Precepts-Not-Politics: Aid, Life and Death

[Seiko]

So many lives in the balance because of one man. I've been on a few protests in my day. And I've spoken at outdoor Trade Union rallies. Not sure if it ever works. It just seems to rile up those who don't agree - polarising. I don't know what the answer is.

Gasshō, Seiko, stlah

[Hoseki]

So many lives in the balance because of one man. I've been on a few protests in my day. And I've spoken at outdoor Trade Union rallies. Not sure if it ever works. It just seems to rile up those who don't agree - polarising. I don't know what the answer is.

Gasshō, Seiko, stlah

Hi Seiko,

I'm going to post about some of this stuff in the other thread. I think we need to consider three vectors when have these kinds of discussions.

1. What are the facts?
2. What are the desired outcomes?
3. How does this particular policy or administration help us meet the desired outcomes?

1. What are the facts, if we disagree here then we have to start our discussion here and that often involves discussing who we trust and why. But if we can't agree on the basic facts of a situation there won't be any productive discussion on how to move forward. I would consider people reconsidering who they trust and why to be productive as building trust can take time. There will also be some facts that are worth discussing but not right away. If people don't see you as concerned about their problems but only the problems of other people they often feel like they are being used. That their concerns don't matter and they will either tune you out or get angry.

2. What are the desired outcomes? What do we want in general?

I think it's worth keeping in mind that humans are basically all the same, we want stability, safety, our material needs met (food, shelter, clothing etc...) companionship, the respect of those we think of as our peers, and entertainment. Depending on what's going on in our lives some of those will take president over the others. E.g. No one who is starving is terribly concerned about the outcome of the hockey game but well fed comfortable people will invest a lot of time and energy in not just the game, but following the careers of players, starting fantasy leagues and the like. They will also be very serious about it. When we look at it abstractly it's not that different that what a dog or cat wants and needs.

A lot of what we find challenging may be driven by people feeling that some of some of those wants and needs either arn't being met or are threatened. I think this is helpful because it helps flesh out the other person. They are no longer an aggravating position in human form but an actual human with wants, needs and fears. The more fearful we are the more we are going to close up to the suffering of others (in general.) This is a defense mechanism, it's sort of like being on a plane and the air masks come down. The parents put theirs on first then they put it on the children. If they collapse while putting the mask on their kids its possible both will be in trouble. This also means we should be talking to them about issues that are important to them. Ideally, issues that they share with others. This process can help build community and understanding as people can stop seeing each others as threats but allies in a common struggle.

3. I think the last one only really works when the first two are more or less met. The problem with many discussions online is we jump to the this point without addressing the first two. I would also add that the internet and social media arn't conducive for 1 and 2. This works better in person where people can see each others. Unions are a good place to start because everyone has a reason to be in the same place.

Anyway, just a few thoughts.

Gassho,

Hoseki
sattoday/lah

[Chikyou]

I have many, many thoughts and feelings, both terrified and angry, about the state of the world in general and what this administration is doing in particular. I don’t feel it would be wholly appropriate to get into them now as I fear I won’t be able to express them fully and kindly. I do however have this question to ask:

Is there a way that I, an ordinary citizen with no time for protesting but a modest amount of disposable income, can help? What charities exist (that are reliable/vetted) that are best positioned to help with this crisis (and others). Since, likely, the most meaningful thing I have to give is money, where should I give it? (I am just catching up on the forums so if there’s already a separate discussion about this please redirect me!)

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

[Jundo]

I have many, many thoughts and feelings, both terrified and angry, about the state of the world in general and what this administration is doing in particular. I don’t feel it would be wholly appropriate to get into them now as I fear I won’t be able to express them fully and kindly. I do however have this question to ask:

Is there a way that I, an ordinary citizen with no time for protesting but a modest amount of disposable income, can help? What charities exist (that are reliable/vetted) that are best positioned to help with this crisis (and others). Since, likely, the most meaningful thing I have to give is money, where should I give it? (I am just catching up on the forums so if there’s already a separate discussion about this please redirect me!)

