In my last blog, I looked at the importance of balance in a person's life. But balance is not just important to us as individuals. It is also important to society in general.
Let me illustrate this with a not so obvious example. We know that unemployment is too high today. All of us would like for it to be lower. But do we want a society with absolutely no unemployment. If you imagine such a society it would be one in which employees would have a difficult time finding someone to hire. They likely would have to higher people who are not qualified and the work done in society would suffer. Obviously, we do not want unemployment that is too high but having it too low can produce its own problems.
Or what about society change. We want society to progress and to become better. But do we want everything to change at once? There is a healthy rate of change for our societies that is not too fast or too slow. It is all about a balanced approach to societal change.
The qualities we think are good in a society are only that way if they are not too much. Societal pacifism can reduce incidents of war but also produce appeasement of evil nations. Technological development can improve the lives of people in society but also can create cultural changes that people are not ready for and may de-humanize them. Societal morality can turn help produce discipline among its members but also create a sterile legalism. Furthermore qualities that we think as negative in society can also produce positive effects in the right amount. Societal deviance can often lead to new social innovations. A social "warrior" mentality can provide a deterrence to invasion from other countries. It is all about balance. It is hard to think of a beneficial societal quality that there can not be too much of or even a negative social quality that can not be useful in certain situations.
The lesson of balance is that we can not become too attached to any certain social quality as an absolute good. In fact some of the worst atrocities occur in societies that "worship" some beneficial societal aspect. In my next blog I will outline what I mean by this and further illustrate the need for balance in our societies and lives.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Balance Part 2 - Our Greatest Strength/Weakness
I believe that our strengths and our weaknesses are related. Often what is a person's greatest strength is also his/her greatest weakness. How can this be?
Imagine someone who is very compassionate and really cares about other people. This person has a strength in that compassion. Caring about others is something we want in a person. But such compassion may blind that person. For example, such a person may meet a prisoner and feel compassion for him. The person may fight for the release of this prisoner who had a tough time early in his life. But it can turn out that the prisoner is still dangerous to society. Compassion for the difficult childhood of the prisoner may lead to a continued criminal campaign of violence.
This may seem extreme. But have we not all met someone who has a great deal of compassion that leads to tragic consequences. Perhaps someone who stays in an abusive relationship out of compassion for the abuser. Or a parent who fails to discipline a child due to compassion. Or a professor who passes a student with a hard luck story even though the student does not have the work ethic to achieve a degree. This is not to say that there is something wrong with compassion. It is a fine quality to have. But in an excess the strength of compassion can become a weakness.
This is the same for all such strengths. The strength of love can become the weakness of co-dependency. The strength of assertiveness can become the weakness of aggressiveness. The strength of ethnic pride can become the weakness of ethnic ethnocentrism. The strength of being autonomous can become the weakness of being a "lone wolf." The strength of passion can become the weakness of fanaticism. The list goes on.
It is within the seeds of our strengths where we often find our weaknesses. This has practical implications in that it can help us find our weakness and to appreciate the strengths connected to them. But is also shows how balance is such an important part of our reality. No characteristic is good in the extreme. And many bad characteristics are connected to other qualities that are good. We have to look for balance in our approaches and our personal actions.
But balance is not just important in our personal lives. It matters in the characteristics of our society. Looking at that reality will require more space than I want to use in this blog entry. Thus this series on balance will continue.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Imagine someone who is very compassionate and really cares about other people. This person has a strength in that compassion. Caring about others is something we want in a person. But such compassion may blind that person. For example, such a person may meet a prisoner and feel compassion for him. The person may fight for the release of this prisoner who had a tough time early in his life. But it can turn out that the prisoner is still dangerous to society. Compassion for the difficult childhood of the prisoner may lead to a continued criminal campaign of violence.
This may seem extreme. But have we not all met someone who has a great deal of compassion that leads to tragic consequences. Perhaps someone who stays in an abusive relationship out of compassion for the abuser. Or a parent who fails to discipline a child due to compassion. Or a professor who passes a student with a hard luck story even though the student does not have the work ethic to achieve a degree. This is not to say that there is something wrong with compassion. It is a fine quality to have. But in an excess the strength of compassion can become a weakness.
This is the same for all such strengths. The strength of love can become the weakness of co-dependency. The strength of assertiveness can become the weakness of aggressiveness. The strength of ethnic pride can become the weakness of ethnic ethnocentrism. The strength of being autonomous can become the weakness of being a "lone wolf." The strength of passion can become the weakness of fanaticism. The list goes on.
