The Right to Respect & Dignity... new words

The Right to Respect and Dignity

means that new ways of behavior propel our lives,
so maybe, new words need to enter our conversations.

I use poetic license to make a new word:  respectivity.

'Respectivity' is respect for others:  to reflect respect.

Respectivity leads to Connectivity,

and Connectivity leads to Coexistence,

and Coexistence leads to Existence.

And then there is the Latin dignitas.

 Again, I use poetic license to extend this word's meaning to signify 

the act of showing dignity towards the other:  dignitas. 

This new word allows differentiation from "dignity," because when surveyed,
 people often think of dignity as mostly self-dignity.

New words fulfill new purposes in a changing world.

With respectivity and dignitas,

(: we can create a happier world. :)


Former posts:
Right to Respect 
Right to Respect... the Physical Body
Right to Respect... Dignity

The Right to Equality... Women

So many women still don't have the Right to Equality.

Marital abuse by husbands and in-laws exists worldwide. 

Here is one case from India.

A woman accused of unfaithfulness 

was set on fire by her husband. 

Burned woman, before and after.

Another famous case is Aisha, an Afghanistan 18 yr old,
abused by her husband and in-laws.
After attempting to flee, a Taliban commander ordered her nose cut off
by her husband as punishment.

She is now in exile in the U.S. about to begin
several years of painful reconstructive surgery.

Humans perpetrating humans must end.


As commenter W.J. writes, "These acts aren't crimes against women, they are crimes against humanity," and "to solve a crime against humanity, it takes all of humanity."
And commenter MMSEAWOLF writes similarly, "Women in such countries need the voices of those who can fight on their behalf." 

The Right to Migrate... Danger

A person who has to migrate for survival

risks their life on the journey.

Survivors of a journey from North Africa, who never made their destination of Italy, tell of their ordeals at sea.

This is the story of three Ethiopians who faced high seas between Libya and Italy.

Tunisians who survived the journey 

on the shores of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, Italy,

(2/11/2011)

All humans need the Right to Migrate across Earth.

At the moment, thousands of people of Northern Mali are migrating
to their neighbor countries of Mauritania, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
The United Nations launched an emergency operation
providing food and shelter.

The Right to Expression... Right to Sports

There are so many rights for the Right to Expression,

but the Right to Sports is probably one of the most popular ones.

This right often interconnects with two other rights:
the Right to Body Care 

and the Right to Compete with Integrity,

These 2 auxillary rights, being huge by themselves,

bring a lot of power to the Right to Sports.
In certain sports, the Right to Sports intersects with the Right to Art.

I declare the Right to Sports,
as one of many rights of expression.

How do you express yourself through sports?

Credit for both photos: NBC Sports

The Right to Declare Rights... blogging on rights

Sky of Stars is a blog where almost 100 rights have been declared.
I know it is unique because it does not fall into any of the typical blog categories.
Now, my current blog posts take each right, previously declared, to the next level,
discussing aspects of the already declared right
or examining a specific right's interaction with another right.
The original post for Right to Declare Rights was titled "invent rights."
But rights are never invented, because all rights already exist,
they just need to be declared, thus the word change.

Sky of Stars is a site for deep thought and discussion, with a specific group of readers who mostly have an interest in change, politics, or human rights topics.With respect for that goal, I have been consistent in keeping a lot of flashing, moving ads off my blog. A clutter of badges, links, and ad boxes,
found on many blogs, create visual confusion.

 Words about rights and humanity need space for the mind to contemplate.

My question here is, What do you, dear reader,
think about declaring rights in a blog?

Map of the Internet

Other blogs, mostly on lighter subjects than rights, have grown over the last five years into huge, thriving businesses.

Here's a very brief list of the main categories and some top blog links:
technology http://www.coolgeekblog.com/
techcrunch.com
environment/green (once a blog, now a green directory) www.greenmaven.com
personal life blogger www.dooce.com
shopping http://agirlmustshop.com/
http://shessmart.com/
http://www.outblush.com/
celebrity www.perezhilton.com
fashion www.thesartorialist.com
political http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowldc/

Have fun spending more time on-line!

