Some closing thoughts...
(From Tom) One of my first impressions on visiting New Zealand was how friendly the people were. They seemed open, honest, and cheerful. Everything was operated somewhat casually, but effectively.
Unfortunately, going from New Zealand back to America resulted in the opposite impression (makes logical sense, but was still somewhat of a shock to the system). Americans at the airports and on planes came off as brusque, mildly angry, and insensitive. I found one thing quite interesting; at the entry point to customs, there is a sign advertising a "pledge" to provide a pleasant welcome, courteous service, the personal touch; but as I watched the guards, I saw anything but this (with one exception). The Kiwis had lived up to the spirit of the sign; but the Americans, though they had written it down and advertised it, really failed.
This caused me to speculate further. I should preface by saying that as I was away, my respect for America grew; we have a lot of wonderful things and for the most part, our country is run very well. But, on return, I see some things that concern me. Aside from the aforementioned courtesy issues, some more general impressions stood out in my mind, which I can't necessarily substantiate with examples. Americans strike me as being fascinated with hierarchy. We chart the path to the top closely, and expect constant promotions; we carefully observe and judge what position someone is in. We are obsessed with management; management principles, techniques, books, managers, CEOs, and Presidents. I think the original plan was for us to be a distributed system (computer speak for leaving decision making and power to the smaller subdivisions, in this case individual voters); but I guess that like many people in history we have become fixated on the idea of a king; be it at the company manager level or the Presidency level.
Also, I see us as dedicated to competition. We have truly seen the benefits of free competition; many of the great things America has produced have been driven by this. But it seems we are ready to extend this to all areas of life; and I'm afraid we may be going too far. To what degree should the arts be shaped by market competition? (also, I think we start to devalue things that don't adapt well to competition, like the arts and personal relationships) What about Healthcare? Obviously, we want that to be results-based; but I think many studies show that we actually get the best results when we dump competition and provide the personal touch. (Perhaps it is best to foster competition in the drug industry, but not in the doctor-patient care industry) It's probably a stretch, but could the lack of courtesy and interest in each other I am observing be a result of our drive for hierarchy and competition? For after all, if it's really a competition, what are other people but standards to measure ourself against and possible competitors to be squashed?
It did seem that I met a lot of people in NZ that were pretty free to do their own thing; and flying over the US on the way back, I saw an obscene number of identical suburban housing blocks. Theoretically, we are all free to do are own thing; but are our devotions to competition and hierarchy binding us? It is hard to imagine anyone here living the lives of the Land family we couchsurfed with (heck, it's hard to imagine anyone opening up their homes to couch surfers); or the lives of the folks traveling around the world working as they go; or even the lives of Ian and Caitrona, who at one point left for a three-month trip to America without any guarantees that their jobs would be there when they got back. I think we may be a bit worse off despite greater material wealth if these are ties that bind us.
So, as soon as I have a place, it'll be up on couch surfing. I find a renewed conviction to be interested in my neighbor, and to live life less influenced by the patterns of the closed world around me (if it happens that I fit most of those patterns anyway, no problem; but I want to make sure that I'm not just blindly following them). I hope that I will realize that managing isn't the most important thing in the world, and that it's not about finishing ahead of your neighbor.
Unfortunately, going from New Zealand back to America resulted in the opposite impression (makes logical sense, but was still somewhat of a shock to the system). Americans at the airports and on planes came off as brusque, mildly angry, and insensitive. I found one thing quite interesting; at the entry point to customs, there is a sign advertising a "pledge" to provide a pleasant welcome, courteous service, the personal touch; but as I watched the guards, I saw anything but this (with one exception). The Kiwis had lived up to the spirit of the sign; but the Americans, though they had written it down and advertised it, really failed.
This caused me to speculate further. I should preface by saying that as I was away, my respect for America grew; we have a lot of wonderful things and for the most part, our country is run very well. But, on return, I see some things that concern me. Aside from the aforementioned courtesy issues, some more general impressions stood out in my mind, which I can't necessarily substantiate with examples. Americans strike me as being fascinated with hierarchy. We chart the path to the top closely, and expect constant promotions; we carefully observe and judge what position someone is in. We are obsessed with management; management principles, techniques, books, managers, CEOs, and Presidents. I think the original plan was for us to be a distributed system (computer speak for leaving decision making and power to the smaller subdivisions, in this case individual voters); but I guess that like many people in history we have become fixated on the idea of a king; be it at the company manager level or the Presidency level.
Also, I see us as dedicated to competition. We have truly seen the benefits of free competition; many of the great things America has produced have been driven by this. But it seems we are ready to extend this to all areas of life; and I'm afraid we may be going too far. To what degree should the arts be shaped by market competition? (also, I think we start to devalue things that don't adapt well to competition, like the arts and personal relationships) What about Healthcare? Obviously, we want that to be results-based; but I think many studies show that we actually get the best results when we dump competition and provide the personal touch. (Perhaps it is best to foster competition in the drug industry, but not in the doctor-patient care industry) It's probably a stretch, but could the lack of courtesy and interest in each other I am observing be a result of our drive for hierarchy and competition? For after all, if it's really a competition, what are other people but standards to measure ourself against and possible competitors to be squashed?
It did seem that I met a lot of people in NZ that were pretty free to do their own thing; and flying over the US on the way back, I saw an obscene number of identical suburban housing blocks. Theoretically, we are all free to do are own thing; but are our devotions to competition and hierarchy binding us? It is hard to imagine anyone here living the lives of the Land family we couchsurfed with (heck, it's hard to imagine anyone opening up their homes to couch surfers); or the lives of the folks traveling around the world working as they go; or even the lives of Ian and Caitrona, who at one point left for a three-month trip to America without any guarantees that their jobs would be there when they got back. I think we may be a bit worse off despite greater material wealth if these are ties that bind us.
So, as soon as I have a place, it'll be up on couch surfing. I find a renewed conviction to be interested in my neighbor, and to live life less influenced by the patterns of the closed world around me (if it happens that I fit most of those patterns anyway, no problem; but I want to make sure that I'm not just blindly following them). I hope that I will realize that managing isn't the most important thing in the world, and that it's not about finishing ahead of your neighbor.
posted by Game Night Crew @ 11:05 AM
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