Two roads diverged....
The institutionalization of Trumpism (implementing policies and consolidating power)
Trump's policies are isolationist,selfish, competitive,and protectionist in extreme. Trump is taking America to the limits of "individualism" (self-absorbed culture)and turning it into an island. Extreme individualism says its acceptable to act with selfish disrespect toward others (exploiting others in pursuit of one's own goals) . Single-minded focus on one's own interests/desires makes it difficult to form lasting cooperative (mutually beneficial)relationships with others. Without the social supports of community, isolated individuals suffer anxiety, aloneness, depression. True fulfillment comes from looking after not just one's own interests but also caring for the needs and interests of others.
Trump's top-down leadership style: his authoritarian managerial skills are not compatible with running a democracy. (not a team player; not receptive to input from advisors) He is consolidating power in the executive branch while ignoring constitutional checks and balances ,and the oversight function of congress. (by invoking his powers as Commander in Chief he is able to bypass all such safeguards)
Trump exemplifies the politics of fear and division.
Trump's policies are isolationist,selfish, competitive,and protectionist in extreme. Under Trump's leadership, the USA is increasingly isolating itself from the rest of the world:
UN General Assembly condemns US unilateral recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel
the nations of the world proceed with commitment to mitigate climate change despite US withdrawal from the Paris Accord.
The US seeks to renegotiate all its trade agreements in its own favour without consideration for the interests of its trading partners.
The US seeks to drastically restrict immigration and build a wall to barricade itself against the migrant hoards.
US reduces its contribution to the operating budget of the UN.
************************** If it is truely Donald Trump's intention to achieve "greatness" for America,... this is not the path to greatness. How about the wealthiest country in the world showing some magnanity! What happened to "noblesse oblige" and "giving back "? Relationships mean giving and not just taking.
In the meantime China seeks to further its interests by moving in the opposite direction : pushes for free trade, globalization, and multinationalism/multilateralism. China takes the longview by increasing investment in foreign aid, (investing in the infrastructure of other countries)and is winning a lot of influence and goodwill globally.
...and Canada takes the moral highroad and seems like a sanctuary of sanity in a world gone mad. Canada embraces the ideology that a civilized and just society does not ignore the suffering of downtrodden people
We are about to witness a tumultuous period in human history. We will all be caught up in the apocalyptic drama as these opposing forces and competing ideologies play themselves out on the world stage. If any good comes from the Trump fiasco, its that its put the focus on whats wrong with American society and what needs fixing. Hopefully this will motivate a transformation and create a new healthier social order.
My bet is that America will find itself on the wrong side of history. History will show that the best way forward for humanity is to tear down divisions/barriers and to embrace inclusivity. Clearly humanity is moving on and leaving America behind. History will show that the best adaptation was in building bridges¤(cooperation,inclusivity) ;not walls (competition, exclusivity) !
These two distinct approaches are perhaps best exemplified by the Dalai Lama's description of two kinds of selfishness: (see Dalai Lama's definition of true/prudent "selfishness")
"If you try to subdue your selfish motives and develope more kindness and compassion for others,ultimately you yourself will benefit more. So sometimes I say the "wise selfish person" should practice this way. Foolish selfish people are always thinking of themselves,and the result is negative. Wise selfish people think of others,help others as much as they can,and the result is that they too receive benefit." --Dalai Lama
"If you just want to Walk Fast, Walk Alone! But if you want to Walk Far, WalkTogether!" --Steve Jobs
¤ "building bridges" means building mutually- beneficial relationships based on what we share in common. Relationships mean giving and not just taking.
