On Tue, 16 Dec 1997 18:51:41 -0500
Sherri Malouf (sherri@maloufinc.com) wrote:
>Couldn't resist jumping in to this one given my thoughts of recent months.
>It seems as if I saved instead of sending this so it is a bit late...
>The choice for humanity at the moment is the choice of organizations,
>nations, and individuals. Do you choose love or fear?
--snip--
>The mind boggles when thinking about a question like how do nations learn.
>What if the choice is actually a lot simpler? Can you imagine if every
>individual on the planet chose to react differently to one other person
>every day and cared about them instead of being jealous, hating,
>paranoid,fearing, blaming, judging, killing... I still believe in the
>energy of thought and that it just doesn't disapear into a vaccuum. We
>are all responsible for this world of ours we just haven't realized it yet
>because we are too busy being victims of someone or something...
Sherri, you've probably captured the hopes and sentiments of many people,
here.
This week two strands of thought captured my fancy while contemplating
Raju's original question.
The first strand occurred while reading Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's, "Flow."
In it he reminds us that each people developed a culture, complex sets of
myth and beliefs, to transform the chaotic forces of their world into
manageable or understandable patterns. One of the interesting observable
phenomenons (you can observe this with any creature, I presume, and I've
certainly seen it at the gaming tables in Las Vegas and San Juan) of these
myths and beliefs occurs when a people realizes some success at managing
their environment. Each continent has known a people that has risen as a
single culture, dominating those other peoples who surround and interact
with them. Their success at domination reinforces their beliefs in the
myths surrounding their importance or special dispensation. As the author
points out, "this cultural hubris, or overweening presumption about what
we are entitled to from a universe that is basically insensitive to human
needs, generally leads to trouble."
My point in sharing this is that it appears to me that peoples learn, just
like the gambler learns. A streak of luck is preordained fate (and proof
of that "special dispensation)--a streak of bad luck, well, it's time for
the scapegoating to begin because it's "certainly not my(our) fault!"
As a corollary to this strand, let me point out that "nation-states" are a
relatively new and a political phenomenon, that often have no correlation
to the cultural entities (peoples) who live within their borders. This is
often the source for internalized disorders--when the ruling party enjoys
a "streak of luck" in domestic, financial and foreign policy, it is the
party that exhibits that hubristic character, and so forth.
I'd be interested in how others view this.
My second strand of thought focused on the document known as the
Constitution of the United States of America. It occurred to me how
difficult it was for the constitutional founders to compromise over the
insertion of the "Bill of Rights" (the first 10 amendments) into that
document. These amendments are the only guarantors of personal liberties
and rights that exist in the basic law of the USA. They very nearly did
not make it in. Over the two hundred year history of that document, the
most contentious struggles have been over those very few words. The one
amendment that most reminded me of this is the first one--it says, simply,
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,
or of the press; or the right of the people peacably to assemble, and to
petition the Government for a redress of grievance."
How does a Nation learn? This one article has been argued in courts for
just as long as it has been in force. There have been frequent times when
Congress attempted to violate this law--or when executive powers, or
judicial interpretation violated or threatened this law. It has only been
through the vigilance, sweat, blood and tears of the people that this law
has been enforced. The lesson is that laws, especially those that
recognize and respect the fundamental rights of each individual, must be
continuously upheld and enforced by the people for whom the laws exist.
Eternal vigilance, responsibility, caring.
To conclude, Sherri, it is your vision of people caring for others, and
accepting responsibility for their own choices--whether it is avoiding the
chimera of cultural superiority, or maintaining eternal vigilance over the
rights and liberties of themselves, their neighbors and all members of
their communities--that will make it possible for nations to learn for
their spiritual growth and development.
regards,
Doc
-- "No great improvements in the lot of mankind are possible, until a great change takes place in the fundamental constitution of their modes of thought." -John Stuart MillRichard C. "Doc" Holloway Your partner for workforce development Visit me at http://www.thresholds.com/community/learnshops/index.html Or e-mail me at <mailto:learnshops@thresholds.com> Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2361 Phone: 01 360 786 0925 Olympia, WA 98507 USA Fax: 01 360 709 4361
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