London calling

Mon Jul 11 10:29:31 PDT 2005

Hello All,

I am disappointed at the politicization of this Open Space group.  Perhaps I can give a perspective that is more objective.

Several years ago, long before 9/11, I worked with a gentleman, Vijay, whose family live in an area of India where both Hindi and Muslim lived.  Over lunch, he confided in me that he needed to return to his home village, because his mother was dying.  He needed to take his two young sons with him to meet his mother before she passed.  His concern was that extremists on both sides in his region would place soccer balls with explosives in the street in each other's neighborhood.  His concern was that one of his sons would see such a ball, kick it, and meet his demise.  You see he left his home and family in India as a young man to escape such senseless acts of terror.

I asked him how he would explain the danger to his young children.  He told me this story.  As a young man he discovered a cobra in his mother's garden, he immediately destroyed the snake with a garden hoe.  I asked him why he did that.  He said in his culture, it was an obligation to destroy the danger, not only for his family, but all persons in his village.  I asked him why he did not try to capture the cobra and move it outside of the village.  This was his reply:  One does not try to make friends with a beast that would destroy you if it can.  Not only do you place your own life in danger, but all the people you know.

As I understand the terror situation, the extremists feel that the western culture is threatening their society.  In the West, we have become decadent and uncaring about their culture.  In their view, we are forcing our culture upon them.  Their goal is to disable our economic infrastructure through fear and terror.

Recently, a member of our group posted that one of our cohorts was among the missing in London.  This was the only posting and no one responded to the post.  The members continued to debate politics in terms of philosophy.  One post even said all lives are important, what about our missing member?

All cultures have their own monsters.  Do we try to destroy the beast with words?  OR, should we listen and be sensitive in an Open Space where ideas are shared without prejudice and spite?

I will leave my soap box now and go back to listening.

Steve

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Marks McAvity 
  To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU 
  Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 10:16 AM
  Subject: Re: London calling

  Wonderfully put.

  Thanks;

  Marks

  Marks & Margaret McAvity

  S50, C16 

  Galiano, BC  V0N 1P0

  mcavity at primus.ca

  604-947-0077(Bowen); 250-539-2881 (Galiano)

  604-616-7260(Cell#1); 604-328-4406 (Cell #2) 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Brendan Mckeague
  Sent: July 9, 2005 10:25 PM
  To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
  Subject: Re: London calling

  July 8, 2005 

  If It's a Muslim Problem, It Needs a Muslim Solution 

  By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN 

  Yesterday's bombings in downtown London are profoundly disturbing. In part, that is because a bombing in our mother country and closest ally, England, is almost like a bombing in our own country. 

  I am now  more acutely aware that Africa is the Mother Country - in the sense of the human species - the mother of us all - and while our MOTHER is suffering, we will all feel the pain....I  hope that we can move beyond selective 'tribalism' to include our connection with all life on MOTHER EARTH.

  One of our Australian political leaders referred to the terrorists as 'sub-human filth' -  this type of demonising and monster-making will only add to the justification for the perpetuation of the cycles of vengeance and violence. Until we truly see that each of us is connected on this planet - it will be difficult to create the space for authentic dialogue with those who are different. 

  Gandhi said it well, in words that sounded like: 
  Unless I recognise that the evil that I see in my enemy also exists within me 
  and that the good that I know is within me also exists in my enemy, 
  I have no way of sustaining a commitment to nonviolent solutions.

  This is for me one of the most powerful reasons for continuing to open space for dialogue - naming the capacity for evil and hate within myself and recognising the humanity of others - regardless of the acts of violence they feel compelled - or inspired - to perpetrate

  Peace to all 
  Brendan

  * * ========================================================== OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist

*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu:
http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html

To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20050711/b90ee50d/attachment-0016.htm>