The Golden Rule: A Way To Ensure A Viable Future?

Karen Armstrong, former nun and prolific author on religious issues, gives a talk in 2008 on fostering compassion for today’s TED Talk Tuesday.

“If we don’t manage to implement the Golden Rule globally, so that we treat all peoples, wherever and whoever they may be, as though they were as important as ourselves, I doubt that we’ll have a viable world to hand on to the next generation.”

[youtube=http://youtu.be/SJMm4RAwVLo]

*

CharterForCompassion.org

*LOL – not sure what happened, but I’ve now posted the video that goes along with the Karen Armstrong quote. It’s hard to get good help these days!*

From Boston To Iraq To Syria: Nobody Deserves To Get Blown Up, At Anytime

[youtube=http://youtu.be/wJZ3bcPr-Ds]

*

Via @AnonymousOpsIRC on Twitter: From Boston to Afghanistan, nobody deserves to get blown up at anytime. #peace not #war

American comedian Patton Oswalt posted a thoughtful response to the Boston bombings on his Facebook wall, reflecting on the goodness that remains in the world:

…I don’t know what’s going to be revealed behind all of this mayhem. One human insect or a poisonous mass of broken sociopaths.

But here’s what I DO know. If it’s one person or a HUNDRED people, that is not even a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of the percent of the population on this planet. You watch videos of the carnage and there are people running TOWARDS the destruction to help out…This is a giant planet and we’re lucky to live on it but there are prices and penalties incurred for the daily miracle of existence. One of them is, every once in a while, the wiring of a tiny sliver of the species gets snarled and they’re pointing the way towards darkness.

But the vast majority stands against that darkness…(click here to read in full)

*

boston response
graphic: Aaron Paquette

*

Whenever darkness crosses our path, we all have a choice in how we respond.

More links:

Boston Marathon Tragedy Met With Unbelievable Acts Of Kindness

Bomb Attacks Across Iraq Kill 50, Injure 300

CharterForCompassion.org