The idea behind "The Butterfly Effect" is that some very small seemingly insignificant action can have huge consequences. The butterfly could flap his wings in such a way that weeks in the future his wing flaps could result in a huge storm hundreds of miles away. The children's book, "Because a Little Bug Went Ka-Choo!" by Rosetta Stone further illustrates this idea by showing us that when the little bug sneezed he set a chain of events in place that resulted in a huge disruption in a nearby town.
What both of these illustrations have in common is that very small things can have a huge impact on the world. However, it would seem that if this were the case then the world would certainly see the results of those who take the time and effort to intentionally change the world in the positive direction. If simply sneezing can result in the destruction of a town parade, why wouldn't intentionally teaching people about the damage of global warming result in the world changing for the better?
As many of you already know, there are many people out there who are selfish. These people act with self-interest and they work against the common good of the world. Some of these people are interested in personal wealth and others are interested in personal power. And, in order to increase their own personal wealth and power they find ways to diminish the personal wealth and power of the community. On the grand scale of world politics this is the overview of general political struggle.
Just because there is a force working against the common good of the world community does not mean that we should give up hope. To the contrary we need to work harder for what we know to be the common good for all people. This is why we need to remember that the Butterfly Effect does come into play from time to time.
The death of Coretta Scott King this last week brought to mind how the Butterfly Effect continues to reach out. A few years ago I became acquainted with a Catholic Nun who had some deep insights into the human struggle. She did a lot for the community and her actions taught me how people in a community could act to help one another. And, when the parish that she worked at recognized her 50 years since taking her vows the organizers presented her life history. And, among the bits and pieces of her life was a photo of her sitting on a grassy hill talking to Coretta Scott King during the Selma protests. And, when I asked her to tell me the story, she told me how the church didn't really like the idea of these nuns going to Alabama. And, that made me realize that what seemed to be a natural response to Human Rights issues was not a very easy thing to do. But, her story also inspired me to do the right thing, even if it isn't always the easy thing. This is exactly what the Butterfly Effect is - an inspiration to carry on.
In the spirit of the Butterfly Effect I started blogging over two years ago. At the time I had no idea what I would write about, but I thought that I should write in an effort to spread the spirit of the "Common Good" for the community. In spreading the "Common Good" it has become clear that it also requires fighting the selfish interests of those who oppose the "Common Good." My personal goal is that the things that I write plant a seed in my readers' minds that they will use when the time comes to propagate the Butterfly Effect to the next person. Maybe its when they decide to be nice to the person next to them, for no reason except to keep peace. Or, perhaps its when they read something that I write and they pass that message to their friend.
Many Americans shy away from the idea of a common good for the country, state or community. This is because this language quickly becomes interpreted by those of more selfish interested as a way to attack the idea with the specter of Communism. Communism was based on the idea that the interest in the common good could become the only thing of importance and motivates people to work for everyone else. But, the reality of this is that there is a huge distance between selfish self-interest and Communism. America has a great tradition of using the community to solve problems. The Puritans in New England had the idea of sharing a commons in the middle of town where everyone could graze their sheep, grow plants or enjoy the area. This idea of a commons for the community certainly didn't make the Puritans Communists. The most famous of these commons is Boston Commons that still exists today in the middle of downtown Boston.
In today's world the common good for the citizens of the United States of America can be debated. Sometimes what seems to be good for all turns out to be bad for all. For example, the old saying that giving a man a fish will keep him from starving today, but teaching a man to fish will keep him from starving for a lifetime rings true as we think about the common good for America. Feeding people as a safety net is a good thing, but feeding them for their lifetime is criminal. In fact, this teaches them not to value the food that everyone else needs to pay for with money that they earn from a job. Balance in the discussion of these critical issues is important, and slogans don't solve the problems.
Discovering the "Common Good" is sometimes more difficult than implementing it. And, that's why discussions about the common good are so important. And, those discussions are the Butterflies that end up effecting the way our world progresses.
This is why I believe that every person engaged in the debate over the common good is so critical. The point isn't that we agree on every subject and issue, but that we bring those subjects and issues forward so that they can be examined in the sunshine. This is different from the self-interest that we are fighting against. When people have self-interest they want that self-interest hidden from view. When special interests like Jack Abramoff pay politicians so that his clients benefit from laws passed by those politicians the common good can not be served. Only the self-interest of those few are served by this bribery. And, when politicians like Tom DeLay engineer ways that make their Political Party more powerful that the small number of people who put them in power he is not working for the Common Good. When Enron is allowed to artificially raise the price of electricity so that the state of California is required to borrow money to pay for expensive contracts that extend for years and the self-interested politicians are not willing to fix the problem the politicians are not working for the common good. When politicians push the limits of the truth to create reasons to send our young men into needless battles where some of these men will die the politicians are not working for the common good. In fact, when politicians lie to the voters to avoid a public debate these politicians are not working for the common good.
But, if we who are working for the common good continue to raise the issues and question the motives and actions of our politicians then we are the butterfly wings that can change the weather and create the storm that will restore the search for the common good to our country.
Cross Posted @ Bring It On, tblog, and BlogSpirit