p_arts o our system w ich reqmre us to ou e our consumption every 20 years need to be creatively rearranged so th~t they might contribute to healthy ways rather than to ensure the failure of healthy ways, and we'd all feel the need to speak and act accordingly. Had we the knack, we'd observe that accepting nuclear~weapons is to accept a political game of. . chance where one of the bets is on the continuation of natural life pro~esses t~emselves, and ·we'd all feel the need to speak and act accordmgly. Had we the knack, we'd observe that we elect ou_r politicians on the basis of their ability to state things . conclusively, but that they do well at their jobs on the basis of their ab.ility to be uncertain, yet act well, and we and they wou,ld all fe71the need to speak and act accordingly. Had we the knack, we'd observe that the pressure we feel from working too hard comes from our longtime habit .of promising to work better than we really know how, come tomorrow, and_ we'd all feel the need to speak and act accordingly. If we had the knack, we'd observe that our reasoning minds are no match for the extraordinary richhess and complexity of even · our own·individual nan.ifes, and we'd feel free, each of us, to say that we don't know much of what we're talking about, we just like to ven"ture guesses that sound good at the time. We wouldn't take hand-me-down guesses for gospel. I don't know just what path to take or just how to find it, but I like to ask. Would we perhaps like a salesman to sell us a new path? Is it the job for a leader to lead us down one? fs it the job of a scientist to invent some new principles of .nature to suit us? Is it a very very personal task that each of us must take for oursel-ve~? Is there s_ome sort iof personal enemy which prevents us from-seeing our world? I think there is such an enemy; however; for the enemy I see, we would need to attack with gentle caution and great love, for it is, I feel, our own per_sonal abuse of the human feeling of confidence. At all scales, from an individual providing for our own needs to a nation providing for its needs, the real alternative to trading in a situation where equal or fair terms are not available is to eliminate dependency upon that trade. To the degree that we individually are self-reliant and provide for our own needs, the impact on us of unjust return to labor, monopolistic prices for food, gasoline or manufactures, excess wages qf others or unfair taxes are diminished. To the degree that a national economy is self-reliant, the less it even has to think about the games of MN Cs, material or energy cartels, or inequitable trade arrangements. A few years ago we' would have laughed at the thought of self-reliant economies, believing as we did in the myths of economy of scale and benefits of specialization, and having • our eye on other countries' oil or bauxite 6r tin. Now, howeyer, we need to examine it seriously, for its benefits are becoming apparent parallel with the costs of a trade economy. The mechanisms, values and technologies appropriate to selfreliant economies are being demonstrated. The local and de- \ centralized nature of renewable energy and the technologies 1 for its direct and effective use have become apparent. Small • scale, locally controlled _i1'dustrial processes and institutional structures which can implement economic self-reliance at i:nairy scales are no longer a dream but off-the-shelf items. And we are beginning to understand what actions must be taken to refocus our economies and regain .our control of them. Four major factors that' support and encourage centraliza-.· tion need.to be fundamentally al'tered-advertising, finance, ' • ownership patterns, and distribution of wealth. Postal subsidjes and public media do not need to be used for advertising that can only be afforded by the wealthy few. Banking practices such as ownership of non-banking businesses, high interest rates, foreign investment, ;ind consumer credit need reform. "· July 1979 RAIN Page 21 My guess is that there are many many good ways to find the path, so long as there is the presence of caring uncertainty, and accepting love. The path I choos_e for myself is the path ,,. ofu-nbiasetl observation of th~ nature of things, those life cycles and paths~ and the energies put into them. For me it's not a question of the chi~ken or the egg but of the chicken's life cycle and the food. When·I play the role of a student of •solar design, it's not a question ofthe heat captured, but of the intertwining dance of sun and comfort. When I watch a game, the cheers do not raise the subject of the superiority of the home team, but of the waves of excitement passing from the play to shimmer in the crowd and be returned to the field. It's not a question of the causes of disappointment or satisfaction, but of the delicate cycles of expectation and the values invested in them. Rather tpan approving or condemning ourselves because we consume more than we did yesterday, for me it is a question of the life cycles of economy which require us to.-' • . I spend much of my time observing fascinating things and sharing observations with the folks around me. It's a lot of fun to observe the art and play of all things, more fun even • than spending money. For me, the timeless art of observing is a walking meditation, for, like all meditation, it is deceptively simple and surprisingly nurturing: The art of observing all things seems to begin with observing something you like, whenever you run across it. All you do is give attention. Once one discovers that it's healthy and fascinating to op~nly and quietly observe one's own ways, the rest seems to follow,. Each of us ·has, in our lives, .invented a great deal of our own thought pro·cess, perhaps we can teach ourselves a knack, a . knack for observing, a knack for finding a path for our finest values, through the brambles of ~odern life. , e ~ ~ Interlocking directorates of .corporations, corporate control of other corporations, market monopolies, private profiteering from public utility monopolies and outside ownership of local b:1sihesses n~ed to be eliminated. Taxation and mortgage policies that make possible pyramiding of accumulated wealth ·need to be changed. A variety of other mechanisms can assist locally controlled development. Development of Japan and China: in this century and ~he U.S. in the l~th century was based on purchasing technology rather than foreign ownership of businesses, and on repayable bonds rather than stockholtjing. P'atent laws can be altered to allow free international use of patents and shorter restrictions on local' use. Import and export regulation at local, regional,.or national levels can direct development and prevent centralization of businesses. Depletion quotas can assist the wiser use of scarce resOl,Jrces. Disr.uptive plant relocations can be controlled. Joint information banks on worldwide operations of corporations coupled with requirements for all corporate-boo~s to ·be public documents, disclosure-of stock voting/ownership and of reserves of crucial materials can assist the regulafiQ{1 of their o_peration. Laws favoring foreign investment and giving corporate tax advantages can be removed. Many of these things are beginning to happen. Much more can be done~Control of our awn needs, resources, work and well-being can be reg3:ined, qnce we are aware of what is happening today·and how to attain alternatives that remove our · reliance upon_the self-serv,ing actions of others. 1 • _Notes: 1. Glo.bal Re'i:1.ch, p. 190. 2. Global R~a,ch,·pp. 160-161. 3. Global Rea_ch, p. 2?6. 1 4. The Trojan Horse, p. 66. 5. T.be Debt Trap, pp. i84-206. 6. Th'e--..D:__oja;i Hor-se, pp. 1~-14. 7. Globat~h, p. 322. • , , cont.
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