Equality is not something that is the default of nature, in that we all
have individual strengths, challenges, and distinct starting points.
This individuality is one of society's great strengths, and not
something to be overlooked.
But there is a recognition that - independent of who we are -
there are certain basic rights, human rights among them, that deserve
to be extended to all of us. In America, we speak of "life, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness". In France, we speak of "liberté, égalité,
fraternité". Similar sentiments are echoed the world over: we each are
equally deserving of consideration when it comes to our rights, to
justice and to an opportunity to pursue our dreams.
In practice, as we all have witnessed in one form or another,
those rights are not equally available to everyone. It is necessary, as
many continually do, to find and address these imbalances where we can.
A goal of Egality as an enterprise is to try to address these
imbalances in a positive way. And critical to positively addressing
sustainable development and inequality is to realize the importance of
building, not tearing down. Rights do not have to be taken from one
person or group to extend them to another. The beauty of sustainable
development is that evolving a positive world system benefits everyone
throughout it.
Inseparable from having rights is to have responsibilities.
And a genuine responsibility is to use our power to equally extend
those rights to all of us. That is root of our own rights.
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According to Pangloss in Arouet's Candide, this is "the best of
all possible worlds"; we can work together to try to make it better; advancing the pursuit of sustainable development one thought, breath, heartbeat at a time. Current projects : readying new edition of A Collaborative Development Zone for Israelis and Palestinians , exploring life style consistent with sustainable development
Care to help ? specify why and how