The Art of Civics
The Art (Skill) of Living Science~~Civics
Civics. Civilization. Civil. Citizen. City. Art. Science. Economy. Commonwealth.
What do these words all have in common? They frame our state of being and world-view. Our Crown corporate media incessantly broadcast these words, often as the central element of intense, convoluted debates among experts about where our society is placed and where it is heading.
Many of us assume these authorities know what they are saying and so their use of these words must somehow make good sense. And if the discourse seems nonsensical, we attribute that to our own illiteracy and dumbness. Few of us pause to explore the etymology and entanglement of these words. This reluctance may be for a profound reason: we sense we might well get lost in a spiritual maze of nonsense or non-science.
ILLUSTRATION etymology to come
Caption
This confusion may explain my own qualms at attempting to write an essay on “Civics”. My attempts to chart the interconnected etymology of these words simply results in a baffling array of arrows. As John Austin pointed out in 1873 in his “Lectures on Jurisprudence, “the word civil has about twelve different meanings; it is applied to all manner of objects, which are perfectly disparate.”
Maybe our modern English Crown culture lacks the language to express our mortal, moral role as stewards amidst the universal transformation?
Surely, according to the principles of physics, such a paucity of transcendent language reflects~~generates a dystopian culture?
The reason this possibility occurs is that I am born and bred on the lands of the indigenous Maori people of Aotearoa (New Zealand) who have three profound words of stewardship that have resonated in profound, even sacred ways with me since my childhood. They are “mana”, “tapu” and “kaitiakitanga”.
My British ancestors arrived less than two centuries ago to a land of great forests, abundant oceans, clean rivers and skies, a wide range of exceptionally unique species and a people with a language of reverence for all these priceless gifts.
I was inculcated in a Crown English culture in which it is a matter of duty and pride to “Break-in” (tame, develop) the land, just as one “breaks-in” the spirit of an unruly horse.
19th Century European immigrants systematically combusted extensive areas of forest of Aotearoa (NZ) for “pastoral” farming, the consequent soil depletion, species extinction, water and air pollution being so large that it gives an entirely new meaning to the word “pastoral“, which was once associated with “caring”, “guarding” and “protecting”.
I am witness in my own lifetime to our Crown English culture’s systematic (“scientific”) extraction, destruction and decimation of this abundance, all in the name of “civilization”, “economy” and “commonwealth”. Crown English is my mother tongue, my only familiar tongue. The learning and speaking of the Maori language was repressed and even punished in our national education system.
This confusion in Crown English surrounding the meaning of “Civics” may explain my own qualms at attempting to write an essay on this subject. My attempts to chart the interconnected etymology of “Civics”, “civil”, “civilian” and “civilization” simply results in a baffling array of arrows. As [John Austin pointed out in 1873 in his “Lectures on Jurisprudence, “the word civil has about twelve different meanings; it is applied to all manner of objects, which are perfectly disparate.”
Maybe our modern English Crown culture lacks the language to express our mortal, moral role as stewards amidst the universal transformation?
Surely, according to the principles of physics, such a paucity of transcendent language reflects~~generates a dystopian culture?
Inspiration from other cultures
At the beginning of last century, the early European quantum physicists struggled to articulate quantum theory because their dualistic languages have no capacity to transcend the paradox of life at the sub-atomic level. Sometimes they feared for their sanity. They drew vital inspiration to continue their exploration from studying Sanskrit scriptures, finding in them reassurance that their paradoxical ideas and mathematical insights were quite normal in other more holistic cultures on the planet.
The Founding Fathers drew great inspiration from the Analects of Confucius and
the I Ching (“The Book of Changes”).
The “Founding Fathers” of the USA (Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, Thomas Paine, John Adams et al) struggled to write a meaningful Civic constitution for the nation, many of them being refugees from the feudalism and moral degeneracy of Britain. However during their search for inspiration they encountered in mainland Europe the Jesuit accounts of society in China with its systems founded in notions of universal quality health, education and justice. These inform the Constitution in significant ways.
Similarly my glimpse into te ao Maori (the world of Maori) inspires in me the courage to finally attempt to make good sense of the word “Civics” and thus complete the last vital pillar of the scaffolding of this website. This task poses a formidable challenge because it involves using our English language in a radically different way to that of the dominant Crown dialect. Clarity of meaning is essential.
