Our body is perfectly coordinated to regulate our blood sugar level. But when our insulin levels are artificially altered, serious diseases can occur.

The human body needs energy. ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) is to each cell in the body what gasoline is to a car. This energy is stored inside the bonds of the three phosphate molecules attached to an adenosine nucleotide. The light energy that exists in the sun’s rays is converted into chemical energy, stored in the form of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats through the photosynthetic reactions taking place in the chloroplasts of plants. Molecules of chemical energy are broken down in the mitochondria organelle of the cells in order to utilize their energy for ATP synthesis. This chemical energy (ATP) derived from nutrients is used by the eyes to see, the ears to hear, the hands to grab, the feet to walk, the heart to pump blood, the stomach to digest foods, the kidneys to filter blood, red blood cells to carry oxygen, white blood cells to fight germs, and the  brain to think, memorize, and remember.

ATP is primarily synthesized from glucose – commonly known as blood sugar (glycolysis) – in approximately 100 trillion cells in our body. Glucose means fast energy. A sensitive metabolic balance is established (homeostasis) to maintain a blood glucose concentration in between 70-100 mg/dl for a nonstop energy flow and to prevent any cellular damage. If this balance is thrown out of order, many medical problems will ensue, primarily cardio-vascular diseases. How is the homeostatic balance of blood sugar maintained in healthy people?

Maintenance of blood sugar balance

The blood sugar balance is provided by the assistance and cooperation of the pancreas, liver, fat tissue, muscle tissue, the brain, the digestive system, and the kidneys. The chiefs of the orchestra here are the insulin and glucagon hormones synthesized in the pancreas, which operate in great harmony and yet have opposite functions. Insulin is in charge of dropping blood sugar; however glucagon increases it.  

The fine balance of blood sugar is conserved before we sense it for various energy situations such as exercise, sleep, or various energy intake cases such as overeating or skipping a meal. The real hunger is the 8-10 hour long “night fasting” period. During this time, since there is no food intake, the glucose that cells require for energy production is obtained from reserves in the liver. Thus, cells get their energy and blood sugar levels are kept at normal levels. If there is no additional food intake and the fasting time becomes longer, the glycogen reserves of the liver get consumed within 10-18 hours and necessary energy is obtained from fats and proteins. However, real fullness corresponds to a period of 4-6 hours “after meal.” During this time, the complex and macro size carbohydrates are converted to glucose in the liver and this glucose is stored as glycogen. Because the glucose storage capacity of the liver, which has numerous tasks, is limited, the excess glucose is stored by conversion into fatty acids. The unspent excess calories from three meals eaten in five hour intervals will be stored in either the liver or as fat tissue during the 12-18 hour long fullness period. The utilization of fats stored in the humps of camels which form by food intake to compensate for their energy and water needs during long desert travel can be given as an example of this.

In fact, when we say “I am hungry,” we acknowledge that the time has come to resupply our ATP reserves of nearly 100 trillion cells. The most important stimulator for the secretion of insulin from the pancreas is glucose. With the first bite, the readied insulin reserves of the pancreas are released into the bloodstream. This event, which takes place approximately within the first 6-10 minutes, is called the first-phase insulin response. With the language of reduced glucagon as a result of increased insulin, the message that it is no longer necessary to release glucose into the blood is transmitted to the liver. The blood sugar levels increase with continuing food intake (hyperglycemia) and this information is relayed to the pancreas through hormones secreted by intestinal cells. As directed by this signal, the proper insulin amount necessary for blood sugar levels is secreted into the bloodstream from the pancreas. This is called the late-phase insulin response.

The tasks of insulin

Cells are in need of insulin to uptake glucose into capillary vessels. Insulin binds itself to its specific receptor on the membrane of a cell, conducting its message, especially to muscle tissue. It’s saying, “The glucose food that you need is brought here by the blood vessels, and you can retrieve it.”  After receiving the message inside the cell, GLUT (glucose transporters) molecules, which are in charge of glucose intake and are stored in the cytoplasmic vesicle pool, are carried to the cellular surface. Molecular gates are established once these molecules merge with the cellular membrane for the entrance of glucose through it. Glucose is inserted into the cell via this gate. The retired GLUTs are collected back in the cytoplasmic pools after cellular energy demand is met.

