiness Born Of The Exclusive Worship Of The Bitch Goddess Success..." William James
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-moral-flabbiness-born-of-exclusive.html

Pseudo-Success And The Undoing Of America
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2012/03/pseudo-success-and-undoing-of-america.html

Success

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2013/02/success.html

TED Radio Hour: "Success" 

On this program I most recommend the talks by Alain de Botton and Mike Rowe.

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/03/ted-radio-hour-success.html

Why We Love Violence And Pump It Even Though It Rarely Works And Is Typically Counterproductive

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2017/04/why-we-love-violence-pump-it-even.html 

"War, Peace And Political Manipulation: Quotations"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2011/10/war-peace-and-political-manipulation.html

Alan: In the past, I have accompanied the above Mencken quote with this qualifier: "I wish Mencken had said almost all of them imaginary."
Now I think Mencken's observation is more accurate as it stands.

Dwight Eisenhower: War Is Brutal, Futile, Stupid

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/08/dwight-eisenhower-war-is-brutal-futile.html

Properly Understood, The Iraq War Was An Ego-Driven Exercise In State-Sponsored Terrorism 

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/11/we-are-not-at-war-with-islam-exchange.html

"Do Wars Really Defend America's Freedom?"
(Homage to Marine Commandant, Major General Smedley Butler who, during his lifetime, was the most decorated soldier in American history.)

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/11/major-general-smedley-butler-do-wars.html

"We Like War"

George Carlin Video

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2013/09/george-carlin-we-like-war-because-were.html

"Why We Fight," Excellent Documentary With Ike's "Military-Industrial Complex" As Springboard
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2017/03/why-we-fight-excellent-documentary-with.html

Scare The Sheep 

And They Will Applaud Military-Industrial Profiteering

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/scare-sheep-and-they-will-cheer.html

The Age-Old Normalization Of Warfare Through Stupidity, Ego And Religion
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/09/the-age-old-normalization-of-warfare.html

American "Patriotism": Why So Many Americans Are Fundamentally Violent And Paranoid
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2017/04/american-patriotism-why-so-many.html

Republican Lawmaker From Nevada Sends Christmas Card Featuring Fully Armed Family

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/republican-lawmaker-from-nevada-sends.html

Instruction And Education Are Antipodal Enterprises

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2018/04/education-and-instruction-are-antipodal.html

"Bush's Toxic Legacy In Iraq"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/06/bushs-toxic-legacy-in-iraq.html

"Israeli War Historian, Martin van Creveld's Startling Commentary On The Iraq War"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/06/israeli-war-historian-martin-van.html

Excerpt: "For misleading the American people, and launching the most foolish war since Emperor Augustus in 9 B.C sent his legions into Germany and lost them, Bush deserves to be impeached and, once he has been removed from office, put on trial along with the rest of the president’s men. If convicted, they’ll have plenty of time to mull over their sins." War historian Martin van Creveld is the only non-U.S. author whose writings are obligatory reading by America's Officer Corps."

George Will: "The 2003 Invasion Of Iraq Was The Worst Foreign Policy Decision In U.S. History"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/11/george-will-2003-invasion-of-iraq-worst.html

Hans Blix' Fruitless Search For WMD And Bush/Cheney's Rush To War In Iraq

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/08/hans-blix-fruitless-search-for-wmd-and.html

Cheney's Lucid 1994 Rationale For NOT Invading Iraq. Conservatives "Must" See This

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/08/cheneys-lucid-1996-rationale-for-not.html

"The Fall Of Iraq. Jawdropping Video Footage Of Cheney, Albright, Gen Clarke & Others"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-fall-of-iraq-jawdropping-video.html

Uncle Sam's Mercenary Christians Kill 17 Iraqi Civilians. 2 Frenchmen Kill 12 In Paris

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/01/uncle-sams-mercenary-christians-kill-17.html

"Terrorism And The Other Religions"

