Creator
The Power of AAA Dow Jones Performances: (Aptitude + Ability+Ambition)-Violence (Rated R)
The month of September holds a lot of significance for the Cayman Islands as well as the United States of America.
During this month we had the passing of Hurricane Ivan in 2004 and the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in 2001 in the USA.
Hurricane Ivan
Hurricane Ivan which hit the Cayman Islands on the 11th September 2004 was the 6th strongest hurricane over the land in history.
According to the British Foreign Office, winds of over 150 miles per hour, hit the islands on the Sunday night, demolishing buildings and official shelters.
The center of the category five hurricane passed within 30 miles of Grand Cayman, which is one of three islands of the British dependency and residents were left without electricity and running water.
Two humanitarian advisers from Britain were said to have been in the Caribbean at the time to assess the situation.
Initial estimates by the Department for International Development suggested that 15-20% of residential houses on the islands had been completely destroyed and 20% had major damage.
One World Trade Center
Now September 11, 2001 was also one of the most pivotal days in world history for the United States of America. Its impact will be felt for years to come.
One World Trade Center rises from Ground Zero – the same area where on September 11, 2001 the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers occurred.
One World Trade Center has a total of 104 floors, a gigantic lobby, and an observation platform. The observation platform of One World Trade Center – One World Observatory – opened May 29, 2015.
Personal Memories
I remember watching in horror the replay of the attack of the twin towers at the bank on their main television screen in the lobby area. I was understandably interrupted from my work that memorable day.
Even though I had never and still have never lived in the US, my heart ached for the families and friends who were victims of such a tragic event.
The two kinds of Peace(Twin Towers- Global Blue Chip Fund)) (Sept 11, 2012- STAR 92.7 = PEACE MEMORIAL 1919.3
On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airplanes and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States.
Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.
Almost 3,000 people were killed during the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which triggered major U.S. initiatives to combat terrorism.
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum
The National September 11 Memorial is a tribute of remembrance and honor to the 2,977 people killed in the terror attacks of September 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center site, near Shanksville, Pa., and at the Pentagon, as well as the six people killed in the World Trade Center bombing in February 1993.
The National September 11 Memorial Museum serves as the country’s principal institution for examining the implications of the events of 9/11, documenting the impact of those events and exploring the continuing significance of September 11, 2001.
The Museum’s 110,000 square feet of exhibition space is located within the archaeological heart of the World Trade Center site – telling the story of 9/11 through multimedia displays, archives, narratives and a collection of monumental and authentic artifacts.
The lives of every victim of the 2001 and 1993 attacks are commemorated as visitors have the opportunity to learn about the lives of the men, women and children who died.
The monumental artifacts of the Museum provide a link to the events of 9/11, while presenting intimate stories of loss, compassion, reckoning and recovery that are central to telling the story of the attacks and the aftermath.
For more information please visit: https://www.911memorial.org/
WARS
Wars are much less frequent in these days than they used to be and are also shorter in duration.
Although more destructive while they last, because of their infrequency and short duration, wars in today’s society, has the sum total of human misery at a lower percentage than in the earlier times.
As the engines of war increase in destructiveness, they usually become more costly. weapons of war become more expensive to make and are even more expensive to use.
The fearful costliness of modern wars are thankfully one very great restraint upon any nation to use it.
Apparently this is probably one of the reasons why in America, it has never been thought wise to try to prevent the free application of invention to the improvement of the weapons and engines of war.
WORLD WAR I
As Germans were marshaling their military to fight in World War I, their scientists scored one of the war’s most infamous military accomplishment-the invention of the deadly chlorine poison gas weapon.
At 4 p.m. on April 22,1915, the International Peace Conference’s prohibition on the use of chemical weapons in war was officially broken.
On a battlefield just outside the town of Ypres, Belgium, German troops opened the valves of 4,000 chlorine cylinders that were pointed in the direction of two French divisions and a Canadian division.
In short, the horror of death from this weapon of poison was immensely agonizing as the white troops slowly suffocated and their bodies curled inward helplessly on the ground, heaving powerfully from nausea at short intervals.
It is estimated that 125,000 tons of chemical weapons were used by all sides in World War I.
JAY WINTER
For more fascinating information about the awesome Yale University visit: https://www.yale.edu/
Jay Winter, a Yale University Historian and Expert on World War I, states that what happened in the first World War can be seen as the model for the rest of the twentieth century.
He states that:
“You can’t support a major war effort without realizing that you will violate moral claims. It has to happen. It has always happened. The longer the twentieth century goes on, the worse it becomes.”
The industry of war gets bigger. The moral problems gets bigger, but the solutions are negligible and the interactions are still not effective enough. He continues to state that its very important to realize that all states that have chemical weapons programs are engaged in state terror. All states.
However. here is an idea that I found to be most disturbing- usually, enabling a man in uniform to surrender was and still is an act of decency towards human life, however, that no longer applies once killing becomes the sole purpose of battle.
