Being an EASY (R)EVOLUTIONARY has never been easier! Just this morning I was reminded of this through a post on Facebook.
A friend of mine posted a link to an interview with the chairman of a major food corporation. In this interview the executive made remarks about homosexual families and women’s place in the home, ending with “if gay customers don't like it, they can ‘eat another brand of pasta’."
I will be doing just that. And after I re-posted the link another friend commented, “well they lost 2 consumers in our home, that's for sure!” This is a wonderful example of how we can all use our purchasing power to shape social policies. Whether you’re buying something from a street vendor or a multinational corporation, your choices keep them in business. So by spending our money with progressive minded companies and NOT spending it with companies still stuck in the Manplan we create a new kind of business world.
And that’s just one way the power of choice that every individual holds works – by knowing that simple, every day decisions can move our world toward compassion, diversity, and peace.
MAKE A POSITIVE CHOICE – MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Friday, September 27, 2013
Thursday, September 19, 2013
DETERMINATION - NOT RETALIATION!
When I made a presentation recently to a businessmen’s club on the messages of Conversations with EVE, one man commented that it was important to look to the future rather than dwell on the past. I agree completely because the future is the only thing we can affect, and how we can do that is the whole point of the book.
BUT at the same time, it’s almost impossible to make positive social changes without knowing where the values and beliefs came from that still drive our dysfunctional world. Then, once we understand what caused the problems we can begin to work on solutions.
Too often when people want to know “what happened” they’re only goal is to assign blame and punishment for the problem, but that’s just retaliation not progress. As we talk about in Conversations, men may have been the big winners after the Myth of Male Superiority changed society and gave them social power over EVE, but they were also the big losers in many ways.
Conversations is about letting people understand how our social system became and stays dysfunctional and cruel, not about hating or punishing those (men) who benefited from such a system. So it’s important to remember that the vision of our (r)evolution is not blame and shame for men.
The vision is empowering people to change their lives and change the world by making their daily choices based on EQUALITY AND RESPECT for everyone, EVE and men both. It’s a positive social (r)evolution based on independent thinking, responsible choices, and the willpower to replace the negative values that shape and drive our world.
Blaming EVE for society’s ills and problems has been a mainstay of the Myth and the Manplan for thousands for years. So our EVE (r)evolution won’t be repeating the same mistake. Besides, we won’t have time or energy for blaming or punishing men. We’ll be too busy respecting and supporting each other and relishing the camaraderie of whole men who are working with us to leave the Manplan behind.
Determination to build a better society is what our movement is about, not retaliation.
BUT at the same time, it’s almost impossible to make positive social changes without knowing where the values and beliefs came from that still drive our dysfunctional world. Then, once we understand what caused the problems we can begin to work on solutions.
Too often when people want to know “what happened” they’re only goal is to assign blame and punishment for the problem, but that’s just retaliation not progress. As we talk about in Conversations, men may have been the big winners after the Myth of Male Superiority changed society and gave them social power over EVE, but they were also the big losers in many ways.
Conversations is about letting people understand how our social system became and stays dysfunctional and cruel, not about hating or punishing those (men) who benefited from such a system. So it’s important to remember that the vision of our (r)evolution is not blame and shame for men.
The vision is empowering people to change their lives and change the world by making their daily choices based on EQUALITY AND RESPECT for everyone, EVE and men both. It’s a positive social (r)evolution based on independent thinking, responsible choices, and the willpower to replace the negative values that shape and drive our world.
Blaming EVE for society’s ills and problems has been a mainstay of the Myth and the Manplan for thousands for years. So our EVE (r)evolution won’t be repeating the same mistake. Besides, we won’t have time or energy for blaming or punishing men. We’ll be too busy respecting and supporting each other and relishing the camaraderie of whole men who are working with us to leave the Manplan behind.
Determination to build a better society is what our movement is about, not retaliation.
Thursday, September 12, 2013
9/11 WAS NEVER ABOUT RELIGION
Americans observed a tragic remembrance yesterday. And because the 9/11 terrorists were avowed Muslims these anniversaries take on very religious tones. But it’s important to remember that the radical agenda of the jihadists leaders didn’t really have anything to do with religion at all. The attack on the World Trade Center was about power – pure and simple.