Clarity of Communication in a Few Words
(A list of transcendent meanings of essential words)
The words of truth are always paradoxical.
Lao Tzu
Physics
The study of the way, manner or principles of the continuous, universal transformation, all of which involves paradox.
Psychology
The study of the psyche, ultimately the art of transcending our paradoxical condition.
Philosophy
The loving of wisdom, that is all information enabling us to live in accord with the principles of physics.
Compassion
The inclusive force simultaneously arising with the exclusive force (“the Id”) in any moment of self-awareness that enables us in the qualities of humility, sharing, cooperativeness, courage, truthfulness, trust, generosity of time and general connection with all.
Science
State of being in which all the above qualities of compassion flourish in us.
Art(s)
Any and all manner of skill(s).
Civics
The arts (skills) of compassion enabling civilization i.e. all manner of sustaining language, systems and institutions.
Civilization
A commonwealth of people in which compassion and thus the state of science flourishes, thus enabling the arts (skills), language, technnology and institutions requisite for any society to act in accord with the principles of physics.
Economy
Any action or system that is accord with the principles of physics and conserves the flows and balances that sustain all Mankind, including future generations.
Note: The terms “energy efficiency” and “conservation of energy” are unhelpful because they express a fundamental denial of the principles of physics, which advise us that energy (the universal potential) is so bounteous it can be usefully considered a constant i.e. energy is conserved, forms the ultimate “resource” and continuously transforms all forms, informing each one even as it informs all amidst the universal transformation.
Being finite forms like all the other myriad forms of energy, we human beings can merely act in ways that conserve, save, destroy and transform forms of energy.
Takeaway
All information being physical, it is subject to the principles of energy. This has the following implications and consequences:
We are information beings, existing as finite formations amidst the continuous universal transformation, paradoxically informing all even as we are informed by all. As with all the countless forms of energy, we exist as fleeting balances of the universal flows and balances of energy~~information.
We are our language and our use of any symbol* – including any word – simultaneously reflects and generates the state of our being. We can transcend this paradox by ensuring our use of a word is in accord with the principles of physics – the Conservation of Energy Principle in particular.
*Note: Here a symbol is defined as a finite quanta of crystalized information expressing an essential quality, intention, need or capacity of the user.
All sentient formations use some form of symbol to communicate.
Any technology or device is its essential infrastructure, each simultaneously informing each other. Hence any accounting system designed to evaluate the sustainability of a device should do so according to the principle of physics and be inclusive of its total information system.
For instance, a formation such as a car is informed by its carriageway, fuel, air, water, ecosphere, parking, military, monetary, water, social and other information systems.
Cartoon to come
All our trades and currencies are fundamentally information systems and only sustain us as long as they are in accord with the principles of physics. These principles provide the only true measure of the value of any transaction.
If men (human beings) generate common currencies – that have little or no collateral in the physics, their use of the currency will generate delusional, self-destructive behaviour and all manner of disharmony and warfare
Crown English “Civilisation”
( status quo definitions)
Civilization (UK usually civilisation) noun
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/civilization?q=civilisation
human society with its well developed social organizations, or the culture and way of life of a society or country at a particular period in time
Note:
Both Oxford and Cambridge Universities are fundamentally Crown Institutions and their dictionaries are widely considered to be the global pre-eminent authorities on the Crown English language.
Observe how the Cambridge Dictionary defaults a search from the the standard English spelling (civilisation) to the standard American spelling (civilization). The use of the “s” versus the use of the “z” may seem trivial but it speaks volumes about about the difference between the aspirations of the feudal overlords of The Crown in Europe and the Republican Founding Fathers of the Republic of the USA.
Also observe the lack of a definition of “civilisation ” from the Oxford Dictionary. A prime requisite for the state of science to exist is the free sharing of information to all and trust.
Oxford Dictionary erects “subscription” barriers to access to its definition. This exclusivity means its information can be neither peer reviewed nor trusted and it effectively forms a non-scientific dictionary, particularly on the important topic of what constitutes a “civilisation/civilization”.
Also observe how the Cambridge Dictionary definition is profoundly amoral and only speaks in terms of the word “develop”, this being a term typically employed by the merchant bankers of The Crown to describe a behaviour, trade or construction that maximizes their short term profits.
The definition includes no reference the existence of universal human rights or sustainabilility in terms of the principles of physics.
