Last year we had a beautiful Oak tree at our Stompground that we decided had to be cut for a road to be put it in. The proper ceremonies were made, the tree was informed and it felt somehow strangely neutral. A woodsman came in so that he could take the wood. When he cut it, it fell immediately. With no outward sign, the center core of the tree was rotten and filled with maggots. The outward beauty of the tree was its last grasp for life putting all of its energy into the leaves and seeds of the tree. There were many small seedlings around it. We tried to move some but the deer got them all. A whole tradition gone in a moment but we were just the catalyst of something more internal that had been lost and weakened the integrity to the point where life was impossible. We said the tree had lost its song. An anthropomorphic statement but it feels as if America has lost her song and her sense of balance and beauty in her diversity and the circle of national consciousnesses that once fed the whole in a dynamic heartbeat of energy, beauty and promise.
I'm not a pessimist. Negative thought is generally defined as thought that has no possibility of adaptation. Positive thought is capable of handling adaptability. With the core values being totally external and imaginary, (cash and economic structures) I don't see a lot of adaptability but I do see that it could happen. The problem with a positive outcome as I see it is too fold. 1. There is a lack of knowledge of what all of these core values are, how they are achieved and what they mean. 2. There is a huge investment in the status quo and the illusory power of the hyper wealthy. When we listen to how they talk about their own children, they have no idea what all of this means for them as a family. I would suggest a return to the values of human competence, growth and consciousness. "Meritocracy" has been polluted by the idea of Utilitarian thought and its concepts of external value. Mill couldn't even justify the value of Wordsworth after his art saved his life. That should have an indication of an intellectual flaw someplace but these folks like to try their theories on real people and see if they work no matter what the dangers may be. REH
_______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [email protected] https://lists.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
