Civilized Citizenship is entirely an economic proposition. Only a civilized country will be able to create an environment that helps every one of its people shun barbarity to escape poverty.
My serene sanctuary, overlooking nature’s artistry, engaging the wonders of Los Angeles, emboldens me to wonder about human reality in the cosmic continuum of human history. My monologues on Civilized Citizenship are regularly watched by nature’s alternating marvelous splendor and dismal shadow. They are attended by the grandness of the ocean, viewed by the majesty of the mountain, witnessed by the loftiness of the skyline, and cheered by the stunning sunsets followed by soothing city lights. My monologues are part of an ongoing dialectic on how humanity could readily achieve Civilized Citizenship. To become civilized—to attain Civilized Citizenship—humanity must end its endless violence, corruption, and prejudice, and embrace nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance.
Humans have always been uncivilized. They endlessly commit uncivilized transgressions: violence, corruption, prejudice. Humanity’s unending violence, corruption, and prejudice cause its never-ending poverty. Poverty deprives the poor of keep and dignity. Lack of keep and dignity stifles confidence and competence. Indigence and indignity deprive people of initiative and enterprise to pursue affluence. Eschewing violence, corruption, and prejudice and embracing nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance are the prerequisites to becoming civilized. Only a civilized country cherishing nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance can become a moral country. Shunning violence, corruption, and prejudice is inevitable to help people become civilized. Civilized Citizenship is entirely an economic proposition. Only a civilized country will be able to create an environment that helps every one of its people shun barbarity to escape poverty.
Violence destroys wealth. Corruption abuses wealth. Prejudice wastes wealth. When destruction of wealth, abuse of wealth, and waste of wealth are ended, economic development is maximized. Destruction of wealth, abuse of wealth, and waste of wealth are the causes of poverty. Without Civilized Citizenship, no nation can achieve the maximum economic development to eliminate poverty. Without ending violence, corruption, and prejudice, no nation will be able to employ its entire available economic resources to achieve maximum economic growth and social progress. Together, economic growth and social progress create economic development.
Nothing is more detrimental and demeaning to humanity than poverty. A person in poverty is bereft of human glory. A poor person is bereft of human dignity. Poverty is humiliation. It deprives people of pride. Poverty is humanity’s worst tragedy. It causes pain and shame. To end poverty, humans must become civilized. Only nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance will civilize people. Only nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance will end poverty. Nonviolence will end wealth destruction caused by violence. Altruism will end wealth abuse from corruption. Tolerance will end wealth waste from prejudice. Nothing but nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance will eliminate poverty. Flawless democracy, which expedites the elimination of poverty, is essential for human progress.
Ideas inspire change. Change builds progress. Human ingenuity to invent incredible technologies has created unbelievable progress. Revolutionary technologies help people have leisurely and comfortable lives. Technological progress confirms humanity’s creative superiority. Innovative technologies unequivocally provide unimaginable benefits. They also unfailingly offer people shortcuts to actualize their inborn inclination for violence, corruption, and prejudice.
Despite the incredible technological progress, humanity has not succeeded in helping itself become civilized. Despite their exceptional benefits, technologies like the Internet and smartphones have not helped people become civilized. Nor do they yet help people move toward becoming civilized. Its ingenuity notwithstanding, humanity remains utterly uncivilized as it fails to mend its innate inclination for violence, corruption, and prejudice, which propel it into causing endless wealth destruction, wealth abuse, and wealth waste.
Humanity has failed to stop its never-ending violence, corruption, and prejudice because it failed to recognize their unbearable economic and social costs. And because humanity failed to recognize the untold economic and social benefits of nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance. Humanity’s lack of appreciation of those realities prevent changes. Violence, corruption, and prejudice started when humanity was born. They continue nonstop. Corruption started when Adam and Eve took the fruit from the tree of knowledge. Prejudice started when Adam and Eve preferred Abel to Cain. Violence started when Cain killed Abel.
Humanity has failed to divorce itself from its disposition for violence, corruption, and prejudice. Had humanity succeeded, it could have reshaped its disposition to nurture and cherish nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance. Thus, it could have shunned its original barbaric paradigm. Its inherent inclinations for violence, corruption, and prejudice are exacerbated by its affinity for despotism, ideology, and flawed democracy. Civilized Citizenship, which is entirely an economic proposition, was conceptualized to study the untold benefits of nonviolence, altruism, and tolerance, and the unbearable costs of violence, corruption, and prejudice.