****************** Listen to comedian Ron James:
https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=ahRVKC0rBMk&sns=em
https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=x3OueiVvvsE&sns=em
Tbe science behind the common sense:
ReplyDeletepsychologist David DeSteno says the “social emotions” of gratitude, compassion and pride are the trick to big change.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/friday-january-19-2018-full-episode-transcript-1.4495853
http://www.cbc.ca/1.4495853
http://www.cbc.ca/listen/shows/the-current/segments
Humanity at a crossroad:
ReplyDeleteHumanity at a crossroads
Freud wrote in "Civilization and its Discontents" :
"Men have brought their powers of subdueing the forces of nature to such a pitch that by using them they could now exterminate one another to the last man.They know this ---hence arises a great part of their current unrest, their dejection, their mood of apprehension (unfocused fear).
And now it can be expected that the other of the two competing forces within him ,Eros (the love instinct aims to bind together, to establish and preserve ever greater unities.) will pull forth its strenght to counter its adversary, the destructive instinct thst wants to break connections,to destroy".
Deletehttps://www.cbc.ca/radio/thesundayedition/the-sunday-edition-for-june-9-2019-1.5165327/co-living-apartments-offer-a-sense-of-community-for-on-the-go-millennials-1.5165343?__vfz=medium%3Dsharebar
Empathy makes us human, but research suggests it may be on the decline
Empathy is considered such a core part of what it means to be a feeling, engaged human that people who lack empathy are thought to be lacking in humanity.
Some would go so far as to say that empathy — the emotional and moral imagination that allows us to put ourselves in the shoes of other people — is what makes us human.
But research suggests that empathy may be in decline in the West.
Sara Konrath is a Canadian social psychologist and the director of the Interdisciplinary Program on Empathy and Altruism Research at Indiana University. Her 2010 study found that younger generations in particular are less empathetic and more narcissistic.
Another study from the U.K. suggested British citizens feel empathy is taking a downward turn. Meanwhile, stories of increasing political polarization, the demonizing of refugees or desperate migrants from other parts of the world, and hate crimes would seem to point to the empathic impulse being overwhelmed by anger, anxiety, suspicion and prejudice.
People are burned out
While it's tempting to put the blame squarely on technology and social media, she believes a lot of factors come into play, from a long-term trend in Western societies becoming more individualistic, to something as basic as mental fatigue.
"I see these changes not just in empathy, but in social interaction and social connection ... and a lot of them are coming at the same time as we have increasing pressures, increasing competition, increasing desire for success, and increasing inequality," Konrath told The Sunday Edition's host Michael Enright, adding that she believes people are burned out.
"Even for people with really high empathy, they can go in ebbs and flows in their empathy. And I think it depends a lot on their energy levels. Did they sleep enough? Are they hungry? But I think for people who are higher in empathy, it's because they practice it regularly and it matters to them, and that means it's probably less draining for them."
Fritz Breithaupt, who also teaches at Indiana University and is the author of The Dark Sides of Empathy, says looser social ties, smaller families, greater time constraints and a preponderance of public figures who project self-absorption could also be eroding empathy.
The empathy paradox
But he argues there's a paradox at work — people seem to be increasingly selective about who they feel is worthy of empathy.
"We have certain triggers and blocks of empathy, and one of the strongest triggers of empathy is some dynamic of taking sides when we observe a conflict," Breithaupt said.
"It can be as harmless as a sports game, but it can also be an argument we witnessed or even political tensions. We tend to take a side very quickly, and then once we take a side, we take their perspective. We start to share their feelings and start to demonize the other side.
"So there's a dynamic where our selective mechanism that lets us feel empathy for some and not for others can have real political consequences and can exclude others."
The consequences of a continued decline in empathy — or a continued increase in selective empathy — could be profound and troubling, with real implications for the global community's ability to tackle such daunting challenges as climate change, inequality and mass human migration.
"Some self-interest is important," said Breithaupt. "But of course [if] it gets out of hand, then the super-rich become even more hyper-rich, and the poor would be forgotten ... So the negative scenario would be a brutal world full of competition."
