Category: Social Justice


The Voice of Urgency

Filed under: Do No Harm, Faith & Doubt, Life Lessons, Social Justice — 1 Comment
August 7, 2013

Screen-Shot-2012-08-20-at-6.17.36-PMWhen America’s thirty-fourth president, Dwight D. Eisenhower, began his administration, he instructed his aides and his executive assistant that there should be only two stacks of papers placed on his desk in the Oval Office. The first would be a stack of those things that were urgent, and only the extremely urgent. The other was to be a stack of the important, and only the extremely important. Years later, Eisenhower commented his bewilderment at how many things were extremely urgent, but never very important.

I think of Eisenhower as I close my time helping to implement parts of the Affordable Care Act. Due by October 1st, Healthcare Insurance Exchanges across the country are estimated to enroll 7 million new healthcare applicants by March 0f 2014, with 24 million new recipients total by 2015 or 2016. In short, that’s a whole lot of new members in such a short period of time.

Of course complications have occurred throughout my tenure on this project. Failures have occurred on all leadership levels. Texas, Arizona, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wyoming have all notified the federal government that they will not be policing the health law.

Missouri has prohibited active involvement by most state agencies. If you’re in Missouri and want information on the health insurance exchange, good luck in finding it.  Missouri also requires insurance counselors to get state licenses before they can help people search for health plans on an online marketplace. The counselors must be trained by Oct. 1, but the state has no regulatory framework to license the insurance navigators. Even if it can quickly create a licensing structure, the law bars insurance navigators from recommending specific plans. Additionally, if Missouri insurance regulators decline to approve any exchange health insurance plans because of concerns about the anti-exchange law, it’s not clear what plans an HHS exchange will be able to sell in Missouri.

In Texas, John Greeley, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Insurance, said his agency cannot enforce regulations tied to the federal insurance exchange or market reforms because it is not authorized to do so. Texas, along with Arizona, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wyoming have notified the federal government that they will not be policing the health law.  Texas’ decision will create an “administrative burden” for insurance plans and could result in confusion for Texans who purchase health insurance under the federal exchange.

So when I think of all this, the conflict between the urgent and the important is inescapable. It is common for us to think that by staying busy and working hard to implement something important, leadership fails. Our ego and rarely represents the things most important. And therein lies the reason so many people today feel such a lack of satisfaction after working so hard for so many people. When we substitute the urgent for the important work, exhaustion replaces satisfaction.

Urgency is a dance. In horizontal perspectives of Texas, Arizona, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma and Wyoming, urgency of the ego has taken center stage. Yes urgency of the ego is popular. But rather than solve problems, it’s intended to drain time, energy and attention. It’s an all-too familiar voice in everyone’s life.

For Texas, Missouri and others like them, it is important to remember virtue, good conduct, morality needs to be based upon the key fundamental principles:

  1. The principle of equality. That means all living entities are equal; and
  2. The principle of reciprocity: This is the “Golden Rule” in Christianity — to do onto others as you would wish them to do onto you. It is found in all major religions.

For those caught in the urgency, “Are you really following the “Golden Rule.“” What is the voice to whom you listen?

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No Peace! No Justice!

Filed under: Do No Harm, Life Lessons, Right Speech, Social Justice — 1 Comment
July 20, 2013

ds_img_direct.phpEight days past the George Zimmerman verdict, Americans continue to appear to help captive by coverage. The parents of Trayvon Martin joined thousands of Americans at more than 100 scheduled vigils in cities nationwide demanding Saturday what they described as justice for their 17-year-old son, who was shot dead last year.

“It’s overwhelming,” Tracy Martin told CNN at a rally in Miami attended by hundreds of supporters, many of whom chanted, “No Peace! No Justice!”  On Friday, President Obama weighed in:

“But I did want to just talk a little bit about context and how people have responded to it and how people are feeling. You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot, I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago. And when you think about why, in the African- American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African- American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that — that doesn’t go away.”

