Mission – To provide a model based upon psychological theories (Haidt, 2012; Hampden-Turner, 1981; Jung, 1923; Myers, 1980; Westen, 2007) and social science (Bohm, 1996; Schumacher, 1973) for appreciating individual and cultural differences that will encourage people to have dialogues for ethical (FAIR values) and logical decision making about political matters for the betterment of the commonwealth at all levels.
For more information, please e-mail Ray Hawkins, Ph.D. (ray@newfair.org).
NEW (meaning a new version of the Fair Deal)
F – For
A – All
I – Individuals
R – Responsibly
Motto: "Be FAIR, Play FAIR, New FAIR."
Theme Song: "Side by Side"
Mission – To provide a model based upon psychological (Haidt, 2012; Hampden-Turner, 1981; Jung, 1923; Myers, 1980; Westen, 2007) and social science (Bohm, 1996; Schumacher, 1973) for appreciating individual and cultural differences that will encourage people to have dialogues for ethical (FAIR values) and logical decision making about political matters for the betterment of the commonwealth at all levels.
Introductory quotations from US Presidents - Guess which presidents said each of the following quotes:
- “A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage.” - Hoover
- “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”- FDR
- “The buck stops here” - Truman
- "Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed." - Eisenhower
- "I despise people who go to the gutter on either the right or the left and hurl rocks at those in the center." - Eisenhower
- "“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” - JFK
- "The American city should be a collection of communities where every member has a right to belong. It should be a place where every man feels safe on his streets and in the house of his friends. It should be a place where each individual's dignity and self-respect is strengthened by the respect and affection of his neighbors. It should be a place where each of us can find the satisfaction and warmth which comes from being a member of the community of man. This is what man sought at the dawn of civilization. It is what we seek today." - LBJ
- "Entrepreneurs and their small enterprises are responsible for almost all the economic growth in the United States." - Reagan
- "I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there's purpose and worth to each and every life." - Reagan
- "I still believe in a place called Hope, a place called America." - Clinton
- "The future is not an inheritance. It is an opportunity and an obligation." - Clinton
- "We are a nation of communities... a brilliant diversity spread like stars, like a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky." - George Herbert Walker Bush
- "America is a Nation with a mission - and that mission comes from our most basic beliefs. We have no desire to dominate, no ambitions of empire. Our aim is a democratic peace - a peace founded upon the dignity and rights of every man and woman. - George W. Bush
- "But what we can do, as flawed as we are, is still see God in other people, and do our best to help them find their own grace. That's what I strive to do, that's what I pray to do every day." - Obama
- "A good compromise, a good piece of legislation, is like a good sentence; or a good piece of music. Everybody can recognize it. They say, 'Huh. It works. It makes sense." - Obama
Can these famous sayings of Presidents from both political parties be integrated within the New FAIR model? You bet!
Key theoretical premises:
- Westen’s (2006) book on the “Political Brain” emphasizes the primacy of the emotional brain for political decision making.
- Haidt (2001) also emphasizes the salience of emotional beliefs (values) in determining voter choices in elections; he describes five moral foundations and how conservatives and liberals, who differ in their pattern of endorsement across these values, may understand each other and approach common ground. Haidt contends that conservatives show balance across these five moral foundations, but liberals are biased in the direction of overconcern about the value of fairness. This skew may be compensatory to the overemphasis of big corporations upon short-term profits rather than the needs of individual workers. Increasing bureaucratization and proliferation of regulations may be caused by the symmetrical escalation of bigger governments versus bigger corporations, with the result of less sensitivity to local conditions (i.e., less adaptability, less concern for small business and individuals). NewFAIR takes its name in part to stand for balancing fairness (social justice) with responsibility (everyone contributes through work or volunteer efforts for the common good). Integrating fairness with responsibility is a dialectical synthesis (see Hampden-Turner, 1981).
- Bohm (1996) has proposed notion of thinking / communication as dialogue.
