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The Universal Rage: The Struggle of Civilization Against Itself

Writer's picture: john raymondjohn raymond
The left is raging at MSNBC and others for a reason.
The left is raging at MSNBC and others for a reason.

The universality of rage from the left is not merely a political reaction—it is a profound, almost primal response to the contradictions of our time. This rage speaks to a grand theory of everything, a unified narrative of human progress and the perennial struggle between opposing forces: east versus west, autocracy versus democracy, hawks versus doves, conquest versus wisdom. It is the embodiment of a collective yearning for peace and prosperity, even if achieving it requires embracing contradictions in the short term.


The War That Never Ended

What we face today is not a new war but a continuation of an old one. The Cold War was merely a pause, a frozen conflict that delayed the inevitable clash of civilizations. This struggle pits those who seek to dominate through selfishness and violence against those who strive for selflessness and enlightenment. It is a war that shapes men—soft ones are made hard by necessity, and wisdom emerges even in the face of luxury.


Yet, in this struggle, the conquerors and the conquered remain trapped in a cycle of possession and dispossession. The conqueror, driven by an insatiable need to own, takes what he desires, believing that fulfillment lies in accumulation. But no matter how much is taken, it is never enough. The conquered, stripped of possessions and power, are left to find meaning in what remains—often finding it in the one thing that cannot be stolen: enlightenment.


The Parable of Alexander and the Philosopher

The story of Alexander the Great and the philosopher, whether myth or truth, captures the essence of this eternal conflict. Here is a man who has everything—wealth, power, armies—and yet feels incomplete. Driven by his own emptiness, Alexander seeks out a philosopher rumored to possess the secret to happiness. After months of backtracking through lands he had conquered, Alexander confronts the man who has nothing but his barrel, his wisdom, and the sun.


“What would it take for me to be happy?” Alexander demands, believing that this man who owns nothing might hold the answer to everything. The philosopher, unshaken and unimpressed, replies:


“For me to be happy right now, it would take only for you to move. You are casting a shadow upon me and blocking out the sun. You have taken everything from so many in your wars, but perhaps you could leave me a patch of sunlight, if nothing else.”


The Nature of Evil and Enlightenment

This story reveals a fundamental truth about the nature of evil and the pursuit of wisdom. The conqueror, representing the selfish and violent tendencies of mankind, cannot fathom the simplicity of contentment. He assumes that happiness, like power, must be seized and possessed. The philosopher, embodying the selfless and enlightened doves, shows that happiness is not in possession but in liberation—from greed, from desire, from the shadow of domination.


The conqueror's flaw is not merely his violence but his inability to see that his conquests only serve to deepen his emptiness. His journey to wrestle enlightenment from the wise man is a journey to confront his own void. The philosopher, on the other hand, has nothing to lose because he has already found what matters most: peace within himself.


A Universal Lesson for a Divided World

In our current epoch, the battle between civilization and domination plays out not just in war zones but in the halls of power, in public discourse, and within our own hearts. The rage of the left, the resistance to domination, is rooted in this understanding: that peace and progress come not from conquest but from coexistence, not from accumulation but from connection.


As we face the contradictions of our time—seeking peace while grappling with war, striving for equality amidst inequality—we must remember the lesson of the philosopher and Alexander. Enlightenment is not something to be taken; it is something to be earned. And in the end, even the greatest conquerors must step aside to let the light shine through.

 
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