posted August 20, 2011 04:46 PM            

In the Good Society, sociologist Robert Bellah and his coauthors challenge Americans to take a good look at themselves. Faced with growing homelessness, rising unemployment, crumbling highways, and impending ecological disaster, our response is one of apathy, frustration, cynicism, and retreat into our private worlds. The social problems confronting us today, the authors argue, are largely the result of failures of our institutions, and our response, largely the result of our failure to realize the degree to which lives are shaped by institutional forces and the degree to which we, as a democratic society, can shape these forces for the better.

What prevents Americans from "taking charge" is, according to the authors, the long and abiding allegiance to "individualism"- the belief that "the good society" is one in which individuals are left free to pursue their private satisfactions independently of others, a pattern of thinking that emphasizes individual achievement and self-fulfillment.

As the authors point out, this way of thinking about 'society' can be traced back to the country's eighteenth century founders, most notably John Locke: "Locke's teaching was one of the most powerful ideologies ever invented, if not the most powerful. It promised an unheard of degree of individual freedom, an unlimited opportunity to compete for material well-being, and an unprecedented limitation on the arbitrary powers of government to interfere with individual initiative." The nation's founders, however, assumed that the freedom of individuals to pursue their own ends would be tempered by a "public spirit" and concern for the common good that would shape our social institutions: "The Lockean ideal of the autonomous individual was, in the eighteenth century, embedded in a complex moral ecology that included family and church on the one hand and on the other a vigorous public sphere in which economic initiative, it was hoped, grew together with public spirit...The eighteenth century idea of a public was...a discursive community capable of thinking about the public good."

It is precisely this sense of common purpose and public spirit crucial to the guidance of institutions in a democracy that is absent from our society today. A ruthless individualism, expressed primarily through a market mentality, has invaded every sphere of our lives, undermining those institutions, such as the family or the university, that have traditionally functioned as foci of collective purposes, history, and culture. This lack of common purpose and concern for the common good bodes ill for a people claiming to be a democracy. Caught up in our private pursuits, we allow the workings of major institutions, the economy and government to go on "over our heads."

One way of summing up the difficulty Americans have in understanding the fundamental roots of their problems is to say that they still have a Lockean political culture, emphasizing individual freedom and the pursuit of individual affluence (the American dream) in a society with a most un-Lockean economy and government. There is the illusion that fate can be controlled because individual economic opportunity is indeed considerable, especially if one starts with middle class advantages; and society's political life is formally free. Yet powerful forces affecting the lives of everyone are not operating under the norm of democratic consent. In particular, the private governments of the great corporations make decisions on the basis of their own advantage, not of the public good. The federal government has enormously increased its power, especially in the form of the military industrial complex, in ways that are almost invulnerable to citizen knowledge, much less control, on the grounds of national defense. The private rewards and the formal freedoms have obscured from people how much has been lost in genuine democratic control of society.

The authors see hope, however, in renovating institutions in a way that will revitalize and transform democracy. In a culture of individuals possessed by individualism, such a transformation will not be easy. First and foremost, individualistic blinders will have to be shed and then learn to "pay attention" to ways in which everyone is dependent on and collectively responsible for the institutions that shape common life.

Second, people will need to find or create spaces in their lives where they can "practice" democracy, beginning with families (responsibilities shared equitably between parents) and places of work (increased worker participation). Educational establishments as bearers of moral ideals, will also play a vital role in preparing us for active and intelligent participation in public life. Larger political and economic institutions can be redesigned to encourage and nurture citizen participation. More government policy and planning decisions, for example, can bc relegated to local levels, encouraging wider citizen participation and responsibility for government policy.

Underlying these proposals is a belief that as society begins to participate in public projects then perspectives and concerns will broaden. From a focus on self and a view of society as unrelated autonomous individuals, communities will come to look beyond themselves to being members of a larger community, concerned not only about themselves but also about fellow Americans, peoples of other nations, future generations, and non human life. "When citizens are engaged in thinking about the whole, they find their conceptions of their interests broadened, and their commitment to the search for a common good deepens."

