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Astraea News and Views - October 2005
PerspectiveIn October a couple of issues kept presenting themselves. Do I want truth or justice? Can you be an atheist Christian? It seems difficult to come to terms with these zen like dilemmas, and others like them, that face humanity. But they are the fulcrum upon which humanity is deciding its future. We prefer truth and justice, which usually means that results take longer. And we see many atheists who behave in a way that Jesus of Nazareth would respect. It is also painfully obvious that many people succumb to the psychology of tyranny in which they express a group value ("go to war") which is directly opposed to their personal value ("do not kill"). It is unfortunate that the hegemon USA has allowed religion (in contrast to spirituality) to enter government. The country was established by people intent on equity, but recent events have led to the breakdown of responsibility at the highest levels. Most other countries are guilty of the same complacency, but nature and public opinion will hopefully wake us up and help us be the change that we need to be. Bush has claimed he was told by God to invade Iraq and attack Osama bin Laden's stronghold of Afghanistan. This was part of a divine mission to bring peace to the Middle East, security for Israel, and their own state for the Palestinians. The President made the assertion during his first meeting with Palestinian leaders in June 2003, according to a new BBC series aired in October. In the programme, Elusive Peace: Israel and the Arabs, the former Palestinian foreign minister Nabil Shaath says that Mr Bush told him and Mahmoud Abbas, former Prime Minister and now Palestinian President, that "I'm driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, 'George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan.' And I did, and then God would tell me, 'George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq,' and I did." And "now again, I feel God's words coming to me: 'Go get the Palestinians their state and get the Israelis their security, and get peace in the Middle East.' And by God, I'm gonna do it." Mr Abbas remembers how the President told him he had a "moral and religious obligation" to act. Striking also was Mr Bush's unrelenting portrayal of radical Islam as a global menace, which only the forces of freedom, led by the US, could repel. It was delivered at a moment when the President's domestic approval ratings are at their lowest ebb, in large part because of casualties in the war in Iraq. GeopoliticsBush is beset on many fronts such as the disappointing and failed Miers nomination, the White house leak investigation which is probing Dick Cheney, Lewis Libby and Carl Rove, the deathtoll in Iraq passing 2,000, and economic pressure. HIs approcal rating has sunk to around 40%. So far the cracks in his administration are mainly with the conservative intelligensia, but if sentiment spreads it would cripple the administration. From a global perspective, the behaviour of the Empire of America is causing a shift in sentiment. As one commentator says:
Francis Fukuyama says that Bush has done enormous harm to the US, though asserts that his "doctrine" will not be followed by any future administration, whether Democrat or Republican. All one can hope is that the damage will not be irreparable. Germany is continuing its emergence as an enlightened
society and culture. Gerhard Schroder, who was seen as a breath
of fresh air when he took over from Kohl, is now stepping back as Angela
Merkel appears ready to take over a large coalition government.
The evolution of this proces has taken place in a measured and stable
way and is all good for Germany and Germans. The worst that will
happen is that the coalition will hold together but do little. The
opportunity is to introduce more variety and opportunities in Germany
for all. Risk and Terror
Unicef www.unicef.org Kashmir International Relief Fund www.kirf.org Red Cross/ Red Crescent www.ifrc.org The other risk that has shouted at us through the media is avian influenza.
Bird flu fear is not appropritae, but pragmatism is.
The death rates from H5N1 are not indicative of a pandemic and there is
no reason to guess that this year will be worse than another. In
the short term normal healthy living is the best precaution - eat
properly, don't get stressed. However, the dynamics of this virus
are a symptom of the more fundamental problem of increasing volatility
of nature. The media reports lead us to believe that the virus is
being communicated from one creature to another. This may be the
case and the reason for appropriate hygiene (too many detergents weaken
our imune system so do not overdo it), but it obscures the fact that the
virus is emergent in the right conditions. Like BSE, if
the food web or habitat of the mammal are too toxic a mutant virus emerges.
The solution is therefore to improve the living conditions of the animals.
