Harry, I read your stuff and try very hard to understand your point of view, but this item does raise the question of what planet you are living on.
Ed Weick > Brian, > > How dare you reprint for us Brouillet's catalogue of misery and then wish > us a Happy New Year! > > But, let me wish you and all the FW - especially Sally - a R'it Guid Noo > Year which might be what the English think is Scottish. > > More seriously, this propaganda speech - short on content, but long on > emotive repetition - I found a delightful illustration of what is wrong > with reform and reformers in today's world. > > I hope she was pretty and exciting, so the audience would have something to > enjoy while they listened. Although, I would imagine the true believers > slurped it up with delight. > > After her correct first paragraph, she went downhill. She even missed the > point of the Indian languages. > > The great strength of English is that it takes into itself whatever > language is useful to understanding. English is a mongrel language, which > is why it is so good - I would say the best. If Navajo or Hopi can be > useful to communication and understanding, then English will embrace them. > > There is too much to comment on, but I did enjoy: > > "Eventually God was eliminated, and we were left with a meaningless, > purposeless Universe." > > I won't sleep tonight now I know the universe is meaningless and purposeless. > > Then there is: "The dominant culture's worldview promotes > disconnection . . . . . . " > > I thought it was her kind of people that were disconnecting with their > opposition to free trade. Trade is the most basic of connections between > people. > > She continues: > > "We realize that our planet is under attack, our oceans are dying, the > rivers are being poisoned, our forests are being destroyed, millions of > people are suffering from hunger and terrible exploitation, species are > going extinct every moment. > > "Our oceans are dying." That's nonsense - our oceans are not dying. This > nonsense about the fragility of the earth is almost too much to bear. The > earth was there before we were and will be there after we are gone - some > kind of fragility. > > "The rivers are being poisoned." Since we belatedly realized you shouldn't > dump garbage in our lakes and rivers, we have been changing things for the > better. Where there is trouble in usually in conflicting uses of a natural > resource - such as the Arctic Refuge. > > "Our forests are being destroyed." Every year since the mid 1920's, the > annual Forestry wood count has gone up. Each year we have more wood than we > had before. Our forests are not being destroyed. They have increasing > steadily for 80 years. > > "Millions of people are suffering from hunger and terrible exploitation." > As they were last year, the last decade, the last century. The question is > my inevitable "Why?" > > Well, she answered herself. > > "A tiny percentage of people hold most of the world's land and are the > greatest cause of abject poverty." > > Now she knows, why doesn't she stop complaining about corporations and do > something about landholding? > > "Species are going extinct every moment." Omigawd! Species have been going > extinct since the beginning of life on earth. Probably the very first thing > that happened after life began, was the extinction of a species. It seems > likely that the total number of species at any one time is about > 10,000,000. That's a guess, as is everything else in this area. Species die > and species are born. This is nature's natural selection process > continually to improve the existing crop. > > She did a good job with humanity as we can live almost anywhere, eat almost > anything, procreate whenever we wish, and change ourselves, or the > environment to fit practically any circumstance. > > This is a tough act for other creatures to follow, but they must and > overwhelmingly they are succeeding. An average urban acre is home to 50,000 > spiders. These may not be so attractive as a robin, or a thrush - but any > preference is in your mind. It has nothing to do with nature, which has no > preference. > > I've commented rather more than I intended, but I'm afraid it is typical of > the kind of mindless babble that permeates the ranks of those who should be > putting things right instead of talking inflammatory nonsense. > > Putting things right requires thought. Carol's diatribe doesn't initiate a > process of thinking things through. It presents a ready made catalog of > frightening problems, mostly imaginary but designed to go down well with > the masses. > > Harry > ____________________________________ > > Brian wrote: > > >Keith Hudson uses an historical perspective to defend his perception of > >reality. Therefore he will agree that in most of the western world women > >have, only very recently, been allowed to call themselves 'persons' re > >voting, participating in public affairs, etc. I offer the following essay > >as a perspective that includes their voices: > > > >> This is a speech written for The Other Economic Summit (June '97). > >> Please feel free to post or reprint in whole or in part. (This site > >> employs Style Sheets so you also need to download CCstyle.css.txt, > >> rename it "CCstyle.css", and include it where you put this file.) > >> > >> > >>The Feminist Perspective > >>by Carol Brouillet > >>The word define, literally means to draw a line around something -- to > >>separate a part of reality from the whole. At the Fetzer Institute, > >>quantum physicists met with Navajo, Hopi and other indigenous people to > >>discover that native languages were able to convey the nature of quantum > >>realities much better than English or French. In the structure of our > >>language, we separate subject and object. In Navajo or Hopi the > >>separation does not exist, everything is in relationship. The foundation > >>of the aboriginal cultures includes a reverence for the sacred dimension > >>of life, our deep interconnection with the Earth, the Cosmos, and all > >>living things and it is reflected in the language itself. > >>Western Civilization has tried to separate spirit from matter. First > >>dualism, then came the idea of God as the machine maker, and a mechanical > >>worldview which put man above all else -- the alpha and omega of > >>creation. Eventually God was eliminated, and we were left with a > >>meaningless, purposeless Universe. Only recently have scientists begun to > >>recognize and validate what indigenous cultures have been saying for > >>countless millennia, that we cannot separate subject from object, we are > >>all connected. Still there seems to be a jetlag between insights and > >>institutions. Powerful illusions have been maintained by an extraordinary > >>propaganda machine without which our institutions, and our governments > >>would crumble. > >>We realize that our planet is under attack, our oceans are dying, the > >>rivers are being poisoned, our forests are being destroyed, millions of > >>people are suffering from hunger and terrible exploitation, species are > >>going extinct every moment. How can we reverse this onslaught, this wave > >>of destruction? How can we fortify the people and lifeforms that remain? > >>First we must recognize the root causes of the host of maladies that are > >>afflicting humanity and the Earth. The dominant culture's worldview > >>promotes disconnection, encourages specialization, neglects a holistic > >>view of ourselves and our relationship to the world. This worldview > >>amplifies and supports hierarchical systems, the control and exploitation > >>of people, natural resources, as well as other lifeforms. It does not > >>recognize the sacredness of life, or the value of living ecosystems, > >>people, or anything that cannot be measured and monetized. The global > >>economy is absolutely blind to the webs of interdependence between all > >>living things and our mother planet. It's a systemic problem which has > >>gotten progressively worse. > >>It's easy to blame everything on the rapacious greed of politicians or > >>CEO's who are earning obscene amounts of money while laying off employees > >>and destroying the environment, but the system which molds their behavior > >>must also be examined. In the past two decades, merger mania has > >>dramatically restructured industry, resulting in the monopolization and > >>vertical integration of large sections of the economy by fewer and fewer > >>transnational corporations. There was a time when companies expressed > >>concern towards their employees, when loyal, hard-working employees > >>expected to keep their jobs and get a pension when they retired. > >>Enlightened presidents and executive directors actually tried to treat > >>their employees well and behave in a socially responsible manner. Many of > >>those companies have been shut down and the goods they once produced are > >>now being produced in Third World countries where military dictatorships > >>keep wages low and drop environmental standards. The most socially > >>responsible CEO's lost their positions, or their companies became the > >>targets of hostile takeovers, the corporate raiders loot pension funds, > >>liquidate the company resources for short term gains. Now, the tyranny of > >>the bottom line means -- that it is almost impossible for CEO's to behave > >>in a socially responsible way. The financial pressure demands that they > >>externalize costs and increase profits or lose their positions or their > >>companies. Unenlightened CEO's, who do not mind downsizing, are removed > >>if they do not do it fast enough, and are found to be "underperforming " > >>by Wall Street standards. In David Korten's book When Corporations Rule > >>the World, there are examples of the CEO's of the largest corporations, > >>GM, American Express, IBM, Westinghouse, being axed by an extractive > >>financial system. > >>Should we blame the managers of investment funds who wield this power? Or > >>are the investors to blame for their collective blindness and greed? We > >>need to look at the misconceptions and emotions which have created and > >>maintain