Yes, the al-Qaeda leaders did manipulate the religious devotion of their Muslim followers. And, yes, the goal of striking at the power of the United States was clothed in religious rhetoric. But this campaign to hold onto or seize power is no different than many, many others in the past – this one just happens to be wearing the mask of Islam. The same type of social manipulation was used by the Catholic Church during the Inquisition and the Crusades, by the Stalinists after the Communist Revolution and by the Nazis during World War II. It was even used by the Bush administration when it channeled the anger of the American public to manufacture a war-for-profit in Iraq.
So it’s critically important to make this distinction, because how we label the problem defines our solution.
As long as we label al-Qaeda and jihad terrorism as a “Muslim problem” we’re chasing the tail of religious intolerance and feeding the beast. But when we recognize it as the latest in a long history of Manplan campaigns by egotistical power mongers (regardless of what they call themselves) we can respond differently. We can pull the rug out from under their campaign of hatred by doing the opposite of what they expect, like:
1. Oppose violence in any form as a response, because history should have taught us that violence begets violence and it always will,
2. Promote respect and communication among ALL the world’s religions, and
3. Strive to bring equality and justice to every religion by doing away with the Manplan rules and attitudes that keep women out of religious authority and control.
I’m totally in favor of any belief system that helps people deal with the struggles and complexities of life, as long as the teachings promote kindness, justice, and ethical behavior. But, as we talk about in Conversations with EVE, too much of religion today only pays lip service to compassion and equality while fiercely opposing any changes that might threaten the power and control of its male leaders.
So, if you want to truly honor the memory of the Americans killed on 9/11, refocus your anger and energy. Use them to work for a world that operates on fairness rather than undeserved privilege and compassion rather than conflict.
Expect the best from your chosen faith, and don’t be taken in by the conspirators who prey on our need to pray!
Yes, the al-Qaeda leaders did manipulate the religious devotion of their Muslim followers. And, yes, the goal of striking at the power of the United States was clothed in religious rhetoric. But this campaign to hold onto or seize power is no different than many, many others in the past – this one just happens to be wearing the mask of Islam. The same type of social manipulation was used by the Catholic Church during the Inquisition and the Crusades, by the Stalinists after the Communist Revolution and by the Nazis during World War II. It was even used by the Bush administration when it channeled the anger of the American public to manufacture a war-for-profit in Iraq.
So it’s critically important to make this distinction, because how we label the problem defines our solution.
As long as we label al-Qaeda and jihad terrorism as a “Muslim problem” we’re chasing the tail of religious intolerance and feeding the beast. But when we recognize it as the latest in a long history of Manplan campaigns by egotistical power mongers (regardless of what they call themselves) we can respond differently. We can pull the rug out from under their campaign of hatred by doing the opposite of what they expect, like:
1. Oppose violence in any form as a response, because history should have taught us that violence begets violence and it always will,
2. Promote respect and communication among ALL the world’s religions, and
3. Strive to bring equality and justice to every religion by doing away with the Manplan rules and attitudes that keep women out of religious authority and control.
I’m totally in favor of any belief system that helps people deal with the struggles and complexities of life, as long as the teachings promote kindness, justice, and ethical behavior. But, as we talk about in Conversations with EVE, too much of religion today only pays lip service to compassion and equality while fiercely opposing any changes that might threaten the power and control of its male leaders.
So, if you want to truly honor the memory of the Americans killed on 9/11, refocus your anger and energy. Use them to work for a world that operates on fairness rather than undeserved privilege and compassion rather than conflict.
Expect the best from your chosen faith, and don’t be taken in by the conspirators who prey on our need to pray!
Thursday, September 5, 2013
THE EASY (R)EVOLUTIONARY #2
Let’s look at another simple way to change the world.
