Caring for Others

Sitting Bull, the chief of the Lakota tribes of the northern plains, defeated General George Custer and stubbornly led his people through a history the tribes would surely lose over time. He shared this baseline definition of his warriors:

“Warriors are not what you think of as warriors. The warrior is not someone who fights, because no one has the right to take another life. The warrior, for us, is one who sacrifices himself for the good of others.

His task is to take care of the elderly, the defenseless, those who can not provide for themselves, and above all, the children, the future of humanity.”

Would you have expected him to say that? Really? I didn't.

Our upbringing has greatly misstated the American Indian culture and history. It is a shame this has happened. Slowly, very slowly we are gaining a respect and understanding of the Indian and his culture.  For example, their nomadic way of life was an age-old adaptation to weather and growing cycles for wild berries, grasses, and other plants that they eventually turned into crops. Also the animal recycling schedule for ‘harvesting’ or hunting deer, bear, antelope, buffalo and other sources of protein. There is a cycle. Nature’s cycle. They were attuned to it. They lived by that cycle. And long patterns of weather that affected nature’s own rhythms.

The Native Indian was a survivor of the real world. They got along with landscape, harsh and unfriendly toward them often. Yet they scratched out a living for hundreds of generations. They got along with one another in tribal settings and clans. They learned to take from the planet that which was useful, and not to waste it. They learned to replace what they had taken as much as possible – so future generations could use the fruits of their labors as well.

American Indian culture looked inward and soulfully. They related to a higher power and gave it many names. They shared their goods with one another and they tentatively held out their hands to strangers. That is how the European white man was able to infiltrate their circles of influence – and change them, and manipulate them, and turn them into enemies.

It is the role of enemy from which we construct a definition of warrior. We do not use Sitting Bull’s definition of warrior because we cannot see it, certainly not from the orientation of history we have been taught.

No. And we could have learned so much more from the families of Sitting Bull. Like community living; like honoring and nurturing the elderly; like protecting and supporting women and children among us. They knew this was the way of the future. Generations were needed to populate the future. Women and children were essential to do this. Warriors ensured the former to happen in security. They helped each member of the community. It was important. It was vital. Their future depended on it.

So does ours, really. Funny thing is we think we are doing that. But we aren't. We play at it, of course. I think Stephen Colbert captures what I’m getting at here with this quote:

“If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we've got to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are or we've got to acknowledge that he commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don’t want to do it.”

Sure we have programs to address these issues for individuals in need, but that is not the personal commitment we each must have if we are to live life according to our ideas and values. We need to be personally involved, I think. We need to grasp why it is important that we include all people in our midst. That we include all points of view in our considerations toward decisions and policy making. That we understand how each of us, however weak or strong we are, make up the whole of our social fabric. If we think poorly of one person, we have created a hole in the fabric of our community. That is a snag certain to trip us up.

I found this quote on the internet the other day. It was printed next to a cute little kid of 3 or 4 years of age, sitting in a chair wondering:….

            “Why it is that people who have it all can’t be thankful for what they have;

 They always want more. And people who have nothing count their blessings everyday?”

                                                            ~Author Unknown

It is not about government. It is about healthy community. And what we each can do alone or together to make the community whole. If we let the conversation and action fall to politicians and government, we take a turn toward the stupid. We need to save ourselves from that!

Remember what Albert Einstein said about this matter:

“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe.”

Don’t you just love Einstein? And did you know he embraced such wisdom? I always thought he was a nerdy physicist; bright and a genius. But wise? That is a surprise and a gift to us all!

May 31, 2013

Inclusion

Neil deGrasse Tyson ~ communicator, scientist, science educator, PBS celebrity ~ is a man rooted in understanding the universe. He forms the questions of ‘why’, ‘how’ and when’. And then he sets out to find the answers. Along the way he shares his findings with others. Lots of others.

Tyson is Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space. He lives in Manhattan (NY) and counts Harvard, University of Texas at Austin, and Columbia University as alma maters. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard, a Master of Arts degree at UT-Austin, and both a Masters of Philosophy and a PhD from Columbia.

A man of many talents and a vibrant intellect, Neil deGrasse Tyson shares this simple observation of one of our primary institutions of governance – Congress:

            “What profession do all of these senators and congressmen have?

             Law, law, law, law, business man, law, law, law…

             Where are the scientists? Where are the engineers? Where’s the rest of…life?”

Indeed. Where are all the other professions and disciplines?

Ideas do not come from law. Law requires conformity. Law requires process. Law asks for application. It is not the answer nor the exploratory tool. It is a discipline, but not one that brings forth the ideas that matter.

The economist wonders why and how of financial cycles and behaviors. The agronomist studies growing conditions of crops and their worth and utility to mankind. The astronomer seeks answers to the riddles of space universe. Philosophers and ethicists work to discover life values. And so go the other professions – educators, doctors, mechanics, etc. – all working at understanding needs, actions, solutions and life in general.  But congress? Filled mostly lawyers and people of wealth from businesses they did not create.

These are people who might better be the staff of senators and congressmen; they would simply codify the decisions made by others who have thought through the ideas that matter. But first we have to get to those ideas.

Observing elected representatives to Congress over the years I am struck by how narrow minded they are and how focused they are on public opinion and the power they think emanates from that opinion. Rather than dealing with the realities of known problems and their effects, they slather attention on the noisy opinion makers. They seek power. For what reason other than money and ego I cannot contrive in my mind!

It is important for each of us to consider inclusion of diverse points of view. Not just opinion. But of fact and science and art and process. Mankind exists in a huge pool of diversity. It is healthy to mind it. It is even more healthy to use it in all we do. So all ideas are at least given a chance to be heard and included in our thinking. And the people and their cultures nurtured along the way.

It is a liberal or conservative point of view? I don’t think so. It is a practical stance. It is a value position. Inclusion.

Be counted on. Be counted in. Be a part of the solution. Now that will build a powerful future for mankind!

May 30, 2013

            

Drawing Toward Health

An acquaintance attempted suicide last week. This was the second attempt we know of. A phone call from her to a close friend alerted him of the situation. Police and ambulance were summoned and she was made safe for a few days.

Her story is not known fully by me. I know she is deeply troubled and has been for several years. Depression is a major factor in her life. So is self medication to control the symptoms. That includes abuse of alcohol as well. The case is complicated. Continue this behavior for too many years and there is no return to a normal life.