Now we find ourselves dealing with something more monstrous, something previously unthinkable, now we are dealing with a different type of warfare. Now warfare has become a form of extermination rather than a form of politics. It’s no longer politics by any means. It’s now terror by any means.
Religion and Violence: After 9-11
Prior to September 11, 2001, concerns about “Religions” potential for violence had focused largely on those religions that people often labeled as cults. Satanists were often accused of acts of particularly gruesome violence.
By the turn of the century, popular concerns about religions potentially dangerous underside had already come to focus largely on the Catholic Church, a firmly established part of mainstream religion in most peoples minds.
Unfortunately the multiple scandals of sexual misconduct and abuse by priest provided ample fear, mistrust and angry towards religious people.
Then of course, the planes on September 11 tore into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and life for most people in the United States changed forever.
Fear about religions potential for violence shifted abruptly to the interface of Religion and Nationalism, and especially to the relationship between religion and violence in Islam.
The Muslim Response
Many Muslims lived in the United States for many decades before 9-11. In the days immediately following the attacks, law enforcement agencies received hundreds of reports of incidents of harassment, discrimination and attacks on Muslim people and places. Mosques were defaced and threatening messages left on their voice mail.
Anyone who even “looked Muslim” was afraid to leave the safety of their homes for fear of being attacked. Even Muslim children had to stay at home from schools for a long time.
A study by the Council on American Islamic Relation (CAIR) showed a 15% increase in the number of incidents and experiences of anti-Muslim violence, discrimination and harassment during 2002.
At the same time, although some non-Muslim Americans reacted with hatred, most responded differently, realizing that the terrorist did not represent mainstream Islam.
Why Religious Violence?
It is important to remember that worldwide, in the last decade, we have seen violence perpetrated by people who claimed affiliation with religions other than Islam.
According to Religious Studies Scholars, Mark Juergensmeyer and Catherine Wessinger, the shooting of doctors who performed abortions, the bombing of abortion clinics, and the destruction of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma by right-wing Christians, were a clear example of religious violence.
Violence has erupted between various Jewish groups and has been perpetrated by Jews against Palestinians as well as Palestinians against Jews. Sikhs in India have also been involved in assassinations, most notably that of Indira Ghandi. There was also the Japanese radicals who claimed affiliation with both Hinduism and Buddhism, they left deadly nerve gas in a Tokyo subway.
See my previous article:
https://teneishajohnsondream.wordpress.com/2019/03/17/terror-in-tokyo-aum-shinrikyo/
Please note however that all religious violence has not been directed at persons and groups outside the perpetrators own faith.
There has also been violence within Muslim groups, Jewish groups, as well as Christian groups.
Religious violence, no matter where they have occurred, have become a part of nearly everyone’s life as they have been reported and shown in graphic detail on international television.
Dualism: Divine or Cosmic Warfare
One thing that seems clearly evident to violent tactics in the name of religion is a sharp dualistic worldview. This view divides the world sharply and clearly into us and them, good and evil, God vs. Satan.
According to my studies, dualism can lead into the concept of divine or cosmic warfare.
This variable is a popular element in many religions.
Sometimes this image is linked with real-world political confrontations in which Nationalism or Tribalism plays a large role.
Imagery can be so powerful and persuasive, the symbolic significance can not be ignored.
This is therefore a segue into my next topic: Artificial Intelligence and Movies, where powerful imagery is highly effective and stimulating to the senses.
What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial Intelligence is an expert system or real-world applications of artificial intelligence (AI).
Artificial intelligence (AI) is also the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems.
These processes include learning (the acquisition of information and rules for using the information), reasoning (using rules to reach approximate or definite conclusions) and self-correction.
AI is a group of technologies that attempts to mimic our senses and emulate certain aspects of human behaviors, such as reasoning and communicating.
AI is unlike conventional economic theories as it uses reasoning to evaluate and dictate its conclusion.
Expert Systems (ES) also called knowledge-based systems, became one of several system development methodologies.
Telecommunications Firms use them to diagnose switching circuits and Financial Services Firms use them to choose financial planning and tax planning alternatives.
AI Goes to the Movies: A History of Artificial Intelligence in Film
For nearly 100 years, the film industry has presented us with a number of onscreen representations of artificial intelligence.
These AI characters vary from big to small, from good to evil, and from anthropomorphic to clearly robotic.
The early years of AI in film: 1920s-1960s
The first filmed appearance of anything resembling AI may not be what you expect.
The 1927 silent German expressionist film Metropolis features a robot made in the image of a human, whose intent is to take over the city of Metropolis.
The robot is programmed by its scientist creator to incite chaos throughout the city.
However, an angry mob burns what they believe to be a human at the stake, only realizing the creature is a robot when the flames reveal its true nature.
This first portrayal of AI technology was negative and without a trace of nuance, which may or may not say something about how humans have typically viewed this technology.
