Avakian's 'God Doesn't Exist'

 

I listened to Bob Avakian's talk entitled 'God Doesn't Exist' today, and found it quite an interesting and refreshing perspective on the role of religion within today's capitalistic society. The talks are located at Avakian's site and you can listen to them in MP3 format here: http://www.bobavakian.net/more.html#god

He raised a few interesting points, focusing primarily on the Judeo-Christian traditions. Of course, as you can tell from my other writings, I consider myself a very spiritual person but not following any particular religion or dogma. However, I do find myself very critical of existing religious institutions and do agree with many of the points that Avakian pointed out regarding Christianity in particular.

  We find ourselves in a society dominated by Christian fascists who perverse the 'Word of God' in order to institute their own personal agenda. This perversion of the teachings of Christ enables the oppressive society that Avakian describes in his talk to take control. One of the major problems I have encountered and Avakian spends a good deal delving into deals with the way Christians pick and choose the parts of the Bible that suit their own ideology. The amount of contradiction found in the Bible regarding the philosophy it teaches is astounding, and it is something that I find many Christians avoid and many religious leaders refuse to talk about.

   What I find myself struggling with is the reconciliation with spirituality in general and the ideas that Avakian puts out regarding religion and spirituality. As an Atheist, he believes God does not exist. I have no problem with that, at times I do find myself leaning towards an agnostic stand point regarding the existence of any sort of Creator. While still not an atheistic belief, I can see where he is coming from and I recognize the need for a logical and rational society in order to enable the oppressed to rise up and take control of society and their lives. It is also essential for the continual development of mankind to constantly be seeking to improve themselves and the accumulation of knowledge.

     However the point is, and I do believe Avakian supports this view, is not to outlaw religion, but rather the shifting the focus of power from the religious institutions to the people. The separation of Church and State was an important step in the right direction, but it wasn't enforced as it should have been and the religious right were able to gain in power. Hence, we find ourselves in the situation we face today where the Christian fundamentalists have a strong hold on the political system, and fundamentalists within other religions such as Islamic fundamentalists voice their beliefs and often in a violent manner.

     I'll conclude with an interesting reference that Avakian pointed out involving the crucifixion of Sparticus after the up-rising of the slaves. The image of the crucifixion of Sparticus isn't as important as the crucifixion as Christ. Of course Christ is viewed as the son of God, and hence a bit more attention is paid to it, but another reason is because of the suppression of the working class by the elite. An image of a revolutionary would be detrimental to the security of power possessed by the ruling class, and therefore the image isn't made into the powerful symbol that Christ on the crucifix has become. It is these sort of symbols and images, and the differences between them, that shape the viewpoints of so many people and yet when examined closely make so much sense to explain the current situation.

     I look forward to reading more of Avakian's work as well as listening to more of his speeches. While I have yet to commit myself to the ideals he supports, since I consider myself more of an anarchist then a socialist, I do believe that his work merits serious attention. This is especially true in the sociopolitical and economical climate we live in today. It is essential that the oppressed and underprivileged be educated and learn to take the responsibility of their lives into their own hands. Since if we continue to allow the elite, whether political or religious, to step all over us then true liberty and freedom will forever be abstract concepts that we're never make into reality.

Serbian Rioters attack US Embassy in Belgrade

CNN’s front page right now shows breaking news regarding the situation in Kosovo and Serbia. Since Kosovo’s declaration of independence this past Sunday, Serbians have taken to the streets to protest the international recognition the newly independent state has received. There seems to be a divide in the consensus of whether the declaration should be recognized. Whilst the United States, Britain, and many European countries have recognized Kosovo’s newly found independence Russia and China have protested the move citing it as justification for others to follow in Kosovo’s footsteps.

Rioters have taken to the streets in Belgrade to protest both the declaration by Kosovo as well as the support it has been receiving from the United States. Today, rioters attacked the US Embassy in Serbia by starting files and committing other acts of destruction. It seems Serbia intends on fighting back, reluctant to give up its hold over Kosovo and has responded by withdrawing its ambassador from the United States.

