Philosophical Crap and The Culture of Make Believe

So lately I've been reading a rather depressing book for English called "The Culture of Make Believe" by Derrick Jensen. The book is a psychological/philosophical overview on the "darkest part of civilized society". In short, it's about how much of a screwed up and fucked up world we live in. Throughout the book, Jensen repeatedly questions the meaning of civilization and hatred. Whether it be the government, the corporations, or the average people; Jensen uncovers the darkest part of our society and unveils a world full of hate and corruption.

Originally I was skeptical about reading the book because I thought it to be the ravings of a environmentalist nutcase... And it is; But it actually makes sense. The book revolves around the display of hate and domination; including detailed sections on some of the more infamous tragedies in the world; such as the KKK, the Holocaust, Hitler, and Corporate Reign.

Jensen spends much time describing the KKK and their atrocious deeds; then compares them to past incidents that were similar, but were cheered on by the public. My previous blog post was inspired by a section of this book, predominately the section about genocide and hypocrisy. Just to refresh your memories, I wrote on how we, the citizens of the US, were horrified by the bombing of Pearl Harbor; and then cheered our hearts out when they announced the dropping of the A-Bomb over Hiroshima, ignorant of the fact that we just signed the death sentence of thousands upon thousands of innocent civilians that had nothing to do with the war. As Jensen puts it: "Are we truly so blind as to not see the hypocrisy of our own actions?"

Jensen wrote about the Holocaust, and the first thing that comes to mind is Hitler and genocide. But then he makes you think about the expansion of the US after the American Revolution... and how our founders started a holocaust on their own: the extermination of Native Americans and conquering of their land. Sure, you can argue that the Holocaust is too malicious and horrid to be compared to that, but the intent was the same.

I'm past my 400 word limit... So I'll just wrap it up short: This book may have been depressing and hateful, but it makes you rethink what you've always thought about society. It could disgust you, or it could fascinate you... Regardless, the book was fun to read. Thanks for recommending it to me, Mr. S.