Mind Your Own Business
Our earth-world, that is, the surface of the earth, is divided into countries. Each of those countries has a name, a language, a society of leaders and led, food idiosyncrasies, religion(s), often unique geographies and sizes, a position on the scale of modernity in a large variety of institutions, laws, education, science, longevity of life, and the use of technology; geographical insularity, unique physiognomy and skin coloration, value systems, and other differences too numerous and too fine to describe here. And we are all different no matter how we act or how similar we may appear.
The one outstanding mutual characteristic seems to be the common request by all countries to all other countries, to Mind Their Own Business – to not interfere with the way things are and the way things are run and done by whoever is in charge in any particular country. This is the MYOB syndrome.
The ramifications of MYOB are huge, as recently illustrated by the Tsunami s generated by earthquakes off the coasts of Japan and the ongoing surge by indigenous peoples in a variety of countries to acquire freedom and representation, mostly in the Arab world, harmful to populations and often deadly to individuals in the path of explosive power that exists in the operating structures in those countries.
The so-called United Nations is helpless to intervene effectively in either the natural disasters or the man-made disasters. A few countries have the capability to move quickly and effectively by having a prior obligation in their societies’ mores to help others in need. Israel tops the list in rapid response to the MYOB syndrome. The earthquakes in Turkey and Haiti brought immediate teams of trained people and dogs plus equipment and supplies commonly known to be in dire need in such situation. Israel was the first “other” on the scene in those countries. It was also among the first in the hamlets of Japan suffering the impact of the destruction of nuclear power plants in that country. Other countries also joined in these humanitarian cries for help. Many countries Mind Their Own Business at all times. The debating society known as the United Nations is often the last to appear with its minions and millions and often stays to harvest little- merited kudos.
The oligarchies of the Arab world have long benefitted from the MYOB syndrome as practiced by the Big Oil countries, the United States, Britain, Holland, and a few others. Blind eyes were turned for decades on societies and hierarchies that treated their lower classes with well designed neglect, their women with a misogyny that stems from religion and primitive cultural intolerance, and maltreatment of the peasantry with torture and dismemberment for minor offenses, simply to assure their power status in their societies. Thus, the oil flowed and the profits were distributed to the few as the affected governments benefitted and dealt with these fake kings in their flowing white bed-sheets, with ingratiating smiles and rewarding practices.
Probably the most devastating impact of the MYOB syndrome lies in the provision of armaments and war-making machines and equipment to the often impoverished countries of the world and their power elites, who then use those arms to remain in power and to aggrandize their thefts from the coffers of their countries and to engage in warfare to subdue neighboring countries to steal their land, highjack their produce, kill their men, and rape their women. One cannot help but believe there is involved the role of arms merchants and agents provocateurs in achieving that monetary success. And in those cases, they were and are indeed, Minding Their Own Business.
The future of Mankind, eliminating natural disasters, lies in everyone minding everyone else’s business for the common good. As humans, we all have the same physical and mental frailties. Were we to live in a family setting, the hope for well-being and happiness stands a greater chance of success than in living disparate lives as we now do. Minding our communal business rather than minding our own business, caring for and about each other, en mass, will provide the only means to achieve that well-being and happiness.
