Tag Archives: #values

The First Principle

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If we are to regain our self-confidence with the vision and values of the founders, it would be useful to employ means that can actually lead to the goals we seek.  Let’s proceed then with careful deliberation rather than emotion and ego.

No American responds well to abuse, verbal or otherwise.  Nothing will subvert our purpose more quickly than a combative attitude that alienates the very people we need to win over.

Will we allow our differences to tear us apart?

We have choices.  We can choose to join forces to tackle the practical problems that threaten the safety and security of our communities.  We can choose to distinguish ourselves with common decency and cooperation in the interests of a well-reasoned and purposeful future.

It is only in dependable personal relationships tasked with essential responsibilities that we can truly come to know and influence one another.

We live in an era of dangerous instability.   It is a time to refrain from antagonistic words; a time to refocus our creative energy away from the dysfunction of partisan politics, so to secure the essential needs of our local communities.

I have described three essential elements that make community possible – trust, dependability, and constructive action.  These elements will only be found in communities where neighbors rise above their differences to serve a higher purpose.  And, for a self-respecting people, purpose must be something more than “survival.”

As regular readers know, I have chosen the term “constructive action” to describe the positive means by which we can realistically engage with one another and progress.  And, I have explained why a shared sense of purpose is helpful in guiding constructive action.

Shared purpose, I wrote, is a lens through which a community can bring the challenges of necessity into focus, and coordinate the efforts of diverse personalities.  Purpose can provide a standard by which to determine priorities and judge progress.

So, how can we understand constructive action?

Constructive action is based on the refusal to do harm.  It is action taken in a spirit of respect and kindness, a spirit founded upon the refusal to do violence to fellow citizens.

The principle here is the refusal to hurt – by impatience, dishonesty, hatred, or wishing ill of anybody.

I submit to you that this is the essential first principle upon which all other principles, values, and purposes depend.

Please do not misinterpret constructive action as merely a negative state of harmlessness. Quite the contrary, while constructive action in its purest form attempts to treat even the evil-doer with grace, it by no means assists the evil-doer in doing wrong or tolerates wrong-doing in any way.

The state of constructive action requires that we resist what is wrong and disassociate ourselves from it even if doing so antagonizes the wrong-doer.

There is a close relationship between the positive spirit of kindness, respect, and trustworthiness that characterizes constructive action and the moral integrity of the civil society we wish to build.  As means and ends, the two are inseparable.

Constructive action is the means.  Unity of purpose, grounded in the truthfulness of moral integrity, is the end.

Western political thinking has always considered means to be either an abstraction of tactics or simply the character of social and political machinery.  In both cases means are considered only in their service to the goals of particular political interests.

We will approach our understanding of means in quite a different way, replacing end-serving goals with an end-creating purpose.

Such an approach to means is necessary if we seek to apply traditional American values to rapidly changing circumstances.

This is the reason for my insistence on the meaningful engagement of all Americans in this endeavor, despite our vast diversity.

A vital and energetic future can only be realized by leveraging our differences in knowledge, skills, perspectives.  And, the closer we work together the greater our opportunity to influence, attract and inspire.

Again, we have clear choices to make.  Either we choose to recover and refine the fundamental meaning of the American Idea, or we can walk away forever from the safety, stability, and purpose of a future we can trust and believe in.

Tom

Next week: The Second Amendment, Then and Now.

A note to regular readers:  Your ideas, views, and constructive feedback have been immensely helpful to me, especially on the Facebook page.  This project would be impossible without you.  To receive alerts by email you may click on “Follow” on the right side of this page.

Security and the Use of Force

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I will address two considerations involving the potential use of force in defending ourselves.  The first is related to the security of our families and communities, the topic of recent blog posts. The second relates to our ultimate purpose, the effective means by which the foundations of the American Republic can be secured and strengthened.

I will consider the first in this post and the second in the coming weeks.

I have mentioned several security issues that will concern us if the current deterioration of the economy and social order continues.  While food security may be the most likely serious threat to a community, the most unpredictable danger will be the unstable individual or group approaching from outside.

Whether unexpected visitors might be psychopathic, motivated by religious or political ideology, or simply in a state of desperate need, may not be immediately apparent.

We would do well to deal with visitors in a respectful and humane manner, while remaining cautious and defensive.  The potential danger is real.  We must respond judiciously and communicate clearly, while summoning fellow community members for assistance.

In my view, we would also do well to remain sensitive to any positive value that might be presenting itself.  New faces will sometimes come to us with good character and valuable skills.

Graceful hospitality will always set the right tone, even if a visit needs to be kept brief.  Some of us have better verbal skills than others, or possess more disarming personalities.  Others may have weapons training or know martial arts.

An effective set of tools is offered by Target Focus Training (TFT), which includes physical skills for personal defense against lethal weapons.

If we keep weapons in the home we must manage them with utmost care.  Any weapon is an ever-present liability when kept in close proximity to our families.  Emotions can run high when we experience hardship.  As we all know, a gun can easily kill a loved one, even without an external threat.

In addition to first aid training, which is essential, each of us can gain conflict management and other defensive skills, both verbal and combative.  We would be well-advised to prepare ourselves well in advance.  A list of self-determined guidelines and personal thresholds for action can be memorized in preparation for the unexpected.

To the extent possible, our conscious purpose should not only include safety and survival, but also the ultimate concern for which we are living.

Courage is a priceless virtue.  Not the courage to fight, but the courage to care.  It takes a brave heart to make peace, but compassion must be buttressed by backbone.

Women sometimes embrace this balance with natural equanimity, but the presence of danger must never be forgotten.

Approaching difficult encounters with a positive attitude is an ability that can save lives.  This can make the difference between friendship and enmity, between collaboration and catastrophe.

We have entered a long crisis.  People are coming unhinged.  We will often encounter the walking-wounded, and danger will not always be obvious.

We will meet good people who have lost hope or are grieving deeply.  They may appear abrupt or angry at first.  We may not be sure who or what they are, but will soon come to realize that we need not fear them.

Each of us is wounded in some way.

I think most of us understand that this is not about being nice or even socially responsible.  This is about treating one another with mutual respect as Americans.  It is about reconstructing the United States as the kind of country we want to live in – one soul at a time.

It all comes down to purpose: Security requires preparedness; rebuilding the foundations requires grace.

We cannot afford to live in a state of siege behind walls that isolate us and appear hostile to others.  To give in to fear and retreat into defensive enclaves of survivalists would be to admit defeat.

Let us rather win over the confused, heal the wounded, and welcome the returning prodigal friend.  This is the true path to security.

Mature leadership greets each day with an open heart and an inclusive vision.

Tom

Next week:  A Severe Choice

 

Adversity…

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Lightning 5 adversity

“Adversity is like a strong wind.  It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn, so that afterward we see ourselves as we really are, and not merely as we might like to be.”

–Arthur Golden

Doing the impossible…

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Leaves 3

“There is nothing wrong with America that faith, love of freedom, intelligence, and the energy of her citizens cannot cure.”

–Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

–Francis of Assisi

 

Walking the Talk

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Big corporations often seem to behave with disregard for the humanity of citizens and community.  Geared to function with a singular profit-making intensity that is resistant to compromise, these are not human creatures.

Living with a dominant corporate culture, we find ourselves perceived as economic units, “consumers” pressed into service by a materialist mindset.

And so we have been isolated from one another, forced apart by social forces that are difficult to overcome.  The personal experience of meaning and interconnectedness that civil society depends upon has evaporated.

Americans need not submit to such a sorry destiny.

Independence is always relative, but it is an attitude and a choice.  Self-sufficiency could actually become a matter of life or death.  It can mean food security or financial stability or being a good parent.  Its’ meaning will take on new dimensions when crises strike.  But, there is much more to it than survival.

It is in community and in the quality of our active relationships that we form the matrix of a free society.  Freedom is realized in serving a principled purpose, and in the vitality of lives that are engaged and in motion.

