Entries in the 'Crisis' Category

The Integral Upbringing: Virtual Or Physical?

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: What is the best way to teach people: virtually or in actual physical courses?

Answer: I think that education can be virtual, but it must include exams. This will oblige every member of society to learn.

Just like people used to go to work in order to earn a salary, now a person will have to spend a certain amount of time in our educational system. And he cannot think lightly of it. He must actually go over each lesson, answer questions, and send his comments, taking an active part in this process. At the end of the course, he will have to take a face-to-face exam so that he can show what he has learned.

Every student should be supervised because the success of the integral society depends on each of us. Here we see another interesting trait of this system: Because it is integral, each member has the exact same weight as the others.

After virtual studying and actual exams, people should form groups in which they will have to do some practical work. It should be done in neighborhoods, schools, in the daytime or in the evening, in different community centers, on TV shows, virtually, and so on.

Musical compositions, plays, and literature should be dedicated to this idea and present it from different perspectives.

Question: Who this program is intended for?

Answer: It is meant for the most ordinary people. It’s not for the intellectuals who find it hard to part with their beliefs, even thought they don’t understand this social order at all.

As far as I know, it is the most ordinary audience, people with a college education at most, but not more than that. It’s for ordinary people, the middle class. We are not that interested in others because the middle class is the basis of any society. Currently, specifically these people fall victim to all that’s taking place.
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Talk on Integral Education 12/11/11

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A Course On Harmonious Education

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Today we already have a request from state and public organizations for a course of integral upbringing for adults. How do you envision the structure of this course? What should we educate people about so that they would learn how to live harmoniously, in concord with each other?

Answer: I think that it shouldn’t be just one course, but a collection of various disciplines. People should acquire primary knowledge, discuss it in a group, whether in a classroom or virtually, but with an instructor, that is, a specialist who can explain the material in an understandable way.

First and foremost, one should study human psychology on a basic, fundamental level, where each of us could understand: Who am I; what am I; how do I think, act, and interact with others. It is necessary to explain the psychology of interactions between spouses, between parents and children, the correct way to relate to children, children’s upbringing, and home economics on the basis of the requirements put forth by nature: How much we consume, how much we give back. In other words, we must put ourselves in a framework that will allow us to exist in a state of balance.

Naturally, each of us needs a place to live, a family, security, healthcare, food, and so on. All these are basic needs of every human being, and one should feel sure that they will be met, provided that he satisfies all the requirements of society.

All the other requirements depend on the person’s position: He either works in production or is engaged in social work, studies or, perhaps teaches others. People will practically work about two or three hours a day. Some may work more, some less, but that won’t determine how much they earn.

The remaining mass of people will be engaged only in creating a homeostasis, an equilibrium for the entire system of human activity on our planet. This is when we will see a different society.

All of this needs to be explained, broken down by discipline. We need to explain the full history of humanity as a consequence of development of our egoism, which brought us today to a state of such complete satiation that we don’t wish to develop any further.

We no longer desire anything in life. We come to depression, drugs, and terrorism, in other words, to the final stage: the rebirth of our egoism. Today we no longer wish to strive towards anything, but on the contrary, we plunge downwards, into alcoholism, and degradation because we don’t see any prospects in future growth. Our egoism, having arrived today at its maximum level of development, is starting to finalize itself and acquire an integral form, but we are not ready for that.

This is why we don’t understand what to do from now on, why we cannot organize the earth’s resources, communication networks, and, in general, the entire development. A new common paradigm, a new attitude towards life, should give a person an opportunity to correct the crisis in all realms of life: family, society, ecology, economics, and so on.

After a general education course, we need to introduce a course on integral upbringing. A course on upbringing entails group lessons, where people literally work through all possible elements of communication through discussions and all kinds of role-playing games.

They work through them like any actor who has a few hundred techniques in stock from which he then compiles a role, an image of a certain person. This is how we must educate a person about the laws of behavior in an integral world. And it won’t seem artificial to him because we will teach him about the correct interaction with others from which he would suddenly feel some higher sensation of tranquility, peace, and fulfillment.