While these events are taking place, commands are given to the liver to prepare for the load of glucose arriving from the intestines and for adipose tissue to store the excess fat. These meticulous processes last for approximately two hours. The blood sugar level recedes back to its normal limits, but the activities of the liver and the adipose tissue continue at a rapid pace. If overeating occurs, the liver cannot take such a load. This can cause a delay in its functions, which will cause the body to feel tired.

The insulin and glucagon hormones have a half life of 3-5 minutes and are rendered ineffective in the liver and kidneys once they conclude their tasks. Thus, the body prevents lower blood sugar levels because of high insulin concentrations (hypoglycemia) or because of higher glucagon levels; it also prevents higher blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia).

The disruption of the blood sugar balance

Diabetes is the chronic observation of blood sugar above normal limits. This happens when the insulin hormone levels secreted from the pancreas are reduced and not able to carry out their function. There might be genetic factors present that contribute to diabetes; however, stress, a lack of exercise, obesity, and the consumption of processed foods containing elevated levels of carbohydrates often lead to the onset of diabetes in adults. The fine balance in between the liver, pancreas, muscles, and fat tissue can be disrupted by the following reasons:

1. If the number of cells in charge of insulin production in the pancreas decreases, sufficient insulin cannot be produced.
2. The message of insulin cannot be retrieved completely because of a disruption occurring at the receptors where insulin binds on cells, or due to lower numbers. 
3. There may be a problem with reactions regarding GLUT production in accordance with the internal message retrieved upon bondage of insulin to the receptors.
4. During fullness, if the necessary suppression of glucagon production in pancreatic cells is not adequate, the glucose release from the liver continues.
5. The secretion of late-phase insulin response hormones in charge of pancreatic stimulation from the intestines is reduced.
6. Emptiness of the stomach is delayed, and a longer absorption time of nutrients occurs.
7. The appetite center is over stimulated and the urge to eat increases.

If the reasons above take place, then the blood sugar level is above normal. Normal blood sugar drops below 140 mg/dl two hours after a meal in healthy people, whereas this cannot be maintained in diabetic patients.

An iron pipe with salty sea water running through it for years is similar to a capillary vessel that has blood with high sugar levels inside it in terms of the damage that they undergo. Once hypertension and cholesterol joins diabetes, the heart, eyes, and kidneys will not function properly. These organs are great blessings granted to our body which we often appreciate only once we lose them. Therefore we must follow an intermediate path in eating and drinking, just as in every situation, avoiding excess.

In a time of darkness and ignorance, we must challenge our preconceived notions, seeking answers in education and trust.

It is another season of service. Our love-filled hearts are longing for Joseph but as desolate as Zaliha,^[1] and we are crying the lamentations of Jacob. Yet, we are waiting for glad tidings to arrive soon to open our eyes and lift our feelings.

It is impossible not to feel the pain of our people when we witness their heart-breaking state while being dragged along under the debris, destructions, and disasters of these dead, dark years.

Now please go! Go and visit all those countries that share a similar fate! I am sure you will not be able to come back without feeling painful sorrow for them! From the biggest cities to the smallest town centers; from the most crowded urban areas to the most remote villages; there are countless places that have been suffering under the dominance of ignorance and social problems. This combination is like a vortex that swallows whole communities – and sometimes whole countries. In these countries, you will witness such serious social, spiritual, and economic sicknesses. They were not healed in the first place and became chronic, and now they have become incurable.

Among all these, however, the most irremediable illness is ignorance. Ignorance is such a chronic disease that it corrodes an entire nation and gnaws away at our existence. Ignorance is the deprivation of knowledge; it is the inability to define proper goals in accordance with the acquired knowledge; it is a life deprived of Truth and righteous thinking. Ignorance has been a calamity that has existed in every time period. As has been the case with every nation, it is necessary to dry out this stagnant swamp, illuminate the minds of the masses with knowledge, guide young people to a proper and sound state of thinking and historical awareness, and prevent the negative trends that conflict with the quintessence of humanity; otherwise it will be impossible to remove ourselves from the crises this illness causes. We will find ourselves in a vicious circle.   

