In Effigy
Life no longer lacks meaning. We are surrounded by it.
We are engorged by reality, by understanding—
So much so that we as a species refuse to admit
That the truth as we know it is constantly demanding.
Day by day, our paradigms are in flux and expanding,
Forcing us to abolish our previous traditions.
All our empathy and intelligence notwithstanding,
We challenge the truisms of the human condition.
We need to renegotiate our prior positions,
Dismantling the wisdoms that we held in effigy.
Yet, despite our progresses, we thrive through our suspicions,
Afraid to embrace or disregard our identity.
We choose to live by process of social obfuscation
Rather than through the clarity of elucidation.
poem by Tim Stensloff
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
No society has been able to abolish human sadness, no political system can deliver us from the pain of living, from our fear of death, our thirst for the absolute. It is the human condition that directs the social condition, not vice versa.
quote by Eugene Ionesco
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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I Get Out
[Singing Chorus]
I get out, I get out of all your boxes
I get out, you can't hold me in these chains
I'll get out
Father free me from this bondage
Knowin' my condition
Is the reason I must change
[Verse 1]
Your stinkin' resolution
Is no type of solution
Preventin' me from freedom
Maintainin' your polution
I won't support your lie no more
I won't even try no more
If I have to die, oh Lord
That's how I choose to live
I won't be compromised no more
I can't be victimised no more
I just don't sympathize no more
Cuz now I understand
You just wanna use me
You say "love" then abuse me
You never thought you'd loose me
But how quickly we forget
That nothin' is for certain
You thought I'd stay here hurtin'
Your guilt trip's just not workin'
Repressin' me to death
Cuz now I'm choosin' life, yo
I take the sacrifice, yo
If everything must go, then go
That's how I choose to live
[Pause]
[Singing rest of Verse 1]
That's how I choose to live...
Hehehehe, awhh
No more compromises
I see past your diguises
Blindin' through mind control
Stealin' my eternal soul
Appealin' through material
To keep me as your slave
[Singing Chorus]
But I get out
Oh, I get out of all your boxes
I get out
Oh, you can't hold me in these chains
I'll get out
Oh, I want out of social bondage
Knowin' my condition
Oh, is the reason I must change
[Singing Verse 2]
See, what you see is what you get
Oh, and you ain't seen nothin' yet
Oh, I don't care if you're upset
I could care less if you're upset
See it don't change the truth
And your hurt feeling's no excuse
To keep me in this box
Psychological locks
Repressin' true expression
Cementin' this repression
Promotin' mass deception
So that no one can be healed
I don't respect your system
I won't protect your system
When you talk I don't listen
Oh, let my Father's will be done
[Singing Chorus]
And just get out
Oh, just get out of all these bondage
Just get out
Oh, you can't hold me in chains
Just get out
All these traditions killin' freedom
Knowin' my condition
Is the reason I must change
[Singing Verse 3]
I've just accepted what you said
Keepin' me among the dead
The only way to know
Is to walk then learn and grow
But faith is not your speed
Oh, you've had everyone believed
That you're the sole authority
Just follow the majority
Afraid to face reality
The system is a joke
Oh, you'd be smart to save your soul
Oh, when escape is mind control
You spent your life in sacrifice
To a system for the dead
Oh, are you sure...
Where is the passion in this living
Are you sure it's God you servin'
Obligated to a system
Getting less then you're deserving
Who made up these schools, I say
Who made up these rules, I say
Animal conditioning
Oh, just to keep us as a slave
[Singing Chorus]
Oh, just get out
Of this social (?)
Just get out
All these traditions are alive
Just get out
Superstition killing freedom
Knowin' my condition
Is the reason I must die
Just get out
Just get out
Just get out
Let's get out
Let's get out
Knowin' my condition
Is the reason I must die
Just get out
song performed by by Lauryn Hill
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Undecided
The process of learning,
Becomes more valued upon observation...
And the acknowledgement of truth!
Reality should remove conditions for debate.
It would seem to aid those in doubt.
With little to figure out.
But many refuse to see...
What 'is' for what it 'is'.
