Neil Young and the creative process

"We went lookin' for faith
on the forest floor,
And it showed up everywhere,
In the sun and the water
and the falling leaves,
The falling leaves of time."

-- Neil Young from "You're My Girl"


In a recent television interview, singer-songwriter Neil Young talked about the creative process.

He said an interesting thing: essentially, when creating something, to think is one of the worst things you can do. He believes in the truth of the moment. He gathers memories, impressions, without editing much, without the chatter of the mind interfering. Better for something to be presented with flaws but be honest. When performing, being technically perfect doesn't necessarily make it better. Good execution without soul is not his style.

His many fans around the world agree. It's something that has served him well for over five decades of artistic production.

Changing perceptions about drugs

What to do about all of the problems related to drug trafficking and addiction?

Countries spend billions to fight drug-related crime, interdict shipments of illegal substances, process people facing charges in the courts and care for those suffering from physical and mental issues stemming from drug use. The list of social problems related to the "war on drugs" is as long as your arm and growing. Taxpayer costs keep rising at a time when no government can afford to see budget deficits worsen.

While some countries have examined legalizing certain drugs, one in particular has taken a novel approach. Ten years ago, Portugal decided to change the prevailing mindset about drug use: rather than treat it as criminal activity, the government chose instead to focus on it as a national health issue. The approach has yielded some very positive results and now the United States is studying the Portuguese model.

The details are in the story linked here.
More in this AP story.

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Photo courtesy of www.sxc.hu

Lightness of Being

Happiness and laughter mean different things to different people.

Here are some perspectives I like:

"Happiness depends more on the inward disposition of mind than on outward circumstances." - Benjamin Franklin

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." - Mohandas K. Gandhi

"Laughter is the brush that sweeps away the cobwebs of your heart. " - Mort Walker

"Laughter is the shortest distance between two people." - Victor Borge

"Mirth is God's medicine. Everybody ought to bathe in it." - Henry Ward Beecher

"When people are laughing, they're generally not killing each other." - Alan Alda

An appeal for good governance

The 21st century is only a decade old, but it's becoming apparent to me that if we do not devote ourselves to reform our political systems we will face some very hard times. I don't mean to overstate this or sound gloomy, but I believe the crisis is real and global.

The democratic process as we've known it seems to be stagnating before our eyes. The United States is wrestling with doggedly entrenched partisan positions at a time when it should be making difficult decisions and enacting legislation to right a listing ship; in many cases unpleasant medicine is required now for the long term benefit of all. It's the only way the country can hope to stabilize its economy in the face of trillions of dollars in debt and also hope to regain it's leadership position. President Obama has very difficult days ahead of him. In this climate one must wish the occupier of the Oval Office well, whatever one's political persuasion.

Europe is struggling with the effects of a banking crisis that appears to be spreading like an oil spill. Politically, the European Union is trying to hold together a grouping of states whose 19th and 20th century governments need reform. Italy, for example, the country of my birth, has a multiparty system that is desperately in need of improvement, yet it cannot make any progress in enacting change. The present system, too complex, too archaic, only guarantees one thing: constant sniping, and little or no real action in parliament. The judiciary, instead of being independent from the government, finds itself arguing with it and fighting publicly with the Prime Minister. Indecision at the highest levels facilitates corruption and gives organized crime the opportunity to spread its tentacles.

In most Western democracies, the rise of paid lobbyists representing many partisan interests, from corporations to unions to not-for-profit associations, are successfully influencing governments for the sake of narrow interests, often caring little for the benefit of the larger whole.

Where is good governance? How will we make sure our future is sound? These terrible squabbles, all shouting and no listening, the proliferation of public campaigns appealing to and gathering only like-minded people who have no care for fairly examining issues, only in supporting narrow views, no matter what, are creating a dangerous situation for us. No concessions from all sides of the political spectrum, no willingness to expend a little political capital for the greater good.

Without good governance, how are we going to arrange for safety and security and professionally manage foreign policy? The lives of millions of people depend on smart decisions by our elected representatives. Are our politicians doing the right things for a safer world? (See the inherent dangers inherent in the latest WikiLeaks revelations.)

How can governments function in the present situation? The democratic system seems broken. We need to fix it soon.

What can we do to turn politics from being some sort of grand game to a process that effectively represents the interests of the people? We have drifted far from the ideals we profess to uphold. How much are we willing to sacrifice before everything we own, our livelihoods, all of the dreams and aspirations of our children are comprised by dysfunctional politics?

Somehow, we must revive concepts of good citizenship, real public service and political representation for the common good. Maybe we need to create a new system. We need intelligent leaders mandated and capable of making better decisions under more objective terms of office, and somehow freed from the dirty games of partisanship.

I hope that change will be possible.


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Related posts:

>On ideas about global government and democracy
>An appeal for better coordination of the global food supply
>Concepts espoused in the U.S. Declaration of Independence

Life stories

Recently on the CBS television program Sunday Morning, the producers looked at the role of obituary writers in newspapers and how their work has changed over time.

Originally obituaries were written about community leaders, influential citizens, the powerful. But over time these records of lives lived gradually evolved into stories about many kinds of individuals, citizens of all kinds - plumbers, teachers, doctors and so on. In short, the newspaper obituary now reflects the idea that ever person's life is a story worth telling.

