This is http://www.essayz.com/a9207283.htm Previous-Essay <== This-Essay ==> Following-Essay Click HERE on this line to find essays via Your-Key-Words. {Most frequent wordstarts of each essay will be put here.} ========================================================== %SOCIETY ADDICT ARROGANT DISHONESTY RESPECTED KNOW 920728 How are members of a society or community to know whether allegations that their society has become an addict are credible allegations? The allegations are bound to appear designed so that the allegations cannot be proven false. If it is alleged that virtually everybody is being dishonest, how is anybody to know who is being honest? Propositions which are designed so that they cannot be disproved are not worthy of respect. Can the allegation that a society has become an addict be worthy of respect? The allegation that a society has become an addict is not an allegation which may be proven true or false purely upon the basis of logic. It may be proven true or false on the basis of evidence which may support or undermine the allegation and logical deductions which flow from the allegation. If society has become an addict; by the nature of the allegation that dishonesty is commonly respected, it would be logical to expect that in the society there would be evidence of each of the following: 1. There would be many occasions on which political leaders would be deceptive in their efforts to get: elected, selected, power. 2. There would be many occasions in which people who have been entrusted with political power would abuse their powers and then try to cover up the nature of their actions. 3. There would be many citizens who would help political leaders to acquire governmental power through deceptive ways, and in return expect political favors which would be denied as having been granted. 4. Political leaders would resist changes in the political process which would require them to be more open and honest; more responsive to the people. 5. Political leaders would fail to be honest with their constituents regarding the impossibility of the government providing all the services and advantages which the constituents wanted; without commensurate increases in the tax burden. 6. Political leaders would fail to be honest about the depth and seriousness of crises having to do with unwise behavior relating to: scarce resources and energy supplies, environmental pollution, population growth, sexual behaviors, sexually transmitted diseases, project costs, military adventures, addictions, codependence, political corruption. 7. Religious leaders would abuse their positions of trust and mislead their followers in ways which are inconsistent with the message which the religious leaders ostensibly affirm. 8. Educational leaders would be distracted by misleading values and ideals related to their addictions to scholarship, research, and professional advancement; and not really be focused upon helping their students to develop both personal and communal integrity. 9. Business leaders would be more interested in making a profit, than in providing services worthy of monetary compensation. 10. Powerful people would seek ways to take advantage of people who are not powerful, and pretend that there is nothing wrong with that practice. 11. There would be much dis-ease associated with people being ill-at-ease with their patterns of dishonesty; and the cost of medical care would be sky- rocketing as a result. 12. People would not be honest about the differences between dilemmas and technical problems, and try to solve dilemmas as if they were technical problems where it was possible to gain control of the situation. 13. There would be many people who are confused because of the pattern of dishonesty and deception; and the members of the society would not be cooperating in terms of a commonly shared vision of the future and how to fulfill their vision of the future. 14. Attempts to resolve conflicts through the use of threats, counter-threats, terrorism, and war would be common; and would often be regarded with respect by those engaged in such manipulative behaviors. 15. People who seemed to be in control with great power to control other people would be respected in spite of the disintegration which they generated. 16. Many people would be totally disheartened by the enormity of the task of trying to restore personal and communal integrity; and see no hope for the future. 17. Few people would be willing to take seriously the allegation that the society was an addict and that dishonesty was as common as was alleged. 18. Few people would be willing to look for evidence in support of the allegation; to see if there might be any empirical evidence in support of the allegation. 19. People who make the allegation and/or seek to point to evidence in support of the allegation would be treated with dis-respect, rejected, shunned, ignored, disfellowshipped, excommunicated, violated, killed, and buried. 20. There would be few instances of creative initiatives by the people who had the least power. Those people who honestly want to prove the allegation that society has become an addict either true or false can readily start looking for evidence in terms of which to prove it either true or false. It is not an exercise in pure logic. It is an exercise in honestly seeking the truth through open-mindedly seeking to recognize and describe the relevant evidence. People who humbly acknowledge that there is a power in the universe which transcends their ability to know, understand, predict and control; are able in prayer in the presence of God to come to know the truth about their society as regards how addictive/codependent/dishonest it is. People who arrogantly live as if there were no power in the universe which transcends their ability to know, understand, predict and control; are unable in any way to come to know the truth about their society as regards how addictive/codependent/dishonest it truly is. (c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in (On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy) ==========================================================