The result: an informed and morally sensitive public active in discussing and debating issues ranging from international financing to day care, within a framework informed by a shared vision of a good society; and a citizenry capable of instituting reforms in our economic and political institutions so that they work for the common benefit of all peoples.This reinvigoration of democracy is not proposed as an idealistic project but as a practical necessity. The authors write that nowhere is the need more evident than in the international sphere, where problems are beyond the capacity of any single nation to solve.

Economic life is dominated by the dynamics of a vast world market that cannot be controlled by the action of any single nation-state. Problems of environmental pollution transcend national boundaries. The proliferation of nuclear weapons threatens the security of all. Vast disparities in global wealth and power lead to petering conflicts that endanger economic health and political security around the world.

In a world of increasing complexity and interdependence, we can no longer afford "to go our own way." Rather, we need to exercise our capacity for developing institutions that recognize our interconnectedness, moving toward the creation of "the good society," "where the common good is the pursuit of the good in common."

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Submit to Love without thinking, as the sun rose this morning recklessly, extinguishing our star-candled minds.

posted August 22, 2011 02:54 AM            

you know in the first of democracies in ancient Athens, it was forbidden that any citizen not take part of the state decision, that is the true meaning of democracy, get involved people!!
The best solution would be to enhance the educational systems, make them stricter and maybe emphasize on the history of the world, the geography of the world, and in social sciences classes maybe emphasize on global crisis (?)

people should become more worldly, and learning basic Spanish is not enough
si senorita?

posted August 24, 2012 08:04 AM            

Any more goodies to share ! ?

posted September 07, 2012 04:20 PM            

quote:

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you know in the first of democracies in ancient Athens, it was forbidden that any citizen not take part of the state decision, that is the true meaning of democracy, get involved people!!

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Indeed!

posted September 10, 2012 10:42 AM            

quote:

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you know in the first of democracies in ancient Athens, it was forbidden that any citizen not take part of the state decision, that is the true meaning of democracy, get involved people!!

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Not to be a wet blanket, but let's not forget the definition of "citizen" in ancient Greece, from answers.com:

"In Athens, only Males who had: were 18, owned land, were free and both parents of the male had to be the children of citizens.

"Females, no matter how high born, could not become citizens. Slaves and Foreigners could not become citizens.

"Also, man slaves could not be citizens either.

"Citizens were expected to attend regular meetings, as well as serve in the army or navy."

...The U.S., of course, had similar requirements in its beginning. I.e., a small upper crust made the decisions.

posted September 10, 2012 11:23 AM            

I have found the channeled information of the "Michael Teachings" satisfying in that regard. Like all attempts to quantify the human experience, it is not perfect, but I find it helpful in being able to accept that people are just at different places, developmentally ...including myself; and everything is just as it should be. We've all cycled through the stages, along our soul's journey.
http://www.michaelteachings.com/soul_age_index.html

Here is one version of a summary of the different ages, by John Roth. (Don't get hung up on the nomenclature--"infant," "baby," etc. There is no judgment intended.):
http://www.michaelteachings.com/j-roth_mature_soul.html

At the Infant Soul stage, society is basically what was inherited from the several million years of evolution leading to Homo sapiens before we became ensouled. Society is never examined or thought about, and if one tries to teach an infant soul to do so, the results are, at best, superficial. The typical setting for an early Infant Soul is in a hunter-gatherer society. Late infant souls can be found in, for example, slum areas where there is a high need for day to day survival skills. They can also be found in areas with major long-term social disruptions and "failed states." Each of these environments brings the necessity of dealing with Survival level lessons.

At the Baby Soul stage, the person learns how to live as a member of a specific society. The society's rules are regarded as sacrosanct, and there is a strong tendency to punish deviants. There's also a strong tendency to try to enforce proper behavior with threats of hellfire and damnation. Baby souls tend to fit into socially defined roles, and frequently define themselves as their role, rather than as unique individuals. The Baby Soul grows into a notable ability to analyze the rules of his society, but does not have much ability to adapt to changes in the rules. In fact, they tend to be rather irritated when the rules change under them, especially if it's done without notice. The typical setting for a Baby Soul is in an agricultural society which has villages and small cities. They can also be found in large, bureaucratic organizations with many rules and which present at least the impression of stability over time.

