Mapping a New World: Who Will Be the Best People to Navigate it?

in #ecotrain6 years ago (edited)

It does sound like the start of a joke, doesn't it? A politican, a parent, an academic, a philosopher and a high tech dude walk into a World Leadership Conference and....

Please feel free to finish that joke in the comments. I'll upvote that! This is what @ecotrain posed for the question of the week:

Who are the best people to lead or guide our world ...Politicians, Parents, Academics, Philosophers, High Tech.. Or someone else?

Well, If we're to map a new world and we need leaders or guides to do that, I don't believe it's what they do or what they identify with that's important, really, but the kind of person they are. A philosopher could be an unempathetic dictator and a parent a proselytising ignorant money hungry asshole. You know, I had an Aunt once (I still have an Aunt actually, I just don't see her much) who was a teacher and she always knew best, because she was a teacher. Ugh. And then there's the academics, so well studied they don't know how to communicate with layfolk. Of course, I've met very intelligent, uber kind and empathetic teachers who are high tech geeks and good politicians too.

Perhaps we need to start first with how our world needs guidance from effective leaders. I'm not sure anyone is every happy with the leaders we have, and there's little wonder we distrust the majority of politicians. Sometimes, it just seems that the world is run by heartless fools playing with our lives like cats play with baubles, jesters play with juggling balls. We need better compasses. More well built ships. People who can look up and see the stars rather than count their pennies in their counting houses with locked doors and a fear of the open sea.



“For in the whole universe the earth is nothing else and this is the substance of our glory, this is its habitation, here it is that we fill positions of power and covet wealth, and throw mankind into an uproar, and launch wars, even civil ones.” - the Latin quote above the Fool's Cap Map of the World is written by Pliny the Elder

In fact we don't even trust many of our the ships that are meant to support and lead us through these troubled waters. We certainly don't trust the leading institutions as they stand. The 2017 Trust Baromoter by Edelman, the world's largest PR outfit found that one in two countries believe the entire system is failing. In Australia in 2017, trust in the government fell drastically, one of the sharpest drops any country measured - little wonder, given the shuffling going on in Australian politics. Government is distrusted in 75 percent of countries! It's the same story with CEO's too - big banks and so on, as well as non-government organisations such as charities (consider Oxfam, for example, with the allegations of sexploitation in Haiti). Travel rorts, sexual abuse in the church, corruption in trade unions and bank misbehaviours clearly all have a part to play in why we're so distrustful of these institutional leaders.

Power corrupts, everywhere. The ships appear to be sinking, with maps half drawn.

It doesn't matter if you're a politician, or a teacher, an academic or a philosopher - you have to be trustworthy. You have to say what you're going to do and do it and be transparent about it. Why where in a situation where dishonesty is rife is beyond me. Yet perhaps all this distrust is actually a good thing. Perhaps we're more likely to trust a layperson - someone like you or me - and see them as just as valid or credible or worthy as tech experts or academics, if not more so. If you're trustworthy, you're respected, and there's more engagement with what you do as you inspire them with your vision. Maybe the old world order is slowly toppling.

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Philosopher Descartes magnetic field of the Earth and his theory of magnetism.


The Ipsos research also found that most people wanted a leader who could take the country or world back from the elites, believing they act in their own self interest to the disadvantage of everyone else. They also found that they - we - wanted a leader who was willing to break the rules. We all know that Obama was a 'good guy' but his 'hands were tied' - it's not just one man leading the free world. And this is true for most - all - politicians.

###How they regain trust is anyone's guess, but they could start with a few basics.

One, life experience matters. I think a good leader needs to know what it's like to be a human being, and to have compassion and understanding for the people they profess to serve. I'll never forget the proposal of a co-payment here for people to go to their GP. $7 was floated for all. Now $7 for me was nothing, but for many people, it mean putting food on the table. One politician was famed for saying on talk back radio that it was hardly a big ask and was ONLY $7, much to the outrage of many who believed he had no concept of what it was like to live below the poverty line. There's a million examples that suggest that compassion makes for good leadership. Mandela himself said that 'our human compassion binds us the one to the other - not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future'. Leaders need to recognise themselves as being part of that wheel of dukkha, suffering, too, not above it with their massive paychecks and little regard for the little folk so long as their power is intact.