The medications skew reality to the point that alcohol seems OK. It isn't of course. Alcohol uncontrolled never is a good course. It destroys human tissues throughout the body but mostly does brain damage. Too much of this and you can imagine how the brain deteriorates. As the central processing unit of our bodies once the brain is irreparably damaged so is the life associated with the body. Institutionalization is one answer; a very sad answer. Self management is the goal that avoids the institutional option.

Addiction to anything begins, I think, with not understanding one’s own self and immediate situation. Allowed to roam freely without discipline the mind can take you places very unhealthy.  I found this on the internet the other day, perhaps it fits nicely here:

“Whenever you find yourself doubting if you can go on, just remember how far you've come. Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won, and all the fears you have overcome.  Then raise your head high and forge on ahead knowing that you got this far!”

                                                                        ~Anonymous

A survivor of many storms is one way of seeing the self in troubled times. It is the upside of the misery we have experienced. Sensing survival is a good thing for the afflicted. It becomes a small but important building block to health.

I know that once through the immediate storm laughter may return. It is a surprising appearance, laughter. It forces a momentary glimpse of our own control! To be able to laugh through tears or agony is the body and soul forcing its way to the surface for survival!

Addicts often feel alone. Even in a crowded room they may feel lonely. Connection to others is in paralysis. Connection…so much needed…but so unattainable.

From Facebook.com/chee.tang.779 comes this quote:

“Sometimes you just can’t tell anybody how you really feel. Not because you don’t know why. Not because you don’t know your purpose. Not because you don’t trust them. But because you can’t find the right words to make them understand.”

  

Finding those words takes patience. It takes sorting out thoughts of conflicting meaning. It requires discipline to state the feelings plainly, simply, directly. Don’t make it too complicated. Pull the primary ideas out of the mass of other thoughts running through the head. Write down short sentences. Practice doing this. In time order will emerge. It is a learned capability. We are not always born with this ability. We have to nurture it. In turn it will nurture us back to health.

L.R. Knost shares this idea with us:

“It is not our job to toughen our children up to face a cruel and heartless world. It’s our job to raise children who will make the world a little less cruel and heartless.”

If we can use this principle to guide our parenting style and performance, I think we have a chance to improve life on this planet by bits over time; meanwhile we are helping the planet not get worse.  Both are admirable goals!

Those of us, who are ‘normal’ or think of ourselves as such, have a hard time grasping what a ‘non-normal’ person experiences. It is why we need to practice compassion and live by it. There are those who need our compassion directly applied. But many more will benefit from a compassionate environment not directly applied. It is felt. It is noticed in little ways. Those in distress will know it is safe to just be. During those moments of ‘being’ they are safe to explore the inner self. They sense they have the time and space to sort through their feelings and ideas. They can begin the journal of written thoughts. The building of inner discipline to giver themselves a chance to gain self understanding. And self worth.

In the right environment the addict can return to a healthy life. They are strengthened by this. So are we all!

From Facebook.com/Happysmiles comes this quote from Peanuts:

           

            “Life isn't meant to be easy; it’s meant to be lived.

             Sometimes happy, other times rough…

             But with every up and down you learn lessons that make you Strong!”

A good place to end today’s message!

May 29, 2013

That Which Divides

A local church new to our town represents an eastern religious heritage, most likely Hinduism. I have not visited the new neighbor and have read only a short press release explaining their mission.  But that’s not the point of my comment. My point is this: they have a large, digital sign at street side that identifies them, and offers a comment on program or philosophy that frequently changes.  One message that intrigues me is this one:

            “Religion unites, never divides.”

If that were only true. The statement would be more correct if it read – Religion should unite, never divide.

World history is filled with recurrent themes of nations and religions going to battle over slights – imagined or real – made by perceived enemies.  The Crusades were waged on the basis that non-Christians were at war with Christendom and defense was raised by the Roman Catholic Church as well as various well-funded kingdoms throughout Europe intending on earning ‘heavenly credits’ with the Pope and the official church.

It did not go well. Whether offense or defense, a bitter taste was forever developed between Islam and Christianity. To this day the battle lines are drawn!

Funny thing; no amount of history, research or serious discussion among the ‘combatants’ has salved the hurt among the lesser educated followers of each religion. New combatants are continually found and nurtured to keep the war alive. Better educated people of goodwill have found peace among the religions. For them there is no divisive tension. Yet it is the others that foment distrust and hate.

Hence I have enormous doubt over the aphorism shared by the local church on its sign!  Religion has divided nations and peoples throughout the globe throughout the globe’s entire history. It ought not to be the case but it is.

Western Civilization alone has made a science and art out of division.  Attorneys, mediators, diplomats, and others make entire careers out of that which divides us. Bringing people together is their mission, but they make so much a better living and wealth by keeping the divisions alive.

And then there are the politicians. Even if all is swell they must find division to create a tension that provides them…power. Power to divide people into opposing camps. Power to make people feel good in the presence of negative people. Power to help some people while maintaining the tensions. Doing the latter is the secret methodology they use to maintain…power.

Strange that after all of these eons, especially the last 1000 years of well written and documented history, you’d think the world would be able to fend off the those who manipulate others simply to create power.

Perhaps in some small measure we are finding the capability to do that. After all Americans are making their opinions felt about muckrakers. They see the Republicans as negative and obtuse. They see them as divisive simply because they want to grab power for whatever reason. And it is the grabbing that is visible, it is the ill effects of that grab that is also quite visible, in short the Republicans are appearing quite without clothes in  public view.

You’d think Boehner and McConnell would get this!  They say they want smaller government and they have achieved that goal. Of course the military is smaller, teachers have been fired along with police and fire personnel. Local governments have cut their staff and programs because the recession created to win political wars has backfired and caused declining tax collections at the local level. Unemployment is not driven by private sector firms; it is driven by declining government payrolls at all levels. Thus municipalities, counties, townships and states are hurting. They have laid off key personnel and shrunk their programs.

Schools have cut classes, teachers and increased class size. Fire departments have consolidated fire stations, equipment and shrunk staff. Demand for police services  remains high but paying for it has dwindled. Other municipal services have been trimmed to pay for police departments.

Don Rumsfeld, former Secretary of Defense under President George W. Bush, tried valiantly to re-engineer the military to become a more flexible, small unit responder to multiple threats throughout the world. He tried to reduce the reliance on large-scale fighting forces. But his Commander in Chief insisted on fighting an Afghan war AND an Iraq war simultaneously. Big armies, air and naval units were thus needed. So the Pentagon gained increased funding. It has taken years since then to shrink it back to size and return to the strategy that Rumsfeld had championed.

