It was today Jenny Cole reminded me (see e-chalk) of a great line by Socrates on equity: Equity doesn’t mean everyone gets the same, equity means that everyone gets what they need.

Now, Socrates is not your primary communist (he would not approve of the communism or at least its debilitating realisation around the place) but he I think he got that one spot on, like many other things.

Scientifically rational and oft quoted ‘Homo economicus’ may have its roots in the biblical gardens, maximising opportunity cost of enjoying the fruits of the land But science and religion are the two of such same tools Einstein warned us of not using to solve problems they have created in the first place.

Ethics of living, or as the old foxy Greek referred to earlier liked to say, “living an examined life” is something I reckon worthy of striving for. Always imperfect, always biased in some ways and content with that and always questioning is a helluva better way to go than constant guilt/blame/credit game, promises of virgins in heaven or promises of solving all mysteries. With the world ‘getting smaller’, let us not waste those tonnes of gasses powering our computers on crap but on connecting people with real questions (and consequences) to boot.

Because when you talk in person to some poor Bangladeshi bugger getting flodded more and more every year, or kids of an Australian farmer who are 5 years old and have never seen rain before, or a mum of three in Indonesia who has a son dying of respiratory problems because of forrest burning or … you know…then the questions (not the answers) will cause a few (more) pennies to drop with people asking: “What do I really need?”

Not a revolution with some sort of panacea I say, but a change – one life at a time. You can try shoving a message down people’s throats (yeah right), go all softly, softly and hope for a change of heart (“yeah, right, why should I?”) or you can teach them how walk around like Socrates, ask questions and learn from the answers given. And wouldn’t that thing called school be a wonderful place to learn how to do that?

Hear that? That’s my bed calling me.

Best wishes

Tomaz

PS Loved the cosmic smiley tonight, thx for the tip.

Paul, thank you. Some fair to middling posts in there. Yes, that book is full of images of mankind in the midst of “progress”. It all seemed to positive, sustainable and never-ending. Mankind would continue on and conquer the stars. I really doubt that now. The immediate future looks rather bleak. Feel free to contradict me.

Ken, greed is a serious problem. Religion has its problems. I do not mind religion per se. I wish people would not take it so seriously. The division between the haves and have-nots is a serious problem. What is going to happen to this world? More banks collapsing. World leaders seemingly applying multi-billion dollar band-aid solutions. Money drying up. As the IMF leader said the other day the inequities of the situation will lead to frustration, anger, hostility and one wonders. Some commentators have predicted nuclear exchanges. Now, that would be something.

Sometimes I ask the question in the class where would we be now if the Roman Empire had not fallen? Would we be orbiting the planet Saturn and attending an interplanetary educational facility while we wait for the parents of the students to return from their light-jump to Sirius?

What if the Dark Ages and Middle Ages had not taken place in Europe? What if Greece had not halted the march of the Persian Empire? What if the American War of Independence had not taken place?

Cheers, John

I hate to say this, but the real problems on this planet go back to the bible (I’m not religious by the way).

But capitalism (I’m not a socialist either) is fed by greed.

Contentment is a wonderful goal. But greed distorts the vision of this goal for some and turns it into a nightmare for others.

When the oil companies genuinely want to find alternative sources of energy, we may see a genuine turning point in world economy. They will have to give up their greed first though. They will have to give up their quest for oil to feed their quest for profit that is driven by their greed.

I am a firm believer in the power of setting example. The biggest business magnates serve to set examples for smaller business companies that set examples for small businesses. Their ethics is shot, right from the top down.

What hope do we have if the largest businesses (oil) in the world continue to call the shots. And the little people buy into it all, waiting for a drop in oil prices so that they can fill their gas tank when the price drop hits the petrol pump.

Yes, I too was inspired by the talent of the creators of the books and films you mentioned (and more). The vision was powerful in the late 60s early 70s.

We need to navel gaze now.

ka kite
from Middle-earth