Was it not ignorance that caused us to fail to cultivate our fertile lands, to foster the growth of crops and fruits on our lush plains, to benefit from our gushing rivers? Was it not ignorance that turned our paradise-like world into ruin? We have lived completely unaware of our beauties and treasures, which are like the gardens of Eden; we have not been able to reap the benefits from our fields or from our minerals. Worst of all, by drowning ourselves in the illusion that we were not capable of doing anything with our own resources, we sacrificed our hope and willpower. And ignorance, which slowly ruined our people’s abilities, has reached its darkest depths today…

In this new era, at a time when scientific and technological thinking have rapidly developed and a flash of hope appeared, indicating that we could be pulled through these calamities, people have been drawn into another vortex: completely overwhelmed and dazzled with an inferiority complex, some assumed that crushing national awareness and conscience, destroying moral values, and shedding our high virtues was the only way to reach the level of developed civilizations. They’ve committed serious blows upon our national spirit and identity instead of embellishing the hearts with faith and equipping the minds with science and wisdom, which would bring prosperity to every corner of the world with art and trade.

In a way, this second type of ignorance has been even more destructive and caused greater danger. The previous ignorance melted away when confronted with knowledge and science, but this next-generation ignorance has been able to penetrate everywhere, purporting to spread in the name of knowledge and civilization. It has been approved and applauded by everyone. While the previous ignorance turned the world into ruins and brought joy only to those who like darkness, the ignorance that emerged later swept away all virtuous qualities, including spiritual nobleness, selflessness, and altruism. It left the masses dumbfounded.

Nevertheless, mentors and educators who have undertaken the role of building the future will wage war against these two types of ignorance. They will, and must, spare no effort and no legal means to elevate people to an era of enlightenment. In order to achieve this, it is essential to announce a mobilization of culture. We must turn all parts of our world – from homes to schools, coffeehouses to barracks – into learning centers. A general mobilization should be launched against ignorance, thoughtlessness, artificialness, and unawareness of national culture and merits; while decisions made under preconceived opinions should be criticized. Answers should be sought in science and scientific research; a new and fresh perception should be acquired.

There is no doubt that the forerunners of this blessed duty can only be teachers and educators – fortunate educators who treat their students in a wholesome manner, caring for both their physical and moral attributes. They must consider the human position and relations within the universe as a whole. They must inspire and invigorate their hearts in line with the purpose of their creation. They must be teachers who grasp the physical and metaphysical worlds as two sides of one reality!

Yes, denying the physical aspects of the human, as is the case in some monastic ways of life and some forms of mysticism, and considering the human with only his bodily and physical aspects, as in the case in some philosophical systems, has proved harmful to humankind.

Is it at all possible not to realize that humankind is an exceptional being, who holds a prominent position within the whole universe and is charged with very sublime missions, and hence, is a candidate for various ranks and positions?

How can a creature, who possesses an ability to benefit from all kinds of science and knowledge, who is granted the capability of intervening in events, who is equipped with skills to perceive, comprehend, and accept all types of beauty, who can distinguish many types of delights and pleasures, and who is insistently longing for “eternity,” be without a duty and ongoing future? Regarding the human as a being who is without any duty or responsibility, and thereby deprived of an endlessly long and happy future, means to lower this estimable being to the level of most primitive creatures; to deny all their physical and mental abilities and emotions; and to push him or her to the most bitter and stressful path and turn their world into misery. I do not know whether any other cruelty or grievance could be bigger than this!

A real teacher and a true mentor is the fortunate person who teaches his or her students – who have been sent to the world with limitless possibilities – the righteousness and unerring ways of thinking. A real teacher invigorates their emotions, triggers their eagerness and willpower, and elates their spirits. A real teacher wipes out all darkness and iniquities that block students’ ways, and delivers them towards luminescent sources. In due time, everything touched by these blessed, trustworthy, and truthful teachers will gain the highest value; things regarded worthless will become like gold; the most darkened souls will reach the dawn; individuals who are completely bound to serve their carnal desires will explore and discover their own souls and become kings of their selves.

How blessed are those teachers who devote themselves to guiding, certifying, declaring, and manifesting the truth through all disciplines of science! Who follow their pupils in every stage of their development and always carry the vigor of elevating their students to the level of real humanity! Who sometimes become tense as a lightning bolt, but soften and calm down into gentle beams of light, illuminating the hearts and minds of their students!

^[1] Zaliha is the wife of the prominent person in Egypt who bought the Prophet Joseph (pbuh) as a slave. According to the story, both in the Qur’an and the Bible, she fell desperately in love with Joseph and tried to seduce him, yet Joseph rejected her at the cost of being imprisoned for many years. Her name is not recorded in the scriptures; however, she is popularly called as Zaliha in Islamic sources.

Far scarier than evil men … is the idea that, wonderful as my life has been, there might have been more, or less, or different.
Rachel Heffington
(From Rachel to herself: a letter to be read in seventy-seven years)

March, 2015
Isle of Wight, Virginia

Dear (Seasoned, Revered, Etc.) Rachel,

You sit on the pinnacle of a very long life. Happiest of Happy Birthdays to you (us?)! You’re now a centurion. Is that what they call people who have reached one-hundred? It’s not? Pity. It was a good thought, seeing as you’re nearly Roman-ancient now.

I wonder what your life has been. Let’s hear how you found your true love; did you love him first, or did he dog your footsteps and spill coffee on you till you recognized his merits? Or maybe you never found him. Maybe you grew old and beloved by a slew of nieces and nephews instead. Taking things into account as they stand now, that’s highly probable. Standards are wonderful for scaring off men.

But you’ve turned one-hundred, and this is about you, not me. Except, I guess it is.

History always fascinated you. What have you seen? I only know—not quite, almost—a quarter of everything that’s happened, and it’s enough to make me glad this life is only the title-page of the best of Stories. It can be a little frightful, if I’m perfectly honest. Sin doesn’t get nicer with age, opportunity, and technological advancement.

Twenty-five percent of your life is where I stand, if you’re really one hundred, and it isn’t a clever hoax. It’s a nice place, a little winded, and you’ve done it three times! What larks. I don’t want to tire you (is your spirit old, or do you still like letters?), but I have things I want to know: did you keep your hiccupping laugh? Where did your lines fall? I hope you got crow’s feet instead of potato-furrows between your eyebrows, because you always had a fear of looking disagreeable. Do you still wear bright red lipstick? How did it feel to smash that change jar and go to London with Katie? When did you give up high-heels, or do you still wear them? And last of all, because it rather terrifies me: are you losing your mind to the childishness of dementia, or did you get the palsied end of old age? I think sickness would be easier to bear. I would hate to lose my wits and be thought ridiculous and smiled on patronizingly. I hope you still have the sense of humor—it was a good one.

As you can see, I am plenty curious despite being only a quarter of the person you are. If you haven’t outgrown it, you’ll be a piece of work by now. You always enjoyed people like that. Some people suffer from a deplorable lack of curiosity and become boring. Boring’s worse than ridiculous. Do you still think so?

Right now, I’m pretty nearly perfectly happy. As happy as I can be with plagues sweeping one third of the world and militants blowing up another third, and the rest of us trying to live reasonably well in the cramped leftovers. Did that ever let-up, or is that only the wishful thinking of a girl who is only two decades old?

But even if it doesn’t let up—history isn’t too encouraging on this point— I’m only a quarter of the way through my life; I can’t believe I’ll not die from a surfeit of joy-stabs, for even in the awfulness, they do come. There are so many beautiful things I’ve already seen. I know Heaven will be better—and on that note, are you looking forward to it?—but it’s pretty lovely here sometimes, when the sun settles on its belly over the cotton fields and laughs like raspberry lemonade. I hope you’ve not outgrown your love of noticing things. You used to talk about days when the veil between Heaven and Earth had worn thin, and those were your favorite moments. They still are, I’d guess. It’s addicting. I hope it’s the only thing I’m ever addicted to. That’s the plan, anyway, and no sense in changing it.

Small things could always make you toss back your head, crinkle your moon-eyes, and laugh. You found everything wonderful and wrote it all down in your books. I wonder if you ever became famous for your words. I doubt it—it doesn’t seem likely when you only ever wrote to amuse and please yourself and others like you (and were shaky on plot, besides), but one hundred years leaves a lot of room for surprises.

Most of all, I wonder if you like the Rachel you’ve become. If you’re proud of the way you spent your century. If there are moments that give you a pain in your gut because you know you missed it—whatever it was. How many are they, those memories? I hope, for your sake, they are few.