As they seek confirmation,
For their delusions kept!
And that is why so many are left,
To choose the more painless side of life.
While wishing to live it to remain undecided.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Mission...
My mission in life is greater than anyone could possibly imagine,
My soul craves the perfection of those who have walked before me.
I stand tall and proud... My confidence radiating,
Honing my intelligence, so I may become the master of my own destiny.
A thousand times I have failed to get it right even once,
I have dreamed a thousand times of this beautiful reality.
I am the commander of my own fate, the master of my soul,
The footprints of my destiny leading me onward, I am in control.
I am not a common man, I am as extraordinary as I choose to be,
However, I live my life with humility, never shall I judge you.
My eternal challenge, to seek strength and compassion from within,
I am who I must be and I shall continue to grow despite lifes abrasions.
Like a jig-saw in motion you try to solve this Cosmic enigma,
My heart beats slowly so I may savour the very essence of my existance,
Understanding and grasping certainty is the challenge I have overcome,
My life's lesson to live not through others, only then may my true colours shine.
My mission in life is greater than anyone could possibly imagine,
With my head held high and my wings splayed... I offer love...
Spread the love... The peace will follow...
poem by Cosmic Dreamer
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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A Single Identity
Notwithstanding how you view the morn,
Or see the sunrise and the dawn,
Over the high mountain Alps,
Or over the vast blue sea, or desert sand,
The sky shall be and always retain,
Its one single identity!
Notwithstanding how you share your
heart,
Or break it up into many parts,
And share its love with many or few,
Your heart shall be one and the same,
A single heart it shall remain!
No matter how you live this life,
Through your childhood, manhood and
old age,
And live through all its different stage,
Your life shall be one, just the same!
Since only one life is your due,
Live it well and then bid adieu!
Let us then share our lives and our hearts,
As we share the sky with life on earth,
And with mankind let us maintain,
A single identity forever retain!
There Is A Purpose And Meaning
No one is obligated,
To shoulder another's burden.
Or protect them,
From a misinterpreted view of life.
We all are presented with challenges.
And beset with missions to accomplish.
There is a purpose and meaning,
For being who we are!
No one here has been created,
To do as they please and leave.
Our experiences should teach us that.
But many do not mature to achieve clarity.
Although seeking to be understood,
Seems to be a goal some choose...
To refuse a reality they have been specifically given!
There is a purpose and meaning,
For being who we are!
No one is obligated,
To shoulder another's burden.
Or be shown an escape route,
To glorify their pleasures!
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Now We Find Too Much To See
The best condition I can condone,
Is to be done with 'us'.
And leave you alone.
No longer can I find understanding not there.
Or point out faults...
When my own are clearly there.
The best condition I can condone,
Is to be done with 'us'.
And leave you alone.
Neither one of us is perfect.
And I admit I know I'm not.
I'd rather quit than argue,
About who has been faithful.
Both of us have dipped and dabbed a lot.
No longer can I find understanding not there.
Or point out faults...
When my own are clearly there.
Remember when the love we had for each other,
Was blind?
Now we find too much to see.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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I Refuse
Everythings heaven sent
Thats what you said and went
Inside your fairy glass
Somethin you think will last
And when they crop you like a clown
You got your smile on upside down
B-baby I refuse
(I do refuse)
Uh, you can pick or choose
(I do refuse)
Find omebody else to use
(I do refuse)
cause I refuse to come along
And everythings on a whim
Thats what you said to him
Lyin in wunderlust
Are feelings you never trust
And when they pamper you with ice
I cant believe you dont think twice
Uh baby I refuse
(I do refuse)
Uh, you can pick or choose
(I do refuse)
Find somebody else to use
(I do refuse)
cause I refuse to come along
And everyone makes the play
With nothing left much to say
Theyre all in an endless line
Waiting for equal time
They keep screaming its the truth
And you keep kneelin in the booth
Oh baby I refuse
(I do refuse)
Uh, you can pick or choose
(I do refuse)
Find somebody else to use
(I do refuse)
cause I refuse to come along
Oh, I do refuse
(I do refuse)
Oh, you got nothin to lose
(I do refuse)
Find somebody else to use
(find somebody else to use)
(I do refuse)
cause I refuse to come along
I refuse
(I do refuse)
Ah, oo-oo
(I do refuse)
(find somebody else to use)
(I do refuse)
cause I refuse to come along
I refuse
(I do refuse)
Oo, oh got nothin to lose
(I do refuse)
(find somebody else to use)
(I do refuse)
[fade]
song performed by by Cars
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Every process which arises from our physical being and is related to it, is an event which lies outside of our volition. Every social process, however, arises from human intentions and human goal setting and occurs within the limits of our volition. Consequently, it is not subject to the concept of natural necessity. … We are here stating no prejudiced opinion, but merely an established fact. Every result of human purposiveness is of indisputable importance for man's social existence, but we should stop regarding social processes as deterministic manifestations of a necessary course of events. Such a view can only lead to the most erroneous conclusions and contribute to a fatal confusion in our understanding of historical events.