the dominant institutions which continue to "rule" and control > >>the world. The fictitious entities known as corporations which are > >>totalitarian and have rewritten the laws to gain immortality and rights > >>over nations, states, communities and individuals. There is a book called > >>Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds, first > >>published in 1841 which chronicles in the first hundred pages those times > >>when nations were caught up in speculative frenzies, the tulipmania in > >>Holland in the 1600's, France and England with the South Sea Bubbles, and > >>Mississippi Schemes in the 1700's. Everyone is familiar with the Wall > >>Street Crash of 1929, but I think these historical speculative bouts were > >>relatively mild compared to the speculative frenzy which is happening at > >>this very moment. > >>Bernard Lietaer, who is writing a book called The Future of Money: Beyond > >>Greed and Scarcity, says that our official monetary system has almost > >>nothing to do with the real economy. The volume of currency exchanged on > >>the global level is $1.3 trillion per day. This is 30 times more than the > >>daily GDP of all of the developed countries together. Of that, only 2 or > >>3 % has to do with real trade or investment; the remainder takes place in > >>the speculative global cyber-casino. He sees the possibility of a crash > >>as about 50/50 over the next 5 or 10 years. Many people, including me, > >>say it's 100 percent. George Soros, who has made a fortune speculating in > >>currencies says, "Instability is cumulative, so the eventual breakdown of > >>freely floating exchanges is virtually assured." Joel Kurtzman, ex-editor > >>of the Harvard Business Review, entitles his latest book: The Death of > >>Money and forecasts an imminent collapse. Bernard elaborates that if > >>there were a crisis, and if all the Central Banks were to agree to work > >>together (which they never do) and if they were to use all their reserves > >>(which is another thing that never happens) they have the funds to > >>control only half the volume of a normal day of trading. In a crisis day, > >>that volume could easily double or triple, and the total Central Bank > >>reserves would last two or three hours. In 1929, the stock market > >>crashed, but the gold standard held. The monetary system held. Here, we > >>are dealing with something that's more fundamental. Bernard adds, "The > >>only precedent I know of is the Roman Empire collapse, which ended Roman > >>currency. That was, of course, at a time when it took about a century and > >>a half for the breakdown to spread through the empire; now it would take > >>a few hours." > >>What is holding the system together? And when it does collapse, what will > >>replace it? Each of us, consciously or unconsciously is playing a role in > >>this. What we believe, what we do with our money, our time, either > >>strengthens the dominant belief systems and institutions or weakens them > >>and draws strength to the creation of new belief systems and alternative > >>institutions. > >>We are living in an extraordinary time of chaos and paradox, where all > >>sorts of possibilities are opening up. The vast majority of people are > >>losing faith in institutions and trying to improve their lives in > >>countless ways. There are heretics within governments, corporations, > >>educational institutions. Non-profit organizations continue to blossom > >>and grow. There has never been a better time to organize. The New Age > >>movement needs to be grounded. The hard core political activists could > >>benefit from consciousness raising. The environmental movement needs to > >>address the issues of class, race and gender. This is happening, as > >>people come together, learn from one another, and build coalitions. > >>We recognize that all our issues are interrelated, that we are more alike > >>than different in our common goals -- peace, justice, a future for our > >>children, a healthy planet and healthy environments for all living > >>things. It is also a time of great personal transformation, our > >>worldviews are continually challenged by new information. As we become > >>more aware of the consequences of our collective actions, it becomes > >>harder and harder to live a "normal" life because to live in adherence > >>with our values, we must change our living patterns, and change the most > >>basic systems upon which we depend. How we obtain the food we eat, the > >>clothes we wear, our shelter, our means of transportation, how we educate > >>our children, take on greater meaning and become political acts, > >>broadcasting our belief system and our values. This cannot happen > >>overnight, so each of us must experience the contradictions, paradoxes of > >>transformation which we are witnessing in the world today. > >>Aung Sung Suu Kyi wrote: "It is not power that corrupts, but fear -- fear > >>of losing power and fear of the scourge of those who wield it." This fear > >>corrupts politicians and immobilizes the vast majority. Fear is used, > >>created, to justify all