I vaguely recall the Kosovo War back in the 90’s, but between still being young at the time and not as interested in politics either it is difficult to remember a lot of the details. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how the situation plays out. On one hand, I respect the cultural significance of Kosovo to the Serbians, and can understand their sentiments and anger towards losing something that must be considered quite precious to them. At the same time, the government in Kosovo seems to have unilateral support for declaration of Kosovo as its own nation. As violence flares in Belgrade and along the Kosovo-Serbia border, it seems more and more unlikely that this will end soon nor in a peaceful manner. I’m sure that many of the Kosovo Albanians still harbor ill feelings towards the Serbs from the 1999 conflict, but hopefully the two nations as well as support from the UN and the international community can resolve this with minimal violence.

I’ve collected a number of links to various news sites that have been covering the story. Much more information can be found there.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2008/02/21/vo.serbia.protests.turn.violent.ap

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/02/21/kosovo.independence/index.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/21/AR2008022100481.html?hpid=moreheadlines

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSL2087155420080221

http://www.javno.com/en/world/clanak.php?id=125712

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/19/2166402.htm?section=justin

China’s Military Plans

The AirForceTimes posted an interesting article on possible plans of military engagement that China may use in a conflict with the US. The article details a scenario in which the US and China find themselves in a military conflict. The scenario likely involves a dispute over democratic Taiwan who is backed by the US.

The strategy posed by China, which has become public knowledge, outlines a sudden yet crippling attack on the American military, targetting in particular the Air force. By disabling US satellites, scrambling radar, and destroying American air bases in the Pacific the strategy hopes to back the US in a corner which they would have no other choice but avoid a full-scale war. The focal point of the strategy is a premptive strike that leaves the enemy dazed. Chinese military officials realize that a head-on assault against the US is a futile effort, hence the need for an early strike.

The article covers the strategy more in-depth, which seems to have a strong focus on crippling the enemy electronically. This outlines what seems to be a rising concern, one that I hope to write more about on Astral Mindscapes. WIth the rising advent of militaristic hacking and the higher focus on eletronic warfare it seems that the battlefield is changing shape once again. We already find ourselves in a situation where the conventional rules of war don’t work like they used to. The War on Terror has taught us (or at least some of us) a valuable lesson, that we must learn to recognize and adapt to new threats and modify our tactics accordingly or risk defeat.

Source: AirForce Times

America's Problem

Religion is a powerful thing, it shapes nations, creates wars, and serves as the foundation for many people's entire lives. People live by it, people die by it, and people kill for it. We can't be blamed for religion though, the universe is such a large and still mysterious place that we need something to help us cope with the questions we can not answer. But, religion has become dangerous. It has become a threat that we all must take very seriously. I believe religion is important in our lives, not as an explanation for unanswered questions, but as a moral foundation and a motivation to seek out answers to those questions. I think in time science will come to show that metaphysical teachings aren't as far out as we once believed.

Nevertheless, as it stands, religion plagues this nation. Specifically, Christianity, or as I should say 'literalist Christianity'. I call it this because I've come to believe that Christianity, as it is believed and taught today, doesn't reflect the original Christian teachings proposed by the Gnostics, for example, who I think were on the right track. I might be a bit harsh, for not all Christians are the narrow-minded individuals that I've come to associate with the religion. Indeed my closest friends growing up were a strongly Christian family.

But with the appearance of videos such as "Jesus Camp" and a video I'm currently watching about the members of the Westboro Baptist Church, as well as the ties that the current administration and Neocons has with the evangelicals I can't help but be afraid and very critical of Christianity.

My point being is that it is essential that we as Americans both defend our right to religious freedom and prevent the Christians from turning this Nation into a strictly Christian nation and more importantly, educate ourselves both about their beliefs and firmly understand our own so that we can defend our beliefs when they are scrutinized and criticized by the Christians. Don't get me wrong, I think the Christians have every right to be here as we do, but my beliefs are my own and I shouldn't have to worry about being forced to follow someone else's.

I'll continue to write more on this, as well as elaborate more on my useage of 'literalist Christianity' as well (especially once I'm finished reading The Jesus Mysteries.)