I do feel sense of sadness for the Martin parents. Their son shouldn’t have died. But while we memorialize Trayvon Martin and seek “No Peace! No Justice!,” we should not forget all the others who require our faith and love.

“… administration will provide whatever support is necessary to the officials who are responding to this tragic shooting and moving forward with an investigation. As we mourn this loss which took place at a house of worship, we are reminded how much our country has been enriched by Sikhs, who are a part of our broader American family.”

  • When anti-Islam activists like Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer led an all-out war in their attempt to prevent the cultural center from opening. At the time, Fox News became a major broadcaster of their Islam-phobic agenda. Fox News gave anti-Islam activists a platform to rally against the Park51 community center, while others spoke against anti-Muslim bigotry, denounced what it saw as bigoted attacks on the mosque.
  • Naveed Afzal Haq shot six women, one fatally, at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle building in the Belltown neighborhood of Seattle, Washington.
  • An American woman traveling in northern India in June of 2013 was allegedly gang-raped after she accepted a ride with three men in a truck, police said.
  • Similarly, in Brazil, an American woman was gang raped and beaten aboard a public transport van while her French boyfriend was handcuffed, hit with a crowbar and forced to watch the attacks.
  • Three black women beat the crap out of a white woman in Seattle while a crowd watches.
  • Sanford police arrested 12 African-Americans, eight adults and four children, in connection with a mob beating of a pregnant woman. The brutal attack came almost a year after the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin in the same town.
  • In April 2012, African-American Cordell Jude, 22, was driving in Phoenix when Daniel Adkins Jr. walked in front of him with his dog. “Watch it!” Jude yelled to Adkins, who was mentally disabled, according to USA TODAY. Adkins then swung what looked like a pipe in the air and Jude shot and killed him — the pipe-like object turned out to just be a dog leash. Jude claimed self-defense; he remained free for three months, but now faces second-degree murder charges and is set to go to trial next month, according to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s office. The Arizona Stand Your Ground law passed in 2010.
  • Malala Yousafzai, the young girl shot in the head by Taliban gunmen while riding a school bus in Pakistan.

Are you surprised that we’ve rarely heard of these beatings, murders and rapes? Most were based upon some form of hatred? In light of these, I barely heard a word from politicians decrying racism. I did not see Jesse Jackson proselytizing for justice.  How come I haven’t seem Reverend Al Sharpton protesting? Why could we not see the unified marches in several major cities?

As a Buddhist, I try to live by the “Do no harm” rule. Racism is wrong and many have been killed or maimed in its name. But while racism comes a deep and darkened place, racism should not be selective. If we stand to the Trayvon Martin’s of the world, we must stand for all the others. If we march for Trayvn, we must march for all.

From President Obama’s perspective, he could have been Taryvon Martin. But Malala could have been my sister. Daniel Adkins could have been my brother. That pregnant woman in Sanford will be someone’s mother. The Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin is a religious sanctuary for many.

Racism is bigger than just Trayvon Martin. Racism is global. As living Buddhists and living Christians; as living Methodists, as living Atheists, we must stand for it all. Fragmentally parceling out peace rallies is neither peace, nor justice.

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The Texas Pharisees

Filed under: Do No Harm, Religion, Social Justice
July 13, 2013

tissot-woe-to-you-scribes-and-pharisees-747x483The Texas Senate approval of one of the strictest anti-abortion measures may have effectively closed 37 of the 42 clinics in the entire state and banned abortions after 20 weeks. Fox News pundit Erick Erickson sent a tweet, with a link to a site that sells coat hangers.  The historical intent of the message is that women who couldn’t find an underground doctor often inserted knitting needles or wire coat hangers into their vagina to terminate their pregnancy. Unfortunately, the coat hanger is not a myth.

Texas Senator Glenn Hegar, stated,

“I stand by this bill. I believe it raises the standard of care for women in Texas. It is also important that we protect unborn children from pain.”

However, Texas Senator Dan Patrick, rejected the assertion of Democrats that bill sponsors are motivated only by their opposition to legal abortions.

