Life lessons 101.

At this point in my life, I'm really balancing the facts, the values and all the things conforming my entire existence.
Any one of us, spend the major part of our lives trying hard to get recognition, among other things. If it's world-wide recognition, even better. At the same time, the hours, the energy we spend on a daily basis in order to get financial security is astounding. Have you realized how much time and energy we invest in the quest of getting money? You'd be amazed, and what for?
Is it bad having a nice car? No. Is it bad having a big and beautiful house? No. Is it bad having lots of money? Of course not. But, is it all that matters? That's another story.
The key question would be: What's the most important thing in our life? Different answers would come up: health, family, money, marriage, work, career. It all depends of each and everyone of us. Value system and all kind of paradigms. But at the end of the day, this world, this civilization, is beeing organized of such a way that money has become one of the main reasons of existence (if not the only one), you realize it or not. But it is just the way it is and we have to play according to the rules. Fortunately (or unfortunately for some people), we as rationale people (supposedly!) "need" more, we deserve more. But there's a natural law which states: we cannot be happy with external things, our happiness rely on our inner self. Does it sound a little too mystical or ethereal? Let me go a little further:
Who would've thought that a person with obscene quantities of money in his/her bank account would normally feel sad, depressed or lonely?
A person internationally renown because of his/her career, feeling the same miserable way?
A man or woman possesing the gift of "beauty" as we've been taught in this culture, feeling horrible and disgusting?
Even, any person with little kids waiting for them? Isn't all this strange?
Yes indeed, it is strange. The question remains: why do we insisit in the quest for happiness trying to find it among the possible by-products of it?
One more to the list, the recent mysterious death of Heath Ledger.
The list is large: Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, River Phoenix, Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin and on and on and on. From different fields, with different circumstances, but sharing the same fate and all of them having reached what we desperately seek.
Isn't the sudden death of Heath Ledger another sign, another life lesson to us? I think is our responsability to learn somthing out of it and I'm pretty sure, if we do, that in a way, we won't face such a fate and we'll be a little happier, finding the real meaning of this complicated life we were imposed to live and finding the real elements inside of us that are really the signs of happiness, the important issues and for once and for all, stop being idiots and don't try to kill ourselves (metaphorically or literally speaking) following a totally shallow vision.
I think we should remember the simple pleasures and even sounding like a very used and abused cliché, now is more important than ever: family, health, spending quality time with your loved ones, having a nurturing chat over a cup of coffee or tea, going to the movies, enjoying nature, laugh from the top of our lungs, make love and not war, and all the other things you guys know very well.
It's just a thought.

A day like today.

March, the 20th, 2008.

