That Got Me Thinking

If there was a morality pill would you take it? Would it be moral to insist it be forced upon others? Are we born moral creatures, or is morality learned? Is morality situational, relative or absolute? Does it change when our basic survival is threatened? Can our views of morality change in retrospect? Has technology caught up with, or even surpassed, our moral maturity?

Acclaimed author Eden Collinsworth, in her latest book, Behaving Badly: The New Morality in Politics, Sex and Business, explores the state of morality in these unsettled times. Through conversation with the powerful, famous, and obscure, she discovers how we navigate complex moral situations in an increasingly challenging, and ethically flexible, time in history.

Exploring the correlation between character and morality through surprising, remarkable individual stories, Collinsworth adopts a systematic approach, with discussions and interviews with people one wouldn’t expect to speak on these topics ranging from drone strikes to sexuality and fidelity.

After her year of living morality, Collinsworth determines today’s morality is ultimately a personal choice differing on the individual and circumstances. She tells us, “One relies on one’s own moral compass to determine what is right… we will have to hold each other to account… the demographics of the world has changed profoundly… more and more we will walk with those who don’t share our values..” So, we must be prepared.

http://www.edencollinsworth.com/behaving-badly/

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Everyone would agree, it’s going to be a heck of a lot easier to repeal Obamacare than it would be to repeal The Affordable Care Act. Who would want to repeal that? But wait, aren’t they the same thing? Has wordsmithing taken on a new relevance in today’s society? Well, Henry Beard, cofounder of the National Lampoon and author of numerous best selling (and semi best selling) books, thinks so. And this Harvard Guy has quite a bit to say about it. “Clearly we are entering in a time where spin has really gone off the map!”

Beard is the co-author of Spinglish: How to Succeed in Business and Politics and Everything Else Without Really Lying. The Definitive Dictionary of Deliberately Deceptive Language. He eloquently tells us, that in this new world of intensified polarity, the ability to use particular phrases or turn a term has an intensified significant impact. Words are what won and lost our last presidential election.

The days of Walter Cronkite are long gone, “The news should be reported as it comes along and you don’t fiddle with it and you try to put it out as neutrally as possible. Nobody’s perfect but the general motivation was, I’m a news person. You were not a spokesperson for a particular point of view.” Traditional media still exists, but so much of it has become politically directed. News and information is no longer a clean report, it’s got a bias or is spun as having a bias. News is now given with an intent of purpose of affect and there are so many news sources to choose from with particular slants that we choose what we feel most comfortable with. We shop our news!

Spin is a deception to trigger a response either with bait and switch, mild mannered phrases or plain old vulgar rudeness. We use unnecessarily strong words to make things sound worse or overly gentle phrases in a confusing string to assuage and distract the listener. So where are the boundaries? When is it spin and when is it simply a bold face lie? What might have been deemed a lie, yesterday, has become an inoperative statement, today, and we hear those all the time.

Heck, we just want to put things in the best possible light and hide our deficiencies, and a good use of language is a very effective way to do it. With a flick of the tongue, we can assign or skirt responsibility and mistreatment. So we call water located inside a well contaminated with trichloroethylene chemical solvents stuck in a warehouse next to a designated industrial site, Spring Water; and suicide becomes a Self Injurious Behavior Incidence at Gitmo.

If we take a change in mores and add in a good strong growth of social media, we’ve got a whole new source of mis-information and dis-information being spread at a rapid pace and continual rate. It gets repeated all the time and all we’ve got to do is learn how to recognize it and decipher the codes.

http://spin-glish.com/

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Evidence shows that the likelihood of relapse or recidivism is directly linked to the level of ongoing support a person receives upon being released back to the community after incarceration. And Beyond the Wall, an audience favorite at the 2017 Sun Valley Film Festival, deftly tackles the complicated issues of incarceration, recidivism, and reform. It does so with an optimistic message, providing real hope and guidance for the future.

This illuminating, social impact film, vividly depicts the often insurmountable struggle to re-establish oneself in the community, family unit and workforce while navigating daunting internal and external barriers.

