pieces of paper are all-powerful

"In the society we live in, not to know how to read and write is

unthinkable. Even with cooking, it is assumed you know what is

written on a tin of food, for example, and that you can also

decipher a recipe in a book. Not to mention the complications for

anyone who can't read the name of a street or underground

station!

But this doesn't mean that humanity could not have progressed

without being able to write. Reading and writing may represent

great advantages, but the importance given to pieces of paper

also has many drawbacks: we rely on them alone, they are all that

counts, and we are incapable of seeing beyond them. If a piece of

paper says you are guilty even though you are innocent, no one

will be able to see the innocence that's written all over you.

They read the piece of paper, and you are blamed; they point the

finger at you and put you in prison. Nowadays, human beings are

nothing, and pieces of paper are all-powerful!"

Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov