Reykjavík Grapevine - 27.07.2007, Blaðsíða 7

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A great philosopher once said in a rather cryptic manner
that nothing changes; one could say that our naked,
tame souls cannot fathom this simple dictum of life,
how our reality is merely constructed out of our simple
hopes and childish beliefs. Meaning and change are part
of the same illusion, stemming from a lack of ability to
realise this uncomplicated truth. There is quite simply no
single straightforward truth in life. In Buddhism, life is
simply suffering until the final stage, Nirvana, is reached.
Christianity invokes forgiveness and caritas or brotherly
love. Islam is submission to the one true God head. For
the neo-liberal it is money, stemming from greed, that
is the alpha and omega. And for some the force is the
truth. Others choose their own truth derived from a belief
system as a cornerstone for their reality, or life, which
is only a grain of sand in the whole cosmos. The many
truths of the universe fill it up in a manner that recalls
Archimedes’ famous sand corn experiment.
And so, what once was is what still is, never becom-
ing, since change and truths are illusions. A simple stroll
down the annals of Western history sheds light on this
“simple truth”. In ancient times, even in Athens, when
faced with rebellion, the ruling establishment crushed
all resistance. In the Roman Empire, Spartacus was put
to the cross first, then came Jesus. Much later in his-
tory there would not only be causalities but also belief
systems that were forced down the throats of those
who dared challenge the status quo, individuals such
as Bruno, Abelard, Malcolm X and countless others.
Last weekend the foot soldiers, Storm Troopers and
lovers of conformism, came forth with their self-righteous
indignation at the dirty hippies, or, quite simply, the group
Saving Iceland. You see, here in Iceland, the happiest
country in Europe, we do not like those who disagree
with our affluent lifestyle. The truth that heavy industry
is needed is pumped into our belief systems, like our
own personal crack stash being supplied by level-minded
politicians and business men, both here in Iceland and
abroad. Their truth will guide us poor souls. It doesn’t
really seem to matter that these companies supply the
military or are guilty of foul play in other countries – as
long as some people here can have their payday. “The
prevailing truth” is that everybody that has a problem
with heavy industry and shady companies – and takes
action, something that has been done countless times
in history – is now a filthy hippie who doesn’t know any
better.
For upholding their natural right and display of civil
disobedience, three members of Saving Iceland were
detained at the police station on Hverfisgata. When I
arrived at the police station, after the news, I stood by
in awe: Icelanders never challenge the status quo, or at
least they have stopped trying. Once there were famous
protests such as the Gúttóslagur – and who can forget,
although most Icelanders were not born, the day Iceland
joined NATO. The city was almost torn apart because
different belief systems clashed in Austurvöllur. Nowa-
days, I fear that more people in Iceland know who 50
Cent is rather than say, Trotsky or Bakunin.
However, what struck me as being the most ridicu-
lous thing about this affair was that during the whole
police charade I noticed a lone figure way up on top of
the police building, like the mysterious lone gun man
(not Oswald) of the JFK assassination. He was taking
photographs of the protesters and, of course by default,
bystanders. While I gazed at this versatile legionnaire
of justice, I was reminded of the simple story of Peter
Parker’s true origin. Stan Lee is not the sole creator of
Spider Man or the Marvel Universe; actually, Jack Kirby
is the true godfather of modern super hero comics. As
luck would go, he is only a fringe figure acknowledged
by geeks and nerds. Facts like this one shed light on how
value systems and truth for some people can never be
relative, and so there is always “the danger” for some
to realise that a preconceived notion of truth is fallible
when challenged by another truth. Alexander Graham
Bell’s invention of the phone is another example of this
textbook fallacy of “established truths”. A person who
clings to these straws of truth, from what they view
as the jaws of death, can be compared to a tight rope
artist who never actually crosses over the rope because
he never sees the point. He is safe, therefore, he is also
right. I was awestruck by this herd mentality of the
police officer, who was shooting photographs right and
left, just as if he was being paid $50 a piece by Jonah
Jameson himself. Protesters and all those who dared
stand by became victims of a “drive by photo shoot”.
Later, I actually called him out and, like a startled lemur,
he recoiled his camera ever so quickly as if he had just
been spotted masturbating in public. After taking a
few steps away again from the building, I turned my
back and when I looked back I noticed he had whipped
his toy back out. With great power there comes great
responsibility. But what of responsibility if your moral
compass and mental bearing in life can only see black
and white?
The amazing thing about all of this is the total lack
of diverse and divided opinions voiced by most Iceland-
ers. Most actually utter the same clichés. Their writing
and whining reeks of the genuine mental sloth of those
who lack most, if not all, of the cognitive abilities in their
grey matter. Dirty hippies, stupid protesters. Those damn
rebels. This is the epitome of lazy thinking. When is it
allowable to protest? Obviously you cannot protest the
arrival of a mass murderer to Iceland, who is responsible
for the death of Chinese students. It is considered rude
to protest the war on terrorism – and the list goes on
ad nauseam. While some Icelanders sit at home launch-
ing a diatribe at “those hippies,” they are at the same
time teaching their children to be mindless lackeys, fat
off of prostituting the land, obese because of KFC and
McDonald’s and immune to questioning the system. My
truth might not be right, but at least I would be willing
to stand and die by my convictions. However, the self
righteous “good citizens” of “what is right” might flip
the channel and order Dominos, all along clinging to
one grain of “truth.”
A Peter Parker Conforms:
“The Truth Is Out There?”
Text by Marvin Lee Dupree
“The prevailing truth” is that
everybody that has a problem
with heavy industry and shady
companies – and takes action,
something that has been done
countless times in history – is
now a filthy hippie who doesn’t
know any better.
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