It is within the seeds of our strengths where we often find our weaknesses. This has practical implications in that it can help us find our weakness and to appreciate the strengths connected to them. But is also shows how balance is such an important part of our reality. No characteristic is good in the extreme. And many bad characteristics are connected to other qualities that are good. We have to look for balance in our approaches and our personal actions.
But balance is not just important in our personal lives. It matters in the characteristics of our society. Looking at that reality will require more space than I want to use in this blog entry. Thus this series on balance will continue.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Monday, February 14, 2011
Balance Part 1 - Egypt Revolution
Well we will have a new government in Egypt. By all accounts that is a great thing. The old government was repressive to its people.
And what did the U.S. government do to facilitate this occurrence? It seems that we have done very little. By and large the U.S. was largely powerless to do much but watch what happened. We are not use to be so powerless. But looking at this outcome, it may be that doing nothing, or very little, was the best tactic to take.
This may be a lesson for us all. At times it is important to take action to get the desired result. But then I notice that people who have such a philosophy think that we always have to take action. They do not seem to understand that being proactive is beneficial in some situations but can be detrimental in other situations.
This illustrates an important concept we have to consider and that is the concept of balance. Being proactive is a valuable quality to have. But an unbalanced approach where all you are is proactive will eventually get you into trouble. The answer is not to become submissive. While there are times that staying out of the way, like the U.S. largely did with Egypt, is appropriate it is not always the right path.
There is no approach that is always right and none that is always wrong. The key is to find balance in our approaches so that we can find the wisest path. Balance is such an important aspect that I think I want to spend a few blogs on it.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
And what did the U.S. government do to facilitate this occurrence? It seems that we have done very little. By and large the U.S. was largely powerless to do much but watch what happened. We are not use to be so powerless. But looking at this outcome, it may be that doing nothing, or very little, was the best tactic to take.
This may be a lesson for us all. At times it is important to take action to get the desired result. But then I notice that people who have such a philosophy think that we always have to take action. They do not seem to understand that being proactive is beneficial in some situations but can be detrimental in other situations.
This illustrates an important concept we have to consider and that is the concept of balance. Being proactive is a valuable quality to have. But an unbalanced approach where all you are is proactive will eventually get you into trouble. The answer is not to become submissive. While there are times that staying out of the way, like the U.S. largely did with Egypt, is appropriate it is not always the right path.
There is no approach that is always right and none that is always wrong. The key is to find balance in our approaches so that we can find the wisest path. Balance is such an important aspect that I think I want to spend a few blogs on it.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Thursday, February 10, 2011
You want to honor who?
Just when I think I can get away from talking about racial issues they pull me back in. How can I avoid commenting on the following story.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110210/ap_on_re_us/us_confederate_license_plates
Maybe it is because this is fresh in my mind because I just say a documentary on the origin of the Klan but I know that Forrest was a major player in making that vile organization violent. He is also responsible for executing black soldiers who had surrendered. This was not a nice man.
Now he may have renounced all of that later in life. And I am a believer in forgiveness. But he is not known for his good works. What he is known for is helping to create the violence that is the Klan. This is not a George Washington situation who was a slave owner but that is not why he is famous. People who honor Washington are not automatically honoring his slave owning. But Forrest is most famous for his hatred and violence, so how do you honor him without also honoring that hatred and violence.
I try to put myself in the mindset of those that I disagree with. A lot of times it helps me to understand why they thing the way they do. I may not always agree with them but trying to understand why they think the way they do helps me to humanize them and not fall into the trap of demonizing others. But it is hard for me to understand why people fight to honor someone like Forrest. People like that really challenge my ability to look at the perspective of others.
Do I try to understand the perspective of those who want to honor Forrest or admit that it is a bridge too far? Do I try to avoid demonizing them or believe that they deserve to be demonized if they push such ideas? To be honest I still do not know how much effort I should go into trying to understand them. A big part of me would love to write them off but I also worry about picking up habits of demonizing those I do not agree with. For me personally these are tough questions but they are questions that we should all ask. Who do we try to understand and who do we write off?
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110210/ap_on_re_us/us_confederate_license_plates
Maybe it is because this is fresh in my mind because I just say a documentary on the origin of the Klan but I know that Forrest was a major player in making that vile organization violent. He is also responsible for executing black soldiers who had surrendered. This was not a nice man.
