Holy Fool - Hidden Lobster - Starvation - Search for Meaning
Holy Fool
Chapter Four of Canadian author, Malcolm Gladwell's "Talking to Strangers", is titled The Holy Fool.
"The Holy Fool is a truth-teller because he is an outcast. Those who are not part of existing social hierarchies are free to blurt out inconvenient truths or question things the rest of us take for granted'
Gladwell's written context of the holy fool is a "sociological perspective" not a religious mythology.
Someone who connects dots, sees things before most others, gets affected by wrongs with the willingness to take adaptive actions including confronting and communicating truths. Especially when the injustice directly affects them or those closest.
Cracked Open, Canadian Judicial submissions and CTSODA writings. A journey getting to the truth on the subject matter of substance issues, human rights and a personal path and narrative.
A reluctant, forced and what those selfish among us would say, necessary journey to find meaning on all which has taken place in my life. A life which reached the point of complete chaos in 2008 and beyond through the delivery of deliberate social injustice including overt discrimination and prejudice.
Have fought ever since to regain Order, the greatest impediments being stigma,.bad politics, the spolied immorality of the Canadian establishment and certain individuals.
In a January 2018 conversation with Bob Rae. He made the comment, to paraphrase, "if you are going to be so Truthful I can't help you".
Took me awhile to figure out the true context.
Holy Fools while rare, are nevertheless, necessary for societal regulation and social progression. But such individuals often pay a very high price in self-sacrifice. Who for example, would want or be willing to follow the Paul J James path? Or who wants to be around a Holy Fool in the first place? A person who delivers such truth all the time?
Certainly not oppressors., politicians, enemies or the metaphorical pigs of envy.
It' is why "Fools" are ignored, slandered, defamed, scapegoated, excommunicated and even assassinated by those so threatened.
The arduous, cumbersome and dangerous path I chose, by default rather than desire, has proven the sacrifice. And still without justice served in a country so morally and ethically bankrupt.
The uncompromising willingness to be transparent and truthful would have been the reason for Bob Rae's excommunication in January 2018. It did not fit with his agenda which was not to help facilitate resolution or justice. If it was and Bob was honourable and humane to the individual and his word the matter would have been settled then and there. After all, he had the political cache and intellect. Those were not the issue. It was moral character. It is Canada's stone in the boot. Take it from the Holy Fool, as gospel.
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Hidden Lobster
Canadian Dr Jordan Peterson. 12 Rules of Life: Chapter One:
Stand up straight with your shoulders back,
Peterson's opening chapter highlights why publicly PJJ took on the role of the holy fool. Fighting back against bullying. Not playground bullying. Societal, institutional including Judicial, bullying.
2012.
The time when I stood up straight with my shoulders back and went on the offensive. Up to that point it had been bad enough. Unfortunately and remarkably in the man-child Canadian culture, I've been fighting ever since.
Could actually stand up and orate why Peterson's analysis in Chapter One is wrong based on the current results of my experience. After all, who else is going to fight back and sacrifice against the deliberate intimidation of stigmatization, to be left worse off and treated worse than an animal?
That said, I believe what he has written is helpful verging on brilliant. But the ultimate proof should always be in the pudding.
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Bullying
Peterson's point - pages 23-35 - in layman's and.personal terms, is best delivered as a succinct analogy:
Pre-stigmatisation days, on the social hierarchy of the lobster ladder I occupied above the 50 per cent mark. Let's say 70 percent. Two homes, car, passionate successful career, pension, savings, full time employment, social/professional status and a hard earned level of respect and competence within the industry I worked.
There were issues. No partner in life, over work, social isolation, friends that were never friends, a man child soccer industry and a substance issue.
Order in my life with elements of chaos which needed resolving. Opened up seeking support.
Chaos tsunamied Order, a consequence of heightened Stigma facilitated by York University and the Canadian soccer industry.
To be stigmatized is to be ruthlessly bullied. To be stigmatized because of a substance issue is to be bullied into oblivion.
At lightening pace PJJ slides down the social ladder because there is no moral or ethical code or desire in Canadian society to prevent what happened. Not from York University, the Canadian Judiciary, Canada Soccer, the friends who were not friends, nor the mental health care industry. All deficient in moral, ethical character and compass.
By the time 2017 came around PJJ was not only at the bottom of the ladder he was buried under the sand like the lobsters buried at the bottom of the ocean. Camouflaged. Weak and Brittle. Like bruised, abused dogs. That's what criminalisation, stigmatisation, immorality, along with an impotent, corrupt, colluded judiciary, all combined, produce.
