LEST WE FORGET

If the current world situation has you “hunkering in your bunker,” you are not alone.  These are strange times.  Where are answers to really hard questions to be found?

I believe this post is the most crucial I have yet written. Condensing the most important principles given us by one of the truly great thinkers of the world, Buckminster Fuller, I offer a bright beacon of light  – – if we take them to heart.

1. MALTHUS WAS WRONG.  There IS enough to go around.  TO EXPLAIN:  Thomas Malthus was a British census taker who in 1798 proclaimed that there was no way the growing population was going to have enough to eat. (Thus:  dog eat dog, I’ll get mine before you get it.  War, greed, fear.) The result was two world wars, followed by others too shameful to talk about.  So why was Malthus wrong?  He was wrong because he misunderstood wealth.

2.TRUE WEALTH is KNOW-HOW. It combines the physical with the metaphysical (thought).  Thus people now have living standards higher than the kings of yesteryear. Wealth is not, contrary to much popular opinion, about gold or “tonnage.”  It is about invention, design, innovation and discovery.

3. DOING MORE AND MORE WITH LESS AND LESS – Using things made possible by our understanding and use of principles like leverage, magnetics, mass attraction, and optics, we are optimizing life for all.   For example, the 150,000-ton copper communication cable that used to make possible trans-Atlantic communications has been replaced by “the cloud.”  There are thousands of examples of this phenomenon which Fuller called  “ephemeralization.”

4. POLITICIANS & BUREAUCRACIES – We must shift from prime dependence on politics to utilizing design science to solve our problems. He said that politicians are obsolete as fundamental problem solvers.

5. REVOLUTION – We must shift from use of violence, force and warfare to the kind of revolution that is tolerable to all men, all societies, all political systems:  revolution by design and invention.

6. “SPACESHIP EARTH” – We’re all in this together.  Destruction of any kind means destroying the chances of success for all of us.

7. HAVE-NOT-NESS —   is caused by society’s failure to design and invent the right things to overcome lack.

8. INVESTING IN “LIVINGDRY” NOT “WEAPONDRY” — Either war is obsolete or man is; it’s as plain as that.

9. EDUCATION – Fuller stated that we are rapidly de-genius-ing every person who passively submits to traditional education.   He called for a total design revolution (which is what Hamilton Learning Foundation is working to bring about).

10. INDIVIDUAL INITIATIVE & INTEGRITY– This is, according to Fuller, “the most important thing in the world.”  In other words, don’t sit around blaming the government and saying “this is wrong, that is bad, THEY should do something about it.” – –Each of us should do something in accordance with our talents.  Just begin.  And:  TELL THE TRUTH, TELL THE TRUTH, TELL THE TRUTH.

 

 

ARE WE UP TO THE CHALLENGE?

Recent world events have given rise to analytical thoughts that apply to all ages, all environments and all situations.   FORCE is based on fear.  It is used because of feelings of fright, impotence, rage, need for control and ignorance about alternatives.  It causes COUNTER-FORCE.  It uses MEAN AND HEAVY things: threats, revenge, fists, guns, knives, swords, murder, tanks, missiles, drones, bombs and warfare.  It gives rise to hatred, more fear, bitterness, counter-attack, destruction, despair, suffering, impoverishment and death.

On the other hand, true POWER is based on faith.  It is used because of feelings of competence  and calm certainty.  It causes IMPROVEMENT.  It uses WEIGHTLESS things: knowledge, intelligence, invention, discovery, know-how, science, insight, skills, wisdom, positive reinforcement, prudence and understanding.  It gives rise to gratitude, hope, harmony, joy, creativity, prosperity, peace and life.

The challenge of this era is to come to understand the heavy forces of darkness and develop the intelligence to overcome them with things that are weightless.

 

 

 

 

1. OUR SALVATION PERHAPS?

It seems to me that the normal yearning for world unity and peace is often undercut by lack of a universally accepted value system.  Such things as religious organizations, tribal customs,  philosophical orientations, and political affiliations often stand in the way of wise, broad consensus about how to care for our planet.

The values of science, however, can usually gain acceptance in the most diverse cultures.

Here is a list of the values of science from an old booklet called Education and the Spirit of Science which is worth consideration:

1. Longing to know and to understand

2. Questioning of all things

3. Search for data and their meaning

4. Demand for verification

5. Respect for logic

6. Consideration of premises

7. Consideration of consequences.

Implicit in these values are:

1. Honesty

2. Reliability

3. Responsibility

4. Modesty

5. Humility

6. Willingness to see one’s own conclusions challenged.

In learning science, there is much more than just the subject matter, or even the discovery of principles or broad concepts.  There is this tremendously crucial nurturing of a VALUE SYSTEM which may turn out to be mankind’s best hope, most important endeavor and ultimately our salvation.