My sons are reading about the American Revolution. It is part of a well worn public school curriculum in California and across all the 50 states. Learning about the American Revolutionaries and Patriots starts in earnest in 3rd grade and continues through every year of school thereafter.
As most of us in America know, the American Revolution and the “Founding Fathers” are a huge part of the history we learn, year after year.
It would be possible and entertaining to write an essay on how Americans are no less “Revolution” and “Father” centric in their thinking and teaching, as the North Koreans or Chinese or, for that matter, quite a few countries that propagate the ideologies of the sacred Revolution that created their nation states or the demigod like men who led those Revolts. I will leave that more in depth look at fanaticism and propaganda for another day. I would like, however, to share a view of the effect of such teaching and thinking on our culture and our behavior…
In America (like elsewhere), we are raised and taught that there is no greater person than the Revolutionary!
There is the military Revolutionary - George Washington
There is the Intellectual Revolutionary - Thomas Jefferson
(Historians could continue this list endlessly… Franklin, Paine, Adams… each with their own corner of Revolutionary thought and actions.)
The greatest moments in history, we are taught, are the moments of Revolt.
Then when we are old enough to aspire to such greatness ourselves, there is a force that suppresses the very imagined idea. Revolt, the idea, is controlled for economic and political outcome, as desired by the few. In America…
Revolt must be taught.
Revolution must be praised.
Rebels must be transferred into idealogical demigods and “Fathers” of nations.
The violent General praised as a Patriot.
The challenger of old ways of thinking admired as a Leader.
But… it must never happen again! Like a religious doctrine, it already happened, live with it. It is done.
You are not the doers… you are the receivers… be grateful.
The Revolution is over - Never Again!
This is the great farce and contradiction of American belief in itself. Each generation, raised on the glory of Revolution, steps up to create change and discovers that Revolution, even of ideas, is forbidden, suppressed, denied, beaten, strangled and crushed.
The “Founding Fathers” left a seed that has managed to stay with us - desire to revolt against that which is oppressive and unfair. The controlling “Fathers” of our time use all their might to make sure the seed does not sprout; for they know, as do all leaders of all countries founded on Revolution, that a few people with enough determination can and will Revolt against that which is unfair and will succeed.
It is that fight they fear.
So, who are the British and who are the Patriots?
This Revolt does not invade on Christmas Eve and kill everyone in the fort (like Washington crossing the Potomac)… this Revolt knows violence will bring only violence.
This is a Revolution of ideas, which can spread faster than any army can march.
Humans have developed societies, culture and civilizations based on threat…
Threat by religion
Threat by law or rule
Threat by currency
Our behavior and activity are dominated and controlled and regulated by threat of misery and/or promise of reward.
Fear is easily triggered in humans by threat.
We need to develope forms of culture and societies that surpass the human root of fear.
We need to find ways in which to trigger behavior and activity based on the human root of love.
It may seem easy to shrug at the obviousness of such an idea.
Love instead of Fear - of course, no surprise.
The difficulty is quite literally the how…
How do we teach humans to want, do and succeed in creating value in their lives and for those around them, without the use of fear (fear of being hungry and cold to promote work for money, fear of hell to promote moral behavior, fear of imprisonment, fear of…)?
I believe the first step, in a capitalist society, toward this new paradigm, is changing the basic value notions of jobs.
Example:
No one cleans toilets because they love it. People clean toilets because they fear that if they do not take that job which is available to them, then they will be unable to provide basic needs for their family: food, shelter, clothes, etc.
People become rocket scientists because they do love the idea of sending things into space. Their activity is promoted by their love of a subject or possible action - being able to provide for their family is a benefit but not the base response to fear that makes them take the job.
So, how do you promote toilet cleaning without use of threat?
Provide the toilet cleaner with more or equal benefit than the rocket scientist. Someone who spent the day cleaning toilets deserves a nice big bath tub and a silk robe.
Not fair, right? A brilliant person who figures out how to put communication satellites in space gets the same as (or less than) the barely educated toilet cleaner. (Einstein did his impressive work while being paid very little as a patent clerk - he was never paid to think of and share his ideas.)
Does this promote decline?
I think not. The reward of successfully designing and launching a rocket into space is far greater to the spirit than cleaning rows of toilets at a sports area.
This value, the value of achievement, is a big part of the benefit of doing something difficult, yet personally meaningful.
