The Stone Garden

What is a good evolution...

2007-09-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

I made a small intervention in a discussion about the Jordanian Society in the blog of my friend The Arab Observer i wrote about how society is evolving in an objective way and i put two main questions:
1. What is the "good" social evolution?
2. How can we effect this evolution?

The observer asked me what is the "good" evolution. In this article i will try to answer on this question. First let me write some things about the social evolution.

Society as every part of the universe is evolving. There are objective powers that are making the motion of society. The main power is the economy: The evolution of the means and the relations of production.

Until now we have seen 5 social systems in the history of humans: The primitive communist society, Slavery ,the feudal system, Capitalism and Socialism. Each one of these systems came as a rejection of the other and as a consequence of the evolution of the means of productions.

In the primitive communist society the means of production where the hunters and the hunting. All the persons do the same work and had a part of it. When we had the first agriculture production and with the evolution of the tools we had overproduction. Some of the people, the strongest, keep a part of this overproduction. The private property was born.

With the evolution of the techniques and the means of agriculture and farming the humans became the main mean of production: Slavery was born. After this there were the feudal system. With the evolution of the tools the part of the population that worked in the manufacture became stronger and stronger. There was no need for the feudal class. Capitalism was born. Together with the Class of capitalists a new class was born. This class is the working class. The class that is working with the tools and produce all the wealth. Today the evolution of the means of production has raised in the way where the working class can rule and be free. With the freedom of the working class comes the freedom of the other parts of society: middle class people, farmers ...etc. This is Socialism.

Certainly the evolution of the means of production brings the evolution of the society, the habits, the way of thinking, the traditions, the believes, the science every part of human activity. The same time the evolution of all these activities made a role in the evolution of the means of production. Here we have a dialectical relation between the base (the economy) and the superstructure (the habits, the way of thinking, the science.....). The evolution of the one brings the evolution of the other and the opposite!!

On this way we can see that the societies are evolving objectively. The habits and the human activities are evolving objectively too. Nothing can stop the evolution!!

What is now the "good" evolution. I will stay here in the example of the Jordanian society and i will try to show out what i mean with the expression "good".

Jordanian society is evolving. Nothing is the same as it was before 11 years when i left the country to come to Greece for studies. There are new habits (together with the old ones) new way of thinking (see for example the different blogs of the Jordanian Bloggers).

This evolution has come due to the evolution of the Jordanian economy and the relation of it with the western economies. The contact with other societies has brought many different new ideas, has evolved the Jordanian ideas!!

I will give an example. The late years there is a big discussion about the tribes and the need to change the relations between the tribes and the state, the political system ....etc. This comes due to the need of the economy to release from the tribes: Capitalism can not work with the tribes.... I am sure that this change will come.

What is the "bad" evolution: In my last visit in Jordan i observed many Jordanian youngsters to behave in "monkey like" way. What i mean. The dressed, behaved as western people but the same time they were thinking as "bad" traditional Arab people. I observed a change in the look but not in the ideas. This is the "Bad" evolution. To take only the image (the shape) of the others and keep the same mind.

The "good" evolution is this where in a criticism way you evolve the ideas. You keep the good things of your tradition and take the good things of the others. You change in the substance not only in the shape.

Evolution of society will come. The main thing is to be a part of it and not only a result of it...

"It deserves my friend to exist for a dream even if its fire will burn you"

2007-08-06T13:22:00.000-07:00

"Honesty man Mr. Pantelis
you have a shop somewhere in the earth
you sell your merchandize, you make money
a lot of money, a lot of money
Sundays morning in the church
you make your cross to virgin mary.

Honesty man Mr. Pantelis
you have a wife, a daughter and a son
modern furniture, coloured TV,
you eat intellectual food.
Away from political parties not to have trouble,
"Country, Religion and family"

Honesty man Mr. Pantelis
what if thousands of people die without food
blacks, whites or yellows.
Only your son to be good
to leave the name and the money

Honesty man Mr. Pantelis
you rotted in the shop
you expensed your youth and your vehemence
for the money, for the skin
beside you the dream, the life and the light
but you stayed inside your shell.

Do you know how others gave, Mr. Pantelis,
their youth and lives
to make the dream a piece of bread
from which you also eat.

And what you gave Mr. Pantelis?
Tell us what you did on this earth?
Tell us what you left as heritage
that would inspire the new generation

Honesty man Mr. Pantelis
fearful and without will
you messed the dream and the soul
empty skin without bread.

Honesty people, new generation
bury the honests in the fields
and those who made Mr. Pantelis
a useless worm on this earth."**

There are people with ideas and dreams, people who want to make the world a better place for everyone.

There are other people who do not have ideas and dreams, people who only see their personal benefits and nothing else.

