It's the "isms" That Will Be Our Demse

“It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied together into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. We are made to live together because of the interrelated structure of reality . . . Before you finish eating breakfast in the morning, you’ve depended on more than half the world. This is the way our universe is structured, this is its interrelated quality. We aren’t going to have peace on Earth until we recognize the basic fact of the interrelated structure of all reality. “

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 1967 Christmas Sermon on Peace

If I hadn't accredited this quote to Dr. King, some might think it came from The Dalai Lama or Thich Nhat Hanh . That is because most religious/spiritual leaders who are true to their faiths know this to be true...universally. Those who are truly interested in peace realize that the way to it is not by forwarding individual agendas or misinterpretations of religious/spiritual texts which seems to be the pervasive trend in society today.

I, personally, am aggrieved by the way humanity is treating one another. The world has come up with various ranking systems that boil down to most and least worthy of a humane, dignified, fair, and peaceful life. We climb over each other with our words, economics, laws, beliefs, and other weapons to declare our superiority. I think some would be content to heard all of the people who they didn't like into a cave to rot and die, not realizing that any one of them could change the world for the better one day.

It's the "isms" that will be our (humanity's) demise. Sexism gave permission to racism which led to class ism and ageism and soon to be homosexual-ism (I say soon to be because gays are not a protected class yet so discriminating against them (apparently) isn't illegal, yet...which seems to define "isms.") We as a society haven't yet realized that allowing  one group to be denied rights, dignity, and opportunity opens the door to deny others the same. Let's face it, unless you're a straight, white, Christian male with no disabilities, not overweight  and have never served in the armed forces, you will fall into one group or another who can be discriminated against or berated. (Actually, if you are that male, you probably come under fire for that too.)

Are you aware that in 1964 Congress passed Public Law 88-352 (78 Stat. 241). The provisions of this civil rights act forbade discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race in hiring, promoting, and firing? Did you know that Title VII of the act created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to implement the law and subsequent legislation expanded the role of the EEOC so that the EEOC enforces laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age in hiring, promoting, firing, setting wages, testing, training, apprenticeship, and all other terms and conditions of employment?* Or did you think that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 only addressed laws regarding African Americans? Note: When you endeavor to deny the rights of others, you subsequently deny yourself rights. (See MLK quote above)

I'm not just talking about incidents that make the headlines either. People on social media regularly attack one another with ease for the way they look and the things they like and do. It doesn't matter that they often don't know anything about the people they berate, nor does age seem to matter. I've seen people denigrating 16 year old Jaden Smith and 14 year old Willow Smith for their thoughts on the universe, simply because they didn't understand the higher energy concepts these children were speaking about. Social networkers have even gone so far as to chide young Jaden for wearing a dress. As someone who was forced to wear a uniform from kindergarten to twelfth grade, I can appreciate a young person who bucks societal "norms" and dares to erase rules laid out for him by ones who don't even know him. And did I mention these are children?

And what about the children? What effect does all of this ranking, demeaning, cruelty, and separation have on the youth? I'll tell you. They mimic that behavior. I work with some of the cruelest beings known to man...the middle schooler. Not only do they have irrational brains due to raging hormones and an "in between" lifestyle (in between being a child and a young adult), they still lack the filters that most adults acquire over the years. They are trying so hard to grow up, and the only way they can figure this out is by watching adults and doing what they do. Don't get me wrong, middle schoolers are also very insightful and thoughtful beings, but their quest during this time is to fit in and belong, so being themselves hardly seems an option because, let's face it, adolescence is an awkward time.

I listen to how these children talk to each other when they're friends and it makes me cringe. My biggest job is teaching them how to be kind again. Then I have to deal with the fallout of their words. There are 12 year olds who want to harm themselves because of the words spoken to them by their friends. Where do the children get this behavior and why do they think it's ok? I'll let you answer that yourself. 

It doesn't seem to matter, these days, what knowledge, talent, skills one might possess that can change the course of humanity. We seem to miss the fact that we are dealing with other human beings. Those who cite religious beliefs somehow overlook the basic tenets of their own faith in order to force everyone to live and believe as they do.

A new commandment I give you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you are to love one another. John 13:34

 "O mankind! We created you from a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes that you may know and honor each other (not that you should despise one another). Indeed the most honorable of you in the sight of God is the most righteous." (Quran, 49:13)

Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. (Torah: Leviticus 19:17-18) 

 I could go on with quotes from most religious texts and they will all have the same theme; love one another. If you are not religious at all, consider Chaos Theory:

Essentially, the theory looks at something called sensitive dependence on initial conditions. This means that even a very minute change in the initial conditions of a system can have dramatic effects on that system over time.To put this in more simple terms, consider a football team. Each individual player has a certain set of quantifiable skills at their position, skills which can be given a score. Summing the scores of all persons on a team, then comparing one team with the scores from another team should give a clear sense of the difference and thus predict the winner of a game between them. This is the linear way of looking at a team, only as the sum of its parts. However, there are many other sets of variables that come into play such as “team chemistry”, whether the game is played at home or away, experience playing with one another, the mood or attitude of an individual player or players, and on and on. These can and do lead to results that are different from those predicted by linear thinking.**

So, when you think you are bringing equilibrium to this "system" we've built with the behavior and laws that you believe will create the environment in which you desire to live, you are neglecting to consider the variables which could upset the outcome such as the beliefs, will, desires, attitudes, and fortitude of others. There are many other variables that can come into play that will skew the outcome because of the "sensitive dependence on initial conditions."

In other words, "all life is interrelated." We are interdependent upon one another to live at peace and harmony on this planet. Trying to force a group or even one person to bend to one's will, will inevitablly upset the balance of nature and eliminate the possibility of peace. All of this wicked  self serving behavior and attitudes serves no purpose but to harm the doer of the deed. "Whoever digs a pit will fall into it; if someone rolls a stone, it will roll back on them."Proverbs 26:27 

*http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/civil-rights-act/

**http://www.physicsplanet.com/articles/chaos-theory-simplified