June 20, 2013

5th Anniversary of OurValues: Giver, matcher, or taker?

This entry is part 4 of 4 in the series 5th Anniversary
Click the cover to visit the book's Amazon page.

Click the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

Are you a giver, a taker, or a matcher? These are three ways of interacting with others, says Wharton professor Adam Grant in his best-seller, Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success:

  • Takers try to get more than they give to others.
  • Matchers seek even trades—you help me and I help you.
  • Givers, however, freely help others without expecting anything in return.

Paying it forward is a popular type of giver behavior that we have covered several times on OurValues.org. On our 5th anniversary of the column, I selected the most popular pay-it-forward story to highlight today: The future of human organ donation. This column includes links to other columns on paying it forward—including one that involved my family’s rescue last summer on the Great Lakes!

Former Vice President Dick Cheney had a heart transplant earlier this year, after being on a wait-list for almost two years. He was one of the lucky ones because many people die waiting for a heart, kidney, or other organs. Experts agree there’s a severe shortage of human organs and it will likely get worse. In other columns, I have considered how the principle of “pay it forward” worked in a Great Lakes rescue, a young Detroiter’s effort to help the jobless, Good Samaritan experiments, and even in the form of an app.

Could the pay-it-forward principle also remedy the human-organ shortage?

There are various attempts to solve the shortage. When you get or renew your driver’s license, you can check the box to become an organ donor. Economists offer a market solution: Pay donors. Countries like Singapore pay a considerable sum to someone who is willing to donate an organ. Israel has a “no give, no take” rule: Sign up to donate your organs or you’ll have low priority if you need one in the future.

Kidney chains implement the principle of paying it forward. Here, a grateful relative of a kidney recipient donates a kidney to a third party. We’ve discussed one of these chains before, where you can see a video about it. The chains can grow to be quite long.

Life Sharers is a private non-profit network in the U.S. that implements a variation of the pay-it-forward principle. Here’s how it works, in their words: “LifeSharers members promise to donate upon their death, and they give fellow members first access to their organs. As a LifeSharers member, you will have access to organs that otherwise may not be available to you. As the LifeSharers network grows, more and more organs may become available to you—if you are a member.” A member can still donate organs first to family members.

What do you think of these solutions to the human-organ shortage?

What’s your story about paying it forward?

Please, take a moment to leave a Comment below.

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Categories: Equal Opportunities • Getting Ahead
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June 19, 2013

5th anniversary of OurValues: A small world after all?

This entry is part 3 of 4 in the series 5th Anniversary
Brandenburger Tor aka Brandenburg Gate in Berlin Germany

This is Das Brandenburger Tor in Berlin, known in English as the Brandenburg Gate. Photo by Thomas Wolf, released for public use via Wikimedia Commons.

Obama is in Germany today, meeting with the German president and chancellor. He gives a speech at the Brandenburg Gate almost 50 years after John F. Kennedy gave his “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech there. The last time Obama was in Germany, 2008, he addressed a huge, euphoric crowd. Today’s official reception is grand, but the public reception is lukewarm, reflecting concerns about drones, NSA spying and other matters.

Germans also are an important audience for OurValues.org. The column has an American focus, but the international readership of OurValues.org demonstrates that it really is a small world after all. We also have many readers from Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, India, Philippines, China, Netherlands, France, and Sweden.

Over 1,300 columns have appeared on OurValues.org. One of the most popular posts featured Germany and its role as a model of a post-nuclear world. Here is it, in edited form:

IS GERMANY A MODEL FOR A POST-NUCLEAR WORLD?

Would you be willing to sacrifice your lifestyle if it meant we could end the use of nuclear energy? Six of ten Germans are willing to do so, based on a new poll. A majority (57%) say they want Germany to close all nuclear power plants in less than five years. Is a nuclear-free Germany a model of our future?

Along with a change in lifestyle, Germany plans to shift to 50% renewable energy by 2050. That’s an ambitious goal, and even if it’s attained, where would the other half come from? Natural gas is one source, but coal is another—and coal is the real enemy, says environmentalist George Monbiot. The human and ecological costs are far greater than the risks of nuclear energy, he argues.

