Message-ID: <Pine.SUN.3.91.970106145223.3696A-100000@dante> Date: Mon, 6 Jan 1997 15:15:08 -0700 From: JC WANDEMBERG <mailto:juwandem@NMSU.EDU> Subject: Re: pushing narrow-mindedness? To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L <mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU>
On Mon, 6 Jan 1997 mailto:EUNSteve@AOL.COM wrote:> Like you say, we need help.
> Who can help us?
Nobody but ourselves!
> What keeps us all from joining forces, finding our common ground, pushing
> forward?
Again, nobody but Ourselves!
> That is: I and others like me will not begin the process of reforming
> ourselves by accepting our guilt for the state of the world. Period.
Nobody has to accept any guilt for anything other than for failing to question current views and exploring new ones!
> Where do we find common ground?
This is the key!
> One hunch is this: we must simply abandon certain issues, as people have
> abandoned issues in the past: we no longer spend uch time arguing
Nobody has to abandon anything if s/he does not want, but s/he must certainly be willing to accept, or at least explore new views. Otherwise, finding common ground can be as utopian as reaching consensus.
> And we might have to learn to avoid the minefield issues.
What do you mean? to behave as hypocrites and hoping the issues might go away?
>The Ugly American
> story will not secure the cooperation of this very large and wealthy nation,
> and the world needs its cooperation.
Through computer simulations has been demonstrated that indeed cooperation rather than exploitation can dominate the darwinian struggle for survival. However, we must be very candid about what we mean by cooperation. If the above statement is true, then it is also true that the US needs the world's cooperation, don't you think? or perhaps your view of the mighty USA makes you think otherwise, in which case we are in deep trouble!
> Is it possible for us to create a new story that we can all accept?
We don't have to create anything, it suffices to know that we are all humans and as such we all share something which transcends cultures, idiologies, etc, etc,, namely, IDEALS! (e.g., homonomy[belonginess], nurturance, humanity, and beauty).
Let us work focusing on our IDEALS as our "common ground".
Best regards,
************************************************************ |J.C. Wandemberg |
|Ph.D Graduate Researcher |
| |
| |
|INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR NATURAL, ENVIRONMENTAL |
|& CULTURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IIRM) |
|College of Agriculture & Home Economics (NMSU) |
|Box 30003, Dept. 3169, Las Cruces, NM 88003-003 USA |
|URL:http://www.nmsu.edu/~iirm E-Mail:mailto:juwandem@nmsu.edu |
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