It is interesting to note that the modern American Merriam-Webster Dictionary provides an even more exclusive definition – see quote below
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/civilization
Civilization noun:
” a relatively high level of cultural and technological development
specifically : the stage of cultural development at which writing and the keeping of written records is attained”
The two screenshots below comparing the top results of searches on the words and “civilization” are perhaps even more instructive. Both associate the words with monolithic structures, “civiliSation” perhaps more so than “civiliZation”. However neither word generates images of contemporary societies.
All these exclusive factors typify a society with a language and culture that is excessively ego-derived and lacking compassion.
Civics, Civil and Civilization
(A compassionate definition )
Civilization is the state when a society ensures all the basic rights and needs of its citizens are ensured while conserving the global flows and balances that sustain all humankind. This occurs when the state of science prevails, thus enabling the development of all manner of sustaining arts (skills).
The requisites for the state of science to exist include the qualities of humility and inclusiveness; collegiality, openness and sharing; inquiry, wonder and forgiveness; honesty and trust; generosity of time and reflection. All these are elements of compassion.
All children are born into a profound state of science with its associated capacity to enjoy true hope. It is the sacred duty and privilege of all child-carers to conserve this precious state of being. Without this compassionate (scientific) spirit, Civics and civilization cannot flourish.
Footnote 27 April 2025
This day marks the completion of the first draft of this page discussing the nature of Civics, which in turn marks the completion of fundamental framing of this new website attempting to summarize the essence of my insights this past 24 years ago. In 2001 we were then one year into the new millennium and it was already clear that our Anglosphere culture was self-destructing on scale.
In a moment of existential despair for Mankind, it occurred to me to ask the universe in most open way what it would have me best offer with my remaining life.
The answer came soon after in the form of my first website bonusjoules.co.nz exploring the nature of energy and climate care, this followed in 2010 by thesustainabilityprinciple.org and in 2014 by truehope.info
My planned framing for this website kept failing and forming a morass for the first couple of months. I hit my head against this wall until it finally occurred to me to invoke the greater wisdom of the universe.
Soon after it became apparent that all my discourse on the nature of energy is framed by variations of one word: “form”, from which we get “formation”, “information”, “inform” et al. So first the website must be clear as can be about the deep meaning of the word “form” over millennia. This posed no easy task in our Crown English culture,
However suddenly the creation of the website took on a life of its own and one day eventually it emerged that the words “form” and “energy” are inextricably and paradoxically entangled. Each word conveys little or no good meaning without the other.
This insight challenged me to the core as it has immense ramifications for our Anglosphere culture and Mankind in general. Could any man (human being) convey the magnificence of this vision of existence?
Yesterday I uploaded this last pillar of the fundamental scaffolding of the website. It felt a momentous and daunting occasion. The draft formation of this website is the culmination of my quarter century of endeavour. At least I could celebrate still be alive to put it out there on the world wide web, whatever else happens.
The Web responded almost immediately. Last evening Google’s algorithms, perhaps informed by my incessant questions concerning the transcendent meaning of these two very potent words, linked me to this new video:
Top Physicist: “Reality Is Not Physical”
Be Inspired
“Federico Faggin, inventor of the microprocessor, reveals a groundbreaking perspective on consciousness and quantum reality.”
First Reflection
Federico and I have lived very different lives – his insights informed while working in prestigious computer laboratories and my insights gained from playing in a creek endless hours as a child and then plodding the streets for decades reading “electricity” meters for what we now call “energy corporations”. However our visions of reality are now remarkably similar considering his is versed in his knowledge of computer chips and mine is versed in knowledge of my mother-tongue.
The video complements, endorses and expands on my endeavours from a technological point of view in invaluable ways. However it employs the ego-derived, exclusive English of the Crown merchant bankers, which can never convey the quantum physics of our existence. In particular the video fails to carefully define key words such as “physics” and “science”.
The beauty of my contribution is that it provides English language founded in the wisdom of the principles of physics that enables Federico’s wonderful vision of reality to be more manifest.
Smile. Reality is indeed “physical” when the word is given its fuller transcendent meaning.
And yes, probably much meaning has been lost in translation of Freud’s ideas into English words like “the Id”, “the ego” and “the superego”. “The ego” (the “I”) cannot be meaningfully discussed without reference to its vital complement: the word “compassion”, the great connective, inclusive force in our psyche. It humbles us in the reminder we are animals too and we share the same sentient, cellular formation.
Page under construction 28 April 2025