Myth – Kensho Homestead

The Narcissism of Geoengineering

Narcissism has become a popular modern buzzword, but the dilution of its meaning from its mythological context and its misuse in clinical definitions has contributed to a lack of appreciation for the dire social and personal consequences of tolerating narcissistic abuse.

In modern times, when we think of narcissism we tend to point to “selfie culture” and a saturation of self-centeredness among those who enjoy it. Just yesterday I had the perfect opportunity to witness this while at a restaurant for lunch. A middle-aged woman with dyed black hair and matching bright red lips and nails had just entered her car, which was directly opposite the window where I was seated.

I watched, laughing to myself, as she spent the next five minutes taking pictures of herself in different poses: pouting, smiling, flipping her hair around, like she was a sexy actress on stage instead of a no-longer-attractive woman in a huge black SUV, just pretending. I imagine she has all the latest filters on her camera’s lens and wherever she’s headed next will be dark enough that the illusion is not prematurely disolved.

And while this is really cringy, its not particularly dangerous for anyone else but the poor sap she gets her hooks in next. Sorry dude, better luck next time!

Clinically, and even historically, this is not really the brand of narcissism that is causing so much mayhem in our world.

However, clinically the definitions are at once well-defined, and nebulous, and over-lapping, and found under the heading of the ‘dark triad’ personality disorders. While these are certainly interesting to study and are attempting to become more scientific with more data over time, they aren’t necessary to understanding why these personality disorders become so socially destructive.

The problem is not the cringy aging woman who wants to maintain the illusion of youth and beauty indefinitely in order to gain sexual approval in the marketplace. The problem is when the fantasy is allowed to trump the reality.

Society does still associate selfie-culture with the myth of narcississus, but only superficially. We correctly identify the beautiful youth who falls in love with his image in the water as narcississtic. But, we fail to look deeper into the lesson the ancient myth is attempting to teach us.

While there is no one official narcissus myth, one popular version includes his female companion, Echo. Whereas Narcissus is the disembodied face, Echo is the voice which mimics his, repeating, without agency, but symbolizing the intention of love and care through her adoration of him.

The real lesson is not just about the superficiality of beauty that fades, or the personal destructiveness of being overly-fascinated by one’s own appearance or superficial desires, but about the inherent dangers of illusion, especially when those illusions echo through the culture, without agency, repeating the words of the narcissist.

Reach out to touch the beautiful illusion in the water and it dissappears, and with it so does its echo, that’s the essence of the myth. There is no substance there, it’s a mirage. The face has no body, no core, no real form.

In popular culture today, Echo’s role represents the ‘flying monkeys,’ which are those figures doing the bidding of the narcissists, spreading his delusions. Narcissists are experts at manipulating others into doing their dirty work, whether that be their dishes or their crimes.

In psychoanalytical terms, this means the narcissistic personality has not done the difficult work of developing an authentic self. There is nothing behind the mask. S/he is a shape-shifter, a cameleon, the disembodied creature in a shared fantasy.

When these attributes become socially acceptable, indeed institutionalized, the culture itself becomes permeated with such types. Toxicity becomes the norm. Fantasy, being the preferred state of the masses, replaces reality. Narcississtic abuse becomes systemic.

At the societal level, Geoengineering presents a typical example of how this looks in action. And, there are a great many direct parallels between narcississtic abuse as it plays out in personal relationships and in the aggregate, that is, the public domain.

Empty promises like ‘safe and effective’ become accepted as truth. Meaningless words and slogans replace honest dialogue and debate. Hollow gestures replace accountability.

In the personal relationship this looks like the philandering spouse who swears they’ve cheated for the last time, over and over. Or the sister or friend who apologizes for wrongdoing, but then hides behind ignorance or innocence, or tries to blame shift and gaslight to get out of being held accountable for her poor actions or insensitive behavior.

In the public sphere this normalized behavior becomes the governments and institutions who are granted immunity, the banks that are too big to fail, and the laws that are twisted to absolve the guilty and victimize the innocent.

What have we been told for the last decades about Geoengineering? At first we were told not to believe our lying eyes, nothing is happening, ‘chemtrails’ aren’t real, and you are all gullible conspiracy-believing nutjobs.

Next, we are told that it’s actually benevolent, they are trying to fix the broken climate. Totally safe and effective. We just need the states to put a few crucial laws in place, then everyone will be happy. Fantasies and illusions replace accountability.

