Truth, Justice, and Integrity
Those very illustrious qualities of truth, justice, and integrity are allegedly hotly pursued though they seem to remain quite elusive and debatable in societal discourses. The lens of relativity causes one to question whether or not truth can indeed be definitive, whether integrity is the crux of moral living, and whether justice can exist in a capitalist global society. In fact, the gray scale often dominates what is believed to be black and white. People struggle with that for which they stand or at least believe is that for which they should stand. And from libertarians to liberals, Marxists to conservatives, ideas of justice are vast and varied. In such a diverse world, how are decisions made, conclusions reached, and justice had?
Inevitably, these are not easy processes. For this reason, the "authorities" are given the power to decide what is in the best interest of the people. The authorities determine what truth will be, how integrity will be interpreted, and the means for which justice will be achieved. Whether the electoral college is deciding the outcome of an election that is purportedly of the people, by the people, and for the people or the Supreme Court is ruling that major corporations do not have to pay sufficient funds for major oil spills, there are authorities deciding the fate of society. Whether the president is allegedly unilaterally declaring war as commander-and-chief or the Supreme Court is denying a woman rights to equal pay, the authorities are deciding what is truth, what is integral, and what is justified.
The separation of powersjudicial, legislative, and executiveare to ensure that there is a balance of power between the branches of government and that justice is meted out equally. However, if the president can wiretap the lines of "free" American citizens, then are the freedoms of the people protected by this so-called separation of power. Should we beware of an impending 1984 Orwellian reality? Where is the line between national security and personal freedoms? Is this the blurred line between the truth of freedom and the illusion of freedom?
Indeed, freedom as truth is more an internal process than an external predicament. That is, the true test is to be free in mind and spirit. Physical bondage is the least of the evilsor so they say? To what extent does a physical reality become spiritual and intellectual truth? Is it possible to be so spiritually enlightened that one is unaffected by legislation and actions that impinge on personal freedoms. This is not to say that terrorism should thrive or anarchy should ensue. Rather, it is to question the extent to which our truth is our reality. It is to challenge the extent to which are liberty and justice are bondage. It is to understand the extent to which our integrity is compromised by competing interpretations of the constitution and how we abide by these constitutional and moral codes of society.
Not only must individuals decide what their reality will be, but they must decide this reality when governing bodies are adversarial to their self-determination. The average individual is powerful beyond measure. At the same time, there is power in numbers (particularly a powerful few) and the individual will have to subscribe to the ideologies and/or abide by the laws that the often oligarchic few have established. This oligarchic few is a holy trinity of sortsthe corporation, the church, the government. Never mind separation of powers.
The government is inevitably implicated by its relationship to big business. Lobbyists and/or corporations color politics through funding. Politics is nothing more than the manipulation of power. And, the manipulation of power is nothing more than the transfer, procurement and relinquishment of money. What is the solution? If one wants to make change then he/she must acquire money. The presidential hopefuls are quintessential examples of the interplay of money and politics. If they want to win the presidency they must raise the money. So, that means the poor must become the rich in order to effect change. The marginalized must become the powerful. Therein lies the catch 22. To become the powerful, one must already be powerful.
Now that is not to say that the people do not have poweragain pointing to the relativity of truth, justice, and integrity. The people do indeed have power. Without the agitation by the masses, there would have been no women's movement, no civil rights movement, no changes in attitudes and policies of mental and physical health, and no changes in the treatment of children. Because at some point, each person will experience being the Other. The rich may at some time be poor. The majority at some point experiences what it is to be a minority. At some point, most people will be both young and old. Unemployment or illness may strike. Because at some point each person experiences marginalization, the people display the courage to bring about change in society. This is the reality of the process of change.
Knowing when to stand and for what to stand can still become a struggle. Just as African American women were sometimes marginalized in the civil rights movement, African American women are often faced with intersecting oppressionsto be African American and woman. Beyond this predicament, the fear of standing for a cause can be debilitating. What is the definition of integrity? Must one proclaim one's belief from the mountain tops? Or can one's faith be an inner declaration that needs no display? One's conceptions of integrity often intersect with one's ideas about truth. To believe in the relativity of truth may also coincide with a situational integrity.
Regardless of one's beliefs, the impinging societal constraints (and liberties) in large part determine the extent to which a person can be self-determined and society can be just. The truth of the Supreme Court or the president becomes the reality of the society. The reality of the masses can and has become the Truth of the society. Changed legislation does not necessarily mean change in consciousness. But changes in consciousness lead to new interpretations of truth, justice, and integrity.