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The Greyhound station is small and very crowded. Most travelers are underprivileged people and seem to travel on short distance. Very many travelers are Afro–American folks, some of them looking rather little civilized! I try even a sentiment of uncertainty. Maybe I am wrong, but for more safety I keep tightly the bag.
There are many busses leaving Dallas in the direction of New York on different routes. They carry the luggage independently from the passengers, so that only by coincidence they could be in the same bus. It did not happened to me, as there was very little luggage on my bus.
We left. It is clouded. The desert is far away now. Still before reaching Dallas the humidity has risen, and fields with crops come into sight. Texas is, at least in this part, an agricultural and a strong industrial area. Livestock breeding seems to be an important occupation. The images seen from the bus are convincing. Unfortunately, the farms are not as well managed as these of Georgia for example, without speaking about those from North. Some of them are nice, but others show houses that a little rough. Even affluence is not the same all over the place.
The highway is very large. Alongside and parallel with it, there are other two roads for local traffic. Here and there, some bridges traverse the highway, but the distance between them is similar with that between two checkpoints in Europe. There are farms, ranches and just small neighborhoods on the both sides of the highway. But the "social distance" between two neighbors living at 100 yards each of other on the opposite sides of the road, could be more than hundred miles. One may pass the borderline between two European countries easier than this highway.
The forests are increasingly frequent. For a while, we are crossing a long one, even more boring than the desert. Maybe the bad weather influences me negatively. The rheumatism makes me sensitive to the weather. Meanwhile, a black and threatening cloud appeared just in our right.
One of the characteristic features of the Latino–Americans is their verbal craving. Especially women speak much, fast and heartily.
Sometimes, civilization makes good things, and the religion could have an essential role. An example is the eradication of the system of slavery, which could be considerate to be an effect of Christianity, as Christianity promoted the idea that all men are equal in face of God. Another example is the cannibalism. Beings do not eat other beings from the some species, or their remains, avoiding in this way to pass on their own diseases to the following generations. It is extremely unusual in animals, and impossible for the plants. Only human beings, due to their mind’s eye, carry out acts contrary to nature, with uncontrollable consequences. The cannibalism has been abandoned eventually, but sex for pleasure is in full growth, with unknown consequences for the natural reproduction. Maybe in the future, sex will be performed only for pleasure, and reproduction will be achieved in specialized laboratories and industrial units, where a well–organized trade–union movement, or a technological error could be fatal for human species.
That bad cloud did not go away and it is raining in torrents. By all means, in the clearings of the forest, cows graze quietly.
An atheist is not necessarily an idiot. The statistics may prove the contrary. On the other hand, any intelligent person uses intelligent arguments. As priests do not like intelligent reasoning, they prefer to consider any intelligent person to be atheist.
I can admit the message of God’s word is timeless, but its expression is a necessarily subject to refinement as things move on. That’s what the priests do not understand.
Any philosophic, moral, ethic, or economic doctrine can be defined only facing the others, showing what is different, what it brings as new. The communist propagandists preached their doctrine, saying that all the others are wrong, so that we should not learn anything else except the Marxist–Leninist doctrine. In religion, it is the same: the priests are like the communist propagandists. They have too few ideas and are not able to discuss anything else but some slogans and small stories. As we, the Romanians, did not believed the communists, people do not believe the priests.
Blaise Pascal, mathematician and physicist, considered to be one of the great minds in intellectual history, became a good and fervent Catholic believer. He entered the Jansenism community and led a rigorously ascetic life until his death. Of course, most of us wonder how was that possible? A more attentive reading of his works shows us that his change was not an abrupt one, and it was not accidentally at all. As a matter of fact, it was not a change, but a process. Here is one of his declarations: ... "I spent many days studying abstract sciences, but the rather small number of people what one can communicate with on the scientific field had disgusted me. When I started the study of man, I saw that these abstract sciences are not specific to him and that, getting in these fields, I was deviating from my condition more than those who were ignoring them." It seems that the idea of communication was in fashion at that time. Spinoza said: "My aim is to reach a high spirit and effort, and at the same time with me many other people shall reach these two goals. I cannot be happy if I do not make an effort so many other people know what I know, so that their intellect communicates with my intellect. But Spinoza was neither Christian nor believer, but an excommunicated Jew. Coming back to Pascal, he understood that, by means of religion, his life would be more complete. Obviously, he understood the religion at higher level than he could do it before studying abstract science. The same thing happens nowadays with more and more people, as they learn abstract sciences as early as in school. Due to its high scientific position, Pascal had become increasingly alone. He found out that the Church might be for him a better way to communicate with as many people as possible.
In the priests’ opinion, people are now less religious than in the past. I do not think so. People are religious, they want to believe, but priests ceased to be their guides. The American Indians still keep their old religion, in spite of Catholic missionaries’ efforts.
