Voice for Peace
Voice for Peace's Journalthanks for sharing your perspectives here
A human life ultimately is defined by the thoughts we think
(my belief) even more than deeds, and the measure of conscience
and compassion we live by. Nobody ever knows what another
person's experience has been. To stay on the safe side, I assume
it has already been hard enough for them and I don't need to
make it any harder.
In war, or other severely intensive life-threatening situations,
the human organism shuts down something fundamental inside.
The feeling self, and conscience, in those moments, are suspended.
The immediate need is survival: sharp action & quick choices.
You don't have the luxury to consider the other people who are
trying to kill you, to wonder if they have children, or if they ever get
sad, or if they believe in the war, or even if YOU believe in the war.
You don't get to know or even consider those things, because the
urge to survive is so powerful.
But back on land, that connection must be restored. It is our built-in
best friend, inside of us. If the connection isn't restored, the
repressed stuff has great power. People tend to become very
unhappy and it can manifest in many ways. Total shutdown
leads people to suicide and murder, madness, illness, megalomania.
And I personally believe that whatever we have tried to shut
away, hide from ourselves, it must be looked at in the light,
and the associated emotions must be felt. If there is grief or
regret, or anger -- these feelings must be released, or we
will always be haunted by them. This is kindness; our own
conscience is a friend, and a tool of healing, even when it's painful.
Somehow in life we are continually asked to look at ourselves,
examine our own errors, correct our path. And keep on going.
When it's too painful, I've found, a torrent of tears has a
way of soothing. Another built-in friend.
Just saw this message re moderation on another forum
I like it.
I thought if something similar was displayed on the DU site,
in a prominent place, people would have a gentle reminder
every time they came to DU and wanted to post... thoughts?
I mean, as a prominent & humble request to all who visit
the site -- so people don't have to go to rules & guidelines to
get this message. It sets a continuous tone for forum discussion.
We are concerned about a recent drift towards vitriol in the RSN Reader comments section. There is a fine line between moderation and censorship. No one likes a harsh or confrontational forum atmosphere. At the same time everyone wants to be able to express themselves freely. We'll start by encouraging good judgment. If that doesn't work we'll have to ramp up the moderation.
General guidelines: Avoid personal attacks on other forum members; Avoid remarks that are ethnically derogatory; Do not advocate violence, or any illegal activity.
Remember that making the world better begins with responsible action.
http://www.readersupportednews.org/opinion2/303-211/10896-fate-of-japan-and-the-whole-world-depends-on-no-4-reactor
This is a great start, thank you!
They also need inspiration to help them care, not just
threat of punishment & deprivation. For many, those consequences
only make them more cruel, and more numb.
This program has been having impact in prisons (you can scroll
down for the video interview w/the prison captain).
It's an approach to inner peace that doesn't involve any belief
system whatsoever, no religion. It starts with just listening to
this man who has a remarkable gift for quickening people's
self-understanding.
This is a short video of him speaking:
The valid premise is that regardless of who we are or what we've
done, there's a part of us which is changeless; there is peace, and
contentment inside of every single human being. Even if they never
know about it, or seek it out, still it's there. It's always been there
from first breath to last. It can be known, and felt.
I have seen hardened grown men weep because for the first
time in their lives they could feel there was a shred of goodness
inside of them. Not that they believed it, they didn't. But they
could feel it and it made them cry.
In this particular program, the behavioural & social changes they're
seeing in inmates are happening from the inside out -- not the other
way around.
How about small c consistently compassionate.
Within every human heart is compassion, joy, love, peace,
wisdom, tolerance -- all of that.
We also have a built in brain-heart connection called
conscience -- to alert us when we are going in the wrong
direction.
This is the divinity inside of us, and it doesn't matter if you
call it God, or if you call it christ, or evolution, or Carol, or
Energy, or Mz, or Allah or allah or Oprah or science or magic.
It is what it is and it doesn't need a name. There is an
ocean of it. If Jesus lived, that's what he was into --
helping people of his time to discover the infinite compassion
within themselves.. NOT to become religious, dogmatic
or submissive; but to become free. Mohammed did
the same thing and so have others. Buddha et al.
The poster speaks of her own heart, and her own
understanding, and calls it small c christian -- and also
that it describes people who may be of any religious or not-
religious persuasion.
Your objection is just about semantics.. what she wrote
was not ridiculous at all.
small c consistently compassionate.
Or big C Caring.
I probably should know this but..
who is the mysterious seventh juror?
All the juries I've been on have 6 people. When it's 3-3,
who makes the deciding vote, how does it work?
Update (sort of) on Lonelyboy
following up to this thread: Seeking advice regarding a kitty
http://www.democraticunderground.com/101848328
After the last posting and everyone's helpful replies,
and unsuccessful attempts to catch him & take to a vet,
and further contemplations concerns appearances and
many weeks later, he seemed to have disappeared,
& I wondered if he had died. (The last couple of times
I'd seen him he'd apparently been in some big fights
and was all torn up.) But we weren't hearing him any
longer in the middle of the night and he wasn't showing
up on the roof, or at dinnertime.
Well, the other night I heard his familiar meeowlling
outside our porch, and saw him up on a perch, wearing
one of those humiliating plastic cones pets get after
surgery. He was only there for a minute and I haven't
seen him since, but am curious to find out what kind of
care he's gotten -- I imagine that if he went to a vet
for any reason, they would have neutered him? yes?
Cat Scans
http://www.sadanduseless.com/2011/09/cat-scans/Got a Cat? Got a Scanner? The Choice is Clear.
(more scans at link)
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Member since: Mon Jul 16, 2007, 10:08 AMNumber of posts: 13,141
