unitive socialism: a speculative journey

7/31/2019 Unitive Socialism: A Speculative Journey

1/289


2/289


3/289


4/289


5/289


6/289


7/289


8/289


9/289


10/289


11/289


12/289


13/289


14/289


15/289


16/289


17/289


18/289


19/289


20/289


21/289


22/289


23/289


24/289


25/289


26/289


27/289


28/289


29/289


30/289


31/289


32/289


33/289


34/289


35/289


36/289


37/289


38/289


39/289


40/289


41/289


42/289


43/289


44/289


45/289


46/289


47/289


48/289


49/289


50/289


51/289


52/289


53/289


54/289


55/289


56/289


57/289


58/289


59/289


60/289


61/289


62/289


63/289


64/289


65/289


66/289


67/289


68/289


69/289


70/289


71/289


72/289


73/289


74/289


75/289


76/289


77/289


78/289


79/289


80/289


81/289


82/289


83/289


84/289


85/289


86/289


87/289


88/289


89/289


90/289


91/289


92/289


93/289


94/289


95/289


96/289


97/289


98/289


99/289


100/289


101/289


102/289


103/289


104/289


105/289


106/289


107/289


108/289


109/289


110/289


111/289


112/289


113/289


114/289


115/289


116/289


117/289


118/289


119/289


120/289


121/289


122/289


123/289


124/289


125/289


126/289


127/289


128/289


129/289


130/289


131/289


132/289


133/289


134/289


135/289


136/289


137/289


138/289


139/289


140/289


141/289


142/289


143/289


144/289


145/289


146/289


147/289


148/289


149/289


150/289


151/289


152/289


153/289


154/289


155/289


156/289


157/289


158/289


159/289


160/289


161/289


162/289


163/289


164/289


165/289


166/289


167/289


168/289


169/289


170/289


171/289


172/289


173/289


174/289


175/289


176/289


177/289


178/289


179/289


180/289


181/289


182/289


183/289


184/289


185/289


186/289


187/289


188/289


189/289


190/289


191/289


192/289


193/289


194/289


195/289


196/289


197/289


198/289


199/289


200/289


201/289


202/289


203/289


204/289


205/289


206/289


207/289


208/289


209/289


210/289


211/289


212/289


213/289


214/289


215/289


216/289


217/289


218/289

Learn About Occupy. Occupy Together . Retrieved on July 29,2012.

Significantly, many of Karl Marxs predictions of popularalienation and dissent are currently being fulfilled.Socialism may emerge from the ashes of global anarchy.The dialectic of contradictory power relations can be

observed in the revolutionary and reform movements of the present age, whether the labor uprisings of Occupy orthe upheavals in the Arab world. Advocates of the so-called free market tactically condemn the dominated

b f i i d f i j f i
http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/occupy_together.pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/occupy2.pdf


219/289

pdfcrowd.comopen in browser PRO version Are you a developer? Try out the HTML to PDF API

members of society, using defensive jargon, for waging

class warfare. Hypocritically, then, consumers arewarned of a continual onslaught with let the buyerbeware or, in Latin, caveat emptor .

In other words, socialism will, I suspect, appearcritically and suddenly, through both emergence andemergency, not through gradualism:

Gradualism The introduction of political or social change slowlyand by degrees.... [G]radualism tends to refer to the generaldirection of government policy with respect to the political oreconomic system as a wholefor example, the expansion of rights,democratization, or changes to the basic structure of theeconomy.Gradualism. Dictionary of the Social Sciences. Craig Calhoun,

editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. 2002. Page 196.The Fabians were a group of socialists whose strategy differed

from that of Karl Marx in that they sought world dominationthrough what they called the doctrine of inevitability of
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdf


220/289


through what they called the doctrine of inevitability of gradualism. This meant their goals would be achieved without

breach of continuity or abrupt change of the entire social issue,by infiltrating educational institutions, government agencies, andpolitical parties. Prominent Fabian and writer, George BernardShaw, revealed that their goal was to be achieved by stealth,intrigue, subversion, and the deception of never calling socialismby its right name.David Livingstone,Terrorism and the Illuminati: A Three Thousand Year History. 2007. Promotional material. Retrieved on June 22,

2012.

Spiritual emergency can be defined as a crisis involving religious,transpersonal, and/or spiritual issues that provides opportunitiesfor growth. Spiritual emergence, meanwhile, lends itself to gentlertransformation.Darlene B. Viggiano and Stanley Krippner, The Grofs [Stanislav

and Christina Grofs] Model of Spiritual Emergency inRetrospect: Has it Stood the Test of Time? International Journal of Transpersonal Studies. Volume 29. Number 1. 2010. Retrievedon April 2, 2013.
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/terrorism_illuminati.pdf


221/289


I shall now briefly outline my vision for a UnitiveSocialism . However, to be clear at the outset, I am not claiming that socialism, as a broad-based school of economic thought, is advocated within the Teachings of the Bah Faith. This subject, like the material in the restof the book, reflects only my personal perspectives. When

reviewing the Bah texts, there are no formaldescriptions of future political economies. Instead, Bah

primary sources contain a few spiritual economicprinciples. These general criteria will, in the years tocome, guide experts when developing economic systems:

... There are practically no technical teachings on economics inthe Cause, such as banking, the price system, and others. TheCause is not an economic system, nor can its Founders beconsidered as having been technical economists. The contributionof the Faith to this subject is essentially indirect, as it consists inthe application of spiritual principles to our present-day economicsystem. Bah u llh has given us a few basic principles whichshould guide future Bah economists in establishing such


222/289


g ginstitutions which will adjust the economic relationships of the

world.From a letter, dated January 25, 1936, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual Bah, Lights of Guidance: A Bah Reference File. Number 1868.

