Core Values and the body politic
I have previously written on core values, but I periodically feel a need to revisit them:
First, my core values:
The challenge is to ascertain if these core values can be practically applied to our function as a body politic. As a body politic we are going to have serious disagreements about such issues as when life begins. Does it begin at the moment that the sperm and the egg are introduced to each other? Is violent force ever justified? Should the actions of another nation always be viewed from a historical vantage point? How do we balance the needs of the overall economy with the immediate needs of people to have what they need to survive? Should my core values have the weight of moral imperatives? Should the greatest good for the greatest number be our overall guide in make decisions? Is it ever okay to sacrifice some for the good of all?
The list of questions could be endless. Perhaps the most important moral imperative is that we recognize and respect that good people have very different opinions about how to organize and make manifest the functioning of the body politic. I, for one, am not convinced that there is ever one correct answer or one moral answer. I am convinced that we must make some decisions since inaction is an action which can have far reaching consequences. I am also convinced that I must listen well and respect the opinions and even beliefs of others without allowing those opinions to restrict the rights of others to be treated with equal respect. At the same time, I cannot co-sign actions of the body politic which encourage or support racism, sexism, homophobia, ageism or other actions which grant rights to some at the expense of others
As we in the United States prepare to begin a new chapter may we be clear about the core values which we want to underlie the process of formulating polices which will guide us in the months and years to come. I am not convinced that much of the political rhetoric which has led to this point in history demonstrated the best we have to bring to the table. We are better than the worst of our judgmental, self-righteous, often unkind behavior. I am better than the worst of my judgmental, self-righteous unkind behavior.
Written January 19, 2021
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
I have previously written on core values, but I periodically feel a need to revisit them:
- To examine the extent to which I am making decisions based on core values.
- To attempt to understand how those whose lives seems to reflect the same core values as mine, seem to sharply disagree about the factors which need to underlie the decisions of the body politic.
First, my core values:
- Do my best to show up with unconditional love and not judgement.
- Accept that all my actions (including the action of inactions) affect, at some level, the entire universe.
- Always have a reverence for life.
- Refuse to personalize the behavior of others.
- Refuse to presume one can walk in the shoes of another.
- Forgive self and others easily and quickly – do not judge
- Practice humility and accountability in all my actions.
- Have a reverence and appreciation for all of life while, at the same, respect the cycle of life.
- Respect the limits of what we label as free will; respect all the factors which affect which neurons fire and how they fire in the human brain.
- Respect the opinions of others while not patronizing them by downplaying the disagreements
- Humbly and strongly speak out against what I perceive as injustice with goal of correcting but not punishing.
The challenge is to ascertain if these core values can be practically applied to our function as a body politic. As a body politic we are going to have serious disagreements about such issues as when life begins. Does it begin at the moment that the sperm and the egg are introduced to each other? Is violent force ever justified? Should the actions of another nation always be viewed from a historical vantage point? How do we balance the needs of the overall economy with the immediate needs of people to have what they need to survive? Should my core values have the weight of moral imperatives? Should the greatest good for the greatest number be our overall guide in make decisions? Is it ever okay to sacrifice some for the good of all?
The list of questions could be endless. Perhaps the most important moral imperative is that we recognize and respect that good people have very different opinions about how to organize and make manifest the functioning of the body politic. I, for one, am not convinced that there is ever one correct answer or one moral answer. I am convinced that we must make some decisions since inaction is an action which can have far reaching consequences. I am also convinced that I must listen well and respect the opinions and even beliefs of others without allowing those opinions to restrict the rights of others to be treated with equal respect. At the same time, I cannot co-sign actions of the body politic which encourage or support racism, sexism, homophobia, ageism or other actions which grant rights to some at the expense of others
As we in the United States prepare to begin a new chapter may we be clear about the core values which we want to underlie the process of formulating polices which will guide us in the months and years to come. I am not convinced that much of the political rhetoric which has led to this point in history demonstrated the best we have to bring to the table. We are better than the worst of our judgmental, self-righteous, often unkind behavior. I am better than the worst of my judgmental, self-righteous unkind behavior.
Written January 19, 2021
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
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