Now he may have renounced all of that later in life. And I am a believer in forgiveness. But he is not known for his good works. What he is known for is helping to create the violence that is the Klan. This is not a George Washington situation who was a slave owner but that is not why he is famous. People who honor Washington are not automatically honoring his slave owning. But Forrest is most famous for his hatred and violence, so how do you honor him without also honoring that hatred and violence.
I try to put myself in the mindset of those that I disagree with. A lot of times it helps me to understand why they thing the way they do. I may not always agree with them but trying to understand why they think the way they do helps me to humanize them and not fall into the trap of demonizing others. But it is hard for me to understand why people fight to honor someone like Forrest. People like that really challenge my ability to look at the perspective of others.
Do I try to understand the perspective of those who want to honor Forrest or admit that it is a bridge too far? Do I try to avoid demonizing them or believe that they deserve to be demonized if they push such ideas? To be honest I still do not know how much effort I should go into trying to understand them. A big part of me would love to write them off but I also worry about picking up habits of demonizing those I do not agree with. For me personally these are tough questions but they are questions that we should all ask. Who do we try to understand and who do we write off?
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Super Holiday
Well it was a great game. I was pulling for the Packers as my beloved Chargers choked this season. I know that my friends in Wisconsin are celebrating and ecstatic right now.
The Super Bowl is at a type of unofficial holiday in the United States. We technically do not get the day off but it functions as a holiday nonetheless. Holidays represent the culture celebrating them. We clearly see this in the Super Bowl.
For example, the halftime show is generally a big production and represents the popular culture of that day. Whether we like it or not the entertainment industry is an important part of our culture. The Super Bowl helps to reinforce this reality. After all we do not need a big musical production to play a football game. But we get one nonetheless.
Also the Super Bowl can also be known as the corporate bowl. Most of the ticket sold do not go to the fans of the competing teams but rather have been brought up by corporations who want to reward their employees and clients. We all know how important capitalism is in our society. The Super Bowl is merely reflective of that fact.
And of course who can forget the commercials. They have become almost as big as the game itself. Watching them gives one a great deal of insight into what is important in our society as advertisers are constantly attempting to find ways to convince us to buy stuff. I could do several blogs on the different commercials and how they reflect a variety of aspects in our society.
Whether you agree with my interpretations of the Super Bowl or not, it is clear that these elements, big halftime show, corporate tickets and commercials, are not necessary for the game. After all the purpose of the Super Bowl is to decide who is the best football team. These other things are rituals that are part of the Super Bowl holiday. We think of rituals as connected to religion. But we often have non-religious rituals. They help to remind us about our society and reinforce the values we have accepted. They perform this purpose in religion but also in other societal aspects as well.
There is nothing wrong with rituals. There is something wrong with just doing them and not thinking about them. I enjoy the commercials (can not say I enjoyed the halftime show, sorry) but I know that they are not the real purpose for the game. That allows me to accept the values I want from these rituals and avoid the messages I do not want to recieve. Recognizing the rituals in our lives can help us to become introspective about the messages that society offers to us.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
Friday, February 4, 2011
Snow Day!!!
The past four days my university has been closed. This should be paradise for me. Time for me to get caught up with all my research. I should have my tests written up for my classes and I certainly should have a couple of posts in here during that time.
But a strange thing has happen. I am having problems getting motivated to do all of those things. Having the obligations of classes seems to create focus in my life. It forces me to organize my time and to become efficient. Certainly there are times, such as in the summer, when I do not have classes and I get things done. But I know those times are coming up and plan for them. It seems that when they are unplanned like now I become quite inefficient. Kind of like being a train with no railroad tracks to guide me.
I wonder if this is part of the human condition. That we are made to seek out purpose and withing some degree of order in our lives we tend to wonder about. I am sure in time I could adjust to this and find ways to strive towards my purpose. But this has been a strange week for me.
Not creating trouble with this time. Just trying to figure myself out a little. Maybe in the process figure out people in general.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
But a strange thing has happen. I am having problems getting motivated to do all of those things. Having the obligations of classes seems to create focus in my life. It forces me to organize my time and to become efficient. Certainly there are times, such as in the summer, when I do not have classes and I get things done. But I know those times are coming up and plan for them. It seems that when they are unplanned like now I become quite inefficient. Kind of like being a train with no railroad tracks to guide me.
I wonder if this is part of the human condition. That we are made to seek out purpose and withing some degree of order in our lives we tend to wonder about. I am sure in time I could adjust to this and find ways to strive towards my purpose. But this has been a strange week for me.
Not creating trouble with this time. Just trying to figure myself out a little. Maybe in the process figure out people in general.
Sincerely,
Trouble-Maker
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