There are people that fight and give even their life for their ideas and their dreams.

There are other people that always stay in the back and wait for the others to make the move, people who always want to be with the winners and have no opinion about anything.

There are people who LIVE in this life even if this means their death.

There are other people who "live" in this life by rotting in the hunting of false dreams of money and personal wealth.

And as someone sometime said:

"It deserves my friend to exist for a dream even if its fire will burn you"

**A song by Panos Tzavelas (In Greek) {Free Translation by me!!}

Back from Vacations

2007-08-04T11:04:00.000-07:00

Just back from Vacation...

5 days full of sea, relaxation and rest!!

What i understood is that vacations are certainly a need for human beings to be able to continue their creativity.

Before 10-15 years here in Greece people used to go out for vacations for 3-4 weeks every year. Nowdays this has been compressed in 1-2 weeks and for youngsters even 5 days.

The cost for vacations is getting higher and higher and this is making vacations a dream for many people. The informations that are given by the press says that more than 40% of the Greek population don't have the ability to go for vacations. The same time the banks are taking advantage of it and published a new loan: The vacation loan!!!

Every human need is important. As you can not live without food you can not live without rest. Vacations are a need for human beings to keep creative and live. We must ensure it.

About "Live Earth"

2007-07-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

While watching the news this morning i heard about a music marathon with the name "Live Earth" that would be take place in 7 cities in all over the world. The cause of this music marathon is the Sensitization of the people for the enviroment and the confrontation of overheat of the planet. Many great musicians as Madona, Metallica, Police and many others would participate in this music marathon. The concerts took place in Saturday in Johannesburg, London, New Jersey, Rio de Janeiro and Shanghai while an event-surprise became also in the Antarctica in a British scientific station with the attendance of an amateur group.

The news are good. There is an attempt to motivate people for the safe of the enviroment.
I was happy to hear for these concerts until i saw Mr. Al Gore, the former vice president of the USA the days of the Clinton Administration, speaking in the concerts.
What i was seeing was true!! The journalist on the TV station was saying that Mr. Gore had the initiative for this musical marathon!!

What is happening here i thought?? The same moment i remembered that Mr. Gore was here in Greece to give a talk about enviroment and the overheat of the planet. He also produced a video documentary that took an Oscar this year!!

What is happening here???? Was he or not the vice president of the US?? Was he or not one of the men that gave the order to Bombard Yugoslavia with weapons of Depleted Uranium destroying the enviroment of the Balkans??? was he or not the vice president of a country that DID NOT sign the KIOTO agreement????What happened and he changed his views???

In my opinion all this is hypocracy and big lies. It has to do with the coming elections and his personal image and nothing else. Why am i saying this??Because if he realy wanted to do something for the enviroment he could (and had to) do it when he was the number 2 man in the world. He didn't. Now the time has passed and there is only words ....

Experiment verifies and proves theory, and Life the words of men.

Life has proved that actions as this of Mr Gore are not authentic and hide personal ambitions.

We must reject them!!!

Split and Rule!!

2007-06-17T08:28:00.000-07:00

From the ancient years there is a basic practice for the strong powers to rule other people: YOU SPLIT A GROUP OF PEOPLE AND THEN YOU CAN EASILY CONTROL IT.
This policy is a practice throughout history. The Romans did it in their ages. In our days they (NATO) did it in Yugoslavia so they can control the Balkans. They try to do it in Iraq by splitting the people there in three groups the Kurds, the Sunni and the shi'a and make them fight against each other so they will leave the British and US occupation forces out of fight.
This tactic is also executed in a social plane. There, they try to split one social class into smaller parts: The workers in the private sector vs the workers in the state sectors, the workers with a degree ( for example engineers, or doctors ....) vs the workers without a degree etc. When a part of the working class is fighting for its rights they try to lead other parts of the working class against it and leave the capital with its profits!!
This policy is what is happening these days in Palestine. They could not fight against one united people so they forced its split by imposing conditions of strangulation in the Palestinian people, by constructing the wall, by supporting concretely political and militant groups that support their policy in the region and fight other that are not supporting.
The Palestinian people must understand this tactic and keep united, leaving beside the political and militant powers that support with their attitude and practice this catastrophic policy. They must stay united so they can accomplish their main goal: The end of occupation and the foundation of an independent and viable Palestinian state.