Indeed, one of the major points to keep in mind is thatBah economic principles, including my personalunderstandings of them, refer to a global civilization or

kingdom of Heaven on Earth , not to modern societies andtheir governments:

... Shoghi Effendi believes that it is preferable not to confuse themethods explained by the Master with present systems. They mayhave many resemblances but also many points of difference.Moreover these general statements we have in the teachings haveto be explained and applied by the House of Justice before we canreally appreciate their significance.From a letter, dated October 21, 1932, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual Bah, Lights of Guidance: ABah Reference File Number 1861
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdf


223/289


Bah Reference File. Number 1861.

Monetary interests should, under no circumstances, bepermitted to monopolize public and private human affairs.The new Unitive Socialism , as I have imagined thiscommand economy , would unify or spiritually harmonizeaspects of state socialism (such as government ownership

of major industries and a decentralized welfare state),democratic socialism (including middle-sized collectives,

public cooperatives, worker cooperatives as unionownership or perhaps co-ownership, and credit unions inplace of commercial or savings banks), and bothcollectivized and privately owned (subject tocollectivization for impropriety) small-scale enterprises.

Although voluntary contributions are an important aspect

of economic collectivism and its socialist commandeconomy, they are, according to Abdu l-Bah, only one of seven sources of revenue for a local storehouse or houseof finance. Based upon a negative income tax, the higher

i h ld i
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdf


224/289


ones income, the more one would pay in taxes.

Correspondingly, the lower ones income, the more onewould receive from that storehouse. Wealth and povertywill become illegal through an orderly redistribution of resources:

... a general storehouse should be founded with the appointmentof a secretary. At the time of the harvest, with the approval of themembers of that board, a determined percentage of the entire

harvest should be appropriated for the storehouse.The storehouse is to have seven revenues: Tithes, taxes on

animals, wealth without inheritors, all things found whose ownerscannot be discovered, a third of all treasures (money) found in theearth, a third of the mines, and voluntary contributions.

On the other hand, there are seven expenditures:

1. General running expenses of the institution-salaries etc., andthe administration of public safety, including the departmentof hygiene.

2. Tithes to the general government (State).3. Taxes on animals for the State.


225/289


3. Taxes on animals for the State.4. Support of an orphanage.5. Support of cripples and the incurable.6. Support of educational institutions.7. Supplying any deficiency for the expenses of the poor.

The first revenue is the tithe. For example, if the income of afarmer is five hundred dollars and his necessary expenses are fivehundred dollars, no tithes will be collected from him. Anothers

expenses being five hundred and his income one thousand dollars,one tenth will be taken from him, for he hath more than his needs;

if he giveth one tenth his livelihood will not be disturbed. Anothersexpenses are one thousand dollars, and his income is five thousanddollars; as he hath four thousand dollars surplus, he will berequired to give one and a half tenths. Another hath necessaryexpenses of one thousand dollars; but his income is ten thousanddollars; from him two tenths will be required. The necessaryexpenses of another person are five thousand dollars, and hisincome one hundred thousand; therefore, one fourth will berequired from him. On the other hand, a persons income may betwo hundred, but his needs absolutely essential for his livelihoodare five hundred dollars; provided he hath not failed in effort and


226/289


are five hundred dollars; provided he hath not failed in effort andexertion or his farm hath not been blessed with a harvest, such aone must be helped from the general storehouse, so that he maynot remain in need and may live in ease.From a Tablet, dated October 4, 1912, written byAbdu l-Bahto an individual Bah (translation corrected at the Bah WorldCentre, December 1985), Lights of Guidance: A Bah ReferenceFile. Number 580.

As to the economic question, it hath been stated briefly and thebasis of it hath been set forth, while its details are to be fixed by

the Universal House of Justice. The board of the house of finance(storehouse) will direct in every village the revenues of the house,such as tithes, tax on animals, etc. In every village a storehouseand an officer in charge are to be provided, while the notables of the village gather and form a board and to this board and officerthe direction of the affairs of the village are entrusted. They takecharge of all questions pertaining to the village, and the revenuesof the storehouse such as tithes, tax on animals and otherrevenues are gathered in it and are given out for necessaryexpenditures....

Wh t h th b t t d i l l d thi d th t


227/289


What hath been stated is only an example and this doth not

mean that it should be enforced exactly in this manner. Theprinciple is that as a mans wealth increaseth, his financialobligations should proportionately increase, so that vast richesmay not be accumulated in one place. In this manner justice maybe exercised between the rich and the poor.From a Tablet, dated July 25, 1919, written byAbdu l-Bah toan individual Bah (provisional translation), Economics, Agriculture, and Related Subjects. Compiled by the Research

Department of the Universal House of Justice.

State socialism is the opposite of a market system:Zambia eliminated tariffs on foreign goods, weaned farmers off

practically all government subsidies and support, and sold morethan 300 state-owned enterprises, including the countrys coppermines. Virtually overnight, a socialist command economy had beenreplaced by a deregulated, free-market model.

The payoff so far is an economy fueled by little more than gritand guile, practically devoid of valuable commodities. Since 1992,Zambia has shed nearly 100,000 jobs ....

R i d i k S i [Vi ] i
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/economics_agriculture.pdf


228/289


Recognized as a new, emerging market, Saigon [Vietnam] is a

city transitioning from a socialist command economy to that of asocialist market economy fueled by the liberalization of globalcapital....

During the command economy, people [in Saigon] had lessleisure time, but had access to more spaces free of charge. Nowpublic spaces have changed to semi-public spaces as a fee ischarged to access the spaces....

