Posted by:
popolvuh
(
)
Date: September 09, 2012 01:09PM
I figure most people here have given up their morgish authority figures and good riddance, right? But even as a skeptic, I do look for people to admire and respect and take seriously, even when I a disagree with them. Because I don't pretend to be an expert on anything, I like to know who I think of as people to take seriously and who know what they are talking about.
So if you had to pick 5-10 people you think of as authorities (with a very small 'a' and no blind obedience necessary), who would they be? If we call them heroes instead, does that change the list? I'm thinking about more public people here, not so much individuals that only we would know personally.
In no particular order:
Chris Hedges. I admire his courageous, his experience, his humanity. Even when I disagree with him he makes me question myself and my beliefs, which is always a good thing.
E.O. Wilson. His ideas and books had a huge impact on me as I left my morgish ignorance and discovered the world through more empirical eyes. His genuine love of the real living world (biophilia, I love this concept) is infectious and moving. I just heard him speak again and he is as fiesty and courageous as ever.
Naomi Klein. The body of her work really opened my eyes and inspired me to not be a fool.
Joe Bageant. Before he died, his blog was one of my favorites. A lot of courage and humanity, I envied the people who actually knew him in real life.
Adam Curtis. His documentaries are like little psychedelic masterpieces, he puts things together in a way that few others do nearly so well. I love his stuff, my mind was boggled.
Morris Berman. His books on the impact of the Englightenment on our culture/spirituality and on the state of our current culture of decline hit me like bullets. I reread them regularly to stretch my neurons. He is a real cassandra for our times, and funny to boot.
Stephen Batchelor. My buddhist grandmother introduced me to him decades ago at a time when I needed some serious meditational therapy. His own spiritual journey and what he shares about what he has learned really influenced me at key times in my life.
Matt Taibbi. When I want to read about the nightmare of our current political/economic situation, he's the guy I read.
Glenn Greenwald. Ditto. He was brave when few others were.
Derrick Jensen. The scary green prophet. I don't always agree with him, but I always take what he says seriously enough to struggle with it. His book A Language Older Than Words should be read by every exmo.
I have to include a few particularly relevant heroes.
Steve Benson. His grandfather ET blessed me as an infant on one of his trips to Europe. My parents worshipped the man, I have the transcription of that blessing which my dad printed out on high quality paper so it could be taken out and perused often. Unfortunately for them, part of that blessing included a 'curious mind', and well, that sent me on my path to hell:) Steve's cartoons were favorites in my house, it was the only way my rigid parents could ever allow themselves to laugh at all the crazy mormon stuff that should have driven them insane or to exit. I lived in AZ during the Mecham nightmare in a fascist ward of wingnuts, and Steve's courage in taking that idiot on in public made him a hero to me and a few of the other young RM's stuck in that ward. When I discovered Steve had left the morg and began reading his long and wonderful articles years ago, I created a folder where I bookmarked everything for further use one day (I hoped). I got to make use of that folder with a young relative who was ready to read all that info and found his way out of the cult. I know I'm not the only one here who thinks Steve is a true hero.
Michael Quinn. Without his work, my own exit would have been longer and even more difficult than it was. His courage in writing what he did saved me. I was lucky enough to know him and his son in person during the very difficult time when I began my exit from the morg and felt so lost and afraid of what might come next.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/09/2012 01:14PM by popolvuh.