Smaller government was supposed to be about the Federal Government. Little did the congressional powers grasp that all of the other government levels rely on federal programs. Cut the Federal budget and you cut everyone else’s.  We achieved smaller government across the board. We gained a lot of unintended consequences along the way.

The price of power? The price of divisiveness? Or simply the lack of American will to realize that unity is more powerful, and more effective.

When will we return to the goodwill era and concentrate on making good things happen? It takes so much less energy to do this. You’d think we would have caught on by now.

Is there still time to do so?

May 28, 2013

Memorial Day

A day of remembering those who gave their lives so our nation could be, survive and be free. It is also a great day to be mindful of all of those who sacrificed greatly (injury, treasure, loved ones) to make life possible for us in the modern era.

The people we remember today did not await perfect conditions to do their work to heed the call of duty. They perceived a greater need and responded with life, limb and effort.

Alan Cohen has admonished us accordingly:

“Do not wait until conditions are perfect to begin. Beginning makes conditions  perfect.”

Amen to that! See a need and find a way to fill it. We can do that every day, several times per day. We don’t need to put it off for a weekend, a month or an annual observance for that matter. Wouldn't it be great if we lived our lives outwardly to help others most of the time?

Here’s another way of serving our common good:

“Don’t just teach your children to read … teach them to question what they read. Teach them to question everything.”

                                                                                    ~George Carlin

If we follow Carlin’s advice our children would be able to answer their own questions, help others live better lives and avoid the many pitfalls we adults thought we would avoid when we had our adult chances!  Odd how that didn't work out!  Remember when we…

We can think of opportunities to serve the needs of others at a time like this. We have the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the mass slaughter of young kids at Newtown, Connecticut, the tornadoes in Oklahoma and the Boston Marathon bombings. At such times we see the need and the will to serve the larger good.

Strange how this does not imbue all Americans, however. Senator Inhofe of Oklahoma voted against Hurricane Sandy aid to the New Jersey coastal sufferers.  His fellow Oklahoma congressmen Markwayne Mullin and Jim Bridenstine both voted ‘no’ on disaster relief for Hurricane Sandy communities. With the fresh memory of Oklahoma’s tornadoes just six months following Hurricane Sandy, we can wonder if they will veto aid to their own constituents. 

Senator Inhofe, when reminded the other day of his no vote for Sandy relief, claims the relief was weighted down with non-related dollars for other projects. No, Senator; it was freighted with appropriations to fix some problems left over from earlier problems that senate nitpicking managed to lose sight of.

I trust people in need will get federal relief in spite of the narrow minded likes of Bridenstine, Mullin and Inhofe. At least we can hope so!

Meanwhile, it is our task to live our own lives as though others depend on it. They do!

Reflect on our blessings this Memorial Day. Reflect on the needs of others as well. And make a commitment to do more during the next 365 days until the next Memorial Day.

May 27, 2013

Thought for the Day

Knowledge and Kindness

Yesterday’s blog reminded us of who our true native Americans are. Today I want us to focus on something their culture taught them:

            “Give me knowledge so I may have kindness for all.”         ~Plains Indian

That sole line is powerful. It deserves our thought today. Ponder well!

May 25, 2013

Caring

President Obama shared this gem with us in recent months:

“Unless you are one of the first Americans, unless you are a Native American, you came from someplace else. That’s why we've always defined ourselves as a nation of immigrants. And we've always been better off for it.”

This quote and others like it have niggled my mind off and on for many years. It is of interest simply because of the stark realization that most Americans are immigrants. In fact a tiny, tiny portion of our population is related to Native Americans – people who inhabited the North American Continent before it was even named.

Native Americans. Amerindians they were called once – and that white-man-centered even then! But even the native Indians of this continent were immigrants. Eons ago it is believed they arrived here from what is now Mongolia or northern China. They walked to the continent over a land bridge that then connected Asia and North America land masses. They drifted southward to warmer climates and survived the ice age.

Later, 11,000 years later they colonized and expanded their population in central and north American regions. These were the peoples displaced by European explorers and rulers – queens, kings and non-royal marauders alike -  as they sought land, treasurer and trading routes to enrich their rule.  We call this Western Civilization when we feel grand! Nonetheless history informs us Europeans entered the ‘new world’ carrying pestilence, plague, violence and death to natives. Some hundreds of years later we narrowly call ourselves the natives and limit new immigrants.

Disingenuous? More than a little!  There is so much we can learn from those who were truly native to our land. Even more can we learn from our forebears. The question is – do we learn those valuable lessons?

I think not or else immigration reform would be much easier than it is. The politics would melt away.

On a different theme, this was found recently as an anonymous gift from the internet:

            “Never get tired of doing little things for others;

             Sometimes those little things occupy the biggest of their hearts.”

I offer this idea for consideration because it looms large at this moment in our nation. Spring storms – especially tornadoes – visit violence, destruction and death upon us. The recent Oklahoma tornadoes are still being measured for their wind speeds and destruction. The dead and injured are still being removed from piles of wreckage.

Our natural instinct is to help. Respond to human need. Approach the victims with hugs, a helping hand, food, water, shelter and clothing. Then a great deal of nurture to help them restore a semblance of normalcy. And lots of help rebuilding homes, neighborhoods and communities.

It is a natural thing we do in these situations. We do it for victims of forest fires, hurricanes, earthquakes, too. We respond with human caring.

When the natural calamity is over, there remains much left to do. Helping people pick up the remnants of their lives and move on to a new future. It is not easy work for them to do; that is why they need our helping hand.

Still later, when natural disasters are not the creating victims, there are millions of people in need. These are the ill, impoverished, halt and lame living among us. These too are the addicts and mentally ill. Many people in need. How do we attend to them?

Although the problems appear enormous there is a simple method we can all use – “doing little things for others” as the quotation above states. We can do this every day in many little ways. We can share a meal with someone without food; or take in an acquaintance who is temporarily without shelter. We can donate unused clothing so others may find use for it. An unused bicycle may be needed transportation for an adult without a car, or pure joy for a youngster without a bike. Baby sitting a young mother – single parent – so she can hold down a job and support her struggling family.

Little acts of kindness. Simple gifts of time or goods to make someone else’s life a little easier. And of course the resultant building of community all of this work helps nurture.

We are in this together. We are of common heritage regardless of the generation or millennia we inhabit. We are Americans with common purpose. Hopefully it is not selfish. With love we create new hopes and new tomorrows. For all to enjoy and benefit from.

