So how did such an advanced civilization as ours come about? Initially
the others had order and stability, the prerequisite for a civilization and we
also, but over a longer period.
It hasn’t been plane sailing though, but a very bumpy ride indeed. This
belief has been used and abused, but the evidence we see in the temples and cathedrals
of the world tell us that this belief was profound.
The belief in a creator though cannot fully explain the creation and
sustainability of such a unique, long lasting civilization, and it does not. It
was the message promoted as truths that provided the catalyst. They encompassed
a great deal but the basic message was one of love and humility and this can be
summed up in one word, a word that is much derided today,
Morality.
Morality: Do what you know is
basically right, for you instinctively know if it is right or wrong.
Previous generations had a morality based on religion that was
sufficient to sustain our civilization to the present day. It was not a
universal morality, it was often an abused morality, sometimes it appeared to
be absent, but it was there, and it was this that seen this civilization
through the troubled times of the past.
We all too often mock the Victorians for their pious morality but it is
the residue of that morality that sustains us today. However this morality that
has served us so well is now in decline, yet we have increasingly failed to
realize this to the point where we now doubt the existence of a creator at all.
This has meant that the reason for morality and the method of promoting it has
been largely removed, and at a time when, during the evolution of our civilization,
it is of crucial importance that decisions based on truth and morality are made,
irrespective of our individual beliefs.
If, in the light of our growing scientific knowledge we feel that we
can dispense with it, then so be it, but it would be very foolish indeed to
throw away morality. Yet this is what we are doing.
Morality and truth are the cornerstones of our civilization and if we
give them due credit, as we should, in the crucial part they play in the sustainment
of order in our civilization, then we must take care to nurture and promote them
at every opportunity.Increasingly though this is not the case, for people and politicians
are not seeking the truth and acting on it, but are bending the truth to fit
their desires.
This can prevail for a considerable time with apparent little ill
affect, but for every action there is a consequence, people and politicians are
chipping away at our moral foundation for their own short term gain, not caring
or unaware of the damage that they are causing.
Even when they are aware, the short term gain invariably overrides any
inhibitions they may have. Most politicians are so steeped in the advancement
of their careers at any price that by the time they are in positions of power
the very idea of decisions made on moral grounds and based on truth are virtually
impossible for them to make.They will however be very adept at skirting around the truth and giving
anything other than an honest answer to an honest question.
The thinking public
are not fooled by this and realize the cynical way that they are being treated,
but because all the major parties treat the public in the same way, then the
option of choice is not open to them.They would however welcome choice and are entitled to it, no matter how
unpalatable, answers based on truth may be. Consequently there is a desire, a
need, an obligation to give this choice to the people, and if existing parties
will not provide it then a structure should be formed that will.
People are, supposedly, better off now than they have ever been, but
this is in a material way, in the way that we have been able to use the
advances in technology to exploit the resources of our world. But in the way we
live and conduct our lives it is a two way street, we are either advancing or
retreating, for it is entirely dependant on the decisions we make and the
reasons for these decisions that determine the way we are going, and in many
ways today, we are going backwards. Crime is increasing and prisons have never
been fuller. Children are not better educated. There are more children leaving
school now unable to read and write, as a percentage, than at any time in the
past 100 years and social irresponsibility is on the increase in many ways.
The choice is up to us as to which way we go, for each individual can
and should make a contribution to maintaining the value of the society in which
they live. Of equal importance is what is done by governments to maintain and
improve the moral structure under which it operates and it is these decisions
that determine, in the long term, the direction of society. The governments of
recent years have, by their inactions, allowed individuals, organizations and
corporations, to chip away at the long standing established rules and
institutions that are the backbone of our civilization, yet It is these rules that
enabled it to grow and prosper, and to remove, change, or not to enforce those
rules, is a parlous thing to do and where the full consequences may yet to be fully
realized.
It is this that has resulted in the nanny state, the something for
nothing society, and look after number one. Where arrogance, sloth and the lie
hold sway, and it is little wonder that peoples from other cultures who walk in
our midst now hold us in such low regard that some of them would wish to do us
harm.
With freedom comes responsibility. For one man’s freedom may mean the
curtailment of freedom for someone else. If the laws that prohibit people from littering
the streets or using foul language in a public place are not enforced, then it
results in a loss of freedom for the rest of the community who then have to
live with these intrusions on their lives. This is a more obvious example of
what has happened and is still happening but is indicative of what is accepted
as inevitable by all the major parties. It is not inevitable, but an example of
regressive steps that could be rectified on the two way street of our civilization.
