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Dear OS-comunity:<br>
<br>
[Sorry if this message disturbs some of you]<br>
<br>
At 14:17 26-09-2001, John Dicus wrote:<br>
<br>
<blockquote type=cite cite>(...) She said to walk the circle<br>
clockwise, hearing from the four voices in the unending sequence of
a<br>
learning spiral. If we become stuck at any one point, she said, we
should<br>
back up a quarter turn before moving on. So, what does teacher need
to say<br>
before we can go forward from warrior... to vision to healing
to....? In<br>
this spiraling, the way of the turtle (wisdom) grows it's voice as
well.</blockquote><br>
<blockquote type=cite cite>If any of you have never seen Paula's works,
her teaching book "Who Speaks<br>
For Wolf" would be a good read right now. In short, it's about
a people<br>
who decided to move their village to a more fertile area but forgot to
hear<br>
the voice of wolf in their council circle. When they moved, they
moved<br>
smack dab into wolf's territory. After being harassed by wolves for
a few<br>
months, they decided that either they had to kill all the wolves or
move<br>
back. They decided to move back since the other choice was
unconscionable.<br>
So -- who speaks for wolf?</blockquote><br>
I read this initial message about the turtle and though it was very well
<br>
observed, and I prepared myself to see the answers. Who would speak
<br>
for the ones that have no voice in the "council circle"; the
ones who's <br>
land one wants to occupy or to bomb (the ones that were once the<br>
native Americans, later from Vietnam, later from Serbia, and today are
<br>
from Afghanistan, it seems (*)? Who would speak for the wolf?<br>
<br>
And also who would understand that when one is stuck in the warrior
<br>
position one needs to go back to the teacher position, and investigate
the <br>
world from a new point of view until one can go on again. If not, one
will <br>
be a soldier, not a warrior - much less one that cares for the four
ways,<br>
(and the center of the circle - the turtle position...)<br>
<br>
Then I become quite sad and disturbed when I have discovered that <br>
the wolf's voice was understood not as the voice of the *other*,
the<br>
dispossessed of voice, but as "the wolf within us", a much
lesser <br>
dignifying wolf, indeed.<br>
<br>
But that is not strange. The first revenge/relief response planned by
<br>
the US government has been delayed due to criticisms from European<br>
partners, Islamic countries and "people that spoke for the
wolf". At this<br>
moment a war is already in place -- but it is a war in the media, to
<br>
convince the American people and other partners that must be done <br>
what has already been decided. (But Pakistan will have the debt <br>
cancelled and maybe Cashmere; Russians will have Chechnya and the <br>
North of Afghanistan; and the weapon producers will sell a lot more
<br>
weapons. And USA will behave as always. More of the same...)<br>
<br>
The voices that once spoke for the (real) wolf have been stopped - and
<br>
today even the meaning of the "wolf" is changed. Someone
referred 1984?<br>
<br>
Precisely when a paradigm change and a new world view are, imo, <br>
most needed, the wiser between us are progressively accepting the <br>
"war propaganda". Precisely when the "good" questions
would be <br>
- "Why are some people so angry with us to do so terrible
things?", <br>
- "what have we been doing wrong all this time?", <br>
- "have we shown any respect for other peoples?", <br>
- "can we be respected by other countries when we accept the death
<br>
penalty within our borders?" (can a Christian accept
that, or must <br>
one consider that this is the type of question where a Christian
must <br>
show that he can also be a WARRIOR?)" <br>
- or, even, "why do we consider natural that the others must speak
our <br>
language and we don't even try to speak theirs?" (Do you
remember <br>
that even in a so open environment as our own, the open space site
<br>
at
<a href="http://www.openspaceworl.org/" eudora="autourl">www.openspaceworl.org</a>
was "English only" only one year ago... <br>
(The world speaks English...)<br>
<br>
I am sorry for asking those questions in a so painfull moment. But those <br>
are truly the questions that even most of the American supporters in Europe <br>
ask themselves every day, not to speak about the countries that have <br>
been bombed by the USA. And those are also, imho, the questions <br>
America MUST think about in this moment. And if America as a whole<br>
will not think about it, those are the questions that I must ask clearly to <br>
my American friends. Please, think about them, now!<br>
<br>
And, as one could expect, the voices that speak for the wolf will be <br>
less and less heard, then less and less accepted, and, later, more and <br>
more criticized, until they will be silenced or persecuted. In a time of <br>
war the ones that don't agree with us are probably on the side of our <br>
enemies, are enemies themselves -- they must be controlled, arrested, <br>
or even killed. <br>
<br>
The war closes the space. War always closes the space. War is <br>
the contrary of Open Space.<br>
<br>
"Whoever comes and agrees with us is the right people" will<br>
become the new version of the "principle" in all the countries involved...<br>
<br>
The problem with this war is that it will encompasses all the world, <br>
and all the forums, including this one. I inicially agreed with those <br>
that alerted us that, from now on, discussing war can be dangerous <br>
for the OS community. And I was almost decided to consider the thread<br>
over for me and apply the law of two feet in relation with terrorism, <br>
war and warriors. <br>
<br>
[It was a pity because I am preparing a text with my own experience <br>
with terrorism - the experience of the Portuguese colonialism, of <br>
the terrorism it implied against the African peoples of the colonies<br>
and within Portugal itself; and how this have conducted to African <br>
terrorism (beginning with UPA in Angola - by the way supported by <br>
the Americans) and later to the Portuguese democratic revolution <br>
and the independence of the ex-colonies. And how the Occident had <br>
already managed to introduce terrorism within those countries that <br>
are today devastated by competing armies - all armed by occidental <br>
countries. ] <br>
<br>
But then I saw Toni Petrinovich's message that ended with:<br>
<br>
<font size=4 color="#800080"><i>With peace in my heart, love for mankind and a prayer that we do not easily walk away from this discussion when it is exactly what those who wish to fight us are hoping for<br>
<br>
</i></font>and that can be also true. <br>
<br>
Since the attack we are all living terrible moments - and terrible moments <br>
can be an inhibitor for learning and changing. But they can also be a good <br>
moment for "emerging crativity" and change of paradigms, that are sometimes <br>
(or always?) painful... <br>
<br>
Please believe I am really sorry for all the victims of the attacks and their <br>
families and relatives. And also sorry for the fact that such dificult questions <br>
have to be answered by each of you, at least in your heart, at this so dificcult <br>
moment. And believe that what I wrote comes only from the great consideration <br>
I have for this community - it comes only from passion and responsability.<br>
<br>
Warm regards<br>
<br>
Artur<br>
<br>
(*) In the NATO's meeting of Defense Ministers, yesterday, the representative<br>
of USA produced no proof of the involvement of Bin Laden or Al-Quaed<br>
in the terrorist attacks. When questioned about that by the media he answered:<br>
"I can show you again the film (of the two crashes); do you need any other<br>
proof?" Do we?<br>
<br>
<br>
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