Of course, this entire notion is well out of sync with the current capitalist model of promoting certain activities over others - trading stock is valued considerably higher than street cleaning.
Stop and think a moment. Does it need to be?
If trading stock or designing rockets still provided the value of a very comfortable life, then is it in conflict with allowing street cleaning to do the same?
Would we really end up with more people who refuse to learn and failing to create value in their lives because it would be easy to get what you need from being less ambitious?
I think not. I, for one, would continue to create media (because I love it) regardless…even if I could receive more monitory value for toilet cleaning.
How about you? Would you give up your dreams and ambitions because it might pay less that something you loath to do?
Santa is Moving by Baqi Santa Claus announced, through a series of letters, that due to unpredictable conditions at the North Pole this Christmas will be the last year his base of operations will be in the North. He has been working closely with an international scientific team to assess the long term conditions of the South Pole for his relocation. He assures the world that all the toys and gifts for this season will be prepared and delivered without fail from his current home at the North Pole. “Shortly after this Christmas, I will be moving the entire workshop, the elves and the reindeer to a new location at the South Pole,” Santa Claus stated in his letter. “The transition team which consists of elves and hand picked scientists, have already completed the first fundamental steps in this move,” the statement continued. “Future letters should be addressed to the South Pole.” Santa guarantees that the transition from north to south, will be smooth and completed in a manner that will leave plenty of time to check on who has been naughty and nice for the Christmas season of 2012. “I will be doing complete checks and reading all my mail,” stated Mr. Claus. The change in climate and the future existence of the ice shelf that currently sustains Santa’s workshop is so periled that the decision to move was clear and simple. “Mrs. Claus was the first to know it just had to happen by next year,” Santa said. The health of the reindeer was at first a concern for some on the transition team; further study, which resulted in a positive forecast for the physical well being of the reindeer, ended that early worry and the last hurdle was essentially removed. “Now that we are fairly positive that the reindeer will not suffer any ill effects from the southern climate, we are ready to move forward,” said an elven helper. For many of us alive today, the notion that Santa Claus would not always be at the North Pole is inconceivable. For all of written and oral history, Santa Claus has always resided in the north. “This is an incredible shift in our world that has been clearly caused by climate change,” said a spokesperson for an environmental group that did not want to be named, who spoke unofficially on the subject. There has been a great deal of activity recently in Antarctica by international scientific teams. None could be clearly identified as working directly with Santa Claus and no one has yet come forward. It is clear that a big part of this move is being done in secrecy. The isolation of Santa’s workshop has always been important to the elves and their work. “Change is often inevitable,” stated Mr. Claus, “and should not be feared. This move should not be seen as troublesome nor should the children worry.” An elf speaking without official capacity stated, “Mrs. Claus seems excited and happy about the change. We have all been living here a very long time and a change in scenery wouldn’t be so bad. I also imagine the summers might be more pleasant.” As the world around us changes, sometimes faster than we can predict, there will be many shifts that force us to make choices. If we make choices through a thoughtful process, we can actually improve upon what already is and perhaps find some benefit to these shifts. “I am excited to see that Santa Claus is acting before his only choice is to react,” stated a senior scientist on the transition team in a phone interview. He chose to remain unnamed due to the promise he made to Santa Claus. “Many of us, who have been working closely with the elves on the move, are very excited to be part of history, yet we know that our promises of secrecy must be kept if we are to remain on Santa’s good list.” Santa Claus has included, in his letter, three requests that will help make the move easier: Please try to get your letters for this Christmas out as early as possible so the elves can get busy on fulfilling the gift lists. Some of the elves are working full time on the transition and this has increased the work load on those still in the workshop. Help the kids get those letters out sooner than later. Explain to the children that change is nothing to fear and often is the beginning of many good things. Tell them that simply because something is different or new does not mean it is bad. Remind the children that most letters that arrive here at Santa’s workshop are for new and different toys and gifts. Tell them that it is evermore important that they are good and behave well. Although my home is moving and things are shifting, it does not mean that the rules of Christmas have changed: they had better not shout, they had better not cry…Also, let the children know that resisting change is not the answer to our ever shifting world. We must embrace the changing environment around us, no matter what the causes, and adapt to our new situation. Fighting change puts one on the wrong side of the most powerful forces around us; take it from me, the world can change for the better. Lastly, there is something you can all do this Christmas season to help each other and all of us here at the North Pole: Please pass this message on to all those folks you know and even some you have yet to get to know. Be good.