Unfortunately, neither global trade agreements nor local governments or
consumers have yet begun to reverse the trend of industrialisation of
food cultivation. Another natural disaster is ongoing but virtually ignored - the food crisis in southern Africa caused by disrupted infrastructure, including water, bureaucracy, poor land management and other easily avoidable problems. Refco, a leading commodities and futures broker, has been in crisis since it revealed it was owed $ 430 million by an unregulated subsidiary. Please read more in the investment section. The Human Security Report is the most comprehensive annual survey of trends in warfare, genocide, and human rights abuses. The Report, which was produced by the Human Security Centre at the University of British Columbia, supported by five governments and published by Oxford University Press, shows how, after nearly five decades of inexorable increase, the number of genocides and violent conflicts dropped rapidly in the wake of the Cold War. It also reveals that wars are not only far less frequent today, but are also far less deadly. It explodes a number of widely believed myths about contemporary political violence. The latter include claims that terrorism is currently the gravest threat to international security, that 90% of those killed in today's wars are civilians and that women are disproportionately victimized by armed conflict. The number of armed conflicts has declined by more than 40% since 1992. The deadliest conflicts (those with 1000 or more battle-deaths) dropped even more dramatically-by 80%. On the subject of terror, Scientific American Mind published analysis of the psychology of tyranny, which we recommend. A telling finding is that group behaviour requires comliance of all in the group, and while individual values may be compromised, individuals will do that in order to adhere to the group behaviour. The description of "The BBC Experiment" illustrates shifts in group dynamics and changes in authoritarianism which result in otherwise good people doing unethical things. The publication of Transparency International's annual ranking in October is reason to reiterate the problem of corruption in Russia, which fell even further to rank among Sierra Leone and Albania. Ironically people in Russia see the worst corruption in the police force, where they may be faced with traffic violation bribes daily, but the least in banking and law, where corruption's effect in far greater and the aggregate numbers influence major cash flows. The effect of tightening central control is to raise corruption and risk. Not only can corruption cut into daily living costs, but it can wreak havoc with investment and business development, and often results in death. Chechnya is the most visible illustration of a rotten core, but it is seen throughout society - business, academia, internet, law, politics. There appears to be little energy to clean the situation up, either from within Russia or among the foreigners that invest, do business or engage politically. Caveat emptor. Interestingly, Carlyle, the politically connected US hedge, closed its
Russia office because of, according to founder Rubenstein, unmanageable
corruption issues and Putin is not as receptive to foreign private equity
as Carlyle had expected. EnergyUS oil giant Exxon Mobil has posted a quarterly profit of $ 9.9 billion, the largest in US corporate history, on the back of record oil and gas prices. Profit was up 75% and revenue rose 32% to more than $ 100 billion. The French government has cancelled plans to part-privatise nuclear power group Areva, claiming strategic and safety concerns for its U-turn. Climate Change and EnvironmentThe weather is still volatile and seemingly topsy-turvy.
Wilma followed Katrina through Florida and floods have disrupted life
in Pakistan, Many insurance and reinsurance firms have begun to quantify the financial damage caused by the hurricane and the extent of likely claims. Munich Re, the world’s largest re-insurer, has estimated that the total insured loss could be $15 billion - $ 30 billion and expects a significant hardening of prices and conditions in natural catastrophe and marine reinsurance, with more people likely to realise the importance of such insurance. Insurers began to study possible links between climate change and catastrophic losses in the early 1990s; the devastation and cost of Hurricane Katrina has now provided a new impulse to insurers trying to raise public awareness and push the topic onto the political agenda. Nevertheless, two reports, published by Ceres and Friends of the Earth (FOE), both conclude that climate change is catching insurance companies unawares. The Ceres report points out that “insured and total property losses ($45 billion and $107 billion in 2004, respectively) are rising faster than premiums, population, or economic growth both globally and in the US”. European regulators are serious about curbing greenhouse-gas emissions, at least relative to the laissez-faire Americans, and new models from teh auto industry illustrate the changes. A walk around the Messe Frankfurt complex, home of the city's biennial international motor show, reveals how far European car makers have to go. There is doubt about how enormous cars, like Mercedes-Benz's eighth-generation S-Class sedan and Audi's enormous Q7 luxury SUV, which