Whether the Wachowski Brothers intentionally intended for the convoluted message of their hugely successful Matrix movies to be deciphered is not known, but certainly the mass of interpreters ready to lend the movie their philosophical bent has added to the confusion as to the real intent of its ideal.
      The first movie clearly presents us with a reasonable corollary to the situation of our time--namely that western civilization is party to a mass manipulation of perceptual reality intentionally skewed to keep the energy and purpose of that society serving the interests of a calculating few.  The fact that the few are not machines, but Huxley's Power Elite, is irrelevant.
      At first viewing, the original Matrix is a traditional sci-fi thriller that promises an adventure of breaking free from the constraints of runaway technology (in the form of artificial intelligence) and returning to a real, albeit sometimes unpleasant, perceptual reality.  Unfortunately, there is at least one scene in the movie where the true and underlying theme of the Matrix is revealed.  In that scene, the leader of the rebellion, Morpheus, reveals to Neo the truth of what had occurred to bring about the catastrophy that had decimated the planet.  In the midst of his sililoquy he makes the astounding statement, "Since the beginning of time man has depended on machines for his survival."
      Say what!  Long before western civilization brought its supposed advantages to these shores, Indigenous Peoples, without even the benefit of the wheel, created pyramids and road systems, had continental trade and communication systems, and extensively farmed and landscaped the continents.  Only two or three days of labor a week was necessary to provide the daily necessities for most families.  The rest of the time was for leisure and the arts. Modern social scientists are beginning to postulate that specialization, once considered one of the defining attributes of advanced civilization, may actually be a step backward in the evolution of societies, especially as it relates to the time necessary to procure necessities, and the general happiness of the People.
        The second movie expounds further on this ideal, especially during the conversation between Neo and the Elder beneath Zion, where the machines that produce the atmosphere and life-support are found.  Their discussion about the feasibility of humans surviving without machines would be ludicrous if it wasn't treated with so much serious deliberation by the characters.
        Unfortunately their philosophies and conclusions are reflective of western civilization's preoccupation with the concepts of technological progress as an inescapable rollercoaster on which man is blessed (or doomed) to ride on the rest of his universal journey.
         One is allowed to criticize western civilization's (now modern global civilization's) failings, even predict potential dangers to come but not to suggest that its sacrosanct growth be constrained.  The discussion is framed within the context of an acknowledgement of, and resignation to, its existance.  Little discussion is allowed that refers to any attempt to alter it at a fundamental level or present alternatives to its underlying philosophies.
         The poet/activist John Trudell says it best in his inspirational spoken word CD, Descendant Now Ancestor, when he describes the current world view as a twisted perceptual reality that allows a few to utilize the global consumer society as fuel in their dominant quest for world power.  The response of a contemporary newspaper journalist to seeing the second movie probably represents the normal citizen's jaded and self-serving view of that manipulation.  He wrote that, though he was stimulated by the initial promise of the series, its failure to deliver the punch of idealism necessary to be convincing caused him, in the end, to identify more with the traitor who ratted on his friends. (In order to be replaced into the Matrix where he could at least have the benefit of a pretend steak).
          The nightmare of the real, that Morpheus promises, has come true.  If we can't tell the difference between real and imaginary, who cares?  After all, if the Matrix can provide news, entertainment and experiences that gratify the individual human being, why worry whether they are real or contrived? Where is the value of the real?
         Having convinced the citizenry that technological civilization is inescapable (at least for the small segment of the world's population enjoying its supposed benefits), we are further promised sensory delights, entertainment, conveniences, and comforts unavailable outside the "Matrix" of consumerism and global imperialism.  Since the fantasy of our "superiority" is evident, and any alternative has been described to us as a "thin gruel" existence, most people are willing to overlook the terrifying realities of how we obtain our wealth and comfort, preferring to "close their eyes and savor the taste of their steak".  The sacrifices and changes in living standards necessary to change the systems so that exploitation of the planet and its peoples can be avoided require a change in the perceptual reality of western civilization.
        To be awakened to the real world is as much a shock as the original movie portrays it.  The horrors are so many, and so real, that it is difficult to resist re-immersing oneself in the distractions and sensory delights of the technological age.  For some freed men and women, being faced with the full brunt of the terrifying wave of reality is too much.  Suicide and violence are the only responses they can imagine.  Others of us have been activists all of our lives.  By whatever means, we have grown up outside the real matrix of the twentieth century.  Our hatred and loathing for the myths and lies that persuade so many drives us to write and speak for the new perceptual reality.  As John Trudell says, if we use our collective intelligence consciously and coherently--as often as possible--we may, in the long run of time, make a difference.

       We're here to offer you a choice between perspectives.  Take the blue pill and reject our premise and conclusions and you can return to your life  undisturbed.  Take the red pill and we will provide you with the impetus to create a "new perceptual reality".

        There is a group of Americans who make it a point to constantly criticize any attempt to preserve Indigenous language, culture, identity and social customs, believing that everyone should simply homogenize themselves with the pride and accomplishments of western civilization.
