Information about http://www.globalcommunity.org/timeline/40/timeline.pdf
Timeline Email Edition July/August 1998 - No. 40 …
Tags: blips, circles, computer revolution, consciousness, drift, excerpts, global community, globalization, grand canyon, green revolution, jerry mander, left wing, mac lawrence, modern technology, redwood national park, reflections, revolutions, videotapes, violence, water water,Pages: 20
Language: english
Created: Friday, July 10, 1998 9:31:59 AM
Display cached document
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9
Page 10
Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Page 14
Page 15
Page 16
Page 17
Page 18
Page 19
Page 20
Timeline Email Edition
July/August 1998 - No. 40
A Publication of the Foundation for Global Community
http://www.globalcommunity.org
timeline@globalcommunity.org
Phone: (650) 328 7756 Fax: (650) 328 7785
In this Issue:
Globalization
The Soul of Money
Donella Meadows
Violence
Blips on the Timeline
Reflections on Water
Water: Sacred and Profaned
Speaker Videotapes
A Shift of Consciousness
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
Globalization: What You His second book is about how modern
technology substitutes mediated
Don't Know Can Hurt You experiences of the world for direct
experience. This, Mander noted,
Excerpts from a talk "separates us from our inner selves, our
by Jerry Mander communities, and from effective power
over our lives. It's also about the
Reported by Mac Lawrence political drift of technology. We hear a
lot about the Green Revolution and the
Jerry Mander is well known in Computer Revolution and so on, but we
environmental circles. Ads he wrote, are rarely told whether those revolutions
which appeared in national media, helped are right-wing revolutions or left-wing
save the Cascades National Park, create revolutions. And I can tell you for sure,
the Redwood National Park, and keep they're not neutral revolutions; they have
the Grand Canyon from being overrun very clear consequences.
with dams.
"The third book, on economic
In 1972, after a growing concern about globalization, encompasses the other two
the current state of the world, Mander books since economic globalization is
left his advertising agency career to aided by the globalization of
found Public Interest Communications, a consciousness and by our separation
pioneer nonprofit advertising and public from the Earth." While noting that
relations firm. Since then, he has written economics is not a subject we all love to
three books: Four Arguments for the talk about, Mander made clear that
Elimination of Television, In the "we'd better learn about this one because
Absence of the Sacred, and his most it affects each one of us, every
recent, The Case Against the Global community, every worker, every
Economy, focusing on his current business, and the natural world."
passion--the negative consequences of
globalization. Economic globalization had its birth at
the end of World War II, Mander noted,
In a talk to a standing-room only "at the infamous Bretton Woods
audience at the Foundation office meetings of the world's leading
recently, Mander explained the rationale economists and political leaders in New
for his three books. The first book shows Hampshire." There soon followed the
how television shapes a unified, global formation of the World Bank and the
consciousness which promotes a culture International Monetary Fund (IMF).
fitted to the purposes of the corporations Next came GATT (the General
who own and operate global media and Agreement on Tariffs and Trade), and
who have a stake in people living, most recently the World Trade
believing, and buying according to the Organization, NAFTA, Maastricht, and
corporate vision of how life should be OPEC.
lived.
The idea was "to create a new model to
run the world better--theoretically so
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
people could be fed, enjoy the fruits of "To achieve rapid economic growth,
the technical revolution and the globalization of course requires totally
consumer revolution, and to ensure that unrestricted free trade, privatization of
there would be no more horrible wars. enterprise, and deregulation of corporate
These people certainly saw themselves as activity. Together they remove all
do-gooders and altruists, despite their impediments that might stand in the way
self-interest in the outcome." of expanded corporate activity. In
practice, the impediments are usually
The structure they chose to build this environmental laws, or public health
brighter future was the global laws, or food safety laws, or laws that
corporation, to which they gave pertain to worker rights and
extraordinary power. As Mander noted, opportunities, or laws that permit nations
"Now these institutions of economic to control investment on their soil, or
globalization are arguably producing the laws that try to retain national controls
most fundamental redesign of the over local culture.
planet's social, political, and economic
arrangements, at least since the Industrial These are now viewed as obstacles to
Revolution. They're producing a power free trade and are quickly being outlawed
shift of gigantic proportions, moving real by the great new trade agreements. And
economic and political power away from while corporations are being deregulated
national, state, and local governments and freed, nation states and local
toward global corporations and banks, governments are being increasingly
and to the global bureaucracies they have regulated and confined; they now find it
created. The net result is what many of more difficult to act in the cause of
my colleagues call `monoculture- preservation of local jobs, identity,
culture'--the global homogenization of culture, local tradition, national
culture, lifestyle, economic practice, and sovereignty, and the environment."