I don’t even know if you’ll be able to read this. Maybe you got banged in the head by someone in a wretched nursing home and woke up unable to speak anything but French, a language you never learned (or did you?). At any rate, if that is the case, please find a translator. Preferably you’ll still be comfortably settled in that lovely country house with the bosomy windows that are always open—the one you wondered if you’d ever get. If you can still hold a pen and still string words like a ticker-tape (I’m obviously in fine fettle regarding this), then please write back.

It’ll probably be the first decent thing the mailman has brought in weeks.

Always Yours (Obviously),

Rachel Heffington

P.S. Please say you never took to ignoring the Oxford Comma.

(From Rachel to herself: a reply to the former, about which she’d forgotten.)

March, 2092

Cockermouth, UK

Dear (Young, Semi-Charming, Etc.) Rachel,

It is your birthday too! What a coincidence. I am still, per the obvious, alive and able to speak English as well as ever. Grammar will slip sometimes, but one grows to care less. I still revere the Oxford comma. I might be alone in this, but here we are.

You ought to know me well enough to know that I never learned a second language thoroughly—bits of languages, yes. I could say The Lord’s Prayer in Latin, recite numbers one through ten in a half dozen languages in a manner quite charming, and always managed to forget which Hawaiian word meant “hello” and which meant “goodbye,” but I was never fluent. Too many English words boxing my ears.

Your letter made me laugh till I got a side-stitch. I had forgotten how poorly you fit into the era in which you were born, and I’d forgotten how absurd (and fond of it) you were. Thank you for the reminder, darling.

You want to know about the love of my life. I feel hesitant to inform you on this point, as it feels rather like cheating. I didn’t know at your age … so you can’t. But I will tell you this: I have never lacked for love. Take that as you will. I’ll say nothing further. And remember, silly duckling, that love comes in so many forms.

“How did it feel to smash that change jar and go to London with Katie?

I actually have learned things in my century, and one is this: delayed gratification lends value to things. I played Mary Poppins for two little girls. Every week I went to the bank and deposited my check and took out a crisp twenty dollar bill. I rescued pennies from the gutter and quarters from the laundry and threw them in. I waited and dreamed and worked. And one day I traded the jar for an airline ticket and good British pounds and joined my best friend for the girlhood dream … and it was just as plummy, rainy, and tea-scented as I’d dared to hope. Besides elation, I felt terror when I bought that ticket and realized I’d given birth to a dream and had to take care of it now that it was outside imagination’s womb. The sort of terror you feel when one’s hair looks perfect and then a guest of wind turned the umbrella inside-out and you know the game’s up.

It was the same with my writing career (which, incidentally, made me famous in its own way. You’ll have to wait to find out how.)

Lots of things in life are this way. The delay, the pause, the long breath-holding till an ache begins under one’s breastbone and the lungs of hope nearly burst. And then it comes, and it comes with a color like September aspens and you realize half the glory is straight relief that the promise wasn’t a sham.

There is hope beyond this world.

There is a Story and an Author at work and if one can just hold on, things happen.

Now, I’m a century old and I still haven’t decided whether all the things that do happen are worth half the trouble they cost, but at least I can promise you that life doesn’t stagnate for the person who curries adventure.

I still wear red lipstick—found how to apply it so it won’t kiss off. My secret.

The high-heels remained till I turned seventy-five and sprained my ankle. I compromised and went in for brighter lipstick and shockingly colorful flats. One must make concessions somewhere, much as you hate to admit it.

The lines fell for me in pleasant places. Potato furrows are awful. I used prayer and coconut oil to ward them off.

I still laugh. Did it hiccup?

You called them moon-eyes. I’d call them sparkles awash in fitful gray-green. He loved them. Whom? I won’t tell. You’ll see.

From my address, you’ll realize I made it to my precious Lake District—which, by the by, you neglected to mention in your letter. I am shocked. It was your fondest, quietest dream. The story is a long and ornate one which I won’t tell now, but you’ll enjoy it.

I am tolerably well in body, my humor is intact, and if I forget certain things certain days, who cares? A century gives one perspective, duck. Dementia is the smallest thing one worries about at my age. I think if we didn’t forget now and then, our brains might implode with the sheer weight of a hundred years’ worth of remembrances. What a mess. My nurse, Erica Clark, would complain. She complained about getting me real paper. “Why won’t you use technology? We’ve come such a long way since email, and now you want paper? You’re retroactive, Miss Rachel.”