At the Young Soul stage, the person begins to realize that they are an individual, not just a component of a society. They learn how to achieve personal goals, hopefully within the context of their society. This is frequently called an achievement perspective. Achievements can be anything from raising a perfect family, becoming the Ruler of the Universe, or so rich that Scrooge McDuck seems like a pauper. In other words, Achievement is personal, and what one person sees as an achievement another may see as unnecessary, futile or even counterproductive. Young Souls tend to be very astonished when their pursuit of their goals undercuts their standing in society, or even destroys some essential part of society. The typical setting for a Young Soul is a major metropolitan area.

Having learned how to accomplish goals, Mature Souls turn their attention to creating the perfect relationship. This starts with themselves, and eventually culminates into their relationship with the world community, or at least as much of it as they can reach in a particular lifetime. In concert with Baby Souls, Matures regard social cohesion as more important than individualism. However, they don't regard the current rules as anything really special, and they spend a huge amount of time discussing how they'd like to change them, frequently with a great deal of vigor, drama and angst. Mature Souls tend to like cities and large gatherings, and tend not to like people who want to do whatever it is differently -- at least without discussing it to death first.

The Old Soul cycle is a progressive stripping away of all of the inessentials from the previous four soul ages, to reach the essence of the lessons learned. Old Souls are engaged in being themselves in the context of their society. If they don't like the way their society is organized, they're just as likely as Matures to try to discuss and make changes, but if that doesn't work, they're likely to go somewhere else where they can be themselves.

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A further description of Young Soul level. There are further sub-levels within each age ("early Young," "late Young," etc.) but this is an overall idea. As well, this is just one channel's interpretation of the ages. There are others.:

"...Young souls are at the height of vigor with respect to material pursuits. Having the understanding of the two previous soul Ages inherent within themselves, they seek to tame the world at large. Young souls are the architects of civilization, the builders of empires, the leaders of business and economics. Their basic motivation is materialism, and they will work unstintingly for their material achievements. They are the most likely of the Ages to be "workaholics", constantly in a state of unrest, seeking their materialistic goals. More than any other soul Age, Young souls feel at home in the physical body — the flesh is their playground. They really like it on this planet. Popular interests are mundane things such as government, business, lawyering, sports, and policing.

"...The desire here is to win other people over to one's own point of view or make them over in their own image. The Young soul perceives "me" and "you", and wants to change "you" into "me". The Young soul wants to organize people into a society, a civilization, or a company. They believe every person should know his place in the rank and file of the culture. They believe in this sort of thing so much that they are willing to fight for it to convince others to do it their way. Wars are mostly Young soul phenomena ... Nationalism and imperialism are rampant in this stage of Maturation. If they don't conquer you in the business or economic world, Young souls will conquer you in the military. Young soul American leadership wants to make the world safe for its ideology — democracy. They call it the struggle to maintain freedom and liberty, but what Young souls really mean by this is that they don't want others telling them what to do — you do it my way instead. Since they want this liberty for themselves, they champion it for others. ...

"...In politics, the Young soul tends toward moderation: middle of the road, or maybe conservatism, and not the extremes of reactionary or liberal. They are neither innovators in terms of being progressive or regressive. The tendency is rather to build the bureaucracy of the government in an effort to maintain the status quo among the governed. Once again the desire for normalcy appears. The patriotism of nationalism is very much a part of their thinking. The political arena is perhaps the best place for Young souls to exercise their muscles, if not in the business world. In political philosophy, they usually value technological advantage over environmental considerations. They favor industry over ecology. As employers, Young souls value what they perceive to be the good of the company above the good of the individual employee...."

Full description of Young Soul:

http://www.michaelteachings.com/young_soul.html

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A further description of Mature Soul level, where most of those posting at this board might generally be described as being. Though, we certainly all have areas of our life where we are manifesting at a "younger" age, and in some areas "older." We are all complex. I'd say an ideal would be to try to embrace the best manifestation of each age within oneself...

