"Put your (our) money where your mouth is and offer cash reward recognition."_In other words, you want to be bribed to stop throwing stuff in the trash.

First off, its not a "one bag limit". It's one bag free. Many municipalities, Quinte West for example, have charged a fee for EVERY bag for years. _I doubt that its that much more effective actually (no idea what the numbers are) but it's sure a lot simpler - you wanna put a bag out, put a tag on it.__Your choice to throw it out instead of diverting it after all. Pretty simple.

I don't disagree with your thesis - that a success of "some kind" will help to keep the Occupiers engaged. I don't even say that an event built around a transaction tax is "bad" - after all, this is an eclectic movement and one of its strengths is the diversity of ideas that are being brought to it.

Underlying it all, however (in my opinion at least), is a sea change in how we see the average citizen engaging in the process of being governed. We're starting to see more comments along those lines emerge now. How that perspective will shape the message though remains to be seen.

Hi Dave, I agree with your point. Every movement needs some successes, both for the energy it brings and the definition it helps to create. I'm just suggesting that they need to be cautious about being characterized as wanting to simply "take from the rich" (no matter how justified the reasoning) rather than "restoring the balance." The former is almost a better sound bite for their opposition than it is for them.

Thanks Kevin
I appreciate you taking the time to comment and offer that encouragement.
David

This Resolution gathered a couple of hundred signatures when it was "live." Karen Armstrong's Charter for Compassion, as of August 24, 2010, had just over 52,000.

Frankly, neither of those numbers seem very satisfactory at a time when nearly 2 billion people are online globally.

Affirming the Charter takes only seconds. Leaving a comment in support of the Resolution takes a minute or so.

I would be interested in readers' thoughts on why the level of response is so low.
If you've affirmed the Charter, thank you.
If you were one of the people who signed the Golden Rule Resolution, thank you.
If you've done neither, I'm very interested in what you think is missing, or otherwise causing you to hesitate.

Thank you one and all for your participation.

Together, we can make this a truly Golden Rule world.
David

Reposted with permission -
I like the metaphor of ocean as well. It makes me think of leaving a shore and arriving at another. But people are also leaving the further shore and and arriving at this shore. We meet on the journey or we pass on the journey or we wave on the journey but the journey is always ongoing. We all experience God(in one way or another) on the voyage.

This comment was posted on the United Church of Canada's Wondercafe in response to this essay by "CrazyHeart"

My commitment - on a daily basis, to undertake at least one unexpected act of compassion, and to recognize, support, and encourage at least one act of compassion on the part of those I meet.

This comment is by Jeffrey Wattles, author of "The Golden Rule":

Beloved Mussie and friends,

It has been interesting to read of your adventures in Japan, since my wife is Japanese, and very devoted to the golden rule. Every year in Hiroshima there is a concert for peace, and a couple years ago I remember seeing it on TV Japan. One of the memorable pieces performed was by a European composer expressing the theme of forgiveness. You can imagine how this citizen of the United States was moved by the mercy conveyed by the selection of this music for this concert from this historical place.

I believe that the Japanese people have a special role to play in the world as we work toward world peace through world law (the title of a book by Grenville Clark and Louis B. Sohn, with a thirty-page introduction in the 2nd and 3rd editions that makes the strongest case I've seen for this concept as an international reality). Of course there are competing views that also have their insights, which should be integrated in a wise synthesis, but the main obstacle is the claim that cultures are so different that effective global organization regarding a few essentials is impossible dream: the brotherhood of man may be a nice ideal but can never become a practical reality in our world.

The golden rule is linked with many themes central to the spiritual life. As a spiritual principle, it contains no immediate political message. Rather, as a teaching that bears the mighty power of the Spirit of Truth, the golden rule can bring together persons of differing political persuasions, not specifying solutions for a particular time or place, but framing the discussion in a way that makes for progress toward our destiny.

Spiritual strength and divine wisdom to each of you!

Jeff

Hi Bosan.
In the interests of discussion I've allowed your comment, although I think it belongs more properly over on my Life and Faith blog at http://seemslikegod.org/lifeandfaith, GRR is interfaith in nature. However, I wanted to respond to your post.

The Golden Rule is indeed about "loving one another" since, as Christian scriptures have it, it directly flows from that "greatest" commandment. It is the guideline, in fact, on how we are to accomplish loving one another.

If you'd like to discuss your other points. I've added a post on Life and Faith
titled "I Bring a Sword?" You can find it here -
http://seemslikegod.org/lifeandfaith/archives/i-b...

Thanks for your interest and participation.