I’ve spent the entire day absorbing the panic about the recent cyber attack and also noticing some pretty horrific stuff on Steemit.

Dark energy has infected Steemit. I don’t have any idea of the extent of the dark forces but I see clues everywhere. There’s been a number of incidents of hate speech, victim blaming and psychopathy in the comments recently. Then the hacker came in draining funds, propelling our fantasy-turned-reality community into a short-lived doom vortex. Many of us, though proclaimed that we'd gladly buy any sort of panic-selling Steem, as we are committed to the dream of Steemit. I for one would buy more Steem if the price started to drop. The dream of Steem is now a reality that I don't ever want to lose. :p

There are other unsettling things going on in Steemit and I would bet that I’m just barely scratching the surface of these newly arrived dark horses. I recently discovered a horror that I’m not even able to process. We need resources to handle such things.

This is not surprising at all. I’ve been expecting it. However, it is at this time, we could all use a refresher course about why Steemit was even created in the first place. It was founded on non-violent principles. Many newbies may not even be aware of this reality. If you’re a violent person who intends on abusing others, either overtly or covertly, you probably will not be economically benefitting from Steemit’s culture. If you abuse others through your ignorance, sociopathy or lack of empathy, you can be assured that no one will want to associate with you. Your days in Steemit will not be fun.

This brings me to a very unfortunate situation that happened in Steemit. A user by the name of @earnest verbally assaulted a Steemian who happens to be a rape victim. His horrific comments were downvoted, but his complete lack of knowledge and empathy was truly disturbing. Even when it was apparent that he had made an incorrect assessment, he offered no apologies. This is behavior that does not align itself with the principles of non-violence, as laid out by Steemit cofounder, Dan Larimer. If you don’t agree with these core values, you may not be someone who will truly benefit from Steemit:

“All communities are bound together by a set of core values. The core values I would like to see upheld by a community include:

Don’t do to others what you don’t want others doing to you
Non Violence
Love
Restitution
Sustainability
Responsibility
Accountability

You cannot have a community without human-to-human interaction. We need faces, identities, reputations, and fellowship. We need to put systems in place to help one another in need and facilitate communication. We need to offer the world something in our community that they cannot get anyplace else. Our community is the product we need to sell. We need our community to be something that is both desirable, valuable, and unique.”
-Dan Larimer blog http://bytemaster.github.io/update/2015/12/28/BitShares-Vision/

Sometimes words don’t really sink in, though. People talking and sharing their experiences, now that does have an impact usually. To get some perspectives on how silence and shaming others affects entire communities, watch this:

If you don’t want to watch that because it looks too serious, and you don’t like to deal with reality, or you’re just high and want more pleasing feelings instead of uncomfortable ones, guess what, I can accomodate you as well. This amazing music video by Bat For Lashes perfectly describes what is currently going on both within Steemit and in society at large:

And guess what the title is?

DANIEL

Daniel Larimer has laid out the principles of non-violence for the betterment of all. He deserves our thanks. I feel like I owe him and Ned the world. It's unreal how grateful I feel. My suffering was pretty pervasive, so my relief is matched by that intensity.

Here are some still images from the video that convey how dark horses affect individuals and communities:
I am curious if you will be able to see how the themes in this video are being played out within Steemit. Leave your impressions in the comments below.

what does this picture say to you?

can you see her Steem tears?

After some serious thinking about the hacker, the hate, the fucked up stuff today, I think it is apparent that love is stronger than hate.

I am the last person to be spouting such cliches, because I might possibly be one of the, if not the most isolated people on the planet. Spending 7 years alone with your own thoughts makes it pretty difficult to relate to 99% of the human population.

But it's weird, something powerful has awakened within me since I found Steemit. I am starting to feel love again. Love for myself and my wounds. I haven't had these feelings in like 7 years. How could I be alive and not have the feeling of love inside my heart? I guess I had died. This new found love and respect for myself has had the effect of me giving love to others in a non-selfish way. I sometimes get caught up in the old pattern of selfish desires, but I can catch myself better now. Suffering from desire is one of the most damaging feelings to have. I have had these suffering feelings. But I recognized my internal psychological pain programming and I stopped it. Then I focused back on love, for myself, for those who love me unconditionally. It's so weird finding people whom I now am bonded with deeply. I really didn't come here looking for that. It seems to be happening organically.

You see, love is stronger than hate. Love multiplies while hate rots inside one suffering soul, killing all around it.

But love needs to be reinvented. Love is not clingy, nor is it demanding. Love flows like water. Dams are mean people with shrunken hearts. But water can still break a dam. Even the hacker who invaded our utopia needs love.

Steemit is like water full of people who really give a fuck about the future. We are people who know that there's a better way. We will not agree with eachother and we will get mad. We all have past programming that is dangerous. I know I do. Being victimized by a sociopath has fried my neural circuits. I still have nightmares that control me to this day. But I am better. I am much much better now.

I do want to take one moment and thank a few people who have really enriched my life with caring. I am not sure how I would be able to cope with being here without them. Here's my list of amazing people who help me every day become a healthier person, a more loving, less hating person: @teamsteem @infovore @phareism @pfunk @dantheman @donkeypong

Lyrics to DANIEL

Daniel, when I first saw you
I knew that you had a flame in your heart
And under wild blue skies
Marble movie skies

I found a home in your eyes
We'll never be apart
And when the fires came
The smell of cinders and rain
Perfumed almost everything

We laughed and laughed and laughed
And in the golden blue
Crying took me to
The darkest place you knew
And set fire to my heart

When I run in the dark, Daniel
To a place that's vast, Daniel
Under a sheet of rain in my heart, Daniel
I dream of home

But in a goodbye bed
With my arms around your neck
Into our mouths the tears crept
Just kids in the eye of the storm

And as my house spun round
My dreams pulled me from the ground
Forever to search for the flame
For home again
For home again

When I run in the dark, Daniel
Into a place that's vast, Daniel
Under a sheet of rain in my heart, Daniel
I dream of home

When I run in the dark, Daniel
Into a place that's vast, Daniel
Under a sheet of rain in my heart, Daniel
I dream of home

Here's what I feel the video means. Key word: feel. It might be different to you.

I think that the dark horse is represented by the blackened figures.

The main singer is a core Steemian. She's trapped in a world that abuses her. She's trying to get out of her enslavement. She drives and the dark horse follows her wherever she goes. The enslavement is the Matrix. It is the 9-5 world. It is our own minds. It is your fucked up boss. I am that girl still. So are you. By the end of the video, she stops her car, sees a nice man. This symbolizes the new world of non-violence that Dan Larimer has outlined in his writings. It also symbolizes unconditional love. We are all that girl trying to run away from a system that seeks to enslave our vital energies. We all want unconditional love and support. And guess what, it is possible, but only for those who believe in it.

The choice is always yours. You can continue living in the old paradigm that is fueled by separation, hate and violence, or you can ask for help. Asking for help is truly the first step in finding your freedom.

I can't remember whose art this is

Love,
Stellabelle