This is our calling. To care for each other. Hurricane Sandy reminds us of this. So do Oklahoma tornadoes, and Kansas, and Illinois, and…  All of these are opportunities to re-establish the ground rules of our caring for one another. May we earn our stripes fresh each day!

May 24, 2013

Getting to Know You

I have several quotes to share with you today.  All found on the internet and each author credited where known. I will tie them all together.

First, Marvin Gaye gave us this great quote:

            “If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.”

Where else indeed? I've noticed that when I’m struggling with something, upset, unsure of the next thought or how to draw a worthwhile conclusion from my experience, I am not at peace and tend to view the world to be of the same temper. Think of instances of road rage. You see a simple act by one driver piss off another driver. The second driver may or may not ignore it. If he ignores, peace is maintained. If he reacts the battle is on! And what will happen is anyone’s guess. If lucky nothing much will happen of lasting consequence. If unlucky a violent accident will occur and press the issue onward.

Yes, peace starts from within and is broadcast outward. If we are pleasant others will most likely return the pleasantness. Grumpy faces beget grumpy scowls from others. Sounds sort of like a kindergarten lesson, eh?  Well it is. Think about it. And how have you been treating members of your household of late? Or fellow travelers on the bus, commuter train, “L” or roadway?  Room for improvement?

Charles de Lint offered this glimpse of personal reality:

            “Don’t forget – no one else sees the World the same way you do,

             So no one else can tell the stories that  you have to tell.”

And the stories. They can be rich. Instructive of mood, lesson and guides to a richer more productive life. Each of us captures our own moonbeams and rays of sunshine. They shape our thinking and moods. Richly lived and observed, they will fuel good recollections to share with others. Or write about.

My view of the world is just as important as yours, and vice versa. It’s the versa that usually traps us into thinking “I must be the only one with his brain turned on.”  Wrong!  So very wrong. We’ll just leave that thought here!

“People hate the truth. Luckily, the truth doesn't care.”

                                                            ~Larry Winget

As I view the news I am amazed at the consistency of ‘story telling’ by newscasters and pundits. They seem like broken recordings that are in endless loop mode. No new facts are allowed in to broaden understanding. No fresh perspectives are allowed to offer a different perspective. Same-o, same-o. How utterly boring and frustrating!

They make up their own take on a happening and lay blame, not logical substance. Is there a problem to report? Fine. What needs to be done to fix it? Or are we going to endlessly talk about the same things for days. And days. And day?  We know the answer to that question!  I’m about to turn off all TV news.  Radio is OK. I turn on Sirius in the car and never change stations!  No news. Ever, unless I’m trying to track a storm system!

Emma Goldman gave us this:

            “The most violent element in society is ignorance.”

Think NRA and sensible gun control measures. Not to happen evidently. The nation is a slave to ignorant thinking. OK to control cars, drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. Even food products. But guns? Pshaw!  Why bother? Doesn't it strike you all how silly it is – and dangerous – that 320 million people own 300 million guns? I have never owned a gun. My family never did, either. But my brother has several and my sister at least one. I’m not sure of the why. Something tells me I never will.

The violence our gun culture nurtures is palpable. Add it to road rage, bad news reporting, incomplete statistical reports analyzing things we will never understand because of the faulty math applications, and you see the violence that is sparked and all from a base of ignorance. Sad that our great nation and culture may very well find its end in this source code of ill manners.  Tragic really. 35,000 deaths per year by guns in our country. Most of those deaths were moments of rage; others were accident. Very few were for self defense or national defense.  Just imagine that fact.  Ponder it well.

Is this how I think? You? Yes or know it tells us something about ourselves, doesn't it? Hmm.  Interesting getting to know you.  And me.

I think I will end with that thought today. It has heft of its own. For sure!

May 23, 2013

Cooperation -- Not!

Mitch McConnell, senior Senator form Kentucky and the Senates minority leader for the Republicans, claimed Sunday, May 19, 2013, that the IRS scandal is proof that the Obama White House is intimidating his political foes.

This is not the first time Mitch has made idle claims against Democrats, especially President Obama. But it seems McConnell is making his claims more outrageous as time goes by. Remember? He wondered aloud why the President doesn't invite the loyal opposition to the White House to discuss their differences? But when those discussions were held, and everyone claims they were nicey-nice, it didn't take much time before Mitch claimed he didn't get what he wanted from the President. And then bad mouths him immediately.

Nice going, Mitch! The way to influence others and win compromise is to bully and beat them to a pulp!  That your strategy?  Doesn't work, does it?

IRS scandal indeed. What scandal? That the IRS has acted outrageously again against those they think badly of them? Or are thumbing noses at IRS rules and regulations?  Since when is this a new trait. 

Just because it is an administrative department doesn't mean the White House or Executive branch has power over the agency. Let’s see. The IRS is a creature of Congress. They imbued the agency with all sorts of powers that no one can tamper with. Least of all politicians seeking favor from the tax man.  And while we are at it, any time the American people have complained about high handed stunts of the IRS and their rule making authority, Congress has had to enter the fray and redraw the authorities they gave the IRS initially.

Don’t think voters remember this, huh Republicans? Since when have you loved the IRS? Since when have you tried to tame it in the name of the American People?  Methinks you complain too much.

And oh by the way (drum roll please!) the acting commissioner of the IRS was appointed by George W. Bush. Douglas Shulman under Bush was supposed to make sure 501(C)(4) organizations were not being abused for tax exempt status by Tea Party and other organizations that improperly use tax exempt status for political purposes. I guess this is the Tea Party blaming Obama for another Bush era choice.

Interesting turn of events. The republicans build a trap to get at their enemies and end up making it look like someone else was guilty of doing what they themselves want to accomplish.  The Tea Party is not an enemy of Obama. It is an enemy of Republican banner carriers. Remember the onset of this odd ‘rump group’?

This is not the time to rewrite history. It is still fresh.

Mitch and Boehner, get a grip of your own party and begin carrying the weight of the governance role the out-of-power party has for the nation. The Democrats are holding up their end of the deal. How about you?

Discipline, gentlemen. Discipline.

May 22, 2013

   

Stories

The pastor of my church has asked me to deliver a sermon from time to time. I only did it once and with the greatest of trepidation! When I asked for advice, she told me to tell a story, or maybe two. Pick a topic and find a story that demonstrates it well, or make one up that does the same purpose.

Well that sounded easy. But it was not. No sirree!

So, I did one sermon and based it on two of my blogs that focused on local people. They were blog postings that showcased specific personality traits that were laudable. That became the core of my message. It worked. Not brilliantly, but…

Over the last couple of years I’ve observed discussions in which people told stories to emphasize their point. The groups appreciated those messages. Taking note of them I realized the pastor was right! Stories grab people’s attention. The tale communicates the human scale of the point. It is a lesson easier understood.