quote by Rudolf Rocker
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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I don’t know whether this world has a meaning that transcends it. But I know that I cannot know that meaning and that it is impossible for me just now to know it. What can a meaning outside my condition mean to me? I can understand only in human terms. What I touch, what resists me — that I understand. And these two certainties — my appetite for the absolute and for unity and the impossibility of reducing this world to a rational and reasonable principle — I also know that I cannot reconcile them. What other truth can I admit without lying, without bringing in a hope I lack and which means nothing within the limits of my conditions?
quote by Albert Camus
Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
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Man is not a machine... Although man most certainly processes information, he does not necessarily process it in the way computers do. Computers and men are not species of the same genus... However much intelligence computers may attain, now or in the furture, theirs must always be an intelligence alien to genuine human problems and concerns.
quote by Joseph Weizenbaum
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Your Greatest Challenge Of All
There had been no prior intention,
To pronounce you guilty.
But your persistent attempts,
To improve your understanding...
WITH a comprehension meant,
Has appalled those in your environment.
Therefore...
And with much reluctance,
I have no choice but to sentence you...
To a life of prolonged peace and happiness.
And where you choose to do this,
Is going to be your greatest challenge of all.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Comes As Soothing As Good News
As I age in times ageless,
With those afraid to leave their youth!
I find myself discovering a wealth,
Of understanding I am handed and pursue.
And the magic of this...
Is not so much that I have aged.
It seems that I
No longer deny
My triumphs or those delays!
With a patience that has grown,
To unmask and live my life...
I find that I am the first to admit wrong,
And not to insist that I can be happily right!
Taking my time to make up my mind,
Has left a satisfaction I alone approve.
Knowing that I still try to do my best...
And doing what I damn well choose!
Realizing I am through making excuses,
For me comes as soothing as good news!
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Accustomed To Opposition
I've grown accustomed to opposition.
As well as foolish maneuvers.
And those who object to those positions I have taken.
Nor will I apologize with regrets for those forward steps,
I chose to make that tested my faith.
And admit I do,
To the making of mistakes!
But obstacles and the fear of them,
I could not allow to slow my pace.
And those who choose to procrastinate,
With a hesitating done?
Well...
I perceive as being committed to wasting time.
And time as we live it as lived is not guaranteed to anyone,
To just sit back to see it come to leave.
I've grown accustomed to opposition.
But you know what?
I am here to participate and experience my life.
What others choose with a priority to do with their own,
I refuse to let their choices made get in my way.
I am not prone to the seeking of acceptance.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Facts Can Be What Whoever Says They Are
If from inception,
There had been no truth.
And from this a reality was based.
Any claims of fraudulence,
Can be denied.
Since prior to inception...
Truth was not a consideration.
And reality was what it was wished to be!
As far as interpretation of facts goes.
And facts can be what whoever says they are.
But when?
And in who's time...
Do they begin to be used for accountability purposes.
If truths are to be held self evident...
When is the constitutionality of consciousness applied?
If applied and how is that determined?
Note:
The word 'self evident' introduced into the English language
as an adjative in 1671.