His inner void, which he previously fulfilled at the expense of economic achievements in capitalist competitions, will start to become filled from a completely different direction, according to a different scheme. It will be filled in such a way that he will feel himself safe and secure. Nobody will enter in any confrontations with him.

We must include a large number of groups in this part of the course. I think that it will be a very serious, exciting action in which parents with children, spouses, and entire neighborhoods can participate.

Here we will start to form a new type of social interactions, a new view of life and the world, within which a person will begin to sense the globality of nature, its integrality and inner harmony. This inner harmony is essentially where our inner demand lies. This is what we want to experience in our life and what we are attempting to achieve in our useless competition with each other.
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Talk on Integral Education 12/11/11

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The Key To Healthy People, Family, And Society

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Suppose we organize a course on integral education for adults. What results can they get upon completing the course?

Answer: We should understand that from now on, nature offers us only two paths of development leading to one goal. The ultimate goal of nature is complete unity of all its parts, including humanity as a part of general nature.

We can reach this state of harmony, equilibrium, and homeostasis in two ways. One of them is the path of suffering, the realization of this necessity in spite of our desires and inner impulses. This path is very difficult, complex, and forced.

In principle, nature developed us in this way all the time. This is the process of evolution, when we are pushed from behind and thus look for comfort. It turns out that we seek a better life by being pushed from behind, make plenty of mistakes, but eventually develop. This is how man, small societies, as well as humanity as a whole developed in the past.

But there is a possibility of development with dignity, when a person is aware beforehand that all nature is moving towards integrality. Now, the first signs of this future integrality become apparent, obliging us to exist in it as part of society, nature, and the universe.

Nature strives for balance because it is the key to its health, safety, and sustainability both in every part of it (for example, in our body) and the whole system.

Let us take this future state as a common goal of all humanity and begin to approach it, at least in different regions of the world, through various international organizations, beliefs, and, most importantly, through education. Education shouldn’t be obtrusive; we should simply tell people about the laws of nature, the laws of the development of human society: behavior, education, family relationships, and child upbringing. We teach people how to live on a fairly modest salary, allowance, or scholarship.

But all this must be taught to people. They do not know how to raise children and how to get along with each other. We see that humanity teaches something completely different: It does not teach or educate its offspring, the future generation, so that it lives well.

We do not think about how to make people happy. We push them into the abyss of capitalist competition, in which they are willing “to eat each other” gladly. But there are no winners in this contest, and in the end, we condemn them to constant stress and problems. As a result, no one sees happiness.

It is essential that psychologists, sociologists, parents, teachers, and people who already understand the problem or can understand it come to a more or less correct conclusion, and with the help of scientists, the public, and the Internet (today it is a considerable force) will be able to show all humanity that this integral education is the key to the healthy society, man, and family. We simply will not survive without it; we will advance with huge losses. Of course, we will achieve the same goal, but it will be a terrible path.
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Talk on Integral Education 12/11/11

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Joseph Stigliz: The World At The Brink Of A New Chaos

Opinion (Joseph Stigliz, a professor at Columbia University, a Nobel laureate in economics): “Someone recently quipped that the best thing about 2011 was that it was likely better than 2012.

“European leaders repeatedly proclaim their commitment to saving the euro, but those who could have repeatedly said that they are committed to not doing what is needed. They have recognized that austerity will mean slower growth – indeed, a recession is increasingly likely – and that, without growth, the eurozone’s distressed countries will not be able to manage their debts. But they have done nothing to promote growth. They are on a death spiral.

“Two more positive notes for 2011: The US seems finally to have awakened to the yawning gap between the rich and the rest – between the top 1 percent and everyone else. And youth-led protest movements, from the “Arab Spring” to the Spanish indignados and the Occupy Wall Streeters, have made clear that something is very wrong with the capitalist system.

“The US had hoped for an export-led recovery, but, with economic growth slowing in Europe, its largest customer (and impeding growth in much of the rest of the world), that is unlikely. And, with the worst effects of spending cuts potentially still to come, gridlock – and Republican spite – may mean that the Barack Obama administration’s payroll-tax cut will not be extended, weakening household consumption.

