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the threshold of a new world - of new
solutions to age-old dilemmas.
Let's take a brief look at this new
Garden of Eden opportunity open in
our time.
Science, for example, has made great
progress in discoveri ng the knowledge
of how to solve many problems. But
man has all-too·often not recognized
oc
applied right koowledge. Where he has
applied it, a dramatic reversa! has often
occurred.
In the arca of health, sanitation regu·
lations have wiped out many diseases.
Today, we know more about the cause
of heart disease than ever before.
Jf
an
individual follows the advice of gctting
proper exercise, eating a balanccd dict
and following a sane Iifcstylc, he can
avoid heart disease.
Gains in Our Social World
In the social l:ield, many break–
throughs in uoderstanding have oc–
curred. We know, for example, a good
bit about why marriages fail. Through
intcnsive practica! and theoretical study,
thc: causes of a number of social dilem–
mas are available in journals, consulting
agencies and mass magazines.
The individual can find help in
learning how to cope with neuroses;
how to develop skills leading to pro–
ductive employment; how to solve per–
sonal financia! problems. There are evcn
societies devoted to studying the causes
of war and the ways to pcace. The
United Nations, weak as it is, at lcast
affords an opportunity for statesmcn to
come together and air their grievances.
We lack only one unifying factor to
put all the pieces together. Only one
input nceds to be plugged in to send
the solution throughout our world.
Perhaps we can best understand this
dimension by aJluding to the common
radio. We can turn the radio on and
tune ourselves in to a certain wave–
length. On the wavelength may be a
song or a broadcast which causes us to
react in a certain manner.
And so
it
is that human beings
throughout their lives are tuned in to
certain wavelengths in their cnviron–
ment. The output of these wavelcngths
shapcs and molds the hearcrs' think·
ing. Most human minds are cluttered
PARADOX OF OUR CENTURY
- sorne live in abundance, while
others live ín squalor.
with distorted information and wrong
thinking as a result of this input.
Natioos and groups of people also
wrestle with the historical input in their
social world. This often enslaves them.
That is why we need a new, fresh
start - to begin again without pre-
Februa.ry 1972
conceived ideas, hatreds, cultural pat·
teros. We need to recapture truc values
by attuning ourselves
to
a new knowl–
edge station. The point is basic, but it
needs further clari fication.
On Stage: Dr. Jekyll
and Mr. Hyde
Let's understand how humanity has
beco swayed by the broadcasting of its
environmcnt.
We
can do this by ima–
gining thc life history of two human
beings.
Both kncw nothing at birth. Both
wcre sweet and innocent babies. One of
these babies grcw up to be a responsible
mcmber of hi s society, not perfcct, but
what one might call a decent human
being.
The other learned to fcar, and to
hate. By age 16 he was a totally turned–
off individual. He lashed out at nation.
socicty, srmbols of authority. By age 20
he had committed his first murdcr. He
was a hardened criminal, with no hope
of being rchabilitated. What madc the
two babies become Dr. Jekyll and Mr.
Hydc counterparts? Mere!y the sum
total of experiences which entered their
minds. In thc case of
the criminal, thc
knowledgc input
twisted the mind into
ugly distortion.
Nations are merely
the sum total of in–
dividuals. And tra–
gically, nations often
display a Hydc-like
attitude. A baby born
io mainland China
knows nothing at
birth. But it is taught
to hate Amcricans.
A generation of
Americanswere them–
selves taught to hate
Japanese. Each was a victim of his cn–
vironment, of the teaching which
rcached his mind from birth. Each was
an intellectual and emotional slavc. But
each assumed he possessed right knowl–
edge.
Presently, on American television, is
one of the most talked-about programs
to ever air. It's called "All in the Fam–
ily." Archie Bunker, the lead player, is
cast in the role of a sort of Estab-