A peek inside the soul of a soulless man Pt VI: Are you there God? It's me, Jersey

I had a conversation with God the other day. God was asking me a lot of questions about my intentions with my life. Who knew God was a dialectic conversationalist. Or maybe God is just my God and exists solely for me... or maybe God doesn't exist and I'm imagining God as I want God to be... Regardless, it was a revealing conversation for the both of us. Here's how it went down:

Jersey Campbell's Quote of the Day: the passion of the masses

This quote garnered a "same shit I was saying yo!" from me as soon as I read it.  Because really, this is the same shit I be saying.








  
"The masses have never thirsted after truth. They demand illusions, and cannot do without them. They constantly give what is unreal precedence over what is real; they are almost as strongly influenced by what is untrue as by what is true. They have an evident tendency not to distinguish between the two."

- quote taken from The Art of Seduction by Robert Green

Sincere Fictions Pt. 4: The Magnificent Myth by Jersey Campbell

 

  

Sincere Fictions Pt. 1
Sincere Fictions Pt. 2 
Sincere Fictions Pt. 3

The conclusion to JC's Sincere Fiction series. Read, and be inspired.

Any fiction that we promote and circulate through discourse should not impede progress, but encourage it. If the dominant myth is believed by the multitude, this myth must be majestic. The truth is the only thing we as people should be concerned with, but if we must use a fiction as the driving force of our society and our politics, only tall tales similar to Plato’s Magnificent Myth are allowed.

Jersey Campbell's Quote of the Day: ordah in dah court!

'Sup y'all. There's another edition of Quote of the Day ready to be mentally digested and pooped out. Actually, don't poop it out, keep it in your mind. Thoughts and ideas can never be fully digested, you'll hurt yourself if you try to poop it out.

Today's QotD comes to us from The Republic by ancient Greek philosopher Plato*. Let's disregard the fact that these men had sexual relations with little boys and recognize their maxims for what they represent and what they reveal about the world.

So digest this snippet of a wholly thought-provoking text. Think about what it means, and see the prominent truth.
 
"For is it not a strikingly disgraceful sign of a bad education if one has to seek justice at the hands of others as one's masters and judges because one lacks it in oneself?"

*While Plato wrote The Republic, it is written in a dialectic format between various characters, the main one being Socrates, who Plato studied from. Whether you love political philosophy or not, this book is a must read.

A peek inside the soul of a soulless man Pt. V: Auditorium by Jersey Campbell

         

            I’m at a crossroads. My existence seems stagnant. My ideologies and my behavior are at odds with one another. Excuse me if this seems like a journal entry, because it kinda is. I try to stay away from the pen/computer when my emotions swing too far in one direction, but sometimes this is the only release I have. Well this and my good friend Mary Jane; but sometimes even MJ isn’t what I need. This is one of those times. 

Jersey Campbell's Anecdote of the Day: limits = death

Hello brothers and sisters, welcome to the debut of ya boy J. Camps newest feature, The Anecdote of the Day.

Bruce Lee's philosophies have recently become a source of inspiration for me, and today's anecdote features Lee as a character. Lee has already been involved in one of my Quote of the Day's, and he's the perfect candidate to kick-start the first Anecdote of the Day. I'll let the story speak for itself. Be like water...

**Is it possible to be in love with more then one person**: a friendly debate Pt.4 (the conclusion) by J. Camps, NYC Rob and KV Sart

Pt. 1
Pt. 2
Pt. 3

Finally, we have (not) reached a conclusion to the question: is it possible to be in love with more then one person? 

**Is it possible to be in love with more then one person**: a friendly debate- Pt. 1 by Jersey Campbell, NYC Robert, and KV Sart

We've got another friendly discussion between a few of the Wannabe Writers who regularly contribute to VW. KV Sart joins the discourse between NYC Robert and Jersey Campbell as they try to figure out if it is possible to be in love with more then one person simultaneously. 

In Pt. I, the opening statements are made by each party and they establish their positions on the subject. Read, and be merry.

**Vicarious World's Best of the Month**: The March Edition

Take a break from buying Mega Million lotto tickets folks, Vicarious World's Best of the Month returns with some scintillating stuff ('sup Clark Kellogg?). Looks like the month of March is now "poetry month" here at Vicarious World. Well, poetry month for all the Wannabe Writers except for Jersey Campbell of course. Jersey Campbell says he doesn't believe in poetry... after awhile you learn to just tune him out- he gets annoying. The Team of Wannabe Writers cranked another batch of dandies fresh out the oven and ready to be digested. From NYC Rob's subtly innocent short-form poetry to Mr. Sart's reflective, thought-provoking poetry, we've got a lot goin' on here. Dig in folks. Read... and be merry.

