I have an idea that we must come together before we fall apart.
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“Great minds discuss ideas; Average minds discuss events; Small minds discuss people.”
Though widely attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt, the quote actually has anonymous origins that predate her life. A clouded history or muddled origins should not take away from the power of the statement. I’m not Martin Luther King Jr and I have no grand dream to portray or movement to lead. I do have a few ideas for us as we move through this turbulent and uncertain time in our ever shrinking world. We get so caught up in talking about current events and the people responsible for them that we sometimes miss the opportunity to speak on the important lessons to be learned and ideas for moving forward.
I have an idea that we must come together before we fall apart.
Our world and our country feel more divided than ever. Compromise has been lost to the extremes and as our opinions harden our willingness to meet somewhere in the middle somehow gets lost. We continue to push ourselves to the brink of annihilation in the name of material wealth, religion, war, and economic principles. We focus on every difference in an attempt to justify arguments and conflict. In so doing, we miss the common ground and the ability to open our minds to new progress. What is so wrong about changing our opinion when the evidence says it is warranted?
We’ve all needed help in our lives and sometimes we fail to remember how much it has meant to us.
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I have an idea that the strongest among us have a social responsibility to help care for the weakest.
Wealth, race, religion and sex are all used to justify power over others. While children go hungry, we quibble over government assistance. We use name calling and stereotypes to justify cutting programs designed to help the vulnerable. We call them lazy, moochers, usurpers, welfare queens and worse. We seek to stigmatize and ostracize those who ask for or need help without caring to know or understand how they got there. We fail to understand that for every success story there are others who see each new day as a battle for survival. We’ve all needed help in our lives and sometimes we fail to remember how much it has meant to us.
I have an idea that instead of seeking conflict and combat we need to seek understanding, compassion and compromise.
We are so quick to jump into finger pointing to absolve ourselves of guilt that we miss the underlying causes of conflict. We are guilty of conflict seeking at every level of society. Tempers flare and battles are waged in barrooms and courtrooms alike. We send soldiers to die in poorly misunderstood conflicts that have no clear strategy or resolution. We argue that the other side just won’t listen. We fail to see and understand that we’ve failed to hear what has to be said. We all must listen more and speak less.
We are all imperfect beings. Whether Buddhist or Atheist, Black or White, male or female we are more the same than we are different.
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I have an idea that we are all equal as human beings.
There is no life on this Earth worth more or less than any other. The people living in the Middle East and Africa are no less entitled to life than myself. Their views do not make them any more expendable than my own. I recognize the need to defend the lives of the innocent by waging a battle against extremists who would slaughter others, but I still mourn the inevitable loss of life. Disagreements should never begin with killing.
I have an idea that Love is a human right and our differences should be celebrated not denigrated.
Homosexuality and Heterosexuality are not determined by choice but by nature. Love is a wonderful and beautiful thing. To cast that aside
and condemn that which we do not understand is a crime against our humanity. Denying the fundamental right to love and marry only makes us intolerant. It serves no purpose and contributes nothing to the progress of society. Hate simply holds us back and eliminates the possibility of happiness for certain sects of society. We are all imperfect beings. Whether Buddhist or Atheist, Black or White, male or female we are more the same than we are different. Why then do we focus on those differences and quarrel over them. What makes one feel so superior that they feel the need to subjugate another? We should accept each other as we are with no intention of changing those around us.
I have an idea that our home the Earth is more peaceful now than at any time in recorded history.
We focus so much on war, famine and disease that we forget how fortunate we are. I believe in the power of compromise to seek peace, and that accepting our differences without offense is the key to achieving it. It takes so little effort to reach out and shake the hand of a supposed enemy and yet is a rare achievement. Some will argue the need for world leaders to begin this process. I disagree. I believe it begins with neighbors, friends and family. The path to acceptance and understanding begins on a micro level and bubbles its way to the surface. Until we exhibit the change we expect to see, our leaders will simply be a reflection of our selfish selves.
I pledge to do a better job of discussing the ideas that can save the world rather than the events and people bent on disrupting progress.
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I have all of these ideas and more and I fail to live up to their ideals often. We all should be part of a movement away from discussing just events and people to the ideas and solutions that will solve them. We’ve moved from a society concerned with making the world a better place for everyone to one concerned with individualistic success. We simply cannot succeed as a species when we care so little for one another. I pledge to do a better job of discussing the ideas that can save the world rather than the events and people bent on disrupting progress.
How can we each become a part of the solution? How do we become a part of a global solution? What can each of us do on an individual level to live up to the immeasurable potential of our humanity? Start to care about the plight of individuals we normally pass by every day. Empathize with the struggles of those less fortunate and pledge to help. Practice kindness even for those normally invisible to us. Seek out the fringes of society and help lift them up. Volunteer. I won’t say engage in random acts of kindness. Simply practice kindness. There should be nothing random about it. Make kindness a movement and let it spread outward, then we can change the world.
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good article, but I disagree that you think sexuality is only determined solely by nature. It completely ignores nurture. You need both.
I don’t think sexuality is one of those things that is determined by nurture, though I’m no expert on the topic. No matter how you nurture someone, the evidence I’ve happened across says their sexuality will be nature driven. Otherwise how do straight parents keep having homosexual children?