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After the Golden Age by Alvin Schwartz
Giving a glimpse into the formative years of comics and beyond.

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AFTER THE GOLDEN AGE for 11/17/2003
Volume 2, #101

What? You think George Bush is one of those silly flat earth believers? And you think the Bizarros are crazy because they believe in a square world? And all because you KNOW the earth and all the planets are round, right?

This may come as a big surprise to you, but this so-called round planet we live on may not be as round as you think. It may actually be doughnut shaped. Or possibly even square. And, yes, we can't rule out flat either just because you think Dubya is so primitive he might think so too.

Actually, we know he really believes the earth is made of large slices of pie to be handed out to his fellow crony capitalists, but that's another story.

So now, if I may start by reminding you that there's no specific planetary shape, either flat or round or doughnut or whatever. The earth can be and actually is any and all of these things. It's really all in the eye of the beholder.

There are species of insects, even birds and higher mammals whose vision is so constructed that they perceive all sorts of shapes. So that, in effect, as the evolutionists might say, the way they perceive the earth is essentially a survival mechanism. The way they see helps them concentrate better on their own needs, for food, for flight, for reproduction. And. in actual fact, if we put all the pieces together, you have to admit there is indeed no specific, real, true, out-there shape for the earth. It's neither round, nor square nor flat nor doughnut shaped. Not intrinsically. In fact, speaking intrinsically, it may not have a shape at all.

Our sciences and our ventures into unknown parts whether across the earth or in space have provided us with varying perceptions of the shape of what's out there. We invent a new kind of machine, or enhance our visual capacities in a certain way and, behold, we make sense of the new information by fitting a new shape to the earth. Currently, it's not exactly round but ovoid, roundish but flattened at the poles. As we begin to perceive the various gases and atmospheric currents as having the same solidity as the earth we can walk on, we are gradually coming around to the idea that for all practical purposes the earth is indeed like a doughnut. It certainly looks that way to many atmospheric scientists.

And then, think of the people you've heard about who could read auras, or do remote viewing, where earth has no distance at all, let alone a shape. Yes, I said "remote viewing", a technique that the CIA picked up from the Soviets and has been conducting revealing experiments with for some years now. How about that? An "instantaneous" earth. What shape would that be? What shape is the world-wide-web? Anyone know? And my old friend, the lithographer Warden Day, who used to see people's auras at a glance. We were all dazzling streaks of significant light and color to her, with even our moods and malaises apparent to her unique perceptions.

So what we see out there is entirely the result of our perceptions, our inventions, our ideas, various extensions of our original senses, biased of course by our history, our theology and our various philosophies of reality. There are plenty of people around you right now who are aware of the earth as consisting entirely of waves, amplitudes, vibrations, vibrating strings within a certain order, and, as a result of constant surges of new energy, shifting rapidly through varying stages of disequilibrium, and nothing more. All the rest, everything we share about the solid, everyday round earth is merely a folkway that tends to change with each passing generation.

Well, why belabor a point that, as soon as it's brought to your attention, you realize is quite correct. There's nothing out there except the way we have of seeing it at a particular time. Nothing to stop us from getting to work on time or taking a trip around the world. But, consider this. When we give superheroes such fantastic powers, and how many of you writing to this column have talked about having powers like Superman so they could help people, well, here I am suggesting again that you have those powers now. You have them as soon as you realize that out there, it's all flexible, malleable, changeable. Which leaves it all in your hands. You have the capacity. You are already super, but need a lot of schooling. Seek out the ones who can help you. They're all over the place, when you really want them.

But first, don't misunderstand me. I've just made you aware of your powers. You do indeed have the capacity to view everything in a different way. You can even make people glow, as I revealed in an earlier column. But if you've read your Superman carefully, especially, er, some of my old stories from the forties and fifties, you'll discover that Superman, despite his great powers, still had to learn to use them properly. I recall one particular story in which Superman actually loses control of his powers. He can't handle his own velocity or his strength. He breaks things, he smashes things up because the powers are all out of control. Like a nestling just learning to fly.

I guess, in these times, with the mess in Iraq, the staggering national debt, the dinosauric energy system that will lead to one crisis after another, the collapse of the nation into secret cabals and oligarchy, things look bleak. But in the end, that's a matter of perception too. Start by realizing your own powers and then watch how, step by step, you'll find yourself moving in a direction that will bring about the vaster change that's needed to bring us back into conformity with the wonderful things we once believed about this nation.

Count on it. And do it.

--Alvin

P.S. Hey, I just noticed that today's my 87th birthday!

<< 11/03/2003 | 11/17/2003 | 11/24/2003 >>

Discuss this column with me at my Round Table.

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