Just the other day a fellow said the same thing. And I’ve been thinking ever since then.

Stories. The who, what and why; then the punch line, the payoff. So I’ve been thinking up ideas for this development! Here’s what I came up with.

Johnny was walking down the road. Whistling absent mindedly when a kid he barely knew rode up on a bicycle. As distant thunder rumbled Johnny told the other kid that rain was coming in a few minutes. The other kid said “naw!” and road off to complete his errand.

Just then a bolt of lightening stabbed the sky followed by a crack of thunder. Rain immediately dropped in a deluge. Having opened an umbrella Johnny kept dry and soon entered the store he had set his sight on.  A hobby shop. He worked there part-time and was able to indulge his interests there as well.  He was a model builder of cars, vintage cars.

You probably think kids of all ages would flock to this store and you’d only be partially correct. The fact is adults, mostly males, flock to this store. They fancy modeling of ships, boats, planes and cars. Cars of all eras, actually. Race cars with current designs, but mostly mid century and antique autos. Antique era models probably because of the historical perspective – from this simple skeletal beginnings see how far modern styles have come! The mid century and newer are most likely nostalgia-driven.

When I see classic autos auctioned on cable TV I am transported to the years I first encountered the cars and their then newest design. This one was from elementary school days, while these from Junior High and high school days. Remember what we were doing then? Remember when dad bought that ’56 Buick and what fun we had test driving the Mercury, Ford, Chevy and Pontiac? They were all special, but the Buick was the best. Fire engine red with a white hard top, four doors but with no center pillar – a four door hard top convertible model they said.

Yes. Nostalgia. So customers flocked to the store and Johnny knew just how to help them!  He studied the store’s inventory, read old auto magazines and familiarized himself with the emergence of styles.  Adult customers loved Johnny!  They knew his hours and made sure he would be there when planning their shopping trip.

On the day Johnny met up with the kid on the bike, the day of the thunder storm, recognize Johnny’s maturity. He did not ride his bike to the store. No. He knew storms were forecast because he had paid attention to the radio reports. And he came prepared with an umbrella. He arrived at work as he planned – dry and ready to work.

Very adult indeed. And he used his maturity to serve his clientele as well.

The point of this story is simple: Johnny succeeded and went on to own a chain of hobby stores. He hired part time staff who demonstrated maturity of spirit and motivation. Those job applicants who acted like kids, were avoided. Customers, yes; staff no.

I could have ended this blog with a twist. Like Johnny ended up ignored, avoided and an addict of pills and alcohol. It happens you know. Silently. Hidden from view. The best kids of our best friends. Addicts. Because they were not heard, left to their own devices; and those were not kind to the johnnys of the world.

Which ending do you prefer?  Which one do you think is more prevalent in today’s America?  Think carefully before you answer. Very carefully.

May 21, 2013

Who Are You?

There is a prayer made public a long time ago. I don’t know who wrote it. I do not know the circumstances that gave rise to its writing. But I know it is in wide use. Here it is:

            “God grant me the serenity to Accept the things I cannot change,

             The courage to change the things I can, and

             The wisdom to know the difference.”

Called the Serenity Prayer in Alcoholics Anonymous and many other 12-step programs of recovery from addictions, the prayer is a powerful challenge for each of us to be honest with ourselves. Do I accept the things I cannot change? This doesn't mean I like those things, but I might as well make peace with them, or avoid them so I don’t create resentments over them.

Do I find the courage to change the things I can?  Yes I do!  I can answer that question quite truthfully. In fact there are many friends and family members who think I’m tilting at wind mills as it is and trying to do something about too many things!  I plead guilty.  I do try to change things I think need changing. And I firmly believe we all can do much more than we are doing to make this a better world in which to live. To do that we all have to lend a hand in the doing! And trying!!

But having the wisdom to know the difference,…now that is a huge challenge to me. For you, too?

Another anonymous quip on the internet fits nicely here:

            “There are three types of people in this world:

                        Those who make things happen,

                        Those who watch things happen, and

                        Those who wonder what happened.”

Perhaps the serenity prayer needs daily recitation for each of us so we aspire to be those people who make things happen!

Do what you can to make things right. Don’t dwell on the things we can have no affect on. Do not build resentments for things we do not control. We learn from these efforts. We find new strength to make a difference in the lives of others. We find a power we didn’t know we had. It could be pure muscle, or ideas, or influence…whatever, they are the assets we can use to undo wrongs and build things right.

            “We must try to forget the things that hurt us, but

             We must never forget the lessons they taught us.”

                                                            ~Author Unknown

A good summation of our discussion so far.

Another way of putting this is:

            “I can choose to let it define me, confine me, refine me, outshine me,

             Or I can choose to move on and leave it behind me.”

                                                                                    ~Anonymous

Choosing to consciously make these decisions in our lives makes us powerful and effective.  As Elizabeth Green has said, “Sometimes the most ordinary things could be made extraordinary simply by doing them with the right people.”  Are we finding those people and joining their efforts? They are out there. They need you. We need them.

Don’t let their woeful sigh be: “All I want is someone who will stay, no matter how hard it is to be with me.” (Anonymous)  That person may well be you at times. Most likely it is someone like you who needs the company to challenge the world as they seek serenity. Are you the one they are looking for? Are they your helpmate in the journey?

We will only know by trying.

May 20, 2013

Thought for the Day

True Relations

I want you to think about your relationships with other people. Read this passage and think upon it for 15 minutes. What meaning sprang to your mind that will stay with you beyond this weekend?

“She was beautiful, but not like those girls in the magazines. She was beautiful for the way she thought. She was beautiful for that sparkle in her eyes when she talked about something she loved. She was beautiful for her ability to make other people smile even if she was sad. No; she wasn't beautiful for something as temporary as her looks. She was beautiful deep down to her soul.”

                                                                        ~Author Unknown

Thanks for doing this exercise. I feel certain you will feel good for many days to come!

May 18, 2013

Illusions and Truths

Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche had this to say:

“People don’t want to hear the truth because

 they don’t want their illusions destroyed.”

Slowly we build our understanding of the world around us. Painstakingly we question things we don’t get at first; later, sometimes much later, we gain a logical explanation of why some facts fit together and why others do not. In this patch-work manner we gain insight and understanding. We test some of these ‘truths’ from time to time and gain confidence that they are in fact true.