More empty promises, more hollow gestures — like the states stalling with laws that will never stop the assault, but will get a new market brewing for all the attorneys and advocacy groups and health care professionals, who will make a lot of money from the fallout. Entrepreneurship, that will solve it. More tech, better tech, that will solve it.

Accountability is for ninnies.

“A government entity, its officers, and its employees, are immune from suit, and immunity is not waived, for any injury proximately caused by a negligent act . . .”
Utah https://zerogeoengineering.com/2026/utah-house-bill-79-provides-governmental-immunity-amendments/House Bill 79 Provides Governmental Immunity Amendments – Zero Geoengineering

The argument gets twisted around intentionality, did they mean to harm, or not? Let me go out on a huge limb here and suggest that every single person involved will say they didn’t intend to harm. That’s rocket science.

That question itself serves the abusers. The real question, the one the victim would ask is, “Should abusers be able to hide behind innocence, ignorance or incompetence?”

Solar Geoengineering and the Global Commons—What Role for Ecocide Law? | Springer Nature Link
“As a result, initially peaceful, yet ultimately harmful geoengineering projects could exemplify unintentional hostile use of weather modification technologies. However, ENMOD does not take this form of use into account, so cannot provide a viable tool.”

https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-10095-5_9

Meaningless words–words that magically transform, or lose and gain significance depending on whims and propaganda shifts–global warming, global cooling, climate change, abrupt climate shift, climate remediation.

These parallel the meaningless words and hollow gestures of the narcissitic abuser — I’m sorry, I didn’t meant to, it’s really not that bad, it’s just your impression. The dog ate my homework.

It’s not my fault. No agency. No accoutability.

You’re not perceiving what you think you are perceiving! You’re not feeling what you think you’re feeling! it’s just your impression! Your subjective experience! If it were true, everyone would be experiencing it exactly the same like you!

Plausible deniability is the safe space for abusers of all kinds.

They will even go as far as admit the wrongdoing, but still not be held accountable for it. Like Narcissus, all image with no substance, all face with no body.

Other common tricks of the trade: manipulation of perception, moving the goal post, feigning, finessing, presenting harmful acts as benevolent–it’s for your own good, for the good of the community, because they are so concerned about you, about the environment.

What do you mean we can’t flood your home? But the farmers need rain, you’re being selfish. Isn’t that why you bought insurance? Why aren’t you more resilient? Why should you be so upskittled by a tornado or two, they happen all the time. We were just doing our job!

I will NOT end this post, or this life, drowning in their sea of dysfunctions, because that’s exactly what works best, FOR THEM.

I truly believe that if the individual will stop accepting such abuses in their personal lives, what’s acceptable on the societal level will assuredly, eventually, shift as well, and very dramatically.

Stop approving of the toxic behavior, stop believing the lies, stop being their Echo, because narcissistic abusers are pathological attention-seekers. Call them out, demand accountability, do not accept empty promises and meaningless words, and watch as the little rats start to scurry.

Learn about narcississtic abuse and root it out of your life, personally and professionally. Achieve greater levels of discernment through diligence and determination. Real resilience comes from principled positions rigorously and consistently applied. Insist others practice what they preach, as you yourself do the same.

This is not idealism, this is the tough work of forcing reality to win over illusion. It is the tough work of embodiment, of authentic Self creation.

“We’re often told that narcissism doesn’t exist or that we’ve attracted these people into our lives because of our own issues. This harmful victim-shaming keeps people trapped in abusive dynamics.

In this episode, Dr Peter Salerno explains that narcissism is real and identifiable. Narcissists are invested in their image at the expense of their true self, and they intentionally seek out environments where they can exploit others.

This conversation will help you identify if you’re dealing with a narcissist, trust your body’s reaction to mistreatment, and begin to think about whether it’s a relationship you want to remain in.”

We may still be victims of their floods and tornadoes and varied toxic tampering, but we don’t have to accept their delusional fantasies and their illusions of control. And that WILL make a difference.

Eventually.

Old World San Antonio

Remember the Alamo? Like the Moon Landing, created in a Hollywood studio?

Burned, moved, now surrounded by Sea World and dozens of other theme parks in New World San Antonio. They call it modernization and it’s apparently a great improvement.

What has been lost? What has been dis-covered and then re-covered, perhaps again and again? Perhaps deliberately covered in myths so deep we’ll never find the truth again.

“. . . simplicity derived from the earth itself . . .” 😆

According to official history from 1974, we have a what I would call a tall tale; a fish story some might call it, told to a captive audience without a clue about fishing, they’re just there for the tale.