Mandela's belief and declaration that people can live together despite their differences was visionary at a time where South Africa was reeling from apartheid. Had he not been imprisoned for 27 years, many lives may have been better, rather than poverty, crime and other problems that were the result of oppressive politics. He had a spirit of courage that believed in reconciliation and through leading through example with commitment, inspiration and vision, he became a hero not just for South Africa, but for us all. He showed us that rising above political oppression was possible. So I don't think politicians have an excuse. It's not as if a precedent hasn't been set - by him, and others too.

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How the world can change! A medieval map where God is creator. Yet it's us now who must maketh the world...

So if it's not the politicians that are doing what needs to be done to 'lead or guide' the world, then it's others that must take responsibility. Yet there's flaws in this too.

I can't help but say it's the parents that must instil moral values in children and teach them to be respectful of the earth and all in it. Yet, 1-in-28 American children have an incarcerated parent. Children of indigenous parents in Australia are 6 times more likely to end up in jail. More than one in 14 Australians have tried ice and parents of addicts pass health problems onto children who often end up with grandparents. I could go on. These are social issues that need to change before we can expect parents to be the ones who can solely help guide the world to a better future through instiling the new generations with the skills needed to be better. If we're to write a new map of the the world, we've got to help people the damage created by the old one.

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Mapping the New World: a 500 year old map of America

Academics, philosophers - sure, useful. I think people who are trained to think are useful people. Mandela studied everything he could about white history and his oppressor in order to forgive them and move on. Flexible thinking and the ability to step outside the box and traditional, conventional roles is important. Plato described philosopher kings who dedicated themselves to ethical rule with no expectation of fame, wealth or dictatorship. Sounds awesome in theory. Great thinkers are often well versed in philosophy.

Give me a thinker. Give me a poet. Give me a teacher. Give me someone inspirational and visionary that can think outside the box. Give me someone honest, with integrity and passion. Give me someone that lasts the distance. Give me rule breakers. Give me the world shakers. Give me someone compassionate and generous and kind. Give me someone empathetic.

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In 1650 Australia wasn't even on the map

Hang on a minute. Aren't we the best people to lead and guide the world? Aren't we all capable of that? Because surely it starts in the microcosm, and extends outwards. If we all adopt qualities we expect in our leaders, doesn't that count for something?

What if you were leader for a day? What if you could make a difference? What if you could show the world a way forward? What would YOU do, teacher, philosopher, artist, academic, techie, herbalist, yogi, gardener, mechanic, doctor, sound engineer, mother, lover, beautician, chef, lawyer, painter, cartographer?

What if with every action and every word you use, you are guiding the world in some way? Leading us all into some kind of future? What would you do? What would your tenets be? What map would you draw of the world for us to navigate?




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A politican, a parent, an academic, a philosopher and a high tech dude walk into a World Leadership Conference and take their seats at the back of the room!

lovely post! great sentiment, and yes im very happy to see you focus on the microcosm! It all starts with us, we are the ones we have been waiting for! xx

hah did you read my hopi prophecy in my posts? yes im
part hopi and write this quite a bit in my posts. @riverflows this is an updated 2018 message from hoi elders “we are the ones we’ve been waiting for.” looks like message has been spreading!

@eaglespirit no I didn't read it but I will for sure. I love the synchronicity of much of the world realising the same thing. Now if only we can figure out a way to top of existing power structures we will have it made. Is there a prophecy for that? XX

amen sister, amen. in my lingo we say a’oo and yes there is! :)

this just came out today, and these arent ndns lol

I voted your comment for finishing the joke. The macrocosm is everything because we can't really blame others when we aren't doing anything our selves . Well we can but I guess it won't get us anywhere. Thanks for this question. I actually had a lot of fun looking at Old Maps particularly the one of the Joker do you know it

A politican, a parent, an academic, a philosopher and a high tech dude walk into a World Leadership Conference and....

The waiter asks:"What can I get you?"
"No, no. What can I get for you?" SHE answers

Hope you got the joke :) My point is that we are responsible for ourselves and that we have to take many roles and many responsibilities instead of depending on others to solve our problems. So... To answer your question, yes, we are the best people to lead because by leading ourselves we are leading the only person we can. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this, they were lovely to read 💚

Haha.. upvote for joke as promised! He he why didn't more people give it a go? I was serious!!

