Political Violence – Terrorism by Other Means

They say there are just two kinds of people in the world, those who divide the world into two kinds of people and those who don’t.

As a case in point, the world can be divided into two groups of people: those who see the world as divided neatly into Us vs. Them (Either/Or) – and those who do not.

Those in the camp who do not see the world as Us vs. Them instead see a whole spectrum of information, wisdom, knowledge, and power that comes from the perspective of Both/And.

More specifically, international crises caused by Greece, the banking industry, and BP Oil (to name just a few) have shown us two elemental forces are at work, each represented by its own camp of “true believers.”

Each of these two camps is fueled by a deeper guide/pilot. In Our Culture On the Couch: Seven Steps to Global Healing, I have referred to the side that sees only differentiation, opposites, fragmentation, prejudice, conflict and dis-integration as Violence (with a capital V), and the other side, the one that sees and favors unification, similarities, wholeness, tolerance, cooperation and integration as Love (with a capital L).

The epic struggle between these two elemental forces can be seen everywhere, from the Monsanto brouhaha and the oil spill tragedy in the Gulf (see the spill superimposed on your city, to that between Israel and the Arab world, to that between the Far Left and the Far Right in our country.

The Far Right tells us this is a world of great danger, that we need to be stern, and to use deadly force and extreme rendition in order to get what we, the “In Crowd,” want, no matter how extravagant, how wasteful, how unfair and unequal. The Far Left often threatens to be foolishly naïve, economically irrespsonsible, tolerant of civil chaos, and would politically empower people in the underclasses, minorities, and welfare queens.

Each has its power base and wages war on the other. The confrontations are often violent, even at the highest levels of government, religion, business and media. (here RFK Jr. speaks to the death of democracy at the hands of media)

This Struggle Is Within Each of Us As Well

We can easily see these forces at war on the global stage, but if we look within, we discover the same conflict within each of us.

This then, is a philosophical struggle, a war of basic beliefs as to the nature of the world. Most of us fail to see the struggle within ourselves, because we have been hypnotized by the media to think that someone else is to blame – that the problem is out there. We have been trained to believe we are helpless as individuals. We have been so brainwashed that we do not even see that we have the ability to change the belief that we are helpless.

Our beliefs are behaviors, just like our thoughts and our emotions. And the truth is if we want to, we can change our beliefs. We don’t have to continue to believe and act according to some outside authority that is telling us to believe and do things that go against the common good. We don’t have to believe that it is OK to be a racist, sexist, and/or a religious bigot. We don’t have to suppress, torture, or even kill those who  have been labeled “Other.”

We can – if we want to – approach others with respect, acknowledgement and willingness to look for mutual values. Moreover, we can work together toward common goals and visions.

In one side of our hearts, we find a distinct set of emotions that are arousing, negative and intense in valence – anxiety, fear, greed, anger – in short, Violence. In this worldview, we see the physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual violence that fills our news reports from locally and around the world. This serves to reinforce the Either/Or core belief.

On the other side of our hearts, if we look within, we see the world through the Both/And perspective that always seeks to open the door to the possibility of tolerance, acceptance and respect. This door leads to the ability to create peace, balance, a profound sense of oneness, and even Love.

The only kind of peace present in the Either/Or paradigm is the temporary calm between wars, arguments and conflicts.  True peace is only achievable when we embrace the Both/And paradigm (which, somewhat paradoxically includes Either/Or). Peace will only happen when we, in my nomenclature, embrace Love (as I have defined it in my book).

Models

Interestingly, those individuals who model this attitude and perspective of Love are those individuals who have devoted some part of their time to meditation, contemplation and more enlightened thought.

They include current-day teachers and masters as well as those we know through the sacred teachings of the major religions – Moses, Jesus, the Buddha, Mohammed, Krishna and others. (Of course, I am careful to point out the dramatic difference between their lifestyles and their words – and reject the distortions promulgated by so many of the religious cults that have disgraced and betrayed their prophets).

It’s the System, Stupid

Unfortunately, it appears that most of the world is choosing to ignore or misinterpret these teachings. Everywhere we see lies and polarization, abuse and Violence. We keep looking for that person or group to blame, but we always fail. This is because the illness we want to cure is systemic – the bad guy is not a person, but the System as a whole – the Matrix.

The shenanigans that took place when we tried to find the cause of the BP oil spill provided a demonstration that would have been laughable, if it were not being played out in terms of the human and environmental suffering the spill is creating in towns along the Gulf Coast. First we are told that 5,000 gallons per day are leaking out. Then a week later that it is actually 10, 000 gallons, then 20,000, and now 60,000 per day!