ideology, with the corresponding
sacrifice of local traditions, values, arts, Mander is particularly disturbed by the
and traditional small-scale economic Multilateral Agreement on Investment
practice. (MAI). For the past few years, he
reported, the 29 industrial nations that
"Economic globalization actively comprise the Organization for Economic
undermines all values, except economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
values. It enshrines the free market and have been working in Paris on an
its principal actors--global international document "that places
corporations--as the engines and the severe restrictions on the abilities of all
benefactors of the process. It places first levels of government--national, state,
importance on the achievement of ever- provincial, city, regional, local--to
more rapid economic growth and the regulate foreign investment. Like most of
constant search for new markets, new these global trade agreements, the MAI
resources, and cheaper labor, which is discussions are held in secret; only the
why everyone is so excited by China's ability of some people to steal an
joining into this experiment. occasional draft document makes it
possible to know what is in it.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
"Under the MAI, no government--
national or local--will be able to say, "Under the MAI, amazingly, the rules of
`OK, you can invest here but only if you so-called expropriation are extended to
hire local workers or if you make joint the absurd. Corporations will now have
ventures with local partners so as to the right, if it passes, to sue nation states
preserve a national or regional to recover so-called lost profits from
character.' Under the MAI, no country investments they would have made
or community can favor local enterprise except that some new law made it
for any contract--for road construction, unprofitable to do that. Taxpayers might
or building stadiums, or providing have to pay for the profits on investments
luncheons in schools, or running your that were never made. Corporations
health delivery systems. You can have could sue to recover lost profits caused
Mitsubishi running your national health by public strife, public protest, boycotts,
care. No country or city could be or strikes. This would provide many
allowed to say that permits for fishing, or governments with ample incentive to
farming, or forestry, or wood processing forbid free expression."
must go first to national or local
residents or that zoning laws must be Mander noted that advocates of
observed about what kinds of economic globalization promise a $250
commercial operations may take place. billion expansion of world economic
activity whose benefits will be a "rising
"Under the MAI, no country could make tide that lifts all boats. But," he asks,
new restrictions on mining or forestry to "will such a gigantic economic expansion
protect dwindling resources or to actually happen? And, if it does, how
preserve the environment. Foreign long can it possibly sustain itself before it
investors could challenge new rules runs into the limits of a finite planet?
because they could say that the new rules Where will the resources, the minerals,
favor local companies who, in the past, the wood, the water, come from to feed
were not restricted. In other words, it such exponential economic growth?
would be considered discrimination Where will the effluents of this hyped
against foreign companies if local process--the solids and the toxics--be
companies had cut down forests before dumped? Who actually benefits from all
foreign companies had even thought to this? Will it be working people who
enter. globally are already losing jobs to high-
tech machines and to corporate flight,
No country could discriminate against and who've been clearly placed in a
foreign investors based upon their downward wage competition with their
environmental or human rights, or co-workers in all other countries?
political practice. Had the MAI been Already in England they're advertising to
enforced during South Africa's apartheid the global business community that
regime, all government boycotts and English workers are the lowest paid in
sanctions against South Africa would Europe. Imagine a developed country
have been illegal. We might still have advertising the low wages of its own
apartheid. Nelson Mandela might still be people. Asia and some countries in South
in jail. America and the Caribbean have also
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
been advertising that way. It's a big "Already in the U.S. we begin to see
competition towards the lowest possible how the system really works. While
wage. corporate profits are at their highest in
history, with many CEOs making salaries
"Will it be farmers that benefit who, in the millions of dollars and some as
whether in Asia, Africa, Europe, or the much as $80 or $90 million per year, real
U.S., are now being driven off their lands wages of ordinary workers are falling,
by World Bank export development and good jobs are being replaced by part-
schemes? These schemes replace diverse time or temporary work in the service
local farm production and local trade sector. Meanwhile, social services are in
with giant corporate farms that no longer decline in all countries. The gap between
grow food that local people can eat, but the wealthy and the poor within countries
instead grow coffee, beef, or grain for and among countries is rapidly
export to the global economy. Will it be increasing. And globalization accelerates
city dwellers who are now faced with the problem both by separating peoples
millions of newly landless refugees from their traditional livelihoods and by
roaming the globe, seeking some place to creating this downward wage spiral. This
live and the rare poorly paid job? includes third-world countries where low
wages comprise the only so-called
"Can ever-increasing consumption be comparative advantage. If they don't
sustained? How many cars can be built keep wages down, there might be no jobs
and bought? How many roads can cover for them at all.
the land? When will the forest be gone?
