Golden Dragon Shining Posted April 21, 2016 (edited) Lao Tzu was a NationalistTao Te Ching - Lao Tzu - chapter 80A small country has fewer people.Though there are machines that can work ten to a hundred times faster than man, they are not needed.The people take death seriously and do not travel far.Though they have boats and carriages, no on uses them.Though they have armor and weapons, no one displays them.Men return to the knotting of rope in place of writing.Their food is plain and good, their clothes fine but simple, their homes secure;They are happy in their ways.Though they live within sight of their neighbors,And crowing cocks and barking dogs are heard across the way,Yet they leave each other in peace while they grow old and die.//"Left" and "Right" / Globalists are destroying the environment, culture, heritage/ natural diversity.Jarawa Hunter-Gatherers Say They Don’t Want to Be Part of Our World April 16, 2016 at 4:08 am Jarawa are being forced into civilization and treated like animals in a zoo Like the Hadza of East Africa, the Jarawa hunter-gatherers of the Andaman Islands also face extinction, thanks to the ever-expanding nature of agriculture and civilization. To add insult to injury, a highway has been built right through the heart of their ancestral lands to accommodate “human safaris” – in which tourists toss food at and snap photos of the Jarawa like animals in a zoo. http://returntonow.net/2016/04/16/jarawas/ Edited April 21, 2016 by Sionnach 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dust Posted April 21, 2016 Nationalism is the belief in the importance of the interests of a particular nation. I'm not sure how the chapter outlines that. The Jarawa thing, though.. I agree very much that any individual culture / nation should be free to choose how much they participate in global affairs, free from intrusion into their land. On the other hand, no nation on Earth has a great history in this regard. I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for people to learn not to "help". 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Dragon Shining Posted April 21, 2016 If all nations adhered to what Lao Tzu suggests I think there would be much more peace. Each being content in their own ways, self sufficient and not seeking to meddle in the affairs of other nations. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dust Posted April 21, 2016 If all nations adhered to what Lao Tzu suggests I think there would be much more peace. Each being content in their own ways, self sufficient and not seeking to meddle in the affairs of other nations. Sure, there would be much more peace. I do think there's a better word for it than 'nationalism' though. And, again, I wouldn't hold my breath... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Old River Posted April 21, 2016 This problem today isn't left or right per se, but the industrial world which has led to these historic-specific conflicts-- in which case nationalism is only another symptom of the same dis-ease. If anything, the DDJ idealizes a kind of anarchism (ala Kropotkin), with the abolition of the state as we normally understand it in both left and right terms, in which the usual power stuctures are flattened out, so to speak. Not likely to actually happen however. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Taomeow Posted April 22, 2016 You may want a different word than "nationalism" for what Laozi is talking about here. How about "tribalism?" "Nationalism" is a side effect of manipulating a "nation." "Nations" are a side effect of forcibly herding people into "countries." (If you doubt this assertion, study, e.g., the history of such "countries" as Germany or Italy.) Herding people into "countries" is a side effect of "civilizing" away a way of life that throughout our history was tribal. We are social, and the size of our natural society is between 120 and 150 members. For two million years, neighboring tribes intermarried without uniting into any larger groups so as to maintain this way of life -- a way of life where each individual personally knows every other individual, and the leader chosen by the tribe personally knows every member of the tribe. "Civilizing" us all away from the way we lived for 99,9% of our overall time on this planet is something that had a forcible, coercive, bloody beginning and does not have a happy ending. The Jarawa's impending fate is pretty much what happened to us all a bit earlier. Look at them and know you're looking at what Laozi called "the real human." I still encourage everyone who would care to sign the petition to save them from us to do so. No stopping this omnipresent and omniscient demolition ball... but to win a few more years for the Jarawa before it strikes would still be great. 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Dragon Shining Posted April 27, 2016 Nation in origin means blood/ birth, similar to tribalism, though on a larger scale I suppose. I would say there is a relationship between a nation and land also. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Taomeow Posted April 27, 2016 (edited) Nation in origin means blood/ birth, similar to tribalism, though on a larger scale I suppose. I would say there is a relationship between a nation and land also. Actually, tribes are real and connected by blood. Nations are fake, created and canceled by wars and held together or split apart by politics. Take a look: And here's 10 current "countries" that may cease to exist as such in the next 20 years: Edited April 27, 2016 by Taomeow 6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CityHermit! Posted July 18, 2018 On 4/21/2016 at 4:17 AM, Golden Dragon Shining said: Lao Tzu was a NationalistTao Te Ching - Lao Tzu - chapter 80 A small country has fewer people. Though there are machines that can work ten to a hundred times faster than man, they are not needed. The people take death seriously and do not travel far. Though they have boats and carriages, no on uses them. Though they have armor and weapons, no one displays them. Men return to the knotting of rope in place of writing. Their food is plain and good, their clothes fine but simple, their homes secure; They are happy in their ways. Though they live within sight of their neighbors, And crowing cocks and barking dogs are heard across the way, Yet they leave each other in peace while they grow old and die. // "Left" and "Right" / Globalists are destroying the environment, culture, heritage/ natural diversity.Jarawa Hunter-Gatherers Say They Don’t Want to Be Part of Our World April 16, 2016 at 4:08 am Jarawa are being forced into civilization and treated like animals in a zoo Like the Hadza of East Africa, the Jarawa hunter-gatherers of the Andaman Islands also face extinction, thanks to the ever-expanding nature of agriculture and civilization. To add insult to injury, a highway has been built right through the heart of their ancestral lands to accommodate “human safaris” – in which tourists toss food at and snap photos of the Jarawa like animals in a zoo. http://returntonow.net/2016/04/16/jarawas/ And yet, he grew disillusioned and left for Westward lands. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted July 18, 2018 Brazil actually passed a law that forbids anyone to make contact with any tribe that has not yet been polluted by Westerners. Last I heard is that the law I very effective. I am of the mind of a Cosmopolitan. Albert Camus' influence on me. But I also believe that people should preserve and protect their culture while living amongst peoples of different cultures. Yes, "nation" is artificial. Culture has true substance. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thelerner Posted July 18, 2018 (edited) The fact of life is, a nation has to treasure and keep alive the traditions of its past, while staying up to date with modern technologies, politics and arms. Otherwise, Lao Tzu or not, it will inevitably be at the mercy of its technological betters. I don't like it, but that tends to be the way of the world. <I hope the Jarawan's find advocates and protectors> Edited July 18, 2018 by thelerner 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Golden Dragon Shining Posted October 2, 2018 (edited) The only artificial thing about nation today is it's definition, our language and so understanding of the world is changed/neglected. Nation = Middle English: via Old French from Latin natio(n- ), from nat- ‘born’, from the verb nasci . It's your biological heritage. Culture arises from biological heritage. Example, many type of birds each with their own songs, dances and distinct dwellings they create. Song/language, dance + organic architecture (culture) arising from genetics. Edited October 2, 2018 by Golden Dragon Shining 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kar3n Posted October 2, 2018 7 minutes ago, Golden Dragon Shining said: .... many type of birds each with their own songs, dances and distinct dwellings they create. Song/language, dance + organic architecture (culture) arising from genetics. Enter the mockingbird singing the songs of many creatures. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marblehead Posted October 3, 2018 Just the New World Order trying to make everyone the same. That would be ignorant. Let the people keep their culture. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites