Month: February 2010

Is the Only Way to Improve the Gridlock in Congress to Clean House?

Posted by

2

On February 15, Democrat Indiana Senator Evan Bayh announced he wasn’t seeking a third term. He cited strident partisanship and the constant gridlock in congress as reasons. It’s true, months do go by and nothing substantial gets accomplished. In an interview on The View he said, “It shouldn’t take a constitutional crisis or attack on the country to get Democrats and Republicans listening to one another and working together.” He added, “Politics has almost become tribal.”

This phrasing of tribalism has been used more frequently instead of partisanship. It means something much more severe. One definition of tribalism is, “the act of assigning assumptive qualities to anyone that one perceives to be not of one’s own group and the rationalizing of divine or benevolent motives behind abhorrent actions undertaken by one’s own group.”

More practical problem solving is necessary. Listening and compromising is necessary for action. There seems to be far too little dialog today. It’s difficult to name people in either the Democrat or Republican party who are willing to compromise. Without compromise, there can be no substantive action and this is hurting Americans.

Perhaps the route of the problem is the pervasive media eager to cover disputes or lobbyists or even special interest groups. What most agree upon is that there is a problem.

It seems Washington, DC changes even the most idealistic people after a few years. We need some enthusiastic new blood of both parties to facilitate real discussion compromise and action. I interviewed Sean Duffy on my radio show, Critical Thinking in the Real World, today. He is running against Rep. David Obey who has served in Congress since 1970. It will be a tough battle as Obey has a great deal of money, clout and connections. Yet, Duffy is willing to take on this fight because he believes Obey is out of touch with his constituents. He also is frustrated by his actions and said, “David Obey believes we can borrow, spend, and print our way out of this crisis. I think he and his friends in Washington are creating a greater crisis. The consequences of government spending for bailouts, budget increases, bloated entitlements and ‘stimulus’ spending will be staggering and unsustainable debt that will act as a dead weight around the neck of our economy.”

Career politicians are no good for the country. Term limits are a great idea. If Members didn’t have to worry about constant re-election cycles, they could spend more time on the people’s business rather than on securing their own jobs.

When I worked for Rep. Steve Gunderson from 1994 to 1996 as my first job out of college, I organized the group meetings called the Tuesday Lunch Bunch of moderates Republicans who then met with moderate Democrats. My responsibilities included delivering them pizza, soda, dessert as well as keeping track of attendance. That was one of Former Speaker Newt Gingrich’s best initiatives. Imagine having 30 to 40 Members of Congress talking together for an hour each week. As Senator Bayh said, that simply isn’t happening now. There was a lot of compromise then even with Democrat President Bill Clinton and a Republican majority in Congress. It is possible to have that today.

I have to believe that both Republicans and Democrats today really do want to make a positive difference. That is at least when they are first elected and before they get over-taken by Washington, DC and all that corrupts. Their ideas might be different, but they have to somewhere in there believe in the common goal–to serve.

“Don’t Drink the Kool-Aid”

Posted by

5

I’ve frequently used the reference “don’t drink the Kool-Aid” to illustrate the dangers of group think and the benefits of critical thinking, but I didn’t fully understand the Jim Jones mass suicide until I watched an interview with Jim Jones Jr. on Oprah February 17, 2010 and researched the 1978 Jonestown massacre myself.

Jim Jones formed the Peoples Temple in 1956 in Indiana and said it stood for, “Divine principles. Total equality. A society where people own all things in common, where there is no rich or poor, where there are no races.” Jones was an engaging speaker with a charismatic personality and a desire to change the world. As the Peoples Temple grew, he moved to California. It’s important to remember that the movement started out as a good idea in response to the civil unrest at the time. His followers included people of different races, ages and both genders. Most were educated, functioning members of society who wanted to make a difference. But as Jones grew more powerful, a darker side of him began to rear its ugly head. He demanded followers turn over their pay checks to him and asked them to pledge their lives to him.

After facing criminal investigation in California, Jones formed a town in Guyana called Jonestown. Nearly 1,000 followers joined him there. In theory it sounded great. After all, It was touted as Uptopia—heaven on earth. This was a well organized and planned community. It had an agricultural team, schools and hospital. Jonestown flourished and Jones began to manipulate and brainwash his followers constantly broadcasting messages through speakers. Some believe his sickness and even insanity were a result of drug experimentation.

Congressman Leo Ryan of California went to Jonestown to investigate after several of his constituents claimed their family members were being held against their will. Reporters with cameras filmed first a very joyous celebration and then later several defectors asking to be taken home. Upon hearing of this, Jones ambushed Ryan and his team at the airstrip. Ryan and four other members of his team were shot and killed.

Jones called an emergency meeting. He then told followers “They are after us. Die with respect. Die with dignity.” Mothers were instructed to give the Kool-Aid-like substance with poison to their babies, children and then drink it themselves. As a result, 900 people died a painful death at Jonestown including 300 children.

Death by cyanide is not painless. Victims actually die a violent death. Officials say it took victims five minutes to die. Tim Carter, a survivor calls it, “a senseless death.” And it was both senseless and tragic. This was the biggest mass-murder suicide ever. The word murder is an important addition here. There is evidence that some did not drink the poison willingly as many syringes were found later. Many claim armed guards also surrounded the pavilion to ensure cooperation.