Germany’s neighbor—the Czech Republic—is delighted with Germany’s plans to cut nuclear, looking to profit by selling them energy from coal-fired plants. Czech companies don’t face pressure to close their nuclear plants, and politicians are in favor of increasing the use of coal as an energy source, according to business reports.

This all goes to show that the German model illustrates the limits of a nation-specific energy policy. One nation bans nuclear energy and its citizens are willing to take a hit to their lifestyle. Another nation invests in nuclear and coal-fired energy. It’s the same thing when you decide to not use pesticides on your lawn, but your neighbor asks for a double dose.

The energy dilemma we’ve discussed all week goes beyond national boundaries. It requires a multi-national policy. And, that takes a level of cooperation that we have not seen before.

What do you think of Germany’s model?

Is it a model that you could support?

Or, is it futile given that other nations will do the opposite?

Please, Comment below:

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Categories: Universalism
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June 18, 2013

5th anniversary of OurValues: Can we talk about tough subjects?

This entry is part 2 of 4 in the series 5th Anniversary
Click the cover to visit the book's Amazon page.

Click the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

‘Tis the season of school graduations. Last week, I attended my son’s graduation from elementary school. The 5th graders sang, received certificates, shook the principal’s hand, and bubbled over with happiness and excitement at the photo slide show featuring them during the past five years. It was a warm and positive experience, a fitting end to a high-quality education in a public school.

But I also paused to consider a question we have discussed before: What grade does America’s school system get?

My son’s elementary-school graduation coincided with the 5th anniversary of OurValues.org. Now, five years and 1,300 columns later, I’ve learned that civil dialog about tough issues is possible. It’s rare that we received a comment that was uncivil. The few times it happened, we engaged in dialog with the writer and in all cases they modified their language to make it civil—even if the subject was a difficult one. Many become regular commenters on OurValues.org

One of the difficult subjects we’re talked about is America’s educational system. And my column about America’s mediocre grades made it one of the most popular—if painful—columns on OurValues.org. Here is it:

Is our educational system at the top of the class?

This is a critical question, because education is essential for the success of a nation and a democracy. Education also translates into higher wealth and better health for individuals.

At first glance, Americans appear to be a well-schooled people. The U.S. ranks Number 1 in average years of schooling for adults, compared to other large and rich nations. However, Howard Steven Friedman in his new book The Measure of a Nation: How to Regain America’s Competitive Edge and Boost Our Global Standing says this top ranking actually reflects past investments in education. At one time, America was alone in providing mass public education, and specific investments like the G.I. Bill really paid off. But if we look at the expected years of school for kids who are starting their education, we see a different story—one that doesn’t bode well for the future.

The U.S. ranks near the bottom in expected years of schooling. This means that an American child who enters school now is expected to end up with less education than the children of other nations.

Number of years in school is one thing; the quality of education during those years is another. The U.S. gets average to poor grades for quality of education: reading, math, and science literacy. Looking at 15-year-old students, we’re in the middle of the pack for reading literacy. For math and science literacy, we get poor grades. We’re in the bottom third of the class of comparable nations, despite spending more money per student than any other nation.

Adding to the problem is the fact that we seem oblivious to it. We think we’re still No. 1 in all areas. For example, more American kids express high confidence in their math ability than do the children of nations like Japan or Korea—who, along with Canada, are actually at the top of the global rankings now. The difference between confidence and actual ability is evidence of a disconcerting disconnect.

That is one of the key messages of Measure of a Nation. Piling facts upon facts, this book shows the facts clearly. We can choose to ignore the facts. Or, we can accept that America is not the best in all areas, and that we can learn from what other nations do. If you want to know what we can do, I encourage you to buy and read Measure of a Nation. Along with all the facts and figures, Friedman offers specific prescriptions of what we can do to improve.

Are you surprised at our educational system’s poor grades?

What was the quality of education you received?

What expectations do you set for your children?

Please, add a comment below:

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Categories: Uncategorized

June 17, 2013

5th anniversary of OurValues: After 1,300 columns, can you guess our most popular subject?