military activities, the ever expanding security > >>forces that governments use to oppress their people, and the expanding > >>prison industry. Anything we do to add to that level of fear, that > >>immobilizes people and reduces their capacity to respond in a creative, > >>positive way can be harmful. Academia and the media play a major role in > >>promoting the myths which feed fears and create the image of a dangerous > >>world of scarce resources where overpopulation threatens us with extinction. > >>Is the world dangerous? Are people dangerous? The world would be a much > >>safer place without armies and police to "protect" us. Imagine if the > >>military budget and the money spent on police and prisons were spent on > >>health, education, housing, clean water. The fears are created to > >>"control" and "exploit" people. > >>Look at the scarce resource myth promoted by Malthus before we were born. > >>"Resources are scarce; we must compete for them in order to survive. They > >>are getting scarcer and scarcer all the time as the population grows and > >>there is less land, less water, less fish in the sea." Well, if Malthus > >>had said, "Resources are not scarce; there is plenty for everybody, so > >>long as we share." he would probably not have become famous, his ideas > >>would have served no useful purpose for the ruling class -- but if the > >>idea that the Earth has abundant resources, if they are equitably shared > >>had prevailed, I don't think we would have the disparity between the rich > >>and the poor that we have now. Look at the distribution of wealth. There > >>is plenty of money, and yet there is no money for meeting the basic needs > >>of the vast majority. While the number of billionaires increase and the > >>transnational corporation's economies grow to dwarf those of countries, > >>more and more people are being denied their rights to live and support > >>themselves and their families. > >>Overconsumption is surely as threatening, if not more threatening, than > >>overpopulation, but the corporate media aren't going to promote the idea > >>of voluntary simplicity. It's obscene that 20% of the world is consuming > >>more than 70% of the world's energy while the remaining three-quarters > >>consume less than 30%. The closer we look at those numbers, the worse it > >>looks -- two billion people have no access to electricity. Blame the > >>world's problems on those least able to defend themselves has been the > >>favored tactic of the rich and powerful. > >>When the Europeans first began to colonize the rest of the world, they > >>used force. In order to get people to work for them, they had to drive > >>people off the land. The same techniques have been used again and again > >>throughout the world. A tiny percentage of people hold most of the > >>world's land and are the greatest cause of abject poverty. Forced into > >>cities or wage slavery, torn from their cultures, women have had ever > >>larger families. Access to land, equality, education and the availability > >>of family planning would reduce birthrates dramatically. One percent of > >>the world's wealth is held by women, and most of the world's work is done > >>by women, whether they are paid or not. Truly there is enough to meet > >>everyone's needs, but there will never be enough to satisfy the greed of > >>the few. > >>Buckminster Fuller created a game called "The World Game." You can play > >>it with between 50 and 200 people on a board the size of a basketball > >>court, which represents the world. Each person is given the actual > >>resources available in the part of the world that he represents, but > >>instead of trying to take over the world, the object of the game is to > >>solve the world's problems. The illuminating thing about the game is that > >>the problems are very solvable, if people simply play cooperatively. It > >>just shows that in the real world, what we lack are not resources, but > >>the political will to put aside narrow personal interests and act on > >>behalf of the greater good. > >>In the film, Who's Counting? Marilyn Waring on Sex, Lies & Global > >>Economics, Marilyn discovers the origins of the U.N. Systems of National > >>Accounts, a system imposed upon every country that joins the U.N. and > >>hopes to get a loan from the World Bank or the International Monetary > >>Fund. The system was based upon a pamphlet by John Maynard Keynes and > >>Richard Stone entitled "The British System of National Accounts and How > >>to Pay for the War." This system enables the global elites to finance > >>their militaries. Indeed it is in the economic interest of the major > >>powers, who earn so much from their arms deals, that there is always a > >>war going on somewhere. The system does not recognize the value of peace, > >>an intact ecosystem, or the unpaid labor of women. Monetary transactions > >>are measured and deemed of the greatest importance, no matter how > >>devastating their effects are. It does not see anything of unquantifiable > >>value -- life, people, the Earth; it only sees that which