Shopping Carts in Ravines

I had two ideas for books to write. 

Then I read this book, and only had one idea left. 

I strongly encourage you to get a copy and absorb it. 

(I bought it at a York U textbook store…
I really should’ve noted what course it was for!)

From the book Wholeness by Alex Gerber Jr.

DISCONNECTION

Reductionist, overspecialized education, information overload, and a host of other social, psychological, and economic factors have led to a society that is disconnected from wholeness.

Bombarded on all sides by “communication,” real connection that is fundamentally honest, open and forthright is hard to find.
Disconnectedness is exacerbated by the mass media, especially television and movies, which feature endless themes of violence, greed, murder, manipulation, deception, and domination. The fact that such behaviour exists in “real life” is no excuse for its relentless reinforcement.

At the same time, our desires for connection, certainty, and fulfillment are constantly stimulated by advertisements that combine state-of-the-art consumer psychology with sophisticated and seductive production techniques.

This disconnectedness has enormous social and psychological consequences. The philosopher Ivan Illich expressed the situation well: “So pervasive is the power of the institutions we have created that they shape not only our preferences, but actually our sense of possibilities.”

The theoretical physicist David Bohm (1917 - 1992) suggested an alternative:

Man’s general way of thinking of the totality, i.e., his general world view, is crucial for overall order of the human mind itself.
If he thinks of the totality as constituted of independent fragments, than that is how his mind will tend to operate, but if he can include everything coherently and harmoniously in an overall whole that is undivided, unbroken and without border (for every border is a division or break) then his mind will tend to mind in a similar way, and from this will flow an orderly action within the whole.

…

Many people sense a void in their lives, an absence of purpose or meaning. Education, counseling, and meditation (for example) can address this situation. As people learn about wholeness and experience it directly, personal transformation occurs. A psychological/spiritual window opens and purpose appears or is rekindled.

As one group of students at an alternative high school learned about the holistic options that already exist for humanity’s success, in one hour their collective attitude transformed from lethargy, apathy, and cynicism to excitement, relief, and hope for the future.

Although hopelessness seems to engulf many people today, this outlook can change very quickly.

The energies associated with the direct experience of wholeness are transformative.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 at 5:19 pm and is filed under Books / Texts, Environment, Future, Humanism, Society. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.