Flag Means Tribe, War Is Near

DAILY ENLIGHTENMENT

Kensington, London by Bus.

Flags sail, war is near,

porter hails cab for iPhone

with optional man.

Some thoughts looking at this photo I took this morning: 

• Flag means tribe. Belonging. Choosing a side. Identifying with a cadre. As soon as you do, there is potential for conflict. It feels good to choose a side, to have a tribe there to back you up, but as history teaches it's a revolving door that ensures war and suffering never come to an end.  There is a third choice when faced with any intractable "either/or" problem. I wrote about it here: The 3rd Way: Solving Global & Personal Conflict By NOT Choosing A Side (with Mahatma Gandhi & Martin Luther King)
  

• Second observation: I hope the hotel porter is well paid. If you ensure that minimum wage workers barely earn enough to make rent and food, how is it different from a medieval serf who was permitted to work the land for his noble lord and in return live on the land and keep enough crops to ensure his survival? It seems the robust middle class of the post-war period is under threat, and most kids in the first world coming out of college don't anticipate being able to afford owning their own home if they live anywhere near a major city. 
  

• Third observation: I think there's a little girl who is tired of traveling and her mother had better have top-shelf negotiating skills. Dad is lost on his phone. I hope he remembers to give his little girl some attention. Children need loving attention like a plant needs water. 
  

• Fourth observation: I like that red bike. I need to exercise more now that spring is coming :)

Have a great Friday!