Ben Ralston

Why conspiracty theorists love to theorize about conspiracies

Yesterday morning I promoted (via the Elephant Journal Facebook page) Harris Mercer’s article ‘Why it’s wrong to doubt the news about Osama’. In case you haven’t read it, it’s an opinion piece.
Within minutes of the post the FB page received dozens of angry comments.
I realized two things: not only do conspiracy theorists love to theorize about conspiracies (which was the provocative title of my facebook post), but they don’t like to be called out on it…
I’ve thought a lot about this before, because I have a friend who loves to think (fantasize?) about this stuff. He spent many, many hours ‘researching’ over the Internet, and is firmly convinced that the world will end in 2012. He has invested not only a lot of time, but also a lot of money, into what he sees as precautionary measures to ensure his survival thereafter.
This is the conclusion I have reached:

It’s just another kind of addiction…

…up there along with shopping, pornography, video games, alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, etc. Most people are addicted to something. We like to fuel our addictions to distract ourselves from the real issues that would otherwise (we fear) burn a hole in our mind – why am I not deeply happy? Why do I not do what I love? Why do I not relish this life, and live the life of my dreams?
For the record, I personally believe that there was something a bit ‘fishy’ about 9/11. I also believe that Osama probably isn’t dead! The greatest intelligence asset in the world, ever? Shoot him in the eye!
But hey, I don’t want to fuel any more conspiracy theories because I don’t want you to waste (too much) of your precious time thinking about them.
What I’d really like you to do is address the deeper questions. Are you deeply happy? Do you feel successful? Are you living the life you dreamt of when you were a child?

This is important.

It’s not important whether Osama planned 9/11; it’s not important whether he lived in a cave in Bora Bora or a mansion in Pakistan; it’s not important whether he’s alive or dead. It’s not important, compared to the simple question “Am I happy?”
You see, the world is full of unhappy people who pretend to be happy whilst pulling on their cigarettes; or plugging into the ‘net to research conspiracy theories; or going out at the weekend to get drunk, trying to forget about Monday looming up ahead, and the job that they dread.
So forget about Osama. If he’s not dead he soon will be, and we’ll never know the truth anyway.
Focus on yourself. “Be a light unto thyself”. You have the potential to be and do exactly what you would most love to be and do. When you get there, you’ll be a beacon of light in this dark world, and the more light we all bring, the more shadows we disperse.
Deep down we all want truth, justice, freedom, and peace. The only way is to find them within.

FREEDOM


What is real freedom?

Is it a physical condition (not being behind bars)?
Is it being free to do or say or think what ever you want, no matter what?

I created this blog today having never ‘blogged’ before, and had to choose from a range of ‘templates’. I chose the only black one. Why?

I used to have an aversion to the color black. I used to think that it is a negative, or ‘unspiritual’ (whatever that means!), color.
Then I realised something. Something very profound.
Nothing is negative!

Time for a great quote:
“Nothing is all good or all bad, except that we make it so“…
Whoever said that, and I’m not sure who it was – perhaps it was Shakespeare, or Abraham Lincoln? Like i said, no idea – but whoever it was, really understood that nothing is negative; nothing is bad.
For example: my aversion to black cut me off from a whole range of clothes and other choices. I was not FREE to choose. My choices were limited by the idea, ‘black is bad’.
So today, I chose the black template just to acknowledge and celebrate my freedom from a limiting idea.

What other kinds of things limit us?
The other day, I had a client whose Mother used to say, whenever sex was portrayed on television: “look what the pigs are doing”. I am sure that the Mother never enjoyed sex, or knew the beauty of meaningful physical contact with another human being. How sad.

So often, we judge the world around us. Those judgements limit us. They interrupt our freedom.
Given the choice: to be absolutely non-judgemental behind bars; or physically free but trapped in a cycle of judgement, I would choose the first option. Why? Because I know that, as Jesus said: “the truth will set you free“.
When we judge, we do not see things as they really are! We super-impose an idea onto what we are looking at. Actually, we don’t see at all – we just look.

When we stop judging, we stop looking for what we think we already know. Instead, we see things as they really are. We see the truth. And that is freedom, because in that moment of honest and open experience of truth, of reality, we know. We see, and we know, and we are free to choose.

That is real freedom.

ps – As you may have noticed, I changed the template from black to white – it was hard on the eye!