“Anyone who says this is not about protecting women’s health is flat wrong. This bill really is about the safety of the baby and the mother. Everyone who supports this bill values both lives.”

Historically, we know restricting or banning safe and legal abortions does nothing to prevent abortion. Instead, it ensures that illegal and unsafe abortions will abound and women will pay for their attempt at reproductive freedom with their lives. Banning abortion and making safe, legal abortion care inaccessible is deadly.

Contrary to Governor Rick Perry and Senators Hegar and Partick’s philosophy, the Texas bill does little to protect children. Think I’m wrong? Here’s a snippet of facts:

  • 25% of all Texas children live in poor families.
  • 6% of all Texas children in poor families only have one parent employed full-time, year-round. Compare that to 85% of children in not poor families.
  • 55% of children in poor families live with a single parent.
  • 1.2 million Texas children have neither private nor public health insurance. Uninsured kids get sick. Their parents have no place to take them other than a public hospital’s emergency room, which by law cannot turn them away. And if those parents cannot pay the extremely expensive bill? The taxpayer picks up the tab.
  • Poor children miss out on the most important factor in getting good care: a doctor who knows the patient and their medical history. Children with asthma and diabetes – chronic diseases best treated by a family doctor on a routine basis – comprise many, if not most, of the kids who show up in the emergency room.

It’s disingenuous to say you’re protecting children on the one hand while doing little for constituents living under poverty’s anvil with the other. The Texas legislature cut state spending on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program by $2.03 billion for 2012-13. More than $800 million of those cuts were to reimbursement rates for doctors who agree to treat poor or disabled children.

So while Texas claimed to protect the unborn, legislators did little to help prevent abortions or prevent unplanned pregnancy. State legislators did nothing to change the need for abortion among Texas women. All the legislature really did is declare state decisions can be given priority over mothers’ decisions after 20 weeks.  At the end of the day, if you’re a single mother in need of a babysitter to attend college and past poverty, don’t expect the Governor or many legislators to volunteer.

The Texas legislature should not stand before Christ and claim how wonderful they are. Biblically speaking, the entire special session and all its pseudo effort mirrors that of the Pharisees, it’s more about religious piety and image than it was about actually supporting the safety of either “the baby or mother.”

Abortion is not simply a black or white issue. Anyone proposing to claim otherwise is ignorant. When thinking of this whole mess, (inspired from Rabbi Brad Hirschfield) I am amazed how religion mobilizes people to do awful things. There will be a dark side to completely outlawing abortion. And anyone who loves religious experience, including me, had better understand there is a serious side. Declaring war on the right-to-choose will have dramatic unintended consequences throughout the country.

There’s simply way too much ignorance … on all sides. And people wonder why a coat hanger becomes a solid option.

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Whom Can You Transform

Filed under: Faith & Doubt, Life Lessons, Main, Social Justice, Technology
July 7, 2013

Slide1In airline flight, as in life, no runway will compensate for coming up short. And Asiana Airlines Flight 214 was 1,000 feet (400 meters) short of the normal landing spot before crashing.  Conversely, on January 15, 2009 US Airways pilots executed a dramatic emergency landing on the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 150 passengers and five crewmembers aboard Flight 1549.

The point is that ach of us has the power to transform many lives.  We are very interconnected.

On any given day, any of us could be assaulted, experience family breakups, suffer abuse, become homeless, lose our jobs, over materialize life or simply cannot seem to find a sense of spirituality. Conversely, we could be saved, given a life saving drug, stop briefly talk to a janitor and miss a disaster. We could babysit for a mother and give inspiration that will ultimately cure cancer. Someone’s daughter could revolutionize a way to feed the poor. Someone’s son could finally negotiate peace in a war torn area of the world.

Each and every day all of us make tens of thousands of decisions that impact the very nature of our very personal existence. All of us are responsible for how we succeed, live and prosper. Whether walking to work, whether eating a piece of fruit or whether we excel or fall back into a depth of misery so bleak that few rise from.