I’ll tell you why: postmen might bring boring things, but no mail at all is an atrocity.

And now I will become serious, for contrary to popular belief, I am not all whimsy and wit. Let’s see if I can manage before tea-time:

You asked if my moments of having “missed it” were many. I gather you speak of regrets. Everyone has regrets. I know of several you have at your age, and as you so succinctly stated it, you are only a quarter of the person I am. Perhaps you didn’t realize it was a regret at the time. Again, age gives one perspective on these things.

In hinting that I might be regretless, your hopes fail. Missing even one thing is a weighty sorrow. I’ve missed … well I’ve missed four times what you’ve missed. Ew. I try not to let myself be crippled by the idea, but I am still scared to wonder what might have been. Far scarier than evil men and terrifying plagues and incomprehensible technology that eradicates any notion of privacy, is the idea that, wonderful as my life has been, there might have been more, or less, or different.

I don’t think God means for us to panic over it, but there it is. The veil has yet to grow so thin it disappears and this world is not quite wonderfully safe. It lets you worry.

When I can’t remember, I can’t worry.

That’s what I mean by saying loss of memory is not so terrible. I’ve heard it called a mercy.

You are so young. Don’t waste time fretting over what you’ll be at one hundred. You’ll be me, and I’ve lived with myself for quite some time. I’m not the worst person to have been. I have you to thank for that, because what you said about addictions? You honored to it. Not to quibble, but you forgot to add cheesecake, sourdough toast, and a few random television programs to the list.

You lived what they called “clean.”

You made a thousand mistakes.

You found adventure in the commonplace.

You laughed in the exact wrong moments.

You noticed the raspberry-lemonade sunsets.

You trod on some toes.

You loved almost too freely and you gave yourself out as if there was no end.

But more than this, you pledged your life to the Author of the Story. I’m so glad you did. Shakespeare spoke of his being a charmed life. I wonder if he’d met you, if he’d have turned in his claims and surrendered the title.

Darling, you are only a quarter-me, like a quarter-moon. But the things you fought for have worn well. The colors are bright as ever. I’m still wearing them. Virtues you refused to surrender, convictions you would not deny, honesty you would not withhold…these things have enabled me to sit at the back-end of a century and enjoy the view.

Thank you, and never, ever, ever give up.

You owe it to me.

Always Yours (Obviously),

Rachel

P.S. If you promise to smile at every stranger, I’ll tell you the secret to red lipstick.

P.P.S. It has to do with… I won’t say just yet. First, you have to promise.

Re-examining the philosophical roots of Marx’s famously flawed ideology

If there is any thinker or philosopher who has been the most critical of religion, it is undoubtedly Karl Marx. The so-called savior and deliverer of the proletariat – the working class – adamantly argued that the whole of history is the history of “class struggle” and proposed an economic theory, which he called communism; this became the framework of most of the twentieth century’s totalitarian governments.

Some believe his system has been the worst that humanity will ever encounter; others believe it is the supreme political and social system ever devised. Having appreciated the substantial influence Marx had on the fates of millions of people, I would like to analyze the underlying reasons why many were moved by his notions whereas others, especially religious people, labeled him “the evil prophet of the evil system.”

Inspired by the two prominent materialists of ancient Greece, Democritus and Epicurus, Marx exclusively based all his arguments on the millennia-old idea of “materialism,” which absolutely negated everything but the material, visible dimension of existence. He asserted that matter is the basic reality and anything beyond the physical realm is unlikely to exist. One would not be surprised to find out that all his later writings were in the shade of two significant theories:

1. The conviction that economic realities determine human behavior;
2. The view that the human history is the story of class struggle between those who own things – the rich or the capitalist (he later called them bourgeoisie), and those who must work to survive – the poor (the proletariat).

The former notion of his is obviously flawed due to the fact that he reduces human reality explicitly to something material, which can be seen as a reincarnation of Epicurus’ narrow materialistic interpretation of existence. Even some materialist social scientists like Durkheim – whose central theory was all about how individuals were shaped by social atmosphere – would refute the idea that human behavior is essentially one-dimensional, or a product solely of economic conditions. In other words, how can one reduce the most complex behavior of the most evolved entity in the universe, the human being, to a mere product of economics?