#2 RESPECT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE RESPECTED
It’s easy to demean and disrespect someone, especially if that someone is a member of a group – women, black, handicapped, etc. - that might have a hard time standing up for themselves, socially and otherwise. Besides, you’re only expressing the long-standing prejudices that are part and parcel of the culture around you. And sometimes you can score points or fit in better with coworkers or social peers by voicing such attitudes.
So why bother to take the social and moral higher ground? Why make a conscious effort to deal with a person as an individual and not a ______ or a ______? The answer is pretty basic. Every time you treat another person with prejudice and disrespect you’re fueling our Manplan culture. A culture based on dividing people rather than bringing them together and keeping control in the hands of the most ruthless (be that politically or physically).
But the opposite is also true. Each of us already holds the power to reach that higher ground every time we choose:
** fairness instead of discrimination in dealing with others,
** cooperation and compromise instead of conflict, and
** thinking for ourselves instead of blindly accepting negative preconceptions.
When we do these things we are building a different, better culture based on good sense and fair play – two positive values we see very little of in our 21st century world. We don’t see good sense because social groups too often require unquestioning loyalty to religious dogma or party philosophy. And we don’t see fair play because many of these belief systems make it perfectly acceptable to ignore, demean or even harm someone who doesn’t believe like we do.
What we have is division and conflict. What we need is community and collaboration. So by actively demonstrating these social values at every opportunity we can have a positive and powerful influence on both the general culture and the individuals around us.
We won’t truly know or love too many people in our lifetime, but we can strive to respect every human being we meet along the way. Some of them will prove worthy of that respect and some won’t, but giving that respect as a matter of habit benefits all of us - today and in the future.
#2 RESPECT OTHERS AS YOU WANT TO BE RESPECTED
It’s easy to demean and disrespect someone, especially if that someone is a member of a group – women, black, handicapped, etc. - that might have a hard time standing up for themselves, socially and otherwise. Besides, you’re only expressing the long-standing prejudices that are part and parcel of the culture around you. And sometimes you can score points or fit in better with coworkers or social peers by voicing such attitudes.
So why bother to take the social and moral higher ground? Why make a conscious effort to deal with a person as an individual and not a ______ or a ______? The answer is pretty basic. Every time you treat another person with prejudice and disrespect you’re fueling our Manplan culture. A culture based on dividing people rather than bringing them together and keeping control in the hands of the most ruthless (be that politically or physically).
But the opposite is also true. Each of us already holds the power to reach that higher ground every time we choose:
** fairness instead of discrimination in dealing with others,
** cooperation and compromise instead of conflict, and
** thinking for ourselves instead of blindly accepting negative preconceptions.
When we do these things we are building a different, better culture based on good sense and fair play – two positive values we see very little of in our 21st century world. We don’t see good sense because social groups too often require unquestioning loyalty to religious dogma or party philosophy. And we don’t see fair play because many of these belief systems make it perfectly acceptable to ignore, demean or even harm someone who doesn’t believe like we do.
What we have is division and conflict. What we need is community and collaboration. So by actively demonstrating these social values at every opportunity we can have a positive and powerful influence on both the general culture and the individuals around us.
We won’t truly know or love too many people in our lifetime, but we can strive to respect every human being we meet along the way. Some of them will prove worthy of that respect and some won’t, but giving that respect as a matter of habit benefits all of us - today and in the future.
Thursday, August 29, 2013
THE EASY (R)EVOLUTIONARY
This week’s blog will introduce “The Easy (R)evolutionary.” These postings will give short suggestions for simple actions that anyone and everyone can take to create a safer, healthier, happier world - starting in our own backyard. Each one may not change the world overnight, but together they have the potential to do just that.
#1 TALK TO SOMEONE OUTSIDE YOUR “COMFORT ZONE”
Too often we stay well within our comfort zone by avoiding conversation or interaction with people who are “different” - a different color, a different age, a different nationality, a different religion, or a different way of dressing or speaking. And staying in this zone all the time causes us to miss out on many opportunities to expand our connections to people and our understanding of the way they see things. Because the walls of our comfort zone are sturdily built from the stereotypes the Manplan has taught us.