Is life better from all this? Are we as "What is improving is the power of the
individuals, as families, as communities largest corporations and the wealthiest
made more secure, less anxious, more in people. The world's 358 billionaires are
control of our destiny? How could we collectively worth the combined income
possibly benefit from a system that of the bottom 45 percent of humanity. Of
destroys local, regional, and national the largest 100 economies of the world,
economies and governments while 50 are now corporations. Mitsubishi is
handing real power to faceless the 22nd largest economy in the world.
bureaucracies in Geneva? General Motors is 26th. Ford is 31st. All
are larger than Denmark, Thailand,
"The famous German ecologist, Turkey, South Africa, Saudi Arabia,
Wolfgang Sachs, says that the only thing Norway, Finland, Malaysia, Chile, New
worse than the failure of this massive Zealand. So much for the rising tide that
global experiment would be its success, lifts all boats. Actually, it mainly lifts
for even at its most optimum level, the yachts."
benefits of a global economy only go to a
small minority of people who sit near the Mander decries the lack of coverage in
hub of the process while the rest of the media of the problems caused by
humanity is left fighting for fewer jobs, globalization. Nor does the media
increasingly landless and homeless, living connect to globalization the problems it
in violent societies. does report, such as wars over oil,
ozone depletion, ocean pollution, or
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
habitat destruction. Even the current and small farmers to make way for
financial crisis in Asia is connected to gigantic dams. The result is that more
globalization, Mander says. people join the landless, jobless, urban
mass."
"The gigantic `bailout' by the IMF is
made to seem like a beneficent act of Mander also notes that in the media
charity toward these underprivileged, "rarely is the connection drawn between
dysfunctional, Asian friends. Rarely is it hunger in the world and the increasing
observed that the money does not go to control of the world food and production
these countries as much as to the supply by gigantic corporations like
American, European, and Japanese Cargill. They effectively determine where
bankers who caused the problem in the food will grow and how it will grow and
first place by stimulating over-expansion by whom and what ultimate price
and over-specialization in export- consumers will pay."
oriented, nontraditional economic areas,
making bad loans, and who find Computers also play a role in economic
themselves now in a desperate panic. In globalization, Mander observes. "To use
effect, it will be taxpayers paying bankers terms like `empowerment' to summarize
for their horrible mistakes. Bankers are the effects of computers is, I'm afraid, to
being rescued, not countries." Another badly misunderstand what power is about
negative Mander points out is the in a real political and economic context.
currency speculators who can "move Computers may help people feel
unimaginably huge amounts of money powerful or competent and surely they
instantaneously and invisibly from one are useful in many ways, but they do
part of the world to another by a mere nothing to balance the corporate
touch of a key, destabilizing countries centralization of power via these very
and currencies, forcing nations to seek same instruments. Quite the opposite. In
the radical solutions of an IMF bailout. my view, computer technology may be
John Cavana calls it a `casino economy' the single most centralizing technology
when countries cannot control the rapid ever invented. For while we sit at our
entry and exit of speculators." PCs, editing our copy, sending our e-
mail, transnational corporations are using
Globalization also causes an immigration their global networks 24 hours a day,
crisis, Mander says, as people flee across seven days a week, with far greater
borders searching for jobs, only to be resources. Their faster and better
met with xenophobia, violence, and machines are spread out everywhere on
demagoguery. NAFTA, he says, "was a the planet at a scale and a speed that
terrible blow to the remaining self- makes our level of empowerment
sufficient corn farming economy of pathetic by comparison. In fact, the giant
Mexico's Mayan peoples, making native transnational corporations of today and
land suddenly vulnerable to corporate the whole global economy simply could
buyouts and foreign competition. not exist without the global computer
Meanwhile, in India, Africa, and South networks to keep those thousands of
America, the mega-development schemes enterprises in touch and all of their
displaced millions of indigenous people
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
billions of parts moving in the same of corporate people and economists that
direction. benefits them but destroys communities
and democracy. It has structures, ruling
"When they push their buttons on their bodies, political and economic powers.
computers, they're not just sending These can all be changed if we get our
letters and information to their people. heads out of the inevitability box."
Their messages result in hundreds of
billions of dollars in resources being For step three, getting something done,
transferred from banks in Geneva to Mander cited the example of Canada,
Delhi or Sarawak, with concrete results. where MAI is widely discussed. He urges
Forests get cut down, dams get built. So concerned citizens in the U.S. to put
truly what kind of revolution is the forth the same kind of effort by
computer revolution? Why do we fail to contacting newspapers and government
see who the big winner is? For despite officials at all levels. Mander is
their usefulness to all of us, and I convinced that once county supervisors
certainly acknowledge that, the and city councils understand that MAI is
electronic revolution has far more to not only a potential disaster at state and
offer the corporations and multi-national national levels but at the local level as
enterprises than they ever will to you and well, they will join the debate.
me."