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

I would say that the reason governments exist is that many of these problems are beyond ordinary people donating $50, or even private institutions. I don't think that there is a lot that can be done by individuals to even be a drop in the bucket on this, frankly. I wish I could say in this case that, as the Buddha once taught, "donating a broken pot lid is the same as donating billions in gold," but in this case it just won't get it done.

I like to say that 1 person, joining with 10 or 100 or 100,000 other people, can move mountains, but in this case, it may not be enough. According to the BBC, USAID's budget amounts to around $40bn - about 0.6% of total US annual government spending of $6.75tn. It would take other governments stepping in, plus "white hat" billionaires (e.g., Bill Gates, Mark Cuban), to counteract the damage being done by the "black hat" billionaires, and even they may not have enough money.

It is simple economics.

Gassho, J
stlah

[Chikyou]

I would say that the reason governments exist is that many of these problems are beyond ordinary people donating $50, or even private institutions. I don't think that there is a lot that can be done by individuals to even be a drop in the bucket on this, frankly. I wish I could say in this case that, as the Buddha once taught, "donating a broken pot lid is the same as donating billions in gold," but in this case it just won't get it done.

I like to say that 1 person, joining with 10 or 100 or 100,000 other people, can move mountains, but in this case, it may not be enough. According to the BBC, USAID's budget amounts to around $40bn - about 0.6% of total US annual government spending of $6.75tn. It would take other governments stepping in, plus "white hat" billionaires (e.g., Bill Gates, Mark Cuban), to counteract the damage being done by the "black hat" billionaires, and even they may not have enough money.

It is simple economics.

Gassho, J
stlah

Well sure, I certainly don’t expect to solve everything myself (I can’t even solve all of my own problems, let alone everyone else’s). But doing something is better than doing nothing at all.

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

[Jundo]

Well sure, I certainly don’t expect to solve everything myself (I can’t even solve all of my own problems, let alone everyone else’s). But doing something is better than doing nothing at all.

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

Well, we can send our $50 to any of the usual high rated, respected charities that help the poor I guess.

https://www.charitynavigator.org/discover-charities/best-charities/address-global-poverty/

It truly is a drop in the bucket, really a drop in the ocean, however, and should not be used to let us feel we have done something important in response.

Gassho, J
stlah

[Onsho]

Is there a way that I, an ordinary citizen with no time for protesting but a modest amount of disposable income, can help? What charities exist (that are reliable/vetted) that are best positioned to help with this crisis (and others). Since, likely, the most meaningful thing I have to give is money, where should I give it? (I am just catching up on the forums so if there’s already a separate discussion about this please redirect me!)

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

There is a man named Robert Reich, former secratary of labour. He is on substack, free content. He put out a fantastic artical about this two days ago.

https://open.substack.com/pub/robertreich/p/more-on-what-you-can-do?r=56tiuc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

Quick notes:
1. Protect vulnerable members of your communities who are undocumented or whose parents are undocumented.
2. Protect LGBTQ+ members of your community.
3. Help protect public officials whom T**** and his administration are targeting for vengeance.
4. Contact your Democratic senators and urge them to block all T***p nominations.
5. Urge your Democratic senators to continuously demand quorum calls and object to unanimous consent, to deny Senate Republicans the ability to enact Tr*** initiatives.

The list goes on with info included and letter templates. Thats all I will add out in the open here. Im happy to edit the list if its a bit to forward for treeleaf

This is overwhelming, and its meant to be overwhelming. Pick your role and dance it well, you don’t have to handle it all yourself. Hype yourself up before starting and act with love. Know how much space you have before starting, its VERY emotionally draining. Find time for extra care for yourself as you go. The working poor are at high risk now, food banks and homeless support will be extremely important moving forward. New resources are rolling out everyday.

Im always down with brainstorming if you or anyone else needs a bit of support.
Hope this helps a bit.