But as an Easy (R)evolutionary you can look for everyday chances to open a door or a window in those walls. Whether it’s in your office, in your neighborhood, at a party or in a checkout line look for chances to speak with someone who doesn’t look like everyone you usually talk to. Even short, simple conversations have the power to break down a barrier or open someone’s eyes – maybe yours.
Communication breeds understanding.
Understanding breeds acceptance.
Acceptance breeds cooperation.
And cooperation breeds peace.
It’s as simple as that!
#1 TALK TO SOMEONE OUTSIDE YOUR “COMFORT ZONE”
Too often we stay well within our comfort zone by avoiding conversation or interaction with people who are “different” - a different color, a different age, a different nationality, a different religion, or a different way of dressing or speaking. And staying in this zone all the time causes us to miss out on many opportunities to expand our connections to people and our understanding of the way they see things. Because the walls of our comfort zone are sturdily built from the stereotypes the Manplan has taught us.
But as an Easy (R)evolutionary you can look for everyday chances to open a door or a window in those walls. Whether it’s in your office, in your neighborhood, at a party or in a checkout line look for chances to speak with someone who doesn’t look like everyone you usually talk to. Even short, simple conversations have the power to break down a barrier or open someone’s eyes – maybe yours.
Communication breeds understanding.
Understanding breeds acceptance.
Acceptance breeds cooperation.
And cooperation breeds peace.
It’s as simple as that!
Thursday, August 22, 2013
FROM UNTOUCHABLE TO UNSTOPPABLE!!
"Who is more intelligent—a woman or a rat?" "A rat," they would say, and they were talking about themselves.
This was how women of the Untouchable caste (now called Dalits) in India had been trained to see themselves, but some were being trained to see themselves very differently – as village healthcare workers. These women had been shunned since birth by those around them and never allowed to even pump water from the village well because their touch was “poison” to higher caste people. But now, when two of these transformed women, Sarubai Salve and Babai Sathe, move through their village, people gather around them. They are no longer poison. In fact, Sathe has been elected the leader—or sarpanch—of her village, Jawalke.
How could such an amazing social transformation take place? Through the support of a program that sees such women as a means to not only transform the crushing lives of these Dalit women but to transform rural health care in India. Salve and Sathe are not doctors or even nurses. They have very little equipment, but they are responsible for the health of Jawalke residents. They see pregnant women, deliver babies, and then check up on mother and infant. They visit old people, take blood pressure, and check on people cured of leprosy. Life is much better in Jawalke and that is because of women like Salve.
"When I started, the children all had scabies and there was filth everywhere," Salve says. Small kids used to die. Pregnant women died during and after delivery. Poor sanitation led to malaria and diarrheal diseases. Children went unvaccinated. Leprosy and tuberculosis were common. Today these problems are almost non-existent, but the turn-around has not been quick or easy.
Thirty-eight years after the Jamhhed program began training Dalit women as care givers there are 300 villages that benefit from their dedication. In villages that have these Dalit angels half as many infants die and, even though half of all Indian children under age three are malnourished, in Jamkhed villages there are not enough cases to record. But the truly amazing thing about this social (r)evolution is that the changes go way beyond health issues.
Many of the Dalit women who became care givers were illiterate and destitute. As Untouchables, they were non-persons, not even allowed to wear shoes because higher caste people could not step on their footprint, and never allowed to enter a building or home. Many had been married at ages ranging from two-and-a-half to ten and then abandoned by their husbands. So their first step was to transform themselves beginning with two weeks of training on Jamkhed’s campus that gave them pride and confidence in addition to basic technical knowledge. Another secret to their on-going success is the network of continuing support they receive from weekly contact with each other for discussion and new training.
All Jamhked villages now have clean water and many have pumps in every backyard, most villagers have small gardens to grow fresh fruits and vegetables, and in an area that was once treeless villagers have planted millions of new trees. Sathe and Salve have organized eight women’s groups to make these changes happen in Jawalke, and their latest project is toilets for every house.