Gifted Filmmaker Jenny Phillips, a cultural anthropologist and writer, has a psychotherapy practice specializing in crisis intervention, family and marriage therapy, behavioral medicine and mindfulness training. Following on the heels of her successful 2007 documentary, Dhamma Brothers, a tribute to her revolutionary program to bring Mindfulness Training into a Maximum Security Prison, Phillips ventures to address another troubling aspect of our ailing criminal justice system.

She says, “The film ends up having very human stories (rising from) the statistics of recidivism and being plagued by issues of addiction, poverty, lack of education and jobs.” Phillips’ foremost goal for the film is the humanization of a system that has become dehumanized. Judges, attorneys, police chiefs, populations inside institutions, public defenders prosecutors and wardens are seeing this film, and the reception is incredible. “I see them now as people.” remarked a judge after seeing the film.

America has unintentionally created an institution of incarceration. Breaking the cycle of repetitive incarceration is tough on many levels; but there is hope: community alternatives to incarceration, tailored re-entry programs,  a focus on justice reinvestment over incarceration and treatment programs behind the walls, so our communities can move beyond them.

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Technology Entrepreneur, Jim Estill is the author of two books, Time Leadership: Lessons from a CEO and Zero to $2Billion: The Marketing and Branding Story Behind the Growth. He is also a successful investor, executive and philanthropist. He will be receiving the Order of Ontario, later this year, for his inspiring humanitarian efforts in the resettlement of 58 Syrian Refugee families to his hometown of Guelph, Ontario. Jim will tell you that he is a distribution guy, and that what he’s done isn’t much, just some systems analysis, plan development, process creation and a little time management application. The over 200 people whose lives Jim’s generosity and bravery have saved will tell you different.

Why do some people step up to act while others stand on the sidelines, and what can we do to hedge our bets for success? We can take a lesson from Jim Estill.

Jim had a vision and he had a clear definition of success: 58 families resettled, working, contributing, paying taxes, rent, speaking English, experiencing some degree of integration, buying groceries where we by groceries, not on welfare, empowered and optimistic. And Jim had studied and had a plan. Like the conductor of a fine tuned orchestra, he smoothly orchestrated the resettlement of 250 displaced people; with the hard won lessons of process, hard work, commitment and efficiency to guide him.

Jim will tell you, “Do the right thing. The more you know yourself, the more your competitive advantage. Work is good. Work hard and make sure what you do scales. Focus on implementation. Start one success habit a day. And pick the right sized opportunity for yourself that elevates your chances for success and the scale you enjoy.”

He will also tell you that not making a decision is making a decision to do nothing. And he didn’t want to be one of those people who did nothing. So, he built a complete program to get these refugee families Canadian job ready and set up to successfully integrate into the community. Set up like a business and run like a business, but with 800 registered volunteers – “friends” to help with ESL, tea circles, walk and talks. Arabic and English speaking Mentor families and providers to assist with trips to the library, transportation, bus rides, bank errands, shopping and health appointments.

He created a jobs program in his own factory. He tapped individuals, businesses, churches, and charitable organizations to get what the program needed. From new socks and underwear to storage space. Assigning five volunteer families to each refugee family for support, basic logistics, adaptation and working through the guilt and depression of having left their own families, work and homes behind.

www.danby.com

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“Psychotic people have souls. They have identities. They have hope. They have dreams. They are not to be shunted away, as they were 7 centuries ago in Bedlum Asylum, beaten…” Ron Powers

New York Times bestselling author, Ron Powers, is a Pulitzer Prize winning critic and Emmy award winning television commentator. He has written numerous books, the most recent entitled: “No One Cares About Crazy People: the chaos and heartbreak of mental health in America.” He is a caring human, the husband of Honoree Fleming and father of two magnificent sons, Kevin and Dean. Both of whom were afflicted with schizophrenia. Ron lost his son Kevin to suicide one week prior to Kevin’s 21st birthday.

It would take Ron 10 years to settle in on writing this book, the book he promised himself and his family he would never write.

Ron was determined to shine a bright light into the shadows and welcome those who had lived within them for far too long, back into the light. He tells us, although no cures for mental illness exist, the quicker and more accurately the early symptoms are noticed and treated the better prospects for minimizing the effects. “The larger point in writing this then is to arm other families with a sense of urgency that perhaps came to us too late…Act quickly and keep acting.”

