The Hybrid

“It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World” is a 1963 American comedy film directed by Stanley Kramer about the madcap pursuit of $350,000 in stolen cash by a diverse and colorful group of strangers. The movie portrays the insane length of infatuation people will subject themselves to, to attain something they’re not even sure exists. The local, national and world news of late tends to make one think the world has gone mad. “The whole world is crazy, except you and me, and I’m keeping a close eye on you”, seems to be the untrusting thought of the day lately. As we plan our every move day after day, we also tend to find ourselves looking over the shoulder of our colleagues to see what they have planned, so we can get one-step ahead of them, or at least attempt to thwart their threatening advances on our person. People are so wrapped up in themselves and their personal gain they can’t stand to be without some sort of information coming in to be processed. A new statistic shows that the cell phone is causing more accidents on our highways today than drunk drivers. Personal vehicles are dangerous enough, having been filled with too many creature comforts already, without adding the total distraction devise called the cell phone. Sure, I can multi-task, but entering a room and temporarily forgetting why I went there, and entering a busy intersection not knowing whether the light was green or red, isn’t the same thing. Maybe it’s time for Hollywood to make a movie called, “It’s A Me, Me, Me, Me World”, a satire on the invention and use of more and more sophisticated electronic devices that gather information at faster and faster speeds. At the end of the movie the planet is spinning so fast, everybody flies off into space to be by themselves forever and ever. Almost sounds plausible.
I find a lot of truth and wisdom in the Sunday Funnies. “The Better Half” by Glasbergen, features a couple, Harriet and Stanley Parker, with a puzzled-look yellow cat. Harriet and Stanley are always dealing with the issues of the day, rationalizing and fitting in the “me society” the best they can, all the while maintaining a marital relationship. One of the January 31st quips showed the couple sharing a meal at home, staring across the table at each other. Stanley was saying, “Sorry, I wasn’t listening. I figured if it was important, you’d text me.” In the last panel, Harriet says to Stanley, “I got the test results from your ear doctor. You’re not hearing-impaired, you’re listening-impaired.” Is your world spinning so fast it’s getting harder to hold on?
[James 3] I’m certainly not out to point a finger at anyone for I sometimes stand at the head of the class consuming information just trying to keeping up with the ideals and thoughts of the world. I feel outright ignorant sometimes. I need the ideals of other people and I will use them for person gain, not at the expense of others, but to help edify others. I received an email the other day containing a philosophical statement that fits what I’ve been trying to say for years. “We are not human beings going through a temporary spiritual experience; We are spiritual beings going through a temporary human experience.” Look at yourself as a “hybrid” being. A hybrid is something that uses two or more things to form one even better thing. A car that uses both a gas engine and electric motors is a “hybrid” automobile, but the gas engine is still not wanted. The human is physical and spiritual. The physical cannot improve the spiritual, but the spiritual can enhance the physical. Together it’s a good life, even though the body fails.