- Jung’s (1923) (Myers, 1980, MBTI) psychological types are a key individual difference in personality and values that can be seen as a microcosm for either appreciating differences or blame projection and externalization; also, Jung’s integration of opposites, as a goal for conscious individuation (e.g., in this context through Bakan's (1966) moral philosophy and Hampden-Turner’s (1981) Maps of the Mind).
- Bakan (1966, p. 14) based his "moral imperative" (i.e., the integration or "mitigation" of the opposite attributes of human agency and human communion) upon Hillel's quote: "If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, what am I?"
- Hampden-Turner (1981) defined the problem of not “merely dividing person from person but the splitting of value from value with personality" (pp. 204-207) that interferes with reconciling creative healing syntheses of values by bridging dichotomies (e.g., not "black versus white" but "black and white", "agency and communion", "power and soul", "dissent and loyalty", "
rich and poor", "individual freedom and responsibility to the commonwealth / government
- Grant, Hawkins, & Eddy’s (1994) “Pulse of Four” or “Healing Matrix” is a cyclical change process, based on psychological type and temperament theory, that may guide dialogues to air differences in values, attitudes, and behaviors and to foster consensus or compromise in decision-making.
(SJ – Find the fundamental facts; NF – Express emotional values; SP – Advocate and assert actions; NT- Reflect, reorganize, and reintegrate); FDR’s “Four Freedoms” can also be re-ordered according to the “Pulse of Four” (“Freedom from Want”, “Freedom from Fear”, “Freedom of Speech and Expression”, Freedom to Worship God in his (her) own way”); it is likely that individuals of the different 16 types may differ in their interests and skills in using one or more of tools of the “Healing Matrix” (e.g., NFs, SPs, and NTs may be less inclined to find the fundamental facts, an SJ process, etc.).
- Schumacher’s (1973) Small is Beautiful book advocates political decision making via dialogue, and consensus / compromise seeking at the local level. (Note: there may be a fractal self-similarity across levels of the commonwealth emphasizing this “Healing Matrix” process). As described above, fairness and responsibility represent a dialectical synthesis of value orientations that may energize dialogues at the local level to create new small businesses and charities. There is no essential virtue in big government or in big corporations. A key message from Schumacher’s argument is that both public and private organizations should be responsive and responsible to the needs of individuals in local communities.
- Research by Putnam & Campbell (2012) suggests that friendship between persons of different faiths or beliefs increases tolerance ( he sociological process he calls "bridging"). Bridging builds social capital and cooperative behavior that can lead to creative solutions that are transformative.
FAIR activities: FAIR’s priorities are to
- Evaluate current political initiatives according to FAIR values and process (i.e., rating scheme: FAIR, Mostly FAIR, Mostly not FAIR, Not at all FAIR);
- Encourage all citizens, especially elected representatives and leaders of businesses and organizations, to take the “FAIR pledge” (i.e., to endorse the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America first and foremost, and second to endorse the FAIR pledge of allegiance, “For”, “All”, “Individuals”, but “Responsibly” ---which means that both social justice and individual freedom would be responsibly advocated in political decision making);
- Reduce the U.S. national debt by “Debt War Bonds” initiative whereby citizens and organizations would make contributions that would be deemed charitable donations for federal tax purposes.
(11-11-12) Reflections on "A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand" (based upon Jesus' sayings and Lincoln's 1858 speech) regarding the so-called "fiscal cliff" crisis
There are three messages: (1) Integral disunity weakens the whole (in this case the disunity in the Congress weakens the whole USA) and cannot last; (2) Jesus (or an honorable follower of Him) cannot be Satan, because Satan cannot be against Satan (meaning that a righteous stance by President Obama against the efforts to trick and trap him through economic blackmail into relinquishing the mandate to raise revenues cannot arise from a similar evil motive on President Obama's part): and (3) Jesus was aware of the thoughts / secret agenda of the Pharisees. The "House Divided" metaphor may serve as a rallying call for a constructive resolution to the impasse between the two Houses of Congress (Republic House versus the Democratic Senate) by using Charles Hampden-Turner's (1981) method for unifying opposites. What would be necessary is for the President to stand apart from partisan politics and create an integrative solution. That is to say, a reasonable / righteous compromise would be to strengthen the federal government’s capacity to maintain socially just entitlement programs while simultaneously encouraging individual initiative and entrepreneurship. Such a solution might involve a tax increase for the top 1% coupled with a fair removal of tax loopholes for all taxpayers; also, it might entail placing federal entitlement programs on a sound foundation by removing the upper limit on wages subject to Social Security tax, and likewise increasing the Medicare withholding tax to increase the solvency of this latter program.
