The opiate of the West

The opiate of the West is atheism;
proud minds stick to what they see.

The opiate of the West is junk-food;
over-fed bellies tie themselves to the earth.

The opiate of the West is alcohol;
people drink to forget and forget to think.

The opiate of the West is marriage;
within which couples can conspire to stay static.

The opiate of the West is more;
consumers build castles which block them from their dreams.

The opiate of the West is pornography;
crass objectification conspires to distract people from erotic relationship.

The opiate of the West is scepticism;
the wonder of living is taken to court to be cross-examined.

The opiate of the West is knowledge;
books distract minds from reading the book of life.

The opiate of the West is ego-gratification;
selfishness is elevated to an Olympic sport.

The opiate of the West is the media;
which constrains society's imagination to a narrow field.

The opiate of the West is fame;
mass adulation makes up for lack of intimacy and belonging.

The opiate of the West is time;
majesty is consigned to memories and hopes rather than experienced now.

The opiate of the West is poetry;
words are fixed frozen on pages instead of flying fresh from wet lips.

The opiate of the West is the conceptual;
which battles for supremacy with reality but will lose eventually.