Corporate and Consumer America

As political upheaval in the Middle East shows, unbalanced societies are bound to fail. Justice and freedom are universally defined as the meeting point between the will of the people and the government’s ability to assist that will.  But sometimes people and governments are only interested in themselves. Call this a contest between the top-down “powers that be” and the strength of bottom-up “grass root” movements. Balance in the flow of these principles is essential to face the challenges of modern times.

Just as people everywhere strive for more balanced societies, we also need to strive to improve our personal lives, skills and careers. Whatever our line of work—sometimes we govern, other times we are governed—we always need to govern ourselves. There is nothing wrong with recognizing that sometimes you are the authority, and at other times, you need to work with others. Trusting that those around us are working toward mutually beneficial goals is essential. Most of the time, the greater whole functions well. But at other times, both societies and individuals can lose that trust. All of us need to be responsible, transparent and accountable in our actions. We do so by uniting the principles of “top-down” AND “bottom-up” in order to discover the best solutions for what works best for all. (4/24)

Have you ever wondered how our finite Earth, which has only limited land, air, water and energy, can continue to support a life force that knows no boundaries? Earth is a single host, a collection of limited resources. Life is the energy that takes those resources and multiples itself. But sometimes the human race resorts to war when resources run short. A sad fact indeed, but as demand for resources increases now we should be looking at building a better way. Fortunately, most of the time, human history shows that when faced with extreme challenges, the ingenuity of the species wins out. Innovations and compromises between rivals are always better than mutual destruction. And why not? Success breeds success.

Most of us are aware of the advantages of getting along with the people involved in our lives. Soon, for the first time ever, the continuing globalization of this planet will necessitate that we take a critical next step: balancing not only what is right for ourselves and the other people we know, but balancing what is right for all of Earth’s life. This means finding balance between all of the world’s religions, industries, nationalities and cultures. And where will we find this balance? It comes from a trust in a global spirituality that says we’re all in this together. With global dominance comes global responsibility. Nobody can deny that we are all responsible for both earth and life.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of humankind? Any potential answer is a matter of principles. What are your personal strengths and weaknesses? Only you can say. Each of us has been created by a unique DNA molecule that assembles the proteins which, in turn, generate our unique physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual energies. Although 99.99% of the six billion molecules in our human DNA is common to all other human beings, it still allows for a unique arrangement of few hundred million molecules, and that is why no two of us are exactly alike. In addition, we are all subject to the possibility of random mutations in our genetic material. And each of us has also had a unique nurturing experience.

Because of the changing challenges of modern life, even identical twins do not turn out to be identical. So, by understanding our uniqueness (through the use of introspection) we are able to put together the best of our realities, reason, emotions and beliefs. And, by contrasting this with our commonality (through the use of meditation) we discover balance in determining what is right for ourselves and what is right for all.