@riverflows I had to laugh. When I started reading your post I felt like I was back in school with a multiple choice exam
A? NO
B? NO
C? NO
D? NO
E? NO
And then I'll scribble in my own
F: None of the above
Yes it is a generalization but isn't it sad that we have such selfish, corrupt and narrow minded leaders in most spheres of life. I love this paragraph:

"Give me a thinker. Give me a poet. Give me a teacher. Give me someone inspirational and visionary that can think outside the box. Give me someone honest, with integrity and passion. Give me someone that lasts the distance. Give me rule breakers. Give me the world shakers. Give me someone compassionate and generous and kind. Give me someone empathetic."

Thank you thank you. Haha it felt like that way to me too even as I was structuring my response I was going through it as a checklist and came up with Option f. I quite like that paragraph as well. Thanks for stopping by and reading my lovely xx

very good points, historical review and current choices. leaving questions to the reader was great. ive been writing quite a bit about this related to hopi prophecy. they say the ones who will survive are those that get back to their ancestors. live like them, learn what was, etc. i feel these words from my people. we dont have to forget education but living naturally is key.

@eaglespirit drawing on old knowledge and wisdoms can really help us here. And I'll disconnect from nature is a whole other Post and one that could certainly be a theme in response to this question. I must get over to read your stuff and have been meaning to but have been so busy. I will make a special point of it in the next few days xx thanks so much for stopping by and commenting it means alot

the more i chat with the tribals it all fits so i cant deny feeling the pull to read everyones words. they truly sync in a special way. hugs

Now this is my kind of post! Thanks for a great read @riverflows :-) One thing that's essential in any leader that wants to guide the whole of humanity towards a better future, is a long-term view. And I don't mean long-term as in business, but really long term. Thinking in tens and hundreds of generations instead of just the few years until the next election round.

Who would that be? Our forefathers embarged on projects of which they themselves would never see the result; a cathedral took several generations to build. We modern humans seem to only want to invest in the stuff we ourself can enjoy while we're still alive. Generational selfishness. "The entitled generation." "The me me me generation." All terms we've just recently had to come up with as they describe the current state of western culture. And since western culture is the dominant culture, it is us that have to change.

And then we will be the best choice to guide our-self through an honest, well informed democracy ;-)

Okay, I've been known to be a dreamer...

Just my two cents for an article that deserves far more than that: Thanks so much @riverflows! :-)

@zyx066 absolutely flattered. I love this:

Thinking in tens and hundreds of generations instead of just the few years until the next election round.

Yes! We need that kind of vision.

Oh -

Our forefathers embarged on projects of which they themselves would never see the result; a cathedral took several generations to build

Yes! I love this. I read a book years ago about the building of a cathedral across generations and it always appealed to me alot.

Dreaming and vision is important - without this, nothing can change.

yes it is up to us, we all need to take responsibility for our actions and stop trying to find others to sort our shite out. Great answer my lovely xxxx

So Irish, you are: 'sort their shite out' - I can hear you in my head!

Ow men I wish I had the answer to this question but there isnt any. It starts with parents who bring the basics on small communication, politicists should should set the example and a society and so forth. everybody has their role in this game and we are all lacking on some sides somewhere.

but parents, people really underestimate the role of parents, and blame everybody but the failure of parenting. It is stuff to think about when we bring somebody into this world

Oh I absolutely agree. But there are very big social problems that leave people unable to parent, or too traumatised to parent effectively. That's the point I was trying to make. parents need to be supported TO parent. I agree it's often the parent's fault, but we also need to think: what made the parents this way?

yes! we are the ones! the trouble is that so many of us don't want to step into these world conference leadership roles. you and i are cackling in a booth at that bar making jokes about the politician and philosopher! we for sure need in-touch leaders... and more people "like us" to step to the plate. you bat first? XO

After you, my dear @mountainjewel, after you. I've got a pint of ale to drink and a joke to make about a philsopher walking into a bar - I drink, therefore I. PA

Geddit?

I. PAs all the way! Had a few local ozark ones last night! 🍻 oh Descartes that old fart!

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