A day like today, five years ago, Bush/Cheney and Co. invaded Iraq. The reasons? They had, allegedly, Weapons of Mass Destruction. Is more than evident that five years later, Bush/Cheney and Co. never found the famous WMD. Of course, Now I remember, Bush admitted later on that it was a lie, just to get mass support in order to invade a foreign country, (which coincidently happens to be one of the top oil producers of the world). On top of that, Bush/Cheney and Co. insisted in link Iraq with Al Qaeda, despite the fact that Hussein and Bin Laden hated each other.
So, after all this years and all these lies, I would like to offer my humble opinion about the results of the arguably "War on Terror", as a tribute to the 5-year mark, we unfortunately have reached.
1.- 4,000 of our sons, daughters, fathers, mothers and assorted family members, killed in "action". Thousand more injured.
2.- Tens of thousands of iraquis’ sons, daughters, fathers, mothers and assorted family members killed or injured. By the way, interesting piece of .. do you know how many iraquis were among the alleged kidnappers of 9/11? None. Most of them were...Guess?...Saudis (The most cherished commercial partners of the Bush family) and the rest, egyptians. So, can somebody explain to me, what does Iraq have to do with it?
3.- Well, Two Trillion Dollars, yes, you’ve read it right, spent so far in the conflict. I think that’s more than enough to hurt the economy of any country. Am I wrong?
4.- Patriot Act. Department of Homeland Security. Telecommunications’ intervention without warrant. Among other laws around that neighborhood.
5.- Enormous chunks of money taken from Health and Education budgets. (This one hurts!)
Now, the most important questions risen from all this chaos:
1.- Are we safer now?
Not only we’re not. In fact, we still live in constant fear and the government constantly reminding us of the "Danger of terror we’re fighting against".
2.- The entire world love us more or hate us more?
Well, I think the latter is the correct answer. More so, Bush/Cheney and Co. became the most hated president and president team ever, within United States and abroad.
3.- Economic recession?
Should I say more?.
4.- Where is the alleged author of the 9/11 events?
Is it me or that guy is still on the loose? And now is threatening the world again.
5.- Do we have cheaper gas?
Yeah, right!
6.- And what about the "Housing" problem all over the country?
Is 24,000,000 houses in foreclosure enough to answer that question?
Well, as you can see, I really don’t see too many virtues of that supposedly "War on Terror" orchestrated by Bush/Cheney and Co. However, I know I’m preaching to the choir, but it seems impossible to me, that there are people around, still believing all the lies those bastards keep telling us and even worse, people supporting that insane-illogical-unfair-criminal-shameful war on terror that’s taking place in that far, far away land and with no actual consequences on terror itself, for the wellness of the global community.
I’m done, I don’t want to get passionate about this.
Just think about it, maybe something will happen and so much pain and destruction become in love and beauty, maybe.

Carta abierta a la Iglesia.

