Question: Why Do We Seek Power?

Why Do We Seek Power

Commentary by: Ray Greninger

I haven’t written anything in some time.  Maybe it’s laziness, maybe it’s frustration. Not sure.

If I wanted to write for the sake of writing, I could have posted recipes. I have a few.

No, I think I have hit a wall. It’s a wall that is higher than I am able to scale. I guess you could say it’s the wall of reality. It’s the reality that has been reality since we, members of the race Mankind, have been on this planet. The truth is, we can be kind and wonderful critters, and most of us are. But at the same time we are delusional, misinformed, confused and Hell bent on domination of our fellows. Well, some of us are. I might even go as far as to say, most of us are, whether we know it or not.

Have you ever told a little white lie so that you might be looked upon more favorably by others? Think of it as a way to rise in the ranks much as a young male wolf might challenge other young males on his way to becoming Alpha.

Have you ever said something bad about another behind his or her back? If you are half aware, you might question yourself about why you did that. What was your answer to yourself? If you’re like most of us, you can’t come up with something that makes sense. Why would I do that? I dunno.  Might be the young wolf in me.

Have you ever cheated someone out of money or lied about the condition of something you were trying to sell? Were the few extra bucks worth what lying does to you?

Fact is, we do stupid shit all the time to try to stand out from the rest of the herd, or pack. We color our hair green, we paint our finger and toenails, we buy snazzy cars or fancy houses or the latest gizmo (the one everyone else has) with nary a thought about why. City folk seem to be more prone to this than the few of us out here in the boonies, but we’re guilty of it too. How about the guy who gets a new job that pays more than the last one and decides he can finance a new $40,000 truck on $18 an hour? What’s wrong with a $8000 truck with a few miles on it? Young wolf. Maybe he thinks that new truck will elevate him in the eyes of his peers. Maybe he thinks he will feel better about himself because he equates the money he is now making with self worth. I dunno.

I do know that there is, and always has been, a percentage of Mankind that  absolutely must be the alpha no matter what it takes. They think little about the bodies they leave along side the road on their way to the head of the pack. They will lie, cheat, deceive, hurt maim and even kill to be at the top of the heap. We are seeing this sort of thing going in politics right now. I won’t mention her name.

But, why?

These people find it necessary to enslave the rest of us so that they may enjoy the view from the top. And make no mistake, they HAVE enslaved us. They have enslaved us to a monetary system that insures that the fruits of our labor will accrue to them. We are little more than the pods of people in the Matrix supplying energy for the machine. They have enslaved us to governments which care little for our well being, let alone the reason for which we created them in the first place. We are fined, fee-d, licensed, taxed and then taxed some more, jailed, shackled, and abused by those whose took an oath to protect us. We are worked to the point of exhaustion for a few crumbs from the table of these “high contracting powers,” these self proclaimed “betters.” We are kept in the dark and fed shit. We are mushrooms to these people.

But, why?

Some say it’s Man’s sinful nature. Maybe. Some say it’s merely survival of the fittest. Maybe.  “They” like to say it’s the natural order of things. Maybe. Whatever it is, it’s wrong. It ain’t right, I tell ya.

Can it, will it, ever be otherwise? I dunno. That’s the wall I’ve hit, the wall of indifference. I have spent many hours trying to figure out how things work and I think I have a pretty good handle on it, but, very few people see it and even fewer care. If I point out slavery was not abolished by the 13th Amendment, but, rather, made voluntary, no one gets it. “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” Do you see it? “except as punishment for a crime,”  and “involuntary servitude” (all you gotta do here is make up some more crimes or contract away people’s freedom voluntarily), and “shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” The “their” indicates the union of states. What about THE UNITED STATES? That place government has convinced us we all “reside”? Is slavery still ok there? The answer is yes. We have been deceived once again. But few know and most don’t give a damn because they simply cannot be convinced otherwise. Maybe we trust too much. I dunno.

The wall of human nature, human indifference, seems immovable. Like the Great Wall of China it is well built and resistant to assault. Maybe the key is to try to just live with it.  But living with it is intolerable for a whole lotta people. It just isn’t something some of us can do because we know it doesn’t have to be this way. So we try to change minds to no avail. Any change that may happen is slow to go. We are stuck in a world we don’t understand.

We hear about this group’s rights or that group’s rights or this person is triggered or that person doesn’t feel safe, but it’s all just about being manipulated by our betters to be at each other’s throats so we won’t be at theirs. It’s so transparent it boggles the mind that more don’t see it.

It’s all about power, in the end. But why do we seek power? Why is it that important? Why do institutions bend and twist the words of great men and women just for power? Why do they change history and tradition just for power? Why trample on your fellow Man just for power? Why must some people dominate others? I just don’t get it.

I don’t think it is as simple as the devil made me do it. Sure, we are tempted. But we don’t have to succumb to temptation as easily as we do. We can choose to do the right thing, if we even know what that is anymore. Is it a fundamental flaw in our species? Has the software been corrupted? Is it a design flaw?

Was Voldemort right when he told the young Harry Potter,”There is no good and evil, there is only power.” If that really is the truth then I’m in the wrong universe. But, I don’t believe that. If power stands above dualism then it doesn’t matter whether it is used for good or evil. But if good and evil exist as a choice to be made that has consequences, or as a way to teach us about our relationship to creation, or as a way to discover who we are and who we are not, then power is just a tool to achieve either one. But it matters which one we apply power to. Chose evil and power will destroy. Chose good and power will build. Power can used to dominate or it can used to cooperate. Either way it is just a tool and it is up to us to make the correct decision regarding its use.

Maybe that’s why power is so alluring. Just think of the possibilities!

Power should be a tool to be kept in the garage until there is job to be done. Nothing else. Men who seek power haven’t learned that lesson.  They are maniacs with a chain saw. It looks like it’s time to dust off our power, take it off the shelf and use it to prevent these people from doing any more harm. But will we? I dunno. That wall is pretty thick.

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This article (Why Do We Seek Power) was originally created and published by rogsblog and is republished here under “Fair Use” (see disclaimer below) with attribution to author Ray Greninger and rogsblog.

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