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Charley Hardy, a former Catholic priest and prior candidate for the U.S. Senate in Wyoming will tell you a single soul can do quite a lot to change the status quo. You just need a little daring, blind faith, hard work, a big bus and the semblance of a plan.

Charlie, with an accumulation of 75 years of youth, had spent nearly a decade serving the poor while living in a cardboard shack in a Venezuelan slum. Upon his 2011 return to his hometown of Cheyenne, Wyoming, he was shocked to see similar poverty, hunger, despair and homelessness. So he inspired a ragtag band of idealistic volunteers to help him shake up the political establishment.

And award winning, documentary film maker, Reed Lindsay beautifully captured this illuminating adventure on film. Charlie vs Goliath is a charming, enlightened and inspiring feature-length documentary about an ordinary man’s extraordinary struggle to right the playing field and bring integrity back to the office and the race.

Charlie had high expectations of his right (and opportunity) to participate in government, and with good reason. In the good ol’ days, he could walk right in to, then Wyoming representative, Dick Cheney’s office for a heart to heart chat. But times had changed, upon being snubbed by his congressional representatives, Charlie decided he must take action and determined to run for office himself in 2014 against the incumbent Republican opponent, who was armed with a $3 million war chest. Not great odds, but Charlie, this 21st century Don Quixote, was undeterred.

Arguably, It would be hard to find a more unlikely candidate, but Charlie’s decision to run for office was based on a deep rooted concern regarding our Nation’s history of social policy. All it took was intention, determination and two hundred dollars paid to the secretary of state to declare his candidacy, and he was off and running, literally.

On the surface this film is about getting money out of politics and the story of the forgotten majority of middle America that swayed our most recent Presidential election. At its core, this film is about the power of persistence and hope. Charlie had said, “Someone has got to start shouting about this!” when he saw the state of the average person in his own town. And luckily for us, he did. I suggest we listen.

http://www.charlievsgoliath.com/

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Federal government raids, outlaws and renegades, entrepreneurs and established big business, mom and pop markets, loyalty to community -The contemporary Wild West Gold Rush is green. Kathleen Tracy tells us, “There is no proof anywhere that cannabis is more problematic than alcohol and it’s probably less and yet it remains up there with heroin and other controlled substances and no one can give a good reason why.” However, alcohol is an established acceptable commodity and cannabis is illegal. Prohibition didn’t keep people from drinking alcohol and the war on drugs hasn’t diminished drug use.

Misinformation and misunderstandings regarding the values and benefits of cannabis and hemp abound. The plant’s abundant utilities go unsung as: an alternative biofuel; cheap, biodegradable plastic; stimulator of manufacturing and agricultural jobs; quality of life enhancer, including effective pain  management, sleep inducer, eating motivator, to improve functioning for those suffering with disease, injury and chronic anxiety.

Is it a gateway drug? If you smoke it will you end up on skid row with a needle hanging out of your arm? And is hemp a gateway crop? Is it really a slippery slope or are there market interests other than public health at play to keep the crop at bay? Do the current industrialists want to keep control of their markets regardless of the potential benefits to society?

Kathleen Tracy and Michael Caldwell are the authors of the enlightening and thought provoking new book, “The Great Green Gold Rush.” Here, Ms. Tracy discusses the players, the industries, entrepreneurs and the rapidly changing game of legalizing marijuana, and societal acceptance of cannabis in all of its glory. How close are we to the tipping point of normalizing this economically and environmentally valuable crop? And what will be the affects upon cottage industries, big pharma and the housing and agricultural markets of those regions who choose to fully embrace the crop’s potential?

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What are the limits of Presidential power and authority? Could an imbalance in the governmental power structure make our Democracy vulnerable and put it at risk of falling apart? What is the President authorized to do; where does that authorization come from and what are the constraints on that power?

There has been a vast expansion of Presidential power over the last 200 years, including decisions to use force. The Executive branch has gained powers the Founding Fathers never would have imagined. At the same time, Congressional power has weakened. The Famers didn’t predict the party system and George Washington warned of the dangers of established factions, in his Farewell address. Partisanship has been sharply on the rise for the last 20 years with unprecedented allegiance to a party and regional block. Is the President over reaching? Has Congress lost its mojo and will the courts come to the rescue to save the day and our democracy?