it measures -- > >>money. The forests, the lungs of our planet, our worthless according to > >>this system, unless they are chopped down and sold as timber. > >>By elevating money to the point where everything else may be sacrificed > >>to obtain it, by confusing money with real wealth, our civilization is > >>rushing to destroy itself. Toynbee chronicles the rise and fall of > >>civilizations, one feature that they have in common is the extreme > >>concentration of wealth and power, and ecological collapse. The rich have > >>never been richer nor the poor poorer. Agribusiness has meant a loss of > >>90% of the edible plant species since the turn of the century; it rivals > >>the military as far as the devastation that it has wreaked upon all > >>arable lands. Despite the obvious needs of the vast majority of humanity, > >>money is being siphoned from the poor to the rich. Through the IMF and > >>the World Bank, the money continues to flow to the wealthy countries, in > >>1994 net payments to the US from "developing" countries reached $2 > >>billion. The Bretton Woods Institutions force countries to open > >>themselves to foreign investment, devalue their currencies, switch from > >>growing food for local consumption to growing export crops. These > >>policies are as devastating as war and just as deadly. If the children > >>who starve quietly in their homes as a result of World Bank policies were > >>taken out into their village squares or city parks and shot, the world > >>would be horrified. But the catastrophic suffering remains invisible to > >>those who focus their attention on making money, and feel no connection > >>to people outside of their class and culture. As cancer, unchecked > >>consumes its host; the world's parasites continue to feast upon the world > >>oblivious to the suffering of the bulk of humanity and the stresses on > >>our mutual life support system, the planet. Without water, food, > >>friendship, love, health, all the money, gold, toys become worthless baubles. > >>The old system has relied upon military force and control to maintain the > >>wealth and privilege of the ruling elite. Weapons, misinformation, and > >>money are the tools this system has relied upon. By beating the drum and > >>blaming the world's ills on overpopulation, it subtly encourages the idea > >>that masses of people are expendable, institutionally it says that the > >>lives in industrialized nations are worth more than those in "developing" > >>nations and within wealthy countries the rich are idolized and society's > >>ills blamed on the poor. Wherever we can, we must challenge military > >>expenditures, expanding "security and prison systems." We must nurture > >>all efforts towards non-violent conflict resolution. We need to > >>institutionalize a global minimum wage and a maximum wage. We should > >>respect and honor people for their integrity, character, wisdom and gifts > >>to society, as opposed to the amount of wealth they can extract from > >>society. We should also recognize the gifts we have received from the > >>Earth and recognize our responsibility to future generations to safeguard > >>their living heritage. > >>We must speak "truth" to power and challenge the misinformation which is > >>broadcast by the major media. For example -- the growth illusion, the GDP > >>myth; GDP is more indicative of the rape and exploitation of resources in > >>a country than the health and well-being of its people or ecosystems. We > >>need new indicators which measure what really matters -- our health, the > >>health of the environment, quality of life. the disparity between the > >>rich and the poor. We must support the alternative media, which is not > >>dominated by corporate or government interests and tries to speak for > >>those whose voices need to be heard. > >>I just read 3 books by Makoto Shichida who has studied children in Japan > >>for decades and specializes in developing courses for preschoolers and > >>mentally retarded children. He has written over 50 books, including > >>Babies are Geniuses and Right Brain Education in Infancy -- Theory and > >>Practice. His thesis, basically, is that geniuses are people who use both > >>sides of their brains. Generally, in the west, we only give attention to > >>the abilities of the left side of the brain, but it is the right side > >>that should be nurtured in its most formative years. Right brain > >>abilities include mathematical calculating ability, photographic memory, > >>image visualization, the ability to absorb vast quantities of information > >>and make sense of it, and what is referred to as extra-sensory > >>perception, telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition. Imagine how different > >>the world would be, if every baby born were loved, nurtured and given the > >>opportunity to develop all their abilities, mental, spiritual and > >>physical. The well being of our infants and children worldwide should be > >>at the top of our priority list, as a species!! Therein lies the hope of > >>humanity and the world. A few enlightened