Society of Esteem

Solidarity in a Society of Esteem

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

Solidarity as social cohesion thrives in Sikantis on the basis of mutual esteem.

A society is just as strong as its weakest member – or – a strong society takes care of its weakest members.

Solidarity is the glue holding a society together. People in Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, feel responsible for each other and make social cohesion the center of their actions. What does that mean?

In a society where solidarity doesn’t exist or is wrongly understood, it leads a society in the wrong direction. Many people feel themselves accountable to none and  are solely focused on  personal interest. Why is that so? The reason for such a behavior lies in scarce esteem. People in our society learn early in their life that they have to fight for, or even worse, they have to suppress others in order to receive esteem. Competition and exclusion are the result. These are opposite traits of solidarity. On the other hand some people think that society has to provide them with everything and they don’t need to develop themselves and their talents. They stand still in their lives or even move backwards.

Let’s first take a look at the weakest members of a society. These are people who can’t perform in order to help the society grow and prosper.  The reasons are multifarious. Some are ill, too old, too young or disabled in some way. Others may simply need a new skill or education in order to participate.

Our current society marginalizes these people and withholds esteem from them because esteem is bound to achievements of any kind. These people are pushed to the edge of society from where it’s often very difficult or even impossible to reenter normal social life.

In Sikantis, people take care of the society’s weakest members. Solidarity is normal and daily. Esteem is given to everyone, so nobody needs to suppress or edge out others in order to receive esteem. The weakest members, those who are disabled or disaffected, are integrated and find their place in society. They receive the same esteem as all the others. Even if their talents might be simple or limited for whatever reason, they’re still acknowledged. They can experience themselves as full members of society being esteemed and accepted. This fundamental element of mutual esteem and solidarity creates in each single person the will to develop themselves to the limits of their personal capabilities or even further.

This is the kind of atmosphere true solidarity can create in a society: People want to learn, want to develop themselves, want to grow. Throughout their lives they’re given the opportunity to live their lives according to their abilities while receiving full esteem.

The greatest conclusion of solidarity is: In such a society there are no weakest members anymore. Everyone is an important and fully esteemed member of the society.

Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, where wishes come true

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

We find that there are two basic wishes we all need to live a happy and fulfilled life.

We wish to be esteemed for who we are.

Imagine that you receive full esteem for who you are. This is what citizens of Sikantis experience. They don’t need to achieve a certain wealth in order to be esteemed. They don’t need to have a recognized profession in order to be esteemed. They don’t need to deliver a performance in order to be esteemed. These are examples of our current society and the way esteem is given to us. In our society we have to do something or to be somebody in order to receive esteem.

In Sikantis people receive esteem first. And this esteem is equally given to everyone. When we think about the true sense of esteem we find that esteem can’t be bound to certain conditions. Esteem needs to be boundless and unconditional. So just for being here on Earth, just for being a person, people receive esteem and realize their fundamental life wishes.

Receiving esteem for who we are makes it possible for us to let grow a healthy and strong self-esteem. It’s not about narcissism or egoism. It’s about a healthy self-love that also enables us to give esteem on our part freely and joyfully.

We wish to be esteemed for what we are doing.

And now imagine that you receive full esteem for what you are doing! This is the other basic wish we have: we desire to do what we love to do and we want to receive esteem for doing it as good as we are able to do it.

There are as many talents as there are people! Every person has their own unique abilities. Even if we looked at people of the same profession – let’s say physicians – we see differences in their ways of working and living. In Sikantis people experience that their unique skills are as great as they are.

No doubt, receiving unconditional esteem for what we are doing makes us feel good. It motivates us to continue doing it and motivates us to get better at it.

In Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, our two basic wishes for a happy and fulfilled life come true.

Esteem without boundaries

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

When it’s about esteem, Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, knows no boundaries whatsoever. Esteem is given equally to every single person.