For an analysis of MAI see the Western
In concluding his talk, Mander advised: Governors' Association report
http://www.westgov.org/wga/pubicat
"Advocates continue to speak of global-
/maiweb.htm
ization as if it was inevitable, like a force Websites in opposition to MAI:
of nature, like evolution or gravity. And http://www.citizen.org/gtw (Ralph Nader's
they call it `utopianism' to oppose it. Public Citizen Global Trade Watch)
This `inevitability factor' has had until http://world.std.com/~dadams/MAI (Boston
now the desired effect, which is to get Area MAI Action Groups)
most people to not even think about it or Websites in support of MAI:
oppose it and instead to simply try and http://www.wto.org (World Trade Organization)
find some kind of survival niche within it. http://www.oecd.org (Organization for
But this issue of inevitability needs to be Economic Community Development)
challenged."
Top Secret:
Acceptance, Mander said, produces New MAI Treaty
passivity. "But if we decided, within the
remnants of our democratic society, that Should Corporations
we would rather not proceed in this
Govern the World?
direction, it becomes less inevitable than
it was the minute before. Options begin (From an ad by The International Forum on Globalization in
The New York Times, February 12, 1998.)
to appear. That is step one. Step two is:
Never let anyone get away with saying
Business Week says it's "the most
that globalization is somehow a natural
explosive trade deal you've never heard
process. It is a system thought up by
of. [It] would rewrite the rules of foreign
human beings, an experiment, a creation
ownership, affecting everything from
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
factories to real estate and even Twist, a founding executive of The
securities. But most lawmakers have Hunger Project who serves on the
never even heard of the Multilateral boards of the State of the World Forum
Agreement on Investment." and the John E. Fetzer Institute. As a
director and fellow of the Institute of
Why not? Why have the public, the press Noetic Sciences, she has developed a
and lawmakers been excluded from these curriculum and program on the
negotiations? It's time to demand the full philosophy of money. In this excerpt,
details. adapted from an interview with Michael
Toms on "New Dimensions" radio,
MAI Futureworld Lynne Twist reflects on the use of money
as a vehicle for personal and social
Under the new MAI treaty, no nation transformation.
will be able to restrict foreign investment
into any segment of its economy. Neither One of my major commitments in life has
could it make rules about reinvesting been to work as a fund-raiser to end
profits in local communities, or hiring hunger and poverty. This has given me
local workers, or respecting cultural the great privilege to interact with many
traditions, or protecting the environment. people who have very, very little. In
If approved, even public property, once it Bangladesh, India, Ghana, Senegal, I
has been partially privatized, would be have seen in their faces and in their
subject to foreign takeover. We may communal way of life, in their
indeed see Hollywood running Canadian relationships with their children and their
Broadcasting, or Bundesbank operating elders, a kind of satisfaction and
American Airlines or Yellowstone Park. fulfillment that's sorely missing in our
Or, Mitsubishi managing the Louvre, or society. People in our society, too, have
the Taj Mahal. In an era of privatization, a hunger. But ours is not physical: It's a
global corporatization, and total freedom hunger for meaning, for belonging, and
of investment, anything becomes for personal validation.
possible.
Our over-commercialized society has
fallen into the belief that our wants and
desires are really needs--we "need"
more oil, more land, more cities, more
freeways. But this whole myth about
needs is just a result of being unclear
Lynne Twist on about who we really are. Having lost our
The Soul of Money spiritual base, our connectedness with
one another and with the Earth itself, the
At our Foundation Center, we offer a "needs" arise to fill an experienced void.
course where people can examine their
relationship with money and make I think the outer world is a reflection of
personal decisions about how they wish personal inner truths. So I've targeted
money to function in their lives. One my work more on the personal level,
person whose ideas we use is Lynne aiming to reach beyond surface concerns
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 8
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
with money to the deeper issues of the society, money is the voice of our
heart. The plight of the poor is often commitments.
more visible than that of the rich, but the
rich, too, are trapped--in a vicious cycle As a fund-raiser for the past 20 years, my
of wealth. People seem to be more daily task, and privilege, has been to ask
familiar with intervening in the vicious people for money. It's an intimate and
cycle of poverty. But we must remember deep interaction with the soul of who
that the vicious cycle of wealth is what they are. I invite them to take money and
has the whole planet going down an bring it into the very heart of their self-
unsustainable track expression. And then the money flows
around the planet. It belongs to none of
And I don't mean wealthy people only. I us, or belongs to all of us--that's really
mean people who live in affluent the way to look at it. I'd like to see a
societies, who are certain that they world in the 21st century where people
absolutely must have the next car, the who are prominent in society are known
next vacation, the next--fill in the blank. for what they allocate, what they invest
I'm talking about just average folks who in, rather than what they accumulate.