Even magically placing a doctor in every village wouldn’t have created these remarkable social improvements because as Raj Arole, co-founder of the program, says, "Doctors promote medical care because that's where the money is. We promote health." Dalit women who are Jamhked workers teach their neighbors about breast-feeding and good nutrition and hygiene. They help villages create systems for clean water and sanitation. Most importantly, they are culture-changing, living proof against the superstition and stigma that discriminates against women and low-caste people.
"When I started, I had no support from anyone, no education, no money," said Sathe. "I was like a stone with no soul. When I came here they gave me shape, life. I learned courage and boldness. I became a human being." Through women who were once degraded and tormented as Untouchables all the women of these villages see there is a better life for them. And now they know they ALL have the power to demand it and create it. (1)
(1) See National Geographic Magazine, Tina Rosenberg, @ http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2008/12/community-doctors/rosenberg-text
This was how women of the Untouchable caste (now called Dalits) in India had been trained to see themselves, but some were being trained to see themselves very differently – as village healthcare workers. These women had been shunned since birth by those around them and never allowed to even pump water from the village well because their touch was “poison” to higher caste people. But now, when two of these transformed women, Sarubai Salve and Babai Sathe, move through their village, people gather around them. They are no longer poison. In fact, Sathe has been elected the leader—or sarpanch—of her village, Jawalke.
How could such an amazing social transformation take place? Through the support of a program that sees such women as a means to not only transform the crushing lives of these Dalit women but to transform rural health care in India. Salve and Sathe are not doctors or even nurses. They have very little equipment, but they are responsible for the health of Jawalke residents. They see pregnant women, deliver babies, and then check up on mother and infant. They visit old people, take blood pressure, and check on people cured of leprosy. Life is much better in Jawalke and that is because of women like Salve.
"When I started, the children all had scabies and there was filth everywhere," Salve says. Small kids used to die. Pregnant women died during and after delivery. Poor sanitation led to malaria and diarrheal diseases. Children went unvaccinated. Leprosy and tuberculosis were common. Today these problems are almost non-existent, but the turn-around has not been quick or easy.
Thirty-eight years after the Jamhhed program began training Dalit women as care givers there are 300 villages that benefit from their dedication. In villages that have these Dalit angels half as many infants die and, even though half of all Indian children under age three are malnourished, in Jamkhed villages there are not enough cases to record. But the truly amazing thing about this social (r)evolution is that the changes go way beyond health issues.
Many of the Dalit women who became care givers were illiterate and destitute. As Untouchables, they were non-persons, not even allowed to wear shoes because higher caste people could not step on their footprint, and never allowed to enter a building or home. Many had been married at ages ranging from two-and-a-half to ten and then abandoned by their husbands. So their first step was to transform themselves beginning with two weeks of training on Jamkhed’s campus that gave them pride and confidence in addition to basic technical knowledge. Another secret to their on-going success is the network of continuing support they receive from weekly contact with each other for discussion and new training.
All Jamhked villages now have clean water and many have pumps in every backyard, most villagers have small gardens to grow fresh fruits and vegetables, and in an area that was once treeless villagers have planted millions of new trees. Sathe and Salve have organized eight women’s groups to make these changes happen in Jawalke, and their latest project is toilets for every house.
Even magically placing a doctor in every village wouldn’t have created these remarkable social improvements because as Raj Arole, co-founder of the program, says, "Doctors promote medical care because that's where the money is. We promote health." Dalit women who are Jamhked workers teach their neighbors about breast-feeding and good nutrition and hygiene. They help villages create systems for clean water and sanitation. Most importantly, they are culture-changing, living proof against the superstition and stigma that discriminates against women and low-caste people.
"When I started, I had no support from anyone, no education, no money," said Sathe. "I was like a stone with no soul. When I came here they gave me shape, life. I learned courage and boldness. I became a human being." Through women who were once degraded and tormented as Untouchables all the women of these villages see there is a better life for them. And now they know they ALL have the power to demand it and create it. (1)
(1) See National Geographic Magazine, Tina Rosenberg, @ http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/print/2008/12/community-doctors/rosenberg-text
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
YOGA & CONGRESS
In the middle of a yoga stretch the other day I began thinking about the gridlock that is gripping the U.S. Congress (you’re supposed to block stuff out during yoga but it just popped right in). That may seem like an odd time to reflect on politics, but it occurred to me because yoga is all about balance - of the spirit and of the body.
