Lost Thoughts

"This age thinks better of a gilded fool than a threadbare saint in wisdom's school." - Thomas Dekker

* I'm sick with the cold or something.*

Loyalties and thought are lost causes. I reread Fahrenheit 451 today as inspiration for the story I'm still trying to complete, and for the first time I came to appreciate just what message Bradbury was trying to communicate. Like many others I initially finished F451 and concluded that the author was taking a well-placed stab at abuse of state power, but that's not even the half of it. The actions of the state were secondary to the thoughts of the people.

Bradbury was warning us that our desire for cheap thrills and no challenges will consume us. And it's happened. We're stuck to our televisions, our drugs, our pop novels. In an age where everyone can read and understand Milton, Thoreau, Lao Tse, and Plato, we refuse. We don't want to think. We don't want to commit ourselves to challenges. Montag, the main character, is left by his wife simply because he likes to discuss politics, philosophy, and other "crazy ideas" instead of ramble on about the latest television show or faun over how fast his car can drive. That is much like our society. We don't give a shit about science or philosophy. At best we just want someone else to do it for us. We don't give a shit about commitment. Oh yes we talk about it, but what we really mean is "someone committing to me."

Why take a hard major when alternatives exist that bestow A's more frequently and don't get you to apply yourself? Why stick it through a relationship when sex and companionship are just around the corner? Why attempt to read "hard literature" when others only know about Twilight, Harry Potter, the Giver, etc.? [I'm not knocking any of the books - although I hate Twilight personally - just they're really easy reads]

I feel like I'm surrounded in a decadent culture.

Jesus wept.