Definition: 'evident' without proof or reasoning.
Evident: Clear to one's vision or understanding.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Delight In Variety
Others tell us what ‘truth’ should be when we
are small and with this tunnel vision we tackle
the world of experience and symbolism, bored
in our mental citadels
My life began when I discovered mysteries of
the unexplained: Egyptian pyramid blocks too
heavy for forklifts, ancient astronaut theories,
spontaneous human combustion
The face on Mars, levitation, spiritualism, the
Bermuda Triangle, UFO’s, theosophy, Sufi
dancers and the Mahabharata – requiring
a new definition of ‘truth’
Which I found in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld
law that belief always manifest in reality, thus
faith is the magic ingredient which determines
‘truth’ and being
By using beauty and harmony, love and wisdom
as guidelines, I choose how much reality to
accord any symbol I come across without
demanding consistency because
Quantum physics allows for everything to be
possible in an infinity of space and time; I do
not allow assumptions & preconceptions
to limit my mental freedom
As I strive to embrace everything which inspires
wonder, love and respect in my heart, no contra-
diction allowed to spoil my delight in variety
as the spice of life
poem by Margaret Alice Second
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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For Human Greed
We may as well try to find another Planet to live on
Since people they cannot live on the Moon
And Mother Earth the Planet that sustains us
We in our fits of madness choose to ruin.
And perhaps there's not another Planet out there
For human beings to live on and destroy
'Twould seem indeed that the price of human progress
Comes at a cost and the cost seems far too high.
Each day more creatures of extinction endangered
When the land they live on we choose to invade
And extinction sad to say it is forever
For human greed the price has to be paid.
We are paving the way to our own extinction
Where humans live pollution becomes rife
The World will not end with the death of the last human
And Nature will do nicely without human life.
We had better find another Planet to live on
Or become extinct as a species that's our choice
As we are making the Planet we live on for us quite unlivable
For human greed that seems too high a price.
poem by Francis Duggan
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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From Holiday To Holiday
This is what I've learned about living in reality
The few who choose to do it,
Become highly suspicious by those who travel
From holiday to holiday to celebrate escapes.
With the doing to others who speak of truth,
Everything they can
To depict them as mavericks.
Who have anti-social unacceptable motives,
To inflict
On those conformists,
Wanting nothing to do with a consciousness
That produces visions of clarity.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Until An Appreciation For Integrity Comes
Those today who now cry,
Are the ones who ostracized
The truth sayers who were on their side.
The ones who saw reality as it is...
And now have no empathy to offer.
Or sympathy to give.
To live and be treated with disrespect...
And defend an honesty,
Others too dishonest disceitfully neglect.
Leaves those victimized in isolated bitterness.
Until an appreciation for integrity...
Comes to the rescue,
And interjects a closer inspection.
Thus revealing corruption at its best.
Character assassinations...
Approved by breeders,
Of greed and heartlessness.
Who are then put through a process,
That dissects them with the ultimate test!
Stripping and exposing them,
To be the leaders of denied digressiveness.
Those today who now cry,
Are the ones who ostracized
The truth sayers who were on their side.
The ones who saw reality as it is...
And now have no empathy to offer.
Or sympathy to give.
To those punished for their deeds!
The taste of their cake,
Has been heartbreakingly tarnished.
And supporters who assisted in the baking...
Turn their loyal backs away!
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Our Minds Are Quite Different
Oh no!
I am not here,
To try to understand you.
Not when you have issues,
Dealing with reality.
That is not why I am here!
Nor my responsibility...
To ensure your life is made clear.
If it isn't for you now,
All the understanding I could share...
Will go absolutely nowhere with you.
'That' I already comprehend.
No longer will I defend,
A clarity you will never see.
You wish to perceive a fantisized existence...
That has a resistance to growing pains.
As long as things remain the same...
You are fine!
Our minds are quite different.
I am not trying to hold on,
To what I know should be let go!
And if that includes you,
To continue to pursue my life to live...
That will be done!
I am not the one for charity give aways,
That do not appreciate or value the delivery...
Purpose or reason!
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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