Topic: Does culture need Identity-value?

I mean, what does it matter if we are 'french' 'flemmish' 'Muslim' 'german' 'Hipkonadian' or 'chinese'

why differentiate eachother, what does our own culture matter to 'who we are'
That's just like this person I know whom said:
         'I smoke, because that is who I am!'
LMAO, who you are, some worthless addictive piece of shit?

Shouldn't culture be 'changeable' transform itself, addapt to what fits our society better today.

within culture I mean things like

-Language: does it really matter, as long as there remains some historical record to see how it was in specific places, and for historical interest etc it's nice, or as a multi-linguist, being able to express oneself in various ways. There are people whom object against learning second languages decently cause they find it 'too hard' and associate them with 'the enemy state' of his own languge long ago. We're all Earthians now, don't fear globalization, we truelly are the same, and one can experience this in international schools, where we learn to have respect and grow interest in eachother, but can't we drop this specific 'one-region' culture and mix them or combine them into the 'perfect culture of our time'?

-Religion: I suppose most off you agree with this that religion probably was invented to give the society/community a sense of right and wrong, of laws, for back at that time when people stopped living around the place and started settling hierarchy and all changed and required new laws, many things in those holly books do make sense regarding that, but some are indeed outdated, like the gender/sexual part and another nice example imo is the 'ramadan' which I believe must have been added due to at that time they needed to stop eating for longer periods due to certain reasons (I'm sorry but I forgot what it exactly was that our teacher taught was the reason for needing a 'ramadan'.

I don't think it really matters much, or it SHOULDn't matter/effect on who we are. I'm a man of the world, we all are, we do want peace no?-which means getting along and treating eachother as equals. to be open for other views, and realize that they do have a certain sense aswell, aren't that different, and adapt to the one you believe is best and discussing with others to get closer to one single culture.

sidenote: this was something I started thinking about when I read this 'National socialist student party paper' which they shoved in my hands when I walked out of 'the Bridge' a food restaurant. It was mentioning about how flanders should be separated from the french part, nationalism... What does it matter, these people are part of our society now aswell, and instead of excluding them, I think we should rather use some sort of 'propoganda', a 'postitive propoganda' which attempts to make people wanna work for the society more for personal belief. And those french being 'collaborators and evil elite' as this paper called them, isn't that more a past thing, I'm sure we have as much elite now, and their eliteness as we had in the middle-ages is longtime gone, it's not like they still own millions of land and under control of an army. Language is todays army, propaganda-education.

"'******? Worthless things like that,
I never had them for as long as I can remember!"

Evil Dark Ninja Hargora

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

Culture?  Definitely.  Believing culture has a value that justifies one culture being separate from another culture is blatant discrimination.

However, at the same time, I don't think it means we should actively work to erase culture.  On the contrary, the expression of one's culture allows the exchange of cultural ideas between different cultures, resulting in a modified culture that becomes a blend of both cultures.  Melting pot?

As for religion, however... I think religion provides something more than simply a moral statement of right and wrong.  I won't get into the issue of whether God is real or not.  But aside from right and wrong questions, religion can be a source of inner peace and tranquility.  Depending on the teachings, it can be an extremely effective psychological assistance.

Make Eyes Great Again!

The Great Eye is watching you... when there's nothing good on TV...

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

hmyea, erasing culture is not what I opt for (dunno, never really have written the word 'opt' b4 but does it fit in this sentence, it just came up as I was thinking), but a sharing openess for different cultures idd.

And religion, maybe I should change it a bit to 'extreme religion', and that religion should update, for if we are given this tought god sure wants us to use it no? or anyways it should be religiously acceptable to adopt things and not take things to strict, like having to wear a towel on year head, although I'm not having anything against towels, it's their right of wanting to wear 'burkhas' although might it not be possible to change it a bit as a 'bling bling'-item rather then a commandment, like those Algerian warriors I do think they can look pretty cool with that, and it's utile for the windy sand. Anyways the reason I'm often more politically silent is cause I don't really care, whatever happens as long as people enjoy living (may include enjoying living sad, such as emo-cultures stereotype).

And I indeed wasn't looking at the spiritual higher part of 'religion' when writing that, I myself don't deny that there might be a god, but I don't consider believing, for if any god, whom says he even wants us to strongly devote him etc... "I can be my own god'-don't need something telling me things. I do think I aswell have my own strict kinda opinions (which I discovered for example when giving my younger cousin a speech on how he should behave...) and to get this inner peace/tranquility, or higher feeling I got 'Guitar, Music' I worship the gods whom made heavy metal thunder our skies...  A nice story.

"'******? Worthless things like that,
I never had them for as long as I can remember!"

Evil Dark Ninja Hargora

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

I don't really understand. Tough you make a lot of sense zarf, you argue why it should not have an identity value.

reply on topic later

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

Alright, I kind of agree on the issue of "extreme religion."  But I'm not entirely sure that doesn't put us on a slippery slope.

As for the spiritual issue, you may not consider believing to be a beneficial thing for you.  But there's billions of people who think it's comforting to know that there is some higher body watching over them.  You may choose not to embrace it.  Fine.  Cool.

I think the thing you're mainly concerned about seems to be an issue of tolerance, not necessarily culture or religion.

Make Eyes Great Again!

The Great Eye is watching you... when there's nothing good on TV...

