Look, it's quite simple. Despite Shroud's going on about "anyone who has been here enough time", I very much doubt that he's been here more than two weeks himself, so maybe he can't be expected to know this. And though many of you do know it, I'll say it anyway.
Exactly what is going on here now we saw on the main board a month ago. A post by me - a dozen posts by people saying "fuck off, you're a queer" "fuck off, you think you're better than us" "GTFO Alex Reynolds". There was a big fight about the identity of the board. Jeff intervened. I won. You lost. Simple as that.
I've certainly never before SAID it as simply or as bluntly as that. I've tried to be very polite. When Room 101 was created and all the people I'd been fighting with went meekly away from the main board and came here, I made a particular point of not being vindictive. Posts appeared on the main board attacking certain people who had attacked me. I took no part in them and asked the OP not to do that kind of stuff. I wanted the "main-board" people to be able to get on with their stuff, you to get on with yours - because I'm afraid we have nothing in common. Please let no one say I "attacked Lia", because the Lia post of a couple of days ago was an affectionate, friendly post written in a spirit of harmless, gentle liking for the girl.
Now, however, I see that someone here has decided to post something on this side of the board deliberately linking my name with the name of a pedophile whom, as I say, I condemned as such long before any of you did - condemned, in fact, at a time when many of you were treating him as a friend and a good guy.
In other words, you people have decided, on your side, NOT to be polite, friendly and non-vindictive about this. You want to start fighting again.
Fine. You lost last time. And you'll lose this time. You asked for it and you'll get it.
First of all I would like to thank you, Jeff, for creating this little nightmarish haven. -She- told me about your plans, and I immediately thought it was the best solution.
Though some might find it hard to believe, I feel very protective of most females, especially younger girls. Lia especially triggered my need to protect through the openness about her vulnerability that her pictures so clearly radiated. And that was all I knew about her when I first started talking to her.
What about Lia is it that lit the spark that caused my obsession to go from a smoldering ember to a raging inferno? I would say several things. The first time I saw her I was overwhelmed by her beauty. I don't think anyone can deny that Lia is a beautiful young woman, but that isn't enough for me to become obsessed with someone.
What I discovered was that beneath this veneer of vulnerability and visage of insanity was a very bright young woman – not without faults, but no one is perfect – whose natural affinity for magickal workings immediately aroused in me a desire to learn more. I started finding signs in her pictures, signs that showed certain traits of her that corresponded very well with the archetype of Lilith/BABALON.
Lia represents, in her pictures, the perfect ambivalent mix of Eros and Thanatos, sex and death. She also therefore represents Lilith, the Dark Mother and BABALON, the Scarlet Woman and Sacred Whore. Her pictures offer to us glimpses into a world of nightmares and dreams – the realms of Lilith.
Having worked on establishing a more personal relationship with Lilith/BABALON for quite some time, I could not help but wonder if this was a sign, or if I was simply imagining things. Then she revealed to me that her natural hair color was an auburn red, and there was the last piece of the puzzle. Could she be a Scarlet Woman, my Scarlet Woman? I did not know, but I wanted to find out.
And here we are. Does my obsession harm her in any way? I do not believe so, and if it did I would back away immediately. I do not wish to bring her any harm, and so far at least I would say that me being a part of her life has not been detrimental to her physical or mental health in any way. I have done my best to stop her from harming herself. I have done my best to prove to her that I am trustworthy. I have done my best to be as much of a friend to her as I can. I have never been disrespectful towards her. But I will ask her again tomorrow, if she feels that I am a negative energy in her life.
Many people have unfairly maligned Ayn Rand, the greatest philosopher of the 20th century. This has always confounded me, for no other person has developed such a rational approach to living as she. I believe the underlying reason is that most of her works, like The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, are simply too complex and involved for most people. Thankfully, a group of Canadian musicians took the time during the 80's to distill the complexity of Rand's philosophy into music that we can all understand.
Modern rock pioneers Rush not only produce some of the hardest rocking tunes ever recorded, they also are pioneers when it comes to infusing rock music with deep insight into the natures of human behavior. The band consists of guitarist Alex Lifeson, deeply crooning singer/bass & keyboard player Geddy Lee, and drummer/lyricist Neil Peart. Peart is mostly known for his wildly improvisational, jazz-inspired drumming technique, but he plays an even greater role as the person who has single handedly brought the power of Ayn Rand's Objectivism to a level that can be understood by even the most stereotypically ignorant, drug-addled teen.
Ayn Rand's highly influential Objectivism is a deep topic, and her purely philosophical writings on it are quite dense. Realizing this, she took on the task of translating her thoughts into the realm of fiction in order to make it more accessible to the general public. Unfortunately, the task still proved formidable, and two of her resulting books totaled over 1,000 pages each. The complex nature of what she advocates even dictated that she spend the final 50 some-odd pages of Atlas Shrugged reiterating everything she had spent the previous 1,000 pages explaining. Thankfully, Neil Pert was up to the task of reinterpreting her work for her in layman's language.
Live for yourself, there's no one else
More worth living for
Begging hands and bleeding hearts will
Only cry out for more
Rush - Anthem
With that one verse Peart has reached deep into the very core of what is important in Objectivism. Utilizing the power and reach of rock music, he and his bandmates have taught us much of what being an Objectivist is really all about. But how is it that a humble drummer was capable of such a feat? Quite simply, it was due to his environment. You see, Rush is a Canadian band, and as such they know first hand how the forces of socialism can destroy all that is important in man. Why this skill developed solely in Peart and not Lifeson or Lee is due to Peart's journey to England when he was eighteen. It was there that he first came to truly understand how important Objectivism is, utilizing the excessive governmental involvement in daily life prevalent in England as a catalyst for his enlightenment.
There is unrest in the forest,
There is trouble with the trees,
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas.
The trouble with the maples,
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light.
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made.
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade?
There is trouble in the Forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the Maples scream 'Oppression!'
And the Oaks, just shake their heads
So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights.
'These oaks are just too greedy;
We will make them give us light.'
Now there's no more oak oppression,
For they passed a noble law,
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet,
Ax,
And saw.
Rush - The Trees
Indeed, we are kept down with hatchet, ax and saw. This parable clearly underscores how the small people continue to force those graced with power and influence to bend to the will of those who are not worthy, resorting to violence rather than reason to have their way. The music of Rush asks: Which are you? A noble oak, rising towards the sun, or a weak maple, whining about the unfairness of it all rather than bettering yourself through improved photosynthesis and nutrient gathering? The implied inferiority of the maple, national tree of Canada, is clearly intentional and represents Peart's dissatisfaction his socialist homeland.
You can choose a ready guide in some celestial voice.
If you choose not to decide, you still haven't made a choice.
You can choose from phantom fears and kindness that can kill;
I will choose a path that's clear-
I will choose Free Will.
Rush - Free Will
Lyrics such as these are the basic essence of Objectivism. Free will. The power to change your destiny should you so choose. Total rejection of the idea that some people are born into situations from which they cannot rise out of without help. Another line from the above song goes, "Blame is better to give than receive". No greater sarcastic truism has ever been uttered. The simple truth of the world is that absolutely each and every person who finds themselves in difficult circumstances is there as a result of their own actions. This is what Objectivism teaches us, that those who have problems deserve no help because it is all their fault anyway.
Of course those who are the little people among us are not content taking responsibility for their own failings, choosing instead to blame their problems on "phantom fears" like global economics, abuse of power, and the inherent inequality of capitalism due to its rewarding of greed above all else. This would be fine if there weren't so many of them, but that is not the case. Those who are accepting of their inherent inferiority outnumber us in such great numbers that they actually are able to influence world events. As a result, our politicians are forced to enact destructive socialist programs like retirement benefits, public transportation and health care for the indigent.
However, we now have hope. In addition to Ayn Rand's scholarly and deeply thoughtful writings, we also have a means of making the truth understood to the masses. The music of Rush can be a highly effective tool for spreading the word of Rand. By combining high level philosophy with the power of primitive rhythm and repetitious melody, we finally have an effective tool for convincing the less perceptive among us that our cause is right and that getting in our way is extremely counterproductive. By further simplifying our message we will finally succeed in teaching the meek that the earth is not theirs to inherit, but should either be seized with force or surrendered to those who are stronger.