Gassho
Onsho
Satlah

[Shoshin]

I would say that the reason governments exist is that many of these problems are beyond ordinary people donating $50, or even private institutions. I don't think that there is a lot that can be done by individuals to even be a drop in the bucket on this, frankly. I wish I could say in this case that, as the Buddha once taught, "donating a broken pot lid is the same as donating billions in gold," but in this case it just won't get it done.

I like to say that 1 person, joining with 10 or 100 or 100,000 other people, can move mountains, but in this case, it may not be enough. According to the BBC, USAID's budget amounts to around $40bn - about 0.6% of total US annual government spending of $6.75tn. It would take other governments stepping in, plus "white hat" billionaires (e.g., Bill Gates, Mark Cuban), to counteract the damage being done by the "black hat" billionaires, and even they may not have enough money.

It is simple economics.

Gassho, J
stlah

Many other countries are already contributing with a much larger % of their gross national income (GNI). The States contribute with a very very small % but because of the size of it's economy ends (ended...) up being the bigger donor. Unfortunately I don't think other countries are going to make up for what the States will stop spending in Aid.
For those that think that the United States have been
making an economic big effort with their development Aid the following numbers will probably be shocking:


"Luxembourg made the largest contribution as a percentage of gross national income (GNI) at 1.05% and the United Nations’ ODA target of 0.7% of GNI was also exceeded by Norway (1.02%), Sweden (0.99%) and Denmark (0.71%).^[1] The European Union accumulated a higher portion of GDP as a form of foreign aid than any other economic union.^[2]

The United States is a small contributor relative to GNI (0.22% 2022^[3]) but is the largest single DAC donor of ODA in 2022 (US$55.3 billion) followed by Germany (0.8% GNI, US$35.0 billion), France (0.7%, US$19.5 billion), Japan (0.3%, US$17.3 billion) and the United Kingdom (0.5%, US$15.7 billion).^[4"

As an interesting comparison, India contributes with a 0.65 % of their GDP....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_development_aid_sovereign_state_donors

Gassho,
Satlah

[Shoshin]

In other words, the "preceptual" IS the political...?

It's never so simple.

I worked for 3 years as a settlement worker for immigrants to Canada.

I also founded a bicycle co-op which served an emergency shelter and the "Working poor"

This set up a dichotomy for me between those who are seen as deserving aid and those who are not and what the basis for this was (AND IT WAS ALWAYS POLITICAL).

I could write several lengthy papers on this so I won't bore you. But it might interest you to think about who are the deserving of help and who are not...

Modern Interpretations
Even today, many social policies reflect this distinction, often implicitly:

1. Deserving Poor:

Individuals with disabilities

The elderly

Children

Widows or single parents (in some perspectives)

Those who work but still struggle (the "working poor")


These groups are often seen as victims of circumstance and, therefore, worthy of government or charitable support.


2. Non-Deserving Poor:

Those perceived as unwilling to work despite being able-bodied

People struggling with addiction

Long-term welfare recipients

Those who engage in criminal behavior


These individuals are often judged as having made bad choices and, therefore, are seen as less deserving of support.

How you choose who to help based on your observance of the precepts also indicates your politics.

Who deserves my chunk of flesh that I cut off my own body and who gets to decide?

_/\_
sat/ah
hōsai

Thanks for your reflection.
I share your concern about the way that those that are judged to be" non deserving poor" are abandoned by the social support systems.

And I agree with you: politics cannot be separated from ethics. Ethics cannot be separated from the precepts. Therefore, the precepts cannot be separated from politics.

Sure the precepts, as we have seen during Ango, can be interpreted in different ways, but as Jundo said, some things are "immoral by anything but the darkest interpretation of our Vows and general humane values."

I really, really want to believe that most of the people that voted for Republicans didn't really mean for Trump and Co to cut Aid support, to threaten Canada and Denmark, to displace Palestinians and build in their land “the Riviera of the Middle East”, to instigate the raise to power of fascism in Europe, to block the International Court of Justice....