are trapped in a "scarcity" mindset. Once That's a recipe for a sustainable society.
you start making a little bit more than
you need, you actually start acquiring so To me, wealth is another word for
many things you really don't need--and prosperity--a sense of joy, creativity,
then you have to take care of them. By and fulfillment in life. People have that,
then, to contribute money or invest in a but they don't label it wealth. It doesn't
better world becomes almost impossible take money for self-fulfillment--every
because you have to maintain all these morning the sun comes up and lights the
different parts of your life. You have sky no matter where you live. And when
extended yourself to believe that you are you sit and watch the sunset, you realize
your car, your home, your job. In my the wealth, prosperity, and well-being
view, this is the vicious cycle of wealth that's available to you just in your
that is part of an affluent culture and a relationship with the Earth, with the sun,
market economy. If we can break from with the solar system and the stars.
that, just as individuals, we can begin to Wealth is understanding the beauty and
dismantle the great structures that are magnificence of a tree. Wealth is being in
driving us in an unsustainable--perhaps love with your husband, in love with
cataclysmic--direction. your wife, in love with your work.
Wealth is having the joy of raising a
As one way to break from this cycle, I child.
suggest we invest our money in not-for-
profit work. When we take a stand for a True wealth costs nothing. It is an
better world with our money, we have investment of the human spirit. When
our money say "This is who I am, this is spirit is unleashed, we free the prosperity
my voice." Most people can look in their of the soul, of the heart, we experience
check book and find out exactly what love, relatedness, interconnectedness,
they're committed to--because in our and the deep truth that we are each
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 9
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
other. In that truth, the whole world For eons now, those algae and the
belongs to each of us. plants that evolved out of them have
been constructing themselves out of
carbon dioxide--dying and sinking to the
bottoms of swamps and oceans,
compressing the carbon they took from
the atmosphere into oil, gas, and coal.
Those big-brained creatures The carbon dioxide in the air has been
aren't as intelligent going down and down and down with a
as they think lot of short-term variation. During the
last few hundreds of thousands of years,
it's been as low as 180 parts per million
Donella Meadows in the Ice Ages and as high as 280 ppm in
warm spells.
I may have made a mistake when I
evolved that two-legged, large-brained Those variations have really walloped the
life form. life forms. The ones that couldn't adapt
were wiped out. I keep evolving new
They have a wonderful intelligence, those ones, though, ever more resilient,
creatures. They were my first full-fledged ingenious and, I must say, beautiful. I'm
experiment with reason and moral getting pretty proud of the result.
intuition. It's been fun to watch them Intricate! Complex! You should see my
learn and develop. But I can see some rainforests!
problems in the design. They confuse the
inventions of their minds with the Then, just a couple hundred years ago,
realities of my laws. They have a hard an eyeblink by my reckoning, the big-
time dealing with the long-term effects of brainers figured out how to burn oil,
their short-term actions. And I'm afraid coal, and gas. The long-stored carbon
I've made them think they're a lot dioxide started pouring back into the
smarter than they actually are. atmosphere. The big-brainers have
already raised the carbon dioxide in the
Recently they met in a place they call atmosphere from 270 to 360 ppm and
Kyoto, trying to agree on the formula for it's going up ever faster as they race
air. They argued whether the carbon around in cars, generate electricity, heat
dioxide content of the atmosphere should shelters, raise food, make all sorts of toys
be 450, 750, or 1,000 parts per million. to play with, and increase their numbers.
That's awfully arrogant of them. I've Now I've gone through plenty of climate
already done more experiments with that upsets--big ones--ocean currents
formula than they can imagine. I began changed all around, a thousand-mile-
with a lot of atmospheric carbon deep ice cap right over that Kyoto place,
dioxide--3 percent, or 30,000 parts per howling deserts where now there are
million. Then I started playing around forests, forests where now there are
with life. I created the blue-green algae, deserts. I've wiped out most of the life
which slurp up carbon dioxide as their
food.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 10
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
forms several times and had to start again with however much of the stuff called
with the algae and the crawling things. money.
They'll survive. I'll survive. I don't know If they don't figure that out, I'm going to
that the big-brains will. Their have to take a few million years and try
"civilization" based on burning stored to evolve a higher form of intelligence.
carbon won't. They've made themselves It's a shame that the money-worshippers
too dependent on the sea level staying will probably take down the chimpanzees
put, the rain falling in specific places at and gorillas with them. Those apes were
specific times, the rivers and winds and good rough drafts; I could have used
storms staying within bounds--their them once again as evolutionary
bounds, not mine. Their bounds won't platforms for intelligence.
hold, not given what they're doing to the
climate. Well, I can build from the dolphins, if
they get through this rough spot.
