Selective Intra-cultural Relativism

Cultural Relativism is the idea that you should not judge the actions, ideas, and norms of one culture based on the actions, ideas, and norms of another culture. Cultural relativism is crap. I don't care what your culture is but stoning a woman to death for adultery is wrong...whatever the culture. Here in the United States I am starting to see a strange new way of judging one another that I am going to call intra-cultural relativism or the idea that we judge people selectively on their cultural habits based on our habits within the same culture. This is also crap. Not judging someone for doing something stupid because culturally many do the stupid thing and its accepted is a bad idea. We should judge...more often, just base your judgments in sound knowledge.

The Last Lesson

Graduation Speech – The Last Lesson

Good evening ladies and gentlemen.

Seniors - Its is only fitting that I stand up here with you tonight. When Emily came to ask me to speak in a way that only Emily can, laced with profanities and a smile, I was reminded back to my first days at Profile 4 years ago. You were a gangly bunch of pubescent, wide-eyed freshmen and I was the long term sub with 9 and ½ fingers.

I remember when I arrived in April of your freshmen year Ms. Vashaw said to me, “they have had a tough year, just teach them something....” I am not sure if I did but I am guessing that at least a few of you remember what happen in 1066 or what market equilibrium is or at least what it wants to be.

Tonight, you are a not so gangly bunch of wide eyed seniors on the exciting and frightening precipice of true adulthood. For me, I have a lot more gray hair and I will be back to Profile on Monday. Yes, this is a COMMENCEMENT: the beginning of something new. But it is important to remember that this is also an end for some and an end worth celebrating. And since you are more attentive right now than you ever were in my classroom , it certainly helps to have 300 people staring at you, I am going to take the opportunity to teach you one LAST LESSON:

Today is your day, now June 7^th, 2013 your veritable “born-on” date, a certified, gentrified, product packaged and ready to go off into the market of the “real-world” as they say. You have been deemed ready. Everyone in this room hopes that you have the will and the skill to make something of yourselves. Some of you will succeed and some might not. And if you feel like you are not prepared, don't worry about it. Because despite what we have been telling you during your high school career and what we are certifying tonight, the content of our curriculum matters little tomorrow.

Tomorrow, it is the content of your characters that will be the measure of your success.

You see, in a lot of ways we have prepared you for a life of “getting.” You have gotten grades and awards. You have gotten in trouble and gotten second chances. You have gotten hurt and you have gotten help. And in just a few minutes your are going to get your diplomas. Clearly, you are well prepared to “get” things. This is easily measurable process of accumulation under the false pretense that if you have MORE you are better.

Well, there is an old Zen story about a brilliant University Professor, with all the awards and accolades, who travels to Japan to “get” the truth about Zen from a master. When he arrives the master pours him a cup of tea. Once the cup is full the master continues to pour until the Professor can't take it and blurts out, “old man, the cup is overfull, no more will go in!” The master responds, “Like this cup, you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you the truth unless you first empty your cup?”

So seniors, the truth is tonight your cups are full. You have proven your competency and passed your tests. We have filled you with knowledge and you have developed opinions and speculations.

My last assignment for you is tomorrow you need to begin to empty your cups. Focus your energy on the process of giving rather than getting. Only by emptying your cups will you be open to the ways and the wonders of the world outside of the protective nest of Profile and that will unleash the unbelievable power within yourselves.

The great Winston Churchill put it best when he said, “we make a living by what we get, we make a life but what we give.”

So seniors, It is GIVING that measures the content of our characters and in the end that is all that matters. So good luck, give fully, thank you.