A planned economy is an economic system in which decisions

regarding production and investment are embodied in a planformulated by a central authority, usually by a government

agency. The justification for central planning is that theconsolidation of economic resources can allow for the economy totake advantage of more perfect information when makingdecisions regarding investment and production. In an entirelycentralized economy, a universal survey of human needs andconsumer wants is required before a comprehensive plan forproduction can be formulated. The state would require the powerto allocate the workforce, for setting production values and foroverseeing the distribution system of the economy. The mostextensive form of a planned economy is referred to as a commandeconomy centrally planned economy or command and control


229/289


economy, centrally planned economy, or command and controleconomy. Implementation of this form of economy is calledplanification.

Planned economies are in contrast to unplanned economies, i.e.the market economy and proposed self-managed economy, whereproduction, distribution, pricing, and investment decisions aremade by autonomous firms based upon their individual interests

rather than upon a macroeconomic plan. Less extensive forms of planned economies include those that use indicative planning, in

which the state employs influence, subsidies, grants, and taxes,but does not compel [Alec Nove]. This latter is sometimes

referred to as a planned market economy.A planned economy may consist of state-owned enterprises,cooperative enterprises, private enterprises directed by the state,or a combination of different enterprise types. Though plannedeconomy and command economy are often used as synonyms,some make the distinction that under a command economy,enterprises need not follow a comprehensive plan of production.That is, a planned economy is an economic system in which thegovernment controls and regulates production, distribution,prices, etc. but a command economy, while also having this typeof regulation necessarily has substantial public ownership of


230/289


of regulation, necessarily has substantial public ownership of

industry. Therefore, command economies are planned economies,but not necessarily the reverse.Various sources, Planned and Command Economies. Retrieved onSeptember 26, 2012.

In a capitalist world and a bourgeois society, socialism will neverbe simple sense. But what we can hope to aspire to is the dawningof a new enlightenment, a socialist enlightenment which will stand

to some future order of things, as the eighteenth-centurybourgeois enlightenment stood to the American Declaration of

Independence, the French revolution and the overthrow of colonial slavery for which it helped to prepare the culturalground....

... Individualism is a pretty pure ideology of the market, at leastas we have it now.

Roy Bhaskar, Reclaiming Reality: A Critical Introduction toContemporary Philosophy (Classical Texts in Critical Realism). NewYork: Routledge. 2011. Kindle edition.

By some measures, holding such views would make me a
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/planned_and_command_economies.pdf


231/289


socialist statist . However, Marxist communism andsocialist statism are incompatible. I have no interest inseeing the death of the state in a communist anarchy:


232/289


Mark Fosters score on theWorlds Small est Poli tical Quiz(September, 2012)

... both liberals and Marxists (including the related dependencyand regulation approaches) explicitly or implicitly adopted thegrowth ideology and the desirability of the growth economy,differing among themselves only on the question whethercapitalism, or, instead, some kind of socialist statism, is a betterway to achieve it....

... crucial problems are solved either through a rationing bythe wallet mechanism, as in market economy, or through the

bureaucratic decisions of the planners, as in socialist statism.Takis Fotopoulos, The Multidimensional Crisis and InclusiveDemocracy. International Journal for Inclusive Democracy(open-access journal). Athens, Greece: International Network forInclusive Democracy. 2009. Pages 134 and 136.

I reject the capitalist premise that an individualsactivities should be driven by a desire to make money.Service, in ones occupation, should result from a love forothers, and derive from unity, not from a desire to make a
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.theadvocates.org/quizhttp://www.inclusivedemocracy.org/journal/pdf%20files/Multidimensional%20Crisis%20Book.pdf


233/289


profit. Nevertheless, a Unified Socialist State wouldcombine state socialism with democratic socialism, whileincorporating both public and private sectors. UnitiveSocialism resembles other models of socialism, such aseconomist Alec Noves (Aleksandr Novakovsky, 1915-1994) feasible socialism and political scientist LukeMartell s associational socialism .

A socialist state (or socialist republic) generally refers to anystate that is constitutionally dedicated to the construction of a

socialist society....A socialist state could in fact be perfectly democratic. Theresno intrinsic reason why socialism even in the [now former] USSR shouldnt become democratic one day.Various sources, Planned and Command Economies. Retrieved on

September 26, 2012.And between you, me, and the gatepost, in the present in, say,

France, Italy, or Britain, I wouldnt favour abolishing the stock exchange .... So what was I arguing? After my chapter oninstances where central control is necessary to prevent abuse of
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.sussex.ac.uk/profiles/1720http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/planned_and_command_economies.pdf


234/289


instances where central control is necessary to prevent abuse of

power, which could happen if one let them run themselves;second, under competitive conditions, smaller state enterpriseswhere a cleaned-up version of self-management would beappropriate; third would be cooperatives, in distinction to thesecond category, which would own their enterprise and thereforetake any risks that would be involved in owning; fourth is smaller-scale private enterprise which, if conditions are right for it, cannormally only be stopped by the continuous action of a socialist

police and I dont think it is the task of a socialist police to preventpeople from acting as economic people if they wish to and the

circumstances are right for it. In my view, such entrepreneurswould not be capitalists because, even though they employ people,they are the managers, they work, they run the private enterprise;the fifth group, finally, are individuals such as writers, lawyers, etc.My argument is that this corresponds partly to economies anddiseconomies of scale in the sense that some things like electricityare better produced through a centralised national grid, partly tohuman factors: some people like to work in cooperatives, somepeople like self-management and like responsibility and a lot of usdont.Alec Nove in Anders Stephanson Feasible Socialism: A


235/289


Alec Nove in Anders Stephanson, Feasible Socialism: A

Conversation With Alec Nove. (Interview.) Social Text . Number11 (Winter, 1984-1985). Durham, NC: Duke University Press.Pages 96-109.

