Is Insanity Normal?
Emily Dickinson's poem illuminates modern times
There sure is a lot of insanity in the world today. That’s nothing new. What may be new is the reaction to it. Insanity has now become normal, even virtuous! I never thought I’d see the day.
My favorite poem by Emily Dickinson, circa 1862, perfectly describes this:
Much madness is divinest sense
To a discerning eye;
Much sense the starkest madness.
‘Tis the majority
In this, as all, prevails.
Assent, and you are sane;
Demur,—you’re straightway dangerous,
And handled with a chain.
Today, good is evil and evil is good (Isaiah 5:20). Right is wrong and wrong is right. “Much madness”!
Men are women and women are men. How is this sanity? Or even “science”? It’s not. (Genesis 1:27)
Then there is the insanity of wanting to legalize killing babies up to birth or even AFTER birth!! Is this not murder? Legality is not necessarily morality folks! My body my choice, or is that only for some things? Who gets to decide? “The majority”?
Another type of insanity prevalent today is worrying about “saving the planet” instead of the people on it. But, that is another article.
Or hiding in your house because of germs, virus, disease. Is this not a type of insanity? Certainly it is not virtuous! It is not saving lives! Quite the opposite, it’s destroying lives!! Hiding in your house is never something to aspire to! What happened to living life to the fullest? Or courage? Or even just common sense?
Some people still disinfect all their groceries before bringing them into the house. Is this not a type of insanity? Who has time for that? At the very least it is magic thinking (superstition). The notion that if you think or do a particular thing, then that which you fear, won’t happen. It might make you feel better temporarily, but has no bearing on reality.
Remember Howard Hughes the famous billionaire and germophobe? Do you want to live that way?
These types of behaviors in the extreme, when they cripple daily functioning, used to be considered mental illness, but not during covid! The more extreme the better! Sometimes what is actually “insane” is touted as sane, just as Emily Dickinson observed. You need to know the difference
Another form of insanity is allowing your healthy self to be jabbed repeatedly with experimental poison for a disease with an over 99% survival rate for most age groups. Some keep getting jabs even after having had the disease, which typically provides natural immunity. But don’t worry, “the majority” says this is meant to keep you “healthy”!
Inhibiting your very life-giving breath with a mask? This is the most insane insanity! Some do this when ALONE in a car or while riding their bicycle. Health clubs, sports teams and school gym teachers “required” a mask while exercising! Woe to anyone who obeyed that! You are lucky you are still alive.
This is utter insanity, my friend. Even if masks worked, and there is plenty of research to show they don’t, it would still be insanity. Why does someone else get to decide whether you should breathe or not?
God has made us in His image and likeness. (Gen. 1:27) He did not create us to breathe through a mask. Leave the masks for those who choose careers like surgery, dentistry or working with hazardous materials & chemicals.
If you give your breath away to anyone who asks, what more can you give them? Breath is your very LIFE. You’re as good as dead. What’s to stop them from turning you into an AI robot? I am not a Star Trek fan, but I saw the initial Borg episodes! Humans are not meant to assimilate into the collective like the Borg. Sounds too much like governments across the world during covid to me.
God has given us a miraculous thing called the immune system. God has fearfully and wonderfully made you and knew you before you were born! (Ps. 139:13-16) He knows every hair on your head! (Luke 12:7) Every breath we take comes from God alone.
There are many things you can do to optimize your health. Vitamins, sleep, exercise, diet. It’s not a new concept. It just takes motivation. Ditch the fear and you will have more energy for positive things like working on your overall health and sanity. I know, it’s easier said than done, but give it a try and you may just avoid insanity, IF you so desire. But even with our best efforts, one thing is certain, every single one of us will die one day, “pandemics” or not, which negates the “killing grannies” propaganda phrase.
FEAR CONTROLS
Ultimately, all this insanity is meant to confuse and control you and keep you afraid because fear gives the perpetrator power. Abusers, whether they be government leaders, organizations, churches or family members, get what they want by keeping their victims in a state of fear. Don’t fall into their trap!!
Fear also creates wealth. Every business based on fear such as insurance, infertility, vaccines, “big harma”, are huge and extremely profitable industries.
Der Struwwelpeter (The Slovenly Peter) by Dr. Heinrich Hoffman is a very graphic children’s book I had the unfortunateness to own as a child. I think I had the most gigantic print copy available. It was first published in German in 1844. The author was a psychiatrist who wrote and illustrated it as a Christmas gift for his 3-year-old son, never intending for it to be published. Imagine the horror of getting a present like that from your own father!!
I still remember my 3-year-old self staring at the illustrations in horror and fear. Germans used fear to discipline children and teach them to obey, so it’s no wonder Hitler had the success he did. Few talk about this, but it can give us valuable insight into history as well as parenting methods.
