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The Inner limits of mankind

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Laszlo claims that sustainability of mankind depends on our abi lity to overcome "the inner limits". When we start to discuss global problems of the earth, we normally focus on "the outer limits" such as limited amount of energy and raw material re sources, earth's limited potential to feed growing amount of human population, nature's limited ability to tolerate polluti on, the capacity of cities to accommodate and sustain the stream of migrants form depressed hinterlands etc.. According to Laszlo we forget that we, human beings, are the cause of glo bal problems "and only by redesigning our thinking and acting, not the world around us, can we solve them" (25). So the limits are essentially inner, not outer. That doesn't mean that the outer limits are unimportant. It mean that we never face the outer limits, if we break the inner limits. The inner limits refers to psychological, cultural and politi cal factors. These limits are inner to people and societies. Laszlo includes in these limits religious strife, social discri mination, racism, sexism, chauvinism, economic injustice, poli tical repression and totalitarianism, torture and terrorism, under-nourishment and unemployment, gaps between rich and poor, the world-wide armament race, the proliferation of nuclear arms, nuclear technologies in itself, a highly skewed international economic system and things like that. Laszlo claims that most of the global problems can be traced to human agency and which could be overcome by appropriate changes in human behaviour. And changes in human behaviour is necessary. Laszlo thinks that we have changes almost anything on this earth but ourselves. Laszlo demand that personal and political will must grow to break inner limits. New consciousness must arise. World problems could not be solved by applying technological fixes and sus taining narrowly self-centred values and short-sighted national institutions. Solving of these problems calls for "inner chan ges, for a human and humanistic revolution mobilising new values and aspirations backed by new levels of personal commitment and political will" (27). The inner limits must clearly recognised and objectively dis cussed. When we recognise that what is wrong has to do with our values and behaviours and nothing need prevent us from righting it, then battle is practically won, claims Laszlo. Laszlo devised inner limits to three level; personal limits, cultural limits and political limits: a) Personal limits. The inner limits on the personal le vel consists personal values and behaviours. Laszlo claims that modern ethos, which emerged in eighteenth- and nineteenth-centu ry, affects in our thinking and behaviour or conduct of life. This modern ethos is not only out-of-date but also seriously danger. Laszlo demonstrate modern ethos and modern person by giving few statement (about 20 items) to the reader who can de cide either he or she believes them or not. After reading the statements the reader can decide is he or she modern person that is to say "a serious threat to the future of mankind" (34). Here is some examples of those statements (32-33): - That an 'invisible hand' harmonises individual and social in terest, so that when each does well for himself he also benefits his society. - That science can solve all problems and reveal all that can be known about man and the world. - That science discovers 'facts' and they alone are what counts... - That human happiness consists in having latest, the most powerful and comfortable products, and sumptuous surroundings. - That all men owe primary allegiance to their country, and all countries are unconditionally sovereign and independent nation-states. - That true efficiency is maximum productivity for each machine, each enterprise, and each human being. - That there are almost inexhaustible riches in the Earth if we only dared to use our technologies to extract them and put them on the market. Laszlo thinks that modernism has brought many good things, but it also has brought this contemporary miserable state of affairs. We desperately need new style of thinking and acting. We live on threshold of a new age and therefor we must leave be hind modernism and its values. We need values that are appro priate to the global age. We have some clued of these new va lues. Laszlo give some insights where these new values can be seen as germs. I write below few of them (52-53): - That there is an invisible hand harmonising individual and collective interest but that, due to the interdependence and shared destiny of all world's peoples, there is ´hand` that en sures the coincidence of all long-term interest. - That the perennial wisdom of the great religions, of great artists and great humanists is needed to complement the techni cal expertise of the sciences because human beings and societies are far more than an assemblage of processes that can be reduced to scientifically determinable ´facts`. - That happiness does not reside in final attainment but in progressive seeking; not uniquely in material possessions but also in personal creativity, fairness and honesty, love and friendship, solidarity within a community, in finding harmony with nature, and in having the good conscience that one has done all one can, not only for self but for