Cabe destacar, en virtud del título, que la iglesia no es la estructura, ni ese templo hermoso del que se jactan algunas congregaciones. Mucho menos el alarde de lujo que otras muestran orgullosas. Plegándose al verdadero sentido etimológico de la palabra, cuando me refiero a iglesia, me refiero a la gente, a la congregación, a la asistencia, en definitiva: a las personas. No obstante, entre esas personas y la verdadera imagen de la iglesia, se encuentra una gran brecha y quizá, esa sea la causa de su eventual desaparición, al menos como está concebida hasta ahora. Con todo esto dicho, quiero dirigir este artículo en particular a la dirigencia de la iglesia. Lamentablemente, la iglesia moderna (al decir moderna me refiero a la iglesia de los últimos dos mil años), ha estado emulando cada vez más a las instituciones seculares. Con una gran diferencia, y esa es la manipulación descarada de sus adeptos por parte de las instituciones religiosas, hecho probado a lo largo de los siglos. La iglesia, al parecerse cada vez más a las instituciones laicas, ha perdido el origen primario de dicha noble institución y que se podría resumir en una solitaria y malentendida palabra: amor.
De primera mano puedo darles testimonio de las inconsistencias, (por emplear un eufemismo y no herir susceptibilidades) en las cuales la famosa "Iglesia de Jesucristo" ha caído, y a pesar de haber oído tantas y tantas historias al respecto, no hay nada como una buena experiencia personal para realmente entender el alcance de una acción. Yo mismo fui víctima del maltrato moral y abuso ético por parte de la institución eclesiástica. Yo mismo puedo dar fe de la política de conveniencia que la iglesia practica, como también podría testificar sobre la hipocresía galopante que inunda tanto sus pasillos como las mentes de sus dirigentes; todo, excusado en una usada premisa: "No veas al hombre…"
Yo, particularmente, he estado en el ámbito cristiano desde muy tierna edad y se, por ende, lo que se enseña. Viví y asistí por largos años a los servicios cada domingo y las reuniones de células o grupos comunitarios o cualquier otro nombre con el que eventualmente bautizan a dichas reuniones. También asistí en incontables oportunidades a estudios bíblicos, retiros, campañas de todo tipo (milagros, evangelización, etc.), consejería pastoral y con apóstoles y demás dirigencia eclesiástica. Actividades de todo tipo, incluso aquellas en que se mezclan el mundo cristiano y el mundo secular, tratando de emular los placeres "mundanos" pero en un ambiente cristiano (la mayoría de las iniciativas en ese sentido fallidas, cabe destacar). Todo eso lo he vivido en carne propia y les puedo decir, que muy poco de lo que se ofrece es cierto, es realidad tangible, y lo que es peor, muy poco es en realidad espiritualmente iluminador. Es triste ver como miles y cientos de miles de personas son atrapadas dogmáticamente por un grupo de mentirosos, hipócritas, faltos de creatividad, simplemente aprovechándose de los cautos que, en efecto, están ávidos de una guía espiritual y que por falta de conocimiento, encuentran dicha guía en el primer grupo de seudo-religiosos que encuentran. Es curioso, pero es destacable el lujo abrumador que ostenta toda la dirigencia eclesiástica, y el que no lo ostenta, simplemente entre ellos se le denomina una iglesia pequeña o sin visión o sin avivamiento. Mientras tanto, en aquellas en donde el avivamiento sí opera (entiéndase diezmos, ofrendas y sobre todo, adoctrinamiento y manipulación), sus feligreses atraviesan los años con la misma miseria que tenían cuando se alistaron al trabajo voluntario. No quiero decir con todo esto que no hay personas realmente valiosas en medio de la "Iglesia de Jesucristo". Nada más lejos de la realidad; de hecho, varias de las personas más íntegras, inteligentes y comprometidas con la vida, que yo conozco y respeto, pertenecen a dicha iglesia. Mi única observación al respecto, es la cantidad de virtudes a las cuales se sienten exclusivos poseedores. He allí el gran detalle y la petulancia que no solo la Iglesia Cristiana (en todas sus manifestaciones) cree, en ese garrafal error caen todas las grandes iglesias organizadas, entiéndase judíos, musulmanes, budistas, hinduistas y paren de contar. Humildemente pienso que los valores, los principios, la ética y demás virtudes del ser humano, no necesariamente están exclusivamente afiliadas a lazos religiosos. Quizá, ese es uno de los puntos polémicos de mi postura.
No quiero entrar en detalles técnicos, refiriéndome a todo el andamiaje montado por dos siglos para tratar de convencer con argumentos, de que la historia de Cristo y su consiguiente "iglesia" es verdadera. Tampoco quiero contradecir nada de lo que ya ha sido discutido y analizado por siglos; de hecho, esa fue la causa de la consecuente desaparición de grupos tales como los Gnósticos, los Iluminados, incluso los Caballeros Templarios. Sin embargo, me gustaría destacar, que sí habemos personas que no nos tragamos el cuento, que no nos convencen las teorías y argumentos mal elaborados, estructuralmente débiles y descaradamente manipulados. Sí habemos personas que nos hemos dado a la tarea durante años de leer, investigar, buscar y por ende, no caer en la enorme red de falsedades con la cual está tejida la iglesia en este momento histórico (cuando digo iglesia, me refiero a toda manifestación dogmática, organizada y de evidente manipulación).
¿Existe Dios? ¿Existen los milagros? ¿Hay gente que vale la pena dentro de las iglesias? ¿Existe la espiritualidad pura, sin prejuicios, con verdadero amor? Tengo que decir, que a todas las preguntas anteriores, de mi boca sale un contundente y arrollador Sí. El gran detalle estriba, en que hay muchas más cosas que descubrir y aún más determinante, muchos ángulos con que se pueden ver todas esas interrogantes, muchos más de los que las instituciones religiosas nos permiten indagar, sin antes enviarnos al infierno eterno.
Señores, hay que leer, hay que informarse, hay que comparar, no hay que dejarse conmover por manipuladores de los sentimientos, que además, son tan ignorantes que no se dan cuenta que a la larga, se están quedando solos, producto de una doctrina basada en mentiras, deshonestidad y una olímpica falta de ética.
Esta misiva no es sino la punta del témpano. Hay mucho, mucho que discutir, mucho que aclarar, mucho que investigar y mucho que desenmascarar. Si alguno de ustedes, fieles lectores, se cree en la obligación de discutir de alguna manera este artículo, bienvenido sea, simplemente hago una advertencia: esperen la contundencia de una persona que conoce a la bestia porque ha vivido dentro de sus entrañas y que existen muy pocos argumentos "cristianos" que me sean ajenos o me conmuevan. Hecha la advertencia, espero sus comentarios.

