How Can You See No Evil?

A Chinese proverb, later adapted by a Japanese folk tradition blending Taoist and Shinto influences, was eventually woven into Buddhist teachings as Sanzaru. It imparts the “wisdom” of evading negativity through the three wise monkeys: See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. One monkey covers its eyes, another its ears, and the last its mouth. The claim is that the core message aligns with cultivating mindfulness. Avoiding antagonism has its place; de-escalation is good. But… In reality, we have nurtured mindlessness, and it allows us to avoid the surrounding horrors.

Ignoring what Donald Trump and his minions are doing is beyond selfish. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein comes to mind. There is danger in creating something without taking responsibility for its nurture and well-being. Monsters are real. Hostile environments, which this country now is, creates them. We have empowered them. If we continue to ignore them, we become them. There’s a modern U.S. maxim with a similar punch: “Ignorance is bliss.” I’m no Einstein visa recipient, but I do envy those who float in blissful oblivion, sealed off in their bubbles.

Unfortunately, those bubbles have slow leaks. The power handed to unethical thieves in government—and the consequences of choices made by voters (and non-voters alike)—are about to seep in.
We’re screwed. And most people don’t even realize what’s coming. I often wish I could live in ignorance. I would have a better chance at happiness; I know I would. This is not a Peter Parker moment: “With great power comes great responsibility.” I suffer knowing that I have no capacity to change what I see. Felonious Trump is at the center of a web weaved by individuals more powerful than him.

His attempts to distract us from Epstein are wide-reaching. Lately, he has focused on vandalizing the White

Was Donald Trump influenced by his draft-dodging grandfather, Friedrich, who fled Germany to avoid mandatory military service then amassed his wealth as a pimp?

Friedrich Trump’s brothel catered to miners (not minors) during the Klondike Gold Rush. That could explain his gold fetish.

The Camelot elegance of the Kennedy era is destroyed. Most infuriating to me is the vandalism done to the rose garden. Gone are the tulips, apple, and magnolia trees.

In their place, a design inspired by food courts in every mall. There isn’t enough Xanax for me to let down my guard and accept the mindset of Tendai Buddhist monks; the Sanzaru life in ignorant bliss.
It is “how-to,” avoid the world around you. Live in a small bubble with blinders on, AirPods blasting Led Zeppelin, and engage no one in conversation, because that is easy. That’s how I do it.

Even without primates, I maintain the practice of three: to create humor, procreate children, and live a life with dogs (then there were two…); it takes three solid sources to validate a statement.
Many teachers use the rule of repeating an important fact three times for it to be remembered. Sports: three strikes in baseball; in basketball, a shot made from the ‘three-point line’ is worth three points; in football, a field goal is three points. I unconsciously applied my rule by listing three sports analogies. Three is the perfect number. Two examples might have seemed coincidental, and a fourth example would guarantee loss of interest.

But sometimes three is wrong.

SURPRISE!

There is a fourth monkey, Shizaru, whose message is “do no evil.” He doesn’t get the attention he warrants; it is suspicious that he is so often omitted. We should ingrain his ideal in our children. Those who do not abide by Shizaru are everything that makes this world unbearable, and they control the country.

DO NO EVIL. That’s the message I want to send, because we have zero hope of surviving the billionaire pillage of our social services, healthcare, food, housing, bodily autonomy, and basic human decency… unless we unite. Yes, I’m talking to you idiots. Take the hats off—it’s time to stop fighting each other.

I just corrected a typo: “untie.” Actually, that works better. We need to untie the web spun by dark money, a web that Trump happily helped weave.