Comments on: Anger is a gift. Merry Christmas!

By: silverspringwoman

silverspringwoman — Sun, 19 Jun 2005 15:55:34 +0000

I was involved with a local pagan group that busted up over some of these issues..i.e. unacceptable anger and questioning of the established hierarchy. I just sent all the former members an email with the link to this. Thanks!

By: Haeresis

Haeresis — Fri, 17 Jun 2005 22:49:56 +0000

My Mom has an anecdote from when she lived near a monastery in Berkeley. Someone had done something to this guy, like nearly run him over don’t remember the details). He yelled at the guy, and everyone was just staring at the guy. She says he turned to the ‘crowd’ and said, “yeah, Buddhists are allowed to get angry.”

By: Occult Investigator

Occult Investigator — Fri, 17 Jun 2005 00:25:55 +0000

great points slomo. especially about people projecting their anger as coming from you when they wont acknowledge it in themselves. and that whole thing about now being allowed to watch porno… thats just fucking dumb.

By: slomo

slomo — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 23:59:25 +0000

Oh yeah, and the whole “I’m so spiritual because I think only good thoughts and you’re just full of negativity” thing PISSES ME OFF.

I mean, if you can see the fundamental injustices of the world and just shrug your shoulders, then you’re a fucking loser spiritually.

By: slomo

slomo — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 23:57:08 +0000

Nice post (as well as the last). The whole 12-step thing pisses me off. I have a friend in the clergy who goes to Sex/Love-Addicts 12 step program, and between his monastic order and his “program” he gets fed all kinds of negative BS. I mean, who cares if he watches porno (as long as the subjects are adults, which they are)?

Anger is good, but like a doberman it is generally bad policy to let it off the leash.

On a somewhat related topic, a good read is The 48 Laws of Power. It concerns issues of self-control with respect to anger as well as issues of manipulating others through belief, etc. A good primer if you want power, or if you want to avoid its exercise by others.

By: alistair

alistair — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 20:54:38 +0000

yes.ALL feelings we have are a valid human response.i find alcoholics tend to be high functioning types,maybe just not high functioning enough to beat the dogmas that helped create thier drinking in the first place.
mind control is the first game of religions.the jesuits were semantic black belts.they also interfered with little boys as a way of arresting thier critical filters at an early age.(the fact remains.the reasons why are my conjecture.)
i must say that 7 billion independant thinkers,all switched on would be a problem too.but,nonetheless here we all are.crabs in a pot.
i read in power vs. force that anger is a way of waking up the conciousness and is the way to pull one up from despair.as long as we can transcend the anger it is a good thing,yes?

By: albion

albion — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 20:19:08 +0000

well said. i disagree with those who think anger is some sort of vampiric supra-human entity. it’s not, its human - all too human - nor do i think it can (or should) be eliminated. certainly it is usually destructive but it can also be righteous and justified. i tend to see managing anger in terms of self-control, which to me is freedom. ‘course that’s not to say i always succeed.