As Buddhists, what are we doing to help the world around us? In spite of all the difficulties out there, what new ways are we finding to help one another? Are we using our technology to come together or to find ways to separate? Does our faith transform or divide? Can we reach beyond our own mundane world and transform a generation in Africa, Calcutta, Chicago, Cleveland or the family down the street?

When the day started, I presume neither the crew of Asiana Airlines Flight 214 or US Airways Flight 1549 expected to have much impact on anyone. Yet, even in the most difficult of times, each flight crew saved hundreds of lives.

As we speak, one in five children still live in poverty; one of three children do not have health care coverage; roughly 17,386 people have died from guns in the United States since the Newtown shootings. Children in every social stratum suffer from abuse, neglect, and preventable emotional problems.

What is it that we do today…today…that will save hundreds of lives? Whom can you transform … today?

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I is What I is: Ignorant

Filed under: Life Lessons, Social Justice — 1 Comment
June 29, 2013

unite-againstWhat can Paula Deen learn from Edward Snowden, Tim Tebow and Chad Ochocinco? Frist circus’ are for clowns; and secondly, most adults hate the circus.  Bill Maher maintains that Deen shouldn’t have been fired, because it’s a “ … free country, even to be an asshole.” Technically Mr. Maher is correct, but most become significantly offended by assholes.

But let’s face it, many of us mess up. And we do it every day.

In a hate filled video ironically titled “Rated T for Tolerance,” ApoIogetics:

“I’m not here to rally against that which the government legislates, I simply don’t support a mind that is reprobate. Homosexuality is not innate. It is not a genetic trait. It cannot replicate the love between a man and a woman in which God did indeed create.”

“T For Tolerance” uses many stereotypes about the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities, while insisting that all gay people are going to hell.  Gee, just makes one feel all warm inside. Ok, pardon the pun. Secondly, I am not sure the author understands the word tolerance. Third, if this is your version of heaven or hell, I will stay Buddhist.

All of Deen’s troubles remind me of former UCLA Student Alexandria Wallace racist rant on Asians using their phone in the library. Unfortunately for her, the video went viral.  (However, Jimmy Wong created a wonderful response.)

The problem for Deen, Snowden and others like them is they tend to cast themselves as victims rather than a perpetrator.  In fact, Deen’s sons called racism charges ‘extortion.‘ The sad fact for Deen, Tebow, Snowden, Wallce, and the ignorant woman of “Rated T for Tolerance” and others is that Internet will follow their living days. As such, most employers or places of higher learning severely frown upon circus’ and tend not to be impressed.  If you become a one-person circus show, you tend to get few quality interviews.

As a Buddhist, I believe redemption is possible. But just because it’s possible, doesn’t mean you’ll get it. Redemption takes time – much more than an apology or “I is What I is.”   Instead, what Ms. Deen, as well as all of us, must continue to learn the deep lessons of racism clearly missed.  Read of Mandela’s journey; understand what Dr. Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers and many Civil Rights proponents across the globe are really about.

For those of us living in America, live past the racism of the South.

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Real Solutions Never Fit

Filed under: Life Lessons, Social Justice — 1 Comment
June 21, 2013

Scales of JusticeSeveral days ago, the Republican-led House passed an anti-abortion bill conservatives saw as a milestone.  Democrats condemned the measure as yet another example of the GOP war on women.

Everyone agrees that adult human beings have the right to life. Some people would say that the fertilized cell resulting from conception does not have the right to life. Therefore the right to life occurs sometime later between conception and birth. For others, the exact point a fetus reaches a right to life cannot be determined. Thus, society should assume it does have the right to life.

Allow me to sidestep the right-to-life or right-to-choice decision.

Personhood Ballot Initiatives would give legal rights to newly fertilized microscopic embryos (i.e., when life begins). Thus, for the moment, let’s presume abortion becomes illegal. Should the fetus have a “right” to life, how should we punish expectant mothers who are presumed to drink, eat, and participate in life events that may directly impact the health and safety of the fetus? For instance, when you’re expecting, what you eat and drink influences your child’s health, possibly forever. Some everyday foods and beverages take on new meaning, as some presents a danger to a developing child.