It is in productive interaction with others that ideas are shared and problem-solving is most effective.  In trustworthy relationships, self-sufficiency gains strength and dependability.

But, are we willing to take this on?

We might not want to put up with community.  A few try to avoid it all together.  But, it is impossible to completely ignore it – unless we take snowshoes, an axe and a rifle, and walk into the wilderness.

I know how attractive solitude can be.  I also know that it would deny me the opportunity to grow as an individual, as well as the honor and adventure of dedication to the country I love.

Historically, the basic building blocks of the American Republic have been communities. And, the bonds that held everything together were the personal relationships that make communities work.

Communities are formed by the inspiration and determination of individuals and families, interwoven into mutually supportive networks, and networks of networks.  And, no, it will not be easy to regain what came to us so naturally in the past.

Let me state again, however, that the ultimate visionary force can only be that loyalty to the American Idea that welcomes diversity and rejects hostile divisiveness.

Americans are accustomed to contentious politics and unconstrained partisanship.  There will always be value in the clash of differing opinions.  However, we have entered a period of instability and potential danger.  It is time to rise above our differences in the interests of ensuring the balance and cohesion of the Republic.

We face the instability of extraordinary complexity, deteriorating infrastructure, and institutions that are trapped in the past.  Things are not going to work the way we think they should, and there will be no one to resolve the problems except ourselves.

If we are to rebuild a society in which the foolishness of the past is not repeated, we must think constructively about the qualities and principles that are needed.  Generosity and good will are essential human virtues.  We must keep them strong in our hearts, but help one another to understand why they are not enough.  Some things just don’t work.

Finding solutions to community problems will demand that we put our heads together.  It will require consultation, deliberation, and creative imagination.  And, it calls for the most diverse range of minds and perspectives possible.  The way to maximize effective problem-solving is to include people with a broad range of experience and practical skills.

This might sound idealistic.  In fact, it is the only way to restore a broken society.  Learning how to do it will be hard work, but people of good faith will always have the capacity to succeed.

We must hold our personal beliefs clearly in mind, while keeping in mind that we can expect less conflict and far greater security if we connect, listen and learn, understand and influence.

Holding ourselves apart from one another in disagreement while hurling insults can only reap destruction.  Engaging with one another can be extremely challenging, but there is no other way.

Tom

Next week: Foundations for security.

Common sense…

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Farm 4-x

“Common sense is genius dressed in its working clothes.”

–Ralph Waldo Emerson

Finding Courage in Crisis

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The courage to step forward constructively in a time of crisis depends on our readiness to meet pain or frustration as a positive personal act.  This is not easy, especially when the world around us is self-destructing.

To persevere at such a time, our values and sense of personal integrity become very important.  And, beyond this, we are in need of a vision of the future that embodies our hopes and a purpose we believe in.

However, the immediate problems confronting us will usually present themselves in a social context. The deterioration of civil order will be a great challenge for us.

In my view, a commitment to the integrity of civil order is a commitment to ones’ own personal integrity.  Both commitments are guided by our values and sense of responsibility.  Both are essential components of a free society.

Each of us needs to think about who we are and what integrity means to us.  And this will require that we strengthen both our sense of self-sufficiency and our sense of purpose.

Self-sufficiency and purpose give us self-confidence, so both are important.  Self-sufficiency is about practical matters and will power.  But purpose has to do with ideas, and ideas can be problematic.  So, let’s think about this.

Purpose needs to remain responsive to change and creative thinking, as well as to our personal views.  Like the world around us, we are constantly responding and growing.  It is easy to attach ourselves unwittingly to ideas that are rooted in past circumstances and which no longer hold true.

There is both strength and danger here.

Most of us develop a firm commitment to certain ideas.  This has value, so long as we keep our minds open.  We need the capacity to stick to our beliefs and to follow through with plans.  Otherwise nothing would get done.

However, at a time of extraordinary disruption and change, when the future is hard to imagine, our intended direction will sometimes take unexpected turns – or disappear temporarily into a fog.

