<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" ><tr><td valign="top" style="font: inherit;"><DIV>These days everything ( words, works, feelings, relationships, lives etc) became a subject for consumption under the so called "free market ideal". It seems that this "ideal" </DIV>
<DIV>didn't bring social and economic justice and equality to our world. It even destroyed existing social and economic equilibrium according to numbers of the last 30 years. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>In this respect, it very useful to check the genuity and sincerity of our working area, "OST"</DIV>
<DIV>so thank you for the question.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I believe that OST still offers a lot of hope as it opens space for all the issues to be raised and brought to the market place, so at least all the issues will be heard and recorded. Then it's up to "the community" to decide what to do with these issues. I don't believe in the "free market" but i believe in the wisdom and power of the communities. I always believe that </DIV>
<DIV>people should come togehter. OST is still a genuine and sincere way to bring people together, giving everybody an equal chance of participation around a circle. Once people meet under OST circumstances, they wouldn't choose tyranny, tyranny by its nature is not an appriopriate system for human beings who are individually so genuine, creative and independant. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Regards</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Funda ( with a flu) from Istanbul, Turkey </DIV>
<DIV> <BR>--- On <B>Thu, 10/2/08, Michael Wood <I><mjwood@admin.uwa.edu.au></I></B> wrote:<BR></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(16,16,255) 2px solid">From: Michael Wood <mjwood@admin.uwa.edu.au><BR>Subject: Re: just wondering<BR>To: OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU<BR>Date: Thursday, October 2, 2008, 7:24 AM<BR><BR>
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<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>Marty</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>Interesting question you raise. I certainly don't have a clear answer, but just a few thoughts.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>At San Francisco this year someone convened a very interesting conversation about what happens when communities "self organise themselves into dictatorships"...or words to that effect. I didn't attend that conversation but it did get me thinking.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>I love Harrison Owen's observation that "Whereever space is opened, peace breaks out" AND in parallel with that it seems to me possible that Open Space could be used for people to self organise to evil ends as well as to good ends (remember the famous TV Character, Maxwell Smart's comment, "If only he had used his powers for good instead of evil").</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>So I think that what OS does is to bring things out into the open more transparently so that we can see what we're actually dealing with. And I presume that this does not remove the fact that governing bodies still need, at the end of the day, to make public policy decisions which will involve more or less government intervention, depending on one's political persuasions...and this is what constitutes part of the boundaries of the Open Space.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>Michael Wood</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=737201704-02102008>Perth, Western Australia</SPAN></FONT></DIV><BR>
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<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>From:</B> OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] <B>On Behalf Of </B>Martin Boroson<BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, 1 October 2008 9:43 PM<BR><B>To:</B> OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU<BR><B>Subject:</B> just wondering<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
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<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">I am wondering …</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'"> </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">The philosophy of Open Space seems to promote a genuinely free market for ideas. The underlying belief, as I understand it, is that allowing each person to follow his/her passion is the best way to discover the best ideas and solutions. It’s efficient, just like a market. This sure sounds like the ‘invisible hand’ and laissez-faire capitalism to me.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'"> </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">I have even sold Open Space to some corporate execs by pointing out that since they value the free market so dearly <I><SPAN style="FONT-STYLE: italic">outside</SPAN></I> their company, they might want to try a free market <I><SPAN style="FONT-STYLE: italic">for ideas</SPAN></I> inside their company. </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'"> </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">So I have often wondered if people on this list believe as passionately in the free market for the economy as they do in Open Space. In the current economic crisis, as the world clamors for greater regulation – i.e. more rules and limits on the freedom of markets – I am wondering if any of you have any thoughts or insights to share.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'"> </SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">I imagine Harrison will remind me that Open Space runs on freedom <I><SPAN style="FONT-STYLE: italic">and</SPAN></I> responsibility… yet the responsibility asked of participants in Open Space is pretty minimal – naming their passion and showing up for their sessions and respecting others’ freedom to do the same. It’s well short of socialism.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
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<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face="Book Antiqua" size=3><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Book Antiqua'">Marty</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
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