{"id":4479,"date":"2012-09-27T08:49:34","date_gmt":"2012-09-27T15:49:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/?p=4479"},"modified":"2012-09-27T08:49:34","modified_gmt":"2012-09-27T15:49:34","slug":"addiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/2012\/09\/27\/addiction\/","title":{"rendered":"Addiction"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/h6>\n

As no one is discharged in time of war, so wickedness will not release those who practice it<\/strong>.*<\/p>\n

Okay, this is a metaphor.
\nYou’re in the army and you’d like to get out,
\nbut there’s a war and they won’t let you go . . .
\nso it is when wickedness takes over;
\nyou won’t easily break free.<\/p>\n

But \u201cwickedness\u201d? Is that word still around? Seems like it’s pretty much gone into disuse . . . like the overused theme of quicksand<\/em> in early Hollywood movies. (Though the comparison works.)<\/p>\n

Wickedness<\/em>. No, no, no. We would rather use some\u00a0euphemism like\u00a0the dark side,\u00a0<\/em>and relegate the whole concept to non-reality, or to earlier times more na\u00efve than our own.<\/p>\n

It’s the stuff of stories, like when wickedness so pervaded the earth that heaven had no choice but to wipe it out and start again. Something about a world-wide flood with only a few spared in a boat.<\/p>\n

Or sodomic<\/em> cities consumed by a hail of brimstone due directly to wild and willful wickedness within.<\/p>\n

Stories. Folklore of another world when\u00a0righteousness<\/em>\u00a0mattered and its evil twin was punished. (Righteousness,<\/em>\u00a0another anachronism.)<\/p>\n

It is curious how there is archeological evidence for both of these stories. But no matter; what do they have to do with me?<\/p>\n

Except that I am a microcosm of the whole. Principles of nature that held then still hold now. Cause and effect<\/em> is more than an interesting notion.<\/p>\n

Jesus said it: He who sins is a slave to sin.<\/strong>** And there’s another word we don’t much use. Though the concept of slave we understand.<\/p>\n

We understand it best when we’re subject to it.<\/p>\n

Wickedness<\/em>, a willful act, tentative at first and then, with the sky not falling, continued . . . exerting my God-given right to do whatever I want whenever I want. And that’s often, even if (or especially since) it’s not as fun as it was at first! Because I’m FREE! I’m not drowning (per world deluge); I’m not burned up (per fire and brimstone). Well, I may be a little singed emotionally, or socially, or physically . . . or all three. But, GD it, I’m free to do whatever I want,
\nand WHENEVER IT MAKES ME DO IT!<\/p>\n

I’m free, I tell you. Free! Free!! Freeeeeeeeeeee . . . .<\/p>\n

(The last word fades away, the quicksand slowly covers over and all is tranquil again.)<\/p>\n

Cut!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

_____________________<\/p>\n

* \u00a0Ecclesiastes 8:8b
\n**John 8:34
\nNext: Termites of Good.<\/em> Coming Monday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s another term that’s lost its teeth. Poor victim me, damn circumstances brought it on. Just for curiosity I crossed the line; now I’m sinking in this sand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4479"}],"version-history":[{"count":67,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4688,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479\/revisions\/4688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hyattmoore.com\/blank-slate\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}