What if an expectant mother suffers heat stroke during a hot afternoon?  Should she miscarry, would she be required to prove her miscarriage was natural or face felony charges? For Christine Taylor, an Iowa mother of two girls and pregnant with her third child, a feticide law enacted in that state because of anti-choice efforts has wreaked havoc on her life. Being distraught and distracted, she tripped and fell down the stairs. Ms. Taylor found herself arrested and sent to jail for admitting uncertainty about her pregnancy and fear about raising three children on her own.

What if you’re a pregnant teen in the rural south?  Rural Americans live with the burden of poor health than those living in suburban or urban communities. There are fewer primary care physicians and emergency room doctors. Treatment options are often nonexistent and exacerbated by a lack of transportation. And using health care can be difficult, where tight-knit communities can amplify concerns about moral standing and confidentiality. Should society punish a mother for not ensuring their child receives the benefit of adequate healthcare? Should she be punished for simply not traveling long distances to a quality health facility? In the “personhood initiative” era, all of this basically means “… sucks to be you.”

So how do we police potential mothers and the rights of a fetus? How do we police every expectant mother fairly, equally? Who’s going to be the judge? Will a Buddhist or atheist be allowed to judge? Can a deeply conservative judicial system fairly and morally judge all?

Another thought? Do we punish those million or so women who had an abortion each year? As of 2008, there were 2.8 million people in jail. So what’s another 1 million more a year, right? For all the fighting over abortion, criminalizing women is not the solution; never has been. But then again, if abortion is equated to murder, should not the offender be adjudicated?

So when a national religious or political leader claims a woman should be criminally punished for having an abortion, questions must be asked and answers must be given. Does second hand smoke harm an unborn child? If so, do we punish the mother for harming the child or punish both the mother and smoker?  Here’s another; the automobile is great for personal freedom, but exhaust fumes are toxic. Should a car owner be punished for assault if their vehicle passes a pregnant woman? If “personhood initiative” backers really want to be fair, should we not ban air fresheners, ammonia, bleach, antifreeze, drain cleaners, laundry detergent and oven cleaners? Do we jail company executives who make, local stores that stock and sell and friends, family and neighbors who use such products? If a pregnant US citizen travels overseas and experiences a miscarriage in another country, how do we investigate and apply proper jurisprudence? Or do we simply perform extradition back to the country where the crime occurred? Can abortion doctors be tried for crimes against humanity?

So what’s the solution? The solution does not easily fit the into the black and white world of pro-life or pro-choice. Real solutions never do.

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The Bridge Between “Us” and “Them”

Filed under: About Love, Life Lessons, Social Justice
June 12, 2013

15_01_33_webI received a few negative comments from yesterday’s post “The Ignorance Within.”  Some question my commitment to pro-choice movement while others claim I did not hold the pro-life movement accountable for perceived injustices.

In truth, I tend to neither think in such black or white perspectives.  From a pro-life perspective, if any simply believe signing legislation will eliminate abortion is delusional. Abortion will simply go underground and I’m positive no one will adore the face of such inequity and ignorance.

From a pro-choice perspective, while choice is an essential aspect of our humanity, everyone’s humanity, we are called to those in need, to understand and make an effort to eliminate the need for such unwanted love. Surely, there are efforts all humanity can put forward to reduce this perpetual cycle.

I will paraphrase from the Dalai Lama’s book “Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World:”

“When people are strongly motivated by dedication to a single cause or by feelings of closeness to a particular group, they are capable of great things. Such feelings can bring people together and help transcend their narrow self-interest. In this sense these feelings are beneficial. Unfortunately, when such affiliations occur they are often accompanied by the discrimination between “us” and “them.”

A woman is more than her choice for or against abortion and an abortion is larger than simply a personal right. Black and whiting such complicated issues often negates our capacity to love.  Accordingly, the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor. Charles Darwin believed love for all living creatures was the most notable attribute. Thus, when discrimination between the “us” and “them,” between pro-life and pro-choice movements, each forgets their own personal connection to a larger humanity of Christ and the connectivity He commanded of all human beings.