seem a part of some previous modus vivendi, fit into Europe's changing regulatory landscape. For example, the European Union has targeted that by 2009, the European new-car fleet will have to average something like 40 miles per U.S. gallon (about 5.9 L/100 km). It's virtually climate martial law. All other things being equal, European manufacturers - particularly global giants such as the VW Group and DaimlerChrysler - would rely on their historic advantages in diesel technology to meet these goals (diesel engines get anywhere from 25 per cent to 40 per cent better fuel economy than gasoline engines). But the EU has ruled out easy answers. Other European requirements in 2010 will force huge cuts in diesel particulate and nitrides of oxygen (NOx) emissions. Meeting those provisions may all but eliminate the economy advantages of diesel powertrains. About the same time, new standards for occupant and pedestrian safety will add more weight to cars and proscribe more aerodynamically efficient designs. This is herding European manufacturers toward the one propulsion technology that they have most disdained: hybrids. It's with no small sense of exasperation that the Europeans are conceding on this technological point, where they have been outflanked by Japanese manufacturers, particularly Toyota and Honda. Read more here. Asian Environment Outlook (AEO) 2005, estimates the global market in 2005 for environmental goods and services to be about $600 billion, and projects this market will expand to more than $800 billion by 2015. Out of this burgeoning market, Asia and the Pacific accounts for $37 billion. With a growth rate of 8%-12% -- the fastest in the world -- the regional market is expected to triple to $100 billion by 2015. AEO 2005 argues that there is a critical missing ingredient in the pursuit of a sustainable future for Asia and the Pacific -- that of a fully engaged private sector. While governments determine the rules under which businesses act, the firms themselves use natural resources, make products, and generate pollution. A sustainable future for the region - and the rest of the planet -- is not possible without greater corporate engagement and environmental responsibility. Climate change could lead to the extinction of many animals including migratory birds, says a report commissioned by the UK government. Melting ice, spreading deserts and the impact of warm seas on the sex of turtles are among threats identified. The report says that warming has already changed the migration routes of some birds and other animals. The UK's Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) commissioned the research, which was led by the British Trust for Ornithology. ITCurrently, the nearest thing to an internet ruling body is a California-based group called the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The private company was set up by the US Department of Commerce to oversee the domain name and addressing systems, such as country domain suffixes. It manages how net browsers and e-mail programs direct traffic. ICANN was to gain its independence from the Department of Commerce by September 2006. But in July the US said it would "maintain its historic role in authorising changes or modifications to the authoritative root zone file". America's determination to remain the ultimate purveyor of the internet has angered other countries which believe it is time to come up with a new way of regulating the digital traffic of the 21st century. In the face of opposition from countries such as China, Iran and Brazil, and several African nations, the US is now isolated ahead of November's UN summit. The row threatens to overshadow talks on other issues such as bringing more people online and tackling spam e-mail. The stakes are high, with the European Commissioner responsible for the net, Viviane Reding, warning of a potential web meltdown. "The US is absolutely isolated and that is dangerous," she said during a briefing with journalists in London. "Imagine the Brazilians or the Chinese doing their own internet. That would be the end of the story. I am very much afraid of a fragmented internet if there is no agreement." For this reason and the increasing type of equipment that uses internet addresses, a resolution is likely and will include the UN. China said Sunday it is imposing new regulations
to control content on its news Web sites and will allow the posting of
only "healthy and civilized" news. The move is part of China's ongoing
efforts to police the country's It appeared last month that Toshiba's HD DVD format would be adopted over Sony's BluRay because of the commitment of Microsoft to HD DVD. However, this was premature. The tide has shifted to BluRay because it holds more data, has a number of film studios in its camp and now has teh backing of Dell. Some analysts reckon Microsoft's move was a desperate attempt to preempt BluRay and thereby harm one of the key players in the entertainment market where Microsoft's strategy is leading it. Novell released SuSE 10.0 in October. The desktop Linux distribution has the power of the previous professional version but is designed for first time users too. We upgraded/installed it with no problem. It is quick, functional and nice to look at - a good buy. A quick note on blogs, a fast emerging source of intelligence and analysis. A blog (weblog) is a website of editorial postings that is updated in real time by users. (The web is normally compared with a library - each site is a book, but blogs are more like coffee shops - each site is a table of chatter.) Often they are the daily journal of an individual who may get a following because of her position or expertise in an area. The blog search site www.technorati.com is a useful site to browse as you explore this arena - link there now and you will see top blog searches at this moment. Holonics and LOHASHolonics * Health * Environment * Education * Living HolonicsWe taken ths bold step of using the professional, but commonly unfamiliar, term "holonics" to describe our approach, replacing terms based on "integral" technology. The reasons for this are that holonics is more accurate and we have observed a number of references to holonic methods, including in the fields of management and mechanical design, suggesting it is entering mainstream use. For those unfamiliar, we have an introduction here. Simply, a holonic system is built of modules which are whole in themselves and also fit together with others (similar and different) to form a bigger, different system. For example cells (which are individually independent and perform functions within themsleves) are incorporated together to form a body of interdependent cells (which body itself is independent and functions independently) and these people are incorporated to form larger systems like a society or business. This section will tend to focus on holonics as it is reflected in personal or business management. The Harvard Business Review published in October a study of seven organization types. The authors - Gary Neilson, Bruce Pasternack, and Karen Van Nuys - discover that the most common type is of the far-from-healthy passive-aggressive variety, in which lines of authority are unclear, merit is not rewarded, and people have learned to smile, nod, and do just enough to get by. Passive-aggressive organizations are friendly places to work: People are congenial, conflict is rare, and consensus is easy to reach. But, at the end of the day, even the best proposals fail to gain traction, and a company can go nowhere so imperturbably that it's easy to pretend everything is fine. Such companies are not necessarily saddled with mulishly passive-aggressive employees. Rather, they are filled with mostly well-intentioned people who are the victims of flawed processes and policies. (See Psychology of Tyranny in Risk section.) Commonly, a growing company's halfhearted or poorly thought-out attempts to decentralize give rise to multiple layers of managers, whose authority for making decisions becomes increasingly unclear. Some managers, as a result, hang back, while others won't own up to the calls they've made, inviting colleagues to second-guess or overturn the decisions. In such organizations, information does not circulate freely, and that makes it difficult for workers to understand the impact of their actions on company performance and for managers to appraise employees' value to the organization correctly. A failure to match incentives to performance accurately stifles initiative, and people do just enough to get by. Breaking free from this pattern is hard; a long history of seeing corporate initiatives ignored and then fade away tends to make people cynical. Often it's best to bring in an outsider to signal that this time things will be different. He or she will need to address every obstacle all at once: clarify decision rights; see to it that decisions stick; and reward people for sharing information and adding value, not for successfully negotiating corporate politics. If those steps are not taken, it's only a matter of time before the diseased elements of a passive-aggressive organization overwhelm the remaining healthy ones and drive the company into financial distress. Here are the category types and the results of how workers identify their own companies: Healthy Organizations:
Unhealthy Organizations
HealthEat your brussels sprouts! Scientists assert that eating vegetables from the cabbage family can reduce the risk of lung cancer for people with a certain genetic make-up. Such cruciferous vegetables had already been linked to reduced rates of lung cancer, but it had not been clear why. The study found eating the vegetables at least once a week cut cancer risk for people with inactive versions of two genes, carried by 70% of people. The Lancet study was by International Agency for Cancer Research scientists. The two genes which were studied are the GSTM1 and GSTT1, which normally protect the body against certain toxins. Vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and sprouts are rich in chemicals called isothiocyanates, which strongly protect against lung cancer. Normally, isothiocyanates are eliminated from the body by "clean-up" enzymes produced by the genes GSTM1 and GSTT1. But eating the vegetables at least once a week was found to have a 33% protective effect against lung cancer in people who just had an inactive form of the GSTM1 gene. Around 50% of people have this form of this gene. In those with an inactive form of the GSTT1 gene, there was a 37% protective effect. Around 20% have this form. But individuals who had inactive versions of both genes - which applies to 10% of the population - were 72% protected. More