Major areas of modern knowledge

An educated citizen needs to be able to apply concepts and foundations learned in one area to other areas as part of a lifelong learning process. The educated citizen needs to be able to live and work intelligently, responsibily and cooperatively in a multicultural society and to develop abilities to address complex issues and problems using disciplined analytical skills and creative techniques.
An educated citizen checks out the society and his role within, does he see how other citizens fit into that broad overview? Does he obtain knowledge of cultures and civilizations on an overall global understanding? The world is definately going global. What happens on the other side of the world effects our side of the world and what reprocussions does it have for us. Perhaps one of the largest problem confronting America and our population is the job situation. Americans have long been receiving large wages and benefits when you compare the remainder of the world. Now is the time when Americans are seeing their wages and benefits stagnating and declining. The "American Dream" is starting to disappear, the middle class is getting smaller, requirements for jobs are becoming steeper for less money. Expenses are skyrocketing due to world demand for the same supply that had been America's. China, and India have more and more people entering the "middle class" and demanding the same resources, thus prices are increasing. America is having to come to grips with vast changes that most do not comprehend.
An educated citizen needs to absorb all the information and translate that into decisions within. They need to be able to communicate their opinions to friends, neighbors, church groups, civic groups anyone that can help change for "The Greater Good".

The Greater Good

The Greater Good is a term that is being used nationwide in the past few months. I have looked up the term and going to give you a breakdown of what it really means. The information comes from a great site: http://allforthegreatergood.com/
Basic definition: "All for the Greater Good is a philosophy that embraces the vast-untapped power of humanity to focus collectively on wisdom that improves our world's sustainable quality of life."
"Purpose: To improve our world
Vision: Influence our worldview with wisdom that improves sustainable quality of life.
Basis: Scientific Method
Emerging Ecological Worldview
Greater Good Theory, a.k.a., Greater Good Philosophy--asserting that civilizations whose leaders and people center their worldview around Greater Good values ultimately improve their sustainable prosperity.
Progressive Scientific knowledge and Classic wisdom.
Value-oriented--love, truth & happiness, liberty, social justice, and unconditional mutual respect, tolerance, empathy and patience, synergistic relationships and functional ego, anti-scarcasm, anti-avarice and non-aggression, humanitarianism and Meliorism, optimistic, proactive, and pragmatic attitude, tactiful cooperation and collaborative spirit.(Meliorism def. noun, the belief that society has an inate tendency toward improvement and that this tendency may be furthered through conscious human effort.--The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, third edition)
Key Method: Transform our educational philosophy to foster nurturing learning environments, which inspire love for life, knowledge, and creativity, while emulating our most noble ideals."
Results:
"Vast increase in Quality of life and sustainability for all.
Global security
Fulfilling & harmonious society
Improved educational system
Self correcting citzenship, through a collective purpose.
Broadmindedness & emotional intelligence
Less aggression and lower crime rate
Productivity
World Patriotism
Salvation for our civilization"

That gives you a better idea of what The Greater Good is about. Notice, it is about everyone, not some at the high end of the class structure. Several people send me emails saying that you can't attain wealth, if you have to share it with the entire population. What they don't say is; they only care about "their" bottom line, no one else. It is a very "I" centered situation. The Greater Good is not "I" centered, but doing what is right for the entire civilization.
We are now starting into that era. The Green Earth means we all have to work together to be able to sustain our existence. It also means the people looking only at the bottom line MUST stop looking at the bottom line only. They have to start putting anti-pollution devices on chimneys on factories, safety devices for employees, etc. They have to get their eyes off the bottom line and look at what is best for their employees and the entire population.
If you haven't been following the solar energy movement, it has been a very slow climb to even get recognition. Yes, the product has had to get better, but in reality, the real reason is solar energy doesn't bring in bottom line dollars. It is for the Greater Good, however, not for the financial giants.
The "Populist" party has been using this term for years. Populism is usually used in expressing thoughts from the people in a particular region, especially involving farmers, that protest against depressed economic conditions for example, the Populist Party from 1892-1908.
With the Republican and Democratic parties both falling on their faces with their constituencies voters are starting to look around for alternatives. More and more independents are registering to vote because existing Republican and Democratic voters can not "buy" what their parties are "selling". The Populist party is gaining in this area also. If you would like to see some of their views, check out Jim Hightower's site: Lowdown from our resources section on the first page.
This is getting pretty long, so I will cut it off for now, more later.

BE FLEXIBLE

14. Be flexible in order to adapt to changing economic and social conditions, new workforce needs and the demands of a multicultural society.
Being flexible is a person who is capable of taking their frame of reference and bending their data to new changes, without bending his/her basic standards.
Being flexible needs to be a portion of every educated citizen's make-up. The world has certain standards that many people have followed for years, however as new data emerges, change needs to be made. An educated citizen needs to investigate those potential changes, and see if those changes can influence a change in his/her frame of reference. Once done, how does he/she make adjustment with new legislation, new representation, or healthy living. Learning that drinking cold water after dinner is not good for digestion, do you check it out and change behavior or not?
New workforce: an educated citizen realizes that change is what he/she has been taught, so someone who has been taught to do something one way, can learn to change their workplace activities to the new style. All these changes need to fit into a new society that is changing all the time.
New identities to be recognized: new ideals to be fit into the society, new products to make life easier, all within a culture that grows ever larger, diverse and fluid. Considering all these items, and more, need to be within and educated citizen's frame of reference as he makes the selections on the ballot.