        More often than not, these people are Euro-centric and extremely nationalistic. They continue, even in the face of new evidence, to describe the continents of the Americas, before the arrival of Christoforos, as having been predominantly wild and empty, occupied mostly by savage hunter-gatherer societies, with little social or cultural development.  They point to the identifying characteristics that make up what they consider a superior civilization; utilization of the wheel, development of writing, technological advancement in weapons and machines, scientific advances, alteration and domination of the natural environment and utilization of resources to create economic stratification and specialization, etc.
         As a young man, my brothers and I spent a number of years in exile from the modern social and technological environment, (enough of an exile that I did not know what year it was).  We returned with an altogether different feeling about the life we had been leading.  A life that, we had been led to believe, was as normal and as inescapable as the tide.  We realized that all the pent up, raging emotions of our teenage years were not a normal reaction to the natural world.  Talking to Elders of just a few generations ago we realized that youthful agression and rebellion, emotions and reactions we have come to take for granted in our youth, were unknown among Indigenous Peoples.  In fact, they were unknown to significantly rural Peoples until this century, when Hollywood convinced everyone their behavior was traditionally typical of young people.  We realized that much of this behavior resulted from a feeling of being trapped on an irrelevant, surreal, frustrating, non-fulfilling, unhappy and seemingly unstoppable roller-coaster ride.  It is a thrill ride, with the thrill removed: a dead end road defined by a meaningless abstraction called “success”, which seems largely based on a similarly abstract economic or social classification.  This economic abstract is a direct descendant of the dreams of poor and classless Europeans who came here searching for wealth and power at the exclusion of any other redeemable value.
         Fortunately, our experiences liberated us from the matrix of modern global perspective and allowed us to experience being happy, content, balanced, harmonious, and free for the first time. We no longer felt constrained by the myths of the matrix of our previous indoctrination.  Like the samadhi, we were free to involve ourselves in the society and the civilization without the hopeless, gut-wrenching feeling that we were trapped with no release available to us.  We had to pull back from the tentacles of consumerism, and allow ourselves to be satisfied with less conforts, conveniences, and entertainments but ultimately that gave us the perspective to begin to examine all of the structures and pre-defined realities that society, the mass media, and public education had ordered our minds to accept.
         Over time, we began to make comparisons between what we saw as Indigenous Native values and “Ways” and those put forward by the dominant anti-culture around us.  We use the word “Way”, in this context, to mean a life-philosophy or world-view resulting from the homogeneous integration of language, spiritual philosophy, social morality and ethics in physical interaction with the natural world.
        Today, after conversations with other like-minded twenty-first century escapees from the ever present, ever-growing web of the modern matrix, we think it our responsibility to attempt to explode some of the myths presently put forward by these adamant ethnocentric enthusiasts.  The first myth is that they speak for themselves.  The truth is they are led by their noses.   They are the frontline footsoldier spokesmen for the Power Elite.  A Power Elite that want us to accept their perceptual realities.  Their reality is reflected in a belief that demanding that big tobacco companies be responsible for the consequences of their actions toward the health of human beings is in some way a threat to our rights and freedoms.  Yet if you examine their catechisms, under their rhetoric you find that their system of measurement and empowerment always stems from an evaluation of an economic bottom line benefiting the already wealthy and powerful citizens of the world.  One of John Trudell's more important observations is that all our struggles are not about freedom or our rights, but about our responsibilities.  If we continually meet our responsibilities in a real sense, in the real world, for real people--freedom will come about as a natural consequence because we will be willing to do what is necessary to realize those responsibilities.
        Through personal experience we have verified that the concept of superiority is largely defined as simply a personal preference.  The close quartered, mundane, simple and slow moving world we experienced in our self-contained exile resulted in a contentment, happiness and harmony that we had never before experienced in the modern world.
        A high gross national product may or may not be an actual indicator of economic strength and civil satisfaction.  In fact, some theorists now believe that the more people purchase, the less satisfied they become.  Similarly, a technological advancement may or may not result in an improvement in the human condition.  Social scientists have recently put forward the theory that specialization within a society, commonly recognized as a cornerstone of civilization, may actually signal a decline in the satisfaction, happiness and harmony of its citizenry.
         Part of the problem of clarifying a realistic perceptual reality has to do with the short historical view we presently have of these advancements, and the civilization.  Many Americans have become largely removed from the history of their immediate families and have given their loyalties over to a nationalistic fervor.  They can’t trace their own history back more than a few generations.  This results in the loss of any personal or emotional relationship to history.  Once history is removed from a nation’s historical consciousness, except as an abstract study, time seems to expand and a century of events takes on an exaggerated importance.  Therefore, there has been a rush to quantify and expound on the virtues of the American experiment and modern technological global civilization without an adequate amount of time to prove its real and lasting benefits or superiority.  What appears to some to be a rapidly advancing global civilization with an exciting and promising future, appears to others as a dehumanizing, voracious, irresponsible and rapacious monster intent on victimizing the planet and its resources.
         So we have come to question the modern matrix from its oldest institutions and beliefs, its very foundation and history as it were, to the often mutated but similarly contrived ideals and policies of the present.  We accept our role and responsibility in disputing the assertion that the present civilization is superior to those of other times and places.  In addition, we intend to strive to identify what the elements of the modern matrix are, how it has come to suffocate and stifle humanity and the natural world, what factors support its dominance and continuation, and how it can, ultimately, be escaped.