9-28-2013 Update
McMurtry (2013) has recently revised his classic 1999 book called The Cancer Stage of Capitalism. McMurtry is not opposed to traditional capitalism which is responsible to the commonwealth, but he does contend that current “free market” corporate capitalism is a money sequence which does not serve life functions. Moreover, he claims that government bureaucracies have become power hungry and bureaucratically wasteful because of these same free market forces which do not serve the civil commons (McMurtry’s term for the commonwealth). He does believe that both the excesses of free market capitalism and those of bureaucratic government can be regulated by their service to the civil commons. NEWFAIR supports this claim as another instance of Hampden-Turner’s (1981) creative unification of opposites. Thus, we are not “consumers” nor “taxpayers” but “citizens” with rights and responsibilities. (Note: Google Books “NGRAM” program shows that the frequency of the word “consumer” used in books has increased dramatically in the last 30 years, while the frequency of the word “citizen” has notably decreased. Let us return to the custom of referring to ourselves as "citizens".)
11-23-2016 Update
Given the recent national election the following new references are recommended which are consistent with the "FAIR" philosophy: Alexander (2012), Griffiths (1989), Helminiak (1996), Jacobs (2004), Putnam (2015), Sheldrake & Schermer (2016), Smith (2016), and Woodard (2012).
8-1-2022 Update
The last three years have seen an upsurge in polarization around social justice issues. The terms diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have taken on political connotations. The NEWFAIR position follows the acronym LACE (love, authenticity, courage, and empathy, www.inclusion.uoregon.edu) which suggests a more moderate and compassionate approach to social justice that still is action oriented. To elaborate this position NEWFAIR suggests the new acronym AIDE (Action, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity) with the following meanings: Action – Challenge and change conditions where social injustice occurs; Inclusion– Bring in all people “under the same tent”;
Diversity – Foster multidimensional diversity, including both cultural and viewpoint diversity;
Equity– Strive for equal opportunity to have access to and support for a fulfilling life according to one’s abilities and interests.
References
Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow (revised edition). New York, NY: The New Press.
Bakan, D. (1966). The duality of human existence. Boston: Beacon Press.
Bohm, D. (1996). On dialogue. Routledge.
Griffiths, B. (1989). A new vision of reality. Springfield, IL: Templegate Publishers.
Haidt, J. (2012). The righteous mind. Pantheon.
Hampden-Turner, C. (1981). Maps of the mind. Macmillan.
Helminiak, D. (1996). The human core of spirituality. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Jacobs, J. (2004). Dark age ahead. NY: Random House.
Jung, C.J. (1923). Psychological types. Kegan Paul.
McMurtry, J. (1999, 2013). The Cancer Stage of Capitalism. London: Pluto Press.
Myers, I. (1980). Gifts differing. Consulting Psychologists Press.
Putnam, R.D. (2015). Our kids: The American dream in crisis. NY: Simon & Schuster.
Putnam, R.D. , & Campbell, D.E. (2012). American grace. NY: SImon & Schuster.
Schumacher, E.F. (1973). Small is beautiful. Harper & Row.
Sheldrake, R., & Schermer, M. (2016). Arguing science. Rhinebeck, NY: Monkfish Book Publishing Company.
Smith, H. (2016). Who stole the American Dream? NY: Random House.
Westen, D. (2007). The political brain. Public Affairs.
Woodard, C. (2012). American nations. NY: Penguin Books.
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