Working for the Benefit of All

Many an individual has turned from the mean,
personal, acquisitive point of view to one that sees
society as a whole and works for its benefit.

If there has been such a change in one person,
there can be the same change in many.

~Mahatma Gandhi

Of Note: If Gandhi was alive today, he would see a different society than the one he left. It still has warts and pimples, to be sure, but slowly a visible transformation is occurring in Humanity as a whole. Getting back to basics is a common theme these days. With austerity as a background, many folks are joining together in a discovery of spiritual values: a love of truth, a recognition of the rights and needs of all, a spirit of cooperation, a sense of personal responsibility and the sacrifice of selfishness for the common good.

Today's Weather Report: The January thaw is one day late. Today, February 1st we are having a delightfully warm day--well, warm for northern Wisconsin at 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Water is dripping from the roof, and a thundering cascade of accumulated snow just fell to the ground. It sounded like a mini-avalanche. Startling, really. Many thanks to Marie for this ethereal moon shot captured during a warm Texas evening.

Watch For Change Snippet: Multiple articles have highlighted the new, simple lifestyles of westerners during this current financial crisis. Ordinary people are cutting back in many ways but some wonder if the executives at the center of this maelstrom have increased their own sensitivity quotas. Dozens of these men and women gathered this past week in Davos, Switzerland for the Global Economic Summit. Austerity measures were noticeable including less party-time and more actual information exchange. Though limousines were still the preferred method of transport, Angelina Jolie and Sharon Stone stayed home. Really innovative was a refugee simulation in the basement of the main forum building. A refugee simulation? Yes, the Crossroads Foundation of Hong Kong, along with the UN and other refugee aid organizations transformed the basement into a refugee camp along with sights and sounds similar to that experienced by the world's 33 million refugees. The intense role-playing activity for 15 - 30 was staged 4 to 5 times a day. While originally intended to "rope in" some of the Davos participants to contribute money or technology, it was hoped that the event might also shake the executives' awake to the needs of others in this time of economic downturn. The lead UN refugee spokesman said: "We should have the same level of determination in saving lives as in saving banks."