This entry is part 1 of 4 in the series 5th Anniversary
Click the cover to visit the book's Amazon page.

Click the cover to visit the book’s Amazon page.

Celebrate the 5th anniversary of OurValues.org with us this week. Founded in 2008, OurValues.org was created as an online experiment in civil discussion about tough issues. Thank you for being part of our 1,300 columns—and counting! I appreciate the thousands of readers, here and around the globe, who have made this project so successful.

This week, we’ll revisit some of our most popular columns, along with some OurValues.org staff favorites.

What’s the single most popular subject? Abraham Lincoln. We’ve had quite a number of columns about Lincoln. As the creator and regular writer of OurValues.org, I began marking this 150th anniversary year of Lincoln’s historic actions in 1863. In January, I wrote about Lincoln’s life-long struggle with depression—what at the time was known as “melancholy.” It’s a story of supreme resilience and transcendence.

Not only did my column quickly become the most-read post on OurValues.org—but it drew the interest of Lincoln scholar Duncan Newcomer. Within months, Duncan had become a regularly engaged reader and occasional writer himself. As a guest columnist, he wrote this week-long series on the 16th president that appeared in May.

That’s part of the power of OurValues.org—it draws a fascinating mix of people together, wherever they live. They contribute in various ways to this national discussion we are weaving, year by year. Together, we keep demonstrating that civility is possible in America.

Care to revisit the most popular column? Here it is in slightly edited form:

ABRAHAM LINCOLN is known the world over, but not for his lifelong struggle with chronic depression or “melancholy.” How did his mental struggles play into his life’s work? In his movie Lincoln, Steven Spielberg clearly shows scenes in which Lincoln seems to struggle with the chronic melancholy that affected his life. But the film underplays the central role of clinical depression in Lincoln’s life and how he managed it. Melancholy was the key to his greatness, says Joshua Wolf Shenk in Lincoln’s Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness.

Lincoln’s bouts of depression were legendary among his confidants. These bouts were “just one thread in a curious fabric of behavior and thought that Lincoln’s friends and colleagues called his ‘melancholy’,” writes Shenk. “He often wept in public and recited maudlin poetry. He told jokes and stories at odd times—he needed the laughs, he said, for his survival. As a young man he talked of suicide.” His friends put him on a suicide watch, a rare reaction in those times. Melancholy was his companion throughout his life. “His law partner William Herndon said, ‘His melancholy dripped from him as he walked.’”

Lincoln was able to manage his struggle with depression by harnessing its energy for a high purpose. Indeed, the thought that he had a big role to play—however unclear it was at the time—gave him meaning and direction. The specific meaning of his life became clear. In 1854, Shenk writes, Lincoln entered the slavery debates “with a vigorous argument that slavery must be restricted as a moral, social, and political wrong.” This led, eventually, to the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment.

Did you know about Lincoln’s struggle with chronic depression?

Do you buy Shenk’s argument that it fueled Lincoln’s greatness?

What’s your all-time favorite article on OurValues.org?

Please, leave a comment below:

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Categories: Self-Reliance
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June 13, 2013

Older Americans: Young dogs? Old dogs? Is there an age gap?

This entry is part 5 of 5 in the series Older Americans

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOld dog mature BeagleAttitudes about many controversial social issues are changing—and in many instances older Americans are leading the change.

In some areas, however, we still have big age gaps. These are issues where younger and older Americans have the biggest differences of opinion. As we shall see today, all of the top age-gap issues involve sex.

Where have older Americans (55-plus years of age) changed their minds about what is morally acceptable? This week, we’ve discussed five, based on a new report from the Pew Research Center: gay or lesbian relations, having a baby outside of marriage, sex between an unmarried man and woman, divorce, and embryonic stem cell research. For each issue, a majority of older Americans now say it’s morally acceptable.

But big gaps remain.

Though a majority of older Americans (51%) now say that gay or lesbian relations are morally acceptable, a much higher percentage of young Americans (74%) say the same. That’s a 23 point difference in the Pew polling. There’s a 16 point difference between younger and older Americans when it comes to the moral acceptability of sex between an unmarried man and woman. And, a 14 point gap between young and old when it comes to the moral acceptability of having a baby outside of wedlock.