"...Mature souls seek to comprehend everything. There is very little that escapes their view or scrutiny. The place for Mature souls to seek this is in such places as libraries and colleges. Mature souls are great believers in education. They go to school for a different reason than Young souls. Whereas Young souls get educated to further their careers, most Mature souls seek knowledge for its own sake. They truly want to understand. It may not always be in a formal or institutional setting, since this can seem too structured and limiting to them. They often pursue knowledge on their own, reading widely or taking night-school classes on whatever subject is of interest to them. This they often do rather than seeking a formal degree. The courses that Mature souls take are less likely to involve occupation, and more likely to be for personal improvement, than what you will see Young souls taking. Mature souls care more about what they are learning than about the grades they make in learning it.

"Mature souls are in a searching mode all their lives. There is an itch to "find themselves" and "express themselves". Personal fulfillment is their constant quest. This they never quite achieve to their own satisfaction. The problem is that Mature souls are complex — the most complex of the entire cycle. There is so much going on in their psyches which other people cannot fathom, and they themselves do not understand. The Mature soul age is the most challenging of the Ages. Mature souls are agitated, sensitive, and touchy. ...

"...In political philosophy, the Mature soul is liberal — "left-wing" — perhaps even to the point of being socialistic. The idealistic hippie era of the 1960's was a Mature soul phenomenon. Often they lived in communes or shared homes. Mature souls are reluctant to fight in wars because they regard all of humankind as their brethren. For this reason they also tend to be pacifistic — and not in a militant way like a Young soul might be. Even though they love freedom, they usually prefer to submit to domination rather than fight for that freedom....

"Mature souls are the avant-garde of society. It is they who make the genuinely novel contributions to the advancement of culture. They are the inspired visionaries. Whatever field of endeavor you might name — whether scientific, religious, political, technological, artistic, philosophical, humanitarian, or economic — it is the Mature souls who are in the forefront, at the leading edge, on the frontiers. Mature souls often campaign for reforms in society. They form the core of the environmentalist movement, the antinuclear energy movement, the ban-the-bomb movement, and other such improve-the-world endeavors. They are beyond the Young soul in perception of the value of the spiritual aspects of life, but they are nevertheless entangled with the affairs of the world to such an extent that they think the planet is worth the trouble of making it a better place. Old souls, on the other hand, have pretty much given up on the world in a material sense, as we shall see next."

Full description of Mature Soul:

http://www.michaelteachings.com/mature_soul.html

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posted October 28, 2012 09:03 AM            

which ties to the opening post!

posted November 03, 2012 08:51 PM            

I think ideally we embrace the best of each stage, along the way. I mean, personally, I don't see what the problem is with pursuing one's "private satisfactions independently of others," and "individual achievement and self-fulfillment," per se. That sounds like the meat of what one would ideally glean from one's time in the "Young Soul" years. I'm guessing the authors are "Mature Souls," who are perhaps throwing the baby out with the bathwater, in their critique. I do agree that the "founding fathers" were perhaps Mature and Old souls, who did assume there would also be a spirit for the common good that would prevail, I'd say more along the lines of what today's Libertarianism speaks of. Though, that is the beauty of our founding documents--that it gives us something to still strive for--as we are not yet, en masse, at that Mature Age that our country's founding ideals are suggestive of.

At the very least, according to this model...you just can't force people into the next stage of soul development! It's just not gonna happen. They won't comprehend why you are valuing what you are valuing in the later stages.

As I said, I do think the election of Obama, with his rather "Mature Soul" energy and rhetoric (despite how he has or has not helped the country in any practical, material, "young soul" sense), was suggestive that we are on the tipping point of a shift toward Mature Age dynamics being more evident in the US, which should slowly creep into the culture and laws here. But this takes time!. According to this model, we spend many lifetimes in each soul age.

(...And of course this model takes no heed of the idea of "evil"...and that there could be other forces acting at all of these apparent "soul ages" to cause the downfall and enslavement of humankind at this time. That is, "Mature" or "Old" soul does not necessarily equal "good" soul. ...Gotta include my conspiracy mind here, as IMO there are things going right now that are beyond description by such concepts.)

posted April 12, 2015 08:32 AM            

quote:

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I'd say more along the lines of what today's Libertarianism speaks of. Though, that is the beauty of our founding documents--that it gives us something to still strive for--as we are not yet, en masse, at that Mature Age that our country's founding ideals are suggestive of.

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