Let's Be Kinder

In his essay "Let's Be Reasonable" Rev. Todd Eklof [The Gadfly Papers] reduces reasonable to logical; This is a common left-brain dominant error, confusion between deductive premises and coldly reductive conclusions calculated assuming cause v effect linear formulas more than feedback loops of complex neurological relationships, ecological analogical experiential math not reducible to algebraic calculus. So, this is a big topic and I can already see right-brain feelers' eyes glazing, longing to step into warmer, more fluid green organic systems in which light feeds natural growth and darkness starves into nutritional dormancy. Narrowing down to a specific example, "If an organization has a policy [a left-brain dominant product] against hiring nonwhites for top management positions, [T]hen it will not hire a[n Asian heritage candidate] as its next CEO." (p. 88) In linear cause-effect logic, IF...is the antecedent clause and THEN...is the consequent clause; If x, and only x, then y-- a perfect positive correlation seldom seen in real life's geometric non-equations, except where found true by left-brain definition, rooted in either true cause or false effect dark v light competitive thinking. Notice a similar statement about historical experience, left- and right-hemisphere resonantly remembered; not cognitively/affectively dissonant, IF a culture has a history of not hiring nonwhite leaders, THEN it is unlikely to hire a nonwhite CEO in the future. Why would the sun shine on a culture tomorrow that has never done so in past collective memory? For left-brain deduction, either cause OR effect, practice could only consistently follow explicit policy or it would be wrong, incommensurable with safe precedent, arbitrary illogical dangerously unnecessary risk-taking and unexplainable within SWM privileged and dominant monocultures. On the other hand, perhaps literally and figuratively, right-brain's interdependent web of complex cause-effect-recause-re-effect feedback loops and lattices networks and sometimes chaotically scary lack of stable systems with accompanying anxiety about what is significant and safe climate and what is unpredicted and therefore unknown and alarming wildness habitat, dissonant, uncomfortable Procedural choices, including designing and development processes, in a privileged culture normally follow past historical practice. Stabilization predicts calcification; not positive deviance. Precedent predicts practice especially where no explicit prohibitive policy intending to inhibit past practice is anywhere within sight to empower change in a more therapeutic direction, to restore justice connection relationship non-violent communication ease health nurture where it has been sadly lost. Left-brain deductive reason is reduced to predicting within the context of linear either x is an explicit healthy/toxic antecedent or y is a logically/illogically implied and predictable/unpredictable valid/invalid outcome. Right-brain wisdom from positive and negative experience is able to extend reasonable connections beyond what is explicitly logical/illogical within an assumed Win/Lose competitive predative patriarchal colonizing corporate capitalist normative system. IF, and only if, we uncover beliefs about what feels right, what neurologically AND biologically and naturally AND spiritually resonates, within a specific polycultural experience influenced by far more than explicit laws and regulations, by far more than scriptures explicitly translated and transcribed down through ages of oral history, by far more than moral behavioral codes that do not add to experiential internal conviction, THEN compassion, sufficient motivation to do and say and choose what is valid for healthy interconnected resonant cooperatively fluid grace-filled sacred life systems may be less ignored shunned depressed repressed suppressed oppressed In favor of merely logical conclusions that can feel too aggressive coldly assertive more than invitingly rational, self-assuredly privileged yet calculatingly hurtful when weapons of empowered narcissists instead of limited tools of non-elite compassionists. IF StraightWhiteWesternMale incorporated privilege seems to validly conclude what also feels organically and interdependently unreasonable given contrary historical NonElite experience, THEN we might release competitive and privileged assertions conserving right-brain ignored darkness where light longs for multicultural bicameral liberation, education transubstantiation communication creolization where bright longs for better safe and sufficiently resonant systems of polypathic thoughts with long polyphonic systemic resonant feelings of harmonic secular/sacred natural/spiritual inclusive stability, centeredness, health-seasoned [not so much ecological wealth anti-reasoned] balance, therapeutic integrity EcoPolitical and NeuroPsychological