Thursday, April 23, 2015

They need Training at a deeper human Level

It is happening at an increasing frequency that people in America who are in a position to affect the lives of others, are asked to undergo sensitivity training because they do not know how to comport themselves while interacting with their fellow countrymen. These would be the judges, the policemen and policewomen, some business people, politicians and a few others.

Now, think of it this way – if prominent Americans do not know how to treat their own countrymen, how deficient would they be in their treatment of foreigners? The fact is that these people are very deficient in that area … which is why foreign matters tend to go bad for America even when some of its leaders display a depth of understanding that may impress the foreigners.

And to think that this is not how America used to be should sadden those who are fond of the old days. The reality is that America used to enjoy both the admiration and the affection of most people on the Planet. It happened because America used to give a helping hand to those who needed assistance – acts for which America was rewarded with a brain transfer that enriched it culturally, economically and scientifically.

Something then happened to America which affected its moral compass, sending the ship of state in a direction that spoiled its code of conduct both at home and abroad. It is that a movement which, in time, came to be called Neocon saw its members pave the way for its founding long before this was thought about.

What these people did was attack the benevolent nature of America, and replaced it with the tendency to provoke other nations for the purpose of getting them to react. When they did, the would-be Neocons pounced on America, and urged it to respond with the full force of its military … which it did, regrettably too often.

Although the thought existed to doing so, the Neocon movement was never registered as a formal organization. However, the participation of its members in promoting the goals of their common ideology leaves no doubt that the movement is here and operating at full speed. It also leaves no doubt as to who is in it, and who is not.

Two examples of the work that these people do came into the public domain on April 21, 2015. One was given the title “Congress Should Try to kill the Iran Deal Now,” a piece written by the editors of National Review Online (NRO). The other was given the title: “A NATO Setback in the High North” and the subtitle: “Finland's election weakens a bulwark on Russia's doorstep,” a piece written by the editors of the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

As to the editors of NRO, the title of their piece says it all: “kill the Iran deal now.” They go on to explain both openly and in subtle ways what other members have been saying for a while; mainly that Iran must never be allowed to dabble in such technologies – whether for peaceful purposes or any purpose. And since Iran will not agree to these demands, America must get ready to bomb it.

As to the editors of the WSJ, the title of their piece tells of a sadness that has gripped these people because the election in Finland “marks a setback for NATO enlargement.” They explain that the newly elected leader “prefers developing Finland's Partnership for peace with the Western Alliance, [one that] doesn't extend NATO's Article 5 clause.” And they tell what that is in this way: “Much of the Finnish political class doesn't mind that, viewing the country as an area immune to conflict.” Can you imagine this? The Neocons weep because America is getting involved in a place that promises no conflict. What has the country done to merit a fate as boring as this?

It is easy to dismiss all that as the work of lost souls mouthing off what comes to mind, unable to come up with something eye-catching or provocative enough to give them the notoriety they crave. Whether or not this is entirely accurate, it leaves a profound impression on people in the other professions, among these being the judiciary and the police who deal with naturalized Americans of foreign origin. It also leaves an impression on business people and politicians who do work at home and abroad by mingling with foreigners.

Thus, the sensitivity training which these people receive must go beyond the awareness of the cultural differences that keep the ethnic groups apart from each another. It must extend to making them aware of their own humanity because this is what connects people to each other at a level that is deeper than any culture can take them.