Eggs and Chickens

... the ancient battle.

Which came first?   The chicken and egg question was first asked by Aristotle and continued in debate among intellectuals for more than two thousand years.   

The debate was entertaining, but the question is simply one of origin, of first cause.  How did we get to the place we're in today? 

Practices and Principles ... the other ancient battle.

There are two parts to how we each view things, like a chicken and an egg, perhaps.

From the outside, we have the influence of family and friends, church and school; our environment.  Cultural traditions and expectations are continually fed to us in every venue.  That's our external world.

Then there's the world inside each one of us.  It's filled with what we hold to be true along with the values fed in from the outside.  We struggle back and forth trying to reconcile it all in terms of truth and worth.  It's a lifelong process for thoughtful folks.

For example --  the Boy Scouts of America are changing to boys and girls.  The resultant kerfuffle points interestingly to that internal battle.  Why were they separate?  "Because they should be; it's best that way," is the answer that pops up first, or some equivalent.  

Now, broaden your look to include kids in Israel.  Scouts are boys and girls.  In 1909, the Tzofim (Hebrew Scout Movement) became the first scouting movement in the world where boys and girls participate together on an equal basis.  All five scouting organizations in Israel today are co-ed.

(We're decades behind much of the world in the transition to co-ed scouting, by the way.  The UK and Canada transitioned in '91/92)

Here, we perhaps believe that Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts should be separate, but why?  Because they always were.  But why?  Perhaps because there were traditional cultural roles assigned by gender.  Was that the best choice?  
(Ask a boy scout what he thinks girl scouts do.  "They do girl things like sewing and cooking and selling cookies.")  

The internal battle continues between our commitment to truth and the interpretation that our culture offers.  It's unsettling to discover an inadequate foundation for values we've held.  

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The science -- “The truth is that sex differences in math ability, spatial skills, assertiveness and competitiveness are much more a product of gender socialization and segregation.  In other words, it is precisely because girls and boys spend so much time apart, practicing different skills and relational styles, that they walk into college classrooms with different types of academic confidence and career ambition.” ~Dr. Lise Eliot, Professor of Neuroscience at Rosalind Franklin University.  Neuroscientists refute the merits of gender differences between girl and boy brains.  And rather than creating more equitable schools, critics compare separating boys and girls to racially segregated schooling.

Co-ed sports --  How might that change self-image and social interaction?

The Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts are great organizations that have helped many children achieve their goals, but the benefits are not from single-sex enrollment. 

Unnecessarily sex-segregating schools and sports or after-school activities like scouting send the message that girls and boys are somehow fundamentally different - when they're not.  Such segregation perpetuates stereotypes and encourages discriminatory behavior.
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The law -- Remember Title IX?  We had to pass a law so that girls who wanted to play school sports weren't relegated to the parking lot. 

 "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." ~signed into law in 1972

There were no sports for girls at my high school in the '60s.  None, unless you count pep squad and cheerleading.
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Do your own research.  Can strength, leadership, and healthy interaction be modeled for all children together, or must we separate them by gender rules and roles?  An interesting dilemma.  

Thoughts on the issues?  

iGen - the first generation

to spend their entire adolescence with smartphones

the i-generation, born after '95

From today's discussion on the effects of technology on childhood development, here's one perspective.

“There is a silent tragedy developing right now, in our homes, and it concerns our most precious jewels – our children…. Researchers have been releasing alarming statistics on a sharp and steady increase in kids’ mental illness, which is now reaching epidemic proportions:

• 1 in 5 children has mental health problems
• 43% increase in ADHD
• 37% increase in teen depression
• 200% increase in the suicide rate in kids 10-14 years old“

“Today’s children are being deprived of the fundamentals of a healthy childhood:

• Emotionally available parents
• Clearly defined limits and guidance
• Responsibilities
• Balanced nutrition and adequate sleep
• Movement and outdoors
• Creative play, social interaction, opportunities for unstructured times and boredom

Instead, children are being served with:

• Digitally distracted parents
• Indulgent parents who let kids “Rule the world”
• Sense of entitlement rather than responsibility
• Inadequate sleep and unbalanced nutrition
• Sedentary indoor lifestyle
• Endless stimulation, technological babysitters, instant gratification, and absence of dull moments”

(Quotes above are from The scary truth about what’s hurting our kids based on research published in Emotion, a journal of the American Psychological Association, by Dr. Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University and author of "IGEN".)

Note: Correlation vs Causation -- smartphone use does perhaps correlate with the changes we see but it is not necessarily the cause.  Electronic device usage may be detrimental to development, or it may be the refuge to which our youth turns to escape a difficult environment.  Researchers have suggested both as answers to the changes we see.  Thoughtful parents are fighting a difficult battle.