Like Nietzsche’s warning, however, we blind ourselves to the truth unwittingly – mainly because it is hard to face the chance that we are, in fact, wrong. We like being right. We don’t like being wrong.

Hopefully we test our understanding with discipline to ensure we don’t get caught swallowing a false premise as truth. We use those premises to build up new ‘truths’. If the one is wrong the latter may be also. Such is the peril of expansive thinking.

Former Vice President Al Gore has said:

            “The United States Congress…is now incapable of passing laws without

             Permission from the corporate lobbies and other special interests

             That control their campaign finances.”

True or not? Is Gore’s statement accurate?  In the current political climate most Americans believe it is true. If it is true, how many illusions are being destroyed every day? How much more will the American public accept of this behavior before they do something about it?

First, however, they need to determine if the statement is true.  Thinking it is so doesn't make it so. But how do you prove it? Campaign finance reform attempted to put a stop to this worry but the effort was greatly flawed and only went partway toward the solution. The result is a compounding of the problem and now open financing of campaigns makes it easy for elected representatives to ‘sell’ their support to any and all with a check book. Apparently the amount of the ‘contribution’ doesn't matter any more. Just the flow of dollars!

The National Rifle Association will help a supportive candidate. Non supportive candidates get active campaigns designed against them funded by the NRA and their supporters. Same is true of the National Petroleum Producers Association. Fracking, tar sand oil extractions, off-shore oil drilling, energy exploration in protected national forests and nature preserves are all activities the association members want to fully pursue. They say it is to supply energy to our nation. Detractors accuse them of despoiling the public and its landscape for higher earnings for their corporate owners.  Which is true? We all might be surprised. Meanwhile a healthy doubt should be allowed to exist while important policy matters are under consideration.

Gun violence. Massive oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico and off shore along Florida, South Carolina, California, Alaska – you name the location, there have been spills there. Have they been cleaned up entirely? Is it possible to clean up the spills completely? If not, how much filth and spoiled eco-system do we put up with in the name of energy? And corporate profits?

I had a person sling an opinion at me the other day about the IRS targeting the Tea Party. He is a member of a local Tea Party organization. He feels President Obama is directly responsible for and has his finger on targeting political detractors.  My response to him? Just this: the IRS is a machination of Congress, always has been, apparently always will be. The Executive branch has limited power regarding the IRS by congressional design. There are more politicians in Congress than in the White House. Hence, who do you think is behind this inexcusable behavior of the IRS?

I think it is Republicans. They get two good things: first, they get to try and smear the President for the problem; and second, they get a chance to destroy the Tea Party, a rump group within the party that is killing the party’s credibility with the larger American public.

I also stated to this fellow that the nation faces enormous problems that can all be addressed logically and should be attended to now. Each party is to blame for all of the problems. Blame is not the goal we should be aiming for. Rather, we should be collaborating fully to solve our common problems. Everyone shares in the credit for fixing these problems. Or else everyone shares in the blame for them!  No middle ground. Saying it is so doesn't make it so!

The IRS has a problem. Has had a huge credibility problem for decades. This is nothing new. Rogue staffers and political infiltrators have had field days in the past under all forms of congressional and executive political power. This is not a new phenomenon. Just a sad truth. No illusions here!

When will we – the American People – finally get the message and take power in their hand to vote out the gamers and elect in responsible adults who fully support the USA? I’ve been waiting a long time for this to happen. Will it ever in my lifetime?

Saying it is so doesn't make it so! Perhaps that is our new mantra until action blossoms?

May 17, 2013

Days of Spring

This journaling task requires some discipline but at the same time provides enormous freedom to write on whatever topic comes to mind. That’s an awesome opportunity; it is also fraught with the burden of choice!

Like today. I've had a busy morning with a chamber of commerce board meeting (I’m secretary of the board and take the minutes and have other reporting duties), performed an errand for an estate I’m administering, returned home to change clothes and truck out to do the monthly grocery shopping. Beautiful day. Weather is outstandingly wonderful. Wafting breeze coupled with low humidity and temps in the 70’s. The sky is blue and small puffy clouds scud across the sky. Wondrous spring day.

Unloaded the van, stashed the groceries in cupboards and fridge and freezer. Rocky and I collected lunch and I wrote the chamber meeting minutes while the chicken pot pies were baking. After lunch of course required the daily nap. An hour of rest, calm, deep snooze. The dog kept me company – and warm! Such a peaceful time and scene.

Awoke to a good TV rerun of Castle. Now I’m running through emails, snail mail and of course writing this blog offering for tomorrow. A quick glance out the patio door to a summery day of mottled shade, early spring green vegetation and bird song among the lightly swaying tree limbs. Idyllic setting to write this piece.

So here I am attempting to settle on a topic. It is this process of settling that becomes the topic. We are conscious of ourselves from time to time during each day. Duties and activity normally shrouds our consciousness, however, because we aim to do a good job on whatever we are then doing.

When does consciousness of self occur? When we take a breath and sneak a break? When we realize what we are doing makes us feel good? If so we pursue the feeling and wonder why this particular activity conjures peace and warm feelings? We didn't start the day thinking we were going to do this. But here we are. Sharing an inner piece of our self with strangers. Why should that make me feel good? What is it that makes me feel free to share my inner thoughts with anyone?

Good question. Don’t know the answer. I just know if feel free to do this. At an earlier time of my life I would have dreaded doing this. I would have felt fear of exposure (maybe?). I might have felt at risk perhaps?

All I know is this is not risky business. It doesn't take courage to bare the soul. It becomes a need to bare the soul. Maybe not to strangers. That is most likely not the need. No; it is more like I need to bare myself to my self.

Getting to know me. Getting to understand me. Wondering about wonder and curiosity. It seems almost trivial yet somehow very purposeful.

I need to do this. It matters little if no one else reads these words. It matters only that I can say these things to myself and pursue what it means.

Not earth shattering. Not seminal. But necessary. And healthy.

Thanks for letting me do this!

May 16, 2013

Re-tooling

There are those in America who think having a gun will make us safer. Those same people often believe that if everyone has health care it will destroy our nation. Hmmm?

A disconnect exists in that logic.

On another matter ponder this:

            “The United States is

                        -22^nd out of 24 in OECD rankings for child health

                        -27^th out of 30 in OECD rankings for child poverty

                        -1^st in the world for megabank CEO compensation

If kids had as much lobbying power as Wall Street, maybe this would look differently?”

                                                ~TooBigHasFailed.org

On still another issue think about this:

            “The Benghazi Cover Up?