For more creative and interesting information visit:
https://enlightened-digital.com/90-years-of-ai-in-the-movies-whats-changed-and-what-hasnt/
Example of a movie based on Artificial Intelligence Technology:
Navy fighter pilots Ben Gannon (Josh Lucas), Henry Purcell (Jamie Foxx) and Kara Wade (Jessica Biel) are tasked with training an unmanned plane to hit important overseas targets. Ben doesn’t trust the artificial-intelligence technology, especially after the plane is hit by lightning and rewired. However, the Navy is determined to put the plane in the air — even after it goes off on a mission of its own. Ben knows he has to stop the technology before it sparks a new world war.
Holy Wars
Some Astrophysicists (a scientist who specializes in studying space, stars, planets, and the universe) state that history reveals a long and combative relationship between religion and science. It all depends on who happens to be in control of the society at the time.
The claims of science rely on experimental verification, while the claims of religions rely on faith.
Just as in any hostage negotiation, it is probably best to keep both sides talking to each other.
Great scientific minds, from Claudius Ptolemy of the second century to Isaac Newton of the seventeenth century, invested their formidable intellects in an attempt to deduce the nature of the universe from the statements and philosophies contained in religious writings.
Isaac Newton is said to have written more words about God and religion than about the laws of physics. Wow!
All of it done in an attempt to use biblical chronology to understand and predict events in the natural world. Many people have tried to successfully predict the physical world by using content found in religious documents.
However, many times whenever people have used these religious documents to make detailed predictions about the physical world or future, they have been famously wrong.
Trying to predict or make a precise statement about the untested behavior of objects or phenomena in the natural world that gets logged or recorded “before” the event takes place is very rare.
Please understand and note that when your experimental model predicts something only after it has happened then you have instead made what is called “post diction”.
I also learnt that post dictions are the backbone of most creation myths and provide explanations of everyday phenomena s of what is already known.
In the business of science, a dozen post dictions are barely worth a single successful prediction.
For example, the most famous and popular prediction are those who claim to know when the world will end. Lol!
Supernatural Power and Cultural Evolution
Anthony Tobin Layng (1932-2011), was an emeritus professor of anthropology.
A life-long religious skeptic, he graduated from Solebury Prep School, completed undergraduate work at Rollins College and Columbia University, and received an M.A. from Indiana University and a Ph.D. in anthropology from Case Western Reserve.
He was awarded a Purple Heart as a U.S. Marine in the Korean War.
He was actively involved in the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi for four years and was a leader for Operation Crossroads Africa in Lesotho.
Mr. Layng has written that all human cultures appear to include faith in supernatural power and that this tradition has played an active and essential role in influencing how our ancestors perceive and adapt to their environment.
He believed that this relationship between human belief and adaptive behavior may have played a critical role in shaping cultural evolution.
The history of any society can demonstrate how sacred beliefs have changed over time.
How they were created or borrowed, consciously or unconsciously, and how they may be subsequently abandoned.
Beliefs about the natural environment and the supernatural environment are part of a larger system of learned ideas and customs that make up a culture.
Guess what else is possible? An entire culture can change over time in the same way their beliefs do.
The human population no longer adapts to environmental changes by evolving genetically. We now adapt to change by altering our beliefs and behaviors.
The evolutions of beliefs have come to determine which population has the greatest capacity to survive.
Cultural and Group Beliefs
At an early stage in cultural evolution, all societies began to believe in supernatural powers, the common denominator of all religious beliefs.
Tribal societies studied by anthropologists have provided numerous examples of belief systems that may be similar to those of our ancient ancestors.
However, even though modern society makes us more intellectual and we are living in a more industrialized society, we can safely conclude that all if not most human cultures today include faith in some spiritual beings or forces.
Individuals and small groups are also capable of cherishing beliefs that are detrimental to their physical welfare. For example, the followers of Heaven’s Gate in California.
Heaven’s Gate in California
Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones
James Warren Jones was an American religious cult leader who, along with his inner circle, initiated and was responsible for a mass suicide and mass murder in Jonestown, Guyana. Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple cult which he began in Indiana during the 1950s.
Cults often begin by promoting behavior that is antithetical (something that is opposite) to the physical well-being of members.
However, I strongly believe that healthy established denominations evolve by becoming less exclusive and more reflective and sensitive to their members needs and the surrounding culture.
Using this method, I believe would naturally cause each member to abandon their self-destructive behaviors for more healthy, engaging and liberating experiences which would then be beneficial for all parties involved.
Please note however, that individuals and fringe groups may hold religious beliefs that compromise their survival, but beliefs that are traditional and generalized throughout a healthy, normal society are likely to enhance the survival of that society.
Once again, unfortunately we will still have individuals who are really ignorant and apparently can afford to be ridiculously stupid and do stupid and sometimes deadly things. That’s inevitable.
Nevertheless, I pray that the collective wisdom of any healthy and resilient society will be strong enough to be far more practical and mindful of the emotional, spiritual and psychological well-being of its members.