general studies presented to the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research add to the evidence that changing your diet may be among the most effective ways of prolonging your life. Up to a third of cancers are thought to be associated with diet. Experts say eating more fruit and vegetables is the second most effective way to reduce the risk of cancer, after not smoking. Vegetables, fruit, nuts, oily fish and whole grains stand out in the nutritional crowd for their cancer preventing qualities. Brassicas contain glucosinolates, which are broken down by chewing or cutting into sulphoraphane which has been shown to have anti-cancer properties. In another study, researchers found that using garlic to flavour meat could help counteract the carcinogenic substances produced in cooking protein. National Geographic covered longevity in their latest issue. Included in their review were several case studies of very old people, including a number over 100 years old. The two main recommendations for long life are lifestyle choices: be vegetarian and be active. Longue vie! The Ecologist September issue has a comprehensive review of aspartame, a chemical sweetener. The findings are worrying and if you use it we recommend reconsidering. New research has revealed that men who smoke are damaging their fertility as well as their general health. Two-thirds of male smokers were found to have sperm that did not have the normal ability to fertilise an egg. And heavier smokers were more likely to fail the test. Those who failed the test were, on average, 75pc less fertile than non-smokers. The findings are revealed in a study funded by the American cigarette giant Philip Morris - which manufactures a number of leading brands, including Marlboro which had its 50th birthday in October. Researchers from the University of Buffalo studied 18 men who had smoked at least four cigarettes a day for more than two years and then compared their sperm function with that of non-smokers. McDonalds will put nutritional information on food packaging from next February, including details of fat and salt. They are also giving Ronald a sporty makeover. And Fair Trade Certified organic coffee will now be served in 658 McDonald's restaurants in New England and Albany, New York. The coffee brand is Newman's Own Organics, roasted by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. These initiatives demonstrate responsible business practices and bode well for the stability and growth of that business. The corporate takeover of the global food chain is now the world’s biggest public health hazard, experts warned at a major conference in London last month. The conference — If Food Could Talk: Hidden Stories from the Food Chain — was hosted by the Mayor of London and was staged to mark World Food Day (16 October). It brought together leading figures from the world of food policy, fair trade, health and sustainable development. With just four companies responsible for 13% of total food sales in the world — and global food brands was taking a huge toll on public health, particularly in developing countries. EnvironmentCoca-Cola is increasingly in the sights of Corporate Accountability International. Coke's business policy and practice have a powerful affect on water supplies in communities. Now the company is building a bottled water business CAI is concerned about their misleading marketing that undermines confidence in tap water. Especially unethical in countries where there are limited water resources and a population that ought to spend on education and other more pressing needs. Whether or not Coke is improving its practice and policy, the company will be affected by the deterioration of global water systems and supplies. They may engage in greenwash today but will have to face the reality of water scarcity within five years because of the natural priorities of water supply and safety. If you want to help, don't buy/drink coke/soft drinks or bottled water. Sweden has launched a commuter train running on biogas. Its top speed is 130 kmh and emits lower pollution than fossil fuels. EducationA study by the World Resources Institute and the Aspen Institute, "Beyond Grey Pinstripes," found that 54% of the 91 business schools surveyed required a course in ethics, corporate social responsibility, sustainability, or business and society. This is up from just 34% in 2001. The report also noted new, innovative courses on such topics as private-sector approaches for solving problems in low-income markets. The courses are part of a wider effort in business education to prepare tomorrow's leaders for the new realities of a global economy. The Third World Environemntal Eductaion Congress took place in October. Papers are listed online. LivingIn Brazil, a referendum backed by the Catholic church, Government and UN to ban the sale of guns was defeated by a 64% majority, although restricting availability of firearms has been proven to reduce crime. In Diadema and Sao Paolo making illegal possession a felony or banning possession has reduced the number of deaths caused by angry neighbours shooting each other. It is now up to local governments to follow the lead of Diadema and ban guns to reduce crime and death. Guns kill one person in Brazil every 15 minutes, giving it the world's highest death toll from firearms. The immediate