people aren't going to turn our > >>situation around; its time for collective enlightenment. The dominant > >>worldview is a dying worldview; the holistic, cooperative, worldview is > >>being born, the youngest are the quickest to grasp these truths, when > >>they are given the opportunity. > >>Hilka Pietela, Hazel Henderson see that the real economy is for the most > >>part "invisible" to those blind "economists" who are mainly hired by the > >>rich to serve "their" agendas. The life support system of the planet, the > >>warming rays of our sun, these "gifts" form the foundation of the human > >>economy upon which everything else depends. The unpaid work of women, the > >>voluntary networks of cooperation and community are also a fundamental > >>vital chunk of the real economy. On top of that, there is the protected > >>sector which provides many basic services, and is guided by official > >>means for domestic markets, food, construction,...The smallest part of > >>the economy, the icing, so to speak, is the "global economy" which > >>includes large scale production for export, and to compete with imports. > >>This gets most of the attention, and the transnational corporations that > >>dominate world trade get most of the profits, employing less than 1/3 of > >>1% of the world's population. Pietela finds that the most fatal > >>shortcoming of the prevailing economics is that it does not distinguish > >>the cultivation economy from industrial production. This effort to > >>control, and extract value from living nature is taking a great toll on > >>people and our world. > >>I have a T-shirt with a Dollar bill on it which clearly states- Warning! > >>Use of this product may cause apathy, laziness, selfishness, ignorance, > >>loss of identity, greed... environmental destruction, racial tension, > >>murder, war, and impoverishment for others. Continuous and excessive use > >>could render a permanent state of indifference to the welfare of those > >>around you. Use at your own risk! > >>I think we should make little warning labels and stick them on our cash. > >>We need to shatter a few illusions about money -- who creates it, who > >>benefits from its use and who suffers. We need to remind people that our > >>health, our relationships, the well-being of our communities, the health > >>of our eco-systems, economic justice, world peace, and our happiness are > >>more important than our bank balance. > >>Bankers create money out of thin air and loan it to governments and > >>others at interest, but they don't create the interest, so it is never > >>possible to pay off all the debts. Money is a tool of empire; it allows > >>the flow of resources from the poor to the rich. It used to be called > >>usury and was condemned by all the world's religions, but when the > >>Catholic Church became the largest landowner, it figured out how to break > >>the old taboo. > >>Helena Norberge-Hodge has chronicled in her film and book -- Ancient > >>Futures how a nonmonetized culture, in Ladahk, rich in Buddhist spiritual > >>traditions, with an intricate system of family and social ties, where > >>ninety percent of the land was evenly distributed amongst families, > >>people lived ecologically and sustainably. Almost everyone knew how to > >>build a house and meet all of their basic needs. Money, a road to India, > >>tourism have been disastrous for the culture, creating the same problems > >>we find in industrialized societies. There are lessons to be learned > >>here, to reverse this process and point our culture towards a more > >>sustainable, happier existence. > >>Suppose we create a different kind of money, with a different dynamic, > >>based upon that which we value -- to encourage healthy relationships, > >>build community, and restore the environment. We could write those values > >>directly on the money to raise awareness and remind people of what is > >>important. This is what Paul Glover in Ithaca, New York and others have > >>done. Not only does local currency help build community and prevent > >>resources from being drained away by transnational corporations, it is a > >>tool to raise consciousness, to promote meaningful exchanges, and help > >>reweave the bonds of community. Community comes from words meaning "the > >>free exchange of gifts." In ideal societies, there is no need for money > >>because people exchange their gifts freely. We must remember that money > >>is simply a tool, it can be impersonal, anonymous, destructive or we > >>could redesign it to encourage recognition of our deepest values and to > >>help build a world based upon respect and healthy relationships between > >>all people. > >>There is a concerted effort, at the moment, by the rich, to make sure > >>that this doesn't happen. It's called the Multilateral Agreement on > >>Investment, and if the rich countries agree, the poorer countries might > >>be forced to sign on to an elimination of all barriers on foreign > >>investment. It gives all rights to capital, and removes the ability of > >>communities, states, sovereign nations to demand