As far as I am concerned, what a human being most needs is indisputably his or her freedom to make decisions. Now, these decisions are undoubtedly affected by economic conditions; but claiming that the only reason for any human behavior is economic is inevitably defective. One cannot help asking: “is the material aspect of existence what drives the matter, or is there likely to be something beyond the visible veil of phenomena?”

Marx would certainly reply with an exaggerated “No” to the second question and with an applauding, warm hearted “Yes” to the first. It seems quite obvious that the argument of whether existence is material or composed of the material and the immaterial still has its battle ground on this heavenly Earth. On the one hand, people like Marx assert that existence is just the material form and develop their worldview based on this reductionist notion. On the other hand, others maintain that matter is a splendid manifestation of some ideal forms people can realize in the material realm by means of a higher level of understanding. For instance, when one beholds a tree, they don’t only see the material form of the tree. Rather, it becomes like letters in a word or words in a sentence, allowing them to better articulate certain sentences. The universe becomes an ode for them to read and understand. That is, they express something more than what they are.

I would like to shed some more light on this point. For example, when one enters a splendid palace, a real masterpiece of a renowned architect, would they just assume an air of saying, “I just see stones, carpets, etc., which are the result of difficult labor”? Or would they also recognize the delicate artistry expressed in the material form, which stems from the artistic ability of the great architect in addition to the hard work of labor?

Let’s think of a representative parable. If one found an antique iron vase and took it first to an antique’s shop, it would fetch a million dollars; but the same vase would not even make a few cents in the blacksmith’s market. Therefore, the art expressed in a material object is far greater than its material value. Everything in the universe is an artifact that carries a profound meaning for us to apprehend.

Secondly, it seems not unexpected that Marx diligently addressed the profound problem not only in nineteenth century Europe, where the working class was greatly oppressed by the then land and factory owners, but also the chief problem throughout the whole of human history. In medical terms, his diagnosis of the disease (the wealth is/was distributed unevenly and the working class is/was really oppressed) was outstanding, but the prescription he wrote – the abolition of all kinds of chains (private property, family, religion etc.) – did not act as a cure; rather, it subtly eradicated the human factor of those societies where each and all individuals lost their rights to private property, family, and freedom, the basic building element of a dignified human being. For instance, in North Korea and Cuba, where the governments adopt the notions of communism, people even dread to voice a single problem they would otherwise easily solve on their own in a free country. Testimonials of several individuals who fled the aforementioned countries for the pursuit of freedom are worth heeding as to whether communism could serve as a remedy for the suffering of the oppressed or itself acts as a tool of oppressing the proletariat.

Alas! Marx would swallow his tongue if he saw so called communist governments oppressing the miserable proletariat in the name of the very same system he proposed. In fact, how could one cure cancer (the oppression of the working class) with aspirin (communism)? Weren’t the geniuses of the Soviet Union and China clever enough to interpret the theories of Marx to better the lives of millions? How should one interpret the willingness of Chinese politicians to embrace open market policies? Would this mean they implicitly admit the fact that the communist understanding of economics, the very base Marx proposed, eventually failed? Or are we so blind not to see the sufferings of the people in these communist countries? Or are they still holding onto the political propaganda that one day we will certainly form the ideal communist society where no class exists? Misery, real misery! People are in pursuit of a mere dream that never comes true. I wonder what “opium” the oppressed people of the communist countries using.

We must ask: what is left of a human being who has lost their freedom? Their physical body. Isn’t this the abolition of freedom in the name of freedom? Who is more enslaved: a person whose body is chained but whose ideas are free, or a person who has an unchained body but no free ideas? I guess what communism demands is the latter.

When it comes to religion, Marx is ingeniously apt to describe it as the “opium of the people,” the “heart of a heartless world,” “the spirit of a spiritless situation,” and “the sigh of the oppressed creature.” In the ideology of Marxism, religion plays the evil role of subduing the vital driving force of the imagined revolution against the bourgeoisie, the revolution which hopes to establish the dream world of the classless communist society. The fact that all he wanted was to get rid of the tyranny of the bourgeoisie who devised “religion” as a superstructure tool of repression compelled him to condemn religion with the utmost animosity. Quite simply, according to him, if religion were gone, people would start thinking about their salvation from the brutality of the bourgeoisie; such salvation was the backbone of the proletariat revolution. At this point, I wish Marx could see how mistaken his perception of religion was. The way he describes religion is completely against the spirit of religion, which is to help human beings to achieve their very best – not only in the ethical sense, but more importantly to also advance their understanding and use of material resources.