It [associational socialism] is based on small-scale trial and errorand a willingness to drop or continue with experiments on thebasis of experience rather than on sudden total change or aconfidence in its own infallibility. It proposes gradualism over

change out of tune with human consciousness and decentralismover centralized direction. And it has a pluralist openness to the

co-existence of non-socialist liberal ideas and forms such as privateproperty, markets, competition and some degree of inequality ...alongside socialist commitments to non-state social ownership,democratic co-ordination, cooperative mutualism and egalitarianredistribution.Luke Martell, Rescuing the Middle Ground: Neo-Liberalism andAssociational Socialism. Economy and Society. Volume 22.Number 1 (February, 1993). New York: Routledge. Pages 100-113.

I also find aspects of Titoism to be appealing:


236/289


I also find aspects of Titoism to be appealing:

... by 1950 [Yugoslav President Josip Tito Broz] startedintroducing workers councils into enterprises. These were meantto be the institutional basis for a return to authentic Marxist self-management by the producers in all areas of decision making. Infact, this was a pragmatic attempt to find an ideologicalalternative to Soviet socialism without embracing Westernpluralism and a market economy.

Ivo Banac, Tito.The Oxford Companion to the Politics of theWorld . 2nd edition. Joel Krieger, editor. Oxford, UK: Oxford

University Press. 2001.The corporatocracy, or mechanisms of corporate

dominance, and plutocracy, or structure of wealthdominance, will, I anticipate, be superceded by a new

participatory economic democracy :

Participatory democracy implies a more activist citizenrydirectly involved in the processes of governmental decisionmaking. Citizen participation in public decision making isencouraged and expected.


237/289


encouraged and expected.

Michael E. Milakovich, Ph.D.,The Internet and Increased Citizen Participation in Government . Page 2.

And since our [U.S.] government has done nothing to reallytransform the cost model with this health care bill, Americans willall now be required under federal law to line the pockets of privatefor-profit health insurance companies at rates near 200% that of other developed democracies. The Soviet Union lives. And it is us.

The American people are being bilked dry by the corporatocracyin just the about every way imaginable.

The Corporatocracys Usury Against The American People: OurHealth Care System Ranks Dead Last With Costs 200% HigherThan Comparable Nations. Rantings on Markets, Economics and Business Strategies. Blog. June 24, 2010. Retrieved on May 8,2012.

Now, most people know what plutocracy is: the rule of the rich,political power controlled by the wealthy. Plutocracy is not anAmerican word and wasnt meant to become an Americanphenomenon. Some of our founders deplored what they calledthe veneration of wealth. But plutocracy is here ....
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/The-Internet-and-Increased-Citizen-Participation-in-Government.pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/corporatocracy.pdf


238/289


the veneration of wealth. But plutocracy is here ....

Bill Moyers,Welcome to the Plutocracy!A world federal, or decentralized, state, revolving around

an acceptance of the Unity of God (Taw d, Unifying), willfully, and lovingly, control the resources of the planet:

A world federal system, ruling the whole earth and exercisingunchallengeable authority over its unimaginably vast resources,

blending and embodying the ideals of both the East and the West,liberated from the curse of war and its miseries, and bent on the

exploitation of all the available sources of energy on the surface of the planet, a system in which Force is made the servant of Justice,whose life is sustained by its universal recognition of one God andby its allegiance to one common Revelationsuch is the goaltowards which humanity, impelled by the unifying forces of life, ismoving.Shoghi Effendi,The World Order of Bahu llh. Page 204.

Let there be no misgivings as to the animating purpose of theworld-wide Law of Bahu llh. Far from aiming at thesubversion of the existing foundations of society, it seeks to
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/plutocracy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/se/wob.pdf


239/289


g y,

broaden its basis, to remold its institutions in a manner consonantwith the needs of an ever-changing world. It can conflict with nolegitimate allegiances, nor can it undermine essential loyalties. Itspurpose is neither to stifle the flame of a sane and intelligentpatriotism in mens hearts, nor to abolish the system of nationalautonomy so essential if the evils of excessive centralization are tobe avoided. It does not ignore, nor does it attempt to suppress, thediversity of ethnical origins, of climate, of history, of language and

tradition, of thought and habit, that differentiate the peoples andnations of the world. It calls for a wider loyalty, for a larger

aspiration than any that has animated the human race. It insistsupon the subordination of national impulses and interests to theimperative claims of a unified world. It repudiates excessivecentralization on one hand, and disclaims all attempts atuniformity on the other. Its watchword is unity in diversity ....Shoghi Effendi,The World Order of Bahu llh. Pages 41-42.

Historically, socialism has taken several forms. As aresult, many self-defined socialists do not agree on how asocialistic system should operate. By and large, however,socialists tend to privilege need before want Economic
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/se/wob.pdf


240/289


socialists tend to privilege need before want. Economicdemocratization, in which the forces of production becomeaccountable to the citizens and residents of a society,would, it seems to me, be a vital ingredient in any form of socialism:

Key to economic democracy is a democratic labor movementthat plays a central role in the struggle for a democratic


241/289

Nevertheless, most corporations are considered publicly heldcompanies today. What this public ownership is missing is

responsibility and control. A central government does not have toown the commanding heights of the economy; government needonly regulate corporate socially responsibility....

Regardless of form, socialism serves one function: To giveworkers an equitable distribution of the wealth that their effortshelped to produce.

The form of socialism embraced by a worker is a personalpreference based upon that workers personal situation.

Americas Socialist Party will not ascribe to a particular form of Socialism.Americas Socialist PartyRetrieved on May 16 2012
http://www.markfoster.net/struc/americas_socialist_party.pdf


242/289


Americas Socialist Party. Retrieved on May 16, 2012.

