"We must dare to think 'unthinkable' thoughts. We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and rapidly changing world. We must learn to welcome and not to fear the voices of dissent. We must dare to think about 'unthinkable things' because when things become unthinkable, thinking stops and action becomes mindless."
- James W. Fulbright
At one time, Arkansas members of Congress held three of the most important positions in the country. William Fulbright was the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, John McClennan was Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Wilbur Mills was Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. All three were Democrats. So, when I saw this quote, I was taken back to my Arkansas roots.
I have considered this quote from two points of view.
First, I have framed this quote in terms of what we must do as a society. That we live in a "complex and rapidly changing world" seems like an understatement. I don't know when Fulbright said this, but he served in the Senate from 1945 to 1975 and died in 1995. If the world he knew was complicated, imagine how he would feel now!
Every day there is evidence that we are thinking "unthinkable things." Intelligent design, stem cell research, cloning, global warming, when life begins and ends are things that in my youth would have been "unthinkable." As a society, most of us didn't even know that these were things we could think about! I don't believe that dissent is any more valued now than it was then. I think that we have reached a place in the development of our society where the only questions we have left are in those "unthinkable" areas. Ethical, moral and religious beliefs are entangled with most of the issues we face. I agree with Senator Fulbright that we can ill afford "mindless action" in our "complex and rapidly changing world."
When I read this quote from a deeply personal perspective I considered my journey in recent years. The "mindless actions" I began in childhood and the years of avoiding "unthinkable things" culminated in 2003 in a deep depression that very nearly led me to suicide in 2004. I received excellent psychiatric care that quite literally saved my life. As the biological component of my depression was stabilized with medication, I was encouraged to begin understanding and changing my destructive behaviors and irrational thought patterns through talking therapy. This journey has been marked by confrontation of the "unthinkable things" that damaged me as a child, skewed my thinking and affected my decision-making as an adult. I am learning "to explore all the options and possibilities that confront" me as I move into "maturity." An additional challenge is to "learn to welcome and not to fear the voices of dissent," particularly the dissenting voices of my adult children!
I got a little more personal than I initially intended. Please hold my revelations with care.
Peace
I have considered this quote from two points of view.
First, I have framed this quote in terms of what we must do as a society. That we live in a "complex and rapidly changing world" seems like an understatement. I don't know when Fulbright said this, but he served in the Senate from 1945 to 1975 and died in 1995. If the world he knew was complicated, imagine how he would feel now!
Every day there is evidence that we are thinking "unthinkable things." Intelligent design, stem cell research, cloning, global warming, when life begins and ends are things that in my youth would have been "unthinkable." As a society, most of us didn't even know that these were things we could think about! I don't believe that dissent is any more valued now than it was then. I think that we have reached a place in the development of our society where the only questions we have left are in those "unthinkable" areas. Ethical, moral and religious beliefs are entangled with most of the issues we face. I agree with Senator Fulbright that we can ill afford "mindless action" in our "complex and rapidly changing world."
When I read this quote from a deeply personal perspective I considered my journey in recent years. The "mindless actions" I began in childhood and the years of avoiding "unthinkable things" culminated in 2003 in a deep depression that very nearly led me to suicide in 2004. I received excellent psychiatric care that quite literally saved my life. As the biological component of my depression was stabilized with medication, I was encouraged to begin understanding and changing my destructive behaviors and irrational thought patterns through talking therapy. This journey has been marked by confrontation of the "unthinkable things" that damaged me as a child, skewed my thinking and affected my decision-making as an adult. I am learning "to explore all the options and possibilities that confront" me as I move into "maturity." An additional challenge is to "learn to welcome and not to fear the voices of dissent," particularly the dissenting voices of my adult children!
I got a little more personal than I initially intended. Please hold my revelations with care.
Peace
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