Time to change? Im working on it.

[Guest guest]

Lon: Ego arose evolutionarily to protect us and confer selective advantage

when we were just the smartest animal. Its just a mechanism that acts in

infinitly subtle, though very predictable, ways. An interesting way that ego

works is

to postulate the existence of time and to deny the need to have to change

now. Ego leads us to presuppose that we have time to work on things. In this

regard it " protects us " by denying the true nature of our condition on this

planet

which, right now, isn't looking great. Ironically, by denying that " there is

no time left " the ego actually threatens us as we fail to face the true nature

of the *sole threat on the planet* which is now ego itself.

Even people who consider themselves to be concerned over issues such as

economic justice or the environment seem to think that they have time to work

on things. In short, ego leads us to project the problem with humanity

externally ( " I have to get " them " to change now " ) as a way of avoiding having to

change *now* ourselves. In clinical practice I recognize this phenomena as

" everyone wants to get better but no one wants to change. " Isn't it true that

every

single patient could 1. stop smoking now, 2. stop purging now, 3. stop raping

now, 4. stop overworking now? How many choose instead to " just work on it " ? To

what degree are we in collusion with patients if we don't inform them that we

know that they are not victims and that it iis possible to change now? And, how

can we say this with a straight face if we don't fully embrace changeing now?

One thing that is new is the discovery and current import of evolution as the

absolute principle of life. I wonder, do people on this list beleive in

evolution and, if so, what do they think it means?