Something to Think About

The Measure of a Person, Government, and Society

Balance, from my point of view, is essential for a healthy life.  As I learned in my early life, too much of a good thing is a bad thing.  Or, to put it in other terms – Any strength, overused, becomes a weakness.  To be healthy in my life, I believe that there are times and events in life that call for tough decisive action; times and events that require patience, exactness and precision; times and events that call on my ability to relate effectively and compassionately to others on a one to one basis; and times that call on my ability to address and interact with groups of people effectively.  To the extent that I am unable to be effective at any of those skills, I will be ineffective in some life situations.  To the extent that I overuse one of those skills to the detriment of another, I am ineffective.  I value someone who respects me enough to take the time and energy to present me with a balanced view of any given situation.

I value honesty.  I value someone who considers all sides of an issue before making up their mind.  I value someone who can change their mind about situations as their knowledge grows.  I value someone who can change their mind as their wisdom grows.  I value fairness.

I value integrity.  I value people who tell me what they believe, and what they stand for.  I value people who “walk their talk”.  I value people who respect other’s journeys.  I value people who exhibit class in the way they honor the experience of others.

I value personal growth, and those who value and promote the personal growth of others.

All of the above considerations factor into how I view the current situation with President Obama, the US Government, and our organized Media.  Before I begin this commentary, let me say that my commentary is not intended to be political in nature, in that I am not intending to take the position of any political party or belief system.  Instead, I want to comment on the values (or lack thereof) of what I see unfolding before us.  The values of the situation are separate from what I think of the various political positions presented by the parties involved.

First off, I believe that the first and highest obligation of the press is to present the public with a clear and balanced picture of the day’s issues and events.  Presenting a clear and balanced picture allows the viewer / listener / reader to develop a clear opinion of any given situation.  Historically, this has been the function of the American press.  Great newsmen like Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite, David Brinkley, Tom Brokaw, Tim Russert, and many others have prided themselves on their ability to present a fair and accurate representation of the day’s issues and events.

I see less of that today, particularly with Fox News and MSNBC.  Fox News has a clear tilt to the extreme right, and presents the day’s issues and events with the seeming intent to persuade the viewer to possess its view of the day’s issues and events.  MSNBC (in my view) tilts left of center – taking the democratic point of view.  Who represents the middle and presents a fair and balanced perspective of the news?  I want a news outlet that will present me with balanced coverage of the day’s most important news and events.  I want to use that balanced coverage to make up my own mind about whether I want to hold Democrat views, Republican views, or Independent views.  Fortunately, there are available news outlets other than the 2 televised outlets I just mentioned.  However, it bothers me that this blatantly unbalanced reporting is relatively unchallenged in today’s market.  Personally, I see it as disrespectful to the intelligence and trust of the American people.

Secondly, I am disturbed by the sensationalism of the news.  I want a news outlet that presents me with the discovered facts of the most significant issues encountered and discussed that day.  I want the news presented to me to be the issues that are likely to affect me longest into the future, and to present me with a balanced view.  Instead, I see so much sensationalism.  I believe that President Obama is correct when he says (and I’m paraphrasing) that today’s media concentrates on those individuals who say something sensational, stupid, argumentative, or sexy while it seems not to cover all of those individuals who have worked honestly, intelligently, diligently, and sometimes heroically throughout the day.  Celebrity news will many times bump more important news items.

Do our media present the news to us in a manner that allows us to constructively build the society of our dreams, or does it present and concentrate on the destructive and opposition elements of our society?  Of course, we all know the answer to that.  The daily emphasis is on opposition and destruction, not on constructive thought or building the society of our dreams.  For me, if I concentrate on opposition and destruction, I will get more of the same.  I believe the same is true for you as a person, and society as a whole.

One of the things I have come to believe about life is this:  “You become who you hang around with”.  I use that belief when I make decisions about friends, associates, employees, etc.  Do I want to be like these people?  If the answer is yes, then I make the decision to include those people in my group.   If my answer is no, I make a decision to move forward in a way that includes those people as little as possible.  A corollary of that rule would be “You become what you think about all day”.  Our daily attention is absolutely affected by the chatter of those around us, the news presented in the media, and the importance attributed to it.  Is our attention being directed to the most important issues of the day, and is it being directed in such a way that it allows us to take constructive action?

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, I value someone who can put aside pre-conceived ideas and concepts when they are being asked to make a decision, so they can make the best possible decision in any given circumstance.  In today’s political environment, that ability is a liability (or, to put it in my terms, a Lie-Ability).  As soon as someone does that, they are considered a “flip-flopper”, someone with a weak backbone, someone who has no convictions, or someone who has the Ability to Lie.  I believe we do a great dis-service to ourselves and our public servants when we demand that they always have 1 consistent lifetime position on every issue, regardless of circumstance.  If we must insist that they have 1 consistent position on every issue, I would prefer that we insist that their consistent core values be ones of compassion, honesty, trustworthiness, balance, and integrity.  Issues and positions change and evolve.  Core values do not.

Lastly, I am disturbed by Party Politics.  Given all that I’ve said above, I want our country’s representatives to stand for integrity, honesty, compassion, balance, and fair-minded action.  I completely reject the idea of putting those principles aside for the sake of party unity.  I completely reject the idea of anyone putting those principles aside to gain political points.  I completely reject the principle of a politician killing needed legislation for political gain.  To me, that is one of the highest indicators of government corruption.

So, what do I want?  I want something better than what I’m seeing.  If you’ve read my other Blog entries, you know that I think that fighting what I don’t want in life is NOT the best way to get what I DO want out of life (See my Loving What Is blog entry for more information).  I believe that I need to work towards what I do want out of life.  I want integrity, balance, honesty, compassion, respect for others, and personal growth.  If you have ideas about how we can build a better society while adhering to those values, I am interested in your comments.

If we lose love and self respect for each other, this is how we finally die. – Maya Angelou

Something to think about……..

September 22, 2009 - Posted by Mark | Balance, Government, Integrity, Leadership, Media, Politics, Values | Balance, Government, Integrity, Leadership, Media, Politics, Values