Talk vs Walk

Are the Iraqis better off now than when Saddam was king?

Depends who you ask, eh?  Just ask, by the way, don’t answer your own question.  You could cause yourself reputational damage.

Are the Tibetans better off under the Chinese than under the rule of the monks?  Depends what you mean by “better off” and depends what section of Tibetan society you’re questioning.

Those who, undeniably, are better off after a regime change may well have to seek protection in the event of the next regime change.

We’re already reading in Australian newspapers that Iraqis who’ve assisted Australian soldiers in Iraq will need protection by migration here when our military presence in Iraq ceases.

Those of us old enough to remember the Vietnam conflict of the 1960’s and 70’s will recall with sadness our desertion of those South Vietnamese who had invested themselves and families in that gruesome civil war.

Robert Mugabe and his disciples are, also, stalling a regime change in Zimbabwe presumably to make sure they’ve got time to exit safely and cashed up.

My own religious/spiritual tradition seems to me to indicate that we’re not, per se, revolutionaries.  We can survive, if not flourish, whatever regime is in power.

That’s the whole puzzle of Jesus of Nazareth.  The Roman occupation force was in town.  The religious/civil establishment had rolled over to keep the peace.  Businesses were flourishing even after paying Roman taxes.

Assassination squads of Jewish nationalists were committed to killing a Roman a day.

Jesus had been promoted to celebrity status by vested interests and an ever gullible public.

The rest is history, as they say.  “The man”, as military governor Pontius Pilate labelled the Nazarene, was, also, history.

“Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s” seems to say it all, for me, at least.

Now, how that insight stands up to practical, political scrutiny, I realise is embarrassing to political “inactivists” like me.

Let the Games begin and let all defenders of human rights work out how to participate in that expression of civil religion in such a practical way that their point is made, as it must be, but without violence.

All activists need to stick to their guns, so to speak, without violence but with plenty of intelligent and compassionate forcefulness.

Dedicated social activists, not just casuals, spend most of their time and energy just waiting.

Persistence needs to wait patiently for the opportunity.  The Chinese will discern in this formula the Taoist Philosophy.  “Step out of the turbulent waters of the river.  When the turbulence ceases, step back into the river.”

At the root of so many of these current conflicts lies the apparent incompatibility of individual and collective rights.  It’s not only an East/West thing but a North/South thing also.

Australians are well placed to contribute as newcomers to this 6000 year debate.

We’re only 200 “white” years old.  Germaine Greer, hate her or love her, says that Australian “white” society should seek communitarian wisdom from our aboriginal “neighbours”.  They have inherited ancient wisdom.  We’ve got modern “know how”.  Let’s get together and tackle some of the current publicised issues like youth homelessness, police unrest, global warming, urban sprawl, water everywhere in some places, none in others, elite schools vs. community based schools.

Putting all this legitimate stuff of public concern on the internet and encouraging citizens to down load relevant pod casts may well look like public debate but how are we to segue from “talking the talk” to “walking the talk”.

Kevin ’08 will do his political best but you and I need to put ourselves in with the little time and energy left to our disposal.

That’s what Anzac Day’s all about – at its best.

RJM

Comments

[Joey Kurtschenko]

The problem, I feel, is that many people believe they are walking the walk when in actual fact they're on a treadmill. It's all well and good to take place in mass protests, but if after protesting for the day against sweatshops you go home wearing your Nikes and drinking Coca Cola, you've not really been of much help. Same goes for the people with "Free Tibet" bumper stickers. Your burning missive in a traffic jam probably isn't going to influence China's internal policy, so you shouldn't be surprised when it doesn't.

At the same time, a lot of these people actually mean well. Organised protests that operate in a socially acceptable fashion look very good, make everyone happy, and change absolutely nothing. There were more protests around the world in relation to the Iraq war than any other event in history, to the best of my knowledge, but it didn't stop anything, because they were all conducted in a socially acceptable fashion. Had they instead all sat down in the middle of their respective CBD's, and refused to move until their governments pulled out, the war would have stopped there and then.

Nobody really cares that much, though. Either that, or they just don't have any idea that their actions actually could be affective. I think it's more the latter.

All that we can really do is keep walking, and maybe get some company along the way.

[Terence Boylen]

Dear Bob,

How are you?

You mentioned

--
My own religious/spiritual tradition seems to me to indicate that we’re not, per se, revolutionaries. We can survive, if not flourish, whatever regime is in power.
--

I think that is only half the story. There are well documented, and historically thorny, accounts of what happens well Catholic create a whole or partial theocracy.

There are many who've not flourished under Catholic rule.

I would point to the multiple apologies by multiple Popes for misuses of Church power.

Perhaps we Catholics are better of being a part or slightly repressed by the system. We otherwise have a tendency to take away other people's autonomy and self determination.

[Steve]

Great blog Bob, and made me think. "You could cause yourself reputational damage".

[teri]

that's just daft. What next, were Jews better in Concentration Camps than rescued by the allies? Are you seriously asking if the thousands of Kurds, Christians and Jews are not better off being tortured, gassed and murdered under Saddam Hussein than being liberated?!?

FYI, It's a sad state that you're looking to
novelist Karen Armstrong for religious and historical non-fiction instead of scholars like
Robert Spencer, Bridgette Gabriel and Ibn Warraq.