consequence of the referendum is that gun shops will remain In the US, laws were passed resticting the prosecution of gun makers for liability when their guns are used in shootings. This pleases gun makers but does not help to reduce violent crime or accidental deaths. We now have an excuse for my lazy teen days, and know what to expect from our children. Scientists have found that a person's "sleep pressure" rate - the biological trigger that causes sleepiness - slows down in adolescence, explaining the reluctance of teenagers to sleep until later at night.The study, published in the journal 'Sleep', suggests that as children mature, their internal, chemically-driven pressure to sleep builds up more slowly. Mary Carskadon, professor of psychiatry and human behaviour at Brown Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island, said: "The results show that the adage 'Early to bed, early to rise' presents a real challenge for adolescents." Rosa Parks, the black woman whose 1955 protest action in Alabama marked the start of the modern US civil rights movement, has died at the age of 92. Mrs Parks' refusal to give up her seat to a white man on a bus prompted a mass black boycott of buses, organised by Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr., whose protest movement brought about the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which outlawed racial discrimination in the US. On 1 December 1955, she was sitting on a bus in Montgomery when a white man demanded her seat. Mrs Parks refused, defying the rules which required blacks to give up their seats to whites. She was arrested and fined $14. Her arrest triggered a 381-day boycott of the bus system organised by the then little-known Rev Luther King Jr. The protest led to the desegregation of the transport system. Mrs Parks and her husband, Raymond, moved to Detroit in 1957, after she lost her job and received numerous death threats in Alabama. Activities, Books and GatheringsWhile making some minor website changes, I was delighted to find out that if you do a Yahoo search for "holonics" Astraea comes up on the second page, and if you do a search for "integral investing" GRI Equity is top of the list! We put our first music video "Prince of Peace" by Galliano online. And hope more will follow. The film version of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a brilliant story with many enlighted philosophies woven in. Worth viewing. See the website http://www.northsoutheastwest.org/ for a dynamic look at climate change. Pet lovers may enjoy http://www.canineportraits.org which is contributing funds to train a teacher in the US. Teach for America is the national organization of recent college graduates who commit to teach in public schools serving low-income rural and urban communities. The International Spirit At Work highlights companies that have implemented explicit spiritual practices, policies or programs inside their organizations. For the past four years, ISAW has recognized 23 distinguished companies ranging from The Body Shop, to Times of India, and to the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. The 2005 ceremony honours the nine new recipients of the award. The event showcases a number of inventive frameworks that the honorees used in implementing their spiritual value system into a results-oriented environment of business. On November 7th, 9-10 PM Eastern there will be
a teleconference with Dee Hock, founder of VISA and author of One
from Many: VISA and the Rise of Chaordic Organizations. His work
is highly recommended. See details
of the conference here, or see the latest book
One from Many: VISA and the Rise of Chaordic Organizations here.
This report has been prepared for information purposes. The information on which this report is based, has been obtained from publicly available sources and private sources which may have vested interests in the material referred to herein. Although Astraea and the distributors have no specific reasons for believing such information to be false, neither Astraea nor the distributors have independently verified such information and no representation or warranty is given that it is up-to-date, accurate and complete. Neither Astraea nor the distributors nor any of their affiliates and/or directors, officers and employees shall in any way be responsible or liable for any losses or damages whatsoever which any person may suffer or incur as a result of acting or otherwise relying upon anything stated or inferred in or omitted from this report.
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know thyself - Socrates |
The
earth quake in Pakistan has devastated
communities. The earthquake is thought to have been the strongest the
region has seen in a century. In some areas a whole generation of children
has been lost. The effects of Katrina pale in comparison. Children had
been the biggest casualties, many of whom were killed when schools collapsed.
And many survivors will be orphaned. Initial estimates of the death toll
were 20,000 - the actual number of dead is closer to 60,000. Access has
been difficult, winter is setting in and conditions are attrocious. Despite
aid from the international comunity, more is needed. 
on
top of the earthquake. These warnings seem to be coming thick and fast,
but we need to do much more to rejuvenate the world environment.