The Barometer Online

Issue date: 5/31/07 Section: Forum

Conservative, Liberal, White, Black, Male, Female. These labels shape our lives in so many ways, but they are really just social boxes, tiny, restrictive boxes which we force ourselves and others into. We are all human, and at root we are all basically the same. We all want to love and be loved. We all want to feel like our lives have meaning, that we fulfill our purpose. We all want to be safe and warm and free from unnecessary suffering. Yet paradoxically we fill our world with suffering, like the war we choose to fight, like the economic system that can be blamed when children die of starvation, like discrimination and prejudice of any kind. All the ways we hurt ourselves and each other are both real and artificial at the same time.

Real because they are "the way things are," but artificial because they are just one of an infinite set of possibilities. "The way things are" is simply the result of our past choices.

In January, best selling author Naomi Wolf came to OSU with a message of hope, a message about how we can learn to make different choices, about how we can begin to change the way things are into the way we want them to be. She spoke of the ability of women to be powerful leaders while remaining true to their ideals, but her lesson was universal. Being ethical, Wolf says, will probably result in short-term losses, but one develops a good reputation and a solid foundation. During her lecture, she discussed her relationship with power and morals and with what gives her life meaning. For Wolf, religion plays a major role, and she explained how she came to realize that the world's major religions all seem to share a set of seven ethical precepts.

The first is kindness. Acting with kindness, we can see every interaction in a different light. International diplomacy takes on the aspect of family relations, and the global community takes on new meaning. We come to see ourselves as aiding in a group effort, balancing self-interest with the common good.

Tempering our actions with kindness fosters an inclusive attitude, leading naturally to a commitment to justice. Wolf contrasts the Nuremburg trials after World War II with the secret military tribunals currently being used to try detainees in the War On Terror. She asserts that some of the respect and global dominance the United States experienced following World War II was due to the clear commitment to justice shown by America during the Nuremberg trials. Our current approach to fighting the War On Terror is squandering the respect the international community holds for America. In our daily lives, in every action we take, our character is shaped. A commitment to justice is essential to stave off corruption.

Being just and kind tends to require honesty. Honesty builds our reputation as a good person, someone deserving of respect. Without the respect of our peers it is a short walk to the slippery slope of gradual compromise of our principles. Each precept seems to build on the others, and is largely necessitated by them.

Wolf also spoke of being a peacemaker, of working to heal the divisions of interest and ideology that prevent unity and progressive social change. She recounted a meeting between pro-life and pro-choice delegations. On the surface these group's divergent perceptions lead to hostility and opposition. However, after building trust and approaching the meeting as a coalition-building exercise rather than as a face-off, the delegates found that they had more in common than they thought. Both pro-lifers and pro-choicers were committed to women's rights and cared deeply about children. This is just one example of groups which seem at odds, but under the surface share many common goals.

Next Wolf spoke of equality. All people are "equal in dignity," yet so many inhumanities are allowed because we accept the stratification of power among members of society. Could we feel good about allowing people to have inadequate health care, or to be exposed to hazardous living conditions, if we saw them as deserving equal treatment with those privileged enough to afford a higher standard of living? Could we allow the widespread sexism and racism that lurks in the subconscious, the widespread derogatory treatment of women, the widespread social segregation that still exists among races in America? Wolf recalls her former boss Al Gore talking informally with her, speaking of the poor as "wasted human capital." Imagine how much richer a world we would live in if the creativity and ability of all humanity were utilized.

The idea of karma is deeply imbedded in our lives. We have so many parables, so many metaphors to illustrate the truth that our actions shape our future. We reap what we sow. What goes around comes around. We all end up with our just deserts. Even if one can avoid overt or immediate negative consequences, we must forever live with the knowledge of our choices.

Finely, we must act with generosity. By generously spreading kindness, justice, honesty, peacemaking, and equality, we can expand our circle of love until it holds the entire world within it. By recognizing the truth of karma, we can realize the necessity of such an expansion.

By extending our circle of love, dignity, and inclusion to encompass the whole world, we take an enormous step toward a future where no one suffers unnecessarily, where we can truly explore our human potential. This is at the heart of Wolf's lecture: a message of hope. We can change the world for the better, and it will happen quite naturally, quiet effortlessly, when we set aside our shallow differences, when we stop displacing the responsibility we have for "the way things are." It is our individual choices that build to form the current state of the world. We must not wait for a charismatic leader to "show us the way." We already know it.

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Robert Sanchez is a sophomore in natural resources. The opinions expressed in his columns, which appear every Thursday, do not necessarily represent the opinions of The Daily Barometer staff. Sanchez can be reached at forum@dailybarometer.com.

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