KIYAMASA
6th May 2009, 09:48 PM
Sometimes things happen which allow us the evaluation of putting other things into a different perspective(s). At present we have cases of Swine Flu in Britain. In arrogance and egotism we oftentimes find the fantasies that allow us solace from our fears. And to be young has its own level of immortality; we fight and never die… Kendo has that youth of spirit, too. But, Swine Flu..? That has all the potential of a great plague. It can wipe out hundreds of millions of people. So, in this instance I have opportunity to write in a different format to my usual ‘live without fear’ philosophy.
As Kendoka, our first priority is to survive. As such, we should look at all things of life (including fast approaching shinai) with as much reality as we can. And if we do, and find a need to fear, then the reality of what that fear is based upon, is the information we need, for personal survival.
(Note: Usually, most of us in the WKF play some form of mind game. That’s ok. No real harm is ever done by moaning, complaining, bitching, wind-ups, or even the absurdity of playing God. But, some things of life, as subjects that may be the griffing and chaffing of WKF dissemination, demand a very respectful level of awe. And, Swine Flu is one of them. That problem, if it isn’t subjected to extreme levels of politically official, physical and mental sanitation, could take out everyone you know!)
So, let’s look at what Swine Flu might be. Or, might not be…
I’ve lived a life full of odd and informative experiences. I’ve known pig farmers (from the local pub Fujii Sensei and I drank in). In conversation about pigs (!) there was a question about catching any diseases from pigs. The basic answer was, that apart from pigs eating the wrong food, such as eggs, (which would stop us eating them) they carry no diseases that can be passed on to us. However, as they stated, there’s always an exception to every rule. They told me that their mother had once developed a really bad condition. Her head swelled up enormously, and went a terrible shade of purple. The doctors didn’t have a clue what it was. But they did a lot of research, and in an old medical book they finally found a reference to the condition she had. It was extremely rare, but was caused by contact with pigs. The title of diagnosis was a long, Latin description, which I didn’t even understand at the time. I’ve forgotten it. But, it wasn’t a form of flu.
So, what does that suggest..?
Did you know, that all messing about as GM, is done by using viruses? The transference of the DNA from one living thing to another is done as a kind of piggy-back ride on a virus. It’s the only way DNA can invade the space of other (host) DNA. And the usual virus geneticists use is, the flu virus. In plants, that GM trick can be done by using plant ‘poisons’ as the virus needed for transference. Example: A yellow rice is being developed, a GM vitamin in the rice being taken from daffodils - which are lethal.
In theory, there is no limit to what geneticists can do. And not only do, but have the technical ability to do very easily. Scrape an elephant’s leg, add it to a swab from a runny human nose, shove it into some pig tissue, and you have a two ton elephapig. Or, by reversing that process, creating a pigaphant. The only problem then being, would anyone want to go near a pig-like creature, with the GM potential for the biggest nose cold in the entire universe that can be passed back to us?
Even if Swine flu has a human origin, so far humanity has been lucky to have avoided an even greater mistake mad scientists could’ve made when messing about with DNA. We give creatures our colds and flu, and they give them back to us. But, most creatures evolve, especially to survive. Just about everything in Australia, for example, has a lethal sting or bite. Which is only a natural version of genetic ‘modification.’ The creature doing the stinging or biting, quickly modifying whatever it stings or bites.
Fortunately as yet nothing has evolved to the point at which its diseases, as viruses, have learnt the GM transference trick of passing themselves to us, ‘for fun and curiosity’ or without us getting too near them, especially with intent to kill, or to eat them.
As Kendoka, we should have an affinity with anything trying to survive. Because, our system of personal evolution (with shinai) is based upon the ethic of survival. You will have your own opinions about GM subjects, be they right or wrong. But, by the Kendo ethic you should have at least some antipathy towards the assumed justification for the GM process. To make something grow much larger (as a personal development) so there’s more of it to eat after we kill it, contradicts our Kendo ethic of survival.
As for tricking the DNA of one creature, to become part of another, so we can have something bigger to kill and eat..? Well, as in this forum, we can play mind games with each other. And even evolve, by understanding such games. But, there is a kind of ‘maxim’ that exists as a saying that is an ethic in its own right. “Just be yourself.”
Perhaps, only a swine would deny the right of pigs, to be just pigs?
A swine, giving pigs flu, that is.
Hatamoto dojo: UK. Phil Wright: Shido Ryu.
Post Script: As in the themes of many films nowadays, ‘mucking about’ with viruses is a subject within the arena of terrorism. ‘Doctor Dastardly develops a virus that will kill millions of people; phones the President of Wherever, and demands a £zillion not to do so.’ But as any senior martial artist knows, that type of film theme isn’t in the category of terrorism, it’s blackmail. Terrorism occurs as attempts to bring down governments, by a process of turning the populations they govern, against them. Get enough plagues going in a society, without any obvious reason for the sicknesses, and without anyone to blame for them, most governments would fall.
