Category Archives: Writing bits

Two theories on the Ending of the World

OK. I have a theory about stuff going on today. Two theories, really.

I just watched an episode of Star Trek: Voyager which offers an explanation in support of my theories. The episode is entitled “The Voyager Conspiracy.” (S6E9) In it Seven of Nine modifies her regeneration alcove with Borg technology so she can process massive amounts of information (crew reports, sensor data, blah blah.) Nice idea, it can make things more efficient in the long run for the crew. Her ability to process and interpret the data results in Seven uncovering several plots, secret missions and such like from over the previous 5 years.

{{{ SPOILER ALERT, PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK even though the episode dates from 1999, there may be n00bs discovering the series from DVD collections or streaming services.}}}

She confronts others regarding her findings which causes problems in itself. In the end she discerns a conspiracy against her, which she tries to terminate by escaping and if need be, killing herself.

Problem is, it’s all bunk. There were no conspiracies (although there never was any explanation as to why Voyager was carrying tri-cobalt devices, which are non-standard Starfleet Issue, nor who was aiming a tractor beam at the Caretaker array while it was being destroyed five years ago and what were they doing with it.) Anyhow, it turns out that although the Borg technology in her alcove was working perfectly, she was incapable of processing and interpreting the data properly. Her Borg pride would never admit to that. She subconsciously tried to make sense of the whole mess by seeing patterns, connections, circumstantial evidence and so forth and drew erroneous conclusions from this. In short, the information she received was too complicated for her and she tried to make sense of it and the only way she could do that was to reframe it all into compact, concise theories that “explain it all.” These are typically known as “conspiracy theories.”

I know that one common explanation for conspiracy theories is that people who cannot cope with complicated systems such as modern civilization create theories to make sense out of it all. It’s a coping mechanism. They need to make sense of things and reduce complicated systems to a simpler, sensible reality. Which is wrong, one doesn’t actually need to make sense of things. People can just leave things be and worry about their own life and what they need to deal with. But conspiracy theories help them do that because they can “connect the dots” of circumstantial patterns, etc., and this makes life understandable.

I think the Internet is at fault. Humanity has megabagazillions of bytes of data out there in the form of websites that have stuff on all sorts of things. News is no longer available on TV for just a half hour in the evening. Even with 24 hour cable news channels, you could still somewhat cope. But now… with all-this-stuff out there, it’s a supermassive information overload. Also, there is no vetting process controlling what information is brought online; sheesh, even I have two blogs. See how screwy the system is? You’re reading one now that I don’t use much (although I’d like to change that). So humanity has become overwhelmed with information, some good, some ridiculously dumb. But there’s a lot of it. Our educational systems haven’t been up to the task in inculcating critical thinking skills to assist us in sorting out the crud from the cream.

Result: conspiracy theories have become mainstream. Alex Jones and his InfoWars are almost as credible as a “mainstream” news site. I’m not insulting either; I do think InfoWars is onto something, sometimes, and the mainstream sites are… well…. Anyway, satire news sites are often mistaken for real news. Really, now people, what’s the matter with you?

GIGO: Garbage in – Garbage out. The quality of the interpretation of data is only as good as the data coming into the system that is doing the interpreting as well as the ability of that system to interpret it. Lots of data coming in (good or bad) + too much of it + poor interpretation + poor coping = disaster. There you have it. Look outside and see what is going on in our culture. Essentially, we are self-destructing and performing a self-lobotomy. How much of the crap going on is Internet-driven? We cannot handle the information overload and we’re going nuts.

I said that I had two theories. That was one. Here’s the other: I said that, “the Internet is at fault.” I think the Internet was introduced decades, if not a century or so, before we could be ready for it. I think that was planned as a means of wiping humanity from the Earth by aliens without them having to fire a shot. We would destroy ourselves in a non-nuclear manner. Ever wonder why the Internet and the “World Wide Web” came after the Cold War ended and after we backed significantly away from irradiating the planet in a nuclear war? That would have rendered the planet uninhabitable; the aliens couldn’t have that! So they secretly plant the idea of the Internet in the side most likely to make the best use of it, the capitalistic West. This would enable them to better coordinate military development, technologies and such and eventually defeat the Communist Bloc. Even the Apollo Lunar Landing program was a side project of the aliens. Knowing from their own history the positive economic benefits of space technology, this would propel the West to advance much faster than the East, which would collapse in the economic rivalry, and nuclear war is avoided. Ever wonder why we only went up there to collect a few rocks and whack a few golf balls and then just come home? The aliens wouldn’t want us to develop a space-faring culture, so they sabotaged it! Their only reason for the Apollo Program was that from it we could develop microcomputers, transistor radios, teflon and other things with which to beat the Russians into economic submission.