Ownership and the Decay of Community
How building owners speed the collapse of a small town and how to solve the problem:
Storefront for Rent: Prime Location - Main St. 1200 sq. ft. $2500/Month
The property owner believes that the building on Main Street, where all the tourists stroll, is well worth the monthly rent he is asking…
After all, it has been rented at that price or close to it for many years. A business can profit from such a choice location in a small coastal town just north of San Francisco, where tourists travel for weekends, weddings, wine & music festivals and outdoor activities in the coastal waters and forests. He knows the building has value. At least he thinks it has value. It once did…
Now, like many of the storefronts and buildings on Main Street and in the town, it is empty and has been for over a year or more.
To the community, the empty storefronts have only a negative value…a destructive value.
At first glance the mid nineteenth century structure is beautiful and quaint. The “For Rent” sign triggers a quick rummage through thoughts of what type of cute shop might flourish in this darling town of artisans, B&Bs and the stream of tourists who visit. Though these thoughts quickly turn to the practical: Who has the money to invest in opening a shop?
There certainly is no shortage of ideas and creations to fill the empty space, yet…the mind hesitates and questions:
Wasn’t there a cute shop in that space a couple of years ago? What was it again? Oh, yes, household goods with old-world charm. There was a lovely woman who owned the shop. What ever happened to her? I hope she is okay.
If she did not make it, why would anyone else? Who can risk filling the space of a failed business? Doesn’t that failure mean that the location, the town, the idea of cute shops is slowly dying?
Well, maybe she was not a very good business person. There are other shops here, on the two blocks that make up Main Street, that are surviving.
Yet, the more you look…wait, about a quarter of the storefronts and buildings are empty and for rent or sale. This tells a slightly larger story - paints a bigger picture.
One must conclude that tourism and economic activity have been slowing and have taken value out of the town as businesses shutter their windows and vanish.
Did this need to happen?
The answer is no, definitively, no!
The loss of value, to the entire community and the individuals who owned the businesses and those who owned the property, was lost to a misunderstanding of human need, activity and value.
Lets break it down into a few smaller pieces, add some history and explain the real actions that exasperate and speed decline and then provide a very real and simple solution.
Commercial land and property owners are in the business of making money by renting space and facilities.
Shop and business owners are in the business of making money by providing goods and services.
If the combination of the two is successful, then everyone “profits”, including the patrons who visit the specific location.
So, the building owner says, ”My location is so good that people come here and spend money and thus, I am providing a great value to my community by owning and renting out the building for a profit.”
The business owner says, ”My services and goods are so great that people come here and spend money and thus, I too, am providing value to my community through economic activity.”
The visiting patron says, ”My visit is so wonderful because I spend money and bring value to this community while enjoying all it offers.”
The value in all cases is money exchanged, taxes paid, employment generated, social activity, etc.
In truth, it is not one or the other but, rather like the soil, the flower and the bee - all need each other, it is all interdependent.
If we remove any one element (bee, flower, soil or tourist, business, building) the entire system of activity and value exchange fails. The elements of this system are so entwined that success or failure depends on each element doing its part. This means that it is in the interest of each to support the others.
Here is where the current ideas of pyramid structured power and value measurement fail to provide the necessary support for success in a system of market created value, rather than activity based value. Market value says the building and its ownership hold a base market value. Activity based value says the building and its ownership are valued based on the activity and value production they facilitate. (The soil only has value if it provides for the plant which provides for the animal which provides for the soil. The building only has value if it provides a place for people to create and share value, which in turn provides added value to the community, by which we measure the value of the building.)