"I spent my career in technology. I wasn't prepared for its effect on my kids," says philanthropist Melinda Gates, whose three children were also born after 1995.  "Phones and apps aren't good or bad by themselves, but for adolescents who don't yet have the emotional tools to navigate life's complications and confusions, they can exacerbate the difficulties of growing up."

Social media is easier than face to face; you can usually slip in and out without stress, unlike dealing with the tensions of hallway encounters at school.  It's not real life, of course, and provides no development of interaction and communication skills.

In a 2015 report, 92% of teens surveyed said they went online daily, according to the Pew Research Center. This includes 24% who were online "almost constantly."

One perhaps helpful perspective:  Dr. Twenge found that happiness correlated most strongly with sports, followed by socializing in person and religious services. On the negative side were online computer games and social media.  Interesting.

Fair and Balanced

When I was young, the news included both sides.  (As was required, back then.)

That 'balance' was required by the FCC's Fairness Doctrine.  Introduced in 1949, the policy required licensed broadcasters to present controversial issues of public importance in a manner that was—in the FCC's view—honest, equitable, and balanced.  That policy was rescinded thirty years ago marking the end of 'fair and balanced' and the beginning of the most extreme polarization our culture has seen since the Civil War.

              - The struggle for free speech and a free press -

• Through the '60s, the FCC policy applied to all licensed broadcasters and was upheld by the courts. 
• In 1985, as corporate interests challenged the policy, the FCC eventually released a report stating that the doctrine "no longer served the public interest".   
• In 1986, Congress directed the FCC to examine alternatives to the Fairness Doctrine and to report to Congress.  
• In 1987, the FCC abolished the doctrine in the Syracuse Peace Council decision. 
• The ruling was upheld by the D. C. Appeals Court in 1989.  The FCC suggested in Syracuse Peace Council that because of the many media voices in the marketplace, the doctrine be deemed unconstitutional, stating that:

"The intrusion by government into the content of programming occasioned by the enforcement of [the Fairness Doctrine] restricts the journalistic freedom of broadcasters ... [and] actually inhibits the presentation of controversial issues of public importance to the detriment of the public and the degradation of the editorial prerogative of broadcast journalists."

          At the 4-0 vote, Chairman Patrick said,

"We seek to extend to the electronic press the same First Amendment guarantees that the print media have enjoyed since our country's inception."

Today, we find it difficult to get a clear and objective view of local and world events.  There's a broad spectrum in the mainstream from true to biased to fake.  There has been discussion of reinstating the Fairness Doctrine in some form, but defenders of free speech have opposed any such change.

It has been suggested that the media mainstream is a product.  The FTC's Fair Packaging and Labeling Act requires that all 'consumer commodities' bear a label with an accurate 'statement identifying the commodity'. If revenue-generating commercial broadcasts (whether by radio, tv, or internet) are a 'consumer commodity', then they must be accurately labeled. That would seem to preclude 'News' that is not genuine, 'Opinion' that is not the author's actual opinion, or 'Analysis' that is not at least arguably analytical. In general, however, the FTC only has authority over commercial aspects (pertaining to revenue) rather than speech.

So, 'the news' is redefined.  As American consumers of mass media, we're given truth and lies, bias and misrepresentation, and half-truths sponsored by commercial interests.  The industry priority is profitability via persuasion and specific appeal to a target audience's bias.  Objective analysis and information are not part of the business model, nor is there any policy for serving public interest.

If you're curious about how misrepresented information might affect our communities, note that many continue to believe the link between certain vaccines and autism, or Iraq and WMDs, or the necessity of hospitalization for childbirth.  'Junk science' has been used to defend the tobacco industry, the petroleum industry, the abortion industry, and to deny climate change.  False facts are now in common use by key players in national leadership.

That's the challenge we now face and must deal with thoughtfully.

Note that there are now several public forum organizations that publish 'fact checks'.  FactCheck.Org is perhaps useful.  You might appreciate Digital Literacy in the Age of Fake News.

A Half-Truth

is a Whole Lie.  ~Yiddish proverb

We do have a problem.  Dealing with facts is one part; separating facts from fiction is the other.

If you are repeatedly fed misinformation, you'll begin to accept it.  That's the propaganda effect, and we have little defense against being misled. 

Psychologically, we hear and initially accept things as true (it's automatic and effortless), then we evaluate.  If, in evaluating, we discover that it's false, we have to go through the brain archive and correct the record, a conscious effort that requires our intellectual focus.  The more complex the narrative, the more demanding the task.  Our intellectual process can be overwhelmed by misinformation overload.  We're propagandized, misled, and lied to.  

Half-truth is deliberate misrepresentation (recent example) intended to deceive, to counter a more transparent view.  The scheme is to persuade (overwhelm) by quantity of rhetoric rather than by accuracy or objectivity.

Polarization thrives on the tension of such misinformation.  It reinforces existing prejudice.  Russian influence in social media played heavily on that one.  Without exception, extreme positions are based on partial truth.    