Note: I am not promoting any of these blogs.
They are simply random picks of popular blogs.
There are many other blogs not included here.
For blogs related to rights I recommend, see my Blog Roll-->.

The Right to Expression... Fashion

On to a lighter note in the vast subject of new rights.

One of the many Rights to Expression is the Right to Fashion.

Fashion is a form of expressing oneself just like speech.

Thus, as all expressions, fashion is important for human lives.

Mismatched shoes makes a statement of non-conformism.

Design and colors have emotional and cultural meanings.
(photo: Angela Brandys)

Low-cut back design and adornment like shiny hand beading evoke symbolic social meanings.

Glam heels speak loudly for their wearers.

Let me be clear. With this post, I am not advocating any particular style of dress.

Nor am I suggesting that certain clothes be worn or not worn in certain environments.

This post is what it is:  this is about the Right to Expression.

Avoid mis-reading this post by only seeing the photos. 

The photo captions emphasize the point.

The Right to Body Care... Awareness

French king Louis XIV had a journal in the 17th century
called the Journal de la Sante du Roi, or King's Health Journal..

For almost his whole life, from 1747-1711,

his doctors, three in succession, noted daily his body's condition,

spanning almost a century in time.

Such focus on the body.
But how does a person benefit from this intense focus and awareness of one's body?

Although the King suffered from headaches, rheumatism, fevers,
gout, and toothaches, he died at 77 from a gangrenous leg.

French King Louis XIV

The story of the King's health is summarized in a
fascinating article, which describes how this King's journal
is now a historical document of health care in 1600's France.

The Right to Age... The Right to Coexistence

How do we coexist with Earth and its natural forces?

We have a relationship with gravity.

Gravity pulls our bodies down to earth and grounds us for our entire life.

Why can't we acknowledge the coexisting relationship of an aging body and gravity,
and accept the reality, rather than disowning it, that as we age, our skin loses elasticity, our bones lose density, and our body slowly gives in to this force,

our skin drooping and our spine compressing in a shift downward?

Here, I stretch the definition of Right to Coexistence to a

relationship between us and a physical force of the earth.

I declare the Right to Age supported by the Right to Coexistence.

Few of us want to age.
But since we will age, can't we switch our viewpoint
to one of acceptance, even joy, of a coexisting relation with Earth?
With age, we trade trade physical strength for wisdom. 

Blog commenter JAY writes, "People see aging as a curse, something we are doomed
to endure, rather than the natural beauty it is." 

As we age as individuals, the human race ages, and the Earth ages.


Revision: thanks to commenter RCW, YEM, JAY, BKR.

The Right to Equality... Capitalism

Fairness as the key to Right of Equality was covered in a former post.

Here, I discuss equality and capitalism.
It is inevitable that there will always be rich and poor in a capitalist system,
and of course, money does not solve all problems for anyone.
But capitalism can work without such a huge divide, of rich and poor,
in which mental and physical separation create such a divisive form of suffering.

The balance is tilted.
When too much money flows into the hands of a few,
and too little money flows into the hands of many,
you have a broken society.

One potential, partial solution (not the ultimate only solution) to relieve extremes is through the way the money moves. Money needs to flow like water in a circle rather than a one-way upward rocket to outer space. Money has to come back down. But now, it flows in a line upward, dividing us and creating the broken, unbalanced society 
of 1% wealthy and 99% other.

What if social giving for the wealthy was, instead of a random choice,
an obligation of having money?

What if social responsibility became a social norm for all wealthy persons,
reducing the current levels of greed and arrogance by
replacing them with embracing life, love, and compassion?

That is, if a person receives money wealth, couldn't

they assume social responsibility as a part of owning that money?

The result moves us closer to a global community of harmony and balance.
Some wealthy do this, and they are community heroes.

Too many do not.

Funneling wealth money downward is not a norm, at present.
But couldn't "trickle-down economics" become "flow-down economics,"

where more wealthy take on larger, more significant actions that also create jobs?

Instead of another home, the rich person builds a better school.

Instead of a larger yacht, the rich person builds a free hospital.

