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Forum nameOkay Activist Archives
Topic subjectRE: Knowledge versus Ignorance
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=22&topic_id=4508&mesg_id=4521
4521, RE: Knowledge versus Ignorance
Posted by urthanheaven, Fri Jul-04-03 04:50 PM
the tree of knowledge bears the fruit of ignorance.


i read this recently but couldn't place the source. i can understand it from several different angles though. one is arrogance. you are sooo sure you know. sloth, it's too hard to know any more and it would change what you already know so much you'd have to work to restore a semblance of inteligence to your person which leads to vanity, which is arrogance coupled with low self esteem. greed, you are in a position of power as long as no one knows you hae no idea what you're talking about, or you are hoarding knowledge for your own use and advancement. malice, this one crops up a lot from racists. they're too pissed off and worked up to see that they're being tricked and used themselves. and many more.

for me, i realized a while back that knoweldge itself was an illusion and very subjective. this has helped keep me open. but it's easy to fall into any of the traps above. and i am sure that i still do.

think on the whole flock of sheep thing and how we seem to be hardwired to follow the leader. like it's ok not to know as long as so and so knows.

i was just trying to point out that false knowledge is sometimes the foundation on which ignorance takes hold e.g. "i know ni**ers is inferior."

how do you help people open up to new ideas? start early. and capture their passion. perhaps speak in relation to their current situation so knowledge bridges the two worlds and does not superceed the the previous one. i'm a musician and technology as an extention of my musicality and art is most of what interests me. the skills from that i am able to apply to most other fields.

also many people in the service sector may not actually want to be there. it's just a job so to speak. so why would they want it to be any harder.

not that it's not worthwhile. to the contrary, if you can inspire these people, capture their imagination and inspire them to love their work and community more...

keep on.

"According to the Rastafarians, the average Jamaican is so brainwashed by colonialism that his entire system is programmed in the wrong way. His response to the world is conditioned by unseen forces due to European acculturation, and can only be "loosened up" through the use of the herb. The use of the herb results in a true revelation of Black consciousness which brings about the proper love for the Black race. One's true identity can finally be experienced, along with the revelation that Haile Selassie is God and that Ethiopia is the home of the Black people."