Morality Part III
“State Senator Rob Standridge, R-Norman, Oklahoma filed a bill that would require homeless camps to have proper permits like other campgrounds. The permits would include standards for disposing of sanitation and sewage.
Standridge said he wrote the bill after people brought up concerns about homeless camps in the area, calling it a public health and safety issue.”
"First and foremost, this is a public health and safety issue, but there could be economic implications for a community if their municipality fails to address these concerns," Standridge said in a statement. "I’m sure very few businesses would want to develop property that could be impacted by sewage and other waste and safety issues from one of these camps. My legislation is about ensuring accountability within those camps and by our municipalities to protect our citizens." (Koco news, Oklahoma City, January 20, 2022)
“In late 2021, Standridge introduced a controversial bill to ban all books covering the topics of racial inequality, gender studies, LGBTQ issues, women's rights, among other social issues in an attempt to halt social progress in tow with extreme conservative agendas throughout the United States. The introduced legislation proposes a $10,000.00 fine for each book found to violate the language of the bill, as well as banning Universities in Oklahoma from teaching certain topics relating to the subjects of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. “(Wikipedia)
Depending on one’s point of view one might think that Mr. Standridge is an uneducated man, a heartless racist or a courageous man standing up for conservative beliefs. If one does some basic research on the internet and on his Facebook and LinkedIn pages, one finds that he is a husband, father, pharmacist, businessperson, former EMT, and an active member of the Crosspointe Assembly of God Christian church. Furthermore, he states that his interest include arts, culture, education, poverty alleviation and science. Among those he follows and apparently admires is Deepak Chopak. Truly he is not a simple man who one can, in good conscience, dismiss as one of “the others”. He and I have a lot in common. We both returned to school in our adult years. We both have a Christian background. We both care passionately about many of the same issues including poverty, arts, culture and science.
Yet both of his proposed legislative bills are ones I passionately oppose. While we both agree that the homeless issue needs to be addressed, I would maintain that it is up to us, as a community to provide the resources to ensure that all people have access to safe, comfortable homes and the other necessities of life. For those individuals who do not feel safe in enclosed housing I believe we should, as a community, provide alternate housing in a setting which is safe and has basic services. I would also maintain we should teach our children that we are a very diverse community with a history that includes amazing, creative achievements and acutely cruel ways of creating an us -them, community disregarding the basic teachings of Christ and other spiritual teachers as well as the basic laws of science which affirm our interdependence.
How is it Mr. Standridge and I could arrive at such opposing approaches to education and such social justice issues as homelessness and education? How is that either of us could avoid realizing that for the Grace of God or luck or chance, we could both be living in a homeless camp, be Native American, African American, gay, transgender, female, mentally ill, addicted or otherwise unable to function as professionals and businesspeople? How is it possible if both of us would test out at least average on an IQ test our brains processes the same information in a way which arrives at opposing conclusions?
The more research psychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists and others who study the many factors which affect the brain and thus what conclusions a particular brain reaches the more we realize the many parts of the brain and the many factors which affect how those parts communicate or what how information come together to form a thought the more we have to accept that concepts such as “knowing”, right, wrong, logical and illogical exist only within a particular brain. Liane Young, psychologist at Boston College, along with colleagues studies how the brain affects our perception of our intention and the intentions of others. “The temporoprarietal junction (TPJ) incorporates information from the thalamus and libido system as well as from the visual, auditory and somatosensory system. It then integrates information from the external environment as well as from within the body and then processes it. (Wikipedia and Hidden Brain episode entitled “Why did you do that?”)
In any human body a particular part of body can be missing, altered or differently affected by various chemical and other factors. We suspect , for example, with autism, the absence of the mirror image part of the brain may affect ability to be empathetic. In other words, what we call perception and how we collect and integrate information to be processed in the brain is affected by a great many factors, some of which may be genetic and/or affected by early experiences and how we are able to take care of ourselves.
Thus, for a variety of reasons, Mr.Standridge and I may arrive at different conclusions and beliefs about how to solve problems. This does not dilute the fact that we have much more in common than we have differences and, yet, those differences, however slight, grossly affect how we perceive and address social justice issues.
The way forward is, I believe, to start with the similarities in our goals and beliefs. If we start there we may be able to hear each other and begin a dialogue which will result in working together to address issues such as education and homelessness. If, however, we assume that there is an us and them and only the us has the right understandings and solutions we will negate each other efforts and accomplish nothing.
Perhaps the formula for morality begins with the science of the mind and an acceptance that humility, compassion and the ego strength to let go of the illusion that we “know” is the starting point for exploring how we can live together on this planet.
