1-7
8-14
15-21
22-28
29-35
36-42
43-49
50-56
57-63
64-70
71-77
78-84
85-91
92-98
99-105
pack, a social group, certainly exist and are the most powerful threat of all. While
fantasies are common about individuals and couples escaping social groups, the
reality is different. Groups of people have made the rules for individuals for a
long time.
in the history of life, but I can think of no other species that has attempted
pregnancy on two legs. Two legged creatures have always been egg layers, or
marsupials, have never attempted the balancing act of a pregnancy on two legs. I
think it is only possible within a social group.
Loneliness can be a big problem, even for couples, as most of us eventually crave
other people in our lives.
chimpanzees, which are social creatures, and that we stayed social.”14
independent. We are an interdependent species. We rely on each other for nearly all our
wants and needs. Independence from other is not available to the richest man with the
most affluent life style. He is as dependent on the staff of servants who wait on him as they
are dependent on him for their livelihoods. Only the poorest of hermits with a quality of
life poorer than a cave man can achieve true independence from others. True
independence from other humans, requires that he must grow and cook all his own
vegetables. He must hunt, kill, skin, dress, and cook all his own meat. He must build his
own home using only the materials he can gather and prepare by himself aided only by
tools that he made for himself.
be independent, human independence is not possible in any scientific sense. Our bodies
do not contain chlorophyl and we cannot get our energy directly from the Sun. Other
plants and animals serve as our source of energy. We are as dependent on others for our
survival as are the animals are for theirs. We can ignore this fact of science by calling the
otherplants and animals — food and cooking in ways so we are not reminded of the
Arthur Noll, Harmony, The Time-binding Trust, 2001 — Internet:
http://www.synearth.net/harmony.html
relationships with other humans, we discover that even here we are not independent. In
summary then, we can say that in the lives of plants — the independent class of life, other
plays no role . In the lives of animals — the dependentclass of life, otherserves primarily
as a source of food. And finally in the lives of humans, the interdependent class of life,
otheris very important. Our bodies are as dependent on others for food as the animals,
but socially, psychologically and economically, we depend on othersand others depend
on us. We humans areinterdependent.
needs. And, others are dependent on our actions to meet their needs.
winning. The secret of winning then is to get others to help us. Let us examine these
options through the lens of synergic science.15
Appendix—page 78
The human condition of INTERdependence means all humans need help. This is important
enough that it can not be said too often. All humans needhelpunless they wish to live at
the level of animal subsistence. INTERdependence means sometimes I depend on others
and sometimes others depend on me.
giver of help. Sometimes other is a receiver of help.
meet my needs.
to meet my needs. Remember, I need a constant level of oxygen dissolved in my blood,
but I only take a breath fourteen to sixteen a minute. I need a continuous supply of water
within by cellar environment, but I only drink water a few times a day. And, while my
brain requires a constant level of dissolved glucose to feed it blood sugar, but I only eat
two or three times a day. My actions are discontinuous. Discontinuous means I have
some control over whenI act to meet my needs. I can eat now or a few hours from now.
Read moreon INTERdependencein theAppendix.
being met by
discontinuous actions.
with only their own action. They need the occasional actions of others to meet their
continuous needs. Stated explicitly: Within the relationship between selfand other, the
receiverhascontinuous needs, but the giveronly occasionally actsto help the receiver.
discontinuous pushis called a
tension integrityortensegrityin synergic science. In an INTERdependent life form the
receivers of help are continuously needing help while the givers of help are only
occasionally giving it. Life and living then is all about thecontinuing pullof our needs
and the discontinuous pushof the actionstaken to meet those needs. Some of the actions
are our own, but most of the actions are the giftsof others.
INTERdependence is the human condition. Once we acknowledge our INTERdependence
and accept our dependence on others, then there are only three ways that we can get the
help we need to meet our needs.
forceothers to giveus help — This is adversary help.
payothers to giveus help —This is neutral help.
trustothers to giveus help — This is synergic help.
in detail.
— force or fraud. The givers of help are losing. When
youforceothers to give you help you, they do the least they possibly can. Because the
helper is hurt, adversary help is always of a low quality.
experiences a loss. He is less after helping you than before. When you force others to help
you, it natural that they do the least they possibly can and stop helping the moment they
don’t feel afraid.
Sometimes I forceothers to giveme help me, and sometimes others forceme to givethem
help.
help. The criminal makes you help him, when he steals your property. The government
makes you help it, when it forces you to pay taxes. You are being forced to help others
anytime you are given an ultimatum.
space for the animals. Space is finite. Good space is even more finite. It is very limited.
