Toolbox

The tools human beings invent to search for answers or find solutions will never be themselves the answer or the solution. They are simply tools we have deviced for our greater goal.

But what is the greater goal of human beings? What is humanity's purpose for bringing about the changes and advancement we have done?

Some parts of the answer to these questions we already seem to know. But not so much the answer to "what to do" so much as the answer to "what not to do". Some lines we seem convinced never to cross back. There are some things that we seem to have already collectively determined as wrong or unethical. And these things we have determined as such for strong reasons. 

For instance, we seem to have accepted our collective right to clean air and clean water because these resources know no boundaries and polluting them in one place will pollute them in other places. Our experience with the ravages of plagues in the past seem to have brought us to an understanding that taking care of our environment is a must for us to flourish. In any case, it seems easier for us to understand what is right and what is wrong when it comes to our physical safety.

But what is right and wrong when it comes to our psychological safety? Are there lines we will come to learn to never cross back in this sense when the evidence start coming in of the untold harm some our actions have done to our collective and personal psychological welfare? 

In my view, the past century of rapid industrial and technological advancement have come to address a lot of our physical concerns, thus most of our collective development have been in the physical domain. But I think in this next century, the rapid advancement we will create and live with will ultimately address our evolving psychological and mental needs. As such, most of our collective development as human beings will happen in the mental and psychological domain.

Psychology as a discipline will play an important role, but it is not itself the answer. It is simply a tool for us to find the answers and solutions we are seeking for. The question then remains: What is the goal of human beings? What is humanity's purpose for bringing about the changes and advancement we have done? It may be easier to get at an answer when we consider it in the physical sense, but this time we must also try to come up with an answer with regards to the psychological sense. And while it is difficult to fully determine the answer to these essential questions, it is still important to ask them. Because the tools human beings invent to search for answers or find solutions will never be themselves the answer or the solution. Any tool we invent will need a clear direction in which it will be used for.

Rounded Edges

Easy on the eyes. Palatable. Digestible. Inoffensive. Something that will not disgruntle the sensibilities of those who call the shots. Like a pageant contestant smiling and waving for hours not breaking a sweat. You know, something with a pleasing personality, who understands how we do business here, and would not bother raise any questions. Someone who may raise trouble, but just the "good" kind. The kind that would boost likes and shares. The kind that can be monetized and get clout. The kind we can get featured on our countless affiliate commercial machinery consumed by impressionable minds. Because God forbid we do not round the edges or soften the blow of reality and we actually have to take risks to make life better for those poor, young, impressionable dreamers.

At What Cost

Some say that incremental participation to change an existing system with profound integral weaknesses is better than no participation at all. 

Some say, it is better to speak the language of the enemy so you can defeat them.

Some say, playing politics is a necessary evil.

To those who believe these I ask, "At what cost"?

How slow is too slow? How incremental should political maneuvering to negotiate with other camps be for it to be nothing more than capitulation?

I maintain my view that playing politics belongs to the political world and is only for politicians. Some things are beyond politics and need to be kept so to maintain integrity. Sciences, education, and social welfare are some of these fields that should be kept out of political maneuvering and quid pro quo back and forth. 

Otherwise, we may gain incremental change but at what cost?

With The Blessing of Time

Time is an ally to those who want to set true intentions straight.

Maybe, the wait does not take too long and would be over sooner than expected. Or, maybe it takes a lifetime.

No matter what fate, time, and tide decrees, there is no turning back from the motion that has been set. 

Action and inaction. Conscious and unconscious decisions. All would build up and result in an equal reaction. 

In the end, just as at the beginning, the eternal rhythm of the universe and the pattern inherent in nature will prevail. The story will be concluded and the cycle will end in completion.

At The Head Of The Long Table

Would you like it better if you were on the side that is favored by those in power?

Would you like it better if you had the advantage and is the one benefiting from the tilted road?

If you were hailed and deemed worthy to belong, would you be singing the praises of the status quo?

Or would you cleverly express dismay at how things are and forcefully agree with suggestions to make things better only to then quietly savor the spoils of your victory at masterfully being a hypocrite?

I would reject all options above. I would concur with a wise man who said that a voice stronger than his own would be the one to claim victory, not his.

Playing politics is for politicians. We don't all need to be politicians and some things are beyond politics. And if what it takes to realize the importance of such things is to recede and wait out the tide in exile, then maybe it is true that not all battles are won by a headlong charge.

At The Round Table

How does one with a seat at the round table determine the worthiness of those who would succeed them and carry forward their vision?

How is worth determined at all? Who gets to say who belongs and who doesn't, who is worth hearing and who isn't? Who gets to stand as gatekeepers to ideas and knowledge?

For those used to sitting only at the top of long tables, the answer to these questions may sound different than for those at the round table. At the round table, worth is determined freely and intrinsically.

No, not all ideas should be given equal weight. But what it takes for each idea to get past the designated gatekeepers should be meted out equally.

For how can one truly say that there is freedom, and all who are worthy are heard at the table, when the road towards a seat is tilted to favor some and rigged against another?

What Progress Means

The worst mistake the leaders of the present can make is to fail to recognize different talent and make room for the leaders of the future. When given the opportunity, those with different voices and visions will then become the leaders of their present times. Then, when the time comes, it will fall upon them -- just as it had to the leaders that came before them -- to make the same call as their elders had done, to recognize emergent talent, and to make room for those that will lead in the future. 

This is what progress looks like. 

It requires discernment among all of us to know when the right time is -- the right time to lead, and the right time to serve. When to be a student, and when to be a teacher. The "right time" will vary for all of us. There is no hard and fast rule. It is up to us to figure it out on our own and together. This is because we have moved on from only listening to a single, dominant voice. Different visions and voices can now exist and not destroy each other. That in itself is an undeniable product of progress. The task now is to not get lost in just the specifics. 

Big ideas still matter. Inspiration matters. Dreams matter. And the worst mistake the leaders of the present can make is to fail to recognize and make room for the dreams of those who could be the leaders of the future.