Applied Wisdom

SCIENCE and QUALITY OF LIFE

Leon Kass is a professor of ethics at University of Chicago and a former head of the President’s commission on “Bio-ethics”.  He is concerned that the biotechnological revolution offers seductive promises of a perfect “other than human” future in which we shall be as gods, ageless and blissful.

The following is an excerpt from an article he wrote about the limitations of science to contribute to a better quality of life.  It is a brief introduction.

 The new scientism neglects the ethical and spiritual aspects of the human animal.  For we alone among the animals go in for ethicizing, in concerning ourselves with how to live. We alone among the animals ask not only “What can I know”, but also “what I ought to do?”  What may I hope?” These are the great longings of the human soul which science does not satisfy.

 Science by design is notoriously morally neutral.  It is silent regarding the distinction between better and worse, right and wrong and the noble and the base. 

…..It can offer no standards to guide the use of the awesome powers it places in human hands. Though it seeks universal knowledge, it has no answer to moral relativism.  IT know not what charity is, what charity requires, or even whether and why it is good. “

Wisdom Anecdote

I read the following two anecdotes in Huston Smith's classic work - The World's Religions.

He wrote them when discussing Confuius' attempt to instil stories and legends of moral quality witin the fabric of society.

#1 - The King asked: "What would you say of the person who is liked by all his fellow townsmen?"..... "That is not sufficient", was the reply. "What is better is that the good among his fellow townsmen like him, and the bad hate him".

#2 - The Master said: "The well bred are dignified but not pompous, the ill bred are pompous bt not dignified.

 

 

WHAT DEFINES US ?

 

It is the tough decisions that define who we are.

 Who we are is the example we set for our children and those that look up to us.

 The following is an excellent Jerusalem Post article about such a dilemma written by one of the editors.

 http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Columnists/Article.aspx?id=240974

What was the last tough decision you made?

 

Dr Mann is a Clinical Psychologist and Business & Personal Coach, who helps young adult males,  parents,  and adults in mid-life achieve positive goals.  www.morrismann.com

"Be A Man"

Being a man means you have to earn respect from others by proving yourself. 

The standards descriptions of male ego to reach such achievments are men being competitive, assertive, confident and even cocky.

But the question is whether the changing culture to encourage men to be more "in touch with their emotions" will influence men's choices and priorities. Will men care less about honor and respect earned though accomplishment and long hours of dedication?  

In the past men wereconsidered to be  out of touch with emotions. In today's world they are encouraged to be in touch and that often means paying attention to personal needs.  But does that undermine male willingness to take risks and compete with others for the benefit of greater society?

To do the dirty dangerous and challenging jobs men  need to put feelings aside and focus on the task at hand.  Personal emotional fulfillment takes a back seat to the man’s drive for public honor and respect.

 Will a talented man not subject himself to the grueling task of ruling a country, dedicating long hours in a lab to discover new medications, or travel for long periods overseas in the service of his country?

 

Women and Men - Beauty and Status

Wisdom of the ages

When walking into a crowd of strangers a woman is initially judged by her beauty.  When walking into a crowd a man is judged by his status - power and money. 

  A woman's status is ascribed (inherent) and a man's status is acquired.

Which carries more pressure and tension?

 

 

 

Greatness measured in principle not in possessions

I came across the following mention of Gandhi in Huston Smith's 

50th edition of "The World's  Religions".

It is inspiring to imagine want you can do when you dedicate your life to a vrtuous cause.

 " Gandhi's name became, in the midlle of the twnetieth century, the counterpoise to those of Stalin and Hitler.  The achievement for which the world credited this man, was:

• the British withdrawal from India in peace
• he renamed India's untouchables  harijan, "God's people, and raised them to human stature.

And in doing so he provided the nonviolent strategy as well as the insppiration for Martin Luther King Jr's civil rights movement in the USA."

Gandi was a man who weighed less than a hundred pounds and whose worldy possessions when he died were worth less than two dollars.

Some words of wisdom from a great man:

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

"An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind."

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."

Are you more flocused on promotion or prevention?

Do you think you are focused more on what you have to gain or what you have to lose?

One approach is called in psychological literature “promotion focus” and the other is called “prevention focus”.

With a promotion focus goals are thought about in terms of achievement and accomplishment. They are about doing something you would ideally like to do. They are about maximizing gains and avoiding missed opportunities.

On the other hand, prevention focuses on goals are thought about in terms of safety and danger. They are about fulfilling responsibilities. These people are minimizing losses. One group may give up too soon and the other may not know when to quit.

If you are a parent (or a CEO) this also effects how you deal with your children or employees.

If you are promotion oriented when they do something right they are rewarded with praise and being ignored when they don’t do what they should

  On the other hand, if you have a prevention attitude you will likely punish for doing something wrong.  The reward for doing something right is NOT punishing them.

It seems like aa simple vignette regarding a child’s report card helps to concretize it.  A promotion type parent will give a lot of praise and reward for an A, and will pay little attention to the C.  A preventive parent will criticize and spend a lot of time dealing with the C and will ignore or give minimal attention to an A.

No one is completely one or the other – but think about your tendency. Are you more prone to promotion or prevention? Are you more focused on success or preventing failure?

 What is the advantage and disadvantage for you and your employees or children?

Do you think you are focused more on what you have to gain or what you have to lose?

 

BEAUTY - A Quote from Leaon Kass

In his book on the Dignity of Man, Leon Kass, a famous bioethical philospher thinker wrote the followingwords of wisdom  about beauty.

"...only a mortal being, aware of his mortality, and the transience and vvulnerability of all natural things, is moved to make beautiful artifacts , objects that will last, objects that will be immune to decay as their maker is not..."

DEATH and LIFE SIGNIFICANCE

Ernest Becker wrote "What is of paramount importance, what man really fears is not so much extinction but extinction with insignificance"

Often we find significance in our connection to generations of family. Some African cultures have two words for dead. One is simply dead, while the other means "really dead".  In the first instance the person has died, but there are those still alive who remember her. The second meaning is ta the person has been lost to living memory.

You may live as long as your grandchildren remember.   What if there are no grandchhildren or if now the grandchildren have grandchildren?  When there is no one to remember you, have you finally come to an end?

Let us use such wisdom to lead a life of meaning, purpose and significance.

Ethics and Values

"Ethics and what we care about are not by any means the same thing. ...Ethics are the rules yoou apply to get what you care about. What you care about - your values - is more basic than ethics."  -  Martin Seligman "Flourish".

Ethics are the standards we learn or think about. What we care about, our values, is how we live and what we do. 

The bottom line is that what we do is more important than what we think.  Using one to get to the other is applied wisdom.