nlast2380
T H E Y
' t h e y ' by jem on [ finally woken ]
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
T H E Y suck, devour, and ingest your essential powers, the inner strength, thanks to which you are human. T H E Y devour poeple, but leave them looking perfectly healthy on the outside. T H E Y suck out just the insides, leaving an ashen [Nothing]ness inside. T H E Y suck out fantasy, inspirations and intellect, as if it were everyday food or a refreshing drink. T H E Y are able to adjust to circumstances better than any other living creature. It's impossible to avoid T H E M; T H E Y are everywhere. It's T H E Y who fixed things so that in the eternal war between the darkness and the light a soulless gloom always wins. T H E Y discovered the near truth, which is worse than the blackest lie. If the human race really is doomed to extinction, it will be solely thanks to T H E M.
A hundred times I tried to logically refute T H E I R existence. But I reached the opposite goal -- I unarguably proved that T H E Y really exist. The simplest proof -- an argument ad adsurdum. Let's say T H E Y don't exist. There is no such subspecies of live creatures whose sole purpose is to kanuk people, to take away their intellectual and spiritual powers; that kingdom of sullen, flat faces doesn't exist.
Let's say none of that exists.
Then how can you explain humanity's structure, all the world's societies, all human communities, their aspirations and modes of existence? How can you explain that always and everywhere, as far as you can see, one idiot rules a thousand intelligent people, and they quietly obey? Whence comes the silent gray majority in every society? Would a person who wasn't kanuked think of vegetating in a soulless condition and say that's the way everything should be? Why is it always enough to arrest a thousand for the just cause of a million to be doomed? Who raises and sets all governments on the throne, who hands the scepter to Satan's servants -- to all sorts of Stalins, Hitlers or Pol Pots? How do thousands, even millions of people disappear in the presence of all, and the others supposedly don't even notice? How does humanity manage to forget its history and repeat that which has already caused catastrophe more than once? Where does everyone's intelligence and memory disappear to at such moments? What instills the tendency in a human to betray the seekers of justice, knowing perfectly well that they are seekers of justice? Where does that secret desire come from, when a person is up to their neck in sh!t, to use all his strength to drown another who's still trying to scramble out? How could censorship, whose sole purpose is to hide the truth, exist in a human society that hasn't been kanuked?
Why doesn't a single theory answer these simple questions? Why do all the great philosophical systems, all the Hegels and Kants together, fail to explain these basic things? Why?
Maybe that's the way, and just that way, that man unavoidably is? Maybe all of these horrifying things aren't the province of theory, but rather axioms that you'll neither prove nor disprove? Maybe a soulless doom is programmed into all of us from the start? Every nation has the kind of government it deserves, and so on?
I cannot bear assumptions like that, assumptions that acrimoniously belittle people. I can't bear them! But an investigator must be calm and objective, must rely only on facts.
Children deny those revolting assumptions. The very existence of children. A foolish boy who tries to boss the neighborhood kids around will be ridiculed immediately. There is no silent gray majority in the world of children. You could arrest a thousand, a million children, but as long as at least one remains alive and free, there will be a child's view of justice in the world, there will be someone to shout that the king is naked. An unspoiled child tries to be more like the stronger or smarter ones, not to pull them down. No, no, a human isn't born a kanukas!
The ruination takes over later, when children are taught to rat on others, when they learn it's not worth ridiculing the kid with pretensions to be a little king, since he's the boss's son. When someone convinces them (convinces without presenting any arguments) that it's imperative to participate in the idiotic play of life, even knowing it's idiotic. Convinces them there is no choice -- either float in the ship of fools, or drown.
How can you explain all of this, supposing T H E Y don't exist?
ERGO: T H E Y EXIST.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
_excerpt from ' v i l n i u s_ p o k er ' a novel by _ l i t h u a n i a n _ a u t h o r _ r i c a r d a s_ g a v e l i s .
T H E Y
' t h e y ' by jem on [ finally woken ]
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
T H E Y suck, devour, and ingest your essential powers, the inner strength, thanks to which you are human. T H E Y devour poeple, but leave them looking perfectly healthy on the outside. T H E Y suck out just the insides, leaving an ashen [Nothing]ness inside. T H E Y suck out fantasy, inspirations and intellect, as if it were everyday food or a refreshing drink. T H E Y are able to adjust to circumstances better than any other living creature. It's impossible to avoid T H E M; T H E Y are everywhere. It's T H E Y who fixed things so that in the eternal war between the darkness and the light a soulless gloom always wins. T H E Y discovered the near truth, which is worse than the blackest lie. If the human race really is doomed to extinction, it will be solely thanks to T H E M.
A hundred times I tried to logically refute T H E I R existence. But I reached the opposite goal -- I unarguably proved that T H E Y really exist. The simplest proof -- an argument ad adsurdum. Let's say T H E Y don't exist. There is no such subspecies of live creatures whose sole purpose is to kanuk people, to take away their intellectual and spiritual powers; that kingdom of sullen, flat faces doesn't exist.
Let's say none of that exists.
Then how can you explain humanity's structure, all the world's societies, all human communities, their aspirations and modes of existence? How can you explain that always and everywhere, as far as you can see, one idiot rules a thousand intelligent people, and they quietly obey? Whence comes the silent gray majority in every society? Would a person who wasn't kanuked think of vegetating in a soulless condition and say that's the way everything should be? Why is it always enough to arrest a thousand for the just cause of a million to be doomed? Who raises and sets all governments on the throne, who hands the scepter to Satan's servants -- to all sorts of Stalins, Hitlers or Pol Pots? How do thousands, even millions of people disappear in the presence of all, and the others supposedly don't even notice? How does humanity manage to forget its history and repeat that which has already caused catastrophe more than once? Where does everyone's intelligence and memory disappear to at such moments? What instills the tendency in a human to betray the seekers of justice, knowing perfectly well that they are seekers of justice? Where does that secret desire come from, when a person is up to their neck in sh!t, to use all his strength to drown another who's still trying to scramble out? How could censorship, whose sole purpose is to hide the truth, exist in a human society that hasn't been kanuked?
Why doesn't a single theory answer these simple questions? Why do all the great philosophical systems, all the Hegels and Kants together, fail to explain these basic things? Why?
Maybe that's the way, and just that way, that man unavoidably is? Maybe all of these horrifying things aren't the province of theory, but rather axioms that you'll neither prove nor disprove? Maybe a soulless doom is programmed into all of us from the start? Every nation has the kind of government it deserves, and so on?
I cannot bear assumptions like that, assumptions that acrimoniously belittle people. I can't bear them! But an investigator must be calm and objective, must rely only on facts.
Children deny those revolting assumptions. The very existence of children. A foolish boy who tries to boss the neighborhood kids around will be ridiculed immediately. There is no silent gray majority in the world of children. You could arrest a thousand, a million children, but as long as at least one remains alive and free, there will be a child's view of justice in the world, there will be someone to shout that the king is naked. An unspoiled child tries to be more like the stronger or smarter ones, not to pull them down. No, no, a human isn't born a kanukas!
The ruination takes over later, when children are taught to rat on others, when they learn it's not worth ridiculing the kid with pretensions to be a little king, since he's the boss's son. When someone convinces them (convinces without presenting any arguments) that it's imperative to participate in the idiotic play of life, even knowing it's idiotic. Convinces them there is no choice -- either float in the ship of fools, or drown.
How can you explain all of this, supposing T H E Y don't exist?
ERGO: T H E Y EXIST.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
_excerpt from ' v i l n i u s_ p o k er ' a novel by _ l i t h u a n i a n _ a u t h o r _ r i c a r d a s_ g a v e l i s .