A recent comment from Agnatheon on Statement of Intent:

“You are not alone. Though I was born and raised in America where a wider margin to express individuality exists, most of us here have never excercised that right because as you’ve already mentioned, we’re mentally beaten into submission with images of what we’re “supposed to” be. In recent years, people have started moving outside the box, only to enscone themselves in another one. Yes, there’s been a resurgence in creativity here in America, but everybody’s using the formula that lead to the resurrection of the movement…not using it as a launching pad to find their own voice(s). I struggle daily with decisions on what habits and notions to relieve myself of to become me. But I’m not giving up, and I’m glad you aren’t either. I’m not alone. You’re not alone. We’re not alone.”

First of all, thank you so much for those last two sentences. I very much needed to hear that and those words are very powerful. Indeed, we are not alone. Somehow that makes it easier, to know that even one person out there may be experiencing reality in a similar way to myself.

I agree with you that in America there exists a “wider margin to express individuality”. However, I’ve also observed that the capacity of the American mass media machine to affect and influence the populace is like nothing I’ve seen anywhere else before. Coming from the cultural viewpoint that I used to have, Americans seemed to me to be progressive, individual thinkers. However I was viewing all of American counter-culture in relation to the cultural norms that I grew up with in a repressive nation-state in Asia. Actually living here now, it is so disappointing for me to see that the average American is more similar to the average citizen of my former country than I expected. It is truly surprising to discover that college students completely lack any kind of revolutionary spirit and that truly individual thinking is still anathema here. Most peoples’ interests rarely move beyond their knowledge of some sector of pop culture.

From my perspective, what America purports to represent and what in actuality it is are two very different things. People around the world and in this country have been, and are being sold this idea of equating America with individuality and freedom – but notice that these are always expressed within the confines of the state. America has discovered an excellent method of drawing out true human creative potential in the service of the state and the system. However, it is still interesting to live here. Moving to America and having all these ideals about what this society was, only to have most of them crushed, was a very important experience for me. All this time, I thought that I loved this country – now I realize that my love encompasses so much more than that.

I am completely in love with humanity’s potential. With our abilities for individual and creative thought. I think it is amazing that we can contemplate our existence in this universe. I am in love with what we can achieve when we work together. I am in love with our capacity for justice and compassion. I can’t help but feel that some tiny part of the national ideology of America (perhaps what it was, or what it could be) coincides with some of my beliefs and ideals. But in any case, I now have no concept of patriotism. I work to the benefit of life itself and I do what feels right on an internal level.

The most important thing about my experience so far has been this – that I get to see what my ideals are. I get to understand what really makes my heart beat. These now constitute some form of meaning and purpose in my daily life. I feel more fully human.

All of this said, I personally believe that America is a good place from which to begin changing the world. The bottom line is that US citizens have freedom of speech and freedom of assembly – two things that (from my perspective) many, many people do not have. Use your freedom. And, anyway, where-ever one is in the world, one has some freedom that one can utilize. Use whatever freedom you have to self-actualize. It’s about time that we as a species finally woke the fuck up to our potential. We can do anything. For a very long time, we have been led to believe otherwise and now is as good a time as any to discard old beliefs and practices that no longer work for us.

I’m excited about what we can become.