I need to believe that none of this is what a majority of our United Statesian siblings wanted from their government. If I believed this it would be a blow to my already seriously damaged faith in humanity....

Gassho
Satlah

[Shoshin]

I have a book recommendation for anyone interested.

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/547708/radical-dharma-by-rev-angel-kyodo-williams-lama-rod-owens-and-jasmine-syedullah/

Radical Dharma
By Rev. Angel Kyodo Williams
Lama Rod Owens
Jasmine Syedullah

Rev Angel is fully ordained in the Soto tradition, that being said she is the second Black woman on earth and the third Black person in America to be ordained in our tradition.

All three authors are wonderful writers. The writing is very accessible well also being very concise. It's intimate, personal and loving while also being fierce. It offers a lot of deep perspectives for anyone on any part of their journey. This book has cleared up so many of my personal conflicts with the world today and I feel grounded enough with myself that I'm able to reach out and support others once again.

Rev Angel is an excellent teacher for people that wish to participate in engaged Buddhism while keeping very much in line with the precepts. She also has a online course in April "Embodying Social Justice".

Gassho
Onshō
satlah

Thanks for sharing. I didn't know her. I'll check the book out. I really need to "cleare up many of my personal conflicts with the world" too
I cannot find the link to the course. Can you share it?

Gassho
Satlah

[Kojitsu]

I feel the two biggest things you can personally do right now are voting with your wallet and disengaging. The first one is pretty obvious, don’t support any business or organization that aligns against your best interests. Many people have taken a lot of time and effort to make this information available, just search for it and it is pretty easy to find.

The second one is not as easy, and that is disengaging. It is important to understand how our information based world works. Everything that people and organizations put on the internet is driven by one thing and one thing only, engagement. You may think that going on social media and arguing the case for your beliefs is a great thing, but truth be told the incentives are very wrong in doing so. You are engaging with people that are using your anger to make money, plain and simple. The more anger you generate, the more ad money they make. Just stay away, that’s how you truly make impact, no anger, no money. It may seem counterintuitive at first, but really think about if everyone that wants to stand against this just stopped arguing with the other side. You personally make them no money, and now your “opponent” no longer makes them nearly as much.

Ditch social media platforms like X and Facebook that are harmful for so many reasons. Need to communicate with family and friends, start a group text, or use a platform who isn’t in the pockets of people looking to capitalize on your anger. Tell your friends to do the same. Your anger online is their fuel, so just take it away from them. I know how hard that is, because I get angry as well and think “if only they understood, then they would not do this”. Well unfortunately, they are immune to facts and just do not believe anything beyond their confirmation bias. But people are betting you will try and line their pockets along the way.

If you feel the need to do something, do something good. Volunteer to a charity, help a neighbor, build a better community where others can see your good nature and hopefully try to do good too. Complaining on the internet only enriches those that monetize your anger.

st/lah
gassho
kojitsu

[Shoshin]

Well sure, I certainly don’t expect to solve everything myself (I can’t even solve all of my own problems, let alone everyone else’s). But doing something is better than doing nothing at all.

Gassho,
SatLah,
Chikyō

I believe that definitely some money can make a difference in the small scale and help improve the lives of sentient beings. Most of us have no money to make structural changes but some of us have some money that can help in significative ways.

I'm lucky to have time to do activism. I'm aware that this is a privilege that not everyone has and I'm grateful for it. And we are lucky to have some extra money to donate. Not a lot so we needed to think carefully where to put this money.
To choose we thought of an collective that we were particularly moved to help. There are lots of collectives in need of help, we chose animal sanctuaries. And then we found out that there was one close to our home for which the amount of money that we can donate would really make a difference. So, we put our money there every month.

Maybe you can first look for a "general" collective that you are particularly moved to help. Then look for a particular community/association/ONG , either local, national or international that could do with the money you can give.


It's a very general idea but I hope it helps.


Gassho
Satlah

[Ddixon]

I have avoided posting to this thread because I feel that politics ha e become so divided in the United States, that there is no longer room for civil discourse.