“2012 may mark the beginning of a new and more frightening phase of the world’s worst economic calamity in three-quarters of a century.”
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Happiness In Crisis

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the News (from GALLUP): “More Europeans are ‘suffering’ than ‘thriving’ in several countries hard-hit by the financial crisis, including a number that have already introduced or are introducing austerity measures. More than one in five residents rate their lives poorly enough to be considered suffering in Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Greece, Latvia, and Portugal. The largest gap between thriving and suffering is in Bulgaria, where 45% are suffering and 5% are thriving.

“Gallup classifies respondents’ wellbeing as thriving, struggling, or suffering according to how they rate their current and future lives on a ladder scale with steps numbered from 0 to 10 based on the Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale.”

My Comment: In the end, we find humanity in the semi-darkness and low spirits—from the results of its own progress. But it is important to realize that this time is not the end, but a new beginning! However, in contrast to the previous states, it is difficult to see future here because it is opposite to our egoistic nature, thus the need to disseminate a new kind of knowledge, meaning integral upbringing.
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Young Specialists Hit By The Crisis

Dr. Michael LaitmanOpinion: (G. Lebedev, Research Director at HeadHunter, from professia.info): “If the crisis in Europe triggers a second wave of the global economic crisis, young specialists will be the first to suffer as employers will opt to hire experienced workers that can produce reliable results.

“In 2009 the number of vacancies for young specialists fell five times since employers sought to reduce risks as much as possible. The upshot was that specialists with extensive (6 years or more) experience were much more likely to find employment.

My Comment: This problem will lead to others: Without a job a person can’t start a family, take out loans for a home, and so on….
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The People Is The New Government

Dr. Michael LaitmanQuestion: Suppose that we have written a course on integral education; we have it. Where do we go with it? To the government?

Answer: We will take it to the government, public, and scientists through whom we are starting to advertise it. We will also promote it via the Internet and other media channels.

Today, the government is involved with a limited sector of society and state. It seems to stand on the side, and its functions gradually become narrower. Various economic, social, educational, and community programs and associations are at work.

What functions does the government still carry on? Even health care is not under its control anymore, even the army is hired. This is like the lone king or the parliament that slowly dissolves produces spin-offs: new independent social, political, and economic systems that have nothing to do with the government.

It is not necessary to conduct our course through the government, but it should certainly go through the education system. However, this education is not for children; it is not professional, technical, or university education. It is intended to educate the public. It forms a new humanity, which would not survive otherwise.

To date, we already have a very serious relationship with UNESCO, the UN. We have representatives who act as advisors there.

Also, I do not think it is necessary to address anyone but the people, especially since the time of the Internet. I think that we still underestimate this new “government.” It is the voice of God, the voice of the people. We just need to use it properly.
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Talk on Integral Education 12/11/11

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NJ’s Richest County Leads Rise In Food Stamp Recipients

Dr. Michael LaitmanIn the News (from Bloomberg): “‘New Jersey’s Hunterdon County, the hilly region of horse farms and weekend retreats where last year’s median household income was almost $100,000, is a surprising new face of federal food aid.

“The percentage of U.S. households using food stamps has more than doubled in six of the 10 wealthiest counties in the nation as more residents find themselves out of work and unable to sell their homes. The increase among counties with more than 65,000 people was greatest in Hunterdon County, according to Census Bureau data compiled by Bloomberg.

‘“Sometimes people will come in a Mercedes,’ said Gina Davio, 41, program director of social services at Fisherman’s Mark, a non-profit social-services center in Lambertville, a city of 3,900 on the Delaware River. ‘Sometimes they come in nothing but Ralph Lauren, but you never know: That may be all they have left.’

‘“We see a lot of families who used to make a lot of money and are in a transition mode — whether it’s due to a divorce, loss of a job, or medical bills — that don’t have the ability to put the reins on the way they were living,’ Davio said.”

My Comment: The crisis is created to force all of us to feel helpless and to compel us to evaluate the cause: our egoism and resistance to unity. Of course, this is not the realization of evil yet, but we are on the way to it.