On the other hand, unlike the author of the followingquotation, I have nothing against the rule of law through afair measure of state domination:

We fight for the extension of democracy into all aspects of oursociety [U.S.A.].

This means not a government-dominated, but a democratic,non-sexist, un-racist, welfare state with a mixed economy

[socialism and capitalism] in which the people and democratically-responsible representatives will have the maximum fearasibleinfluence in setting economic priorities....

The purpose of the organization [Social Democrats SocialistParty] shall be by democratic means to establish socialdemocracy/democratic socialism within the United States of America and across the world by extending democracy to allinstitutions, political, social, and economic. Social Democrats Socialist Party. Retrieved on May 8, 2012.

Unfortunately, partisan politics and politicking in general
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/americas_socialist_party.pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/social_democrats_socialist_party.pdf


243/289


y, p p p g g

are, often by design, divisive. They contradict, bydefinition, Unities of All Things , The Unicentric Paradigm ,and the Bah principle of consultative decision making.Although, to be honest, I am sometimes mildly entertainedby governmental controversies, I try to avoid any personal

involvement with them. Even in cases where I generallyagree with one side or another, I have noticed that, as

soon as the issues become politicized, they are rarelyresolved. People, instead, gather around in-groups and

out-groups, while the conversation quickly deterioratesinto us versus them.

The shining spark of truth cometh forth only after the clash of differing opinions. If after discussion, a decision be carriedunanimously well and good; but if, the Lord forbid, differences of opinion should arise, a majority of voices must prevail.Abdu l-Bah, Selections from the Writings of Abdu l-Bah. Page87.

Therefore, while ownership within Unitive Socialism
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaifaith.info/http://paradigm.bahaifaith.info/http://www.bahaistudies.net/ab/swab.pdf


244/289


Therefore, while ownership within Unitive Socialismmight, in my opinion, be cooperative, state, and private,economic and political decisions should be grounded upona radical participatory consultation . That is to say, all stakeholders workers, consumers, renters, owners, andso on should be empowered to collaboratively make

decisions which will impact their lives. His sanctifiedPresence Abdu l-Bah wrote:

The purpose of consultation is to show that the views of severalindividuals are assuredly preferable to one man, even as the powerof a number of men is of course greater than the power of oneman. Thus consultation is acceptable in the presence of theAlmighty, and hath been enjoined upon the believers, so that theymay confer upon ordinary and personal matters, as well as onaffairs which are general in nature and universal.

For instance, when a man hath a project to accomplish, shouldhe consult with some of his brethren, that which is agreeable willof course be investigated and unveiled to his eyes, and the truthwill be disclosed. Likewise on a higher level, should the people of avillage consult one another about their affairs, the right solutionwill certainly be revealed In like manner the members of each


245/289


will certainly be revealed. In like manner, the members of eachprofession, such as in industry, should consult, and those incommerce should similarly consult on business affairs. In short,consultation is desirable and acceptable in all things and on allissues.Abdu l-Bah quoted in a letter, dated February 15, 1922, written

by Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of Persia(rn), Lights of Guidance: A Bah Reference File. Number 580.

One of the key differences between Bah consultationand the Rand Corporation s Delphi Method (or Delphi Technique ) is that consultation is not usually anonymousor private. There are, however, similarities. However, bothprocesses are only as beneficial as people make them:

The Delphi technique is a structured process that uses a series

of questionnaires or rounds to gather information. Rounds areheld until group consensus is reached. One of the main reasons forthe popularity enjoyed by the Delphi technique is that a largenumber of individuals across diverse locations and areas of expertise can be included anonymously, thus avoiding dominationof the consensus process by one or a few experts. ... [T]he Delphi
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.rand.org/


246/289


p y p [ ] p

technique [can be defined] as an exercise in group communicationthat brings together and synthesizes the knowledge of a group of geographically scattered participants who never meet.Rym Boulkedid et al,Using and Reporting the Delphi Method for Selecting Healthcare Quality Indicators: A Systematic Review. Pages

2-3. Retrieved on August 18, 2012.

Its [the Delphi Methods] purpose is to importune reliableresponses from a panel of experts regarding a particular problem

or dilemma. This research tool permits researchers to combine thereports or testimony of a group of experts into one, usefulstatement....

The basic Delphi Method begins with a series of first roundquestions asked individually of experts on the subject. The expertssubmit their judgments. The results of the first round judgmentsare then tabulated and the results sent back to the experts formodification. In real meaning, the experts are asked in the secondround to reevaluate their original judgments in light of theaverage estimates calculated in the first round. This procedure of reevaluation is continued for several rounds until a fairly highdegree of consensus is reached or until the experts no longer
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/delphi.pdf


247/289


degree of consensus is reached, or until the experts no longermodify their previous estimates.

Another technique for administering a Delphi survey is througha modified focus group. Here, the experts are allowed to interactface-to-face in the combined focus group sessions where the issuesand answers to surveys are discussed. However, even with this

technique, the actual survey questions should be answered by theexperts in private. Delphi surveys can also be conducted through

internet or bulletin boards for expert discussion. For near-real-time Delphi surveys, researchers can use spreadsheet software to

immediately evaluate Internet answers and provide immediatefeedback to live discussion chat rooms.Dr. Harishchandra Singh Rathod and Dr. Mamta Brahmbhatt,An Experimental Use of Delphi Method for UnderstandingChemists Opinions Related To Medications for Swine Flu.Global Journal of Management and Business Research. Volume 12.Issue 4. Version 1.0. March, 2012. Retrieved on August 18, 2012.Pages 74-81.

The Delphi technique had its genesis at the Rand Corporation inthe early 1950s as a forecasting tool for the military. Its purpose isto solicit reliable responses from a panel of experts regarding a
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/delphi3.pdf


248/289


to solicit reliable responses from a panel of experts regarding aparticular problem or dilemma. This research tool permitsresearchers to combine the reports or testimony of a group of experts into one, useful statement.

