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What is an extremist? Or rather, what comes to mind when one is mentioned? There are a number of things people think of, such as a lunatic, terrorists, or someone whose actions far outweigh their cause. So then, what is the opposite? Is it a normal person? Well, let me tell you something about normal people: They contain more apathy than the sky holds stars. There could be innumerable evils in the world (and who’s to say there isn’t?), and the average man will do nothing to stop it. He will complain, but in the end his words will be only that – words. Unless the solution has a high chance of immediate success, the most likely scenario is that evil will go unpunished; those in power will remain; and the status quo will remain standing.
So now I ask, what’s worth fighting for? Why should we have a cause? Because cause gives us purpose. Without purpose, what will we do with our lives? If someone were to ask you right now, what is it that you’ve accomplished that has value, how could you answer? Will you even have an answer? It is my fear that the majority of mankind will not. We’ve all wanted more out of life. When the opportunity comes to make a difference, do you take it? Do most of us take chances? No, we don’t. The disease of Laziness and Complacency are more deadly than any ailment, and cause more sociological death than all of them combined. So knowing this, why do we choose to be complacent with trouble? We fear failure. We’d rather do nothing than do anything and lose. It can appear that if we are to fail, that all is in vain. But that is far from the truth. Let me tell you this: If we try to achieve something our whole lives and never do, the worst thing that will happen is we’ll die without making a difference. If we choose the path of apathy, then it is our destiny to meet that same fate.
So I ask you again, what’s worth fighting for? My answer to myself is ANYTHING that benefits or secures the future of mankind. Personally, I am studying to advance the personal security of humanity for a future age, an age where man and machine are so interconnected that the latter affects the former. But that’s not the only option. Far from it! Volunteer workers sacrifice their own time and money to help others. Why? Because they know helping others is more valuable than themselves. This is extremism at its purest. Another example of an extremist is one who uses arson to accomplish a goal. Sometimes, when things are a total mess, it’s best to just start fresh, from scratch. Like building muscle, tearing down what is so a better, stronger future can grow, being rebuilt from the ground up - that is the goal of the arsonist.
Some people claim they don’t know what they can do, because what little they can do seems so futile. What I’ve learned recently is that changing the world isn’t a single thing you can do. Such an act is an elaborate game of chess – it’s not this move that really matters, it’s the move six turns away that you’re setting yourself up for that does.
So, what happens once we realize that things NEED to be fixed? Every so often, one of us snaps. Driven by an overwhelming rage against oppression, against tyranny, one man can cause real change. The will to be free overpowers the will of apathy, and only then do we see the birth of an extremist. There are still heroes left in man, they just need a purpose.
The argument can be raised, then, is why do things need to be changed? What transgressions are held on our planet that must be fought against? Why does the world need saving? I tell you this: The world is an absolute mess. A tenth of the world lives in wealth and apathy, and the rest starves. There are those who do not have clean water, that don’t have safe places to sleep, and those that are oppressed beyond help. There are these people in underdeveloped countries, and there are these people here in our own. There are people who gain the upper hand, and instead of helping those in need, they enslave them into dire circumstances, simply for their own gain. There are those among us who know this is wrong, but nothing is done to stop these atrocities. Why? Because of one reason: A crippling lack of extremists. People complain about the issues, but the oppressors still reign. Some lucky few are helped due to humanitarian aid, but they are but a symptom, and the disease rages on. The fish rots from the head, so to speak, so I say, why not cut off the head? Humanitarian workers are a Godsend – they are sacrificing their time and effort to fight a losing battle and for that, we should all be envious of them and thankful. They are heroes.
But how is the issue fixed? An unjust cause is fixed by removing the circumstances which preserve the status quo. For example, there are powerful and corrupt leaders in many African communities, which keep supplies and ruin their own people for their own gain. They are a cancer that needs to be removed before it can spread and cause more damage. As another example, which may strike home a bit more for some of you, is that there are powerful and corrupt leaders in many American communities, which rape the political system and ruin their own people for their own gain. They are a cancer that needs to be removed before it can spread and cause more destruction.
I have spent much time deliberating on what is worth fighting for. Greed and selfishness are worse than any war this world has faced. It is with force and swiftness that we must rise against it in all forms – with as much courage and bloodlust that we face all our other wars. Without such emotions to fight against oppression and intolerability, we will become the victims to those who with so subdue us for their own gain. Lacking this, we will enter a dystopian future controlled by hate.
So I ask you a final time, what is an extremist? An extremist is someone who will go to any end to accomplish a goal; someone who truly and deeply believes in something worth fighting for; one who values courage over life. There are many means to expressing and acting on these feelings, and finding what this action is, is up to you. If there is nothing to fight for, there is no reason to be alive. One might say that life has no purpose, but I implore you to consider the opposite – that the meaning of life, Is to give life meaning. We can be self-serving and foolish, which will lead only to our own downfall, or we can serve and preserve mankind, in order to change its future into a long, and prosperous one. Therefore, I urge you – whether you choose to be an arsonist or a humanitarian – in all you do, be an extremist.