It's touching to see how many of the big-
brains have figured out the basic outline Maybe that won't be necessary, though. I
of their self-created dilemma. (They're a nearly got intelligence right this time.
long way from getting the details right.) The big-brains do have the capacity to
But the flaws in my design for see beyond power and money, see into
intelligence are apparent--they're using the future, understand the fundamentals
their strange creation called "money" to of my laws, distinguish between symbols
decide what to do. and reality. Some of them know how
many kinds of energy they can harness
"Money" is one of their symbols. It's that don't put carbon back into the
their way of keeping track, like poker atmosphere. It's not impossible for them
chips or chess pieces, in a game they to get it right.
invented that has to do with which of
them has power over whom. They can But they'd better hurry. The gases
buy each other with their money chips, they're spewing out will hang around for
but they can't buy a sunny day or a clean centuries. The climate shifts they've
river or an atmosphere that's back at 270 started will go on unfolding for decades,
ppm carbon dioxide. They can pour all even if they wise up right now.
the money they have into my coffers, and
it won't cause me to send rain to their I hope they do. I'm really quite fond of
crops or call off a flood. them.
Deciding the composition of the Donella H. Meadows, a systems analyst, author,
atmosphere by counting up money and adjunct professor of environmental studies
at Dartmouth College, writes a syndicated
"costs" makes as much sense as deciding
article each week to "present a global view, a
whether a plane will fly by the position of connected view, a long-term view, an
a football on a field. Wrong measure. environmental and compassionate view."
Wrong field. Wrong game. A plane flies Timeline readers who feel that these articles
by my laws; so does the climate, no deserve the widest possible distribution are
matter which big-brained primates end up encouraged to contact their local newspaper
editor and suggest the paper carry them.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 11
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
Meadows can be reached at The Global Citizen, their behavior the essence of the cause
Box 58, Plainfield, NH 03781. of their propensity for violence.
Gilligan contends that in order to create
effective means for preventing violence
we must understand its origins, and he
lays out and defends a clear path to that
understanding. He further offers
Violence: Reflections on implications that flow from that
knowledge and are suggestive of actions
a National Epidemic for reducing our levels of violence.
by James Gilligan, MD
One of Gilligan's conclusions is that "the
Book Review by Don Lathrop attempt to achieve and maintain justice,
or to undo or prevent injustice, is the one
I have yet to see a serious act of violence and only universal cause of violence." He
that was not provoked by the experience repeatedly details the internal logic of
of feeling ashamed and humiliated, and this proposition as it plays itself out in
that did not represent the attempt to the minds of those men who have
prevent or undo this "loss of face"--no committed the most heinous crimes. The
matter how severe the punishment, even reader is left a believer, but this is not his
if it includes death. final agenda.
James Gilligan
His reformulation is more useful. He
One of the ways we know how important concludes that "the emotion of shame is
events are in our lives is to listen to how the primary or ultimate cause of all
many times we refer to them in a violence, whether toward others or
relatively short time. toward the self." With many examples,
he nails down that conclusion. His
Using that as a barometer, I'm amazed to illustrations run from the shame and
hear myself often speaking several times humiliation attendant in the individual life
a day, in a variety of different contexts, devoid of self-respect to Hitler's ability
about James Gilligan's remarkable book, to muster support from the downwardly
Violence: Reflections on a National mobile German middle classes using "the
Epidemic. shame of Versailles" as a rallying point.
Dr. Gilligan directed the Center for the Gilligan uses psychoanalytic methods to
Study of Violence at Harvard Medical liberate meaning from the tangled webs
School, was medical director of the of symbolism inherent in the brutal acts
Bridgewater State Hospital for the of his violent subjects. One such case will
criminally insane, and director of mental illustrate the point. He describes a
health for the Massachusetts Prison murder by a young man, not long out of
system for 10 years. Altogether, for 25 high school, of a female classmate. There
years, Gilligan has been interacting with was no rape or robbery involved, yet the
the most violent of men and distilling victim's eyes were mutilated and her
from his ever-growing understanding of
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 12
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
tongue cut out. This makes no rational shame, but those of us who were lucky
sense, yet Gilligan reveals the shame- enough to have had a chance to build
laden dimension of this act, showing that reasonable amounts of self-esteem as we
the mutilations are an attempt to stop the grew up are able to forge ahead without
shaming which accompanies seeing and resort to violence, in spite of the
telling, through the process of destroying humiliation. For others, lacking in self-
the organs used for these purposes. love, self-respect, and access to some
form of socially acceptable status, such
Gilligan's use of the term epidemic in his as creative achievement, humiliation can
title is key to his work which he pursues be overwhelming. Brawling, drive-by
from the perspective of preventive shootings, spousal and child abuse are
medicine. He indicates that our current but a few examples of this behavior,
epidemic of violence must be understood short of murder or warfare. Suicide and
at the source, which is shame, self-mutilation are often guilt-driven
overwhelming humiliation, sometimes responses to shame.
