BP/Gulf #1

Back at this blog and figuring there will be far more to cover with regard to the BP/Gulf oil adventure, but I'm starting with something that Spiritually Responsible Politics often comes down to: intentions. And it doesn't get more simple than this: a phrase from BP's own web site, well over a month into what, apparently, is now "the greatest environmental disaster in history," the lead statement under their "Environmental Management" section which, if they haven't amended it yet, can be found here:"

"BP strives to minimize the environmental impact of its activities by applying management systems and standards and using innovative technology in its operations."

Intentions matter. Intentions matter in the nitty gritty of daily life because they help us with the choices and decisions we make on a moment-by-moment, hour-by-hour, day-to-day basis. Intentions matter on a spiritual level, because it is with our intentions that we give shape to the never-ending flow of Source energy that come to and through us every moment that we are receiving breath. It's a statement to The Universe about who we are and what we are wanting and it's a statement within a greater dialogue which is ongoing and also never-ending.

This statement says so much. It says that it fully expects "environmental impact" from its activities. It says it will try, I'm sorry, strive to reduce such "environmental impact." And not only does it say it has "management systems" and "standards" and that it uses "innovative technology in its operations," but it goes on to describe what those things are and, having read them, they are no more clear. But we need know nothing more than that BP fully expects "environmental impact" - it's built right into its intention and I don't know any way to avoid such disaster and devastation in the future without an intention to avoid it.

Impossible you say? Corporations will always game the system, blah, blah, blah? Then take a gander at this, from Interface, a pioneer in the greening of our economy:

"We will honor the places where we do business by endeavoring to become the first name in industrial ecology, a corporation that cherishes nature and restores the environment. Interface will lead by example and validate by results, including profits, leaving the world a better place than when we began, and we will be restorative through the power of our influence in the world."

How would you like to work there? Now this post seems like it might fit more with Spiritually Responsible Business but the reason we are we we are in the Gulf right now is because our own government does not yet have an intention that is in alignment with the notion that we belong to the planet, not the planet to us the way Interface does.

But it could.

And Herein Lies The Problem

There was a front-page story in yesterday's New York Times about scandals swirling near and around Rep. John P. Murtha-D (PA). As far as I'm concerned, nothing else matters than a statement he was reported to have made to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette which goes a little something like this:

If I am corrupt it is because I take care of my district.

You've got to be kidding me. He's not corrupt, he's just doing his job? And he's not responsible? As in, If I am corrupt it's because I am corrupt. How about that one?

Sure is nice to see some light shining on some situations, ain't it?

Change as a Spiritual Pursuit

As you clamor for and look for change in our politics, know and remember that change is, indeed, a spiritual pursuit and this is how: The nature of Nature (among other things) is to be in a constant state of change. Trees grow, animals are born, ecosystems breathe, species die out, the sun shines, the rains fall, the temperature changes, the oceans move, lightning strikes, droughts and floods occur and all of it is part of the nature of Nature. Never ending change.

We, as human beings, belong to the planet. We are part of it, connected to it, made of the same stuff. So when in our daily lives we allow change, when we offer it no resistance even when it scares the crap out of us, allowing the change aligns us with the nature of Nature and with well being itself. If we're paying attention, we'll notice that we usually feel pretty good when we're in this process - or at least we feel alive!

So the feelings we have now when we think about the change we have just created in our politics, the excitement and enthusiasm and aliveness are due to that very alignment. When we are reveling in it, when we are feeling energy because of it, that's because we have aligned ourselves with Spirit.

And politically speaking, in America, we've only just begun.

Oh Happy Day

I have one thing to say which I have said before in various ways. We get the government we are. Not the government we deserve, but the government we are. It's merely a reflection of us and that's all it can ever be. In the broadest sense, I think we twice elected George W. Bush because our fears outweighed everything else - particularly the second time. But two terms of his reckless policies re-energized our hopes and visions of what could be. Then, we saw in Barack Obama a man who most closely matched our own inclinations. We inspired him and he inspired us and round and round it went and round and round it will go.

So as we prepare to inaugurate him and to pave the way for a new chapter of American history, let us remember not to hold him responsible for single-handedly fixing and healing everything and anything that ails us. He will be our president and, as such, he will do the job as he sees fit. And he will remind us that we, too, must continue to do our parts; to be optimistic and hopeful, to be of service, to take responsibility for the parts of our lives and experiences that have nothing at all to do with government. But most importantly, as we look at him and see hope and confidence and competence and the ability to inspire, we must also see that those qualities in ourselves as well.

Congratulations to us all.

Your Calendar

What does it say on your calendar on November 4? Mine says "Obama Wins." The law of attraction governs us all. We get what we think about. WE get what WE think about.

Think about it.

Speech Writing

Is it just me, or do you also write speeches in your mind for various political candidates at various times? With the campaign down to its final month, Obama surging ahead in battleground states, and "news" from the McCain campaign that they will, essentially, be going for the political jugular by Swift-boating Obama with Bill Ayers, Reverend Wright, and everything and anything else they can think of, I'm wanting Obama to augment his "rapid response" with something like this:

"My fellow Americans,

As John McCain attempts to "turn the page" in the final weeks of our campaign on what is the most devastating financial crisis since the Great Depression because he has no way out and no ideas, he offers me a tremendous opportunity to remind you of the cornerstone of my campaign. It's on the homepage of my web site where I say, "I'm asking you to believe. Not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington, I'm asking you to believe in yours." This notion that the election is not about me but about what you and me can do together - with solid leadership from the top down and grassroots demands from the bottom up - is, itself, a change from politics as usual. It is a change from the George W. Bush "just go shopping and leave it to us" mentality. No measurable amount of anything I have talked about in this long campaign can or will happen unless and until we do it together. And no amount of John McCain's dishonorable, discredited attacks can alter our trajectory if we - and by we I mean you - don't let it.

We are in this together, America. And that is our power. The power of millions of voices who are willing to stand up with me to the powers that have been and say, no. That won't work. We won't let it. My opponent's tactics depend on people not thinking for themselves and the antidote is people thinking for themselves. The antidote is taking responsibility and not leaving it up to others.

So thank you, Senator McCain, for reminding me of what we have in this campaign that you never did or will - the unstoppable combination of millions who desire change and competent leadership that can make it happen."

Or something like that.

Re-Launch

I'm thrilled to be writing about Spiritually Responsible Politics again and, as you can see, have re-launched the blog with this altered title.

With a month left before the election and passions stirring to overflowing, it feels to me like we could all benefit from taking a half step back, receiving a really deep breath, and connecting with the idea that when we attack others and their ideas and their motives and whatever, we are saying much more about ourselves than we are about them.

This is the idea that there's nothing really out there but reflections of us. As it says in the Talmud (I'm no scholar but I did come across this a long time ago), "we don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." The concept that applies here, fundamentally, is the law of attraction. We see what we are. And so when we rail against this candidate or that one, or this supporter or the other one, it's incumbent upon us, from a spiritually responsible perspective, to recognize that whatever it is we're reacting to is alive and well in us. In one form or another. Guaranteed.

Given that the entire intention of Spiritually Responsible Politics is to elevate the public discourse, I invite you to imagine with me what our discourse will be like when enough of us understand that we broadcast information about ourselves when we engage other in political debate.

Boy this is fun.