some sort of > >>accountability from "investors." As the World Trade Organization became a > >>Bill of Rights for corporations, this international agreement could > >>become a bill of rights for the very rich, at the expense of all > >>governments, people, and the environment. The only good thing about it is > >>that if any politician votes for it then you know he or she is a > >>prostitute working for monied interests with no regards for their > >>constituency; the bad thing is that if it does go through, to undo it > >>would take at least 15 years, so by the time you get rid of the > >>politicians that passed it, the others won't be able to do much about it. > >>So we need to launch a public education campaign about this, and why not > >>teach people about the monetary system at the same time? Create community > >>currencies, print the values you wish to strengthen and encourage on your > >>bills and point out how "the other monetary system" is hell bent on > >>destroying those things. > >>Explaining the monetary system to most folks is not easy. It shatters too > >>many belief systems that have been held for a long time. Yes! The Journal > >>of Positive Futures, latest issue is on the subject of money and local > >>currencies with great articles by David Korten on the difference between > >>money and real wealth and Bernard Lietaer whom I've quoted. It's a great > >>consciousness raising tool for grown-ups. It's much easier to explain > >>this to first graders, who don't have to unlearn so much and quickly > >>grasp the main ideas. In one sentence -- our current monetary system > >>concentrates wealth and power destroying the Earth in the process; we > >>need to create a new system that redistributes wealth and power, healing > >>the Earth in the process. > >>As our old system is dependent upon fear, greed, military force, > >>misinformation, the new system should be based upon love, respect, > >>compassion, cooperation, beauty and truth. The old system will topple > >>because it is so disconnected from the real world, the real economy. The > >>new system will be born out of recognition for what people value in their > >>communities, and how they organize and cooperate to meet their > >>community's needs; their will be as many systems as there are > >>communities, richly diverse. The shared values of different communities > >>will give rise to regional or bioregional currencies. Let us create a > >>system that relies upon cooperation and trust to meet the needs of all > >>people and improve the health of the ecosystem upon which all life > >>depends. The old system relied on "fear" to control others. Let us create > >>a system which "nurtures" people and life and actively encourages diversity. > >>It is time to practice cooperation, respect and love in all areas. My > >>husband and I took a class in "building equality" in relationships. Our > >>instructor, Bill Moyer, explained to us that in his work with men who had > >>been violent towards their wives, he had discovered that only 3% of the > >>violence was physical, 45% was verbal and the rest was psychological. The > >>difference between most people and violent guys was that 3% area. He > >>discovered that the men always felt that they were the victims when they > >>attacked their spouses -- because their wives had threatened their > >>self-image or their worldview. (This applies to government behavior, as > >>well.) We are conditioned by society to "win" arguments, to "dominate," > >>to have the last word, to have our opinions prevail. We are not generally > >>taught that our perception of ourselves is not dependent upon other > >>people's opinions or that if we actively listen to, and respect one > >>another, we will learn from one another. We generally unconsciously start > >>debating and defending our views, controlling and dominating others. The > >>class helped my husband and I become aware of the way we communicated > >>with each other, as well as our interactions within different groups, but > >>where I really felt the difference was in my relationship with my > >>children. It is so easy to adopt "control" mode with 3 little boys who > >>want to go off in 3 different directions. It is a daily challenge for me > >>to transform myself, to listen, to develop cooperative patterns within my > >>home. Now I realize that they are my teachers, and our lifelong learning > >>adventure is a cooperative one. > >>The old system depended on "experts" who imposed their ideas upon the > >>many. Let us actively encourage the participation of all, so that we > >>might learn from one another and go from a "smart" culture to a "wisdom" > >>culture. > >>Let us nurture respect in all of our relationships and organizations. Let > >>us recognize that our own well-being cannot be separated from the > >>well-being of all people. > > > > > >Happy New Year, > >Brian McAndrews > > > ****************************** > Harry Pollard > Henry George School of LA > Box 655 > Tujunga CA 91042 > Tel: (818) 352-4141 > Fax: (818) 353-2242 > ******************************* > >