One post said we must look at the facts.

1. The fact is 6 presidents have stopped all government spending on 8 occasions to assess the spending issues, from both parties, and the aid was resumed.

2. The USAID department had questionable fraud that needed to be stopped. However, the portions to send food, medicine, etc to help the poor has been turned over to the State Department responsiblity.

3. The current administration was in power before, and the world did not end.

I have been alive long enough to live under 10 presidents in 11 administrations. In those 5 decades the pendulum has swung both ways and everytime there was a shift, it felt like the world as we knew it was ending for the minority party. Yet, we the people are still here.

As a retired military person, I have faith in the American people, that if things do go wrong that they will stand up and end any tyranny.

I feel none of this will change as long as we keep playing the US vs Them game, and come to the table in civil discourse to compromise on the issues to reach an acceptable agreement. Until then, the pendulum will swing wildly, with half the population thinking the other half are ignorant, deplorable and other name callings we have witnessed.

I stand for everyone to live their life how they want, and I have and will do so again to fight so that those freedoms stay secured.

Lastly, never underestimate the power of 1 person standing up to change the world. Gandhi, King, Mother Teresa, and many others have proven how 1 person can make a difference.

In metta, I stand with you all.

Gassho,

Douglas

Satlah

[Hosai]

I feel the two biggest things you can personally do right now are voting with your wallet and disengaging. The first one is pretty obvious, don’t support any business or organization that aligns against your best interests. Many people have taken a lot of time and effort to make this information available, just search for it and it is pretty easy to find.

The second one is not as easy, and that is disengaging. It is important to understand how our information based world works. Everything that people and organizations put on the internet is driven by one thing and one thing only, engagement. You may think that going on social media and arguing the case for your beliefs is a great thing, but truth be told the incentives are very wrong in doing so. You are engaging with people that are using your anger to make money, plain and simple. The more anger you generate, the more ad money they make. Just stay away, that’s how you truly make impact, no anger, no money. It may seem counterintuitive at first, but really think about if everyone that wants to stand against this just stopped arguing with the other side. You personally make them no money, and now your “opponent” no longer makes them nearly as much.

Ditch social media platforms like X and Facebook that are harmful for so many reasons. Need to communicate with family and friends, start a group text, or use a platform who isn’t in the pockets of people looking to capitalize on your anger. Tell your friends to do the same. Your anger online is their fuel, so just take it away from them. I know how hard that is, because I get angry as well and think “if only they understood, then they would not do this”. Well unfortunately, they are immune to facts and just do not believe anything beyond their confirmation bias. But people are betting you will try and line their pockets along the way.

If you feel the need to do something, do something good. Volunteer to a charity, help a neighbor, build a better community where others can see your good nature and hopefully try to do good too. Complaining on the internet only enriches those that monetize your anger.

st/lah
gassho
kojitsu

I'm only on one platform YouTube... all I would have to do is let go of YouTube and I would no longer know what happened in my world except what I observed and what people told me...

and what little I see is making me very agitated... part of me wonders if watching more might actually numb me a little better...

and actually I think that's the issue is a lot of people are so involved in their social media and all that other stuff that they're numb.... At least that's one of my explanations...

_/\_
hōsai

[Jundo]

I have avoided posting to this thread because I feel that politics ha e become so divided in the United States, that there is no longer room for civil discourse.

One post said we must look at the facts.

1. The fact is 6 presidents have stopped all government spending on 8 occasions to assess the spending issues, from both parties, and the aid was resumed.

2. The USAID department had questionable fraud that needed to be stopped. However, the portions to send food, medicine, etc to help the poor has been turned over to the State Department responsiblity.

Then let us hope you are right, that this all turns out well, that no children starve, that no sick die because they have been denied available medicines. I hope that you are right too.

So far, it is looking very dangerous with possibly millions of vulnerable people at risk ...
.

But let us hope you are right.

Gassho, Jundo
stlah