More terrifically uninformed press

er, AC'07 was in Pittsburgh!

Ah, but you're associating shamanism only with Native Americans! That sort of system exists in the distant past of almost every culture if you go back far enough. It is called different names and has ritualistic variations, but the core belief of involving evoking spirits of the earth and animals is almost identical in every case.

As for political matters, I prefer to take each situation as it arises and make my decision based on what will work best and fits with some basic moral precepts.

Of course, that has rather led me to side with the 'right' much more often than the 'left'. The case often is that the far left present solutions that simply don't work in the long run, and with a little honest analysis it's often very forseeable. And there's the 'peace at any price' philosophy that has been in place all the back before WWI. The reluctance to use force when it was needed to enforce treaties and prevent greater harm led to one mistake after another, and I think we all know what that mindset led to starting in 1939. War has its place. The difficulty lies in knowing when and where to fight, and to be sure that if you start something you actually have the means and methods to properly finish it.

And on the far right are simply religious nuts and its very easy to see where they've fallen off the deep end. The 'God hates fags' protesters are a shining example of how evil can twist even something which is supposed to be entirely about goodness to its own ends. It is wise to be wary and never cease to question. Even the most faithful have questioned their faith and searched earnestly for the answers.

Both of the extreme views are failures, as far as I can tell. Each side walls itself up with a set of beliefs that will not change no matter how much evidence is presented. For instance, the left are incredibly fond of socialism. But socialism in practice has failed completely. Socialism ignores the existance of a simple truth of human nature: humans are greedy. It leads to even less equality and more flagrant corruption than capitalism simply because to make everyone equal, a government must be in absolute control of everything to 'redistribute' resources. Inevitably, that government takes most of the goods for itself and those who can afford bribes. I would advise everyone to watch Venezuela for a perfect example of how this scenraio will unfold.

And on the right, religious beliefs become incredibly hard-line and legalized to such a degree that they cease to resemble the original religion. They end up creating violence and injustice that the founders preached against. Tenets can be introduced by corrupt religious leaders to serve their purposes and single words or phrases can be misinterpreted and used out of context either accidently or deliberately, and those errors mixed into the simple truths become accepted if the majority merely accept without studying for themselves. But eventually they are found out and become stumbling blocks which cause many to fall needlessly. Most religions have had this happen at some point, though some do eventually reverse course. One only has to look at the futile belief in an Earth-centered universe which was held so vehemently to understand the danger of this way of thinking.

In the end, it's a constant analysis of self and society, while knowing which lines not to cross no matter what. Becoming fixed in one mindset without willingness to adjust to individual circumstances is dangerous and allows one to be easily misled by those who will say just enough of what you want to hear to get them into power.

The clever ones who seek power for the sake of power never show their true face until they have what they want. They change their tone frequently to fit what the public mood is at the time, always attempting to stay one foot ahead and predict the next mood swing. They are the most dangerous of all, for they have no values and will do anything it takes to rise in the ranks.

Oh, I've gone off on a tangent again. Don't get me started thinking too much because I have trouble stopping! ;P