So I started thinking about how the inability of Congress to work together for the good of all Americans is a perfect snapshot of the social ills I talk about in Conversations with EVE. When did civility and compromise become dirty words? When did treating others with fairness and respect become “just for shmucks?” When did winning become more important than anything else – regardless of how much harm is done to others in the process?
I’m sure some of those attitudes have always been part of human nature, but for tens of thousands of years they were generally disapproved of and usually held in check to maintain healthy, balanced societies. That all changed though after the Myth of Male Superiority did away with social balance and redefined manhood. No, things just haven’t been the same since the values of the Myth made “winning” the only measure of a man and declared that those who compromise and consider the welfare of others aren't “real” men.
Social focus shifted from balance to winning quite a while ago and has been making life miserable for a lot of people since then. But today you need look no further than certain elements of the U.S. House of Representatives for a living, breathing, totally dysfunctional example of these Myth values in action:
** there is no informed debate about how to reduce hunger in America or how to achieve a living wage for middle income workers, but they defeated a badly needed farm bill because it ONLY cut $20 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (better known as food stamps) and they want to cut $100 billion,
** there is no meaningful discussion of other ways to provide all Americans with access to health care, but there have been 40 separate votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act without offering an alternative, and
** there is no will to pass significant immigration reform even when the bill was proposed by a bipartisan group of Senators and covers all the issues they’ve been insisting on: increased border security, increased employer verification, and clear requirements for any pathway to citizenship. This despite the facts that Americans overwhelmingly support the bill and the reforms are projected to grow the U.S. economy, help reduce the deficit, and generate close to a trillion dollars in revenue for the U.S. by 2044.
You see this kind of “dig in your heels rather than give a little for the good of everyone” approach to life a lot in our competitive, combative society. But when it becomes the way that elected representatives do their job (or don’t) in this country it’s gotten way out of hand.
So the next time you get the opportunity to vote for a member of Congress, choose those who can put the health and well-being of all Americans above their own need to win.
So I started thinking about how the inability of Congress to work together for the good of all Americans is a perfect snapshot of the social ills I talk about in Conversations with EVE. When did civility and compromise become dirty words? When did treating others with fairness and respect become “just for shmucks?” When did winning become more important than anything else – regardless of how much harm is done to others in the process?
I’m sure some of those attitudes have always been part of human nature, but for tens of thousands of years they were generally disapproved of and usually held in check to maintain healthy, balanced societies. That all changed though after the Myth of Male Superiority did away with social balance and redefined manhood. No, things just haven’t been the same since the values of the Myth made “winning” the only measure of a man and declared that those who compromise and consider the welfare of others aren't “real” men.
Social focus shifted from balance to winning quite a while ago and has been making life miserable for a lot of people since then. But today you need look no further than certain elements of the U.S. House of Representatives for a living, breathing, totally dysfunctional example of these Myth values in action:
** there is no informed debate about how to reduce hunger in America or how to achieve a living wage for middle income workers, but they defeated a badly needed farm bill because it ONLY cut $20 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP (better known as food stamps) and they want to cut $100 billion,
** there is no meaningful discussion of other ways to provide all Americans with access to health care, but there have been 40 separate votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act without offering an alternative, and
** there is no will to pass significant immigration reform even when the bill was proposed by a bipartisan group of Senators and covers all the issues they’ve been insisting on: increased border security, increased employer verification, and clear requirements for any pathway to citizenship. This despite the facts that Americans overwhelmingly support the bill and the reforms are projected to grow the U.S. economy, help reduce the deficit, and generate close to a trillion dollars in revenue for the U.S. by 2044.
You see this kind of “dig in your heels rather than give a little for the good of everyone” approach to life a lot in our competitive, combative society. But when it becomes the way that elected representatives do their job (or don’t) in this country it’s gotten way out of hand.
So the next time you get the opportunity to vote for a member of Congress, choose those who can put the health and well-being of all Americans above their own need to win.
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