Be able to think critically, creatively, and independently

13. Be to think critically, creatively and independently.
As an educated citizen you should be following the various events within our world. As you look at individual political items, you need to look at them, first with a critical eye. Does the item make logical sense or does it send a message that someone is trying to make political gain with your backing. If you back a proposition, or candidate, do you do it with a well-thought-out reason, not just because the party says you should back it? Do you back a person after searching his background, searching his thoughts about the issues--do they fit with yours--if not where don't they, could they be fixed, how--questions, questions? When doing this, try to do it 1)with an open mind, 2)don't be mizzeled into a scam, 3) do you feel good about supporting the issue/person?
Do you use creativity in your search for support? Could you help in the candidate's campaign with a certain skill/knowledge that would support him/her or issue? Could you look at the issue/candidate and the campaign and see how if a few things were changed it would help? Using the brain god gave you and the items you have stored in there to help the Greater Good is what is necessary.
Do you use independent thought in your assessment of your goal? Or, are you a follower, a person who follows what others have already created? Independence in your thinking is something you need to attempt to acheive as an adult. Can you stand before a group that is doing something wrong and say No, I stand for that which is right. That is what courage is all about. America needs people that will stand up for her in times of need , in times of planning the future, in equality of all citizens, in showing examples of what is right in the face of what is wrong. Of course, the next item is how do you turn that group from wrong to right?

Understand that learning is a continuous lifelong process

12. Understand that learning is a continuous lifelong process.
When you graduated from high school, everyone hopes you were prepared for the world of adulthood. Unfortunately, one of the biggest items that all that content in school neglected was the fact that you were only practicing learning skills that were supposed to be learned to be used in adulthood. Specific examples: outlining skills, summarizing, 5 paragraph essay, vocabulary, spelling, math, problem-solving, identifying problems, etc., etc. The content was only the vehicle to have you use these skills. College was another avenue to use them, to fine-tune them, to make you a better leader, to get along with people, to master one specific area enough so you could get a good job. After enough "practice" you should be confident enough to be given a task in your work and acheive success, by whatever definition. As you get older, you master these techniques. Now, how does that effect our subject, being an educated citizen?
You should have evolved a process of evolution that shows the more you learn the more you benefit. As an educated citizen, you should be able to volunteer for "committees" at your local church, school, etc. You help that committee by using your mastered techiques to help the group to acheive there goal. As you work in these settings, you gain more techniques; for example, you learn how to set up a meeting to acheive the goal you feel is best for the group/organization. You learn Robert's Rules of Order. Knowing these rules puts you in control, because once you have established the committee using the "Rules of Order", you can use that to your benefit. Learning becomes an enjoyable thing. You like to succeed, and knowing things helps you win "battles" The time it takes to know more than your opponent usually takes longer, but it makes you a better person and more knowledgable to help along the rough spots. Because you have spent more time, you have looked at the situation in all kinds of ways and understand better why things work and why they do not work, and you can explain that to your committee to have their support behind you. Always remember, especially in today's technological society, learning is always continuous. You would not like to play a video game using last year's version against someone who has been playing the newest version and plays you on their home court.
A very new change that is in the process as you read this blog is, books.
Books have been the newest innovation in academia since the Dark Ages. There have been some basic changes, mass market, etc., however a book printed in the Middle Ages can still be read today.
Books are starting to become passe. Starting with audio tapes, books have been read to us for years, CD's do the same, but the very latest item is books on line and "readers". Soon you will not have libraries that you go in to check out a book, you will simply order it on line and download it to your reader, then you will read it on the "moniter" and hit a button to turn the page. Don't become frustrated, you have become accustomed to change. You already do most of this with your e-mails, texting, buying on line, etc. Learn to use it to better "The Greater Good."

Bill Moyer's Journal--last show

Bill Moyer's Journal's last show was 4-30-10. His first guest was Jim Hightower. He is the publisher of Hightower Lowdown. (www.hightowerlowdown.org/) Mr. Hightower is a populist. He is not a liberal, he is a populist.--one of his favorite quotes from a friend is, "Everybody does better when everybody does better". The discussion centered on America today. How the rich have taken over our country at the expense of the workers. They discussed the existence today of a Plutonomy, which is how the wealthy uses their wealth to have government do their bidding. Grassroots politics is at the heart, not corporations being allowed to have the same privileges as a person, being allowed to give money to political entities at will. Populists are people helping people, think of co-ops in the farming community. They are not necessarily desireous of making government bigger, only helping the greater good. It is very apparent that Corporations through their lobbyists now control unions, supply, you name it and have help from our government. Congressmen are receiving excessive funding from the lobbyists for their votes that will help Corporations make more money at the expense of the lower classes and for the upper classes.

The New Secessionists

In the Monday, April 26, 2010 edition of Commondreams.org (it is in your resources area of this blog) there is an article called: The New Secessionists. This article indicates there are as many as two dozen states, but it specifically mentions: Texas, Hawaii, Alaska, and Vermont.
The article does not mention Hawaii'and Alaska's movements, mainly because they have been vocal for years, but it does discuss Texas and Vermont. You might want to take a look to see why these states are upset.