displayed in the macho image, and
exacerbated by factors such as the Gilligan's accounts of the violence
imbalance of power between men and inherent in our prison system are worth
women in our society. the price of the book by themselves. All
citizens who care about the criminal
Some of his most stimulating thoughts justice system and yearn for safer streets
are his prescriptions for the reduction of would do well to read his descriptions
violence. They center on suggestions for and analysis of how the system is
creating a society radically reduced in its designed to heighten shame, thereby
causes of shame. His eighth chapter, increasing the tendency toward violence
based on Gandhi's statement that "The in the 90 percent of inmates who are
deadliest form of violence is poverty," is eventually released. His examples are
particularly instructive. The "relative chilling.
poverty" of millions of Americans on the
bottom rungs is not only painful in itself, As with other important books, one feels
as illustrated by homelessness and early as if one knew it all the time. However,
death rates, among other things, but it is with Gilligan's book that would only be
particularly hurtful in regard to the shame a half truth. We know it the minute he
it carries with it in a setting where large says it, but if we, as a society, could
numbers of fellow citizens are really know it in our bones, know it
prosperous. It's no wonder that a high where it hurts and where it can heal,
disposition to violence exists among we would alter our behavior in an
victims of such humiliation. He draws instant, in a host of beneficial ways.
useful related conclusions from the highly
unfavorable comparison of our rates of If I were asked what book I would most
violence with those of the rest of the like our country's leaders and shakers to
technologically developed world. read and comprehend, I would strongly
recommend this one. The role played by
Gilligan notes that we all experience fear of humiliation and shame in the
minds of our leaders as they make
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 13
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
decisions which may cause the death of Blips on the Timeline
multitudes is frightening. The result of
President George Bush's humiliation by The term "blip" is most often used to describe a
Noriega is a classic example of a war for point of light on a radar screen. Gathered with
no apparent reason other than the shame the assistance of Research Director Jackie
of a leader. Norman Cousins, in one of Mathes, here are some recent blips which
indicate positive changes toward a global
his last articles before his death, vividly
community.
described our killing of 4,000 human
beings (as opposed to press reports of
400) in this shame-instigated war with Editorial Restraint
Panama. That is a shame!
The Chicago Sun-Times did not run the
If humanity is to evolve beyond the story of the Springfield, Illinois, school
propensity toward violence that now shooting disaster on the front page.
threatens our very survival as a species, Instead, the story appeared on pages two
then it can only do so by recognizing the and three, and a message on the front
extent to which the patriarchal code of page explained to readers a concern
honor and shame generates and that more prominent coverage might
obligates male violence. If we wish to harm or frighten vulnerable children.
bring this violence under control, we Editor-in-chief Nigel Wade explained:
need to begin by reconstituting what we "If such a tragedy happened in Chicago,
mean by both masculinity and our readers would want to read about it
femininity. on page one. But I did not think it safe
James Gilligan to go on treating every new schoolyard
incident the same way. Thirty-five years'
Don Lathrop is professor of philosophy and experience in newspapers convinces me
coordinator of Peace and World Order Studies at that teenagers are influenced by the news
Berkshire Community College, in Pittsfield, they see and read. I have no proof of
Maine, where one of the courses he teaches is that, it's my belief....I did not want to
Alternatives to Violence. He is also co- take the risk that another front-page
coordinator, with his wife, Marion, of the Never
Again Campaign to spread the peace message of
story about another school shooting
the Hiroshima and Nagasaki A-Bomb survivors. might cause some unbalanced 15-year-
He and his wife do Alternatives to Violence old to add one more disaster to the
Project workshops in area prisons. recent series." Readers' response was
overwhelmingly supportive, including an
Violence: Reflections on a National Epidemic,
e-mail which said, "Congrats on your
recently released in paperback by Vintage at
$14.00, was first published in 1996 under the decision....Brace yourself for accusations
title Violence --Our Deadly Epidemic and Its of responsible journalism!"
Causes.