After having realized that egoism is the cause of all our suffering, people will quickly find the way to rise above it. Many intuitively find our materials and see the causes of the crisis, its necessity and purpose.
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To The Fateful Date Of The Mayan Calendar

In the News (from News Junkie Post): “Various prophecies of doom and gloom or even of an Apocalypse have been linked to calendar year 2012. An Apocalypse (Greek etymology: ‘lifting the veil’ or ‘revelation’) is often wrongly viewed as the end of all things, but of course the very etymology of the word contradicts this notion. As a powerful revelation, an Apocalypse is a universal moment of truth, a quantum leap into uncharted territories. It appears that the world at large has already entered this unique phase in human history.

“The Mayans did not see the fateful date of December 21, 2012 as ‘the end of the world,’ but instead, they perceived it as a time of transition from one world age into another. The core message of the Mayans concerned our ability to make a choice, and either embrace bravely this new future or try to hold on to the past and face potential dreadful consequences. According to the Mayans, our resistance or acceptance of this paradigm shift could determine if the transition happens with chaos and violent cataclysmic changes or instead with peace and tranquility.

“‘Many people have an intuitive sense that the end of the Mayan calendar will bring a shift in consciousness. Yet, it is rarely clearly stated or explained exactly what is the source of such a shift, how it will happen or what would be its nature,’ Wrote Carl Johan Calleman in March 2010.

“‘Initially, there will be a great need for people to take initiatives to disseminate the call for the Conscious Convergence around the world,’ wrote Calleman.

“The paradigm shift described by Calleman as either shift of consciousness or Conscious Convergence is already on its way. The train of history has ‘left the station,’ and as a matter of fact, it is a bullet train. This paradigm shift of global human history started in the Spring of 2011 in the Arab word. …However, the chain of events of the Arab revolution was highly predictable without referring to either the Mayan prophecy or other crystal balls.

“Since the Arab Spring, the Occupy movement has shown a remarkable adaptability and resilience, and it is now becoming viral. It has caught on in Western Europe, in Greece, the UK, Spain, Italy, France and Germany. But more importantly, it is now a force to be reckoned with in the bastion of imperialism: the United States of America. The main reason why the Occupy movement is getting so much traction in the United States is that nearly one in two Americans-according to new US Census Bureau figures – have fallen into poverty or are struggling to live on low income.

“The Occupy paradigm shift is not a supernatural ‘meant to happen’ force or strange astrological phenomenon, but instead it is a prosaic movement grounded in some simple principles such as fairness, equality and social justice. It has its foundation in the conviction that 99 percent of the world population should be controlling resources and managing their own affairs instead of letting 1 percent of it run the world in such an unsustainable way that they are joyfully taking us to an abyss.

“The tyrants, the dictators, the oligarchs, and the ‘masters of the universe’ of the financial world have been put on notice by the 99 percent. If they resist, the Tsunami wave of the Occupy movement will eventually topple them or fully degrade their power and wealth. It is just a question of time, and after all there is a full year left before the end of the Mayan calendar. The Global Occupy movement is probably our best hope, not as the 99 percent but as human beings, to resolutely change our course and promote a world where a ‘Dog eat Dog’ culture does not prevail. A way of life that is based on fairness, justice and on the respect of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
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European Politicians Use Tiny Jedi Swords To Fight Crisis

Dr. Michael LaitmanOpinion: (Dmitry Vydrin, political analyst): “Not all European politicians understand the routes of today’s economic crisis, advisor to the Ukrainian president Dmitry Vydrin told the international conference ‘20 years without the USSR –CIS – Eurasian Union’…

“‘I have recently been to the European Parliament, to Bundestag… I got an impression that a huge number of adult men confront the crisis using toy-like Jedi swords without understanding the reasons, the basics, or the foundation. Maybe, we will help Europe handle it. They have money, we have experience,’ Dmitry Vydrin said.

“He also noted the Ukrainian government sent him and other specialists to France to study some materials in order to draft a constitution using the French model. Back then the Ukrainians got a lot of recommendations from their French counterparts. ‘MPs, senators, and the Mayor of Paris gave us wonderful recommendations, great tips: what to do and how to do. Now, all our questions face grim silence or formal replies,’ Dmitry Vydrin said.

“‘Unfortunately, Europe (I like it very much and wish it well) is making the same mistakes that [brought to the collapse of the USSR] 20 years ago,’ he said.”

My Comment: The collapse of the EU will have much more dramatic consequences and possibly lead to a world war.
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