We know what kind of world we wish to live in, at least in general terms, but the details of the future will be veiled from view.  Why?  Because the emerging reality of the future is in constant motion.

This is why shared moral values and social principles in our communities are important.  A vision for the future needs to be built upon mutual respect and understanding, rather than on the assumptions of a crumbling past.

Even in the midst of chaos, “constructive action” can be understood as the means by which we progress toward our intended goals, not away from them.

So, let’s keep two priorities in mind:  First, to hold firmly to values capable of guiding us through turmoil.  Second, to stay alert, allowing flexibility of judgment and adjusting our thinking as conditions change.

If we believe in freedom we cannot allow presuppositions to set the future in concrete.  That is not what freedom is about.

Let’s be clear.  Assumptions that we carry with us from the past are dinosaurs that threaten our ability to create the future.  Our values and principles must be permitted to guide our way, based on the realities at hand.

We may dislike the conditions in which we find ourselves at any particular moment.  We may determine to alter them.  But, to be rigid and inflexible would court disaster.  Our independence as free people depends in large part on our capacity to engage effectively with ever-changing circumstances.

We are challenged to keep our balance at the vortex of an historic turning point.  Our values will support personal integrity, and our vision will determine the direction we seek as we traverse the storm.

If we wish to exercise our liberty fully as citizens, we must hold to a principled compassion, resist absolutism and bigotry, and adjust effectively to the flow of change.

To be free in the tumult of a great storm we must summon our courage to spread our wings and soar on the wind.

Tom

Next week:  Walking the talk.

A note to new readers:  Blog entries adapted from the forthcoming book are posted on most Fridays on both this site and the Facebook page.  To receive alerts by email you may click “Follow” on this site.

Moral courage…?

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Denali

“It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare.”

–Mark Twain

From Darkness to Light

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Without safe communities, and neighbors we can depend on, how will we find security for our families or begin to create a future we can believe in?  Tell me, please, in what other place do we have the freedom and the opportunity to build a stable civil order?

Do we imagine that a shining superhero will ride to our rescue?  Or will we, as I asked last week, pick ourselves up and do what needs to be done?

This is an uncompromising question.  Not to answer it, or to defer commitment, is in fact to answer it.  Failure to rise to necessity is to accept defeat.

Whatever our personality, our political philosophy or religious belief, the individual has an unavoidable choice to make.  Either we retreat into ourselves, accepting what is given as beyond our control, or we step forward to engage hardship and purpose with constructive intent.

This is a very personal choice, but at a time of existential crisis for the United States it takes on great importance – not only for ourselves, but for America and the world.

The United States has served as a model for governance and an engine of creative vitality that is unparalleled in human history.  The American idea has been a beacon of hope for people everywhere.  There has never been anything else like it.  And, the world is watching.

To hesitate here would be to respond as victims rather than as citizens.  It would be to choose loss over promise, helplessness over responsibility.  We may be temporarily intimidated by difficult circumstances.  But we must never give in and never lose sight of the dawn of the new day that even now lights the horizon.

Living with purpose gives us courage and inspiration.

I never said it will be easy.  It will not.  What I am saying is that we have no choice.  Without the courage to begin anew, we will join the slide into chaos.

Standing firm in the context of community does not isolate us from uncertainty.  It will provide only limited protection from the confusion around us.  What it does is keep us close to trustworthy and dependable friends and neighbors.

It positions us to best keep our balance, mentally and spiritually.  And, it keeps the potential for an American future alive.

Working with people is probably the most challenging part of life.  Choosing to take control of our destiny will require perseverance and forbearance – a readiness to exercise tolerance, patience, self-control.  Communicating effectively will become a necessity.

There will always be difficult people to test us.

Our job is not to be heroes.  Our job is to win over hearts and minds to the cause of safety, mutual respect, and rational governance.  Only then will it be possible for fear to give way to curiosity, for judgmental attitudes to be replaced with genuine listening and compassionate understanding.