... the Delphi method ... [is] a communication process that isstructured to produce a detailed examination of a topic/problemand discussion from the participating group, but not one thatforces a quick compromise. Thus, the structuring of group

communications is an essential component of the Delphi. Thecontributions of individuals via this tool produce a groupperspective not otherwise obtainable.Wanda L. Stitt-Gohdes and Tena B. Crews, The DelphiTechnique: A Research Strategy for Career and TechnicalEducation. Journal of Career and Technical Education. Volume20. Number 2. Spring 2004. Retrieved on August 18, 2012.

Discussions need to be open and cooperative, notmanipulative or driven by predetermined agendas .Otherwise, people will become frustrated by the processand alienated from individuals occupying positions of authority:
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/delphi4.pdfhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zpA1althjo&feature=related


249/289


y

As with any policy process, there are many ways to abuse theuse of the Policy Delphi: the manner in which comments areedited, the neglect of items, the organization of the results.However, such a process is a rather dangerous game and notlikely to go unnoticed by some segment of the respondents. Thereare very few greater wraths than that of a respondent whodiscovers himself to be engaged in a biased exercise. Furthermore,

Delphi has reached the point where there is no longer any excuseon a professional basis for making many of the mistakes found inearlier exercises. The person seeking to undertake a Delphi todayshould be reasonably familiar with what has taken place in thefield.Murray Turoff, The Policy Delphi.The Delphi Method:Techniques and Applications. Harold A. Linstone and MurrayTuroff, editors. Privately published. 2002. Retrieved on August 18,2012. Page 96.

When people argue that socialism has never worked, myresponse is threefold: First, I support a decentralized, nota totalitarian, socialism. Second, capitalism has never


250/289


worked either. It has resulted oil spills and in cycles of depression, recession, inflation, deflation, stagflation, andhigh unemployment. Third, so-called socialist societies,like the Nordic countries and the Netherlands, are onlycapitalistic social democracies. Faced with two

alternatives, complete isolationism or participation in theU.S.-dominated system of global capitalism, they took the

second course. Socialism has never really been an option.

I have never believed that there is a secret United Nations plotto take over the US. I have never seen black helicopters hoveringin the sky above Montana. But, for the first time in my life, I think the formation of some sort of world government is plausible....

These are the kind of ideas that get people reaching for theirrifles in Americas talk-radio heartland.Gideon Rachman, And Now for a World Government. TheFinancial Times (newspaper). December 8, 2008

As to the common claim that socialism is a utopian (fromAncient Greek for nowhere) dream, and in violation of
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7a03e5b6-c541-11dd-b516-000077b07658.html#axzz21J9MjsuT


251/289


human nature (or the lower nature ), my response is thatcontemporay capitalism is even more utopian. Indeed, it isa form of ritual magic which will, ultimately, be ultimatedbe eliminated through world unity. The proposition thatleaving people alone (French, laissez-faire, let do or let

make) to competitively pursue their own profitableinterests will, abracadabra, produce a fair and just market

is, it seems to me, entirely ludicrous.

Internationally, the capitalist market system has resultedin gross inequalities between the Western world and themore impoverished Global South. As the inadequacies andcontradictions within corporate capitalism move thefinancial sector toward an ultimate collapse, theborderless fourth world of poverty becomes increasinglyubiquitous. Moreover, the nonempirical human naturefallacy has also been selectively used, over the course of history, to justify the inferiority and mistreatment of races,genders, ethnicities, and religions.


252/289


Unitive Socialism is based upon spiritual leadership,unity, and love, not upon a mechanistic technocracy of automatons:

The entire point of technology is to free humanity from labor

itself! We need a social design that focuses on maximizing ourtechnological abilities for the sake of freeing humanity from

drudgery and increasing productivity to its highest potential.Anything less is unacceptable....

Government and the concept of the State will eventually beoutgrown entirely and replaced by an objective system of globalresource management and technological organization. In a systemof abundance, the State, as we know it, has no basis to exist.Government also becomes a Cybernated System , which iscombined with Industry and thus responsible for the productionand distribution of goods, along with resource and environmentalmanagement.The Zeitgeist Movement Observations and Responses: Activist Orientation Guide.
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/zeitgeist.pdf


253/289


Since work is worship, being freed from labor is,ultimately, not freedom at all:

It is enjoined upon every one of you to engage in some form of occupation, such as crafts, trades and the like. We have graciouslyexalted your engagement in such work to the rank of worshipunto God, the True One. Ponder ye in your hearts the grace andthe blessings of God and render thanks unto Him at eventide and

at dawn. Waste not your time in idleness and sloth. Occupyyourselves with that which profiteth yourselves and others. Thushath it been decreed in this Tablet from whose horizon the day-star of wisdom and utterance shineth resplendent.Bahu llh, Tablets of Bah u llh Revealed after the Kitb-i- Aqdas. Pages 26.

Return to the table of contents.

Liberalism

At this point, however, I see some value in brieflydistinguishing the non-political intellectual left, as I have
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/tb.pdfhttp://scroll%280%2C0%29/


254/289


been personally developing it, from the philosophies of individualistic liberalism . Many on the intellectual left,grounded in a strong emancipatory ethic, support thehuman rights of marginalized communities, universal

justice, and economic democratization , while opposing

capitalist globalization. Unlike the politically reform-minded middle left of progressives , intellectual leftists

advocate a fundamental restructuring or reshaping of societies and relationships, such as a radical unity in

diversity .Taking what we can from the sociology of the commons, a

genuine democracy appears to involve changing the way we relateto the world around us, and moving beyond ownership tostewardship to commoning. This isnt a call to abandon allpropertypersonal property is important, and no one should bedenied it within reason.Raj Patel, The Value of Nothing: How to Reshape Market Societyand Redefine Democracy. New York: Macmillan. 2009. Page 188.
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/Economic_Democracy.pdf


255/289


The globalization of the old world order needs to besucceeded by globalization 2.0:

The experience of the Bah community may be seen as anexample of ... enlarging unity. It is a community of some three tofour million people drawn from many nations, cultures, classesand creeds, engaged in a wide range of activities serving thespiritual, social and economic needs of the peoples of many lands.