6 (edited by ~E 24-Mar-2009 21:29:40)

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

EDIT: started writing this before your last post above wink

And now I start wondering what the use is of discussing this though, as of other things I sometimes thought/started typing in other threads here. What does it all matter as my tag describes? Not that I see no use into discussing but really... :s

One way I feel as if I just know all these things already, there's A and B, and Z, both are Right yet contrastingly wrong.

I never really discussed a lot in school for this exact same reason, instead I rather tend to comicalizing things, looking at things at a funny angle just for the divertisement in it. Not that I'm not serious, like I remember teachers/girls commenting that they found me more serious/grown-up then anyone else. But I'd like to take away this centralizing of me now, feels like I'm starting to brag about this now lol :s normally would just erase this, like even not start typing, but for the heck of it I'll just leave this spinsel of thought right now

(on the word 'spinsel' I used above:dutch word, couldn't find the translation, but see it as the threads Dumbledore drops in this jar for thos whom have seen that movie or perhavs even read this book aswell, and this thread being the jar lol, the sanity which 'doing poetry' gives, analyzing thigs, like even noticing this ambiguity in 'doing poetry' lol ) .

"'******? Worthless things like that,
I never had them for as long as I can remember!"

Evil Dark Ninja Hargora

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

Culture is defined by anthropology as the learned behaviors acquired by the members of a social group. In the case of Diversity fanatics, they should stfu because there is no need to preserve a culture. Cultures are adaptions to the experiences of a population, and there is nothing wrong with further adaption if they are exposed to new experiences, such as technology or other people. You will find, for example, that groups in other countries don't necessarily adopt another culture when they are exposed to it like Western media or music, but rather they adapt their own versions of it.

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

cultures define us. nothing we believe in is a logical progression, everything is based of what has been passed down. you change the values, and you can create instability and war.

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

Culture largely shapes how we see the world and interact with one another in it. The same behavior is interpretted very differently in different cultures. There are high and low context cultures. There are high and low power-distance cultures (hierarchical/egalitarian). There are individualistic and collectiveist cultures. There are cultures in which position is determined by ascription and others in which positions is determined by achievement. There are monochronic and polychronic cultures. There are different cultural filters which lead to differences in meaning in different cultures. Some cultures value something like blunt honesty more, others value saving face more.

Talk of "that's discriminating!" is cheap and ignorant. There are very real differences in values, meaning, and practice between cultures. We DON'T all act the same. We DON'T all communicate the same. We DON'T all interpret things the same. We DON'T work the same ways. To claim that we should all just ignore culture and embrace others is ignorant and silly. You cannot embrace your fellow man without understanding and respecting the differences in his cultures.

[I wish I could obey forum rules]

10

Re: Does culture need Identity-value?

Don't we create culture aswell, due to a conflict/reaction ofwhich often war, but imo not mandatory.
And in a way it's logical, it developed, one idea came from another and so on, the first being our basic insticts and simple things?
And if we can create instability, we obviously create stability and peace aswell.
-> and then we can say it's better to be done in a peacefull manner, which is the good thing, but then at the other hand
what does it matter if people die anyways, in the end it all comes down to the individual whom just cares about himself, which is logical to, and if we care about others it is for a 'selfish' reason to.
But politically/morally we should aim for the peacefull controlling option, or at least as much as possible and in that way the 'that's discrimination' comments are a good thing, we must at least try to be tolerant and convince the others of our case or be convinced (which sometimes require it the hard way, but still better to avoid as many as possible innocents)

but about we don't all act the same, meaning and practical, I do thing there still is a basic similarity which all of us share, the 'survival' element, some might be corrupted by wrong ideas and tend to be more irreasonable so actually for both sides it'd be best to learn to talk about it rather then a punch in the face, and maybe due to the relations certain groups have they might be not open for such but I do think we can see this kind of globalization process, all tending towards one way.

We shouldn't ignore the different cultures we have now as you say but there are cultures which have become one more or less such as wallons and flemmish in Belgium no? there still is some disputy but I think that's more due to the scars, people still commenting bad things about the other whilst they have united, some wanting more extreme actions (but just a small part of their population) and already having melted, the problem is that they now harm their own culture-members.  [sidenote: my thinking diverts from the topic, and blurs my thinking-stopping here cause I was turning towards the more extreme individuals which should be excluded from our culture, hence that this 'nationalistic' folder complaining for not being allowed in universities to discuss due to violent acts and damage of property- subject which started my thought to this topic, but now I got to many different things combined which take the attention away to explaining one thing...blah]

So anyways, trying to summarize what I got is, that we should try to get allong, not get allong just like that, and not pay to much importance to OUR culture (stressing 'our', not points of view but identifying aspects?)         

Anyways, seeing the 'melting pot' in 'international-schools' I do got the feeling that there they do have the same basic line of thought, opinions and needs. and looking as we all are earthlings, could it be possible to educate new generations into this openness and international/globalisation?
probably not, not at once, maybe in longterms that is what we are going to (hence nothing to worry about), besides that there aswell after cultures unite I think they do seem to split up again, but then not in a 'geographical' way but religious/moraly and mentally. So in the abstract kinda way, theoretically culture might not need identity value, but our human mechanism makes it and in it's own way is part of nature/god's way of balancing.  ?

"'******? Worthless things like that,
I never had them for as long as I can remember!"

Evil Dark Ninja Hargora