By Susan Ellis of Key Life Journeys

I love the internet, I enjoy getting emails and I'm thrilled that I can send my photos to my friends and share humour and information. But I have been increasingly aware of a knot in my stomach as I read the "rant" letters and I rebel against the emotion behind them. I usually delete without reading but recently I have decided to be more proactive. I am going to try to express my feelings in this entry and then every time I get a rant I am going to forward the link to this page. My thoughts and feelings will be known and they may make others think twice about forwarding such mail.

Now, to what sort of mail am I referring? Well it is likely to have a Canadian or American flag on it and somewhere in the script it will say

"ARE WE PART OF THE PROBLEM??? Think about this: If you don't want to forward this for fear of offending someone…."

"I am not the least bit sorry if this offends ANYONE, this is MY COUNTRY; My Grand Dad served in the military…"

"If you agree, pass this along. If you don't agree, delete it and reap the ill wind because of your complacency!"

What these "offensive" people are objecting to are immigrants, singing the National Anthem in Hindi,  giving criminals who have served their sentence a second chance etc. They are practicing separation.

If we always do what we've always done, we will always get what we've always got.

What we have always done is alienate those who are different, show vengeance and retribution when we perceive ourselves to have been wronged, be impatient and intolerant of others and behave as superior beings. What we have always done is not believe in the Golden Rule which is the cornerstone of all major religions. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

As a result of this behaviour vast numbers separate themselves from others, compete, defeat and destroy in order to win. So when you have winners - then there must be losers. How do losers feel when they are tormented and ridiculed? Hey, they get angry and want retribution. They want to take away from you what you have gained. So the circle continues.

Even the Olympic motto demands that we must be "Citius, Altius, Fortius."- "Swifter, Higher, Stronger" to be worthy. Do we ever remember who came in second? Did not s/he not work just as hard?

But what if we changed that picture? What if we changed our behaviour, our attitude? What if we practiced inclusion and cooperation, not separation and antagonism? What if we wanted to create win-win situations? What if to "offend anyone" was not our need? What if we saw no value, no reward in humiliating others? What if we believed that "locking people up and throwing away the key" only gave us more of the same violence? What if there was no them and us - just us learning to get along? When I look a stranger in the eye, I must see myself.

I cannot change society. I can only change myself. I cannot demand others do as I wish; I can only share my way.
So I am preparing myself to Take The Vow of non-violence in my thoughts, my speech and my actions.

This is the movement led by  Deepak Chopra, President and Founder of the Alliance For A New Humanity

I say I am preparing myself because this is not an easy decision. We have been conditioned to react to situations we don't like with anger, we are surrounded by criticism, gossip and words that are not impeccable. I feel some intolerance towards the intolerant. I still do have some nationalistic thoughts that could pose a problem.

The typical rant will say "I am not sorry if this offends any one, this is MY COUNTRY - IF IT IS YOUR COUNTRY, SPEAK UP --"
I believe this is a minimalist egocentric fixation. Many of the astronauts looking back at the earth from outer space saw no man made borders except the Great Wall of China. All they saw was a fragile globe in a sea of space and were spiritually moved by the experience. They saw how important it was to be part of something so precious. They actually saw that the earth was literally one, and they were part of the whole.

Is it so difficult for us who have not had that out of earth experience to realize that there is far more to be gained from cooperation to promote human kind's survival on this planet? Understanding that we are all "in it together?"

What if we could all take the vow of non-violence in thoughts, speech and actions? Yes it will threaten those who thrive on power and greed. The world financial crash is the product of that behaviour. But being greedy is going out of style. Or maybe it is that more people are realizing that humanity counts.

It seems to me the current political unrest in Canada was caused because a minority government showed no respect for others and refused to listen, compromise and negotiate. People rebelled - legally. Isn't it interesting that the same minority government is now saying "let's talk."

This means that we have a choice.
If we always do what we've always done, we will always get what we've always got

Charles Eisenstein says
"If you want to survive the multiple crises unfolding today, do not seek to survive them. That is the mindset of separation; that is resistance, a clinging to a dying past. Instead, allow your perspective to shift toward reunion, and think in terms of what you can give. What can you contribute to a more beautiful world? That is your only responsibility and your only security. The gifts you need to survive and enjoy will come to you easily, because what you do to the world, you do to yourself"

According to David Ulansey, currently, the Gross World Product (GWP) is such that if everyone had the same amount of money to live on it would be $9,000 US. The good old Protestant or Puritan Work Ethic says work hard and we will be rewarded. This means if we work hard and earn more than $9,000, we are actually preventing someone else from getting there. Indeed we are putting them in poverty. But we are programmed to believe that it is not because of us, it is because the other person is lazy and doesn't work hard enough. Clever rationalization, eh? 

Other research states that the GWP is apparently 30% more than the earth can sustain. So first our individual economies go belly up and then the planet. Oh planet Earth will go on, but maybe without us.

However there is a shift in consciousness. Gradually we are realizing that money has no value, it has only debt behind it. All those who hoard it will find they are collecting dust. Many have already made the change. Self sustainability is our responsibility. But we cannot do it alone. It will mean cooperation and living in community.

I may be able to grow veggies or sew clothes, but cannot fix my roof or heal your pain. Gradually we will learn that everything is not a commodity. We will learn to share again. I personally have learned the value of sharing the things that money can't buy. I was a caregiver for a disabled dependent partner. I couldn't do all the caring myself. Others shared their skills and most of all their time. We were community. No judging, no winners and losers no criticism of mother tongues; Just humans sharing and giving and being beautiful.

When I watched my partner die of a disease, there was pain and grief and anger - but I couldn't get revenge. I couldn't put it in jail and throw away the key. What must arise is compassion if we are to go on living.

Back to the vicious rants.  It is my opinion that they are the voices of the people stuck in a time warp, afraid of moving forward into the new world: people who find it easier to blame others for creating division when it is they who are demanding separation.

So while you get your bile running and your adrenalin flowing as you sign intolerant petitions, I'm preparing myself to take Deepak Chopra's vow of non violence in my thoughts, my speech and my actions. When the current system of greed and separation collapses, I hope my zucchini and tomatoes can be shared with those of you who will fix my roof. Then we will all have a change to live by the Golden Rule just as the Masters taught us. My rant comes to you with love.