The rain stopped. It seems the sky will clear up, but it is too late to see the sun today. Before the clouds would disappear, the sun will set.
Here is an example of Latino–American psychic. A fellow–lady pulled on some white socks of cotton over her thin stockings. It is natural before the coming night. Not natural was the manner in which she did it. Instead to roll the socks in hand first, and to unroll them on the leg, she caught the sock from the cuff, and tried to pull on it with a single one movement. Of course, she did not succeed, and many other movements for adjustment followed, which made her nervous. I thought she would not repeat the mistake with the second sock. No! Not in the least! She repeated the same scheme without changing a bit. Finally she breathed freely, as if she had done a very hard work. Her gesture was especially relevant as it was for an unimportant thing. She is not a young lady, or a person who seen socks for the first time in her life. On the contrary, she is a lady of about thirty-five or forty, of good appearance and well dressed. But she is Latino–American from head to foot. On one hand she lacks the patience, and on the other hand she has a puffed up confidence in her own forces that make her believe in a too easy success.
Finally, after many hours, a city becomes visible: Little Rock. It is getting dark. Near me, an old woman took a seat. She is deaf–and–dumb. I thought my peace and quiet is assured. What an idea! She is snoring.
In Memphis (Tennessee) my back home journey crosses the one toward the West. My route in USA will imitate an eight: New York, Miami, Atlanta, Memphis, Tulsa (Oklahoma), Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, El Paso, Dallas, Memphis, Cleveland, New York. An eight a little lengthened, but an eight. Eight is a symbol for the perfection. I cannot say that my journey was perfect. I only hope to finish it all right. As for the eight, it was a little ragged.
They say people want money. Generally it is true. Yet there is confusion. Thinking about money, people think about different things. Someone wants a house another wants a new car or maybe just a beer. In fact, thinking about money, people think about some particular objects or services. Besides, our happiness is not always so material. For instance, I want to write and publish this book. It will be good for me whether I will earn money or not, since money is not my reason. I will be happy to finish the book, and I am already happy now, writing it free of charge. I am glad at the idea that someone will read what I wrote.
More than it, writing my book, I do not think how many readers I will have, but who will read it. I have in my mind a certain category of people, and try to write for them. The others do not exist for me in this moment. As for stupid people, I repeat Schumann’s saying: the worst thing for a musician is stupid people’s praise. Of course, I will earn less money for it, and this is the price of my gladness.
The whole our society is built on lies:
The not needed emerges seeing that we have not reached a target. Of course, the other people were guilty, and the final conclusion is that the mankind is bad.
Nashville is the town of music. It is nice and has even a small church in early Gothic style, namely the style that Europe had abandoned before discovering America. They said that Europe did not discover America earlier, because it did not need it. I wondered why? Probably to give them Gothic cathedrals which were no longer useful in Europe? I am joking! This church is just nice.
Jesus’ message was resumed in the recent times, because nowadays people understand deeper his message, beyond the ritual and legend, maybe even in the philosophical plan. It is said that Middle Age was a religious period, but it succeeded more in estranging people from the church. Instead now, people come around the church from their own initiative, and – most importantly – with or without church, they assimilate the Christian meaning. How is that? Well, the democracy is a Christian idea. I know it seems odd, and many people would say that it is a Greek word, but it is not in contradiction with my "theory". Maybe I will write about it one day, but now I think how church arrived in this deplorable situation, to lose its believers.
The faiths are responsibly not only for their direct misuses, but also for the secondary ones. Thus Christianity is directly guilty for the alienation of the man from nature, but also because trying to make man better, it made him worse. God asks man to be good with each other. Everyone can be good to another man, but not to himself. The Final Judgment will put in the balance what everyone did to the others. In this way, people are linked each other notice one another. Christianity joins people together. Being together they get to do transgression faster than good deeds. People seldom join with others for good deeds. Much frequently the bad factors are common "business". Meantime, they have built a competitive society, where people could not live without a little wickedness. The society built on the competition is a Europe’s invention, an outcome of Christianity. Maybe it is a secondary, unexpected one, but it clearly is one of its effects.
But the most dramatic effect is the communism. I know this statement is more than shocking. Let’s see! I already showed that democracy is an outcome of Christian theology. It is a small step to see that communism is an exaggeration of the idea of democracy. It is a degenerated democracy. Consequently, the communism is a secondary effect of Christianity.
It is sunrise when we leave Louisville. Sun has not to be seen yet, but it announces its soon coming by reddening the few clouds in the sky. A nice day will be, probably. As any American town that has respect for itself, Louisville has several high buildings as well. Only the buildings are visible now from the town left behind us.
On a route as long as mine, you meet people speaking all kind of dialects, some of them easy understandable, but other almost impossible. The literary language is the same, and every American knows it, at least from the TV. But some of them can speak only in their dialect. A long time, I did not understand it. I thought they do not want to speak Standard English with me, but they were not able to do it. They become conscious of their precarious intellectual level, when I was asking them to speak clearer. Then their adrenaline rose up suddenly.