“Easterners, with largely Anglo-Saxon traditions behind them, beheld in mission ruins the remnants of a culture far removed from their own: Iberian, Holy Roman Catholic, Mexican, American Indian. And in the massive architecture they saw an elemental simplicity derived from the earth itself, with here and there splashes of color and design Moorish in origin. To the unlearned, those familiar with prim white New England and Deep South churches with thin spires and neatly kept churchyards, the solid bulk of the missions with their tremendous courtyards and surrounding walls was at once alien and awe-inspiring. These were not churches as Easterners knew them, but fortresses and places of learning and of toil under the sun. The Spanish missions were all these, and more; they represented a great religious and political ideal launched by a great nation now on the wane. They were visible evidence of Iberian penetration of the North American continent.

From the last of the seventeenth century through the end of the eighteenth, thirty-six missions were built in Texas alone, and there were a great many more scatter throughtout Arizona and New Mexico. The cost in sweat and blood was high; eighty-one Franciscan and Jesuit missionaries were killed during the period by those very men whose souls the friars had come to lead into salvation. The friars, barefooted, armed only with the cross and an unshakable faith, marched across burning deserts and through snowy mountain passes to bring Christianity to aboriginal tribes whose beliefs were as deeply ingrained as the missionaries’ own. Ultimate success eluded the strongest efforts of these enduring men wearing robes of gray wool, yet they achieved more than they had dared hope when they embarked upon uncertain voyages from distant Spain, or from remote areas in the wilds of Mexico. They had many rivers to cross, many burdens to bear. How these men of God, keen of intellect and tough of body, endured under conditions few men today could tolerate, is one of the great sagas of the past few centuries.”

Sagas indeed . . .
However, when logic is applied to such sagas, they appear as porous as this Enchanted Rock.

Those with interest in such fringe topics probably already know there’s a vibrant ‘community’ online questioning such official narratives. They are in my top 3 favorite things about Youtube. I especially appreciate when they aren’t trying to sell another story, but rather just presenting evidence to offer food for thought for the curious.

And of course, fodder for those who think they can craft a better story . . .

The Pleasure Principle

A post for Valentine’s Day, something I’ve never done before, as far as I recall.

I imagine it as an Ode to Narcissus, which is my own personal meaning attached to this holiday. Through the Greek myth we are told that Narcissus fell in love with his reflection in a pool of water and up to modern times there are myriad explorations for what that represents.

The most well-known today, coming from Wiki:

The myth had a decided influence on English Victorian homoerotic culture, via André Gide‘s study of the myth, Le Traité du Narcisse (‘The Treatise of the Narcissus’, 1891), and the only novel by Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Most often in our modern era it’s considered a negative thing—a forsaking of the beloved or even God, or the destructive self-love of a tyrannical ego, or the folly of youth.

Echo and Narcissus, oil on canvas by Nicolas Poussin, 1627 (Louvre, Paris)

But for myself, I imagine its original intent as being more pure and innocent. I don’t imagine the Greek myths were to be taken as literal stories of living people and Gods, but rather the mysteries and processes of Nature.

Eros is Cupid, but I imagine that what’s being unveiled between these 3 figures is depicting the process, the mystery, the intimate and delicate balance with Cupid (Eros) manifesting through Narcissus’ love of beauty and pleasure.

That something bigger than we mere mortals is occurring when we fall in love, sometimes even against our own will, awakens and evokes the spirit of Eros. A natural force so powerful we think of it as a drug, capable of making us behave in uncharacteristic, undesirable and even dangerous ways.

Narcissus is in love with love, which is to say, in love with life.

In the water, a classic symbol of emotion, he truly saw himself in the spirit of divine love.

The latest modern remaking of The Picture of Dorian Gray.

What came after that initial myth were the modern cultural assaults and chronic misunderstandings cursing him with egoism, arrogance, selfishness, cruelty, taken to the extremes of self-absorption, self-loathing and eventually self-destruction, as in The Picture of Dorian Gray. Eros as uncontrolled self-obsession.

My belief is that to fall in love with anything, or anyone, is to fall in love with oneself; that is, an aspect of one’s own reflection. Just as Narcissus is our first flower to appear in spring (it’s blooming right now in fact) Narcissus symbolizes the coming reawakening of all our natural pleasures as spring approaches and life is renewed.

Before the Easter ritual of fecundity, first the pair must meet, and fall in love.

In celebrating the courting rituals, it’s the one holiday that’s not considered a family affair, and conjures an atypical respect for intimacy in our mass-loving modern culture.