Written February 2, 2022
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
“State Senator Rob Standridge, R-Norman, Oklahoma filed a bill that would require homeless camps to have proper permits like other campgrounds. The permits would include standards for disposing of sanitation and sewage.
Standridge said he wrote the bill after people brought up concerns about homeless camps in the area, calling it a public health and safety issue.”
"First and foremost, this is a public health and safety issue, but there could be economic implications for a community if their municipality fails to address these concerns," Standridge said in a statement. "I’m sure very few businesses would want to develop property that could be impacted by sewage and other waste and safety issues from one of these camps. My legislation is about ensuring accountability within those camps and by our municipalities to protect our citizens." (Koco news, Oklahoma City, January 20, 2022)
“In late 2021, Standridge introduced a controversial bill to ban all books covering the topics of racial inequality, gender studies, LGBTQ issues, women's rights, among other social issues in an attempt to halt social progress in tow with extreme conservative agendas throughout the United States. The introduced legislation proposes a $10,000.00 fine for each book found to violate the language of the bill, as well as banning Universities in Oklahoma from teaching certain topics relating to the subjects of race, gender, sexual orientation, etc. “(Wikipedia)
Depending on one’s point of view one might think that Mr. Standridge is an uneducated man, a heartless racist or a courageous man standing up for conservative beliefs. If one does some basic research on the internet and on his Facebook and LinkedIn pages, one finds that he is a husband, father, pharmacist, businessperson, former EMT, and an active member of the Crosspointe Assembly of God Christian church. Furthermore, he states that his interest include arts, culture, education, poverty alleviation and science. Among those he follows and apparently admires is Deepak Chopak. Truly he is not a simple man who one can, in good conscience, dismiss as one of “the others”. He and I have a lot in common. We both returned to school in our adult years. We both have a Christian background. We both care passionately about many of the same issues including poverty, arts, culture and science.
Yet both of his proposed legislative bills are ones I passionately oppose. While we both agree that the homeless issue needs to be addressed, I would maintain that it is up to us, as a community to provide the resources to ensure that all people have access to safe, comfortable homes and the other necessities of life. For those individuals who do not feel safe in enclosed housing I believe we should, as a community, provide alternate housing in a setting which is safe and has basic services. I would also maintain we should teach our children that we are a very diverse community with a history that includes amazing, creative achievements and acutely cruel ways of creating an us -them, community disregarding the basic teachings of Christ and other spiritual teachers as well as the basic laws of science which affirm our interdependence.
How is it Mr. Standridge and I could arrive at such opposing approaches to education and such social justice issues as homelessness and education? How is that either of us could avoid realizing that for the Grace of God or luck or chance, we could both be living in a homeless camp, be Native American, African American, gay, transgender, female, mentally ill, addicted or otherwise unable to function as professionals and businesspeople? How is it possible if both of us would test out at least average on an IQ test our brains processes the same information in a way which arrives at opposing conclusions?
The more research psychologists, psychiatrists, neurologists and others who study the many factors which affect the brain and thus what conclusions a particular brain reaches the more we realize the many parts of the brain and the many factors which affect how those parts communicate or what how information come together to form a thought the more we have to accept that concepts such as “knowing”, right, wrong, logical and illogical exist only within a particular brain. Liane Young, psychologist at Boston College, along with colleagues studies how the brain affects our perception of our intention and the intentions of others. “The temporoprarietal junction (TPJ) incorporates information from the thalamus and libido system as well as from the visual, auditory and somatosensory system. It then integrates information from the external environment as well as from within the body and then processes it. (Wikipedia and Hidden Brain episode entitled “Why did you do that?”)
In any human body a particular part of body can be missing, altered or differently affected by various chemical and other factors. We suspect , for example, with autism, the absence of the mirror image part of the brain may affect ability to be empathetic. In other words, what we call perception and how we collect and integrate information to be processed in the brain is affected by a great many factors, some of which may be genetic and/or affected by early experiences and how we are able to take care of ourselves.
Thus, for a variety of reasons, Mr.Standridge and I may arrive at different conclusions and beliefs about how to solve problems. This does not dilute the fact that we have much more in common than we have differences and, yet, those differences, however slight, grossly affect how we perceive and address social justice issues.
The way forward is, I believe, to start with the similarities in our goals and beliefs. If we start there we may be able to hear each other and begin a dialogue which will result in working together to address issues such as education and homelessness. If, however, we assume that there is an us and them and only the us has the right understandings and solutions we will negate each other efforts and accomplish nothing.
Perhaps the formula for morality begins with the science of the mind and an acceptance that humility, compassion and the ego strength to let go of the illusion that we “know” is the starting point for exploring how we can live together on this planet.
Written February 2, 2022
Jimmy F Pickett
coachpickett.org
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