Progress will come just one step at a time, and will often seem painfully slow.  Making a commitment to stay positive can require considerable resolve.  But, holding to the truth in our vision, focusing on productive purpose, and building trustworthy friendships – can make a very big difference.

The negativity that surrounds us may appear powerful, but in reality it can only exist in the absence of constructive action, and it only has the energy we grant it.  When we set out on a practical path and offer encouragement to others with a radiant spirit, we become as a light that pushes back the darkness.

If we are met with overbearing negativity, it may be wise to take our energy elsewhere.  But, we must never allow our vision to dim or our compassion to be compromised.

Darkness can always be countered with light.  Darkness is the absence of light and has no substance of its own.  The light of a small candle defies and defeats even the darkest night.

Tom

Next week:  Finding courage in crisis.

A note to new readers:  Blog entries adapted from the forthcoming book are posted on most Fridays at both this, the main blog site, and on the Facebook page.  To receive alerts by email you may click “Follow” on this site.

Turning the Corner

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Whether our ancestors came to this continent by choice or in slavery, or were forcibly separated from their indigenous American roots, all of us are estranged from the lands and lives of our forbears.

Cut off from the cultural foundations that provided previous generations with the basis for social stability and moral integrity, we refined our values and forged new standards.

For some the escape from oppression or deprivation has taken great determination and willpower.  With a strength rooted in the individualism of the survivor, Americans reconstructed human society on the basis of association, reciprocity, and principle: freedom of thought, economic independence, and a new sense of belonging that often transcended social and religious differences.

Early on our communities formed on the basis of cultural commonalities.  But our naturally inquisitive nature and the inclination to range far and wide across the North American continent took us away from our physical roots and led to a society characterized by mobility, homogeneity, and economies of scale.

First railways, and then a proliferation of highways, industrial enterprises, and shopping malls facilitated unrestrained pursuit of economic productivity and material comfort.  Cheap energy made many things possible.  Big always seemed better, or at least more profitable.

Somehow we lost any sense of proportion or real purpose.  A society once anchored by small businesses and community cohesion soon fell apart, morphing into urban sprawl, broken families, and lost dreams.

Unfortunately, and paradoxically, the resulting loss of social coherence and community has led to diminishing independence and self-sufficiency among ordinary Americans.

Many of us have a haunting awareness of this loss of social integrity.  Others have responded more inchoately and angrily, with less comprehension of the historical context or economic forces that contribute to their sense of unease.

Mostly we have accepted our dependence on centralized corporate power to manage our lives for us.  We are now only dimly aware of the tenuous commercial supply chain stretching thousands of miles across the continent for the benefit of profitable efficiencies.  Do we understand the extraordinary social and economic change we are experiencing?

Most of us have little knowledge of the vast size and immense interlocking complexity of the financial markets.  Even the financial power-brokers appear oblivious to the systemic risk embedded in the complexity they themselves have created.

Cut off from dependable information and unaware of the larger picture, we assume that every day will be like the last.

Do we accept this state of loss?  Do we understand our heritage?

How carefully have we thought through the principles of justice, the respect for diversity, the distinctive balance the founders envisioned?  How confident are we in the ideas and values that give validity to our ideals?

In recent months this blog has explored some of the elements of a national character that is deeply rooted in our history.  We now find ourselves at a turning point where the original ideals that brought us here are partly veiled from memory, and the need to reconsider and clarify the American identity has become clear.

The foundations of the American past remain firm and valid.  Yet, we find ourselves today with little concept of community – that foundation of civil society that we must depend upon for a sure footing.

Community is the single context and condition that offers us control over our destiny.  Yet, we know very little about how to make it work.

This presents us with a formidable task.  Without trustworthy communities, how are we to engage with others, uprooted and disorganized in the wasteland of a broken society?  How will we build dependable relationships, a stable civil order, and security for our children and grandchildren?

I do not address this question to America as a whole, in all its pain and dysfunction.  Rather, I address it to my readers directly, as thinking, caring, self-respecting individuals.

