Notes 7 - Alan Grant and Atheism

Well, I said I'd put it up someday... little did I realize I'd get time two days later... I work faster than even I give myself credit for... heh. Of course, I didn't get time to finish it for another month... but still.

But first, some background info. Alan Grant is a writer who has authored many comic books. Childish, you might say, but the subject matter is much more serious. A while back, he created a character called Anarky -- a teenage boy who learned that the world wasn't as cozy as he thought it was. And so he did all he could to change himself, better himself. Then one day, he hatched the plan to don a red costume and cape and a gold mask, and to fight crime.

But as it was, the character was introduced via a Batman comic strip, and Batman decided that since Anarky was a vigilante, he was a criminal -- despite that Batman himself was a vigilante.

Now, I don't care whether you think that all comic books are juvenile or not, and if you do, I urge you to find a copy of V for Vendetta and see if you still think that. However, if you seriously feel that your opinion of comic book writers will taint your view of the following text, dismiss the source and instead consider only the words.

This article was written as an introduction to a compilation of Anarky stories.

Here it is, the original article, as written by Alan Grant himself:

Conventional wisdom has it that the human species originated a couple of million years ago and has been evolving physically and mentally ever since. We're on a long road to perfection.

Unconventional wisdom has it that the human species was genetically engineered around a quarter of a million years agom perhaps by aliens from another galaxy. Consciousness has been evolving slowly ever since.

Anarkic wisdom proclaims that, whenever the species originated, human rational consciousness was not a natural product of evolution, but was discovered or invented only 3,000 years ago as a survival mechanism in an increasingly complex society. Since then we've been de-evolving back into the irrational animals we once were, mainly because our minds are tainted by mysticicm, which blocks our ability to use our whole brains in the way they're designed to be used.

While heroes like Superman and Batman react to specific cases of evil, Anarky feels that he has seen through the great lie that underpins all earthly civilizations. Basically, the lie is that Man is a warlike, agressive creature who requires to be constantly dominated and controlled by a ruling elite for his own good. Take away its leaders, and society would degenerate into a chaotic nightmare of bloodshed and destruction. At least, that's what our leaders want us to believe - otherwise, they wouldn't have jobs, right?

Anarky believes the opposite: sure, some people are criminal. But there's a hidden criminal element that uses force, coercion, and deception in precisely the same way on a planetwide scale. Anarky has identified this criminal element as our political and religious leaders, aided by the various control systems they've put in place over the past few thousand years. Invidual violence is taboo, while State violence is seen as necessary, justifiable and even heroic. The evil men who promulgate this belief are the enemies Anarky has chosen to fight.

That's the part I wanted to put on... it goes on for another page, but that is a description of the actual comic book character, and really isn't relevant here. However, there is one more part I'd like to pu up. It's rather short, but here it is:

Most people think "anarchy" is another word for chaos and destruction, a belief fostered my almost all dictionaries and political commentators. But in fact, anarchy simply means taking responsibility for one's own actions.

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