I had an odd dream last night where this woman was indicating that I had to 'atone' for certain 'crimes' I'd committed.

What was odd was that I couldn't seem to get out of her what precisely my alleged 'crimes' were? I tried to explain to her that if I didn't know what she thought I had done that was a 'crime', then how could I, even if I so chose, avoid doing these same unacceptable behaviors again?

One thing that occurred to me is that I have encountered women,... people, in general... who sometimes say "You should just know, Paul." So, I gather I'm just supposed to know something that perhaps I don't. In any case, it sounds like the work of not just correcting unacceptable behavior lies solely with me, but also for knowing what all possible unacceptable behaviors might be to all others, as well. Frankly, it all just seemed like a really bad deal for me.

In any case, it got me thinking about us smokers, the tobacco industry, and even America itself. Some feel that smokers have to atone for these 'inconsiderate', 'selfish' behaviors in regards to smoking in the past, even more people feel the tobacco industry has to atone for these past 'crimes', and many people around the world feel America must also atone for its many past 'crimes'.

Of course, at the point where I thought the dream might be saying that us Americans need to atone for our many past 'crimes', it dawned on me that in wars it's almost always,... maybe always,... is the losers in a war that have committed war crimes. It seems the victors never have committed any war crimes.

I mean... in World War II, for instance, it's commonly stated that had the Allies lost the war those who planned the firebombings on Dresden, and other German cities, and the firebombings on Toyko and other Japanese cities, and nuclear bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, would probably have been tried as war criminals. Certainly these bombings killed hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of civilians.

I know, I know, I know... before I get massively attacked... At least with the nuclear bombings on Japan, we here in America have always been told that if we hadn't dropped the nuclear bombs on Japan, we would have had to invade the Japanese main islands, which probably would have cost more American, other Allied, and Japanese lives than the nuclear bombings. Yes, maybe... but, as I'm sure most are now aware, some historians have come to question whether the Japanese would have surrendered anyway, and whether Tr-uman's (again... the message board doesn't like the unnecessarily dashed words) tr-ue motive in dropping the nuclear bombs was to impress Stalin with America's new weapon.

In any case, whether you agree, or don't agree, with 'why' some around the world believe America has committed 'crimes', I think everyone agrees there are those who do feel America has committed 'crimes', and needs to atone for those 'crimes'.

But, then it further occurred to me, that America 'atoning' for these alleged 'crimes' isn't too likely to happen any time soon. Well, if what I alluded to above about the victors writing the history, and having the power to make future history... well, who CAN make America 'atone' for any alleged 'crimes'?

First of all, one has to devise some code as to what conduct is considered a 'crime'. But, this is all kinda an academic task if no one has the means to bring a 'criminal' to justice.

And everyone knows the common saying "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter." So, one wouldn't expect someone who considers him/herself, or, at least wishes to portray him/herself, as a 'freedom fighter' to say that his/her actions are... 'criminal'. Obviously, that doesn't seem to make sense.

Yeah... I know there's frequently one party that states something like "Well, he/she started it...!" But, commonly, it seems their adversary often chooses a different starting point for the conflict and also claims the other side really started the conflict. Like in WWII, the Japanese launched the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, but the United States had previously instituted an oil embargo on Japan.

Oil was a big thing then, and it's a big thing now. It's not too difficult to imagine the United States going to war over oil, is it? So, irregardless of the Japanese atrocities in China, and some incidents between US naval vessels, etc., the point is that adversaries often don't agree on 'when' some said conflict began.

Again, I can't give every possible side to every historical example I might give, but I think most will agree that adversaries often don't agree on things like who's a 'freedom fighter' as opposed to a 'terrorist', which is just largely an upper level manifestation of differences in views concerning how affairs should be handled in the world.

So, following all this through lead me to the conclusion that, largely anyway, if smokers, and the tobacco industry, have much 'atoning' to do, probably a good bit of why that's so is because they've largely lost the so-called "smoking wars", and if things go as they seem to have throughout most human history, it doesn't necessarily lead to the conclusion that smokers, and tobacco industry, 'crimes' are necessarily far greater than others. But rather, they are forced to kowtow because they no longer how the power to keep their adversaries at bay.

So, when you no longer have the sufficient strength, largely relative to your adversaries, to sway people to your side, to effectively assert your view on issues and matters, etc., then, like being a loser in a war, it seems likely you're going to take increased losses.

I mean... yeah, cigarettes, cigarette advertising and promotion... Yeah, they're 'horrible'. Sure, cigarettes, like allot of things, cause society problems. But, even my last sentence there probably will not be the kind of sentiment that'll be heard much in the situation that smokers, and the tobacco industry, now find themselves in.

Even socially, primates, as humans are, develop dominance hierarchies. So, I don't think you need a 'war' per se to see some similar phenomena to which I'm alluding to here that may be illustrated in sharper relief when nation-states go to war. But, I'm suggesting all these things, at least in similar forms, occurs in other groups of humans. And obviously it happens within our political, and economic realms. Some might suggest it's kinda like "the bigger kids beating up on the smaller kids."

Of course, I'm not necessarily saying there's anything 'wrong' with this. Some will point out it sounds like what happens in the wild every day... yes. However, it's 'why' it happens, and what it means that is my focus here.

To further illustrate, if you look at world public opinion in regards to the United States, you see an incredible difference in sentiments concerning the United States by non-Americans, as opposed to Americans. Presumably our American institutions are effectively performing their function of increasing our sense that what we are, and what we do, as Americans are largely the 'right' things, and we're 'good' people. However, presumably institutions from other cultures aren't tasked with increasing Americans sense that we do the 'right' things, and Americans are 'good' people.

For instance, one would think that calling the war in Iraq "Operation Iraqi Freedom" is largely intended for American consumption, and, in fact, it's been demonstrated this name for this operation does not play very well in much of the rest of the world.

In any case, in the dream I couldn't find out what this woman thought my 'crimes' were. I followed her for awhile attempting to ascertain what my 'crimes' were until a guy grabbed me by the arm and escorted me, along with her, away from wherever it was I had followed her to.

I didn't feel I had been harassing her, or any of them, but I didn't get any answers as to what my alleged 'crimes' were. It wasn't even clear that they were hostile towards me per se, it may also have been they were trying to protect me... from some others???... in some fashion. In any case, in the context of the dream, if I have committed some 'crimes', I'm still in the dark as to what they are.

I could spend my life chasing my tail around trying to guess what's going on in other people's heads, but I think that's largely a waste of time.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, this does not seem to be a problem for smokers, or the tobacco industry... that is, the 'crimes' of us smokers, and the tobacco industry are pretty well spelled out by our adversaries.

However, are our 'crimes' really so 'horrible', or is it more that we just can't effectively defend ourselves, and our interests anymore by having the means to sway people to our side?,... give them some motivation to want to take more actions that might forward our... it would be then, shared... interests?

Or, is there just 'good' and 'evil' in the world, and we're just plain 'evil'?

Take care,