Corporate Chemical Homicide
In its most significant environmental trial
ever, some of Italy's biggest chemical
companies have been charged with
culpable homicide for pollution they
allegedly caused over several decades at
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
Porto Marghera on Venice lagoon. with three more pending, now have "net
Former factory workers started the metering" which allows utility customers
action early in 1997, claiming that to sell power they generate to the electric
pollution resulting from the production utility at the same price they pay to
of vinyl chloride caused at least 117 purchase power. California has gone a
people to die of cancer. A spokesman for step further, taking the opportunity
Montedison chemical company made an presented by utility deregulation to
interesting comment: "We adopted the implement significant cost incentives
same safety rules as other companies all to reduce the initial cost of solar voltaic
over the world." grid-intertied systems by about one-third,
which, coupled with federal "team-up"
Pollution Sales Halted incentives, can reduce the cost by nearly
70 percent.
At the urging of New York State, the
Long Island Lighting Company said it Suggestions Invited
would stop selling the pollution credits it We are always on the lookout for interesting
earned by cleaning its own smoke stacks subjects for Blips on the Timeline. Readers are
to polluters in the Midwest and South. invited to send articles or clippings indicating
The 1990 Federal Clean Air Act positive change to Jackie Mathes at the
established the marketplace trading of Foundation. If we use your suggestion, we'll
automatically extend your subscription for a
"the right to pollute" as an incentive to
year.
companies to reduce the pollution they
produce but, as New York State has
learned, the market-place cannot stop the
wind from blowing pollution generated
out-of-state into their airspace.
Reflections on Water
Species Preservation by John Todd
China opened its first wildlife forensic Water is commanding more and more
laboratory in Shanghai in order to attention worldwide, as evinced by the
identify rare species when they have been United Nations declaring this the
ground up into traditional medicines. Xie International Year of the Ocean. The next
Yi Min, deputy director of the Shanghai article announces the Foundation's new
bureau of Forestry and Agriculture, says video, titled Water: Sacred and Profaned.
the lab will help police the large trade in
Reprinted below are thoughts about water
animal parts that goes through Shanghai.
by a man who has spent his life enjoying it,
studying it, and working with it. Dr. John
Support for Solar Investment Todd and his wife Nancy Jack Todd are
founders of the New Alchemy Institute and
Issues as varied as global warming fears Ocean Arks International, devoted to
or seeing our technology leadership slip developing and implementing
away to other countries have helped environmentally sustainable technologies.
motivate a renewed interest in solar They have received numerous awards
electric incentives. Nineteen states, during their more than two decades of work,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 15
©1998 Foundation for Global Community
TIMELINE
are authors of a number of books, and fats. We have a larynx and air passages
currently publish Annals of Earth, in which that could have evolved through diving
the following first appeared. and living in the water. These allow us,
like whales and some of the other marine
Our liquid planet glows like a soft blue mammals, to make complex sounds.
sapphire in the hard-edged darkness of Perhaps the most compelling argument
space. There is nothing else like it in the for our water origins is that an infant
solar system. It is because of water. child can neither walk, nor crawl, but it
can swim.
Water is the ultimate mystery. I was born
on the north shore of Lake Ontario and In my own work as a scientist and
was always a water child. My bedroom biological explorer, water continues to
was only a hundred feet from the water. I take on new meaning. This substance,
lived on it, in it, under it. My favorite water, H2O, is really a scientific freak.
pastime was canoeing on it through the
miles of beautiful marshes. It has a rare property in that it becomes
denser as a liquid than it is as a solid.
I used to walk to school along a creek And in that behavioral property is the
bed and--I hate to confess--there were reason for life on Earth. If it weren't so,
many days when I didn't get all the way if like other substances the solid state
there. The life in the lakes and streams were the denser, lakes would freeze from
was so rich and varied. My indulgent the bottom up and would never melt. The
parents tended to overlook the fact that I whole planet would be a ball of ice.
had lost track of time and would end up
at home at noon, thinking it was four Water is the only substance occurring
o'clock. naturally in solid, liquid, and gaseous
states. In time it can dissolve any other
The early part of my life was intimately substance on the planet. It is made up of
entwined with the flowing, the moving, two abundant elements, hydrogen and
the sounds of water. Then, abruptly, the oxygen. One burns, the other aids
basis of my world began to be destroyed combustion. Together they quench our
by development. I saw streams thirst and douse our fires.
disappear. Burlington Bay became
polluted and the fish I knew so well Apparently, no one has ever seen a water
disappeared. That initiated my search-- molecule. The formula H2O is simple,
the journey I am still on--my the reality is complex. People who have
commitment to water. made X-ray studies have observed that
the atoms in water are so intricately laced
Many years later, I encountered Sir they resemble, in miniature, what has
Alaster Hardy's theory that we human been described as entire rivers from the
beings, we "naked apes," developed as headwaters to the sea.
we have during a long period in which
we lived in the water. He pointed out A single water molecule is tied together
that we, like marine mammals, shed salt by billions of tiny bonds. One of the great
tears. Like them, we have subcutaneous