It is a single social organism, representative of the diversity of thehuman family, conducting its affairs through a system of commonly accepted consultative principles, and cherishing equallyall the great outpourings of divine guidance in human history. Itsexistence is yet another convincing proof of the practicality of itsFounders vision of a united world, another evidence thathumanity can live as one global society, equal to whateverchallenges its coming of age may entail. If the Bah experience

can contribute in whatever measure to reinforcing hope in theunity of the human race, we are happy to offer it as a model forstudy.The Universal House of Justice,The Promise of World Peace.October, 1985. Page 14.
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/uhj/promiseofworldpeace.pdf


256/289


In my opinion, the Western world has too much freedom,liberty, and libertarianism but too little justice. TheSupreme Bah Institution is the Universal House of Justice, not the Universal House of Freedom. Reifyingfreedom and individualism, turning them into real things,is a logical fallacy. Then idolizing them, as goods in

themselves, while imagining that they are somehownatural , may, at least in part, be an unfortunate byproduct

of the frontier experience. Whose freedom?, I would ask.What about free health care or freedom from capitalism?

It is evident that the unifying tendencies of the [American]Revolutionary period were facilitated by the previous coperationin the regulation of the frontier. In this connection may bementioned the importance of the frontier, from that day to this, asa military training school, keeping alive the power of resistance toaggression, and developing the stalwart and rugged qualities of the frontiersman....

... the most important effect of the frontier has been in the


257/289


promotion of democracy here [the United States] and in Europe.As has been indicated, the frontier is productive of individualism.Complex society is precipitated by the wilderness into a kind of primitive organization based on the family. The tendency is anti-social. It produces antipathy to control, and particularly to anydirect control.Frederick Jackson Turner, The Frontier in American History. New

York: Henry Holt and Company. 1921. Pages 22-23 and 35-36

The simple truth is that all men want to be free, and ourcommon enemies are lies and those who create them.About Us. Freedom Reigns. Retrieved on May 14, 2012.

According to the dear Universal House of Justice:

At the individual level, justice is that faculty of the human soulthat enables each person to distinguish truth from falsehood. Inthe sight of God, Bahu llh avers, justice is the best beloved of all things since it permits each individual to see with his own eyesrather than the eyes of others, to know through his ownknowledge rather than the knowledge of his neighbor or his
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/the_frontier.pdfhttp://freedomreigns.us/About_Us.html


258/289


group. It calls for fair-mindedness in ones judgments, for equityin ones treatment of others, and is thus a constant if demandingcompanion in the daily occasions of life....

At the heart of the discussion of a strategy of social andeconomic development ... lies the issue of human rights. The

shaping of such a strategy calls for the promotion of human rightsto be freed from the grip of the false dichotomies that have for so

long held it hostage. Concern that each human being should enjoythe freedom of thought and action conducive to his or herpersonal growth does not justify devotion to the cult of individualism that so deeply corrupts many areas of contemporarylife. Nor does concern to ensure the welfare of society as a wholerequire a deification of the state as the supposed source of humanitys well-being. Far otherwise: the history of the presentcentury shows all too clearly that such ideologies and the partisan

agendas to which they give rise have been themselves the principalenemies of the interests they purport to serve. Only in aconsultative framework made possible by the consciousness of theorganic unity of humankind can all aspects of the concern forhuman rights find legitimate and creative expression....

The activity most intimately linked to the consciousness that


259/289


distinguishes human nature is the individuals exploration of realityfor himself or herself. The freedom to investigate the purpose of existence and to develop the endowments of human nature thatmake it achievable requires protection. Human beings must befree to know. That such freedom is often abused and such abusegrossly encouraged by features of contemporary society does notdetract in any degree from the validity of the impulse itself.

Universal House of Justice,The Prosperity of Humankind . January23, 1995. Pages 5-6.

In other words, justice, not so-called economic freedom,is the best beloved of all things in dear Bah u llhs sight:

O SON OF SPIRIT! The best beloved of all things in My sight isJustice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect

it not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see withthine own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt knowof thine own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thyneighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be.Verily justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness.Set it then before thine eyes.
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/uhj/poh.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/baha/hw.pdf


260/289


Bahu llh, The Hidden Words of Bahu llh. Arabic. Number2.

Individual freedom or liberty is, by definition, a liberalissue. The concept developed in the Western

Enlightenment. Strictly speaking, both the conservative pro-life and the progressive pro-choice views on abortion

are liberal positions. Pro-lifers are primarily interested inthe individual liberty of the fetus to come to term. Those

on the pro-choice side, however, focus upon the individualreproductive freedom of the mother. The capitalist freemarket is classic economic liberalism (classicaleconomics) or, expanded transnationally, neoliberalism(neoclassical economics).

Middle-left Keynesianism modified capitalist liberalism,with an enlarged civil-service sector, in order to allegedlyprotect the freedom of individuals to be employed.However, Keynesianism, in my opinion, was even worsethan economic liberalism. Not only did Keynesians prop up
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/baha/hw.pdf


261/289


the corporate state. They proposed a dangerous anddistracting solution. There is, from a Keynesian standpoint,no need to dismantle corporate capitalism. Instead, onelegitimizes the system by putting a band-aid on it. Byworsening, through postponement, the inevitable crashand burn, Keynesianism became the corporate monster

with a smile on his face.

