While the "vision" for all those changes may have been laid out from
"up above" - actual change does only occur bottom up (from the
people). I'm a big proponent of the United States having a "vision"
(which it does not at this time) - then the people here would have a
common goal they are working towards. Goverment can't, by itself,
effect change. It can inspire, direct, request change - but with what
does goverment "effect" the change? Through the people. Bottom's up.
Shalom
David Lind
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Bruce King wrote:
> I'm all for positive, bottom-up change. But I think it's an
> overstatement to suggest, as Walter put it, that "ALL REAL CHANGE IS
> ONLY ACCOMPLISHED BOTTOM-UP".
>
> Sometimes, leadership from the top matters. FDR and his New Deal
> effected real, positive change. Hitler's Nazism effected real, negative
> change. LBJ certainly had a huge effect on the lives of millions, in
> both positive and negative ways.
>
> Sometimes, programs matter. Social Security has dramatically reduced
> poverty. Head Start has significantly improved the lives of millions of
> poor children.
>
> I suppose one could argue that the New Deal, Nazism, Social Security and
> Head Start were somehow "bottom up" changes, since they obviously
> reflected the needs, desires and fears of ordinary individuals. But
> they also obviously were affected fundamentally by leadership. Nazism
> might be understandable in light of the economic problems facing Germany
> before WWII. But it was not inevitable. Same for the New Deal, and
> many other important social initiatives. Different leaders could have
> taken their nations in different directions.
>
> Pirsig (or, more precisely, the narrator in ZAMM) emphasizes the role of
> the individual. This is fine, to the extent that it encourages us to
> take personal responsibility for improving ourselves. But it's wrong,
> to the extent that it discourages us from trying to improve society --
> and to the extent that it denies the importance of quality leadership in
> moving societies toward higher social quality.
>
> Bruce
>
>
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