Not to make light of the tragic loss of life, but only four Americans were killed in the 2012 Benghazi attack, and Republicans are so convinced it was a massive conspiracy that they have turned the subject into a Watergate-style witch hunt.

Now consider that the GOP didn’t make a single peep when no WMDs were found in Irag (and that manufactured war has cost trillions of dollars and thousands of American lives). Neither did any Republican lawmakers raise any eyebrows when 64 diplomatic targets were attacked during the Bush years.

            Let’s just spell it out like it is: Today’s GOP is a bunch of hypocrites.”

                                                            ~fb.me/thereprimandproject

All of these quotes point out the obvious politicization of important issues America needs to work on and solve. None of these issues are the sole cause of one political party or the other, or one politician or another. They are real problems that affect America’s future. Our future.

When will we hold our elected officials accountable for doing their jobs? When will we demand they manage these problems, all of our collective problems, to a successful resolution? These problems may be the ‘fault’ of some of these parties. Or maybe not!  Who cares?  At this point the issues are serious and potentially crippling.

It is time state legislatures and Congress accept their duty and do the work required of them. If not they should stand down and let others step up to the plate.

I did not write the following; it was found on the internet. But I feel it is powerful to share at this time:

“There is a difference between giving up and knowing when you have had enough.”

The real question at this time: Have we had enough gridlock?

Rather than arguing who is to blame for a problem, let’s accept a problem exists. Then measure it and understand it well enough to design a solution. Let’s do this together so we have a collective investment in the solution. Then let’s implement the fix.

If there are those who cannot get beyond party label and ideology, remove them and continue our work toward resolution. Together we can make a difference. Together we can invent solutions that work and retain human dignity. All we lack to move in this direction is our will to do so.

I’m ready. Are you?

May 15, 2013

Need To Know

Watched a TV program Sunday afternoon.  Need to know from PBS (www.needtoknow.com) on a ‘mass murder’ at Simon’s Rock College in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The murders occurred in December, 1992, so the documentary report was a 20 year-after topic.

The report showed video of the college campus today. Idyllic and rural. Rolling landscape with hills in the background. Farm buildings converted to academic facilities among bucolic acres. Woods and paths, people walking peacefully in conversation. One wonders if their labors are of inquiry or the patois of daily living. Certainly in this setting it is of inquiry! Academia and all. And setting. The setting – so beautiful and quiet and conducive to ponderment.

I lived in New England for six years. Fresh from California we moved to the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. A stark culture shift for us. My age was 11 and I made it to my 17^th birthday before moving to central New York state. The teenage years are a powerful era in anyone’s life. Formative, personal from non-hormonal to raging beastie! Wonderment at life unfolding. History of place coupled with history of current time. Exploding civil rights movement (this was the 50’s) merging with the troublesome Viet Nam War era (the 60’s). Elementary school leading through junior high school and finally high school. One year short of graduation; acquired that in New York. Then on to college in Illinois.

Formative years indeed. Thinking even then. Feeling, too. Pulling together as best I could a world view of self and ‘other’. Never an easy task. But done just the same. Formative. Yes.

A sense of place became real to me then. The tumbling landscape of Massachusetts, especially the Berkshire Hills. We were 120 miles west of Boston, and 150 miles north of New York City. Fifty miles east of Albany, New York, the state’s capital. Brother in the midst of early adult formation (high school drop out, army reserve duty, moving out of home, tumultuous emotions and scary times). A room of my own. Hills around the house. Woods to explore. Friends and relationships reaching for depths previously unexplored.

What was I to do with my life? What education would I pursue? Civil rights were huge in the news (daily newspaper and two news summaries on TV each day). One TV station with a fuzzy UHF station periodically available. This was before cable networks and news channels. This was well before personal computers.

But the region was rife with educational institutions. Great Barrington was nearby. So too Williamstown and Williams College. Great Barrington holds the American Institute of Economic Research (formerly a foundling of MIT), Bard’s College at Simon’s Rock, and Westfield State University. Not far away is Smith College in North Hampton.

Small towns with public squares, rich public institutions, churches, libraries and colleges. One might even say an environment of inquiry. A place where history dwells large in public consciousness. Respect for history, passage of time, meaning of events, the story of humankind maneuvering through time and life’s experiences. It was so for me. I remember it well.

And so the TV documentary on Simon’s Rock College plucked a mental chord. Feelings returned for place. Feelings sprang up of mind. Of breath and freshness of discovery.

I don’t know if it was a unique moment for me or if it was due to PBS’ special gift of genius. But I was alive from another time many decades past.

Although their report was riveting – a lone gunmen student bought a high powered rifle and ammo clip and rampaged without warning, killing one student and one professor while wounding several others. The story followed the story of the deceased student’s family and father. The inquiry they have followed for more than 20 years wondering why this happened, what could have been done differently to avoid such happenings in the future. None really. The public is in love with guns and freedom to own same. Without awareness of consequences. No that was not the point of the story for me.

I might agree with that point. Or not. No, the point of the story was the feeling it engendered of place and temperament. Of bygone days. Of mind over matter and wonderment.

Thank God for Google! I spent some time digging into  websites of western Massachusetts. I trod over old neighborhoods and landscapes. Of favorite spots and haunts. Where I discovered something about life. About me. And the dreams I formed of where I might go in the future.

Heady times then. Emphasis on the ‘head’.

May 14, 2013

Message for Youth

This is what I want the youth group I’m working with on Fridays to hear, internalize and believe. If this happens the way I hope it to then the kids may take control of their own lives and make for a life long journey of accomplishment and happiness!?  Who knows if this will happen?  I’ll certainly share with you what they say and what glimmers of adoption of the ideas they may offer in the coming weeks and months.

The first message: From Jean Piaget, the Swiss/French psychologist and philosopher who dedicated his life to development of children:

“Are we forming children who are only capable of learning what is already known? Or should we try to develop creative and innovative minds capable of discovery from the preschool age on throughout life?”

Piaget (1896 – 1980) focused on education of children. He developed his Theory of Cognitive Development in which the student was a moving force in the learning process. Teachers formed dissonant ideas and challenged students to discover the relevance of the ideas. Through this process kids learned. The process was to be adapted throughout one’s life.

Piaget greatly believed that each child and generation of children was the saving force within society moving cultures to new boundaries on a continual basis. The opposite theory is stark: teaching by rote by one generation of its own past knowledge stifles understanding, stymies growth of knowledge and produces kids who can retrieve facts but not do anything creative with them. Such a new generation is not self sustaining of their own culture let alone able to create a new generation of thinkers and creators.