The Pope and his circus.

For those who know me, my intention is not to offend anybody, I don't want to judge any religion whatsoever, what I'm pretending is to to shed a little light over an obvious situation and on top of that, to me, a very funny one.
Have you realized that the Pope is a political figure? What I mean is that according to very reliable sources and a very known fact among people interested in this topic, all the Vatican personnel is atheists, meaning Cardinals, Prelates, regular priests and of course the head: the very Pope. Many of you will scratch your heads and pour ash over your bodies as a signal of deep offense because of what I've just said, but the truth of the matter is, that if you take a look a little closer, you'll understand the point of those guys being atheists or in any case, not necessarily believers in something, even though they represent one religion in particular. Plain and simple, "they are political figures". The Vatican is a State, just like America, Spain, Germany or Egypt or any other State in the world. Thus, it has a "president" and a "Congress", very like any other State. In this case, the Pope represent the President and the Cardinals all the congress men, therefore, they don't need to be religious because they don't deal with spiritual matters. I know, some of you must be thinking now, What's this guy talking about? Well, let me clarify a couple of concepts:
First of all, we have to understand the political origins of the Pope and what he represented in the medieval times, the association with the power and his way of deal not only with "religious" matters but with all aspects of life. And there, the circus shows up. Why the Pope dresses the way he does nowadays? Is that relevant according to modern times? Even worse, Why the Swiss Guard (Pope personal security guard) dress like that? Isn't it funny? They look like nice clowns. However, they are one of the most trained, specialized and armed security guards in the world, detail that rises another interesting question: Why the Pope, supposedly the ambassador of Christ here on Earth, has to be mobilized with a Pope-mobil with bullet-proof glasses and surrounded all the time by guards? As far as I remember, the very Jesus never walked around with such level of security. Maybe He was the real Son of God and this fake ambassador has to take care of himself, otherwise, he'd be dead in a heartbeat.
Another interesting fact, the Vatican owns two of the wealthiest banks on Earth, two of the wealthiest...hello? Vatican Bank and Banco Ambrosiano. So, said all this, at this moment in history, how can someone really believe that the Pope and all the personnel working around him, are interested in spiritual matters? What seems funny to me, among other things that are not that funny, is the fact that he's totally involved in that reality, reality based in past glories, living the same way, dressing the same way, even behaving the same way than medieval times, with the only difference that, the clergy is more corrupt now than ever before, followers are abandoning catholicism like flies and, being almost a totally ornamental icon in the world. Let's be honest, what has the Pope achieved for the wellness of the global community? Try to be honest with yourself. What tangible fact or activity he's been involved with? Besides nice words and genuflected prayers in front of camera lenses? Unfortunately, the answer is nothing, he's done nothing. However, the people's need for someone divine, from out of this world, and Avatar to help us all, to save the universe once and for all, that need is so basic and powerful, that people from even different religions still believe in that circus, which is only that, a complete circus. Of course, a 2,000 year in the making, but circus at the end of the day.
This message is for you, visitors of the circus, stop being idolaters and try a different approach. To me, a real VIP is not the Pope, to me, a real VIP is the local priest, or pastor, the rabbi of that particular synagogue, the nun that helps the homeless in her block, or any other person of any other religion or spiritual path, people with real social sensitivity, real and common people with that kind of approach to life and to the community, and not a political figure, corrupt as all the politicians are, living in the past and letting people idolize him for no reason.
By the way, Benedict XVI, nice red shoes.