Shame: Going Whole Hog: Having a Pig of a Conscience
I have a confession to make: I’m far from perfect.
Yesterday, I posted on the Sabbath. It wasn’t my finest moment, talking about laughter during what is—in my faith—a deeply solemn time. It’s a mistake, one of many. Sometimes I give in to "sinfully good" chocolate; sometimes I stumble in bigger ways.
I try to stay on the right path, but I’ve realized that maybe we aren’t a "type" of person—we are simply a series of actions. In my faith, every individual is sacred and unique, yet we all stumble. I try to maintain a sense of guilt and a healthy dose of self-deprecation. Not to be morbid, but because it keeps me grateful. It keeps me human.
The Comfort of the "Before" Times
We all crave the comfort food of our early memories. For me, that’s why Smart Pig Kitchen has a retro vibe. It’s a callback to an innocent youth where connection was childlike and uncomplicated. We got along because we shared good food.
In that headspace, the strains of adulthood—the sexual tensions, the political divides—didn't exist. We lived in a time before the world tried to put a label on everything. Here is my rule: Label stuff, not people.
The Real Source of Shame: The Instigator
We often feel shame for small things—a missed prayer, a broken diet, a social faux pas. But we need to recalibrate our moral compass to see where the real darkness lies.
The real source of shame in this world is instigated violence. Every act of violence committed as an instigation is shameful. There is a moral divide between the person who steps in to stop a fight and the person who starts one. When you initiate harm—whether it’s a physical blow or a war for power—you are rejecting our shared humanity.
When we label people, we make it easier to justify attacking them. But when we commit to nonviolence, we recognize that the only reason to fight is to stop a fight. To instigate aggression is to be a "stupid pig"—it is a betrayal of the peace we all claimed to want when we were children sharing a meal.
The Smart Pig Manifesto
It doesn’t matter to me what your race, religion, or colour is. To me, the "Smart Pig" philosophy is simple:
Label stuff not people.
Everyone is biased so blame yourself first. Because the moral compass points inward. Always forgive.
You don't need to disable people to enable yourself; actually the opposite is true.
Nonviolence is the only way.
The only reason to fight is to stop a fight but even then avoid fighting at all costs.
The only reason for war is to save people.
Anyone can have a "pig of a conscience." Anyone can be a Smart Pig. You just have to believe that peace is the priority. Those out there instigating violence for money or power? They deserve the weight of shame in real time.
Finding the Sound in the Noise
The world feels loud, but thanks to the smartphones in our pockets, the world is also smaller. There are people all over the globe who already agree with this. There are "Smart Pigs" in every corner of the earth who know that nonviolence is the answer and that we should only ever step in to protect the vulnerable.
We need to keep finding and saving these individuals. We are a global community of people who just want to get back to that shared table—where the food is good, the labels are off, and the peace is real.
Who can you think of in history who was a Smart Pig? I gotta say I admire Gandhi and Martin Luther King! Who can you teach me about?
