Diary: Calgary weather and survival odds:

~~Calgary weather explained and survival odds for Canadian Indian children.~~

The rain is much needed and it is standard weather for June, the monsoon season as I was told the second summer I was in Calgary and worked for MacAir. That was about the same time that I also was informed that ‘It can snow any time of the year in Calgary’. Later on I realised that Calgary is at an higher altitude than most Alpine villages in Switzerland. Hence, mountain weather is Calgary’s lot.

I only made one shopping trip yesterday and that without a list too yet. I’m changing my habits possibly, but after so many years of making lists I pretty well know what I need every month.

The big news yesterday was the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee report by Justice Sinclair, its chairman. I will write about this some below under writings, because I want to read today Globe and Mailast night. It noted that the chances of Canadian soldiers being killed in WW-1 were one to twenty six (1:26), while the once for Indian children in the care of Canada’s residential schools had a chance of one in twenty three (1:23).

This makes me suspect that the survival chances for Indians fighting the US Army at the time, were probably better than those for Canadian Indian children ‘cared for’ in the mentioned schools.

This makes me suspect that the survival chances for Indians fighting the US Army at the time, were probably better than those for Canadian Indian children ‘cared for’ in the mentioned schools. Today there are ten thousand Indian children in foster care, which in many cases is no better than those in the schools closed since 1996!

Last night I added a few pages to the ongoing notes for talk four. In summary I wrote that the idea of healing affirmation could also be applied to the situation where old attitudes and opinions have to be forged into new ones. This to prevent endless battles for dominance, where none can be had and each party ends up being the stubborn owner of a now ruined heritage. <8:13am.

Writings: Resolving conflicts:

~~I attempt to define an approach to conflict resolution founded on the recognition of the forces at play that require a new paradigm to be considered.~~

>8:54am and back at the keyboard; the paper cost 2.10$ and awaits coffee time to be perused.

On my walk forth and back I thought about the various conflicts that I know about. Some have subsided (Balkans), others morph continuously (Israelis and Palestinians) and a few have been settled (Northern Ireland), while others continue (Rohingya in Burma). So, we have examples of various types, but none are the same and some have been very destructive, such as in the Balkans.

Most conflicts start when the wish to have ones own way, dominates one’s ability to search for accommodation. This reminds me of a saying my late old Dad reminded me of on one of my parent’s visits. “He, who overcomes his inner resistance is stronger than the conqueror of a city”, he said more than once.

And indeed, as I hear and watch the exhortations made by various leaders on current conflicts, I notice the lack of appreciation of those they fight against. Once the conflict has started, its logic has become too simplistic to consider the motives of the adversary. This logic can only change after sufficient suffering has been implemented. And, I use implemented on purpose, because suffering is the aim of violence.

'He, who overcomes his inner resistance is stronger than the conqueror of a city', he [my Dad] said more than once.

Violent conflicts also harden the attitudes of the parties, while their energies need to be run to exhaustion, before the willingness to consider alternatives returns. So, we must be very sure that we want to engage in such conflicts and that implies a proper and dispassionate understanding of the situation. This implies that ideology must be bracketed and a general value framework adopted. The values of each side need to be examined and the motivations understood, which requires a mutual validation of the issues at hand.

Conscious awareness of the true issues that contribute to the conflict and a clear understanding of them is a precondition to conflict resolution. Ideas of one’s own superiority are detrimental and preclude any meaningful resolution of the conflict.

All the issues must be recognised, acknowledged, including ideological motives and aims being recognised for what they are and kept exposed during the process, lest they sabotage the outcome.

Recognition of the situation we as humans are in at the various places on our planet must combine with the adoption of our common interests and purpose, with all parties afforded a place at the table.

This cannot just be accomplished with one single peace conference, but must become an institutionalised undertaking in support of an ongoing process that our global community requires in order to survive and maximise humanity’s potential as a whole.
<9:45am and 10:34am~