I was going to Moscow, Russia on a 9-day vacation, the Spring of 1988. My travel agency had arranged for sightseeing and a tour guide to accompany me during the first three days. I figured it would take me that long to get acclimated.
I took a flight out of San Francisco to New York, then on to Frankfurt, Germany. The flight was uneventful until I was to change planes in Frankfurt, manually transferring my luggage from the United plan I just got off to an Aeroflot flight headed for Moscow. I waited patiently at the baggage rotunda as everybody else's luggage was spotted and picked up except for mine. I went to the United baggage counter and asked where my luggage was. "I'm sorry but your luggage was not on the plane," a German girl explained. "You cannot go on, until it is found!" she added indignantly.
That would mean staying in the airport waiting room, heaven knows how long. I knew the tour guide would be waiting for me in Moscow; and to alter all my plans would take some time--contact the travel agency in New York, re-schedule with Aeroflot, that didn't have a daily flight from Frankfurt, etc. What a mess! At that time, very few Americans visited Moscow. Indeed, I may have been the only American scheduled for that flight. It was somewhat difficult for Westerners to book to Russia in those days.
With no baggage, I went to the Aeroflot ticket counter and confirmed my reservation with them--in two hours. They could sent me the luggage in Moscow, whenever it turned up, I thought. My flight was announced, and I was in line to board at the gate. The clerk behind the gate's desk announced my name, "Mr. John Oastler, we will seat you now." I thought t hat was a nice gesture, given that Aeroflot hadn't lost my baggage. A flight attendant did indeed greet me, and I was escorted to my seat. It was in the economy class to the rear of the plane. She didn't comment about the fact that I had no baggage, just a carry-on bag. I was glad they were permitting me to go on to Moscow, no questions asked.
The flight from Germany to Russia was long. About half way through the journey, a bunch of us passengers gathered by the attendants' area and got talking. Most knew English. I struck up a conversation with a woman who told me she was a governmental administrator in the Eastern provinces. She explained she had bought a number of electronic gadgets in Europe, because they were unavailable in Russia. I mentioned that this was my first trip to Russia. "Are you scared?" she queried mysteriously.
Now I thought that was a bit uncalled for. Nevertheless, I said, "No, I don't think so...No, I'm not." Thereupon she mentioned there's a detention center for unwanted foreigners to be shipped away just near the Moscow airport. "Interesting," was my only reply. Just because I was probably the only American on board didn't mean I would be personal non grata on entering!
I thought the tour guide would be waiting for me at the Moscow terminal, holding up a sign "John Oastler." Nobody waiting for me. So I caught a taxi into the city, the German sector of town, where I would be staying. The desk clerk handed me my room key, took my passport for keeping temporarily, and stated that I'd get it back upon leaving. I took the elevator to the third floor and proceeded to look for my room number. It wasn't where I thought it should be, given the signs in the hallways. Entering my room, the door open before I got there, I discovered two workmen were drilling holes around the in-wall radio close to my single bed. I thought that strange--could the hotel be tampering so to send gaseous fumes through the radio's speaker, if they thought I was a spy? I was becoming fearful.
The room was small but adequate. Later that evening in the hotel bar, I was asked by a customer who also knew English how much I was paying for the room. I told him; and he replied that for Russians it was a third cheaper! Hmmm, some Russian hospitality to an unsuspecting American!
My tour guide showed up the following morning and took me around. I had asked her to take me where I could buy a pair of shoes--an errand I had planned to do in order to interact with Russians in the stores. As we went about, I noticed how Russians dressed in clothes to last virtually forever! In a shoe store, I tried on several pairs of shoes, after each time, my interpreter would explain to passer-by Russians what I thought of the quality: "He likes it. He says their very practical and will last long!" Finally, she shouted out for everyone hear when I was prepared to make a purchase, "He's bought them! He's putting them on to wear now!"
That same day, as my tour guide and I became more acquainted, she mentioned in a taxi that some Russian government officials wanted to speak with me. Without asking for my consent, she directed the driver to an apparent government office building in downtown Moscow, not far from the American Embassy, which she dutifully pointed out as we drove by. Alighting from the taxi, I hastily scanned the side of the building I could see, looking for bars on the windows. No bars! We went up to the fifth floor. I had become nervous and fearful all over again.
