CFN - To Each Their Own Doesn’t Always Work – Harper Government Please Don’t Let it Happen Again

It is disingenuous to look at bigotry strictly through a political lens. Ignorance, hatred and fear-mongering are not the exclusive property of the political left or right; as Buchenwald demonstrates, atrocities have happened under both fascist and communist regimes. Indifference isn’t the product of a political system; it’s what happens when we zero in on our own interests or ideologies so exclusively that we ignore the well-being of others. When the water hole shrinks, as the saying goes, the animals look at each other differently.

Today, we are facing a global economic crisis. Europe in particular has been hit hard. As the crisis deepens, nations within Europe and beyond are circling the wagons. “Your debt, your problem” is a meme that’s gaining traction. These fiscal woes are fueling an increase in social tensions, much as they did in the early decades of the last century. Political extremism and xenophobia are on the rise, accompanied by a swelling tide of ethnic violence. In Greece, this alarming trend is represented by the growing influence of Golden Dawn, an anti-immigrant political party that has even incorporated the Swastika into its branding.

In Hungary, the systematic discrimination faced by Roma and Sinti is becoming increasingly violent. Focused as they are on addressing the financial crisis, European leaders have been “too preoccupied… or unable or disinclined to deal with” this mounting social crisis. In other words, they’ve labeled it someone else’s problem.

Transparency of Olympian Proportions

“I feel that the commission ended up becoming an apologist for Dow Chemicals and is taking Dow’s side in the debate about whether or not Dow bears responsibility for the Bhopal tragedy,” Meredith Alexander told Amnesty International.

In the age of social media, there's nowhere to hide - every action, every justification gets scrutinized in the court of public opinion.

Don't like it? Too bad - it's the new reality. We all have to adjust. The truth may hurt, but it also sets you free.

Welcome to the Conscious Revolution.

Shine a Light on China

China’s economy remains less than half the size of the United States’. Yet Europeans believe that China is the world’s leading economic power. Few other people make this mistake. What explains this perception–anxiety about the future?

A good question that perhaps goes deeper than we give it credit for.  While both Europe and China have emerged from feudal origins, there has been a distinct difference in socio-cultural approaches.  As both have pursued dominance throughout history, the West's attitude has been to "make the world England" (with a few notable exceptions), inward-out.  God gave the world to Adam and Eve to do with as they please (though he did kick 'em off of his lawn).  Perhaps the best example of this, apart from the exportation of British culture along with the British Empire, is the ongoing export of Christianity through colonization. Given the intent of this policy, it's no wonder there is fear about the rise of Islam.

The East, on the other hand, has pursued the concept of "All Under Heaven" - perceiving the space that is and then expanding to fill it.  If you look at Eastern religions, there's a stronger connection to the past and to the whole, resulting in a completely different comprehension of time and mankind's place in the world than has developed in the West.

Western anxiety over China is ultimately like being afraid of the dark - we always fear what we don't understand.

The traditional solutions of destroying or assimilating the unknown were never very efficient and have only become harder to implement as military, populace and social complexity have escalated.  To really beat your enemy, you need to understand them.  When you know yourself and know your enemy, victory is guaranteed. Of course, when you truly understand your enemy, understand them well enough to defeat them, that's when you also love them.   

 Instead of destroying the beloved, we try to strategically comprehend and exploit the differences between us - which, done correctly, results in mutual gain.  There's nothing more strategic than altruism.

The end result is specialized collaboration; which, ultimately, is the trajectory of social evolution.

Trust, Leadership and the Future of the Global Village

Two articles caught my attention tonight.  This one, about trust, loyalty and leadership:

5 Leadership Behaviors Loyal Employees Trust

"Loyalty is built on relationships, shared understanding and trust. Engagement and commitment require loyalty, shared goals and fair treatment."

- and then this, about the perilous state of the global economy, in no small part due to prevalent attitudes:

In Economic Deluge, a World That Can't Bail Together

"Moreover, there seems to be little willingness - or perhaps lit-tle ability - for the major countries to act together again. Squabbles have grown, some countries are in fiscal distress, and others face daunting domestic problems."

I highly doubt deluge was chosen as a metaphor by accident.

When we're uncertain of the way forward, when it's hard to know how to trust, it's worth remembering the words of someone else lost at sea:

"If we can't live together, we're gonna die alone."

Don't Let It Happen Again

This picture jumped out at me from this morning's Toronto Star, sending a shiver up my spine.  Perhaps not the context, but the image itself struck an uncomfortable cord.  Then I dug around and came across this.

As economic tensions rise because there are those within the system who refuse to engage in a conscious, respectful manner, the list of groups and individuals feeling disenfranchised grows longer.  Tolerance is on the decline, with antagonism and isolationism increasing all around the world.  The Western World is far from immune. 

We cannot turn a blind eye to the consequences of anger and intolerance again.  Why?

Because there are no bad people; only ignorance and fear keeps us from meeting our full potential, as one richly diverse global population.  Because the world is too small.  Because the consequences are so dire.  Most importantly, it's because conflict is so inefficient.

I still believe things are going to get worse before they get better; that we are once again going to have to skirt perilously close to the unfathomable before we regain our sense and remember the simple logic;

We can live together, or we can die alone.

Stephen Harper and Jason Kenney, Take a Stand Against Neo-Nazism

“The time for fear has come for those who betrayed this homeland,” he said at a news conference, flanked by young men with shaved heads.

“We are coming.”

Do I have your attention yet?  Good. 

In an echo of Europe’s tortured past, Nazism, with its association with the Holocaust and horrors of the Second World War, not only survives, but in some instances is thriving.

I have zero interest in saying "I told you so."  I would much rather we avoid repeating mistakes.

We live in an integrated society and will be held accountabile by both our actions and inactions.

Jason Kenney and Stephen Harper - the ball's in your court.

Show the world that Canada stands against hatred and will always, always stand on guard for those in need.