Our experience in our society tells us the opposite. Esteem is given in our society under certain conditions to certain people. We know that we have to achieve something, be something or have something in order to receive esteem. We learn as children that we have to do something to receive esteem, may it be in school or at home. We learn that the more we do what others want the more likely we get esteem. Through our whole life we have to fight for esteem. In our society esteem is given to the stronger, more successful and more competitive persons. At the same time they’re never sure of always receiving esteem, it’s an eternal effort of reaching out for it.

Sikantis looks at esteem in a different way. The Society of Esteem sees the uniqueness of every single person. Everybody receives esteem just for being here, just for being their own personality. There are no conditions for giving esteem in Sikantis. You can call it “unconditional esteem”, esteem without boundaries.

Esteem without boundaries means that people don’t have to do something to receive it. People who can’t participate in society for whatever reasons  –  age, health conditions or even people who want to take a timeout from working/learning  –  receive the same esteem just for being there.

This is what we need for a fulfilled and happy life. Receiving unconditional esteem makes our self-esteem grow and flourish.  A healthy and strong self-esteem allows us to give in turn unconditional esteem to others.

In Sikantis this boundless esteem is the basis on which the whole society is built, in the true sense of the word. People who receive esteem without boundaries are able to develop and live their unique talents freely and joyfully. A society where all talents are esteemed and supported can create abundance and happiness for all its citizens, just like the Etruscans did in ancient Italy.

Isn’t this understanding of esteem as being without boundaries the proper sense of esteem?

Sikantis and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, part 2

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

Today let’s take a look at another common misconception of a society of social justice. It’s the idea that every society that wants to realize social justice needs to go back to nature. People blame technology, pollution and dependency of non-renewable energy for creating social injustice.

This thought has a famous forward thinker. It’s Jean-Jacques Rousseau.

The two fundamental principles of Rousseau’s natural man are his love of self, and compassion for the others.  Compassion and self-love, acting together, contribute to preserving the human species through time, according to Rousseau. He found that owning land and developing technology leads humanity into suffering and a society of inequality. Quote of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s text “Discourse on Inequality”, 1754:

“The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said “This is mine,” and found people naïve enough to believe him, that man was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars, and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows: Beware of listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody.”

Sikantis takes a different look at this matter. Back to nature might be the basic thought of so many social utopias, they however miss the inner wish and strength of human will to beautify and simplify life. Technology isn’t the problem creating inequality among people. It’s the fact of inequally given or retained esteem that creates social injustice, inequality.

Sikantis actually states the opposite thought that technology and development are absolutely necessary in order to create abundance and happiness for all its citizens.

Just following the statement that everybody in Sikantis can live and work their unique talent, developing it to the best extension, leads to the fact that people will invent and create technology that makes life easier for everybody.

Back to nature isn’t the way Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, is going. It’s in fact the opposite path. It’s the path of allowing and supporting technology that is using renewable energy and respecting nature and people.

Sikantis and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, part 1

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote in 1754 a text called “Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men” (Discours sur l’origine et les fondements de l’inégalité parmi les hommes).

He discussed in this text two types of inequality, natural/physical and ethical/political. Natural inequality means differences between people’s physical strength. Ethical inequality on the other hand belongs to a civil society according to Rousseau and creates the differences in power and wealth as we know it in our society. His final conclusion seems to be a quite cynical view on a civil society. He states that the civil society is a trick perpetrated by the powerful on the weak in order to maintain their power or wealth.

Sikantis, the Society of Esteem, acknowledges human inequality being inherent to personality. As I stated in earlier posts every person is unique, not only in physical appearance, as Rousseau stated, but also in talents, skills and character. Even twins show and live their uniqueness.

Accepting this kind of inequality is important for the functioning of a society of esteem because it prevents people of thinking that everybody can be able to do everything in order to serve the society. It’s easy to acknowledge this fact when we think of different professions. Some people have the talent and inner wish to be a physician and others have the talent and wish to build a house. Some people are artists through their whole personality and wouldn’t be able and happy to work as physician or constructor.