So the aliens inspired a few unsuspecting humans to develop the Internet, so that, along with the resulting massive economic uplift from it and the space program and all the derivative technologies, and the subsequent termination of the bipolar nuclear rivalry, Earth would be spared a nuclear war so that when they land, the planet could be livable for them. But still, how to get rid of the humans living there? Well, also drawing from their own history, they knew that if a culture develops a better means to distribute information and knowledge, along with improved methods for their people to assimilate and interpret that knowledge, a golden age of freedom, peace, love and understanding will result. But they couldn’t have that! So after one side defeated the other side in a peaceful Cold War/Economic rivalry, they would get someone to open the Internet up to the world at large while at the same time sabotaging any substantive educational reform so that human society will self-destruct. Incapable of dealing with the information overload, people will turn on each other, technological society will collapse, civilization will revert to barbarism, people who depend on “modern conveniences” will be unable to develop useful living skills and die off, the rest would just kill each other in blame games, sport or just rage and vengeance. There may be a few people left living in rural, primitive areas on all continents, but they’ll prove to be no opposition to when the aliens arrive. When they finally come and colonize the Earth, whatever human survivors that are left will be pushed aside and die off, much like the Cro-Magnon pushed aside and out-competed the Neanderthals in Europe to extinction.

This plan is a slow, decades-long process because it’ll take decades for them to travel here. They’re patient. But they’ll be arriving within a decade or two, if that! You’ll see!

Only one of these theories is serious.

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The development of an antagonist

This is one example of how a person may become an ‘antagonist’ in fiction. While it is easy to create bad people who are just evil, it is more realistic to show how root causes have driven them to be who they are. All of which could have been avoided. Perhaps they can be redeemed.

This is drawn from a personal trauma, although some elements in it are speculative or conjectural.

There are two people, Person A and B. PA also has accomplices or people sympathetic, but PA is the ringleader. PB is mostly alone.

PA and accomplices had screwed over PB to the point of driving him to consider suicide. PB is figuratively broken, bruised, bloodied and wounded and is left aside. He is left to wondering “Why?”

This had poured salt into a wound created years before when PA grievously harmed PB with unjust accusations. PB had been wondering “Why?” about that ever since; this new event just made things worse, hence the consideration of suicide. PB’s discovery through one of PA’s accomplices that PA doesn’t even remember this older event just adds salt to the wound.

The “Whys?” were never addressed. PB never gets answers. PA, et al., have moved on from the event and put it behind them; after all, they were the antagonists and know the “Whys?” (if there were any) and have dealt with whatever they need to. Not so with PB. For him, hurt and pain continue and become an integral part of existence. Without understanding the “Whys?” PB never fully recovers and is changed for the worse.

PB struggles with things and tries to relate best with the reality about him but feels alone as no one really stood up and defended him during the events; and afterward others are uncomfortable or indifferent; as such he trusts others little and presumes bad motives. He tried to defend himself during the horrors, but was out gunned and outnumbered. PB also had a weak and vulnerable base from which to defend himself, being faced with certain survival issues at the same time.

His obsession with PA and the others (his frequent dwelling on the “Whys?” and such, and wishing it never happened or fantasizing about vengeance or at least something happening to bring about justice, and knowing that it will probably never come to pass has lead PB to become something of an antagonist himself; while wanting to be “good,” he feels he cannot risk that and needs to put himself and his feelings first.

Meanwhile, PA and the others are to all appearances “good people,” and if they discuss the events at all, it is to the disparagement of PB. As PB isn’t around to defend himself and no one else is willing to defend him, his reputation suffers. Only one side of the story gets told.

