MICHAEL M. HOBBY SOCIETAL FORUMS

Our beliefs and opinions pertaining to societal issues are of little influence if they do not extend beyond our own personal universe. Mankind today is in serious need of greater unity and harmony, not only in matters of global trade and diplomacy, but in matters of social regard, acceptance, and interaction not plagued by prejudice, misconception, nationalism, and regional interests, etc.

That can only be achieved by setting aside our darker selves, and courageously attempting to achieve meaningful results. Nothing is less helpful to others than speaking to the mirror and regarding those with varying opinions, beliefs, and lifestyles as defective, demented, or less than ourselves. I have visited innumerable forums and sites and have generally come away disappointed, not necessarily with the issues being discussed, but in the attitudes manifested in the comments. Hostility, bitterness, and nationalism are enormous roadblocks not only to achieving a better world, but also to our own personal growth and development.

They increase polarity and generate similar response from others. For example, I am widely traveled; when visiting the Southern Cone, comprised of Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina, I was struck by the FRIENDSHIP BRIDGES connecting these nations. There were no menacing border guards brandishing weapons, no checkpoints; anyone could come and go. Nevertheless, taking Brazil as an example, where I found warmth and admiration for Americans among the people, because the U.S. requires not just a passport, but a visa from Brazilians, I as an American was required to obtain a visa before I could visit Brazil. Such affronts are not only unnecessary, they create perceived contempt.

There is a reason why our two bordering neighbors, Canada and Mexico, don't have incidents like 9/11. They don't interfere in matters of other nations. They don't have a CIA or KGB that topples their governments (even if democratically elected) in order to appoint dictators who will provide them with their resources without just compensation, they don't start wars with them, or circulate international diatribes, or attach pejoratives to them. As a nation, we need to learn from those mistakes, or there will be more 9/11s, perhaps much worse, as I portray in my novel, JIHAD.

So the purpose of this site is to attract and engage with like-minded individuals who would enjoy helping make meaningful improvements to international relations. Individuals and groups who desire empathy and responsible interaction with those of differing, often less fortunate, social groups. Those who strive not to make everyone else like themselves or shun and disparage them if they are not, but to develop and operate within a paradigm which comprises the entire human race as a species, not a collective of envious or meddling adversaries. Those who are happy with things as they are, or think themselves better than everyone else, or more beloved of God, and similar attitudes are likely to find this site offensive and annoying. I regret those sentiments, but I also know that there are a great many worldwide to whom this site will feel like home, and who recognize that it has always been the few, not the many, who have changed history. This home will to them be a happy and hopeful one. Our arms are long enough to embrace others, regardless of how they differ from ourselves. That is the promise.

Note that all activity should be governed by the professional ethics described in "FAIR PLAY AND UNFAIR PLAY In the Pursuit of Truth," located at:

http://geoarchaeology.blogspot.com


Sincerely,

Michael M. Hobby