As Kendoka, our first priority is to survive. As such, we should look at all things of life (including fast approaching shinai) with as much reality as we can. And if we do, and find a need to fear, then the reality of what that fear is based upon, is the information we need, for personal survival.
(Note: Usually, most of us in the WKF play some form of mind game. That’s ok. No real harm is ever done by moaning, complaining, bitching, wind-ups, or even the absurdity of playing God. But, some things of life, as subjects that may be the griffing and chaffing of WKF dissemination, demand a very respectful level of awe. And, Swine Flu is one of them. That problem, if it isn’t subjected to extreme levels of politically official, physical and mental sanitation, could take out everyone you know!)
So, let’s look at what Swine Flu might be. Or, might not be…
I’ve lived a life full of odd and informative experiences. I’ve known pig farmers (from the local pub Fujii Sensei and I drank in). In conversation about pigs (!) there was a question about catching any diseases from pigs. The basic answer was, that apart from pigs eating the wrong food, such as eggs, (which would stop us eating them) they carry no diseases that can be passed on to us. However, as they stated, there’s always an exception to every rule. They told me that their mother had once developed a really bad condition. Her head swelled up enormously, and went a terrible shade of purple. The doctors didn’t have a clue what it was. But they did a lot of research, and in an old medical book they finally found a reference to the condition she had. It was extremely rare, but was caused by contact with pigs. The title of diagnosis was a long, Latin description, which I didn’t even understand at the time. I’ve forgotten it. But, it wasn’t a form of flu.
So, what does that suggest..?
Did you know, that all messing about as GM, is done by using viruses? The transference of the DNA from one living thing to another is done as a kind of piggy-back ride on a virus. It’s the only way DNA can invade the space of other (host) DNA. And the usual virus geneticists use is, the flu virus. In plants, that GM trick can be done by using plant ‘poisons’ as the virus needed for transference. Example: A yellow rice is being developed, a GM vitamin in the rice being taken from daffodils - which are lethal.
In theory, there is no limit to what geneticists can do. And not only do, but have the technical ability to do very easily. Scrape an elephant’s leg, add it to a swab from a runny human nose, shove it into some pig tissue, and you have a two ton elephapig. Or, by reversing that process, creating a pigaphant. The only problem then being, would anyone want to go near a pig-like creature, with the GM potential for the biggest nose cold in the entire universe that can be passed back to us?
Even if Swine flu has a human origin, so far humanity has been lucky to have avoided an even greater mistake mad scientists could’ve made when messing about with DNA. We give creatures our colds and flu, and they give them back to us. But, most creatures evolve, especially to survive. Just about everything in Australia, for example, has a lethal sting or bite. Which is only a natural version of genetic ‘modification.’ The creature doing the stinging or biting, quickly modifying whatever it stings or bites.
Fortunately as yet nothing has evolved to the point at which its diseases, as viruses, have learnt the GM transference trick of passing themselves to us, ‘for fun and curiosity’ or without us getting too near them, especially with intent to kill, or to eat them.
As Kendoka, we should have an affinity with anything trying to survive. Because, our system of personal evolution (with shinai) is based upon the ethic of survival. You will have your own opinions about GM subjects, be they right or wrong. But, by the Kendo ethic you should have at least some antipathy towards the assumed justification for the GM process. To make something grow much larger (as a personal development) so there’s more of it to eat after we kill it, contradicts our Kendo ethic of survival.
As for tricking the DNA of one creature, to become part of another, so we can have something bigger to kill and eat..? Well, as in this forum, we can play mind games with each other. And even evolve, by understanding such games. But, there is a kind of ‘maxim’ that exists as a saying that is an ethic in its own right. “Just be yourself.”
Perhaps, only a swine would deny the right of pigs, to be just pigs?
A swine, giving pigs flu, that is.
Hatamoto dojo: UK. Phil Wright: Shido Ryu.
Post Script: As in the themes of many films nowadays, ‘mucking about’ with viruses is a subject within the arena of terrorism. ‘Doctor Dastardly develops a virus that will kill millions of people; phones the President of Wherever, and demands a £zillion not to do so.’ But as any senior martial artist knows, that type of film theme isn’t in the category of terrorism, it’s blackmail. Terrorism occurs as attempts to bring down governments, by a process of turning the populations they govern, against them. Get enough plagues going in a society, without any obvious reason for the sicknesses, and without anyone to blame for them, most governments would fall.