Freedom, I think, has been interpreted in at least twoways: First, freedom can be understood, in the context of the European Enlightnment, as (personal) liberty. Sincethe founding fathers of the United States were rational,liberal Enlightenment thinkers, clearly indicated by thepyramidal eye on the back of a dollar bill, they focused onliberty. On the other hand, like Roy Bhaskars CriticalRealism and his philosophy of metaReality, Unities of all Things focuses upon a second definition of freedom asliberation, emancipation, and social justice. In this sense,freedom is unity or, in Bhaskars terminology, the cosmic
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://bahaifaith.info/


262/289


envelope.

The term ground state is a term ... [which includes] not onlythe more religious concept of soul but also the secular conceptof our best or higher selves; all ground states are connected in

... the cosmic envelope.Cheryl Frank, Global Warming and Cultural/Media Articulations


263/289

injureth them, and cast away the thing that profiteth them. Theyare, indeed, of those that are far astray. We find some mendesiring liberty, and priding themselves therein. Such men are inthe depths of ignorance.

Liberty must, in the end, lead to sedition, whose flames nonecan quench. Thus warneth you He Who is the Reckoner, the All-Knowing. Know ye that the embodiment of liberty and its symbolis the animal. That which beseemeth man is submission unto such

restraints as will protect him from his own ignorance, and guardhim against the harm of the mischief-maker. Liberty causeth manto overstep the bounds of propriety, and to infringe on the dignityof his station. It debaseth him to the level of extreme depravityand wickedness.

Regard men as a flock of sheep that need a shepherd for their


264/289


protection. This, verily, is the truth, the certain truth. We approveof liberty in certain circumstances, and refuse to sanction it inothers. We, verily, are the All-Knowing.

Say: True liberty consisteth in mans submission unto Mycommandments, little as ye know it. Were men to observe that

which We have sent down unto them from the Heaven of Revelation, they would, of a certainty, attain unto perfect liberty.

Happy is the man that hath apprehended the Purpose of God inwhatever He hath revealed from the Heaven of His Will, thatpervadeth all created things. Say: The liberty that profiteth you isto be found nowhere except in complete servitude unto God, theEternal Truth. Whoso hath tasted of its sweetness will refuse tobarter it for all the dominion of earth and heaven.Bahu llh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahu llh. Pages335-336.

With reference to the absolute pacifists, or conscientiousobjectors to war; their attitude, judged from the Bah standpoint, is quite anti-social and due to its exaltation of theindividual conscience leads inevitably to disorder and chaos insociety. Extreme pacifists are thus very close to the anarchists, in
http://pdfcrowd.com/http://pdfcrowd.com/redirect/?url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bahaistudies.net%2fasma%2foldnewcontent.html&id=ma-130503231816-367ff0a2http://pdfcrowd.com/customize/http://pdfcrowd.com/html-to-pdf-api/?ref=pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/baha/gwb.pdf


265/289


the sense that both of these groups lay an undue emphasis on therights and merits of the individual. The Bah conception of sociallife is essentially based on the subordination of the individual will tothat of society. It neither suppresses the individual nor does it exalthim to the point of making him an anti-social creature, a menace

to society. As in everything, it follows the golden mean. The onlyway that society can function is for the minority to follow the will

of the majority.The other main objection to the conscientious objectors is that

their method of establishing peace is too negative. Non-cooperation is too passive a philosophy to become an effective wayfor social reconstruction. Their refusal to bear arms can neverestablish peace. There should first be a spiritual revitalizationwhich nothing, except the Cause of God, can effectively bring toevery mans heart.

From a letter, dated November 21, 1935, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, Lights of Guidance: A Bah Reference File.Number 1354.

THE PROBLEM OF ANOMIE

h l f l l l f b h


266/289


The totality of moral rules truly forms about each person animaginary wall, at the foot of which the flood of human passionssimply dies without being able to go further. For the same reason that they are contained it becomes possible to satisfy them.But if at any point this barrier weakens, these previouslyrestrained human forces pour tumultuously from the openbreach; once loosed they find no limits where they can stop. Theycan only devote themselves, without hope of satisfaction, to the

pursuit of an end which always eludes them.mile Durkheim, mile Durkheim: Selected Writings. Anthony

Giddens, editor. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.1972. Page 173.

Furthermore, the philosophies of individualism andlibertarianism are, in effect, false gods . If each person isan individualization of the unity of humanity and itsattributes (the rational faculty), then no one, singly, is acomplete individual. Absolute individual freedom or libertybecomes a socially reinforced delusion. On the other hand,the Unified Socialist economic principle of collectivefreedom , human rights, or social justice is, it seems to me,

f h f d id bl i li i f h


267/289


one of the profound, yet unavoidable, implications of theunity in multiplicity of existence or, according to Abdu l-Bah, the universal relationships.

Freedom, in my view, is unity or, more precisely, unity in

diversity:

And among the teachings of Bahu llh is mans freedom, thatthrough the ideal Power he should be free and emancipated fromthe captivity of the world of nature; for as long as man is captiveto nature he is a ferocious animal, as the struggle for existence isone of the exigencies of the world of nature. This matter of thestruggle for existence [Herbert Spencers A System of Synthetic Philosophyor so-called Social Darwinism?] is the fountain-headof all calamities and is the supreme affliction....

... with regard to the peoples who clamour for freedom: themoderate freedom which guarantees the welfare of the world of mankind and maintains and preserves the universal relationships,is found in its fullest power and extension in the teachings o

unitive socialism: a speculative journey

Documents