There is only so much good water, so much good grazing land, so much good shelter, and
so much good potential food. There is not enough to go around. The space-binders must
compete for this limited amount of good space. They compete adversarily. They compete
by fighting and flighting. They compete by attacking and killing other space-binders.
They compete by devouring the energy-binders.
finding plants to eat. The carnivores depend on finding other animals to eat. The animals
inability to utilize sunlight to synthesize organic tissue means they must eat organic
tissue. Animals survive by eating either plants or animals. Animals are completely
dependent on other for survival. This fact makes animals the dependent class of life —
dependent on other.
of the rabbit who loses its life. On the other hand, if the rabbit is quicker, the fox loses a
meal, and the rabbit wins its life. The animals live in an adversary world of losers and
winners. This is a world of fighting and flighting — of pain and dying. To win in this
world someone must lose. Winning is always at the cost of another.All animals, from the
smallest insect to the largest whale are struggling to avoid losing — struggling to avoid
being hurt.
hurt.
notice to go tooth and nail to avoid losing — to avoid death. Losers/winners is the
harshest of games. Winning is always at the cost of another's life.
wounding its attacker. So both parties can lose, turning the game — losers/winners into
losers/losers.
relationship. (1+1) < 2. In the animal world where the loser forfeits its life (1+1) = 1. Or in
the end game of losers/losers, both adversaries may die in battle, then (1+1) = 0.
They struggle to avoid the loss — they conflict. In an adversary relationship, one
individual plus another individual are less after the relationship. In other words (1+1) < 2,
and often much less than two. Adversary relationships are marked by high conflict, low
effectiveness and poor productivity. Now lets examine how the natural life tensegrity of
Needs and Actions would operate in adversary INTERdependence.
When we obtain help from others by force or coercion, we are entering into thePrey-
Predator Tensegrity. Recall I discussed in an earlier passage. The prey is continuously
pullingpredators towards it. It must be continuously on alert ready to fight or flee. The
predator is only discontinuously pushingtowards the prey in the hunt. So we see a
balancebetween the thecontinuously pullingprey and the discontinuously pushing
predator.
animals within a prey-predator group the more stable the population.
take action to meet them.
Continuous-Pull
Passive
—
—
—
Discontinuous-Push
Active
to
meet my needs. Remember my needspullon me, I needa continuouslevel of oxygen
dissolved in my blood, but I only act discontinuously— pushingthe used air out of my
lungs and then taking a fresh breath fourteen to sixteen a minute.
with out help from others. They need the occasional actionsof others to meet their
continuous needs. This leads to the emergence of receivers of helpwhich are
continuously needing help and givers of helpare only occasionally acting to give that
help.
continuing pullof our needsand
the discontinuous pushof the actionstaken to meet those needs. Some of the actions are
our own, but most of the actions are the giftsof others.
Continuous-Pull
Passive
Receivers of Help
—
—
—
—
Discontinuous-Push
Active
Givers of Help
Within the relationship between selfand other, the receiverhascontinuous needs, but the
giveronly occasionally actsto help the receiver. Sometimesself is a giver of help.
Sometimes self is a receiver of help. Sometimes otheris a giver of help. Sometimes other
is a receiver of help. Sometimes my actions help others meet their needs. Sometimes
other’s actions help me meet my needs.
who force me to give them help, and sometimes I am the predator forcing weaker others to
give me help.
the predators are the active members. The prey is
continuously vulnerable to attack by the predators. For an INTERdependent species like
humanity that means that the Receivers of help are the active members. The givers of help
are continuously vulnerable to discontinuous attacks by the receivers of help.
natural pattern,
Continuous-Pull
Passive
Receivers of Help
—
—
—
—
Discontinuous-Push
Active
Givers of Help
there is loss of the natural pattern. Actions and
Needshave switched places as have theGivers of Helpand Receivers of Help. ThePrey
is coercedto give helpin the form of theiractions to meet theneedsof the Predators. The
predators are in control.
Prey
*Actions
Continuous-Pull
Passive
*Givers of Help
—
—
—
—
*Needs
Discontinuous-Push
Active
*Receivers of Help
the predator.
-- the adversary relationship
As a victim in the Coercion Tensegrity, I am continuously attracting predators to take help
from me. As a predator in the Coercion Tensegrity, I am only occasionally forcing others
to give me help. Our relationship is as enemies. I hate and fear the predator who is stealing
my help. I will do the least I can for him. I will help him only as long as he makes me. I
cease helping him the moment I stop fearing him.