So, a combination of time leading PB to become “bad” and PA, et al., to become “good” has only worsened things for PB. PB was the victim; he never deserved the treatment. But due to powerlessness and no healing because PB never learned “Why?” has stunted PB and left him emotionally back where everything took place. And thus PB is ‘bad,’ not ‘evil’ but due to the woundedness and lack of answers leading to justice and healing, PB’s actions are difficult.

PB is not a “whiner,” nor one who touts “victimhood.” He has difficulty in “getting over it” but is one who is truly wounded and has never gotten the needed healing or justice.

The only thing that can heal PB is justice and knowledge. He has to know why the treatment was meted out almost to the point of driving him to suicide. PA and accomplices have to make amends, both psychological and emotional. Material amends would be a bonus, but PB knows that will never happen. (PB perhaps suffered some material loss in income over PB’s inability to manage and cope for a while.) At any rate, PA and the others have to make certain sacrifices to undo the harm they caused.

So, that’s it. A person is a victim of unjust action which were never redressed. The hurt party is still wounded despite time and some attempts at healing, but lingering issues prevent full healing. Hence, the pain has transformed him into an ‘antagonist.’

(This may be added to the backstory of a character in a novel I’m working on.)

Are you a creative Catholic? "The Catholicpunk Manifesto" is my new book exhorting Catholics to apply their faith to change the culture for the better!

Know someone, perhaps yourself, who might like Catholic devotionals for alcoholics? Please take a look at my books! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

cold dark morning

Dark begins to lift

Six ante meridian

Cold descends on me

Are you a creative Catholic? "The Catholicpunk Manifesto" is my new book exhorting Catholics to apply their faith to change the culture for the better!

Know someone, perhaps yourself, who might like Catholic devotionals for alcoholics? Please take a look at my books! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

finding poetry

Finding poetry

previously laid to rest

Memories are unfurled

Are you a creative Catholic? "The Catholicpunk Manifesto" is my new book exhorting Catholics to apply their faith to change the culture for the better!

Know someone, perhaps yourself, who might like Catholic devotionals for alcoholics? Please take a look at my books! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

getting stoned

Several years ago there was a month-long writing activity on another blog where for every day during the month of January you’d write a “small stone” which is described as “…a polished moment of paying proper attention” . The exercise was hosted here: Writing Our Way Home: small stones, a “mindful writing” blog where that link has a much longer and detailed description of “small stones” and how they impact writing.

I’ll wait a few minutes while you click on that link and read the post.

…waiting…

…still waiting…

…dang, you read slow. I’ll continue and for those who dallied over there, you’ll have to catch up.

Since that old “small stones” activity is apparently no longer (it was annual and I did participate for one year, I think it was 2011 or 2012…) I’m going to attempt it here. With two differences:

  • I won’t be calling it “Small Stones” as that name belongs to the originators of the idea (they may or may not have trademarked the term, even if they didn’t I won’t appropriate it as I think that would be rude)
  • I’m not opening it up to contributors. If you’re a writer (published or wannabe), you can do it on your own blog or social media page.

I think this is a great way to get the ol’ creative juices flowing, to blog and write daily, and to use one of my favorite reasons for writing: THERAPY. Yes, I find writing therapeutic. Since I do not (still) write as much as I ought, it proves I’m still too messed up. (Hush up, Jerry.)

I’m adding a new blogpost category for this, see “Writing bits” in the categories drop down menu on the right. That’s also a good category to use for “writing prompts, which I never took advantage of, but think I need to.

It’s exercise. If I’m “blocked,” then I can get “unblocked.” Although it is obvious my problem is discipline. So, this might help with that.

Anyway, I’m going off now to review portions of my novel-in-progress. Before I close for the night I may post my first “small stone,” or “writing bit.” I think I have somewhere the “small stones” I wrote for the exercise. If/when I find them I may repost them here.

Welcome back to those who took a long time to read stuff on that other blog. Please scroll up and pick up where you left off…

EDIT: I’ve changed my mind about this. My eyeballs were bigger than my ability to carry it out. I’m leaving the post up, albeit strikethrough’ed.

Are you a creative Catholic? "The Catholicpunk Manifesto" is my new book exhorting Catholics to apply their faith to change the culture for the better!

Know someone, perhaps yourself, who might like Catholic devotionals for alcoholics? Please take a look at my books! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)