University of Pennsylvania Law School Assistant Professor Jean Galbraith discusses the Framers’ vision, the state of the Nation and the dangers of Presidential over reaching. She tells us, “Our system of government is not only held up by hard laws, but it’s held up by soft norms.. not formally legally binding ones, but they are important to making a government function and function well…Eroding civility will be deeply damaging to our government going forward.”

Galibraith is a scholar of U.S. Foreign Relations law and Public International law.  Her work focuses on the allocation of legal authority among U.S. governmental actors. She is an International and Constitutional law expert. We examine the breakdown of the Founders’ framework regarding the Checks and Balance system and the Separation of Powers.

https://www.law.upenn.edu/cf/faculty/jgalbrai/

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Mary Astor’s Purple Diary is a story of Hollywood, New York,  love affairs, divorce, custody battles, organized religion, fake news, politics, sex and scandals.

Writer and illustrator, Edward Sorel, grew up in the Depression in a family of vocal Communists and Stalinites. He found solace in his frequent  escapes to his other “family” in the magical world of films. Tucked away in the fantastical movie palaces of the day, like the Lowes Paradise in the Bronx – birds flying, clouds moving, stars sparkling – life had possibilities.

Sorel emerged from a terrible relationship with his father, understanding the power of reinvention, the need for taking personal responsibility and the necessity to make the tough choice to break unhealthy family ties. He was lucky, he had one good parent. “All you need is one good parent.” Sorel had a loving, encouraging mother. The famed Mary Astor had none. The consequences of domineering, demanding, and abusive parents turned out to drive Miss Astor’s choices for a lifetime.

Sorel, broke and on the verge of a nervous breakdown after leaving his first wife, follows his disillusioned, Communist Party therapist to a Quaker meeting. Although a staunch non-believer, Sorel was incredibly moved by the silence. He’d found another safe harbor, a place to spend quality time with his children. And it would lead him to the loves of his life, the best hot chocolate in the world and a marriage proposal.

“Cursed with the world’s foremost fixation” after finding newspaper clippings of Mary Astor’s story, he would become the keeper of Mary Astor’s flame. Fifty years later, he offers a satiric slant to an accomplished, public and tragic life whose story shines a light on his own profound and amusing tale.

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Chinese Martial Arts Master, Dr. Shin Lin was a contemporary of Bruce Lee, training under the same martial arts master for physical training, enhancing health, fighting and self defense. Dr. Lin is the past Chairman of Biophysics at Johns Hopkins, trained in many forms of Chinese medicine, including acupuncture. He had a question, he wondered how electrical energy can affect cellular movement and what is the role of Qi?

After being recruited to the role of Dean of the School of Biological Sciences at UC Irvine, he set out to find the answer. He and the members of his laboratory designed experiments to scientifically measure what specific movements benefit the mind and body the most. They successfully explored the question of what Qi, the ancient concept of vital life energy, is and how it is enhanced through Tai Chi, Qi Gong and Chinese medicine. Their findings are remarkable!

Dr. Lin says, “From the yin comes the yang, from the yang comes the yin.” The concept of Prana or Ki as it is known in other cultures has existed for thousands of years. And now, through the work of Dr. Lin and his team, we have a much greater understanding of its complicated and sophisticated operation in the physical body.

Science has proven that physical exercise increases the number of cells in the hippocampus and can inhibit the stress response. Moving meditation helps not only the psychological side but enhances cell production.

With the biomedical devices created and utilized by his team, Dr. Lin was able to go about measuring the release of heat and biophotons – a bluish green light, emitted by the body at a rate of less than ten photons per second (a million a second put out by a light bulb.) They built a single photon counting system and built devices to measure electrical output. And are now able to prescribe meditative movements to match specific ailments.

So if you need to rejuvenate your system, a few minutes of focused repetitive movements may be just what you need to boost your energy both physical and vital, increase seratonin, mental acuity and focus, to reduce pain or inflammation. Health enhancement and general maintenance benefits such as better sleep better and stronger muscles and bones are a committed Tai Chi practice away.

http://mindbodylab.bio.uci.edu/

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