On November 18, 1978 Jim Jones, Jr. and his two brothers were 150 miles away at the time playing in a basketball tournament when he received the call from his father saying, “We are visiting Ms. Frazier.” This was code to commit suicide. While Jim Jones Jr. says this shocked him, he said there had been loyalty tests and suicide practices before. During these drills, people would pledge their lives to the cause.

Jim Jones Jr. was 18 at the time and refused to his father’s order to commit suicide. To understand why others didn’t do the same, it’s important to remember Jim Jones and the initial intent of the movement. The idea was to create a new world without bias—no racism, sexism or ageism. His followers wanted to make a difference. For much of his life, Jones lived as he preached. Jim Jones Jr. is an African American adopted at 10 weeks old. Many say he was the first African American child adopted by a Caucasian family. Jim Jones adopted Korean American children, and had a natural son as well. They called it a rainbow family.

The Peoples Temple followers really believed they were creating a new world. Why would 900 people agree to drink the Kool-Aid and knowingly commit suicide? Jones had told people they were about to be invaded and their children would be taken away from them. He said they needed to lay down their lives in protest. His strategy was to have parents give their babies and children the poison first. This was part of the manipulation because after seeing your child die, who would want to live? Absolute power, combined with mental illness and drug abuse resulted in self destruction and the mass murder suicide of 900 people.

Critical thinkers must question everything they are told, believe and even that which they consider to be common sense. When we study the 1978 Jonestown massacre, we learn how very important it is not to subscribe to group think and the dangers of unchecked power.

Critical Thinkers Must Even Question What They Consider To Be Common Sense

Posted by

1

The essence of critical thinking requires questioning.  A critical thinker must question everything he or she is told or believes and this includes even that which the person considers common sense.  This last part is often the most difficult act.  How can you question common sense?  Common sense seems absolutely right after all. 

One of the best examples I’ve found to explain why we need to question even that which we consider to be common sense is the famous case of U.S. Lieutenant Jeffrey N. Zaun. Shot down over the Persian Gulf War on January 18, 1991, Zaun became internationally known as a prisoner of war.  Images of the bruised, bloated and beaten soldier were on every station’s evening news, covers of magazines, front pages of newspapers and virtually every media outlet.  He was captured by Iraqi soldiers after being ejected from his plane. Zaun was then forced by the Iraqis to appear in a video making a statement against the war.  Zaun said, “I think our leaders and our people have wrongly attacked the peaceful people of Iraq.”  The words were delivered in a monotone voice and it was clear to all who viewed the footage, those were not Zaun’s. 

It was the image of the fallen soldier that really haunted us.  When you see a beaten up prisoner of war, common sense tells you that those wounds were inflicted by his captors.  Why would anyone question that?  After being released from his six weeks in captivity, Zaun explained some of those wounds we saw were self-inflicted in the hopes that “he would be too ugly” to be filmed again.  He even explained that that was part of his military training. 

Zaun is truly a hero.  He teaches us many things about honor, duty and service. Zaun also taught me to question images in a way I had never considered before. 

With today’s prevalence of media, we often assume what we are seeing, reading and hearing has to be true.  However, the face value of a situation can only be determined by critical thinking and analysis.

Choose Your Words Carefully

Posted by

1

We use language as a means to transmit ideas. A person has a thought and needs to figure out how to communicate that to others. If a person uses the wrong words, it doesn’t matter how great the ideas were because no one received them. When we use words that offend, it’s like we hit a wall because our message is blocked. There are words that cause some listeners to tune out and when that happens, we aren’t being heard.

Last month, President Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel used the word “retarded” in a private meeting. He’s received great criticism for his insensitivity and Sarah Palin even said he should be fired. Palin’s son has Downs Syndrome and is very passionate about the use of this word. She said, “Just as we’d be appalled if any public figure of Rahm’s stature ever used the ‘N-word’ or other such inappropriate language, Rahm’s slur on all God’s children with cognitive and developmental disabilities — and the people who love them — is unacceptable, and it’s heartbreaking.”

Emanuel has apologized publicly and privately to Special Olympics chairman Tim Shriver for using the word “retarded.” This is not the first time the White House has come under fire for offending this group. In March of 2009, Obama himself made a joke about his bowling skills by referring to them as worthy of the Special Olympics on The Tonight Show.

The word “retarded” is offensive. In the past, it was used frequently and is now often used in slang as a form of slur particularly among young people. That doesn’t excuse its use, however. As our society evolves, so does our language. A person who scores below about a 70 on IQ tests is now called a person with an intellectual disability.

While some object to political correctness, our words matter. We would not call a person who has the flu, “a flu,” so we should not call a person who has paralysis of the legs “paralyzed.” We put the person first rather than the condition. He or she is a person with paralysis. This change in phrasing makes a big difference. A medical condition does not define a person or sum up everything he or she is. This is the reason for the change.

Critical thinkers choose their words carefully because they know if they don’t, they won’t be heard.