Different Sides of the same coin

2007-06-08T05:17:00.000-07:00

In the most countries, of what we call west, the political system is characterized by the alternation between two political Parties. In the USA there are the Democrats and the Republicans, in Britain the Conservatives and the Labours, in Spain the Spanish Socialist Workers Party and Peoples Party, in Greece PASOK ( Social Democrats) and the New Democracy (Neoliberals). The same situation is happening in most of the other countries with The Neoliberals and the Social democrats to alternate in the governments.
This is called the two-Party political system.
The main characteristic of the two-Party political System is that the two Parties have no differences on main aspects of their policy. The two Parties practise the same policy when they are governments and make opposition when they are not. They work so to disorientate the people from understanding of the causes of the real problems of their lives, the real problems of everyday.
Let us see some examples. What is the policy of the Democrats and the Republicans in the USA in the case of war? For the period after the 1990. The Republicans made the first war in Iraq. The Democrats made the war in Yugoslavia and the Balkans and then the Republicans made the war in Afghanistan and the second war in Iraq. Today the Democrats ask the government to take back the troops from Iraq and on the same time some of their candidates for the Presidential elections of 2008 had voted in favour of the invasion of Iraq!! What about the new law for the immigrants and the agreement of the two parties.
In Italy the government the left Party contributed in the war in Yugoslavia and then the government of the right party contributed in the war in Iraq. Today the government of Romano Prodi one year after the elections is planning the transformation of thousands of work places from permanent to provisional the same way as the right government Silvio Berlousconi did.
In Greece New Democracy, that is now ruling, is applying the laws of the previous government of PASOK about work, health. Both of them are supporting the privatization of education.
What is the reason of this coincidence of the political views?
The Social democrats and the Neoliberals, no matter what is the name of the party that they have in every country, are serving the same interests. Their policy is in favor of businessman and bankers. The rise of their profits (businessman and bankers) and their strength. Their policy is against the interests of the working people and we can show many examples to prove this.
The people must disengage from this political parties and their policy. On the question are you with the democrats or the republicans (the Social democrats or the Neoliberals) the people must answer not with the republicans nor the democrats (not with the Neoliberals nor the Social democrats) we are with working people's interests. In every country people must find the political party, and if there is not one then must establish it, that serves their interests and not the interests of the big capital.
They are different sides of the same coin and we must through them away!!!

About Philosophy

2007-05-26T09:12:00.001-07:00

When we say Philosophy most of the people think that we are talking about general meanings with no meaning!! Most of the people connect Philosophy with Eastern Philosophies as Buddhism, Hinduism or connects it with metaphysical concepts.

On this article i will try to show the significance of Philosophy and how it relates with Science.
Philosophy, as any concept, has an evolutional course throughout history.
The word Philosophy is a Greek word that comes from the combination of the two Greek words "Philos" that means friend and "Sophia" that means wisdom: The friend of wisdom or better love of the wisdom.
In the farthest historical years philosophy developed in China and India. At the 7th and 6th B.C. century philosophy appeared in Greece where it was developed on a high level. On the medieval, Theology took the place of Philosophy and it stoped to be a separate science. The 15th and 16th century was the starting point for an important turn in the history of Philosophy: The entrance of the experimental science. Science was developed fast. This encourages the appearance of different materialistic philosophies.
At the begginig, on ancient Greece, Philosphy meant the total of the human knowledge. The social, natural and other parts of the human knowledge were part of the philosophy. The development of Science on the Renaissance lead all this "sections" of philosophy to get their independence and become independent sciences. From now on philosophy is a particular region of knowledge. Its cause is to process a weltanschauung and found it.
The difference between philosophy and particular sciences is that science is studying certain parts of the universe while philosophy takes all this parts and tries to found a global weltanschauung. It links between all specific sciences, it depends on them, and gives the global laws.
There are many kinds of Philosophy: Rationalism, Platonism, Relativism, Materialism...etc. Every Philosophy must answer one BASIC question that comes in two parts: I. what is being first, The Nature (the matter) or the spirit (the logic, the idea, the consciousness) and II. What is the relation between our knowledge and the universe, are we able to know the real universe (cosmos).
Depending on the answer of the basic question of the philosophy all the kinds of philosophy converge on two kinds: Idealism and Materialism.
Idealism says that the first is the human consciousness, God or "the absolute idea". Some idealists say that we can know the universe and others say that we can not (agnosticism) .
Materialism says that the first is The nature (the matter) and then comes the consciousness. It says that human beings are able to know the world that we live on.
The war between Materialism and Idealism on the plane of ideas is directly connected with the war on the social plane. Throughout history Materialism was the theory of the oppressed classes and Idealism the theory of oppressively classes.

REFERENCES:

Small Philosophical dictionary. Rozental M., Gioudin P. Angnostidi editions (Greek).
Elementary beginnings of philosophy. Politzer G. Gnoseis editions (Greek) 1984.
The basic beginnings of marxist Philosophy, Sychrony epochy editions (Greek) 2005.
www.wikipedia.org

What Stone Garden is??!!

2007-04-17T08:35:00.000-07:00

The Stone Garden is a title of a book by Nikos Kazantzakis.