There is though a human equality that is important for a Society of Esteem in order to create happiness, fulfillness and wealth for its citizens. This is the equality of esteem. Sikantis allows everybody to receive and give the same esteem for their being here and now and for their unique talents serving the society. To put it another way, it doesn’t matter to a society of esteem if somebody is a physician, a constructor or an artist or even can’t participate in work for whatever reason. Everybody receives the same esteem.

This basis creates in eveybody the wish of personal development, of learning and participating in society with whatever form of talent and skill. And it creates the opportunity for everybody to develop their unique talent.

Society of Esteem and equality

Posted by Cecilia under: Attitude; Philosophy.

Often enough when people discuss a new idea of a society of justice and harmony I find out that the base idea plays around the thought of equality. People often think that equality creates social justice. Equality doesn’t create justice when it’s understood as general human equality, imposed over every single person.

We are different, that’s a fact. Nobody can ever be compared to another person. We are all different in our personalities, our talents and skills, our interests, our thoughts and wishes. We all know about our uniqueness, that’s why we have such a hard time when we get compared to others.

A society that forces people to do what they don’t want just because everybody should be equal doesn’t provide social justice. Justice is created when people can do what they want to do, because they like what they do. In this case people feel themselves esteemed for their talents, for their work.

The Society of Esteem even goes one step further by giving esteem even to persons who can’t actively participate in society because of age or health issues or just because they need a timeout for their personal growth. People receive esteem just for them being here.

This is equality as Sikantis understands it. It is equality in esteem. When people give each other the same esteem, social justice can grow. Esteem doesn’t look at what kind of work people do or what kind of possessions they have. Esteem is given equally, freely and joyfully to everybody.

Is there competition in a Society of Esteem?

Posted by Cecilia under: Attitude; Economy; Education; Philosophy.

A new society is about compassion and esteem

Posted by Cecilia under: Philosophy.

If we want to think of a new society we have to leave old paths of thinking. What would a new society be about that we don’t have realized yet in our society?

A new society relies mainly on compassion and esteem. Alone this fact distinguishes a new society from ours. The idea of the Society of Esteem has this base of compassion and esteem.

Where people give each other unconditionally compassion and esteem there is no reason anymore for crime or injustice. Every single person receives the esteem they deserve just for being here and now. Everybody receives compassionate esteem for their unique talent with which they contribute to the functioning of the society. A society like that leaves old paths creating new life structures with compassion and esteem.

Society of Esteem is more than a Big Society

Posted by Cecilia under: Economy; Society.

According to Wikipedia “the Big Society is the flagship policy idea of the 2010 Conservative Party general election manifesto and forms part of the legislative programme of the Conservative – Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement. The aim is “to create a climate that empowers local people and communities, building a big society that will ‘take power away from politicians and give it to people’.”

It might be an impressive attempt to reframe the role of government and unleash entrepreneurial spirit. The idea to create a voluntary system for the relief of poverty might meet the need of some kind of effort to get hold of a strong sense of civic responsibility. It still isn’t taking away the experience of social differences.

The Society of Esteem is based on esteem for everybody. Alone this basic thought creates voluntary activities as wished by the Big Society but it feeds from a lasting esteem creating justice. As long as people can do what they can do the best and they get esteem for it as well as a safe life in society there is no need for empowering communities. The Society of Esteem works through and with people giving all their power and talents to the society.

Talents slumber in everybody

Posted by Cecilia under: Education.

In September 2009 a pilot project for the integration of jobless youngsters began in Germany. 61 young persons, allegedly slow learners, got the possibility to start an education in a German Telecom company. A year later the project proved that it’s worthwhile to give such young people a second chance. Most of them found their own unique talent and work.

A society of esteem allows everybody to discover his own unique talents and develop them in an environment of mutual respect and esteem. Everybody has a talent just waiting for being discovered. In a society of esteem people don’t need a second chance to discover their talents. They already can take the first chance.

Everybody who is already able to live and work his talent knows that doing that work feels very satisfying and fulfilling.