In the aftermath of the World Trade Centre attacks in 2001, the New York Times found itself with a daunting challenge: how to tell the story of thousands of victims of the collapse of the Twin Towers? The newspaper decided to publish short summaries of as many of those lives as it could. The Times called the capsules Portraits of Grief. They were published every day for more than three months. The paper won the Pulitzer Prize for the feature.

What struck me most while watching the program were the comments by one of the newspaper reporters who wrote those summaries. Jan Hoffman interviewed a lot of victims' families and colleagues. She remembers that people usually focused their response around simple themes: "It was about love, it was about singularity, it was about connection, it was about moments of thoughtfulness."

"The singular quality that really stays with me is almost no one ever talked about that person's job."

A sobering thought for all of us.

Venice in the rain

It's a rainy evening. When its wet for an extensive period of time and I start to carry my umbrella every day, my mind turns to memories of other cities I've seen in the rain: Seattle, London, Milan, Venice...

Have you ever been to Venice? I remember visiting in the 1980s during a rainy period. I was standing in St. Mark's Square. The rain was falling and the tide was rising. Within minutes water started lapping up from the gondola moorings. It rose up the steps and came creeping onto the square. In the middle of the square, water bubbled up from underneath, through holes in the stone and marble and through grates, the water burbling like a pot boiling, and within minutes the entire square was flooded. Crews of workers appeared and laid out platforms, rows of wooden planks, for the public to cross the square. Like walking on long tables, we used those raised footpaths to walk around the centre of the city.

It's a scene that's repeated many times in Venice when the "acqua alta" - high water - comes calling. A huge project is underway to create a barrier that can be raised in the lagoon when high tides or rain surges hit the city. The "Moses" project, (MOSE in Italian, "Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico") should be completed by 2012. As concerns about global warming and rising water levels grow, other cities will be watching this project with interest (New Orleans, for one).

Like the water, memories of Venice come flooding back. A restaurant by the canal. The lamp lights and couples walking down quiet narrow alleys at night. The bridges and worn marble steps. Boatmen and business people at the espresso bars in the morning. A living city, not just a tourist attraction.

Venice, whether water-logged or dry, leaves an impression and is worth preserving.

Like so many visitors, American writer Paul Theroux was smitten:

"I took a water-bus from the Lido to Venice proper, and approaching this city in the sea, glittering in brilliant sunshine, I began to goggle, trembling a little, feeling a physical thrill and unease, in the presence of such beauty, an exultation amounting almost to fear."

"...It is man-made, but a work of genius, sparkling in its own lagoon, floating on its dreamy reflection, with the shapeliest bridges and the last perfect skyline on earth: just domes and spires and tiled roofs. It is one color, the mellowest stone. There is no sign of land, no earth at all, only water traffic and canals. Everyone knows this, and yet no one is prepared for it, and so the enchantment is overwhelming. The fear you feel is the fear of being bewitched and helpless. Its visitors gape at it, speechless with admiration, hardly believing such splendor can shine forth from such slimy stones." (From The Pillars of Hercules, 1995, Putnam.)


(Photo courtesy of Paola da Reggio -- Public domain, Wikimedia Commons.)

Youthful success

I was invited recently to a celebration for Darpan, a South Asian magazine published in Canada. The event in Surrey, B.C., was memorable for a keynote speech by Gurbaksh Singh Chahal.

An immigrant to the United States from the Punjab region of India, Chahal is an extraordinary 21st century entrepreneur. He left high school at the age of 16 to launch an internet advertising company. A mere two years later, he sold the company for $40 million. He then formed another company and a few years later sold this second venture to Yahoo! for over $300 million.

Still under 30 years of age and living in California, he is one of the wealthiest entrepreneurs in the world and is now working on his third company, which aims to connect brands with social media.

Chahal, who's known in the States by the initial of his first name,"G," offered a few examples of the things he's learned from personal experience during his meteoric career. Some of these tips I'm summarizing here:

• "Life is actionable." Ideas are just ideas, but success is all about execution. Always focus on performance.

• "Stand up for what you believe." Be confident and focus on the image you wish to project. Approach issues from a position of strength. Sell a dream and then build it.

• "Accept rejection." Don't be afraid to ask for help and learn from your mistakes. "Put yourself out there." You've got to develop a thick skin.
  

• Relationships are everything in business and in life. Chahal says, "I never, ever burn a bridge."

Chahal has written a book (The Dream) and appeared in the Fox TV series, "Secret Millionaire." He's also been a guest on "Oprah."

It was an interesting talk and an interesting evening with the Punjabi-speaking community in British Columbia.


Links:

Gurbaksh Singh Chahal's website is located here.

A review of The Dream is at this site.

The South Asian magazine Darpan can be found here.

Finding a way

Focusing allows us to achieve more than we thought possible. It's interesting to hear the words of those who made a difference and left us some advice:

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." -- Aristotle

"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do." -- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

"Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose--a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye." -- Mary Shelley

"We are still masters of our fate. We are still captains of our souls." -- Winston Churchill

This sampling today is courtesy of Inspirational-Quotes.com