Do we have the vision and patience to work with our neighbors, meeting needs and resolving problems?  Will we rise above our differences, to find security in the diversity of our experience, knowledge, and practical skills?

Are we prepared to rethink our concept of community, and to build together from the ground up?

It won’t be easy.

Tom

In the coming weeks: Community; the home we have the freedom to build.

A note to readers:  This is the first post to be adapted from Chapter Nine: The Individual and Society.

Finding Our Balance in the Storm

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The passion for freedom challenges us to rise to the best of our ability as human beings. Whether or not institutions fail us, we are fully capable of giving life to our values when we engage with society, strengthen our communities, connect and collaborate with others.

It is in serving a purpose that each of us discovers the potential in ourselves for strength of character, generosity of spirit, and the inspiration to reach for a better place.

The practical limitations imposed on our personal freedom by moral responsibility and a complex world can be quite challenging, and crisis conditions make things all the more difficult.  For the mature adult, however, these constraints provide a springboard for a meaningful and productive life.

Naturally, it can be difficult to find our place and focus our energy constructively.  At times our courage can fail us.  The demands made on us sometimes feel impossible, even without consideration for others.  Without self-confidence it is difficult to be supportive of others, many of whom we seem to have little in common with.

Preparing ourselves will be important as we navigate through one of history’s great turning points.  Our ability to function responsibly in difficult circumstances will be challenging.

I believe we have entered a period of upheaval that will be unprecedented in character and global in its dimensions.  In my forthcoming book I explain why we will face “a confluence of crises” in the coming years, a series of consecutive and interrelated crises, both natural and man-made.

Preserving the Republic and holding to the core values of the American Idea will be our great responsibility as we transit the upheavals of a great storm.  Our belief systems are already being tested.  Civil order and economic stability will be shaken.

It will be imperative that we meet our tests with dignity, resetting our vision of the American identity based principle rather than watching it descend into chaos.

Our future depends on the survival of core human values and our commitment to retrieving a humane and sustainable future from the wreckage of the past.

Any alternative is too terrible to imagine.

We will prevail if our actions are constructive and the means we employ are harmonious with the ends that we seek.  We must keep our balance in the storm, keep our hearts and minds focused on the greatest good, and not allow ourselves to be dragged down by fear.

And so I offer you a metaphor here for freedom’s truth, a physical reflection of the metaphysical reality.  What follows are the final lines of a eulogy I gave for my father at his memorial service, and a testimony to what I learned from him:

“He gave me one truly great thing above all else….  And, this he did by teaching me the ways of sailing boats.  He taught me to fly on the wind.  He taught me to sail, to ride high on the blustering gale!

“Without fear we ventured out on the running tide, suspended between liquid and ether, to know the snap of the rigging, the sting of salt spray, and the unyielding rush of a steady keel straining against the wild.  Together we embraced the untamed and raced across the sky.  He was my Dad.”

Throughout life we are subject to the vagaries of a capricious human world that seems similar in many ways to the fickle nature of wind and sea.  Yet, core principles, laws, and standards remain firmly in place in both worlds, if we have the eyes to see.

Understanding and embracing this truth, we can spread our wings and learn to fly.

As with a sailing vessel at sea, our identity as human beings can only be realized in action.  And so we are free to discover the world we are given, learning as the sailor learns to engage a fluid and often unpredictable reality with wisdom and flexibility.

Failing this, we will beat ourselves against an implacable and merciless resistance.  An unwillingness to learn will expose us to the storms of life in a rudderless ship and with our rigging in disarray.

Tom

Next week: Turning the corner.

A note to new readers:  Blog entries adapted from the forthcoming book are posted on most Fridays at both this, the main blog site, and on the Facebook page.  To receive alerts by email you may click “Follow” on this site.

Don’t judge each day…

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Flowers 6

“I am an optimist.  It doesn’t seem to be much use being anything else.”

–Winston Churchill

“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant.”

–Robert Louis Stevenson

“Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today.  It’s already tomorrow in Australia.”

–Charles M. Schulz (“Peanuts”)