I was shown into an office with two men behind a singular desk. they turned out to be cordial and friendly, asking what I had done in Moscow so far. Thereupon, after noting I had made useful suggestions to the Brazilian government recently in my trips to Sao Paolo, Brazil, they wondered would I be wiling to help them design a pending new constitution for what would become the Russian Federation of Independent States (the name now chosen at the time). They said they represented President Mikhail Gorbachev. I responded that I was very familiar with the American Constitution and knew their constitution currently in effect. I'd do what I could to help them.
At that moment my fears were all allayed! Over the next few days, I met with them and others in detailed discussions about Russian commerce and industry and its culture. Recorded in 8 hours of tape (I understand), nearly all my suggestions became adopted structurally.
Oh, 5 days into the trip, I received my luggage delivered to my hotel room by Aeroflot. The clothes inside were drenched but nonetheless usable for the remaining trip. Was their water-logged condition a sign that some Russian didn't like my presence in Moscow? I was too partied out to care!
Monday, September 29, 2014
Sunday, September 28, 2014
My first and last vision!
They say that visions occur in the young--if you pay attention to them. I had only one vision when I was ten years old. My mom and dad had just divorced. At the time we were living in a house on Elmwood near the downtown in Buffalo, New York. There was, in addition to my parents, Ailene, who was about to marry a local guy, Sheila, age 16, who even at that age was sharing the raising of me, John, once my father was out of the picture.
With the money my mom received from the divorce settlement, she decided to move out of town. She had been taking a degree at Buffalo State University; and she intended to pursue a law degree. She wanted to get out of Buffalo, because I suffered from the cold and she was accepted at NYU's law graduate program, so to complete her legal education. Additionally, the stigma amongst her friends was aggravating to us all. At school, the teachers treated me something like a homeless kid; hugging me and showing an unusual degree of compassion. There was one teacher, my second grade teacher, Ms. Keller, who would call me down to her office for consoling.
So, it was decided by my mother and sister Sheila to journey to New York to find an apartment. While we all stayed in the same house, my dad, until it was sold, occupied the lower floor and the three of us took the top floor of the large two-story house. He became known to us as "the man downstairs." The house sold quickly, perhaps to one of my mom and dad's friends, named Cleveland, who then could have sold it later.
Being a significant move in the lives of mom, Sheila and me, we planned a lot. Then, I got my vision. I told my mom and sis about it as we stood in a bedroom that had become our kitchen! I reported that I could see an apartment building--in fact--I said I was standing at the front window, looking out. There were trees across the street, a high school about a block to the left, and on the right a park. The peculiar feature I mentioned was the apartment had a private entrance (I later learned it was a superintendent's apartment). I said these things to assure them they would find something nice! I was getting excited to live there.
Armed with my vision in the back of their minds, they went to New York City for about a week to reconnoiter the place and locate an apartment. They returned with good news. They liked the city a lot. Then Sheila blurted out, "We found your place and leased it! Just where you said it would be!"
When I viewed the place I confirmed that it was indeed very much like what I had envisioned it to be.
How do you explain this vision (as I remember it) that occurred some 60 years ago?
I think it explicable as an anticipatory experience that could take place as it did to my mother and sister, which, having that experience, could serve as a guiding force. They laid claim to that experience and sought it out. That is, once they saw tangibly what I described, they laid claim to the apartment.
We lived in that apartment for some 10 years or so. Incidentally, mom learned from our neighbors that the renting agency was overcharging. Our place was under New York City rent control. Evidently, the property management thought we were country bumpkins.
.
With the money my mom received from the divorce settlement, she decided to move out of town. She had been taking a degree at Buffalo State University; and she intended to pursue a law degree. She wanted to get out of Buffalo, because I suffered from the cold and she was accepted at NYU's law graduate program, so to complete her legal education. Additionally, the stigma amongst her friends was aggravating to us all. At school, the teachers treated me something like a homeless kid; hugging me and showing an unusual degree of compassion. There was one teacher, my second grade teacher, Ms. Keller, who would call me down to her office for consoling.
So, it was decided by my mother and sister Sheila to journey to New York to find an apartment. While we all stayed in the same house, my dad, until it was sold, occupied the lower floor and the three of us took the top floor of the large two-story house. He became known to us as "the man downstairs." The house sold quickly, perhaps to one of my mom and dad's friends, named Cleveland, who then could have sold it later.
