What is it going to take to have Peace?

  

     What is necessary for as many people as possible in this world to have peace of mind, peace in their homes, and an end to the violent ways of much of the so-called civilized world? I think that Jimi Hendrix steers us in the right direction with his quote: “When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.”     

      I have to admit that I had a sad phase in my life in which I embraced Machiavellian ways. Fortunately, the terror, that the bad karma of trying to have power at any costs created in my life, convinced me that such ways are for sadio-masochists, a group that repulses me. Clearly, many of the people whom I have discussed in this blog, including Jeffrey Sachs, have an excellent track record in helping to produce a better world for as many people as possible. As Sachs says in The End of Poverty, “The Live 8 concerts, Bono’s ONE campaign, Angelina Jolie’s work for the United Nations, and many other acts of leadership and grace, are drawing millions of eager individuals into a new commitment to work for the end of poverty, and thereby for a world of peace and shared well-being.”     

      So will shunning a love of power, per Jimi Hendrix’s quote, lead “regular” people like me and you to be as saintly and admirable as Jeffrey Sachs and create “a world of peace and shared well-being”? Hopefully, it will produce such a positive and fecund result as soon as possible, including now, and as much as possible.

Joy, Love and Kaizen to the World

      I hope that you have a very merry Christmas and many consistent improvements in this New Year and those that follow that you have the blessing to be alive in. Enjoy your holidays!

Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (LOHAS)

      I’m really intrigued by the great possibilities of LOHAS. LOHAS supplies some of the best solutions to the problems that the military-industrial complex has produced. I love Gaia, our Mother Earth; I am doing my best to improve her well-being, as she is our greatest and most important provider.

“LOHAS is an acronym for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability, a market segment focused on health and fitness, the environment, personal development, sustainable living, and social justice.

LOHAS companies practice “responsible capitalism” by providing goods and services using economic and environmentally sustainable business practices. LOHAS business owners and industry leaders from around the world meet each year at the LOHAS Conference to discuss industry trends, share ideas and learn how to run a successful LOHAS business.

LOHAS consumers, sometimes referred to as Lohasians, are interested in products covering a range of market sectors and sub-sectors, including: Green building supplies, socially responsible investing and “green stocks”, alternative healthcare, organic clothing and food, personal development media, yoga and other fitness products, eco-tourism and more” (http://www.lohas.com/).

       Still it proves difficult to live up to the ideals of LOHAS in this horrendously repressive and terrible police-state-run society. I am doing my best to find and employ the best means of freeing myself from the unjust ways of America, much of the so-called civilized world, and wherever else injustice exists. In other words, I am not advocating a renunciation of technology or the positive aspects of our modern world. Rather I seek to maintain a happy balance, somewhat like Ibn Khaldun’s theory that things are best in locations that are free from the terrors of extremes. Thus far, I am finding the means to achieve these desires embodied in “The Cure,” which is documented in Love and Life.  

Love and Life finally published

      Today is truly a great day. I have finalized my contracts with my publisher and distributors and will have copies of Love and Life available for sale by Thursday, December 20, 2007. So in one week, you will be able to get your own paperback copy for $12.00 (USD). If you’re interested in purchasing a PDF version for $6.00 (USD), please email me at admin@thriveconstantly.com or fill out the contact us form at www.thriveconstantly.com. As I have said in a previous post Love and Life is a collection of poetry, prose and photos (some of my sketches and all original work). It deals with a variety of topics including Love, Money and Kaizen. Here are some excerpts; enjoy:     

      Deep within his being, Alexander felt the sum total of his instincts. Alexander’s ancestors had arrived at varying points over the course of fourteen centuries and settled on a lush, mystical, tropical Paradise in the middle of the ocean. The first ones were led by a scout named Arawon. They journeyed in long canoes made from the silk cotton tree from a valley filled with psychedelically colored toucans, howling monkeys that woke one up at dawn, clandestine jaguars that lapped at water as it shimmered in the moonlight, and jungles that climbed up to the heavens.        

Thank You

 Sinequanonology leads me back

To a sublimated attack

 On the minds of those who tried to enslave us.

If you listen carefully you get an A plus,

                                                                  A student of sages like Bob Marley and Vandana Shiva

Written with the fecund genius of a Jenifer Daley,

You classic Overachieva. 

The Atlanta Renaissance demands your attention.

This new age of Renegades; on your brain

We dance with new rhythms,

So learn this lesson.

We’re sick of the lies and our energy going down the drain,

Like Common and the Last Poets, this is our testimonial to

Freedom!

The youths look up to rappers and hoopers;

We need to raise the salaries of our teachers;

It’s time to elevate your mentality like a skater in the sky,

Ready to land with a boom!

            A FINAL REMARK            

      In order to grasp the motivation guiding my work, one must understand that, more than almost anything else, I am an absurdist. For those who are not familiar with the term, absurdism is a somewhat obscure but extremely, viable philosophy pioneered largely by Albert Camus. Absurdism also stems a great deal from the work of Søren Kierkegaard, the renowned nineteenth-century, Danish philosopher. Many philosophers consider absurdism as an offshoot of existentialism. Essentially absurdism states that the world that we live in proves absurd and thus we must embrace our own absurd condition and appreciate beauty in order to live truly fulfilling lives…[i]

The Meaning of the Best Life 

 

      In the midst of such a universal sense of dissatisfaction with most conventional modes of thought, philosophies, and practices, we must find a better way. For me, this better way emerges primarily via absurdism and kaizen.