So now I ask, what’s worth fighting for? Why should we have a cause? Because cause gives us purpose. Without purpose, what will we do with our lives? If someone were to ask you right now, what is it that you’ve accomplished that has value, how could you answer? Will you even have an answer? It is my fear that the majority of mankind will not. We’ve all wanted more out of life. When the opportunity comes to make a difference, do you take it? Do most of us take chances? No, we don’t. The disease of Laziness and Complacency are more deadly than any ailment, and cause more sociological death than all of them combined. So knowing this, why do we choose to be complacent with trouble? We fear failure. We’d rather do nothing than do anything and lose. It can appear that if we are to fail, that all is in vain. But that is far from the truth. Let me tell you this: If we try to achieve something our whole lives and never do, the worst thing that will happen is we’ll die without making a difference. If we choose the path of apathy, then it is our destiny to meet that same fate.
So I ask you again, what’s worth fighting for? My answer to myself is ANYTHING that benefits or secures the future of mankind. Personally, I am studying to advance the personal security of humanity for a future age, an age where man and machine are so interconnected that the latter affects the former. But that’s not the only option. Far from it! Volunteer workers sacrifice their own time and money to help others. Why? Because they know helping others is more valuable than themselves. This is extremism at its purest. Another example of an extremist is one who uses arson to accomplish a goal. Sometimes, when things are a total mess, it’s best to just start fresh, from scratch. Like building muscle, tearing down what is so a better, stronger future can grow, being rebuilt from the ground up - that is the goal of the arsonist.
Some people claim they don’t know what they can do, because what little they can do seems so futile. What I’ve learned recently is that changing the world isn’t a single thing you can do. Such an act is an elaborate game of chess – it’s not this move that really matters, it’s the move six turns away that you’re setting yourself up for that does.
So, what happens once we realize that things NEED to be fixed? Every so often, one of us snaps. Driven by an overwhelming rage against oppression, against tyranny, one man can cause real change. The will to be free overpowers the will of apathy, and only then do we see the birth of an extremist. There are still heroes left in man, they just need a purpose.
The argument can be raised, then, is why do things need to be changed? What transgressions are held on our planet that must be fought against? Why does the world need saving? I tell you this: The world is an absolute mess. A tenth of the world lives in wealth and apathy, and the rest starves. There are those who do not have clean water, that don’t have safe places to sleep, and those that are oppressed beyond help. There are these people in underdeveloped countries, and there are these people here in our own. There are people who gain the upper hand, and instead of helping those in need, they enslave them into dire circumstances, simply for their own gain. There are those among us who know this is wrong, but nothing is done to stop these atrocities. Why? Because of one reason: A crippling lack of extremists. People complain about the issues, but the oppressors still reign. Some lucky few are helped due to humanitarian aid, but they are but a symptom, and the disease rages on. The fish rots from the head, so to speak, so I say, why not cut off the head? Humanitarian workers are a Godsend – they are sacrificing their time and effort to fight a losing battle and for that, we should all be envious of them and thankful. They are heroes.
But how is the issue fixed? An unjust cause is fixed by removing the circumstances which preserve the status quo. For example, there are powerful and corrupt leaders in many African communities, which keep supplies and ruin their own people for their own gain. They are a cancer that needs to be removed before it can spread and cause more damage. As another example, which may strike home a bit more for some of you, is that there are powerful and corrupt leaders in many American communities, which rape the political system and ruin their own people for their own gain. They are a cancer that needs to be removed before it can spread and cause more destruction.
I have spent much time deliberating on what is worth fighting for. Greed and selfishness are worse than any war this world has faced. It is with force and swiftness that we must rise against it in all forms – with as much courage and bloodlust that we face all our other wars. Without such emotions to fight against oppression and intolerability, we will become the victims to those who with so subdue us for their own gain. Lacking this, we will enter a dystopian future controlled by hate.
So I ask you a final time, what is an extremist? An extremist is someone who will go to any end to accomplish a goal; someone who truly and deeply believes in something worth fighting for; one who values courage over life. There are many means to expressing and acting on these feelings, and finding what this action is, is up to you. If there is nothing to fight for, there is no reason to be alive. One might say that life has no purpose, but I implore you to consider the opposite – that the meaning of life, Is to give life meaning. We can be self-serving and foolish, which will lead only to our own downfall, or we can serve and preserve mankind, in order to change its future into a long, and prosperous one. Therefore, I urge you – whether you choose to be an arsonist or a humanitarian – in all you do, be an extremist.
So as I was trolling around archive.org's collection of totse2.com pages for nostalgia's sake, I remembered this particular interesting text file that a really awesome old member of TOTSE2 named Ghost Prototype wrote on July 22nd, 2011, and hoping against hope, I checked the archive.org records for it, and lo! There it is. This is some ye olde stuff, but gold.
Now, the obvious question I'm sure others reading this thread are going to ask is, "Arnox, you have been a very vocal opponent of extremism. What is this shit?" And indeed, I am. But I am an opponent of extremist ideas. Black-and-white all-or-nothing thinking specifically. "ALL transgender persons are pedophiles." "THIS political party is the devil and everyone in it is the devil/brainwashed!" "ALL civilian use of guns is bad and wrong!" But this is not actually what Ghost Prototype here is advocating for here. Instead it is actually a call to action against the evil of the world. To not be complacent and to do your damn fucking part already to help others around you. To not be afraid of drastic action when drastic actions are needed and right.
I'm very glad I was able to find and save this text so that it can be preserved on Sanctuary's servers. I'll see if I can find one or two others as well that I remember from The Rudeboy.
