Kira Kindala <kira_kindala@...> wrote:
> As you're not likely to
> ever meet one of my people in the flesh (unless someone discovers
how
> to cross the barriers between quantum realities some day), I
thought my
> participation would be the closest you'll get to being able to have
a
> Gelfling participant in the discussion.

You may not be a Gelfling in the flesh but close enough I guess.
I'll take imaginary people over a lot of the real people I know
anyday haha.

> Humans seems to have a need to separate themselves from their roots
in
> nature. You see this in so many things Humans do. Many of you
live in
> a world encased in concrete and glass, hardly ever seeing a tree.
You
> build structures to live in with carefully controlled environments
> designed to keep out everything living.

It goes beyond just building homes for ourselves though.. Especially
in our culture over here in Canada and the United States. Although I
imagine all human societies end up like this once we become too
prosperous for our own good. However looking through the eyes of
John I'm sure you've noticed consumption is the national pass time in
our culture. Which is one of the other things that leads me to
compare us to the Skeksis.

I've read about how the Ornamentalist would wear clothes made from
1000 dead birds and I noticed the luxaries the Skeksis enjoyed from
sucking the natural resources of your world dry. I noticed the
spectacular daily feasts they would eat. In our world it seems just
the stuff that the fast food resturaunts throw away on a daily basis
could probably feed every hungry person in this country maybe even
the world.

The Skeksis at the point of the film anyway were all getting up there
and were about to die. It was inevitable but they were still willing
to waste the planet for just a little more time. I remember in the
novelization how skekUng when he beleived that Gelfling were merely
regenerating he was willing to destroy the whole natural world and
just breed Nebrie in captivity to feed themselves. Seven people
destroying an entire world for just for a chance to live a little bit
longer.

Then you look at the way we are willing to drill holes in every
greenspace left just so we don't have to change our way of life. So
perhaps you can see why I might compare our species to that of the
Skeksis.

> As a species overall, however, your people seem to want to fight
the simple fact of
> what they are. Animals.
> In fact, there seems to be a negative connotation associated with
the
> word "animal." It's occasionally used as an insult. Why? We are
all
> animals, Human and Gelfling alike. It is nothing to be ashamed
of. It
> is what we are and we, Humans and Gelfling both, are as beautiful
as
> any other animal in nature. We should be proud of that.

Haha that's an interesting thought I never thought of that. I really
liked that analysis of our language. "animal" is used as an insult.
Yup that's how we refer to our most savage criminals. It does kind
of reinforce that superiority we beleive we have over nature and the
animal kingdom don't it (truth be told we also have that same sense
of superiority over our fellow human beings aswell). However though
I still don't think we are quite like animals in that if we were just
going to destroy ourselves that would be fine. Actually I'm kind of
rooting for the extinction of my species(I know sounds kinda mean). I
really am sorry to be so cynical but I honestly think the end of man
is the best possible outcome for this world (Sorry but it's honestly
how I feel). I mean preditory animals kill other animals and that's
fine that's nature and yes species go extinct even without the help
of mankind that's also nature species come and species go. However
we human beings are capable of destroying so much more than just
ourselves. I'm sure John has explained to you what we are capable of
doing now that we live in the nuclear age.

> While I admit that many of these things are true of Humans (I
cannot
> deny it), I would not compare your species with a species as
detestable
> as the Skekses. I have known many Humans through John and I find
most
> of them, though misguided, mean well and are, at their heart, good
> people. I've even met a small handful of Humans I liked enough to
ask
> John to introduce me to them. Only one of those Humans was I ever
> truly disappointed in. The others, I judged their characters well
and
> was impressed with the kindness in their hearts.

Yes we do have it in us for great compassion. However and here is
the real flaw in our species that really separates us from
Gelflings.. Groups. Human beings function best individually. One
on one I see all the potential my species has. However put more of
us together and you get the worst of us to the point where it just
looks like there is no hope. You take any way we organize ourselves:
nation, political party, race, religion, gender, etc. and you will
find people who on any other circumstances would probably like each
other and get along fine end up hating each other for absolutely no
reason whatsoever.

You take the kindest of my people and you will see in many of them
that their compassion is very selective. Some of our big cities have
1000 murders a year and it's just accepted. One person goes missing
from a small town and that's all you'll hear for the next three
months. People die all over our world in droves but it isn't until
it's one of our own that it truely gets our attention.

> I witnessed the events of 9/11. In that event, I saw both the
worst
> and the best Humanity is capable of. I could not understand how
any
> intelligent being could inflict such suffering on others of their
own
> kind but, once the damage was done, I also saw Humans come together
to
> help each other in a way that truly showed the best side of your
> people, too.

Classic example of how putting us into groups is the true flaw of our
species. That's how people like the 9/11 hijackers inflict such
suffering on other human beings. Whenever you get behind a movement
political, religious, etc.. Or whenever you identify with a group
nation, race, etc. Then you do not see the people you are killing as
your own but as a lesser form of life therefore it is justified to
kill them.

Even though we are all the same species not all humans feel that way
about each other. Which is another way that Gelflings are better
than us. You take Gelflings and Podlings two people that are
actually different species and they still treat each other as
equals. We human beings look at members of our own species and
still see them as inferiors.

> Gelfling weren't always the "enlightened" species we are now. I
have
> gone over our law books with Jen. Though they rarely ever need to
be
> enforced in modern Gelfling society, our laws still contain
definitions
> and punishments for horrible crimes such as murder and rape. The
fact
> that punishments for those crimes are in our laws in itself implies
> that these offenses were once more common than they are today.
> Surviving historical court records reinforce that conclusion.
There
> are still records of court cases against Gelfling who committed
truly
> unspeakable acts of violence in the past. Even in the recent past,
> Jolen Dellin-Maranek would have been charged under many of these
> ancient laws had it not been for his death.
>
> We all carry a seed of violence within us, Human and Gelfling alike.

I've often wondered if it was just in our nature to do the horrible
things we do or if it is just something engrained in our society.
Because if it is just our society then it can be reformed however if
it is in our DNA to be evil you cannot reform biology.

I still say that dispite your violent past you are still a more
enlightened species than we are because even if human beings have the
potential to evolve Gelflings seemed to have evolved much more
quickly than we have. Based on 'World Of The Dark Crystal' it
suggests that by the end of the film Gelflings are only a 3,000 year
old species. Yet Gelfling society already seemed to be lightyears
ahead of what human beings are now.

Before the purging of your species you had a monarchy right?.. Yet
it wasn't an oppressive one. Humans even with democracy still tend
to let power corrupt them. Your society doesn't even have poor
people does it?.. In less than 3,000 you've managed to accomplish
things that I honestly don't think I'm gonna see in my lifetime.

However my theory is that the Gelfling ability to dreamfast may be
one of the things that drives the fast evolution of your species. In
your society you do not suffer from a lot the same ills we do because
I imagine the ability to see into each others minds allows you to see
where the other person is coming from if there was ever a dispute
over anything. Which would not only make your relationships with each
other better but it also explains why aside from the rule of Jolen
Dellin-Maranek you haven't had any major conflicts among each other.