And who is at fault? BP said it was not their fault, because they had hired the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and crew, and it was they who screwed up. Deepwater in turn said it was Halliburton that was last working on sealing the well when it blew.

The Republicans say it was Obama’s fault for not being “on the job.” The Democrats say it was the result of Bush Cheney & Co. and their cozy relationship with the oil companies. And defying all logic, Rush Limbaugh blames the environmentalists. Meanwhile, the environmentalists blame us all for the expensive, energy intensive lifestyle we are living.

While finger-pointing and blaming are the staple of the Either/Or Us. vs. Them faction, the reality is that we are all to blame because we are all part of the System.

Partisan Wrangling

Do people really think they are helping anyone but themselves and their special interest group by perpetuating partisan wrangling?

We see the truth. All that saber rattling and foot dragging is just the floor show designed to keep us hypnotized and distracted while the treasury is looted and the middle class is liquidated to the profit of the few and the misery of the many.

Do they think we are blind to the Violence induced by the behaviors of our supposed leaders? How much clearer an example do we need?

One of the clearest examples is the series of events that have culminated in death threats and bricks being thrown through the windows of Congressional Representatives and Senators. Politicians, talk show hosts and insurance company executives may not personally chuck the bricks and make the threatening phone calls, but they are a vital part of the system that is responsible. Yet we seem incapable of seeing this or doing anything about this systemic problem.

History provides an excellent teaching moment. In 1170, Thomas Beckett, archbishop of Canterbury, was murdered by four of King Henry’s knights. Beckett had been in ideological conflict with Henry II, whose frustration reached a climax when he yelled out in fury, “Who will free me from this turbulent priest?”

The knights answered him by their action. Clearly, Henry II never struck a blow or thrust a knife, yet it is clear that he was directly responsible.

How then can we conceptualize, and assign blame, when the bricks and death threats follow closely on the heels of a major politician publishing a map on her website with the hometowns of these members of Congress branded with rifle crosshairs, accompanied by a speech exhorting, “Don’t retreat, reload”? Immediately following her implicit call to Violence, there appeared another webpage urging people to toss bricks through their living room windows. (click here to learn more)

This is a classic example of the systemic problem that arises strictly from the Us vs. Them paradigm we are using – it is systemic, and it seems no one is willing to take responsibility for it. The politician did not throw bricks. The fellow who put up the Facebook page never, himself, threw any bricks. Those individuals who threw the bricks are unknown. A perfect storm. Terrorism without a perpetrator.

These false prophets and false leaders can remain in power only as long as we are willing to let them. We need to find – and become – leaders who can see and seek wholeness and healing. And we must always be wary of those whose primary agenda is based on making us afraid and polarized. We are all in this boat together – and poking holes in our adversaries’ end of the boat will sink us too.

Change Begins Within

As usual, the changes start within. How well are you doing with avoiding unnecessary judgment, criticism, blame and anger – both toward yourself and toward others?

How can you express more Love in how you treat yourself, your environment, and those in your family, community and workplace? What candidates will you support or vote for? Which corporations will you buy products from?

What you learn from your own personal shift to Love will enable you to better recognize those candidates for leadership who are able to step back from the fray and see the system as a whole.

Only when we elect and become those leaders can we bring forth the creativity – and courage – we need to truly solve our national and global problems. We must not only do this for ourselves, but for the generations to follow.

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We have been misled, and now it is time to look within, as presented in Awakening the Leader Within. Helpful in this process is the CD program, Abolish Anxiety Now! , because it is through anxiety and the temporary solutions we are offered that we are controlled by the System. we need to let go the anxiety so we can find the courage to face our problems, not deny them. The skills offered on The Serenity Prayer are useful in learning the balance we need to choose well.

Press Kit: Our Culture on the Couch

I am happy to announce that anyone can download the Press Kit for Our Culture On the Couch

(CLICK HERE to Download the PDF)

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Video Review of Session 1: Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet – Diagnosis, Presence, and Acceptance

(Watch the Video Podcast at bottom of this post!)

The Interplanetary Healer
We imagined what it would be like to an interplanetary healer, a cosmic physician who came along and found a planet in such disarray, with the beings capable of the most love destroying the environment for all living things through their fighting.

