At that moment - of my long history, starting in high school, of trying to deal with racial issues - I recognized that this was an unique evolutionary framework that explained so much of what I was trying to grasp.
I was attempting to track the role of Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, having read all of the records of his debate in the 1858 mid-term election with Abraham Lincoln. (You remember, I was a national championship debate coach at the University of North Texas. My team defeated the UK Oxford debaters on national (NBC) television in 1962(1). Both of the Oxford debaters became Members of Parliament.)
During the 1860 presidential campaign, Douglas broke tradition and campaigned openly for the office in major tours in the North and South. I used microfilms at the Illinois Historical Society and followed Douglas in his speeches in various cities; then read the reports in the local newspapers. I had already identified the editorial policies in the newspapers and connected their respective ideologies with their reportage on Douglas. In the deep South, he was seen as a dangerous abolitionist; in the North he was perceived as a "tool of the slaveholder." Same man; same speeches; same views on Popular Sovereignty: "I don't care whether slavery was voted up or down" he would say - "let 'the people' in the territories (states) decide for themselves." This would be like contrasting reports on campaign figures in the Fox Network and MSBC perspectives today.
Thusly, the 1860 campaign deepened nationwide polarizations. Even Churches, academics, and business leaders split around the so called "Mason-Dixon Line." Even today there is a Northern and Southern Methodist church.
By the winter of 1861, Congress met in DC and just stared at each other. Various "middle ground" elements rose to the occasion, but failed to stand up to the extreme fears, charges and counter charges from opposing sides. Soon after that, the firing started. We are still paying a price. I hear those voices today, and have been warning many of you for years of the danger of polarization.
You can see so much of that on the Internet; 24/7 news coverage - the Governor demands that "extreme elements" leave New York. We are watching the slippery slope of the debate slide on both ends of the continuum toward "contrast". Meanwhile, the forces of "assimilation" must see how they are perceived by their core constituencies when "tea party" candidates, or extreme left partisans, demand more radical change. Even my friend Nelson Mandela was criticized by elements in the African National Congress (ANC). The country will have a national election in May. Could be trouble. Elza is going to be interviewing a contender in the next week or so. This will be published.
For a number of years some of my good friends, including John Steiner in Boulder, have sought to find an "integral" approach. I went to 10 Downing Street to suggest to the Blair "policy unit" how to deal with radicalization. Elza and I spoke at the National Assembly in Paris on the threats from Islamic extremism. Few minds have the capability to listen, much less understand. We also presented a summit on the future of Palestine in Bethlehem, one that created a fresh, new, and creative strategy for that troubled place. Elza and I have used it widely in Palestine and elsewhere. It is an integral part of everything we do. Elza is now writing, in her new book, an extensive description of this powerful concept. She will be with me at the Adizes Graduate School program April 7-12th this year in Santa Barbara.
The polarizing wind shears are clashing everywhere. Our global leaders have on blinders. .....
.....This polarization spectrum has become known as the Assimilation/Contrast Effect (ACE) of Social Judgment. This is all thanks Professor Sherif -- I was privileged to work with him and his wife Carolyn W for years before their passing. We must always give credit to whom it is due. There is a long history to this unique story.
When I learned from Professor Clare W. Graves about deep values codes, the Assimilation/Contrast Effect added immensely to WHY different people align to the Spectrum in different ways and WHY some change but others hunker down and stay where they are. It is in my Ph.D. dissertation. I used the concept to disrupt threats of civil war in South Africa. I did it through South African voices. It is their country and future after all. You can read about it in detail in the book The Crucible: forging South Africa's Future, now in the 3rd edition. (co-written by Graham Linscott from Durban).
We were the only group that blended these conceptual systems but copy cats are now appearing. I introduced it to Ken Wilber and many others in the "integral age." I have written the code book, how to detect the codes and how they might be impacted to avoid major violence. Whenever you hear the term "superordinate goal" you need to know where that came from. Ken didn't show much interest.
I still demonstrate this in the "destroy! destroy! -- My Way My Way, truth! truth!" role-playing line up, even with Evolutionary Leaders. I put Barbara Marx Hubbard in the "help" role at the Adizes Graduate School program in Santa Barbara. She was really funny. We will present it in depth at the Adizes Graduate School program April 7-12 this year, too. We mesh spirals, spectrums, cycles and multiple change variations in our presentation. By the way, both Dr. Bruce Gibb and Keith Rice have useful presentations on ACE. I am pleased the way the framework has spread within our constellation.
Think of this entire body of knowledge as our Humanity's Master and Hidden Codes. Violate these codes at your (and society's) own risks. We all have a lot to learn to deal with present Life Conditions (G) requiring the 7th Code of Yellow to resolve, before the 8th Code of Turquoise can work. We continue to leave no stones unturned. I am doing all I can.
(1) http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc98761/m1/1/zoom/
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