Instead of another Rolex watch, the rich person buys acres of land

and then gifts it to Nature Conservancy to protect biodiversity.
These actions provide freedoms and rights to others, such as the Right to Learn,
the Right to Body Care, and the Right to Biodiversity.

Another blog Be the Change posted an article on 1/12/12 titled
"This Suit Isn't Going To Be Here When You Die"
and wrote:

"..."I'd love to see more wealthy people doing their part. Too many of them love running around the globe and spending $10,000 on a suit. Why not save children's lives and better the world? That suit isn't going to be here when you die, but the next generation will."...Think about that the next time you make a big purchase, and ask yourself what you're going to do to balance it out." 

Read this great post.

Just as corporations are increasingly doing

CSR-- corporate social responsibility--as a social norm,

I would like to coin a new term: ISR--individual social responsibility--
could this become the new social norm? 

Maybe, each wealthy person would have his own "ISR consultant."

These actions/projects would also help employ our huge, untapped resource: millions of college-educated individuals, living at the lower income levels.

Wealthy children could be groomed with the knowledge that they, too, have this obligation, if huge money becomes theirs. And, all wealthy people, at the end of their lives, could proudly list the social actions they had accomplished. Instead of the broken system of today, there may be an increase of harmony through compassion, with reduced anger and violence. These actions add to the army of individual  volunteers already involved in community service and to an increased understanding that more knowledge and opportunities for all help level the extremes.

Of course, true equality can never really be attained in this system, but couldn't its extremes be lessened?
Inequality has its function in society, as commenter AG states: "If we are all equal in this world, then where will the spark that lights the fire come from?"

(Post-note:  At present, ISR also stands for:
Intellegience, Surveillance, and Reconnaisance,
a government military term!)

Revision thanks to: BRM, YEM, AG, Fidela, RCW

The Right to Life for Plants... the silent species

The original post for The Right to Life for Plants is here.

Plants are the underdog of rights.
We view plants through the what-can-they-do-for-us optic:
that plants give us food, a sense of well-being, visions of beauty,
herbs for our medicines, materials for a number of goods,
oxygen for us to breathe, etc.

The common "plants are here for us to consume-as-we-please" attitude.

But this perspective distracts us from the real one:
that all species are part of a solidly-linked, complex ecosystem.

In addition, the taxonomy classification system (invented by Carl  Linnaeus in 1753)
 enforces the separation of species, rather than unifying all life as a whole.
Links are broken.
All life is separate, named and classified.

The "all life is interconnected & codependent" attitude.
(Photo credit: Hengki Koentzhoro)

I declare the Right to Life for Plants,
the silent underdog of species.
Re-consider the "weed."

Save an acre of rainforest here.
Adopt a seed, save a species, here.

The Right to Cultural Heritage...oil pipelines

As posted previously, there is the Right to Cultural Heritage.

An example of the denial of this right occurs when sacred land is disregarded.
This week, there was protest against oil pipelines
 planned  to pass through sacred indigenous burial grounds.

TransCanada and Exxon will extend pipelines, 

that already run from Nebraska to Oklahoma, down into Texas,

A survey done by the Oklahoma Archaeological Survey  

 reported 88 archaeological sites and 34 historical structures 

along this Keystone XL pipeline's Oklahoma route.

The U.S. government asked to re-route parts to preserve only 17 sites and 12 structures. 

Keystone XL oil pipeline map in the United States

It seems that putting pipelines through burial grounds is an international thing.

In 2011, the Telengit people in Russia also wanted

the re-routing of construction of a gas pipeline 

that would cut right across their most sacred place, the Ukok Plateau,

This high plateau in the Altai Mountains on the border between Russia and China 

has been a sacred burial ground for at least 8,000 years. 
This geographical site is also a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.  

Additionally, other rights are denied here,

including the Right to Sacredness and Right to Respect.

The Right to Respect... Dignity

Many country's constitutions use the word 'dignity' but few use the word 'respect.'

Which should it be:  Right to Respect or Right to Dignity?

Maybe, ask:

1) what is the real difference between dignity and respect?

and
2) what do we want to achieve with this right?

Every person is precious.

The Right to Air... domed cities and canned air

In a science fiction scenario,

corporate privatization of air 

finds us living in domed cities of the future.