In our current market based society, when it comes to economic activity on commercial property, the property owner is at the top of the pyramid. History and law have given the property owner the feeling of ultimate power, ownership. (“I own the valuable land and building in the best location!”) If the activity on his land or in his building does not bring him value, as measured by currency exchange, then he will bring an end to that activity and offer the space to a business that does provide the money he demands. Conversely, if the business owner does not receive the value expected by the location, the business closes or moves. If the tourist does not receive the value expected by visiting the location (i.e., the shop offers nothing desired or does so poorly or is empty) then the tourist will go elsewhere in search of value for his money. Only the property owner retains what is considered value from the relationship if it fails completely or in part. This leads to the false notion that the property is “king” in the equation. (Ask someone if they would like to own the mall, have a shop in the mall or visit the mall; most will reply, “Own the mall” because it is has the highest perceived value in our current system)
Back to the point…
A shop closes on Main Street, due to slow sales after a couple of years of recession. The building is now empty. The tourist sees zero value in this empty building, even if it is located exceptionally well, with a view of the Pacific in a quaint seaside town. At the same time the property owner sees value in the same building where the tourist sees none. (This is the bee arriving at an empty piece of dirt, no flower, no point…)
The tourist reports to family and friends and announces across the world wide web, that Main Street has very little value to offer. So, fewer and fewer people visit. The decay of a tourist based economy of artisans, service providers and small town businesses decreases rapidly.
Meanwhile, a small group of young men spill from a local tavern to hang on the porch of the empty building on Main Street, seizing the value of the location and view for an evening of improvised guitar strumming. The owners sign, “For Rent $2500” still sags in the window.
The owner will hold out for a business, that must be coming, any day now, to pay his price for the value he owns and controls. This attitude and system is destroying and will continue to destroy the community as a whole!
As the land owner clenches his fist around his ideas of value, the real value to the community is dying. If only he would open his hand and take action toward building shared value in the community, things could be very different.
The loss of each business has decreased the resources available for an endless list of community needs - from donations to local sports teams and the local Recreation Center for activities and classes, to local income and taxes, to the ability to attract tourists to the town as a whole. Every member of the community loses value as they fail to work together to maintain the overall value of the community. These are real daily losses that create hardship, struggle, unhappiness and decrease the group’s ability to educate their children, maintain the physical and environmental areas of the community and transform their future.
As each commercial property owner views their interests as individual and each community member views the loss of businesses as, “just the way it is”, our ability to create value in our lives decays.
The solution is simple. Greed is in the way.
Stop waiting for money and start building and preserving value!
Solution:
The building owner places an ad in the local paper, puts up fliers and postings on the web and spreads the word that he will allow a business, group or individual the use of his storefront for one year at any amount, that can be paid monthly, to the person or group that proposes the best idea (according to the property owner) for the use of his space.(Or preventatively, allowing current struggling businesses to remain in buildings on these terms.)
Why this is good and why it will work:
There are many businesses and activities that can bring value to a community; selling goods to tourists, teaching people to paint landscapes, connecting local farmers with buyers, providing spaces for art, etc. The list of ideas can be endless. If an idea works, then the value to the business or group, the community and the property owner is clear and real.
People come, value is exchanged and as the value grows or at least exists, the appreciation for the process that provided the opportunity receives social praise. This social boost spurs cooperation and the creation of even more value to the community and all those who participate.
The building owner reading this is asking, “but when do I get paid? That’s my building!”.
Answer: You get paid everyday and in every way. Here is how…
Life is not a game of which the singular goal is to acquire currency. Life is an experience which provides us access to the immeasurable benefits of shared experience, exchange of value and all the other endless and wonderful human capacities of the spirit.
To own is a burden and a responsibility. As an owner, more than any other person in our society, it is your burden to avoid greed and shortsightedness. (Imagine a farmer who owns hundreds acres of land yet will only grow food for his family.)
Most land and all buildings are owned either by people, companies and corporations or government. It is the duty of owners to share the value they possess with the group. To not do so is to harm the group.
Some ways of sharing this value are growing food, renting space, providing for community members, etc. This value should not be limited to currency only. In these times, when currency and economy are incongruent with the needs of society, it is critical to find new and innovative ways to share fundamental value in real exchanges with those around you and those who interact with your community.
In past times, people have taken up arms against land owners. Time and time again, they rose up to battle what they felt was an unfair control and possession of value. This form of violent revolution is unnecessary and a path to regressive behavior between humans.
What is necessary, is “owners” taking responsibility for the value they legally own and control and making sure their personal desire for wealth or currency does not stand in the way or even cause the destruction of communities large and small.
This is a call to action: If you own an empty building, fill it.
Find a way to create a fair agreement with an entity that will provide value to the community as a whole and allow the exchange of value and social activity to take place on your land and in your building.
We all know, in our hearts, that it is right to work together to build healthy, happy communities that create and share. Holding what is yours, waiting for someone with money to show up, is a form of greed in our struggling society. It is the soil refusing the seed and starving the bee.
The value of our lives is at stake.