Macron rips Trumpism:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.cnn.com/2018/04/25/politics/france-president-emmanuel-macron-joint-address-congress/index.html
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/25/politics/emmanuel-macron-donald-trump-congress-politics/index.html
Peace Forum: trudeau and macron speak out against tbe politics of tribalism/populism on Nov 11,2018 in explicit rejection of Trump's policies
ReplyDeletehttps://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-macron-sends-stern-message-to-trump-others-on-remembrance-day-about/
https://globalnews.ca/news/4653199/trudeau-warns-attacks-media/
an insightful analysis of the global threat of populism--its ideology and playbook for gaining and maintaining power
Deletecbc.ca/the current Nov 28,2018
Citizens must become leaders in order to combat populism, says former diplomat
Ben Rowswell.
As a former diplomat, Ben Rowswell witnessed populist politics has taken hold in recent years, and the impact that had on countries like Venezuela. Now he's urging citizens to organize and fight back against the threat.
Shared from cbc.ca/listen:
https://www.cbc.ca/listen/shows/the-current
canadian international council
Western culture glorifies individualism at the expense of cooperation.
DeleteCompetition vs cooperation:
ReplyDeleteAs long as we're fighting/quarreling among ourselves,(warring with each other) we won't see the real enemy (climate change) coming!!
We may become so preoccupied with ,petty infighting that we are caught off guard.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10104490644095288&id=25713691&anchor_composer=false&_ft_=mf_story_key.10104490644095288%3Atop_level_post_id.10104490644095288%3Atl_objid.10104490644095288%3Acontent_owner_id_new.25713691%3Athrowback_story_fbid.10104490644095288%3Aphoto_id.10104490643481518%3Astory_location.4%3Astory_attachment_style.video_inline%3Athid.25713691%3A306061129499414%3A2%3A0%3A1561964399%3A-871541924426791994&__tn__=%2AW-R
Tragedy/adversity brings people together.
Perhaps the ecosystem crises that threatens the planet will unite humanity if we can see this event as our common enemy requiring cooperation to achieve a common goal.
Climate change deniers are isolationists--more interested in building walls rather than bridges.
They resist unificatjon/globalization .
.To them subordinating one's personal interests
for the common good is perceived as a threat.
The climate crises is a calamity that can only be
solved through a unified global response.
If humanity fails to unite (bring an end to war)for the purpose of achieving this common goal they cannot overcome this threat.
At a time when unity and solidarity among the global community was never more critical ,populist leaders are pulling away from international cooperation (globalism)
.Putting their own interests ahead of those of humanity could see efforts to address globall problems unravel.
Dealing with climate change requires a cooperative effort on the part of the international community.
In today's world where we are dealing with wars,extremism, hatred,oppression,isolationism ,and negativity...it's wonderful to see that humanity can set all that aside and work collaborative!y toward one goal.
.It's a pity that politicians don't seem to be able to work together in the same way.
UN chief warns of a world divided:
DeleteU.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned global leaders Tuesday of the looming risk of the world splitting in two, with the United States and China creating rival internets, currency, trade, financial rules "and their own zero sum geopolitical and military strategies."
In his annual "state of the world address" to the General Assembly's gathering of heads of state and government, Guterres said the risk "may not yet be large, but it is real."
"We must do everything possible to avert the great fracture and maintain a universal system, a universal economy with universal respect for international law; a multipolar world with strong multilateral institutions," he told presidents, prime ministers, monarchs and ministers from the U.N.'s 193 member states.
Guterres painted a grim picture of a deeply divided and anxious planet facing a climate crisis, "the alarming possibility of armed conflict in the Gulf," spreading terrorism, rising populism and "exploding" inequality.
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/opens-annual-leaders-meeting-encircled-troubled-world-65815127
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/un-opens-annual-leaders-meeting-encircled-by-troubled-world/ar-AAHJXLv
grassroots movement for the health of Mother Earth:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.facebook.com/13341879933/posts/10156788925289934/?sfnsn=mo&s=and ytt&w=y
We can do this!
Let's get it done!