The book’s cover features a very unkempt Struwwelpeter with huge hair and exaggeratedly long, sharp fingernails. This is what happens when you don’t have proper hygiene, you become slovenly and look disgusting. No one will want to be near you. You become a disgrace. That is the message.
Each story has a lesson. For instance, if you don’t eat your soup, before long you will be dead. The illustration shows your name and a bowl of that soup you refused to eat sitting atop your grave.
Another classic story in Der Struwwelpeter worth mentioning, is Hans Guck-in-die-Luft (Hans Look-in-the-Air). Hans happens to fall into a body of water and could have drowned because he wasn’t paying attention to where he was going. Lucky for him he did get rescued, but even the fish had no mercy and laughed at him.
And yet another story in the volume, depicts a girl playing with matches while her parents are away. As you can imagine she set herself on fire and ended up as a heap of ashes with only her red shoes remaining.
Analysis of the short stories in Der Struwwelpeter point to many disorders which today are labeled anorexia, ADHD, and pyromania, to name a few.
So beware of who or what, you follow, and why. Don’t let yourself be deceived. It can result in dire consequences. (You don’t want to fall into a body of water, or worse, like Hans Guck-in-die-Luft now do you?)
And the same country, Germany, also brings us Grimm’s Fairy Tales with more such fine fear-based reading like Hansel & Gretel. (hint of sarcasm)
SOCIAL CONFORMITY
How many times when you were a child did your parents ask you, “If your friends jump in the lake are you going to do it to?” Meaning, think for yourself, don’t follow the crowd, especially if something is potentially dangerous.
The waiting room beep experiment is an excellent example of social conformity, which was a phenomenon extremely evident during covid. It’s a crystal clear example of a person following the crowd.
What is infinitely more scary than the deadliest virus ever could be, are the people who just follow anything blindly and let fear and propaganda and group think control them for whatever reason. Whether they want to feel accepted or they are genuinely afraid, lazy or perhaps not too bright, it’s definitely easier to be a follower. They allow themselves to be gaslit. And even keep these behaviors going when they are no longer told to do so. (Think people who give in to magic thinking and can’t give up the security face diaper.)
I suggest everyone watch the 1944 Oscar winning movie Gaslight with Ingrid Bergman. It is enlightening. I also invite you to watch 1984 while you’re at it. It’s absolutely chilling.
DISCERNING TRUTH
With so “much madness” across the globe these days, as Emily Dickinson was so keenly aware in the 1800’s, we definitely need a “discerning eye”. Jesus asks, “Do you have eyes and fail to see? Do you have ears and fail to hear?” (Mark 8:18)
We need to trust in God. Ask God to help you see. “My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (Ps. 121:2) His Spirit will guide you, give you discernment, and allow you to see what others do not. He is in charge and will take care of you no matter what.
The people who want to control you want to be your God, don’t let them. Your faith is a hindrance to them and their nefarious agendas. Why do you think churches were closed while liquor stores, casinos and big box stores were open during covid?
Remember to always think for yourself and ignore cutesy propaganda phrases such as: “we’re all in this together”, “it’s for the common good”, “stay home, save lives”. For one thing, no one tells me what I am “in” and we have a precious gift in America called freedom. And what on earth is the common good and who decides? We are not a collective. What’s good for one person is not necessarily good for another. Also, everyone has a right and duty to take care of and provide for their own families the way they see fit, without outside interference. And every job is essential! Staying home doesn’t always put food on the table.
Things that are false often contain an element of truth, so be discerning! “And no wonder! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinth. 11:14) It takes guts and conviction to seek the truth at all costs and go against the crowd and not jump in the “lake” with everyone else. More of us need to display courage.
The final two lines of Emily Dickinson’s poem, written well before technology, mention what is known in today’s culture, as “being cancelled”. Your opinions are labeled as “misinformation” in order to try to intimidate and silence you. If you have discerned the truth, you are seen as a threat. Dissenting opinions were always frowned upon as Emily Dickinson wrote: “you’re straightaway dangerous and handled with a chain”! Insanity is obviously not anything new.
In conclusion, the words of Emily Dickinson’s brief, but profound poem, always rang true to me, but never more than during the past few years. In these modern times, it is more important than ever to cultivate a “discerning eye”. Pay attention. Don’t close your eyes to the madness around you. Resist it! Do something about it! Use your common sense, knowledge and faith to guide you. Keep your immune system strong so you can fight the battle.
In this world filled with insanity, follow the better path, the path of truth. And most importantly, stay sane out there!
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind."
2 Timothy 1:7