Guilty of Little Atrocities

How we have all colluded to make the world the way it is now

What are Little Atrocities...?

Examples of micro violations and little atrocites may include:

*not speaking up when you know a choice is being made that is wrong. You may not speak up because you fear the repercussions, or because you are shy, or because you don’t want to be outside of the tribe. No matter, your silence makes you a contributor.

*agreeing to an activity that you know is wrong. This activity may be very very small, so you brush it off as inconsequential.

*staying silent and/or present to a conversation that is toxic or damaging to another person. Gossip is an example of this.

*staying silent to a conversation that is damaging to an organisation or group.

*choosing to not know about things---like what happens to the stuff we throw away, or how does the money system work, or that our partner is having an affair, or our child is taking drugs. We prefer to stay ignorant because we can sense that knowing has a price and a responsibility and we do not want to pay.

Our silence and refusal to listen to truth is the very first micro step (little atrocity) towards an accumulation of micro steps that end up as major violation of integrity. This is how a little atrocity becomes a major atrocity.

This kind of violation happens all the time, and for the most part, people have taken the steps towards this violation in such micro steps that they do not even realise they are now inhabiting a space that is rotten. It happens to us all. We all have chosen little atrocities that we have been blind or numb to. Sometimes, thank goodness, we wake up.

While some people may argue that the disaster of our economy was manipulated by a bunch of smart, greedy and sinister people (even my great mentor Bucky Fuller believed this.. see his book, Grunch of Giants), I am more inclined to the possibly naive view that we got there, all of us, by our little atrocities. We agreed to the marketing campaigns that said we needed more in order to be happy. We said it was OK to allow the publication of magazines that sell gossip and celebrity as the new heroism, by our buying actions. We agreed to turn onto the TV to mindless violence. We told our politicians it was OK to lie by our inaction. We have said that cheap clothes manufactured by child slaves is OK, as long as we do not need to know that is happening. That to consume food way beyond our needs, while most of the world goes hungry, is quite acceptable. I could go on and on. No one made us do these things, although there have been some very clever people casting their spells of magic and manipulation on us. Master manipulators.

Quite likely how we got here is a combination of both the power brokers manipulating, plus our agreement to the little atrocities.

No matter..because what I do know is that each and every one of us can choose to wake up from our spell of violation and choose again. We have the power in us to make a different choice. We really do have the ability to make a difference and its starts right at home, in your very own agreements, in speaking up, in risking self for no longer participating in a rotten game. It begins in all of your relationships, home and work.It is the very principle behind what we teach in Dare to Care

Every time we choose to remain ignorant, silent, afraid, we choose our own disempowerment and we contribute to the very breakdown of the system we see crumbling in front of us. There is no small step, no small action. There is only choosing our next action, our next step, and being very sure we are making a choice that contributes to the health of the whole. And no, you do not have to be smart to know what that choice is. But you do have to reconnect to morals and ethics of right and wrong. If you pay attention to your body, it will let you know..because choosing the violation drains your energy, and will make you sick. If you are an addict, you may get a quick rush from making the choice of violation, but it will be short lived, and after the rush will come the depletion of energy that is a signal of every little atrocity.

If there is a pandemic on our planet right now, it is one of silence. We all need to find our voices, and without fan fare or anger, speak to what we have been numb to. This is where the real revolution lives..with you and me and our very next action, the very next thing we agree to...or do not agree to. Will I choose to no longer be silent? Is my speaking up more important that what you think of me, or if you like me, or if I do a good job?

Do I have the courage to recognise that this is not about me any more, but about we and us...and that without you and others, I am nothing?

If we stop playing the game, the master manipulators have no game to play. If we stop saying yes to the little atrocities, the world has a chance. Its no secret, we all get to choose...every moment, every day...and every choice matters.

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