Confucio: Arroz, Flores y Vida

Confucio: Arroz, Flores y Vida

 

Por

 

Angel R. Cepeda Dovala

 

El filósofo de China Confucio (551 a C- 478 a C) menciona una frase celebre en relación al arroz, las flores y la vida: "¿Me preguntas por qué compro arroz y flores? Compro arroz para vivir y flores para tener algo por lo que vivir"

PAZ Y BIEN

ARCD

Recordando el Manifiesto por la Vida. Por una Ética para la Sustentabilidad del 2002

Recordando el Manifiesto por la Vida.  Por una Ética para la Sustentabilidad del 2002

 

Por

 

Angel R. Cepeda Dovala

 

A propósito de que el Presidente Enrique Peña Nieto (EPN) abre el Foro Nacional "México en Paz" en Nuevo León, y con la finalidad de fortalecer la Cultura de la Paz, recordamos el Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Medio Ambiente (PNUMA) en donde encontramos el Manifiesto por la Vida. Por una Ética para la Sustentabilidad; documento que data del año 2002. Para los estudiantes de Bioética en su Examen Final, deberán encontrar en el Manifiesto, los Principios Criterios y Valores, mencionar cuál es el concepto de Sustentabilidad, la importancia para el Programa de Ingeniero Agrícola Ambiental y para la Universidad, considerando otra bibliografía y el video indicado en la Nota [1]

 

Con el saludo de siempre:

 

PAZ Y BIEN

 

ARCD

 

Nota

[1] Cf. Manifiesto por la Vida.  Por una Ética para la Sustentabilidad (2002)

http://www.pnuma.org/educamb/mantexto.php 

 

Manifiesto por la Vida. PDF en Español

http://www.pnuma.org/educamb/documentos/Manifiesto.pdf

 

Otros libros para consultar:

Garza Gutiérrez, Rodolfo, y Medina Torres, Jorge Galo. 2010. La Sustentabilidad en las Instituciones de Educación Superior: Una Visión Holística. Primera edición. UAAAN. LA&GO Ediciones, S.A. de C. V. Monterey, N.L. ISBN 970-9989-02-2

 

O bien puede consultar el libro más reciente de Jorge Galo Medina Torres denominado Sustentabilidad, publicado por la Editorial Académica Española.

 

Video:

 

Presidente Peña Nieto encabezó el Foro de Consulta para la Construcción del PND “México en Paz”

17 de abril de 2013 (Ver Video)

http://www.presidencia.gob.mx/multimedia/presidente-pena-nieto-encabezo-el-foro-de-consulta-para-la-construccion-del-pnd-mexico-en-paz/

 



The Quadruple Whammy, By Roger Behra

SHORT COMMUNICATION 348

 

The Quadruple Whammy

 

By

 

Roger Behra

 

It does not take long for promising lives to be forever ruined and lamented. That is what happened to 2 juvenile boys (ages 16 and 17) at Steubenville, Ohio. On March 17, 2013, a judge found the boys quilty of a "profane and ugly rape," with related activities, of a 16-year-old girl. They are now waiting their sentencing. When Ma'lik Richmond heard the word quilty he told his lawyer, "My life is over." Trent Mays walked over and apologized to the victim and her family, and he then broke into tears and could not speak.

 

The "profane and ugly rape" of the 16-year-old girl went like this. The two boys and the girl were in the house basement of one of the boys. The girl drank alco­hol to excess and passed out. That's when the two boys began to throw away their future as star football players and high school graduates: They took full advantage of the girl's helpless situation and the rape began. It was not the tradition all type of rape however, so there was a legal surprise waiting for them later.

 

What the boys did was totally uncalled for and gravely immoral. The sentencing judge revealed that both boys used their fingers to penetrate the girl in the early hours of 3-12-13 while she was so drunk that she lacked the ability to give her consent for sex. A picture was taken and later circulated among classmates that showed her naked and passed out.  Hundreds of texts also gave account of the assault on the girl. That´s why the sentencing judge said all the evidence was "profane and ugly."

 

It was then that the rude awakening at the court sentencing took place. They were informed by the judge that Ohio's legal definition of rape included digital penetration, that using finger penetration was indeed rape. It was shocking news to the two boys. They knew right then and there they were no longer football stars with a promising future.

 

What the boys did was not only "profane and ugly" it was gravely immoral and sinful. Their spiritual nature was affected and harmed. Sometimes only the spiritual nature is affected. Many times the legal matter as well is part of the overall outcome.