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/04/terrorism-and-other-religions-juan-cole.html

Christian "Just War Principles" Established c. 500 A.D. Vs. America's "just war" Tradition

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/06/christian-just-war-principles.html

The Mistaken Concept That Reducing Cultures To Rubble Results In Peace

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/the-mistaken-concept-that-reducing.html

Punishment Rarely Reforms But Instead Tends To Reinforce Wrongdoing

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/12/punishment-rarely-reforms-but-instead.html

Best Pax Posts On Punishment And Torture As "Necessary" Methods For Righting Wrongs

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2016/08/best-pax-posts-on-punishment-and.html

Conservative Christians Delight In The Punishment And Pain Of Others

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2015/09/conservative-christians-delight-in_9.html

America's Passion For Punishment And Torture
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2016/04/americas-passion-for-punishment-torture.html

Now more than ever, it is crucial that people (individually, and bound together in collaborative purpose) "create their own work in the world" rather than "sucking off" someone else's careerist agenda because it's profitable and "comes with benefits."

As you know, such self-chosen work often provides little material recompense.

And self-chosen work -- both creative and earthy -- is your genius... your gift... and everyone's true exemplar of success.

The corporate, burocratofascist alternative tends toward psycho-spiritual gutting, a naqba which neither perks, bennies nor salary can compensate.

Consider...

A nun who served as "pastoral administrator" at my small Catholic church in rural North Carolina actually said to me: "I'm looking forward to retirement so I can start working on peace and justice." 

Shortly before retirement, she contracted a neuro-degenerative disease and spent her few remaining years in continual downhill struggle to remain functional.

Consider...

A careerist neighbor of mine -- the best candidate I know to kill herself by "karoshi" -- just placed two "RESIST" signs in her front yard, as far as I know the only political "work" she's done since 2016. On multiple occasions this woman has told me - point blank - that what I do as a writer and "public intellectual" is "a waste of time."

Maybe.

Time will tell... http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-pen-is-mightier-than-sword-robin.html

Every "establishment occupation" dangles seductive "prizes" to coax the unwary onto the plodding rungs of "climbing" careerism. 

Almost always those careers -- reminiscent of the Chilean bishops who earlier today offered their collective resignation to Pope Francis for having participated in the systematic coverup of priests sodomizing children -- drag legions of people into the abyss of "going along," and with surprising regularity, nudge them into outright malfeasance. 

Why does The System do this?

The System has so much blood on its hands that in order to sustain itself and perpetuate itself, "it" must provide a wealth of perquisites and blandishments to seduce "newcomers" to "get blood on their hands" too. No matter how innocently one's hands become bloody, the very moment they do, The System celebrates "Mission Accomplished." 

As for those who rule the plutocratic roost -- the so-called "job creators" oddly worshipped by "everyday Americans" -- Chesterton offers this epitomization: "The merely rich are not rich enough to rule the modern market. The things that change modern history, the big national and international loans, the big educational and philanthropic foundations, the purchase of numberless newspapers, the big prices paid for peerages, the big expenses often incurred in elections - these are getting too big for everybody except the misers; the men with the largest of earthly fortunes and the smallest of earthly aims. There are two other odd and rather important things to be said about them. The first is this: that with this aristocracy we do not have the chance of a lucky variety in types which belongs to larger and looser aristocracies. The moderately rich include all kinds of people even good people. Even priests are sometimes saints; and even soldiers are sometimes heroes. Some doctors have really grown wealthy by curing their patients and not by flattering them; some brewers have been known to sell beer. But among the Very Rich you will never find a really generous man, even by accident. They may give their money away, but they will never give themselves away; they are egoistic, secretive, dry as old bones. To be smart enough to get all that money you must be dull enough to want it." 

Pax On Both Houses: Compendium Of G.K. Chesterton Posts

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2014/10/pax-on-both-houses-gk-chesterton-posts.html