September 21, 2009

• Comments from around the web/Pushing and Pulling Continued

  My Hospital's CEO's comments on Obesity - Plain Dealer
  Smaller Carbon Footprints - from the Economist
  Insider Trading in Hong Kong - From the Economist

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  Someone else's take on Pushing and Pulling - From myladyfox

  Having looked through some of the reactions that my post has generated regarding the natural give and take that occurs in relationships, it seems to me that I've some clarifying to do.  First of all, the push and pull is really a comment on equilibria that exist in any "relationship."  The above post discusses the issue from a biblical perspective about mutual servant-hood, giving and so forth... which are absolutely essential.  I mean, who can argue with the concept of two individuals completely given to giving to one another?  Striving to anticipate and out-serve the other?

  If one could trust one's mate to always do what's in your best interest, how liberating would that be?  Would you then be liberated to try to do what's in their best interest also?  Hopefully... although I think that, left to our own devices, humanity is far more prone to a more self-centered response -- enjoy the benefits, and pursue more self-gratification by taking the sacrifices of one's other for granted.

  I believe that with God's help, one can approach a much more self-denying sort of love, in the sense that one can put the other's needs before one's own and trust God for provenance of one's needs -- hopefully through one's partner...

  The post about Equilibrium, however, is that our basic natures and impulses give us all divergent ways of approaching things.  This divergence, this multiplicity of perspectives allows for a greater depth of insight into issues and scenarios -- and this diversity/plurality should allow for better decisions -- though it does not obviate matters of headship etc. 

  I think my hope was to spark an appreciation of differences of opinion and to remind the reader to try to regard disagreement as a tool for growth and improvement of one's life-course and way of doing things.  The thermodynamics of positive and negative feedback loops are well documented -- and I think offer insight into why it's a good thing that males and females operate differently -- and on a broader scope, why operating differently is good in general.

  The Wisdom of Crowds.

  1 Corinthians 12:12-31

   ¹²The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. ¹³For we were all baptized by^[c] one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

   ¹⁴Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. ¹⁵If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. ¹⁶And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. ¹⁷If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? ¹⁸But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. ¹⁹If they were all one part, where would the body be? ²⁰As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

   ²¹The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" ²²On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, ²³and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, ²⁴while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, ²⁵so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. ²⁶If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

   ²⁷Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. ²⁸And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. ²⁹Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? ³⁰Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues^[d]? Do all interpret? ³¹But eagerly desire^[e] the greater gifts.
        And now I will show you the most excellent way.

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