Being a significant move in the lives of mom, Sheila and me, we planned a lot. Then, I got my vision. I told my mom and sis about it as we stood in a bedroom that had become our kitchen! I reported that I could see an apartment building--in fact--I said I was standing at the front window, looking out. There were trees across the street, a high school about a block to the left, and on the right a park. The peculiar feature I mentioned was the apartment had a private entrance (I later learned it was a superintendent's apartment). I said these things to assure them they would find something nice! I was getting excited to live there.
Armed with my vision in the back of their minds, they went to New York City for about a week to reconnoiter the place and locate an apartment. They returned with good news. They liked the city a lot. Then Sheila blurted out, "We found your place and leased it! Just where you said it would be!"
When I viewed the place I confirmed that it was indeed very much like what I had envisioned it to be.
How do you explain this vision (as I remember it) that occurred some 60 years ago?
I think it explicable as an anticipatory experience that could take place as it did to my mother and sister, which, having that experience, could serve as a guiding force. They laid claim to that experience and sought it out. That is, once they saw tangibly what I described, they laid claim to the apartment.
We lived in that apartment for some 10 years or so. Incidentally, mom learned from our neighbors that the renting agency was overcharging. Our place was under New York City rent control. Evidently, the property management thought we were country bumpkins.
.
Saturday, September 20, 2014
My Memoirs: Format
I'm taking a creative writing course at the El Paso Community College in the Fall, 2014. My writing assignments in the course will dove-tail with my starting to write my memoirs.
I've noticed so far--a week of remembering--that my dates aren't going to be that accurate, nor can I count on my memory, the only resource I've essentially got, to remember in the order in which the events actually took place. I've preserved on paper what I can and though not totally accurate I claim that it's the best I can do, since my memory is my principal resource.
So, treat each episode as inspired by some personal, factual event, though the episode depicted cannot be authenticated.
I won't be writing items in chronological order, so I'll use a numbering system to retain a chronological order for the items in this series.
Aside from these provisos, here I go!
P.S. The last item in the current My Memoirs series is 'The Roadster Spinner.' If there's more interest in the series, I'd be delighted to continue it in some fashion! 12/2/14
I've noticed so far--a week of remembering--that my dates aren't going to be that accurate, nor can I count on my memory, the only resource I've essentially got, to remember in the order in which the events actually took place. I've preserved on paper what I can and though not totally accurate I claim that it's the best I can do, since my memory is my principal resource.
So, treat each episode as inspired by some personal, factual event, though the episode depicted cannot be authenticated.
I won't be writing items in chronological order, so I'll use a numbering system to retain a chronological order for the items in this series.
Aside from these provisos, here I go!
P.S. The last item in the current My Memoirs series is 'The Roadster Spinner.' If there's more interest in the series, I'd be delighted to continue it in some fashion! 12/2/14
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Applications of Social Meaning
An individual has social meaning once he becomes part of an institution or organization or simply, a recognized group with social standing. He will be remembered, henceforth, as a person with identifiable characteristics obtained by virtue of his association with that institution or organization.in a certain society. These yielders of social meaning are readily known, so that in this item, I need simply mention some prominent. The list cannot be inclusive, since any society is ever-changing.
(Membership is not enough designation; and hence the term social meaning. An individual may belong to some institution which little prominence in the greater society. He will gain little in social meaning, himself, because the organization has little to give. One must talk of societal evaluation of the worthiness of the organization before one attains the concept of social meaning.) The idea ingrained in the concept is that an individual gains the prospect to be remembered long after he has died. But this prospect can only occur, I contend, when there is an institution to which he has contributed by his work and devotion and so is worthy of social meaning, himself.
Ways to gain in social meaning
1. The family. Simply by being into the Kennedy clan, one attains social meaning. Lineage is a source of social meaning.
Yet, I am said to be a descendant of the King of Poland in the Seventeenth Century, Jon Sobieski. Nobody in this part of the world has ever heard of him; and so I have no more social meaning derived from my ancestry than a black man whose parents were slaves in the South! That is to say, I will not be remembered because I am a descendant of Jon Sobieski. It adds nothing to my social meaning quotient. And, there is no institution that perpetuates the memory of Sobieski worthy of note in America.
