The older I get the less competition, in nearly any form, appeals to me. Competition gives us only three options--to win, to lose, or to tie. Were I to win, I would, by definition, cause others to be losers. That does not appeal to me. Were I to lose, then in the eyes of the world, I would be a failure. That does not appeal to me. And were I to tie with my other competitors society would view the contest as being unsatisfying and incomplete.
Horse training that is not based on natural horsemanship is a grueling competition for domination over the horse. Natural horsemanship is not based in competition. It is based in communication.
When I fail to communicate precisely what I want the horse to understand, I have lost. When I fail to understand what the horse is attempting to communicate to me, I have lost.
When the horse and I understand each other, we both have won.
I am perfectly happy using enough pressure to help the horse understand what I want done, but I will have lost if I use more pressure than necessary to communicate with the horse.
The lessons of the round pen teach just how false the very concept of racial superiority is. White supremacy is a concept that can only take root among those who believe that in order for a white man to win, a black man must loose.
Or, in more accurate analysis, white supremacy is a concept that can only take root and flourish among those who think that each victory for a black man is a loss for a white man. In short, it is a philosophy dependent on fear.
A world view of life as a competition and a struggle between you and me, us and them, our team and their team insures the development of a society made up of winners and losers, rulers and ruled, and oppressors and oppressed.
When that view becomes internalized one can be assured that the result will be violence--in the home, on the streets, and between nations. When that view becomes internalized it is instinctive to shoot a fleeing suspect in the back.
...because if he got away he would have won, and nothing is more important to those who internalize this view than winning.
Your last sentence sure does explain "why". The fact that falling asleep in a car - rather than driving after drinking - was considered reason to kill someone? So there could be a "winner". We hear far too much about winners and losers right now. That mindset appears to be responsible for far too much abuse & death.
ReplyDeleteWell written, Steve
Thank you
Maggie