The second message is one I used in this blog a few days ago. It comes from www.positiveoutlooksblog.com.

“Some people think that to be strong is to never feel pain. In reality the strongest people are the ones who feel it, understand it, and accept it.”

Understanding life happens as we experience it. The good, bad and ugly occur all the time. No one is immune from the experiences unless they live protected lives behind closed doors and walls. Although they may survive through the efforts of others without feeling the good, bad and ugly, they will not know what they are, what they mean, what they importune for the future. In short they will be short-changed.

Pain instructs us. We learn from it. A hot stove burns the flesh and causes pain. Lesson? Don’t touch the hot stove. Additional lesson? Learn how to determine a stove is hot so we can avoid it. Same with love, hate, poverty, illness, injury…the entire gamut of sensation and emotions found in life. Each plays a role. How do we know what that role is if we do not encounter it?

Yes. The strongest people are those who know pain, feel it, understand it and are able to accept it. So bad is good; likewise good is bad. Discernment teaches the person how to incorporate both in their life and gain from it.

Both of these messages should help young people understand both the world as it really is and what it can become with their help. They have the power to do both. Just knowing that is empowering to the person! If they grasp the entire lesson from these two messages they will be enabled to change the world. Pretty heady stuff, eh?

Even though many youth avoid considering the existence of a ‘higher power’ or god figure, being enabled to take control of one’s own life may give a sense of higher power. If that is true then maybe, just maybe the kids will learn that “God always leads us to where we need to be, not where we want to be.” (powerplugmotivationalquotes.com)

That represents a major developmental step, but a valuable one. We can hope that they are able to eventually take that step on their own.

May 13, 2013

Thought for the Day

It's the weekend again and time for another Thought for the Day.  Here it is:

            “One day someone will be 100% honest with you and will love you forever.

             Don’t give up trying to find them; they’re looking for you.”

                                                                                                ~Anonymous

Well, I didn't give up and he found me!  And I him!  Very happy in spite of our age, finances and long term prospects. Happiness does not rely on the latter; but oh yes, the former!

Think about this aspect of your life. The happiest people I know have matched successfully with their partners for life!

May 11, 2013

Normal or Exceptional?

Maya Angelou is a gem living among us! A poet to be sure, but so much more. A wise person. A fountain of prickly thoughts that call us to a high standard of contemplation.

Here’s one of her prickly thoughts:

            “If you are always trying to be normal you will never know

 how amazing you can be.”

As we watch this season’s The Voice and get ready for the new season of So You Think You Can Dance, Angelou’s quote makes a lot of sense. On The Voice we meet new, young singers of varying artistry and musical genre. During the competition to determine who will prevail as The Voice of 2013, we observe the brilliance of talent each contestant has. They are all very, very good! As the coaches work with each artist is becomes ever clearer that once the creative genius within each of us is let loose we learn that ‘normal’ will never be seen again, at least with that contestant.  These artists bloom before our eyes and put us in awe of their ability to sell a song and its message. Stunning talent. Certainly not normal or usual. Outstanding.

Same with So You Think You Can Dance. If you haven’t witnessed this program you need to. Young dancers who compete to be named the best of the best at the end of the competition. Their movements are breathtaking. The emotion they evoke in their dancing are heart stopping. You sense immediately the breadth and depth of artistry these young performers are capable of. 

The same goes for each of us.  If I seek normal that’s all I’ll be. If I seek more, to be beyond reach, I will rise to the demand. Each of us has more potential and capability than we can possibly imagine. All we need do is reach.

Kurt Vonnegut had this to say about the arts:

“Go into the arts. I’m not kidding. The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.

And Ray Charles shared this with us:

“I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts. Like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood. It was a force already within me when I arrived on the scene. It was a necessity for me – like food or water.”

We take what we have been given and do something with it. It may be of little interest to others, but to us it has value. Doing something with it is a must. No choice involved. Make art. Make music. Appreciate art. Be changed by art. Creation is a wonderful thing to behold.

While you’re at it, support the arts! Insist that art be an important part of every school’s curriculum.

May 10, 2013

Informed or Opinionated?

Bewareofimages.com is a website that shared this thought the other day:

            “Try being informed, not just opinionated.”

Kajing! That hit me square on.

Being informed takes work and persistence. Reading and studying the who – what – how- when of issues takes time and applied logic. Understanding an issue in its fullness helps people adapt to it, use it, avoid its pitfalls, but take advantage of its good parts.

Having an opinion is easy. It does not require homework. It just is. And once the opinion is formed it takes on a life of its own. It finds supporting ideas and concepts that reinforces the opinion. Like an avalanche it plows a path forward through all kinds of situations, people and ideas. Whether tested and proven, or not.

Opinion is important. It is at its least a person’s stab at understanding and idea. What makes it more valuable, however, is testing the opinion. Asking questions about the opinion helps us understand it better and trust that it has validity. Is the opinion based on fact? If so, what facts are these? Where are they found? Are they of reliable source?

Does the opinion feed another idea or family of concepts which have relevance. Of what value is the opinion? Can it weave a broader fabric of understanding? Can we rely on it?

You see the work involved in validating an opinion. This needs to be done by the person holding the opinion. It should not be necessary for another person to do that work. However, if more than one person is to hold the same opinion and be able to discuss it fruitfully, the hard work of testing the opinion must be done by all believers of the opinion.

We tend not to do that work in America. Educational institutions do the work. The researchers, thinkers, writers and academicians do that work. It is part of their professional DNA. Many theologians or ministers do this work as well. They have to if they are to be able to communicate to others who need their ministry.

Trade associations and professional groups tend to do this work as well. It is what gives their specific industry identity and substance. Doctors, surgeons, pharmacists…all share with one another their best techniques and factual understandings so they grow strength of profession – together, not apart.

Facts or opinion? Are we disciplined or sloppy thinkers? Do we do our homework or slack off? Do we have faith that other conversants have done their homework? Or do we assume they are ignorant and lazy? Is that a fair assumption? Probably not!

We do need to test those assumptions from time to time. This keeps us hospitable and open to building relationships with others. So we can converse honestly with them. So we can rely on their statements as factual not opinion.

Dr. Wayne Dyer shares this idea with us:

            “The ultimate ignorance is the rejection of something you know nothing about

             Yet refuse to investigate.”

Sound familiar?

If we all checked our facts, did our investigative homework, fewer arguments would occur. And political dogma would fade away. Oh if only we could witness this change!

We might be willing to resume reading the news!

May 9, 2013