A Nation of Neuroticsby
Mike (in Tokyo) Rogers
"Life means suffering." ~ The Buddha "Neurosis is always a substitute for legitimate suffering." ~ Carl Jung "The truth shall set you free." ~ Jesus Christ There is a formerly great nation amongst us that has become a country full of people who live in a gross denial of the truth. This denial has grown past crisis proportions. This monstrous rejection of the truth – the big lie – this refusal to face up to facts – has led this once freedom-loving land into becoming a nation of neurotics. As this neurosis grows, and is freely allowed to grow by the adults of this country, it will leave generations of mentally scarred children in its wake. It is in this once great land that a man became their leader. This man was loved by many. Scorned by some. But it is this man who lived an entire life of denial – thereby cheating himself of the benefit of spiritual growth that comes with defeating denial – It is this man who learned to cheat and lie. It is this man, whose words have become even more believed and popular than the words of Jesus Christ himself. How else could it be explained that this man's lies are forgiven or ignored? Lies that have led to the deaths of at least hundreds of thousands of innocent people; lies that have lead to the deaths of thousands of the very same people he swore to protect? How else could it be explained that this man is allowed to keep his position as leader of this once great nation? How else could it be explained except that this man is himself a neurotic in a nation of neurotics? Facing up to the truth is a very painful experience. Those of us who strive for mental health will do it everyday of our lives. For to face up to the truth, will gain us courage, inner-strength, and spiritual well-being. And this courage, inner-strength, and spiritual well-being will help us to grow to face life's next challenges. To face the truth means to accept the suffering. To live in denial means to live a life of lies. This life of lies will create the seeds of neurosis and the neurosis will only grow worse as time goes by. The ones who don't, can't, or won't face the truth are the ones who suffer the most. They are the ones who must tell themselves, their children, their loved ones, and those around them, lies. And as everyone knows, once one lie is told, then the next must be told to cover for the first. And then the next. And the cycle begins. This is where the sickness – the neurosis – starts. The lie, which at first seemed the easy way out, ultimately becomes a twisted, tangled trap. This trap becomes their world of denial. And when these mentally sick people raise their offspring in an environment where the children learn that to lie and to deny is acceptable, where could that possibly lead? Where would that lead those poor children? That family? Where would it lead a nation full of families just like this one? It can only lead towards disaster. There are many lies, but there is only one truth. It is difficult to admit one's mistakes. But that's all a part of spiritual growth and a part of gaining self-respect and, in turn, the respect of others; it is all part of being a responsible parent and trying to be close to God and therefore a happy and contented person. Only through the suffering of dealing with the truth can we be happy and free. This leader who has lied to you and killed your children; this tyrant who is responsible for the murders of untold numbers of innocent men, women, and children, must pay for his crimes. He and his entire staff – as well as all who were a party to this crime against humanity – must be removed from office and tried for war crimes. But before this can happen, this nation of neurotics must face the pain of the ugly truth. They must each begin their own painful process of untangling the web of lies that bind and blind them. In this way, and in only this way, will they begin to walk along the road to recovery.
June 13, 2005 Mike (in Tokyo) Rogers [send him mail] was born and raised in the USA and moved to Japan in 1984. He has the distinction of being fired from every FM radio station in Tokyo – one of them three times. His first book, Schizophrenic in Japan, is now on sale. Copyright © 2005 LewRockwell.com |
There
is nothing bad about being wrong – as humans we are all wrong sometimes.
But there is something terribly ugly and grotesque about not having
the courage and strength to admit one's mistakes. And then lying
or making excuses – denying the truth – to cover up for them. 