one's society and all mankind - That exclusive and blind allegiance to 'my country, right or wrong' is as selfish and short-sighted as exclusive and blind allegiance to one's own person; and hence that allegiances should rather extend to the concentric spheres of relationship in which each of us finds himself, ranging from the immediate family to the family of all peoples and cultures. - That the riches of the earth are not ours to plunder at will, for nature hits back with disrupted ecological cycles, unliveable environments, and dangerously modified weather pat terns; consequently that natural resources as well as energy sources need to be selectively used and technologies carefully assessed for long-term benefits as well as for side-effects. b) Cultural limits.Laszlo thinks that our societies suf fer from an overdose pragmatism combined with pessimism. So cieties have not much positive vision about future. That means that mankind have no star to follow. We need positive visions and ideals because they can set standards by which we can direct our steps. But where shall we find such positive ideals, ask Laszlo. Laszlo claims that there are some perennial values based on universally human values, which can give us positive vision, if rediscover and revitalise them. Example there is Christian's vi sion of universal brotherhood, Judaism's historical vision of an elected people in whom all the families of earth are to be bles sed (??), Islam's vision of an ultimate community of God, man, nature and society, Bahá'í Faith's vision of unity of mankind etc.. Also secular values and ideals can give positive vision; liberalistic idea of free society and marxist idea of egalitari an society. But this revitalising of perennial ideas is only temporary phase. Our existing ideals will serve us only as gui des, until future generations come up with more adequate new visions of life and society. c) Political limits. Laszlo says that international com munity now talk about world problems but it doesn't do anything about them. That is so because there is no international politi cal will. Laszlo asserts that the crisis of international poli tical will is the most urgent crisis of all. In the past there was no need for global partnership for solving global problems. Today it is desperately needed but it is not happening although its benefits are widely known. Contemporary national plans and policies are unable to solve global problems and goverments are unwilling to form a global partnership. Laszlo claims that need for a global partnership "will be apparent when we review the nature of the problems in the areas of security, food, energy and resources, economic development, and the environment" (82). Laszlo thinks that United Nations would be the obvious instrument for defining global goals and coordinating adequate policies. But UN has been uncapable to generate the political will for real policy to solve world problems. UN has produced many good declarations, resolutions and programmes. But because of this crisis of political will, those declarations and prog rammes has no practical significance. But Laszlo is optimistic; the current crisis of political will is eliminable. In the latter part of his book Laszlo represents some rules to orient the evolution of personal values and aspirations and evolution of international cooperation bet ween nations and peoples. a) Ground rules for the orientation of human aspirations. Laszlo thinks that universal values truly exist. "They lie at the core of all the major religions and most noble cultural traditions." (104) Example the idea of universal brotherhood, the golden rule and imperative to love one's neighbour are uni versal values. Laszlo thinks that in global scale uni versal values imply that we must guarantee the right of people to strive to fulfil its basic needs for life, progress and jus tice. Because people everywhere (except some lunatics and cri minals) want to live, to make some progress and to live in some balance with their fellow men. from these three basic needs Laszlo makes out three universal guidelines for the aspirations of all peoples; sustainability, development and equity. b) Ground rules for the interrelationship of na tions and people. Rules of sustainability, development and equity requires also new rules of international cooperation. Hrutszev's idea of peaceful coexistence is not enough. Laszlo argue that coexistene implies no more than mutual toleration of each other's presence. What is neended to solve world problems is interexistence that is to say mutually beneficial cooperative existence through interdependence. It means that just mutual coexistence and tolerance must be replace to mutual cooperation and understanding. Laszlo claims that at the present time mankind needs no more or less than rules of this kind. "Anything less could fail to cope with trends which frustrate universal human needs and produce conditions in which further millions, if not billions, live and die in conditions of deprivation, stagnation and injustice. Anything more than the adaption of such ground rules would constitute attemps at social engineering and ideolo gical imperialism." (114) Rauno Huttunen http://joyx.joensuu.fi/~rhuttun/jkl/erwin.html

We read...and we agree...Also we wonder: How is this new consciousness going to arise...

Which is the role of the RN's in this process?

Liliana

howdy folks