2. Religious affiliation or membership. It is said that during the war in Afghanistan a native could gain prominence should he convert to Christianity, thus being aligned with the American troops. Immediate cash-in value of social meaning due to religious membership.
Similarly, being a Muslim in the US, can have negative value, especially in rural America, where if you're not Christian, even Fundamentalist, you don't belong. The neighbors won't accept you; and the Christian churches rile against you.
3. Political party affiliation. Belonging to some Tea Party organization, a citizen could be shunned by one of the major parties. Nevertheless, being a member of one of major parties is unlikely to add to your social standing in the community.
4. Holding a job or becoming a professional, including doctor, lawyer, clergyman; engineer. These occupations yield social meaning in the life of a community.
However, being an artist, except in the music field, provides little social meaning and may even be evaluated negatively. The great artists are usually acclaimed through the museums and art galleries that attest to their greatness long after their death. Also, true of the great classical musicians.
5. Coming up with creative and innovative ideas that herald new technologies, sciences, etc. yields much social meaning among the professionals in their scientific fields. Of course, Rockefeller, Ford and other business geniuses have reached their pinnacle of greatness in modern society to this day; and have enormous social meaning in the annals of our society.
Lessons from these applications
The point to be gained from this cursory examination of social meaning is that we everyday people should limit our attempts to gain social meaning to institutions in our community and locale where we can be remembered by those who will live and work where we lived and worked. We become the progenitors of our way of living and our values housed in the institutions that we became apart of.
We are truly "victims" of our own time and place in this world.
(Membership is not enough designation; and hence the term social meaning. An individual may belong to some institution which little prominence in the greater society. He will gain little in social meaning, himself, because the organization has little to give. One must talk of societal evaluation of the worthiness of the organization before one attains the concept of social meaning.) The idea ingrained in the concept is that an individual gains the prospect to be remembered long after he has died. But this prospect can only occur, I contend, when there is an institution to which he has contributed by his work and devotion and so is worthy of social meaning, himself.
Ways to gain in social meaning
1. The family. Simply by being into the Kennedy clan, one attains social meaning. Lineage is a source of social meaning.
Yet, I am said to be a descendant of the King of Poland in the Seventeenth Century, Jon Sobieski. Nobody in this part of the world has ever heard of him; and so I have no more social meaning derived from my ancestry than a black man whose parents were slaves in the South! That is to say, I will not be remembered because I am a descendant of Jon Sobieski. It adds nothing to my social meaning quotient. And, there is no institution that perpetuates the memory of Sobieski worthy of note in America.
2. Religious affiliation or membership. It is said that during the war in Afghanistan a native could gain prominence should he convert to Christianity, thus being aligned with the American troops. Immediate cash-in value of social meaning due to religious membership.
Similarly, being a Muslim in the US, can have negative value, especially in rural America, where if you're not Christian, even Fundamentalist, you don't belong. The neighbors won't accept you; and the Christian churches rile against you.
3. Political party affiliation. Belonging to some Tea Party organization, a citizen could be shunned by one of the major parties. Nevertheless, being a member of one of major parties is unlikely to add to your social standing in the community.
4. Holding a job or becoming a professional, including doctor, lawyer, clergyman; engineer. These occupations yield social meaning in the life of a community.
However, being an artist, except in the music field, provides little social meaning and may even be evaluated negatively. The great artists are usually acclaimed through the museums and art galleries that attest to their greatness long after their death. Also, true of the great classical musicians.
5. Coming up with creative and innovative ideas that herald new technologies, sciences, etc. yields much social meaning among the professionals in their scientific fields. Of course, Rockefeller, Ford and other business geniuses have reached their pinnacle of greatness in modern society to this day; and have enormous social meaning in the annals of our society.
Lessons from these applications
The point to be gained from this cursory examination of social meaning is that we everyday people should limit our attempts to gain social meaning to institutions in our community and locale where we can be remembered by those who will live and work where we lived and worked. We become the progenitors of our way of living and our values housed in the institutions that we became apart of.
We are truly "victims" of our own time and place in this world.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Social Meaning Meta-Elements
Social meaning is an agreed upon dynamic interaction between an institution in society and the individual. While the institutions may vary, there's a commonality in the properties of the interaction.