Attempting a rule of law does not resolve the failed thought process.  Our response to school violence and gun control concerns illustrates the difficulty.  

Are there other issues?  It's every issue, actually.  

Truth is always under attack.  Politics, industry, science, economics, social norms, ... none are off the battleground.  And interestingly, hatred becomes visible at the extremes along with the rest of the deadly sins.  The tobacco industry and their decades of misinformation come to mind.  And the oil industry.  And the abortion industry.  And Wall Street.

Not everyone is equally vulnerable to misinformation.  As persons of conscience, our obligation is to truth rather than to party or to preference or tradition.  A good conscience requires a measure of thoughtful openness to perspectives besides our own, a measure of empathy for those with whom we disagree, and honesty regarding our own convictions.

Are such things as public protest and demonstrations acceptable?  Of course.  Can a 'movement' provide a venue for needed discussion?  Absolutely.  And can such momentum cross the boundary into half-truth?  Therein lies the problem whether at the personal or international level.

Much of what we hear ... is half-truth constructed to influence, to leverage some advantage.

• Accusations between political parties
• Explanations by biased news commentators
• Motive one attributes to another
• Blame assigned in family conflict
• Words spoken in anger

So how do we move toward truth, or at least not make matters worse for others?  

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Skip the half-truths; you'll avoid choking on the wrong half.  Get free. (that's the short version)

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Troublemaker 5:21

Loser!  Idiot!     . . .     words can be a problem.

We all know the law, ‘do not murder’. 

• I’m telling you that anyone who is so much as angry with another is guilty of murder.  
• Carelessly call another ‘idiot!’ and you might find yourself facing judgement. 
• Thoughtlessly yell ‘loser!’ at another, and you are on the brink of hellfire. 

The simple moral fact is that words kill.

For the record, Jesus said anger and insult are pretty much the same as murder.  (Mt 5:21-22)  Put down, beat down, force down, or push away; all the same rot.  
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 A good heart is patient and kind.
       A good heart does not dishonor others.
              A good heart does not easily become angry.
                     A good heart does not keep track of other people's wrongs.
                             And a strong, loving heart apologizes sincerely when it has done wrong.
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Troublemaker 5:48 “In a word, what I’m saying is grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.”  (Ref)
      We're challenged to grow and change; not easy at all.

Jesus was a subversive.  According to his culture, he loved all the wrong people.  According to his culture, he did everything wrong.  How do we reconcile his teaching with our own political ideology and current culture?  What does a strong position look like?

The Battlefield, the Casualties, and ...

The Eastern Front -- the first successful Russian counterattack

the Culture War -- our continuing conflict over values and principles

We've faced challenges as a nation, and sometimes succeeded.  We wanted liberty, we wanted freedom from an oppressive empire, we wanted property rights and a return for our labor, all of which we've achieved, more or less.  In our pursuit of equality and the common good, however, we seem to have gone our separate ways and become as polarized as we were during the civil war.  A trend over the last thirty years, we've become more ideologically fractured than 'united' as a culture.

Extreme racial and ethnic prejudices have resurfaced and spread. Right and left have moved further apart and have little ability to work together.  Inequality has eroded the middle class, and the dream of a better life is unavailable to a large segment of our society.  Crime, violence, drugs, and incarceration are defining aspects of our society.  As unlikely as it seems, that's America today.

When we consider the battlefield in front of us, filled with violence and hostility, anger and irrationality and corruption ... it's hard to imagine a healthy response.  Do we fight force with force, go face the discrimination and extremism with political power and overwhelming counter-argument, tear down the walls with criticism and insult ... and loudly pass judgement on those who differ ... ???  That hasn't has worked, but instead has made things worse.

So how might we equip our children, who will follow our example, for the path ahead?

The Best Weapon:  We do live in the world, but we needn't fight the way the world fights. We have strength supporting us that the world doesn't have. With such grace from God, we can pull down walls, we can wipe away arguments and dismantle every proud thing that raises itself against the knowledge of God. We can be the light that shines.

Such grace is not to be found in criticism or insult, not in judgement or discrimination, not in anger or hate or violence.

Daryl Davis (right) and a klan leader

One unusual fellow sought out the KKK members and made friends. They ate dinner together and talked things through. His friendship lead to two hundred KKK members changing their minds and leaving the organization. He is Daryl Davis, the famous musician. And he is black, a descendent of slaves.

"When two enemies are talking, they're not fighting," Davis said. A Chicago-born Christian, Davis traveled the world in his youth. After many countries and racially mixed cultures, coming home to America where folks could throw rocks at him because of his color was confusing, to say the least. It lead to a lifetime of confronting racism. His surprisingly successful tactic: friendship.

A good heart is an extraordinary weapon.

Strong love is durable, it makes a place for others and has no need to put another down or to insult or do harm. Strong love is a life-shaper, a help-bringer, a world-changer. It's the light that shines brightest on dark days. It's our greatest offering.