..."history may judge us to be the real bully if, in the our rush to punish someone, we act in ways contrary to our core beliefs and values as a nation"...
Speaking as one who is closer to the end of life than the beginning, the observation that "those who do not know or understand history, are doomed to repeat it" takes on new relevance for me. Events of the last week have given us all reason to reflect and try to sort out meaningful lessons.
Here are a few observations I believe have meaning for all of us... both privately and in our business affairs:
BULLIES DON'T WIN...
Throughout history the bullies of the world have always lost. Gandhi was right! They may bloody our nose with a sneak attack or a lucky punch but, in the long run, they are always defeated by the forces of good and right. Tyrants down through the ages have had to learn this lesson the hard way. The Hitler's of the world have never prevailed. Neither have predatory corporations or governments.
COALITIONS WORK...SHORT TERM...
Building coalitions are effective to achieve goals...short term. They rarely work long term.
While it is very possible (and desirable) to bring divergent groups together to battle a common foe...that same coalition will decay when the mutual adversary is overcome. Disparate groups will melt away as their own self-interest begins to resurface.
This is as true in business and private organizations as it is in public and world affairs.
BULLIES & TYRANTS DON'T ALWAYS CARRY KNIVES...
Modern bullies wear designer clothing and use computers. They understand the power of politics, sound bites, and photo opportunities. They are masters at using the tools of mass communications to advance sinister goals. Yes...this includes the use of the internet.
They run large corporations, foundations, financial institutions, think-tanks, and hold our highest public offices. They are subtle. They are deceptive. They are dangerous because, like Hitler, they understand the human need for security and order. They understand how to make actions that steal our freedom... appear to be logical and necessary.
They are comfortable and proficient working with hidden agendas which promote their own self-interests. They are practiced at turning dramatic tragic events, or temporary conditions, into building blocks for their own personal financial gain or extensions of their power base.
The antidote against these poisonous souls... is a mechanism for totally free, uncensored, exchange of ideas and thoughts... the internet!
BEWARE OF KNEE-JERK REACTIONS...
Never has careful, measured, thought been more important than now.
When a bully bloodies our nose our first reaction is righteous anger and indignation. This is both normal and right. We should be angry. We should feel indignation.
This same anger and indignation, however, can lead to a rashness of response which plays right into the hands of the forces stacked against us.
If we attack a perceived foe, without indisputable evidence of their guilt and culpability, we have become no better than they.
Indeed, in the eyes of the world, history may judge us to be the real bully if, in the our rush to punish someone, we act in ways contrary to our core beliefs and values as a nation.
The world is watching. We now have the opportunity to prove what a great nation we truly are. It will take patience, great judgement, and a careful measuring of the facts before we act, if we are to be what we have always purported to be... a nation grounded in fairness, freedom, respect for human rights, responsible judgement, and real justice.
Editorial Commentary Written--9/17/2001 ?Copyright 2001-2005 Thom Reece All Rights Reserved
Thom Reece is CEO of Online Marketing Group, a Hawaii based direct response marketing and web development firm. http://www.e-comprofits.com , http://www.e-comprofits.com ,
quick home cleaning Glenview ..Political strategists, branding gurus and image consultants could learn a... Read More
Veterans Affairs Employees using government credit cards on personal items?... Read More
Each day the present geo-political reality confirms what The Tribulation... Read More
The Right's defense of John Thune in the Dan Nelson/MetaBank... Read More
Legislation is getting legs to further curtail your use of... Read More
We can all see the issues involved in the cloning... Read More
Have you noticed that the when the service men who... Read More
"Rugged individualism" is actually a euphemism for Thomas Hobbes' baseless... Read More
Fearful that terrorists will next target Australia, Prime Minister John... Read More
Yes, Bush is two-faced. The two sides of the faces... Read More
President George W. Bush has unofficially won his re-election bid... Read More
The idea is to have all the important items with... Read More
We learned some lessons in these last few wars. For... Read More
Visible remnants of the world's eldest democracy can be seen... Read More
Land Mines have been one of the most evil left... Read More
Conventional warfare is getting to its limits. Soon wars will... Read More
The FTC franchising division purports their law enforcement experience in... Read More
..."history may judge us to be the real bully if,... Read More
The North American Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was implemented on January... Read More
"The only time I open my mouth is when I... Read More
A coffee shop conversation about a Great Country in Historic... Read More
The plight of whistleblowers ? those employees who sound the... Read More
Up until the final debate at Arizona State University, the... Read More
Many of those who wish to fight for our country... Read More
The Justice Department is at it again; promoting themselves in... Read More
scheduled maid service Winnetka ..There is nothing-absolutely nothing-insofar as political power when it is... Read More
I just got done reading a series of articles dating... Read More
The news media will regularly present views from Democratic (liberal),... Read More
Some call it the "unofficial" or "informal" economy, others call... Read More
The US Dollar has been falling continuously in last year.... Read More
You know now that North Korea is backing down on... Read More
Telemarketing and DO NOT CALL lists sure made headlines, but... Read More
This is the second of a series of four articles... Read More
Do you really want to get ahead in your life?... Read More
Handing over power to Vladimir Putin in 1999, Boris Yeltsin... Read More
The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) estimated that there were... Read More
THE ROSICRUCIAN COUNCIL OF THREE:A Thelema/OTO leader who became a... Read More
The partisan feuding in the U.S. Senate over federal judicial... Read More
The current field of political sciences is dominated by a... Read More
The process of researching this topic has been an interesting... Read More
With the recent threats from Bin Laden and Al Queda... Read More
On June 16, 1972, a security guard at the Watergate... Read More
Commission for Africa (CFA), one is made to understand is... Read More
The idea that the majority shows the will of the... Read More
Michael Moore asserts the following in his political film Fahrenheit... Read More
The end of another election once again brings into focus... Read More
There's a new Michigan state register (at https://www.protectmichild.com/) in the... Read More
Heavens, what are we up against? It seems these days... Read More
Aspartame activists are constantly being attacked because all data are... Read More
In the last Gulf War we saw thousands of enemy... Read More
Political |