Jersey Campbell's Quote of the Day: Two quotes for the price of one!

Good day boys and girls. We have another edition of Quote of the Day for you, and this time we bring you not one, but two (TWO!!) quotes from my boy Jean Jacques Rousseau's treatise on education titled Emile. For those who are unfamiliar, Emile is a book centered around the personal development of a young child. In the book, Rousseau explains to the reader how to effectively raise a baby to become to self-sufficient man and functioning member of society. With the proper education and rearing, Emile will grow into a man who is confident in himself and his abilities while understanding the way of the world. Through childhood Emile will only be raised by and through simple (while delicate and intricate) and natural means. Further details will be spared for now (give yourself a pat on the back if you haven't passed out), but hopefully these snippets of knowledge from the book will incite further interest. 

*Best believe these won't be the last Quote of the Day taken from Emile or Rousseau.*

Jersey Campbell's Quote of the Day: Be like water my friend

Hello boys and girls, we have another edition of Quote of the Day for you. Today's QotD comes to us from Bruce Lee, philospher/professional ass-kicker.

 Before reading up on Lee, I was unaware of his philosophic tendencies. Like most people, my only memories of Lee were in kung-fu movies like Enter the Dragon and The Chinese Connection/Fist of Fury. Come to find out, this was as deep and thoughtful of a brother as you will find in any era. I suggest researching his quotes and philosophies, looking up some of his interviews, and picking up an autobiography. I guarantee you will be more enlightened if you do so.

That's enough of me talking. Here is the quote of the day:

"All thought is partial, it can never be total. Thought is the response of memory, and memory is always partial, because memory is the result of experience; so thought is the reaction of a mind which is conditioned by experience."

Suicide Me by Jersey Campbell

Everyone I know goes about their lives believing with all conviction that life is preferable to death. Sure, life is great if you own a yacht and a PLNL franchise, but those of us less fortunate it ain’t so rosy. What makes life better than death? Until someone can explain what death is like we have no business making definite statements about the matter. 

On Freedom Pt I: Slaves of Circumstance by Jersey Campbell

Here is Pt. II

             

                I don’t know what freedom is. You don’t either, don’t kid yourself. We’re talking about ultimate platonic freedom. Total uninhibited actions. We have never seen freedom and I’ll bet we will never see freedom. Freedom is one of those concepts we love to talk about and throw around in conversation like we know what it is, kinda like objectivity. 

                My question is how can we possibly be free when there is so much going on around us totally out of our control? Freedom stops precisely where circumstance begins, and we can’t escape circumstance. A man may want to run along the shoreline of a beach but that’s never happening if he has no legs. A president may want to run for a third term but the 22^nd Amendment forbids it. A 15-year-old girl may be in love with a 35-year-old man but her lover would face rape charges at the end of the day. Freedom of action will always be checked by the conditions that a person finds themselves in.

Politics Killed the Man of Reason by Jersey Campbell

                Politics. The process by which a group of people make collective decisions. Social relations involving authority or power. The methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy. The activities associated with the governance of a country or area. The art or science concerned with guiding or influencing governmental policy, or winning and holding control over a government.

                There are a lot of things that dissatisfy me; waking up after 8:30, dealing with impatient people, people who have yet to convert to Tom Brady-anity (we’ve been waiting for Jesus to come back for something like 2,000 years, why can’t we realize that he has come back as #12 on the New England Patriots. Repent!). These trivial faults don’t bother me as much the idea of politics. 

Jersey Campbell's Quote of the Day: Jiddu Krishnamurti

I'd like to introduce you to the quote of the day.

Our first entry comes from Jiddu Krishnamurti, who was a writer and speaker on philosophical and spiritual issues. A brother of mine introduced me a few months back (not literally, Krishnamurti passed about 25 years ago) and I've decided to pass it along. 

I'm all for enlightenment and the expansion of our understanding. I trust you'll meditate on these wise words. 

"When you call yourself an Indian or a Muslim or a Christian or a European, or anything else, you are being violent. Do you see why it is violent? Because you are separating yourself from the rest of mankind. When you separate yourself by belief, by nationality, by tradition, it breeds violence. So a man who is seeking to understand violence does not belong to any country, to any religion, to any political party or partial system; he is concerned with the total understanding of mankind."
- Jiddu Krishnamurti

Bonus material: "The Real Revolution," 1966 speech from Jiddu Krishnamurti. Everything that was said in this speech then can be applied to the human condition today.