The sun is rising, but –— more hardworking –—cattle are grazing. Probably the grass with dew is tastier. I never tasted it.
At the first sight, namely seen from the Greyhound station, Cincinnati seems to be at eight o’clock in the morning an old and small town. Old as much as an American town could be! Small is an impression in continuous changing, as the bus traverses the town. As long as we go toward what is supposed to be its edge, the edge moves itself farther and farther away. More and more factories, depots, or shops–— increasingly modern–— appear, and among the trees I assess elegant residences and golf and tennis grounds. The final impression is that of a nice and large town. Statistically, Cincinnati has the same number of inhabitants as Brasov. Only their financial power is very different. And what a difference!
Alongside the road, there are small pine trees of an intense dark–green contrast with the forest, with leafs already turned yellow. The proportion between forests and cultivated land are certainly in the favor of forests. I could say the forest that I started seeing yesterday before Little Rock keeps rolling today, and the farming land is made up of only some more or less clearings inside the same forest. We already are in the middle of a populated area, and it is obvious that the Americans know how to fully keep their forests.
Yes, the North is much different in comparison to the South. Not only the vegetation is more abundant; the farms, ranches, and generally everything is much more spick and span. You can hardly find something out of place here. Everything is in its place. What impress me are the neatness, tidiness, resourcefulness and prosperity, of the good households.
From the fields, the harvest was already gathered. Now and them, some fields of maize are still upright. There is so much tidiness in everything that men do, so that the orderliness itself becomes beautiful. It has artistic values. I almost do not know what to admire more: the color with infinite shades of the forest caressed by the rays of a tired October’ sun or the discipline in which people turned common activities in sample for things well done. Yes, the feeling of the things well done! Maybe this is the most important. It would be expected the painter from me to say the contrary, but the reason is stronger.
Of course, I can’t help thinking to Romanian economy, and making comparisons. Religions create archetypes not only in theological plans, but also in people’s behavior. The meaning is based on tradition. People do things because their ancestors did the same. The ration has destroyed the myth, the archetypes. The risk is to create disorder, indiscipline and chaos. Anyone could think that he is clever than others, maybe with the exception of God. Civilized societies replaced the tradition with the norms. Every civilized man keeps respectful for norms. The communism destroyed the myth, but was not able to create norms worthy of credit.
We make the apology for the state of law, a state governed by law. But it supposes that we have a perfect judicial system, which is impossible. The mistake is the same as that made by the communists: they wanted to build a perfect system governed by themselves.
There is an aphorism often wrong interpreted: "The exception strengthen the rule". The mistake consists in the fact that we use it as a justification when we do not want to take seriously a rule, either because we do not understand it or we do not like it. The philosophy of this aphorism refers a very different thing. It starts from the idea that any rule has a limited field, within of which the rule is valuable, and an exception says us that we passed beyond the limits. Knowing the exceptions, the limits become increasingly precise, and the rule became stronger inside its field. In physics–— for example–— there are so called Laws of Fluid Dynamics. It is understood these laws are not valuable for materials unable to flow. But is still fluid a liquid that becomes increasingly viscous at low temperature? How far the laws are still valuable? The beans of wheat, grains generally, are solids, but their pool flows like a perfect liquid. A well judgment depends on the accuracy with which we have defined its limits.
It is clear that, for using correct a law, we must make sure firstly if we are inside of the field where that law is applicable. And it is clearer that we no not keep this idea of common sense just when we do major judgments in fields much beyond of our possibilities of understanding.
Here is Cleveland. It’s 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Finally, one of my suitcases turned up from another bus, I hope the second one will turn up as well.
A nice young lady with much energy carries a one–year child, and she is visibly pregnant. She says that the second child will be for her elder sterile sister. Their judgment is simple: why to adopt an unknown child? Better order one with the same blood, from a safe source. Her spirit of sacrifice is remarkable.
Two young South–Americans got up on the bus. They do not know a bit of English and are utterly illiterate, but soon they will become American citizens, or hope to.
The passenger on the next seat is a Chinese saying that he studies something in New York. He does not know what, because he had come to study one subject, but in the meantime he changed his mind, and now wants to study something different, but still did not decided what exactly. It is more than odd. He said that he is not here a stipendiary of Chinese government. He came on his own account. Nice account! Otherwise he is a clever fellow and the conversation with him is delightful and interesting. Anyway, I learnt a lot of things about China.
New York, 1.30 am! I arrived and my suitcases as well, but not all right. They had been broken into. Whoever broke into it had opened a pocket and cut inside to be able to get his hand in. The person was definitely not a thief or a pickpocket. At the first sight, I do not find important things to be missing. It seems that he was disappointed by the content of my suitcase. I do not know what he was looking for. As for me, I am disappointed anyway.
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