Bill Hicks: Modern Day Prophet

"The world is like a ride at an amusement park. And when you choose to go on it, you think it's real because that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round. It has thrills and chills and it's very brightly colored and it's very loud and it's fun, for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long time, and they begin to question: Is this real, or is this just a ride? And other people have remembered, and they come back to us, they say, "Hey – don't worry, don't be afraid ever, because this is just a ride." And we ... kill those people. "Shut him up. We have a lot invested in this ride. Shut him up. Look at my furrows of worry. Look at my big bank account and my family. This just has to be real." It's just a ride. But we always kill those good guys who try and tell us that, you ever notice that? And let the demons run amok. But it doesn't matter, because – it's just a ride. And we can change it anytime we want. It's only a choice. No effort, no work, no job, no savings and money. A choice, right now, between fear and love. The eyes of fear want you to put bigger locks on your doors, buy guns, close yourself off. The eyes of love instead see all of us as one. Here's what we can do to change the world, right now, to a better ride. Take all that money we spend on weapons and defenses each year and instead spend it feeding and clothing and educating the poor of the world, which it would pay for many times over, not one human being excluded, and we could explore space, together, both inner and outer, forever, in peace..." - Bill Hicks

Most of us lead humble lives. We try as best we can to adapt to the confinements of society, make some money, have good times, find someone to love, and believe in whatever makes us comfortable. The stages of life, as a classic Egyptian play boldly stated, is pretty much not up to you. This is how things are, so this is what you must do. We are a planet plagued with blindness, something we are not even aware of as we stumble haphazardly, arms stretched out, trying to find other blind people. Yet every once in a while someone, for some reason, decides to open their eyes. They look around, and notice the sea of blind people, unaware of their surroundings and their true nature. They reach out with the best intentions; try to tell everyone to open their eyes, look and see who they really are. The blindness mocks them, taunts them, and finally kills them.

The late comedian Bill Hicks was one of these people.

Born William Melvin Hicks in Valdosta Georgia, Bill was drawn to comedy at an early age, worshipping the performances of comedy idols like Woody Allen and Lenny Bruce. His future success was obvious as he performed regularly to public acclaim at local comedy shows while still in high school, upstaging his older peers. He later found himself performing regularly at the renowned Comedy Store in LA, amongst fellow comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Jay Leno, who would also rise to fame. This was also the time when he began experimenting with mind altering drugs, reaching conclusions that reality is not how we really see it, that we are being controlled and brainwashed. However, his routine was unique, over time he managed to gain notoriety for his relentless criticism of American Patriotism, foreign policy, capitalism, fundamentalism, and human ignorance in general. As the years progressed his act became more and more judgmental of human stupidity and government, yet the reason for his continued success was how well he incorporated these serious ideals into his hilarious yet disturbing act.

Despite his comedic genius, it was commonplace for Hicks to receive death threats and be harassed at shows, with one specific incident leading him to be hospitalized by offended audience members. Some of his anti-establishment material was pulled from TV appearances, most of the time due to his criticisms of labels and marketing which sponsored the shows. The culmination of his troubles were recorded at the infamous 'loses it' show, where after being heckled by the audience over his material, Bill begins screaming and shouts his most infamous quote "Hitler had the right idea, he was just an underachiever." Hicks followed this remark by a misanthropic call for unbiased genocide against the whole of humanity, suggesting that it was not an anti-Semitic comment but rather an expression of his disgust with people in general.

While touring in 1993 he discovered he had pancreatic cancer, and despite battling it for years while still performing, it eventually killed him at the age of 33. Till his final days he was determined to go on with his shows around the world, performing all year round without rest. He saw that man was in a bad state, and it was his job to wake him up, even if it meant his health. Many believe that his effect on the world was only just the beginning to what he could have accomplished, and many speculate at conspiracy theories that his disease was not natural. Whether he was murdered or not, what we can do is never forget the latter day prophet Bill Hicks, remember all the wisdom that he told, and that he was only trying to help us see.

"By the way, if anyone here is in advertising or marketing, kill yourself."

"You ever notice how people who believe in creationism look really unevolved?" 

"Not all drugs are good. Some ... are great."

"I hate patriotism, I can't stand it. It's a round world last time I checked."

"Watching television is like taking black spray paint to your third eye."