Articles

In its most basic definition, power is the ability to get intended results. There are two essential spectrums of power that are valuable to understand. The first is personal and the second is institutional. In this article, we’ll take a look at both.

Power ebbs and flows. It exists both internally and externally, manifesting tangibly as well as intangibly. It is innately neutral. It is, in fact, necessary. The questions, indeed the challenges, come from how it is recognized, acknowledged and used. Power is a perception. It cannot exist without overt, or covert, agreements. When those agreements mutate or dissolve, the perception changes and power shifts.

The COVID-19 pandemic has become a global crisis. Millions have died and many more have become sick and likely to experience the negative effects for the rest of their lives.

Not all societies have been affected in the same way. Some countries have fared better than others in dealing with it. Their ability to cope has depends on resources, a willingness to use them, and a well-organized state with good leadership that citizens trust and will follow. In dysfunctional, out-of-balance societies, citizens have become polarized and are living through an ongoing catastrophe.

The creativity myth of the ancient Greeks involved the struggle for control between a race of giants; the Titans, and a new group of gods. The Titans ruled during a legendary ‘Golden Age’ in Greece. They were overthrown by the Olympians, a race of younger gods. It was a struggle between the forces of the ‘old way’ and of the ‘new way’. Out of this chaos a new order emerged.

Travel makes us more accepting of our commonality with others regardless of culture, race, or creed. When we travel with an open mind, we soon see that underneath the cultural overlays, we are all human beings with common needs and desires.

Every ideology requires some degree of acquiescence at the personal, social and governmental levels to prevail. It is the character, or spirit, of that collective consciousness that acts to sustain or reject it. Consciousness is at the crux of our personal and collective existence and expanded consciousness is what fuels the ideology of democracy. It is a dynamic that grows with us, informs our attitudes and behaviors, and enlightens how we relate to everything. It is the basis for altruism, and both the concept and the practice of democracy are deeply rooted in that. Democracy animates outwardly through our social contracts. It is the great equalizer and it’s important to understand how it grows, flourishes, and dies.