Where are we going?
These and other religious leaders side with a political
party on the gay marriage divide. And now entering the fray are the CEOs of Chick-fil-A
and General Mills. To
"belong," political party members are buying the products of
"their" man. Already polls
indicate a person's political persuasion can be highly predicted by which TV
channel they select during evening news. Some people may want to shun me as
not-one-of-them when I mention I read the above situation between the nuns and
Vatican leaders in the New York Times.
What's next? Sporting my political identity with the car I
drive? The clothes I wear? My opinion of the opposite sex? Again no middle
ground. A month ago, the Republican Party of Texas released its official 2012
Platform with a provision including what they now say was an unfortunate choice
of words: opposition to the teaching of “higher order thinking skills” in Texas
schools. They explained they meant a teaching technique that might lead a child
to disagree with what their parents taught them. How does a man mature without
learning to think for himself?
Given the political and religious leaders I mention are all
male, it looks like the centuries-old upper-class empire-building that men have employed to control financial, political
(military) and religious power. Those now seeking that control speak little of
the nation's future and few specific actions they'll take to solve the problems
of those not in power. It is all about
"freedom" for them, and I'm only given a little hope that things will
somehow be better for the United States when they gain power. Just a little hope, like that suggested by
Donald Sutherland in his role as Coriolanus Snow, the president of Panem, in
"Hunger Games. "
To what extent do
gender equality issues underlie the
above Catholic and political divisions?
Do these men seek to maintain the old standards of gender
discrimination?
An alternative to chauvinism
is described by M. Scott Peck. http://mscottpeck.com/
His ideas helped me understand relating
to others. He defines mature love, and his vision of community among people of
different persuasions. He describes the pursuit of personal dignity of all humans
by elevating from a chaotic disorder of people focused on differences to an
ordered conversation of listening and
understanding one another. His
communities arrive at resolving differences by accepting them with
respect. Both men and women have the
capability of building mature relationships.
Although too late for
this November, among others, former Senator Bill Bradley, an Olympic gold medal
holder in a team sport, is talking without
anger and threat of violence about a third political party in four years that
supports the best of both sides of the stalemate. http://www.billbradley.com/ He's a fresh, positive role model on what makes
a man great, and what would again make our country a great democracy: one
nation indivisible with liberty and
justice for all. The president of
Panem knew fear and intimidation could control the masses, but only as long as
the people cooperated. It is time, not to get mad as hell, but to get involved.
No comments:
Post a Comment