Rather than believing any of us can effectively legislate abortion, we need pro-life and pro-choice movements to work together, to explore abortion’s role in the lives of our families, communities, faith, culture, and beyond. I cannot think of a more powerful way to honor the living Christ or living Buddha than for adversaries to find commonality and work for the good of all nations, all families and all mothers.

As such, finding commonality demands conscious day-to-day decisions. Preventing our own ignorance and that of our legislative leaders requires tremendous effort and flows against the current of incredible pressure to do the opposite.

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The Ignorance Within

Filed under: Faith & Doubt, Religion, Social Justice — 1 Comment
June 11, 2013

nothing-in-the-world-is-more-dangerous-than-sincere-ignorance-and-conscientious-stupidityAs the Komen walk for the cure nears, I am once again confounded by a somewhat black and white position religious affiliates craft.  Specifically, I read with interest the Respect Life Apostolate of the Archdiocese of St. Louis has taken:

“The Respect Life Apostolate of the Archdiocese of St. Louis acknowledges the beneficial work of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, formerly known as the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, in the area of breast cancer detection, prevention, research and treatment. Due to its policy allowing affiliates to offer financial support to abortion providing facilities and its endorsement of embryonic stem cell research, the Respect Life Apostolate neither supports nor encourages participation in activities that benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure.”

I contrast the above position against the backdrop of Bishop Robert Lynch, who wrote in 2009:

“… Nancy Brinker, former ambassador to Hungary and then Chief of Protocol for the United States during the last Bush Administration. Ambassador Brinker is also the sister of Susan G. Komen who died at age 36 of breast cancer leaving a husband and two young children. The day before she died, Susan asked Nancy, her sister, to devote her life to seeing that fewer and fewer women die of this disease, through early examinations, medical and scientific research and education programs. Nancy said that after her sister’s death one night in her sleep she had a dream and saw hundreds of people dressed in pink dancing and upon awakening she knew that her contribution would be to start a “race for breast cancer cure.

I was impressed by her vision and captivated by what might be done if others would join in the effort against breast cancer. On occasion someone will mention that the Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure gives money to Planned Parenthood and they do. But the money is earmarked solely for mammograms and nothing else and is monitored closely for this. Some people spend a lot of time and energy shadow boxing with friends.”

While I find the salary Nancy Brinker abhorrent, a lot people count on both the Catholic Church and Komen. Yes Planned Parenthood provides abortion services. However, they predominately serve several million people a year; mostly women, but also men and much of their activity is focused on contraception, STI screening, and cancer screening, and providing reproductive health care to people who otherwise wouldn’t have access.

Paraphrasing a speech from President John Kennedy just before his death, I currently believe that no social system or religion is so evil that’s people must be considered lacking in virtue. We can still honor the man, woman or child who has an opposing view, their thoughts and their individual acts of courage.

In this day and age, there is more which connects us than separates us. Yet we focus solely upon that which divides us. Our humanity and love for another should trump our differences. I honor the men and women of the Catholic Church and the Respect Life Apostolate, but I liken this whole debate to moral insanity.

I have seen the enemy: it’s our ignorance within.

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Religious Diversity is our Strength

Filed under: Faith & Doubt, Main, Social Justice, Technology — 2 Comments
June 8, 2013

MedicalWhen I do attend church, I am often invited to pray and willingly do.  But the blend between science and faith is blurred rather easily. For instance, a friend recently had cancer surgery. While grateful for prayers, just prior to surgery she was more concerned with the surgeon’s skill and hospital cleanliness than prayers.

As our society integrates and intimately dances with high technology, do we fully engage our inner self, meditate and practice spirituality that embraces Eastern and Western religious traditions? Or do we kick spirituality and prayer to the door. Kick the dust from our shoes and get on with living? Except for Sunday, do any of us really care about our faith Monday through Friday?

