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DAVID BENTLEY'S WEEKLY COLUMN

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PART OF THE SOLUTION

posted 03/16/03
This week's Time Magazine contains a photograph of a military chaplain baptizing eight marines in a pool created in a Middle-East desert with plastic sheeting and sandbags. Lieutenant Colonel Bryan P. McCoy, U.S.M.C., is quoted as saying, "Our soldiers have already asked forgiveness for what we're going to do to the Iraqi army."

In Lesotho, a mountainous African country, garment factories produce clothing sold by chain stores in the United States and Canada. Women workers must arrive before 7 a.m. when the doors are locked. If they are late or cannot work because of family illness, they are replaced. Lesotho has a 50% unemployment rate, and one-third of the population has AIDS. There are always women waiting for a chance at one of the low-paying jobs.

Here in the United States, our government is proposing laws making it easier for health insurance companies to change rates while we remain the only industrialized nation in the world without national health care. The number of uninsured Americans grows each day because insurance is often tied to employment, and in tough economic times jobs get cut. Even those with Medicare have difficulty paying for prescription drugs.

In the idyllic San Juan Islands, sheriff's deputies were called to a local park to ensure that a shouting match between two groups of citizens did not escalate. American Legion members opposed another group using Memorial Park to protest against war. Members of both groups were military veterans.

I don't have a fool-proof solution to any of these situations, but I know that neither blame nor indifference will solve them. My hunch is that only when we learn to listen to each other and take responsibility for being part of the solution will these issues, and others like them, be resolved. We humans are a diverse lot, but so are the flowers in our spring gardens. Somehow, our gardens remain united.

  • Are you willing to study all sides of an issue?

  • Do you fully listen to other people?

  • Has blame or indifference created lasting solutions?

  • How can you take part in solving social problems?

© 2003 David Bentley

David Bentley, M.Ed. & Personal Coach, coaches clients through the game of life, helping them find balance, clarity of direction, and purpose in an ever-changing world.

You may contact him at 360.378.8436

by e-mail at david@coachbentley.com

or visit his Web site: www.coachbentley.com

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