1. The Promise. The institution (or, organization) promises to the individual benefits, including money, to perform certain activities on behalf of the institution. As such, the institution is offering meaning to the individual as providing a significant societal activity from which others can benefit.
2. The acceptance. The individual freely accepts the purpose of the institution as his directive and his self-interested enterprise to perform as best he can in situ.
3. Areas of societal advancement. Just by doing what he wants, he is advancing the goals of the institution he participates in. There is a coalescing of self-interest and organizational goals, i.e., those of selfless interest.
4. Provisions for breakdown of social meaning attribution. Should an institution fail to live up to the conditions under which the individual has contributed to its goals, he can raise objection to the paucity of benefits and rights that it has bestowed upon him. He may become disassociated with that particular institution or organization. For instance, a doctor who includes wholistic applications may go off on his own, decrying the AMA. But he risks the isolation from the mainstream medical world that would likely result.
Similarly, should an individual acting on his own imply that he has the backing of a particular institution, he becomes subject to the institution's sanctions and disbarment.
5. Utopian vision pursued. The institution promises society successful achievement of social goals. Its social meaning is dependent upon its fulfilling its objectives as understood in the cultural context. Importantly, it is through the individuals who work to achieve the objectives set forth in the institution's educative practices and advances through its structures that the worthiness of the institution becomes justified and socially supported. In sum, the social meaning of the institution and its manifold organizations is vouchsafed and attested to by individuals with their own social meaning that only includes that of the institution to which they are identified. The institution awaits an evaluation by the society which increases its institution's social meaning.
1. The Promise. The institution (or, organization) promises to the individual benefits, including money, to perform certain activities on behalf of the institution. As such, the institution is offering meaning to the individual as providing a significant societal activity from which others can benefit.
2. The acceptance. The individual freely accepts the purpose of the institution as his directive and his self-interested enterprise to perform as best he can in situ.
3. Areas of societal advancement. Just by doing what he wants, he is advancing the goals of the institution he participates in. There is a coalescing of self-interest and organizational goals, i.e., those of selfless interest.
4. Provisions for breakdown of social meaning attribution. Should an institution fail to live up to the conditions under which the individual has contributed to its goals, he can raise objection to the paucity of benefits and rights that it has bestowed upon him. He may become disassociated with that particular institution or organization. For instance, a doctor who includes wholistic applications may go off on his own, decrying the AMA. But he risks the isolation from the mainstream medical world that would likely result.
Similarly, should an individual acting on his own imply that he has the backing of a particular institution, he becomes subject to the institution's sanctions and disbarment.
5. Utopian vision pursued. The institution promises society successful achievement of social goals. Its social meaning is dependent upon its fulfilling its objectives as understood in the cultural context. Importantly, it is through the individuals who work to achieve the objectives set forth in the institution's educative practices and advances through its structures that the worthiness of the institution becomes justified and socially supported. In sum, the social meaning of the institution and its manifold organizations is vouchsafed and attested to by individuals with their own social meaning that only includes that of the institution to which they are identified. The institution awaits an evaluation by the society which increases its institution's social meaning.
Monday, June 2, 2014
Social Meaning Format
We humans don't live long. But we'd like to live longer and longer. Is it possible to do this?
Society has found a way--by becoming members of institutions and by becoming members of organizations so that we pass the baton on to the next generation. We take on meaning into the future because we have joined social institutions and organizations that continue to exist long after us. We have indorsed these social systems while living so as to continue to be remembered as one of their members. Indeed, there may be a book, e.g., a yearbook, that indicates the meaning we gave to some school or university; or a book of illustrious workers in a factory that contains our picture!. We were meaningful to those with whom we worked or went to school with while alive. The institution is glad for us and for what we did then to help it succeed. We mean something in the life of the organization and it has meant something to us.
I am using "institution" to include an educative component and a professional standards' repository element. An organization does not usually include these, but organizations are where we individuals practice our crafts and exercise our training; and from whom, incidentally, we get paid!
There is a general formula which expresses social meaning: a has meaning to b whenever there is an institution x to which both a and b come into transactional relationship.
According to this analysis, a VIP, a very important person, is one who has membership in many organizations, many of whom recognize his contribution, and thus will recognize him into the future life of the particular organization. .Thus, he has accumulated a significant degree of social meaning, beyond the norm.