The biggest age gap involves pornography. Here, 49% of younger Americans say pornography is morally acceptable, but only 19% of older Americans agree. The second biggest difference of opinion concerns sex between teenagers. Almost half of younger Americans (48%) say this behavior is morally acceptable, but only 22% of older Americans agree.

Overall, however, the big news is that “old dogs” can learn new tricks. Many older Americans have changed their minds about controversial issues, with majorities now saying that many are morally acceptable. These trends are right in line with a column Terry Gallagher, a regular guest author on OurValues.org, wrote about successful aging: Researchers on a MacArthur Foundation study proved that “older people can, and do, learn new things—and they learn them well.” (You can read Terry’s original column here. Also: Look for Terry to return this summer on OurValues.org!)

Are you surprised by changing attitudes among older Americans?

Does the remaining age gap surprise you?

Do you think the trends on the issues we’ve examined this week will continue?

Please, leave a comment below:

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Categories: Freedom
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June 12, 2013

Older Americans: Views of stem cells and testing on animals?

This entry is part 4 of 5 in the series Older Americans
Human Embryonic Stem Cells (in top photo) and neurons formed by stem cells. Photos by Nissim Benvenisty released for public use via Wikimedia Commons.

Human Embryonic Stem Cells (in top photo) and neurons formed by stem cells. Photos by Nissim Benvenisty released for public use via Wikimedia Commons.

Stem cells offer the possibility of treating diabetes, heart disease, and a host of other diseases, conditions, and disabilities. But medical research using stem cells from human embryos is controversial, and many people don’t think this type of research is morally acceptable.

What do older Americans think?
Once again, you might be surprised!
(Use the series index at the bottom of this post to read the other examples of changing attitudes I have highlighted this week.)

Today, almost seven of ten Americans 55 years of age and older say that embryonic stem cell research is morally acceptable, according to a new Pew Research Center report. This is a 20 point increase since 2001. Majorities of young Americans (ages 18–34) and somewhat older Americans (ages 35–54) have always supported this type of medical research, but there has been fluctuation up and down. “Much of the increase in moral acceptance of stem cell research,” Pew researchers say, “has been driven by a change in the opinions of adults aged 55 and over.”

VIEWS ON
ANIMAL TESTING?

How about medical testing on animals? Here, young Americans are leading the charge—away from this type of research. In 2001, 66% of young Americans said that medical testing on animals was morally acceptable. There’s been downward trend over time. Now, only 47% say that it’s morally acceptable to conduct medical testing with animals. In contrast, opinions of Americans of the two older age groups have remained favorable over time, with only a slight downward trend.

Are you surprised by any of these findings?

What is causing the shift on stem cells?

Are there moral parallels with the medical testing issue?

What are your views on these two issues?

Please,
leave a comment below:

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Categories: Freedom
Tags: • •

June 11, 2013

Older Americans: Is divorce OK?

This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series Older Americans

Car with a Just Divorced sign on the windowDivorce rates have been climbing for decades, but lately there’s been a slowdown in divorces. More couples are likely to reach their 10th wedding anniversary than they used to, according to the U.S. Census. At the same time, attitudes about the moral acceptability of divorce are changing.

What do older Americans feel about the acceptability of marital dissolutions?

Almost seven of ten Americans (69%) ages 55 and older now say that divorce is morally OK, according to a just-released Gallup study. This puts older Americans on par with younger Americans. Sixty-eight percent Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 agree with older Americans, and 66% of middle aged Americans (ages 35-54) also say that divorce is morally acceptable.

The big news, once again, is that older Americans are driving changing attitudes. While other Americans’ attitudes about divorce have not changed much over the past decade, older Americans’ attitudes have changed dramatically during the same time span. Only 48% of older Americans in 2001 said divorce was acceptable. This figure increased by 21 points by 2013.

Do you believe that divorce is morally acceptable?

Are you surprised to learn that older Americans have changed their minds about the acceptability of divorce?

Please leave a comment below:

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Categories: Freedom
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