Who are YOU willing to sacrifice for this economy?

Your Money, or Your Life… You Choose.

Presently, there are increasing calls clamoring for our states’ and nation’s economies to be returned to a state of “normalcy” (whatever that may be, or look like). Those voices are largely cacophonous, often belligerent, threatening with violent, even lawless displays, such as in Michigan recently, when renegades and insurrectionists stormed the State Capitol building armed with loaded assault weapons, and battle accouterments such as helmets, flak jackets, and bullet-proof vests, threatening to kill the Governor, and attempted to seize the Legislative floors.

In response, some states’ Governors are “reopening” their states’ economies, which have been largely shuttered for the benefit, and protection of the Greater Good, preservation of Public Health, and the prevention of loss of life, through unwitting dissemination of a particularly insidious and occult disease for which we have no cure, neither validated, nor verified treatment, nor vaccine – the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, aka COVID-19.

It seems to me that, in essence, what is being done – not merely said – is presenting a “your money, or your life” robbery type scenario, a practical sacrificing of human life upon the altar of filthy lucre to the god of mammon, through the high priests of finance, freebooting pharisees of free trade, and profiteering prophets, preachers prophesying doom, gloom and destruction having larcenously perverted First Amendment rights, and subjugated freedom in the name of self-centeredness and an almighty free market.

What thought have you given to such an oblique equation – that by their actions, those governors and others are ostensibly saying that human life is expendable and cheap, whereas money and profit are far more precious?

I have yet to read or hear of anyone making such a clear-cut case that people’s lives must be lost to save the economy.

And yet, that is precisely what is being touted.

Of course, ritual human sacrifice is nothing new, per se, insofar as it has existed for eons. And in fact, an argument is made that such sacrifices were regularly made in numerous cultures globally. Whether they were of any value is up for debate. Suffice it to say, however, that religion played a significantly influential role in that process.

Research published in Nature by Watts, J., Sheehan, O., Atkinson, Q. et al. Ritual human sacrifice promoted and sustained the evolution of stratified societies. Nature 532, 228–231 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature17159, strongly suggests that, [download from this site Ritual Human Sacifice anthopological research 2016]

“Religion has long been proposed to play a functional role in society, and is commonly claimed to underpin morality. Recent evolutionary theories of religion have focused on the potential of pro-social and moral religious beliefs to increase cooperation. Our findings suggest that religious rituals also played a darker role in the evolution of modern complex societies.”

Professor Russell Gray, one of the study’s co-authors, noted that “human sacrifice provided a particularly effective means of social control because it provided a supernatural justification for punishment. Rulers, such as priests and chiefs, were often believed to be descended from gods and ritual human sacrifice was the ultimate demonstration of their power.”

And the authors further state that findings of “experimental research indicates that while social inequality may foster group decision-making and efficiency, power hierarchies become unstable when they lack sanctioning status. In Austronesian cultures human sacrifice was used to punish taboo violations, demoralise underclasses, mark class boundaries, and instill fear of social elites — proving a wide range of potential mechanisms for maintaining and building social control.

“Throughout human history the practice of human sacrifice was often used by social elites as a display of power, intended to instill fear of the secular and supernatural consequences of transgressing ruling authority. While there are many factors that help build and sustain social stratification, human sacrifice may be a particularly effective means of maintaining and building social control because it minimizes the potential of retaliation by eliminating the victim, and shifts the agent believed to be ultimately responsible to the realm of the supernatural.”

In other words, it’s not your fault; blame the god of your choice.

That’s right up DJ Trump’s alley.

The Sacrifice of Isaac, 1602 by Michelangelo Merisi, detto il Caravaggio (Caravaggio, Milano 1571 – Porto Ercole, Grosseto 1610) 1571 – 1610, Oil on canvas; 104 x 135 cm

---

Today, several friends shared the following with me:

“You are exactly right. When someone tells me that some may have to die to save the economy I ask what family members are you willing to sacrifice.”

---

“Oh, without a doubt!

“Some state legislators have publicly said it’s okay to sacrifice the homeless, old, & sick to save the economy.

“From Iowa, Ohio, & Oklahoma I think.

“A city councilor in a small town near Sacramento said it just last week. He was fired & now he’s suing. [https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2020/05/01/council-removes-commissioner-who-said-let-nature-take-its-course/]

“Trump has already said the worst is behind us & admitted to ABC News that “more deaths are coming but we have to get back to work”. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-05-05/trump-says-u-s-must-reopen-even-if-more-americans-get-sick]

“All he cares about is the stock market, which evidently, is completely detached from reality now.

“It keeps having the best trading days since 1980 day after day after day with no indication that shareholders have any concerns about the companies going out of business.

“Maybe it was a Texas legislator?

“I’ve seen 3 or 4 horrifically callous comments.

“Absolutely! [that’s sickening]

“Yes us liberals get blamed for saying shit like that and we never do.

“Except for Trump to die.”

---

“My circle of friends have been talking about this since they starting call for plans to re open. I was having a discussion with a patient the other day who unfortunately isn’t working and is struggling even with extra unemployment benefits. I ask her point blank if she was willing to sacrifice one or two people closest to her so she could go back to work. Because essential so many people are being ask to make that exact sacrifice.

“It’s genuinely sad that so many people are too scared to really see the truth for what it is. As “essentials” [wife] and I are working and admittedly not suffering, or no real fear of suffering. I understand the fear and only hope and pray that if – God forbid, grocery stores do have any semblance of food shortages – what will happen.

I read a book many years ago – cannot remember the name – but it was a fictional account of end times either from natural disaster or man maid (I truthfully cannot remember any details), but the one line that stood out to me was “we are only three missed meals from total chaos.”