Ok, so it’s been quite a long time since my last post. I had to get through a pretty rough period of intellectual burnout from dealing with the rough and painful realities of our day. I can’t say it was really good for me to take a break or that it even actually did anything at all, but for some reason I know I needed it to clear the headspace, get drunk a few times, jump off some amazing new objects with new friends, and remind myself that despite the incredible struggles of our time that true hope really does exist for this society and that our future is likely to be a lot brighter than our fears may have us believe. Still, we can’t get away from the fact that we have our work cut out for us in the coming years, that change will not come quickly or even completely without constant effort both physical, intellectual, and spiritual, and that many of us will never be around this planet long enough to fully see the changes evolve to which we choose to dedicate so much of our time and energy.
When faced with a decaying and broken system of realities, it is the essential purpose of any intellectual endeavor to both expose the uncomfortable truths of the times and to reveal the incredible possibilities which exist to change them. And it is to that ultimate goal which I plan to dedicate the remaining time of my quiet and sober Afghan sabbatical. I hope that this break has given me the opportunity to refresh myself, recover from my personal burnout, and make a final push to forge the beginnings of the counter-narrative I wish to develop, but of course only time will tell what I am able to come up with. Still, I am prepared to take even greater intellectual risk, put ideas and concepts out there in a public forum, and open myself up to the reality of being proven wrong on a large proportion of my ideas. In these times it is all I can do for myself and for the future I hope to build for my children…might as well give it a fair shot…
Despite the fact that the deck appears to be stacked against us for far-reaching and sustainable societal change, I can only offer thoughts of hope and further dedication to see our transformation through to its ultimate end state. The problems we face are truly immense and infinitely complex, from global energy reserves and environmental degradation, the increasing power of big business and a monetary system designed upon false incentives for the future of humanity, and large-scale military-geopolitical-industrial power structures seemingly Hell bent and sustaining a world of perpetual conflict and insecurity…and yet, the very fact that they are so interconnected means that they are inherently changeable through the incorporation of new ideas and paradigms. Like any decent military man will tell you, to win you must focus on the enemy’s center of gravity. Learn to know yourself and know your adversary and you will never find yourself in peril. Yet always keep in mind that when discussing any operational endeavor amateurs always talk about tactics, professionals focus on logistics.
And in this time, despite all the calls for global revolution and a rapid, shock doctrine method of immediate change, I am convinced that there still exists an operational and apparent middle path. Rather than seeking revolution we can work toward evolution, instead of breaking down society we can build upon the potential which already exists within it, and before forcing change in others we can focus on changing ourselves. It is going to be a long and interesting road, but I have the utmost confidence in our ability to imagine, operationalize, and eventually achieve the impossible dream of a sustainable and equitable future for all our children and the end of major conflict for generations to come. If we put our heads together, work slowly but confidently at the tasks at hand, and never stop believing in our own potential, we could likely see our children inheriting the first truly peaceful world of human history, our grandchildren pushing the limits of human capacity and technology never knowing the concepts of poverty or human destitution, and our great-grandchildren being among the first human beings travel the universe in search of even newer and greater realities. We are on the verge of incorporating the first truly human civilization on this planet and it is the utmost gift from whatever god or creator happens to exist in the universe to be a part of the generation that will help humanity finally turn that great corner from a world bound by scarcity to one governed by abundance and availability of talent, knowledge, freedom, and resources.
As for me, I can’t truly say at this point what role I will end up playing in this transformation. The slate is still quite blank and as I continue to develop my talents and skills I only see more and more options opening up. While I love my job as it has helped expose me to so many of the rough realities of our time I cannot say whether I will continue this pursuit for very long. Ultimately, I have always known that I would make a much more capable global revolutionary than a professional soldier but the possibility and demand still exists for just that type of evolutionary change within the systems of our military and it appears that I will be in the perfect position to act as a proponent and catalyst for that tranformation. Regardless though, I will always work first and foremost for the future of the human society I hope to build and that loyalty trumps any contractual obligation I may have to any government or system of power. Nobody ever changed the world by following all the rules…
Anyway, it’s time to get going…might have one more “mission” to accomplish on my last hours of freedom before heading back to the ‘stan for a few months. Definitely expect much more to come whenever I can find the time and state of mind for expressing and operationalizing a few new idea. In the meantime, think for yourself…always check your sources…develop the counter-narrative…master yourself and then master the transition…This should be an interesting ride…
Cheers,
Brian
6 MAR 2012, 1245 (L) Sydney, Australia
Beyond the Wire 
Can you envision yourself as a member of Congress, first the House, then the Senate.
You have the credentials, intellect, and the welfare of the world populace is at the forefront of thoughts of evolution.
I enjoy reading your opionions.
While I will rule nothing out for the future, I don’t think that path is quite right for me at this time due to basic structural problems inherent within the system itself. The simple fact is that the American political system is in a state of such decay that I’m afraid anybody at this point choosing to “play politics” is kidding themselves if they truly believe they can create real change (more to come on this when I get the chance). At this stage it looks like change must first come from the outside than from within but you never know what surprises time has in store for us…
For now, the official line is that I will always refuse to do politics. That will remain the case until it changes…