Art by German artist, Alexander Preuss

Meanwhile, back in 1957, actor Carleton Young canned smog air in Los Angeles,
to raise awareness of bad air and the lack of political action.
Smog in a Can was made by his Los Angeles Smog Corporation.

Smog in a Can, 1957

The Right to Food... Progressive Solutions

All humans have the Right to Food,
as a basic survival right and as a responsibility of all civil societies.

The problems with getting food to all people are complex and numerous.

Poverty. Food waste. Poor government agriculture policies. Big agri-business.
Food price manipulation. Climate disasters. Corrupt politics. Globalization/distribution
and food-bourne diseases. Genetically-modified seeds/foods versus organic foods.

Each of these international problems poses a different issue to tackle.

The United Nations departments for food:  World Food Program (WFP),
Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO),

and the World Health Organization (WHO) have their hands full.

Yet, as much as they do, progress is too slow, and they seem to grind their wheels

without ever really advancing much.

I believe this is because they are simply tackling too many issues at once.
They best they can do with such overwhelming problems

become solution-bandages, not solutions for the future.

Last month, Josette Sheeran, Executive Director, WFP,

asked the public on Twitter for advice on the problem of food waste.

Instead, I would like to give my response for the larger picture.

I believe the food problem need to be broken down into each single cause,

to allow better focus. Here's the steps:

List all the causes.

Make each year a focus of a single problem, for example,

"The Year of Food Agriculture Policies."
"The Year of Food Waste."

Solve-by-focus each cause, by having countries meet, workshop, discuss, task force,

and finally, make new policies, for the single cause, supported by international law.

cause by cause, year by year,

in 10 years, there may be a real difference in the food problem.

But first, of course, declare The Right to Food.

Make this the 1st year of focus: "The Year of the Right to Food."

The UN can pressure all countries to add this right to their constitution,

if they don't have it already.
It's amazing how many countries do not have the Right to Food.

After passing the Right to Food into law,
 there would be a legal basis for action.
Maybe, I'm naive about getting countries to meet and passing international law,
about being able to feed 7 billion people without GM seeds,
but why not try?

How about you, do you have a solution?

The Right to Love... Public Love

"Justice is what love looks like in public,"

states American philosopher Cornel West.

This is the Love Train.

This is the Love Supreme.

This is what the worldwide public protests are about:

Love.

Dr. Cornel West at Occupy L.A. in October 2011.

Protest and activism is driven by anger.
But, the anger comes from Love of Life, Love of Humanity.
To protest is an expression of Love.

(Note:  "Love train" and "love supreme" are song lyrics

from the O'Jays and John Coltrane, respectively.)

Gear up for the springtime protests to come!

Blog commenter Miguel Pauli writes there are 10 definitions of love,
divided into, "Love the noun and love the verb," and he adds,
"I plan to delve into all of them...
because if one sees it the way I do...
it all has to do with love."

Revision: thanks to commenters J.J., Miguel Pauli

The Right to History... Microhistory

 A People's History of the United States, by historian Howard Zinn

 is a groundbreaking telling of U.S. history.
It provides a new perspective not in typical school textbooks,

because

as U.S. author Richard Rodriquez wrote of the usual textbooks:
"American history books I read as a boy were all about
winning and losing, contest, vanquishment.
One side won; the other side lost...
Only the score is remembered....
The progress of a nation, as of a life, is a litany of
conflict, score ...."

The rhythms of real life are absent in these history books.

"Not the circlet of hair in the oval locket.
Not the early frost in the letter,
not the breakfast chucked up,
not the barometric pressure;
the droplet of sweat upon the rib cage;
the concussion of the earth,
the translucent centipede scrambling for cover," says Rodriquez.

18 C. Queen of France Marie Antoinette's hair in a locket,
British Museum, London.

But it is these microhistories that show our humanity
and uncovers something more profound about ourselves.
The individual affects the whole.

In the search for truth,

we have the Right to History, even microhistory,
and this supports the Right to Knowledge---

more knowledge than we may find in school textbooks.


Revision: thanks to commenters BRM, TL.