Society has found a way--by becoming members of institutions and by becoming members of organizations so that we pass the baton on to the next generation. We take on meaning into the future because we have joined social institutions and organizations that continue to exist long after us. We have indorsed these social systems while living so as to continue to be remembered as one of their members. Indeed, there may be a book, e.g., a yearbook, that indicates the meaning we gave to some school or university; or a book of illustrious workers in a factory that contains our picture!. We were meaningful to those with whom we worked or went to school with while alive. The institution is glad for us and for what we did then to help it succeed. We mean something in the life of the organization and it has meant something to us.
I am using "institution" to include an educative component and a professional standards' repository element. An organization does not usually include these, but organizations are where we individuals practice our crafts and exercise our training; and from whom, incidentally, we get paid!
There is a general formula which expresses social meaning: a has meaning to b whenever there is an institution x to which both a and b come into transactional relationship.
According to this analysis, a VIP, a very important person, is one who has membership in many organizations, many of whom recognize his contribution, and thus will recognize him into the future life of the particular organization. .Thus, he has accumulated a significant degree of social meaning, beyond the norm.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Social Contract: Arbitration et al.
I have neglected one item in the social contract theme (see Joastler.blogspot.com, where the other items on the topic are taken up) that I need to include, one important in today's legalistic aurora. It's the notion of arbitration--which also involves mediation and counseling.
We know that the courts provide remedy through litigation to resolve disputes by alighting upon a suitable remedy when a contract or a solemn agreement has been entered into. Litigating usually leads to termination of the agreement or contract, inasmuch as the litigants become opponents in the court of law. For there to be any chance of continuing the relationship, another procedure should be preferred; and this is where arbitration comes in.
Arbitration generally comes into play when there is a dispute among the parties to some aspect of agreement or contract, but the disputants seemingly intend for the contract to continue. So, I'm using the term to cover any appeal to a third-party to give counsel to those who have entered an agreement with one another or a contract in the effort of those involved to structure a modified agreeable relationship, i.e., one that is mutually beneficial but also entailing party responsibilities that facilitate the benefits' accrual--recognizing a change is needed.
1. Counseling
Before initiating a contract, it is wise for the parties to seek counseling. Typically, in commercial contracts this means involving a law firm as disinterested party. He may even be charged with writing up the contractual terms.
If the contract is a marriage, the parties may substitute some clergy. But in this day and age, the parties will also want to consult a lawyer to draw up a prenuptial agreement, having also legal weight.
2. Mediation
As disputes and disagreements arise among parties or as the contract is to be enforced under changing circumstances, e.g., some one party becomes disabled, a mediator may be brought in. Each party retains his point of view toward meeting contractual obligations or receiving contractual rewards--the mediator simply acts to promote communication among participants that are to remain in the contractual relationship. Unions and management frequently make use of the mediation model to resolve labor relations disputes.
3. Arbitration
Generally, an arbitrator belongs to the AAA, the major association of arbitrators. An arbitration can be voluntarily entered into or be binding and enforceable by the courts. I understand, for instance, the mekical healthcare provisions upcoming will have an arbitration committee to settle disputes during implementation.
Under arbitration, I believe, the stances of the parties can be altered for the sake of continuing the contract--the services provided being of great importance to an industry or a corporation's existence.
In summation
There are ways to assure the continuance of a contract, though they might involve the payment of monies or the providing of services or goods to the parties deemed, through arbritration, to have been injured or harmed in violation of contractual terms.
The Meta-Elements of Arbitration
1. The promise. Through arbitration, the parties are signifying their desire to keep the contract in effect--if only certain changes were to be made. Too frequently, going to litigation in court with both plaintiff and defendant identified as the signers of the contract lead to dissolution of the contract.
2. The acceptance. The parties altogether must seek remedy through the arbitration process, recognizing that there is merit to keep the contract in effect.
3. Areas of societal advancement. There is recognition that the contract has merit and should be continued for the sake of the parties concerned. Each recognizes the contribution made by his contractual participation is significantly contributing to the welfare of the others.
4. Provisions for breakdown. Binding arbitration is the mechanism by which the parties are brought to arbitration for the social good.
5. Utopian vision pursued. In an effort to enhance rational approaches to human needs within the society, arbitration is a useful mechanism.
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