tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11838465.post4232095972488991569..comments2024-02-24T18:30:26.749-07:00Comments on prairiemary: PLANETARY KARMAUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11838465.post-50007781109377384982010-11-28T12:41:57.500-07:002010-11-28T12:41:57.500-07:00The definition of karma used here is fundamentally...The definition of karma used here is fundamentally Old Testament, because the whole idea of fall/redemption (original sin was a doctrine defined and promoted by St. Augustine) is Abrahamic, not Hindu. In Hinduism, karma is not simple Hammurabic justice, so Haidt's use of the term is wrong, and reflects most Westerner's incomprehension of what karma really is, and what it means. In HInduism, and Buddhism, karma is far more subtle and complex; it's not simple retribution or reward, because it's tied to intent as well as outcome. Even bad people can do good things, for the wrong reasons, but that generates positive karma nonetheless. It's a balancing act, in which the equation is meant to balance in the end (which is liberation), not simple cause and effect.<br /><br />The Tea Partyers have two problems: They are motivated by anger and not by social justice. Your analysis (and Haidt's) of them being motivated by the latter three dimensions as listed is, I think, right on target. But they have another problem: They are motivated by the Puritan principal of creating heaven on earth, now, rather than in the next life. So they're impatient. Which leads directly to their lack of humility and compassion. It's profoundly ironic how they call constantly on "God's law" and yet do not trust God to give them what they want. <br /><br />In a profound way, the Tea Partyers want to enact their own particular variety of sharia law. You're quite right to point out that at its root it's the code of Hammurabi.Art Durkeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07463180236975988432noreply@blogger.com