[i] Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus, p. 6.

 

                Have a great day.

© 2007 Paul Ainsworth Delano Francis. All rights reserved.

Meditating

        [Meditation, creating intellectual levitation] I’m loving and appreciating the fecund genius of kaizen and Absurdism. Once I reread Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus, I will give a succint analysis about it on this site in the best way.  

Absurdism, Kaizen and Money

      I am looking forward to rereading Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus. The one that I ordered should arrive at my house in a few days. I am fascinated by Camus’ analysis of the nature of life. Clearly, we can learn much from this great thinker. I do my best to tackle and improve upon some of his ideas in my book, Love and Life, which will be available soon via www.thriveconstantly.com. Out of respect to his great ideas and the intellectual process, I would like readers to know that this is a preliminary version of Love and Life, as I am currently working on it with my editors. Nonetheless, it is well worth reading. As the title of this blog entry implies, I also deal with the importance of kaizen and money in Love and Life.

      Albert Camus’ Absurdism, which is a branch of Existentialist thought, strikes me as one of the most compelling, sine qua non, and appropriate philosophies. One should expect no less from the brilliant mind that bestowed upon us L’Étranger (The Stranger) and La Peste (The Plague). It’s sad that he didn’t live longer as there’s no telling what other masterful works he would have produced. 

      Indeed, the world that I have come to know often proves absurd. Human behavior, including my own, has such a potent strain of irrationality in it that trying to assert rationality as a ruling force seems futile. Knowing this, it stuns me that more people don’t question the often idiotic, socioeconomic arrangements in this world. As Bob Marley said, “the biggest man [or woman] that you ever did see was just a baby [so who is he or she to try to make rules to govern my life?] (interview from a video). Moreover, I agree that “every man [and woman] [Marley was no feminist ] has a right to decide his [or her] own destiny” (”Survival”). These sagacious ideas should convince people to live their lives to optimize their own happiness as much as possible. Furthermore, in line with karma, it proves key that we work to improve the happiness and lives of as many of our fellow human beings as possible. Certainly John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham would agree with me.

© 2007 Paul Ainsworth Delano Francis. All rights reserved.

Ending and Preventing Genocide and Any Crime Against Humanity

    It is imperative that we and I end and prevent genocide and every/any crime against humanity as much as possible and as soon as possible, including now. On November 25, 2007, I watched the Frontline documentary “On Our Watch” on PBS. It moved me to tears. Seeing the dreadful atrocities perpetrated upon innocent civilians in Sudan, Chad, Rwanda, and Yugoslavia filled me with disgust and anger. I felt particularly angry at the way in which otherwise well-meaning people, when put in positions of power in apparently admirable institutions like the UN, have let hundreds of thousands of people die because of bureaucratic delays. I also found myself wondering about the feasibility of pacifism in a world riddled with injustice that often only an equal or greater use of force can stop. Certainly prevention is the best remedy but I, like Albert Einstein, agree that, in spite of the merits of practicing pacifism, there are times when we must use violent force to end and prevent human rights’ abuses. World War II was an excellent example of this.  

© 2007 Paul Ainsworth Delano Francis. All rights reserved.

Human Civilization, Jeffrey D. Sachs, The Best Humanitarianism and The End of Poverty

    Ending poverty, especially extreme poverty, has emerged as one of the most sine qua non struggles in the history of human civilization. In fact, it is important that we begin with the concept of Civilization before even tackling the complicated and often highly politicized one of poverty. Human beings have lived on this earth for approximately 14 million years. Out of these 14 million years, at most 10,000 have included sendentary societies and ultimately civilizations (Davidson Africa in History). By the way, Basil Davidson’s book is an excellent starting point for anyone seeking to get a comprehensive and objective understanding of our species’ existence on this planet. Thus human civilizations, beginning with the first sendentary societies, have existed for far less than one percent of the time that human beings have lived on this earth. Taking into account this humbling statistic, it is mindboggling that there are so many ignorant cynics who make arguments using absolute expressions like “poverty has always existed or there have always been classes in human society.” No one can thoroughly prove what life was like when we were hunter-gatherers, but it seems clear from archaeological and anthropological evidence that most of these societies had virtually no examples of the extreme social stratification that is present in today’s societies. Certainly, in line in primatology, there were dominant individuals and pecking orders but that is a far cry from classes, extreme poverty and extreme wealth. 

      Thus, a veritable messianic figure emerges. Jeffrey Sachs is easily my greatest living hero. Few, if any, can rival the courage and sagacity of Sachs. I really wish that I had gone to Columbia and majored in Economics or at least found myself studying at the Earth Institute–oh well maybe it’s not too late. Either way, having read Sachs’ chef d’oeuvre for the layman, The End of Poverty, I am struck by the man’s excellent track record and how succintly he let’s us know what the main issues are regarding poverty. Moreover, Sachs outlines tangible solutions that have either succeeded already in many parts of the world where he has practised what he calls clinical economics or prove highly possible.  

© 2007 Paul Ainsworth Delano Francis. All rights reserved.