 

In the case of the two juvenile boys, they victimized themselves and got hit squarely between the eyes with a quadruple whammy: They became victims of their immoral behavior; They are no longer two football stars; They threw their high school diplomas and high school graduation right into the waste basket; They are low waiting for their prison sentence to begin. It is no surprise that this is the end result for the two Ohio boys. It is the road they put themselves onto be-of their immoral behavior: personal disaster in earthly life and consequences later in eternal life.

 

R. B.

4-1-13



Pornography's Related Effects, By Roger Behra

SHORT COMMUNICATION 347

 

Pornography's Related Effects

 

By

 

Roger Behra

 

When the mass media sometimes mentions pornography, they do so in a very general sense. They do not give any particulars. They do not mention that the American culture is solidly and daily in the grip of widespread pornogrification and that the related behavior has devastated the American culture during the past several years with no end in sight. The media does not mention that 66% percent of Americans think that pornography is very morally wrong. The media fails to inform the American citizens of the related effects of the scourge of pornography.

 

What everyone needs to know to begin with is that pornography is very addictive and that the addiction begins quickly and, in far too many cases, at a very young age, and that it is not just a harmless vice. Pornography can be found in many places: all over the Internet; at magazine stands; in video stores; on regular and pay-per-view cable. Parents need to know this and be very vigilant if they have children and computers. Everyone needs to know that one-third of Americans think that pornography is not "morally wrong." That dear reader is the crux of the pornography problem.

 

Pornography is the root cause of many serious problems that develop and ruin the lives of so many people. The serious problems are many, because pornography is so easily available and all ages can view it. Juveniles were more likely to become sex offenders because they experience more damaging effects from pornog­raphy use. The link between child pornography and child molestation has been firmly established. At least 85 percent of convicted prison inmates confessed to downloading child pornography. The most common trait among serial killers was an affinity for pornography. The Archives of Sexual Behavior established that 80 percent of women watch pornography and it affects their lives: It leads to im­moral sex, cohabitation, infidelity, and prostitution. Nearly 60 percent of broken marriages were the result of a spouse looking at excessive amounts of Internet pornography. As you can see, pornography is not the harmless vice it's defenders suggest.

 

Aside from the damaging cultural effects, pornography is gravely immoral to become addicted to and even view occasionally as a pastime. It is spiritually debilitating also. It should not even be allowed to exist. Thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court it does, but what is not readily known is the fact that hard-core pornography is not covered by the Court's decision concerning free speech that is guaranteed by the U. S. Constitution. It's a mystery as to why lawyers have not acted on the pornography issue. They need to hop to it---PDQ.

 

R. B.

3-26-13



The Surprise Selection, By Roger Behra

SHORT COMMUNICATION 346

 

The Surprise Selection

 

By

 

Roger Behra

 

The 1.2 Billion Catholics around the world are now settling down from the surprise selection of their new pope: Pope Francis I. Millions of Catholics went gaga because he in an Argentine and not someone from a country in Europe, and they do now expect a different kind of papacy. Catholics hope and expect his leadership will spawn a Catholic resurgence. Yes, it's going to be more progressive but not in a manner many Catholics are hoping: There will be no change in the Church's stance on ABORTION and SAME-SEX MARRIAGE.  Those issues will not change one iota. That means not even a small change will take place. That's the way it should be.

 

Catholics need to know that certain stances the Church takes cannot ever be changed or diluted because the stances are dogma. Abortion and same-sex marriage are dogma. They are never going to be acceptable. They are always going to be considered intrinsically evil, sinful, and just plain wrong.

 

Life begins at conception and God has given the fetus a soul and has a plan for that life. If there is no sound medical reason, that life cannot be indiscriminately snuffed out through abortion, which is really-murder.

 

Marriage is a sacrament, holy, instituted by God, and meant to be between one man and one woman. So, the Church cannot change that either, and same-sex marriage can never be considered a marriage. It is out of the question.  Pope Francis will not, therefore, be making any changes to make abortion or same-sex marriage acceptable.

 

What Pope Francis is going to do is pay particular attention to the poor and the disenfranchised. That is a necessary and welcomed change. He has not yet mentioned how he is going to address that. The poor and disenfranchised who benefit from that dedication will greatly outnumber all the disgruntled Catholics who leave the Catholic Church because abortion and same-sex marriage will never be accept­able to him.

 

Millions of Catholics are wishing Pope Francis a successful, peaceful, and productive papacy as he reaches his goals. May his papacy be renowned in the history of the papacy.

 

R. B.

3-24-13



Bully To Buddy, By Roger Behra

SHORT COMMUNICATION 345

 

Bully To Buddy

 

By

 

Roger Behra

 

Finally, something good is happening in one of America's Public Schools: It's Marina High School at Huntington Beach, California. The Huntington Beach Youth Board along with Councilman Joe Carchio are organizing students to sign pledges to end a very serious problem: It's the effect of student bullying. They handed out T-shirts if they signed a pledge to "Be a Buddy, not a Bully." Nearly 600 stu­dents signed pledges and received a T-shirt. That's remarkable.

 

Bullying takes place during class sessions and after school off school grounds. Sometimes it gets physical and parents have to get involved.

 

Bullying takes place when students continuously make remarks when they feel he/she is not the same as them or a little bit strange. It is present in elementary and high schools throughout America, and it is an enormous problem and especially in the state of California.

 

Here is how bullying works during class sessions. Several classmates get together and choose a student to bully.  Jane Sadone is chosen.  In math class the bullies keep reminding Jane that she is fat. In English class another group of bullies keep telling Jane she looks awful in her clothes. In social studies class a stu­dent laughs and says her hair is ugly. This goes on for days at a time. Most days Jane goes home crying alone. She hates to leave for school and her mother wonders what is going on. That's when parents get involved.

 

Bullying is common after school. The bully group taunts someone daily on the way home. When the bullied person gets fed up, it leads to fighting. Girls are as bad as boys. Some time ago a father went over to a bully's house and shot the bully.

 

A very special type of bullying is taking place now, and it involves a large number of bullies: It's called cyberbullying. It's devastating! It's occurring very frequently. It's used anonymously. Bullying students use FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM accounts. If a bullied person's picture is put online, it's called "put on blast." When you are put on blast and your picture is up, bullies are calling you names and saying other unkind things: That is very hurtful and demoralizing to the one bullied, and it can lead to devastating behavior like the shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn. Bullying is blamed for that. Adam Lanza´s picture: caused horrendous bullying because he was very different and strange looking.

 

America's Public Schools have so many others built in problems for one reason or another. When bullying came along on a large scale of deviant behavior, it became the icing on the problem cake. Let's hope the Be a Buddy, Not a Bully program becomes very effective in California and expands throughout other states in the culture of America. The program needs to gain momentum ASAP.

 

R. B.

3-23-13



America's Public Disasters

SHORT COMMUNICATION 344

 

America's Public Disasters

 

By

 

Roger Behra

 

No. You are not going to read about rivers overflowing and flooding houses. No. You are not going to read about tornados destroying a city. No. You are not going to read about a sudden and destructive earthquake. Yes. You are going to read about the new name for America's Public Schools. They are referred to now as America's Public Disasters, because that is exactly what they are. There are reasons for the new name.

 

It is common knowledge how and when the U. S. Government came down the river with boat loads of money to help the public schools, and as a result, it mandated too much organizational and administrative changes and what teachers can and cannot the classroom. That was the beginning of what morphed into monstrous discipline problems that added to the already counterproductive school day and order. Monstrous discipline problems now are the norm rather than the exception, because teacher's hands are tied concerning the handling of discipline.

 

It´s not a secret that the key that opens the door to very good teaching success learning is very good discipline in the classroom first of all and elsewhere on the school ground. That is totally absent now in America´s public schools. Teachers are constantly between a rock and a hard place on a daily basis.

 

Along with the monstrous discipline problems, teachers are expected to perform too many duties not related to the teaching process. That consumes valuable time away from planning, teaching, and evaluation of subject matter. The teacher's workday is a modern day nightmare to say the least as they struggle to properly have a productive classroom teaching day.

 

Teachers cannot handle discipline problems in the same manner as before the U.S. Government got involved in the schools. It is a whole new ballgame now. Teachers are very restricted in what they can do in the classroom, and that's why discip­line has become such an unsolvable problem. Here is an example of what it's like.

 

Miss Goodlady is trying to teach 12th graders how to write intelligent and acceptable paragraphs. To her right is a boy loudly holding a conversation with a friend. To her left are three girls manipulating their cellphones and giggling. In the back of the room is a girl who jumps in and out of her seat to chat with her friend.  She refused to stay seated, so a security guards carne to remove her. She got loud and abusive with the security guard, and off to jail she was taken. It was her second appearance within 30 days before the same judge, so he added 30 more days to her original sentence and bail time. Miss Disrespectful became very angry.  Her reaction was to say "F----you, Judge" and flip the judge her middle finger.  Immediately, her place of residence was a jail cell.

 

Now you have an idea of what goes on in America's Public Schools and why they justifiably can be called America´s Public Disasters. (By the way, Miss Goodlady's paragraph writing lesson was a failure.)

 

R. B.