permaculture

[Loren Davidson <listmail@lorendavidson.com>]

At 09:49 AM 3/7/05 -0700, Scott Pittman wrote:

> > Robert,
> >
> > Unfortunately it is not about politics.  It is about people being right, 
> > which places the other side as wrong.  Perfect circumstances for a 
> > war.  And it is about people being unkind.  If we could just look in our 
> > heart and ask ourselves how do we want to be treated then treat others 
> > that way we would go a long way.
> >
> > Greg
>
> There *is* such a thing as right and wrong and that is the basis of the 
> ethical principals of permaculture.

Scott,

I'm not sure that you and Greg are really disagreeing. I think there's a 
very distinct difference between "believing in right and wrong" and "having 
to be right." I think Greg was talking about the latter, and that you're 
talking about the former. I don't know for sure, because I'm not in either 
of your heads...but it's my intelligent guess.

And I think that Greg is spot-on in talking about how unkind and 
inconsiderate people seem to have become toward one another in many places 
in our culture. One of the results of that is the disappearance of the 
"commons," and of the ability of many people to even perceive that other 
points of view deserve respect.

People are wound too damn tight, IMO. Part of why, I think, is the 
indifference and/or hostility that they're shown on a daily basis by the 
large corporate entities around them. When you perceive that every megacorp 
is out to get you, it becomes easier to justify trying to tear off a piece 
for yourself by whatever means.

So I go out of my way to treat people like people. It's hard when they 
aren't acting like people, but as one philosopher once said, "People need 
love the most when they deserve it the least."

Just a few thoughts,

Loren

Loren Davidson        Earth steward, healer, singer/songwriter
listmail@lorendavidson.com   http://www.earthspring.org/loren/
I'm a musician too!  http://www.lorendavidson.com
"In gentleness there is great strength." - Sun Bear