I N T E G R I T Y : what is it? (reprise)

Thinking beyond conventional or consensus reality… some philosophical notes…

1. At the age of eleven I became disenchanted with emblems of External Authority when my name was included in a list of "bad hats" or "undesirable elements"... and I was hauled up along with a dozen other kids, finger-wagged and then caned by the headmaster, who then proceeded to rub salt into our injured souls by forcing us to present a letter to our parents advising them to supervise their errant children more carefully! I knew then that little justice was to be found on this earth, for I knew full well that my only "sin" was being too talkative and cheeky in class - and that's only natural for any intelligent, high-spirited child.

2. Truth is, INTEGRITY is so rare on this planet it may be harder to find than a unicorn. We have traditionally depended on our culture heroes and our monarchs to be exemplars of and to establish standards of courage, nobility, and justice. However, our values are static concepts while actual life circumstances require dynamic responses – therefore the gap between ethical values and practical solutions tends to increase.

3. Look at the word INTEGER: a whole number; a number that is not a fraction; a thing complete in itself.

4. Consider the many layers of a personality: people wear masks, that often become ingrained as ego characteristics. Different faces for different situations, suspension of belief systems necessary for criminal behavior.

5. Case in point: Dr M as fire chief and arsonist, starting fires and putting them out because he’s obsessed with getting medals. Because their public and private selves are totally at odds, most public figures - especially politicians - suffer from an incurable form of Multiple Personality Disorder.

6. Duality, Unity, and Integrity vis-à-vis Buckminster Fuller’s dictum: “Unity is plural at minimum two.” Two sides of a coin, two ends of a stick. The loop that links beginning to end, ignorance to knowledge, folly to wisdom. The departure point from Singularity produced Duality or Polarity - Yin and Yang, Female and Male and bi-polarity is in itself perfectly neutral - neither "Good" nor "Bad" - until value judgments are superimposed over dynamic processes by those who would rule and regulate human behavior, setting themselves up as Archons (Judges) or Hierophants (Corrupt Priesthoods).

7. The Carrot-and-Stick management approach has its roots in Reward-Punishment behavior modification techniques and social engineering. If you behave well and obey the rules, you will be rewarded with eternal life in Heaven; otherwise you will suffer eternal perdition in Hell. "Good Behavior" as defined, of course, by a specially appointed committee - and Rules decreed by a Ruler or his/her representatives which cannot be questioned since all Rulers are of divine origins.

8. What if Punishment is abolished - or transmuted to Admonishment? Will HONESTY become the norm?

9. When we accept and begin to love all the aspects of our Ultimate Universal Self, it’s called Reintegration: regaining our Integrity.

10. How does “GOD” fit into a discussion of INTEGRITY? “GOD” as the Original Integer. Achieving integrity is akin to finding what we call God within us. The Lord or Tuhan then becomes our Core Self and that’s how we master our own destiny as individuals living consciously within a community of kindred souls.

[First published 14 October 2011 but the current political atmosphere prompts me to repost!]