In truth, I am not stating that one needs to kick faith to ebb of life.  Surely, all of us can count the litany horrors done in the name of religion, including Buddhism. But I presume that in a time of need, prayers from any religion, including goodwill thoughts of the non-religious are equally beautiful and powerful. And to the secular, I don’t believe that as a Catholic, only a Catholic prayer will work. Accordingly, as a Muslim, should one be so strict that only Muslim prayers are welcome? Surely not!

If this were true, how would one parse the prayers of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami or the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami? “Well, we received 13,000 Catholic prayers, 26,000 Muslim prayers, 40,000 Presbyterian prayers, 38000 Hindu prayers, etc.?” We need to see and understand the new reality. Our world has millions of Sikhs, Christians, Jain, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Muslims, Hindus, Taoists, etc. Personally, I just do not envision the living Christ or living Buddha parceling and segregating love.

From a technological perspective, I’ve seen pastors using iPads and posting sermons onto websites; the Dalai Lama has a Twitter feed; and Muslim worshipers can choose whether they want to podcast the call to prayer. So why can’t we blend faith with technology?

The answer is that both technology and prayer demand an uncommon element: people. Regardless of faith, social justice requires action. Promoting nurturing values as kindness, compassion and forgiveness cannot be done solely via an iPad or prayer. Micromedical technology can help patients unheard in days gone by. Prayer can provide strength and presence of a living God. But damn it, you still need a skilled surgeon that blends both.

At the end of the day, technology is connecting a world full of diversity. That very diversity is our strength.  Honor all those of faith, for it strengthens us all.

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It’s Not About Hormones

Filed under: Do No Harm, Religion, Social Justice
June 5, 2013
Hidden WarU.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss suggested that the dismaying rate of sexual assaults in the military may simply be due to the “hormones” of youthful soldiers.
 
“The young folks that are coming into each of your services are anywhere from 17 to 22, or 23. Gee whiz, the level — the hormone level created by nature sets in place the possibility for these types of things to occur. So we’ve got to be very careful of how we address it on our side.”
 
Being a retired Air Force Officer, I reflected upon when I was 18 years old and based overseas. All those hormones and still I never once assaulted a fellow Airman or Officer.  Maybe times have changed but can Chambliss simply claim “hormones” caused:
  • Two male officers convicted by courts martial of sexual assault were given clemency without explanation by respective three-star generals, Gens. Craig Franklin of the Third Air Force and Susan Helms of the 14th Air Force.
  • Air Force lieutenant colonel Jeffrey Krusinski, the officer in charge of sexual assault prevention programs for the Air Force was being investigated for sexual battery.
  • An Army sergeant first class assigned to the sexual assault prevention unit at Fort Hood, Texas, is being investigated for alleged sexual assault, pandering, abusive sexual contact and maltreatment of subordinates.
  • In early May, an Air Force officer who worked with an assault prevention unit was charged with sexual battery after being accused of grabbing a woman and groping her buttocks and breasts in a parking lot not far from his Washington office.
  • Three U.S. Naval Academy football players are under investigation in an alleged sex assault involving a female midshipman at an off-campus “football house” party in April 2012, according to a Defense Department official. The victim says she learned from friends and social media that the players claimed to have had sexual intercourse with her while she was intoxicated, her lawyer said.
From my perspective, the pedophilia scandal in the Catholic Church, the child sex abuse scandal in the US Hasidic Jewish community, ongoing sexual assault problems of the military and recent sexual assault allegations of Buddhist Zen masters has demonstrated, the disparity between leadership and mentors can have tragic consequences. There is something about our beliefs, our faith and religion, that allows one to dismiss the victims, to cast aside shame and allow the scales of justice to be unfavorably balanced.
 
Let’s be clear, this is not a hormone problem. This is not a consensual misunderstanding.  This is rape, assault and abuse. This is a violation of our inherent human goodness, violence against humanity. We must vow not to repeat inaction and a lack of compassion.
 
If you are a victim of sexual and need assistance, contact National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) at 1-877-739-3895.
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