Stigma associated with substance issues kills millions of people. At a bare minimum it delivers dreadful appalling suffering and ruins lives. Canadian society has not come to terms with this reality yet. Nor has York University come to terms with their immoral, repugnant, corrupt behaviour. Nor have Canada Soccer. Nor has Bob Rae and Adam Vaughan.
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Search for Meaning
The recent commentary on Paul Merson ended with "I hope Paul remains happy". Forgot to add, "More importantly I hope he finds meaning". It is clear he has not.
On that note and with relevance to the hidden lobster and holy fool here is an abbreviated note I sent to somone recently.
Hi,
The Dr Jordan Peterson book 12 Rules for Life is an international best seller.....Chapter One is titled: "Stand up Straight with your Shoulders Back"...
The chapter towards the end in particular, references bullying and what to do about it.
The reality is when you read/hear what I write and say, it is PJJ hitting back at bullying at all levels. It is what it is to confront stigmatization, dehumanisation and deliberate injustice even though it gets scapegoated in a country so diabolically immature.
The end result of this matter whether I'm alive or not will be social justice for millions.
On a personal level even without justice being served yet, there is an element of respect and dignity regained Refused to hide behind corners like others so stigmatized. And the likelihood of persons calling PJJ a crackhead or any other unsavoury label now has been significantly reduced. The words Crack Cocaine have almost been normalised.
It is a positive result of confronting.
Been too nice all my life letting people walk all over my willingness to just move on from malevolence delivered by those less able and willing.
Handled the Singapore Scandal as best I could. Never threw a game. Played honourably for Canada always. Did not keep, bank or spend any money. Gave it all back. Testified all those facts under oath to the RCMP and in Canadian court room in 1987/88.
The first person back in the late 80's who I heard defame my role I should have sued with all my might including David Norman. That would have straightened it out bc others would know I will "Bite".
Will hit back at those who've caused such deliberate harm in this regard at the right moment.
Stigma is bullying based on ignorance, malevolence or a nexus of both.
Look how I dealt with your comment...." It's the bloody drug". I was ruthless. You won't make that mistake again. Or if you do my response will be even firmer. No matter what your experiences permit you to think, the rebuttal shock treats reflection into interrogating an issue you may not have thought about deeply enough.
The bloggers were a nasty piece of work. Idiots courtesy of Jason Devos, David Norman, Terry Dunfield and others. When I get through this I will keep them in a court room for the rest of their lives or I will end up in a prison cell. Couldn't care less if I end up in prison should be the guideline for others at this stage. A flat warm bed. Three meals a day. Sounds good to me.
Look at the damage the guy Chris Keem caused from the Mooredale Soccer Club. Hes never met me but the stereotyping of his perception on my persona was a disgusting example of stigma at work.
He was fired from his job through this process. Word spreads. Slowly but surely respect and dignity regained. But not if I hadn't or do not continue to confront.
Of course not perfect and yes anger and outrage has been there through the process. It was the fuel needed to keep going as with any oppressed group. Any reasonable minded citizen.with all that lay in front of them as evidence, well, what do they expect a person to be like?
Once matter is resolved through justice served then years of chaos will turn to order and so will my life. If I'm still alive I can walk about happier in my own skin. I can stand up tall with my shoulders back and be myself without people who follow a different ethos taking such dreadful, selfish liberty.
And so all what you read and hear from PJJ can be framed as confronting to regain the dignity and respect I should never have lost or had taken away in the first place.
You are right people do not like to confront or be confronted. It is why the world is in such a mess. It is why Dr Jordan Peterson has it right in this and many areas.
12 Rules for Life was a great read courtesy of the Milligan family who kindly bought it for me.
Finally. A soccer career which followed the path of most resistance combined with an upbringing littered with impediments to being normal and anxiety free developed the personality, resilience, determination and nous to navigate a way through the nightmare of the past decade.
The collection of traits developed then and throughout my career were not to coach a team or any one individual to success for the rest of my life. Rather it was a training camp in preparation to communicate to the world the how and whys of the stigmatization of substance issues.
Following through the successful fight for social justice will permit communication to the world that substance issues do not need to be as harmful and as bad as we make them out to be which merely empowers stigma not the individual.
Solve inequality, end prohibition, respect any issues as cognitive conditions, social justice and human rights matters. Then you will empower those who encounter chaos to take care of themselves more confidently.- rehab or not. Abstinence or not. The whole of society wins because as a by product you would have penetrated stigma at a level which will be tangible. Socially, economically and morally.