To me it is a holiday of guilty pleasures, quirky pursuits, strange beliefs and peculiar tastes.

What’s your pleasure? Do you indulge it enough? Or perhaps, too much? Narcissus wants to know!

Do you prefer the cake or the icing?

Immediate reward or delayed gratification?

Are you the driver or the passenger?

Is ‘fun’ the same as pleasure?

Is your pleasure a particpatory adventure, or to be delivered on a silver tray?

Active or passive?

Photography or painting? Reading or writing? Listening or singing?Watching or playing? Cooking or eating? Looking or being seen?

Is there one without the other? Is there the other without the one?

A personal story of guilty pleasures.

A fine restaurant, with a fine atmosphere, and fine company, is my guiltiest pleasure of all. I’d spend lavishly without reserve, relish with abandon, obsess over every detail, waste hours, or weekends without a second thought. Dionysus takes the reigns when I experience such exquisite care, such regard for pleasure and beauty, I’m easily swept away. (And unfortunately, just as easily disappointed.).

Hubby did not know that about me. How could he possibly, he’d only known me a week or so.

Perhaps it’s not such an unusual thing, considering the love affair with food that’s shared across seemingly all cultures, if not always appreciated to the same degree with all people.

I’ll forever cherish the singular date when Hubby won me over, especially because I know the chances of something remotely similar ever happening again are microscopic. It was one of those one in a million evolutionary occurrences, kind of like the Big Bang.

As we all know, it just takes one miracle.

He planned it to the letter—chose the best restaurant, actually went there in advance to choose the best table overlooking the water, spoke to the chef personally, tipped the maitre’d in advance.

Who does that? I mean, I would probably, but who else? Only in the movies, right?

It wasn’t on Valentine’s Day, there was no chocolate or champagne. But I did drink too much, and he swiftly transformed into my white knight on a scooter. He was the crafter of the most perfectly romantic night of my life. And romantic is not something he’s ever aspired to, by any standards, and by his own admission.

Like I said, just one miracle. Perhaps a little help from Cupid?

I was ho-hum before that. Not that he wasn’t a good catch, of course. Certainly loads of divorced 30-something women are attracted to a man who finds it to be bragging material that his belongings fit into a backpack with few aspirations besides spending half the year in a hammock on a Thai beach.

We had a lot in common, as in we were both fairly uncommon vagabonds. Not trust-fund kids or military brats, that was most common in the ex-pat scenes in those days. We worked and scrimped and hustled and snubbed our noses at such privilege, when we could afford to. Otherwise we enjoyed their parties and their company and their contacts.

We met at one such fancy affair, and he wasn’t my type, that’s how I saw it in the moment. Not because of any of those previously mentioned assets, those I actually found pretty charming, especially that he would be bragging on them with a woman he’d just met. I was far more impressed with his stories of rugged adventure than any of other’s comfort and privilege.

Not our photo, though we do have great ones, somewhere. This one is from kingscup.com

But I was just barely out of another failed relationship; I just wasn’t on the market, according to me.

He perceived otherwise. I dare say, I have never been pursued with such seemingly carefree precision. He is/was not ever a lady’s man, had less relationship experience than me, and was not there looking for love.

It didn’t help that my just-failed relationship was with a photographer, and that he was there as another photographer’s assistant. Of course I noticed he was fit and handsome and friendly and funny. I imagined we could become friends, maybe even friends with benefits. My imagination stopped there.

This is a stock photo, the resorts we stayed in were even more glorious.

We bumped into each other often, as would be expected, since we were all covering the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta. They had us all staying in top resorts, sailing the seas by day and attending parties every night. It was amazing and overwhelming and so deliciously extravagant and foreign.

Even under such conditions, he was able to corral my attentions, redirect my intentions, and totally capture my life’s trajectory (as dismal as that was looking at the time considering I was living in an old, drafty single-wide in my dad’s trailer park in Mena, Arkansas.)

Though I’m sure he won’t admit it and questions who was doing the seducing, I will still insist, it surely wasn’t me. Narcissus, perhaps?

We are told it’s human nature to pursue pleasure and to recoil from pain. But all around us we have plenty of evidence that’s not the case at all. In honest observation it looks much more true that pain and pleasure have a very mysterious relationship that is quite unique to each individual.

I personally will not allow the Dorian Gray’s of the world to eternally spoil the beauty of Narcissus, so I celebrate Valentine’s Day as a gateway into the new season’s promise of pleasure.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all the Lovers of Love, Beauty, Pleasure and Life!

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