There are many other examples
that are not so obvious but are situations that people instinctively abhor and
would wish to have rectified in an honest and moral way, so this should be made
available to them by providing a structure that would give them the opportunity
to express their wishes.
A structure that would put forward proposals to promote rational
morality.
It would be an active and committed pressure group for change that
would promote practical ways of bringing about a fairer society for all, but
based on a clear definition of morality and not the pseudo morality that exists
at present.
It would offer itself at the ballot box, as a clear alternative to all
the existing parties by presenting proposals, formulated by open, reasoned and
rigorous dialectic, to give the people the alternatives that they desire and
deserve.
To distinguish itself from those parties that chose to champion agendas
based on political dogma, it would cover the whole spectrum of the issues that affect
society, tested by dialectic debate and so would not present itself as a party,
but by a name:
Say: PROGRAM. Promoting
Governments of Rational Morality.
It would present itself to the people with the objective of democratically
having an active influence on the governing of that country by presenting a
manifesto, considered and refined by dialectic debate, to guide that country
along a path to a peaceful sustainable future while acknowledging the importance
of the basic principles of truth and morality. It would not be affected by
party politics but instead solely and actively promoting, in a democratic way,
what is truly best for that country and for the World by providing a platform
for all those who are disaffected by party politics as well as those who may be
too young to vote and yet who’s future is being put at risk by short-term
interests.
Having regard to this, and in respect to the situation in the UK, that
is presently embroiled in a maelstrom of social, and financial issues, what
follows is an assessment of these problems together with proposed solutions.
These may seem drastic but they have been tested in the ways that were
previously considered and would work, and, although they may not be agreeable
to all, that does not prevent them from been presented to the people as an
alternative.
Government revenue is collected in a variety of ways, designed to
extract as much wealth as the community can bear. This is then put into a vast
pool of money from which the expenditure on the various requirements that have
a call on it can be drawn, such as: defence, roads, police, social welfare,
etc. and this should be a closed system where the income and expenditure is in balance
every year, but it rarely does.
Our government invariably spends more than it collects and raises the
difference through the money markets in the form of bonds, therefore passing
the onus of repayment onto future generations, but the idea of governments
borrowing on the money markets was intended as a short term measure and not a
regular means of managing deficits.
This method of balancing the books should seriously concern the
financial experts of today, because it has changed this procedure from being an
exceptional and temporary short-term measure to being the normal and accepted
way to fund a permanent and growing deficit. We live in an uncaring world
however, and the result of this action has yet to be felt, but it is impossible
to sustain this method of raising the shortfall in income indefinitely. Yet the
Government’s appetite for money is insatiable and it continually exploits every
way it can to obtain extra revenue with scant regard to whether it is
efficient, fair or necessary.
Rarely does the Government of the day consider whether it is necessary
or fair to go on raising capital in this way. Whether it is necessary, by an
honest and truthful appraisal of expenditure, and the method of expenditure,
ways could be found to eliminate much of the need for this capital whilst at
the same time improving the moral climate in society.
This state of affairs has persisted to the point where sections of
society can legitimately question whether it is worth continuing to be the
wealth providers and many are, without realizing it, changing to become welfare
dependants.
For each person grows up under
the rules that are present at that time so it is unfortunate but entirely
predictable that many of our young people are taking the option of opting out
of leading productive and creative lives, to opting in, for a life on welfare
and arranging their lives so that this happens.
It is not their fault, it is ours. We have set out the rules and the
environment in which they live, so it is only to be expected that they conform
to, assess and make their lives under these conditions, for it would be naïve
to expect otherwise.
It is cause and effect. If the rules change then society changes, for
better or for worse. It is entirely dependent on whether the changes are
honestly for the better and therefore based on a rational morality.
These rules must change in many ways if we are to ensure that the
civilization we have inherited is to survive and prosper, so the first
consideration should be directed towards the hierarchy of Government. If ways
can be found to reduce Government expenditure then many of these tax raising
methods could be dispensed with and those that are left modified to ensure that
their influence on society is for the good.
It is therefore in the field of
expenditure that most improvements can be made, so it is in the welfare system
that these changes should be addressed.
to continue.....
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