We introduced the idea of Second Order Change, the kind needed to shift what would happen our interplanetary healer could not fail but see that the world was operating far too often from the perspective of the Old Paradigm – creating superficial lives of competition and , conflict. .. He saw mankind being controlled by the machines it had created – originally meant to enhance their lives, the dominance of the digital world was resulting in exactly the opposite – that the old science fiction plot of computers and robots taking over

Healing Is Identity and Balance
We touched on the definition of healing as a clear awareness of/sense of identity and the ability to bring balance. The two together create what is called integrity (look up synonyms). This balance takes place in the context of two forces – not opposites, but a complementary pair of forces that are responsible for and allows us to see, react, and respond to a situation as black or white, to differentiate, to discriminate, and has the energy of the fragmenting. The other is an energy that tends to create wholes, that focuses on sharing, connection, community, functionality, and healthy relationships

The History of Life
In a world of harsh polarities, we saw how the carbon atom brought into being the fundamental notion of “sharing for mutual benefit.” From simple organic (carbon bearing (molecules, it extended itself into the formation of the first living cells, then excessively drew together cells, then organs, then systems to function as a whole under a sensitive and wisely programmed nervous system. This brain was then honed, through the millennia, to enable the organism to act in harmony with the environment. We looked at how this same energy draws individuals together to be in close relationship – in families and in larger elements of community.

The Dark Force
We discussed this primal energy and contrasted it with its evil twin, the energy of fragmentation, separation, conflict, dominance, and violence. This approach to the world became of great importance to life when predatory animals evolved, and it is a way of being that that we humans have inherited as well.

Old and New Paradigm
We talked about the Old Paradigm as the excessive use of a certain kind of reasoning – where excessively analytic, discriminating, prejudiced, often disrespectful, contemptuous or conflictual – that manner of relating that is so common through us between individuals, organizations, in the community, as well as in national and international politics – the bipolar approach.

The New Paradigm introduces a concept that does not exist in the Old Paradigm logic – just as atomic explosions cannot even begin to be accounted for when we examine the world through Newtonian mechanics. It is the idea of there being systems that depend for their operation on wholeness, integrity, sharing, relationship, harmony, acceptance, and Love.  We examined how often the root of our problems comes down to our overuse of this way of looking at things.
Systems, Wholeness, and Self
We explored the notion of systems thinking and wholeness. The commitment to creating balance within, developing inner attunement, is an important preparation distributed leadership

Imagery
We practiced some imagery for attuning to our senses and imagination, and especially meditation for being more present and relaxed. Presence and Acceptance are the first two steps of global healing I discussed in my book.

I have included a video podcast of the event for anyone who missed it and is interested in joining us on April 8, 2010.  Check out the video invite HERE.

NOTES ON THE VIDEO PODCAST
(The Video Podcast below is rather large so please be patient while it loads!  If the image doesn’t show up right away please pause and wait a minute or two.  OR you can CLICK HERE to subscribe to my ‘All Dr. Miller Podcasts’ channel via iTunes. IF THIS VIDEO IS NOT WORKING FOR YOU, please consider listening to the Audio Podcast. I hope you enjoy!)

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Audio Podcast of Session 1 of Workshop: Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet

A rough edit of Steps 1 & 2 of Personal and Global Healing as presented by my Workshop/Lecture Series Healing Yourself is Healing the Planet, Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation.

Watch the Video Podcast of Session 1 HERE!  (fast internet speeds needed) You can also CLICK HERE to subscribe to my ‘All Dr. Miller Podcasts’ channel and listen in iTunes, podcatchers etc…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Who Knows – a song by Michael Madigan

This song was performed at Session 1 of Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet, Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation.  To find out more and to REGISTER for Sessions 2 & 3 visit DrMillerEvents.com

Out of the Box Compassion – Transformational Thinking (video excerpt)

This is an excerpt from Dr. Millers Workshop/Lecture Series, Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet, Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation.

To find out more and to REGISTER for the event visit http://drmiller.com/events/index.html…

The Dark Force and New Leadership (video excerpt)

This video is an excerpt from Dr. Miller’s Workshop/Lecture Series, Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet, Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation.  To find out more and to register for Sessions 2 & 3 visit DrMillerEvents.com.

To Be A Woman

I was deeply touched when this power point presentation came through my inbox and I wanted to share it in honor of Women’s Month.

Article in The Union about Our Culture on the Couch (OCOTC)

Please Click HERE or on the image to read the entire article at TheUnion.com.

Please Click HERE or on the image to read the entire article at TheUnion.com.

Interview with KVMR.org’s Dreamwalk about Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet – Workshop/Lecture Series

Last Thursday I had the pleasure of speaking with Skip Alan Smith and Michael Ben on their show Dreamwalk (KVMR.org).  Please take a moment to listen to this interview about my upcoming Workshop/Lecture Series, Healing Yourself Is Healing the Planet, Seven Steps to Personal and Community Transformation (more info about the event HERE).

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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