The Thoughtcriminal Manifesto

Genesis

Welcome!

Did you come here by your own volition? Or maybe it was random chance that brought you? No matter. I certainly hope this is only the first of many meetings. But what exactly is this “here” and why does it exist in the first place?

Let me explain…

The purpose of this publication is to shed some light from my end on the reasoning for creation, as well as a few of the central themes of this blog.. My primary focus is the contemporary human condition – from an intellectual & emotional perspective.Taken together these two aspects of life form the fundamental pillars of our conscious experience. Before delving any further, I’d like to refer to the following quote in order to provide some neccesary context:

So how does this relate to the blog or me?

The Status Quo

I seek to explore the dissonance between our natural perception of life and the established models of contemporary society. Although uniformly blessed with creativity and curiosity, we are seldom able to express or develop these abilities, because the world of today is built upon the idea that happiness, success and personal fulfillment are quantifiable variables, which can be imported, obtained and possessed like any other meterial object or resource.

The frantic pursuit of these illusions causes us to live fractured, sheltered lives, disconnected from our own self and those around, because we attribute meaning to phenomena that are worthless outside the scope of our own perception. The accepted social norms, established familial traditions, behavioural standards and the professed ideals of mental transmutation through material accumulation, all serve to confuse and distract the mind, because they promise stability, whereas the fundamental nature of reality is perpetually dynamic. Things change – all the time, always and forever. The concepts of permanence, duration and longevity, the idea that we can capture and hold onto anything, are all the precursors of pain and suffering which continuously haunt our existence.

We are constantly bombarded with propaganda about how to lead our lives from multiple sources, all of whom claim to preach the definitive truth. While the details may vary, the underlying idea is that life is formulaic – if we do or possesscertain things, we will feel happy or content. The established social model gives out clear instructions on what we should do to reach prosperity and individual salvation – study, work, form a family, bring up the next generation and die.

The adopted image of success embedded into our social consciousness is associated with a fruitful career – be it in business or some form of employment. It doesn’t really matter how far up the ladder you are situated, because either way you’re actively involved in the life cycle of the system. Wealth itself is viewed as a form of escapism – the basic premise of the contemporary social contract is that acquiring enough of it will secure your independence from the system, at least to some extent. Fundamentally, society seeks to transcend itself.

Fear & Loathing Ad Hominem

Since there are no presented alternatives to this system and due to the fact that as social creatures we prefer the feeling of communion over exclusion, we feel compelled to participate in this lifelong competition marathon. Moreover, it introduces the concept of validation through external achievements – social status is almost entirely dependent on an individual’s economic & material stature, with more always seen as better. Some people may find inspiration, structure and a sense of stability in this model and for them there is no apparent reason to question or challenge it.

Despite that, many others feel suffocated, dejected and lost, due to the experienced need to exist and experience life outside these pre-set parameters of the current system. Chasing after ideas and concepts that are unsuitable for your character is similar to swimming against the current of a river – you are always fighting for survival, before eventually tiring out. In a practical sense, the “tiring out” can be mild or severe and has many forms – depression, substance addiction, loneliness, etc. Additionally, it creates a chasm between the self and reality, which becomes distorted, because we always aim to protect the former from the transgressions we commit against it in our daily lives. So we are mentally torn apart by trying to simultaneously exist within reality and our crooked version of it, which only adds to the problem.

However, instead of taking affirmative action and finding our own way, we are paralyzed with fear and indecision. Several factors contribute to this destructive mental schism – the seeming lack of available alternatives, along with the perceived need of conformity, the necessity to procure money in order to survive, supplemented with the habit of following along and the correspondingly developed distrust of our own abilities all act as deterrents to change.

Instead, we’re expected to swallow our doubts and questions and accommodate our behavior to the accepted social standard. This is only natural, as any system or organism aims to sustain itself and ensure its survival. So too, the current social model is presented as the only viable option for a civilized society, as if it were the reflection of the cosmological order of the Universe and not the product of human intelligence and behavior, and conformity with it was a conditio sine qua non for our compatibility with reality and not just another choice.

Modus Vivendi

The only way to overcome the paralyzing grip of fear is through direct experience of life. A person can read a thousand descriptions of how a mango fruit tastes, but until actually eating one, the flavor will always remain unknown. But will he like it or be disgusted by it? In order to surmount the mountain of our ignorance and the distorted perception of reality, we need to transcend the fear of making a mistake. As long as we avoid action, we are like a stem cell – we have the potential to be whatever we want, but if we don’t choose we can never become anything.

In my writings I discuss ideas and thoughts that in some way question or challenge the notion that the purported way of life within contemporary society is a one-size-fits-all solution, as well as concepts and other things, which for me offer an interesting or unconventional point of view^[1]. I also use writing as a medium through which I intentionally confront my own fears, doubts and inhibitions and seek to discover who I really am and how I feel about life.

The prevalent perception of our times is that we reside in the Age of Progress, where all the mysteries, bar the few remaining in scientific and technical fields have been solved and all that remains is to work, make money, pay bills and worry about everything… before we eventually die. Maybe you enjoy this lifestyle or maybe you don’t, the important thing is to recognize that we are not bound by anything except our own delusions and prejudices and thoughts. It is these phenomena that can poison our existence and sentence us to a lifetime of agony. Or liberate us to give our all in everything we do.

Despite all the overwhelming sense of confusion and complexity of every individual situation, all we really need to invoke change is to trust ourselves. We need to realize that we are not just cogs in the giant machine of contemporary society, but individuals that possess the ability to think, feel and ultimately – choose what our life is. Life is far more rich and abundant than we are taught to acknowledge. In turn, we are able to do much more than we are used to believing. Being alive allows us to experience virtually everything reality has to offer. However, instead of embracing the infinite wealth that permeates through our very existence, we choose to succumb to our own frustrations and self-loathing due to the perceived lack of things that exist only within our imagination. And yet, we laugh at Don Quixote for attacking windmills mistaken for giants. Who is the real fool? Ultimately, our life is an opportunity, a gift and not a burden that must be suffered through. However, in order to come to this realization, we need to germinate the mind and invigorate the self.

We are the masters of our reality and the ones who must choose whether we are going to take a bite of the mango or torment ourselves by watching it, when we really want to eat it. Some of us are content by just observing it. Whatever the choice, the responsibility is always ours.

Join me on this reflective journey, as I try to explore myself and the surrounding world and uncover the fundamental nature of reality that lies buried below our instilled inhibitions.

Hopefully, we will find out what a mango really tastes like!

PS As we part, I’d like to share a recording of Timothy Leary, which serves as another type of summary of this manifesto and genuine food for thought. It’s relatively well-known and used in variety pf mediums, such as an intro to the live version of the song “Third Eye” by the band Tool. Might not be the best conversation-starter on a Tinder date, though, so be careful!

PPS If you liked the quote in the beginning, here is great song, (and band I might add) where it’s used rather fittingly:

1. Even though some or many of the presented ideas and concepts are not novel in the sense that they have been discussed before, for me it is paramount to include them, because otherwise my thoughts would remain tacit. Whatever the case may be, the published materials reflect my own opinions, as sincerity, immediacy and self-expression are the fundamental reasons for starting this blog. ↑