Moreover, throughout history, religion has often enabled the salvation of rich and poor alike, and in some societies has helped to close the wealth gap between rich and poor, ensuring a more even distribution of wealth. Furthermore, one of the key elements in any religion is to fight against any kind of exploitation and injustice; therefore, alleging that religion was the primary tool in the hands of the brutal bourgeoisie is a fatal crime against humanity.

One should analyze all the teachings of a religion before they pass a crucial judgment on it, especially when the matter is relevant to billions of people. At first glance, Marx’s illustration of religion falls in the category of the restricted understanding of a century in which the poor, particularly, were extremely oppressed; that understanding does not extend to the whole history of humanity. One could easily contend that the first community of Christians (since Marx mostly took issue with Christianity) was, first and foremost, different from the church Marx wholeheartedly fought against. For instance, the first Christians never lived luxuriously, unlike Marx’s contemporaries, who went astray from the very essential teachings of their religion. One must ask: is Christianity to blame for this? Or does the blame fall to the mischievous and wretched novices of the Church who damaged the lives of so many people through deprivation, affliction, and tribulation?

If only Marx could have behaved like Newton, who unshackled his nominal Church-made restraints and paved a magnificent way for generations to come. I would wholeheartedly like to applaud the courage of Copernicus, who declared “the world rotates around the sun, not the other way around.” He did this despite the despotism of his time, and at the risk of his life. The striking truth about these exceptional personalities is that while they made their best efforts to explain the universe, they never doubted their religious identity, which is a notable justification against the reincarnated dialectical materialism of Karl Marx.

In conclusion, it wouldn’t be too severe to speculate that Karl Marx has become the false prophet of those who wanted a religion of materialism. Was he a prophet, a philosopher, or a speculative writer parroting the ideas of the early Greek philosophers? Time sometimes is the best judge to rule out some obsolete ideas that are never meant for the betterment of a society or the human race. In this sense, communism devoid of any peculiar worth finds its unfortunate place in the dark basements of human history. On the other hand, Marx’s efforts to terminate the suffering of the poor will always be remembered by both his disciples and his foes. As for his infamous enmity of religion, if only he could have been more open-minded to catch a glimpse of what religion really taught: the salvation of humanity from chains of any sort – be they material or immaterial.

A rich cultural melting pot and a bridge between East and West, Turkey’s emerging democracy faces challenges and uncertainty in the years ahead.

Positioned almost in the heart of one of the most politically and socially active regions of the world, Turkey is a lucrative soil for political scientists. Historically, Turkey boasts of being the home of the first known human settlement and some of the largest empires and civilizations in history, including the Byzantines and the Ottomans. Situated at the crossroads between Asia and Europe, Turkey has always featured a rich cultural mosaic of ancient faith traditions and diverse national heritage. Its transition from an absolute monarchy to constitutionalism and then to republicanism has not been an easy one, and democracy, in the true sense of the word, has yet to appear in the horizon. However, Turkey is a significant testing ground for the compatibility of Islam with democracy; its success or failure in bringing them together draws worldwide interest. I hope that Turkey’s Path to Democratization is a useful reference for those interested in Turkey and the wider region.

With the recent advance of globalization, commentators, researchers, and journalists of all stripes and many nations have concerned themselves with Turkey’s hard road to democratization. Is it still underway? What are the hindrances or blockages? What are the motivations and roles of civil society groups in this evolving democracy? What is the current stance and role of the military, given Turkey’s recent history of recurring military coups d’états? Will Turkey ever succeed in gaining admittance to the European Union?

In addition, as a result of the frequency and extent of military action in the Middle East, much has been made in the media of Turkey’s real or imagined role as an intermediary in the shifting world order. Turkey’s role in NATO clearly interacts with Turkey’s constantly changing relations with its neighbors in the region. Is Turkey moving West – or is it turning to the East? What are the implications for Turkey and the region of the relatively new “state” of Northern Iraq—now commonly known as “Kurdistan”?

Paradoxically, many foreign “experts,” while insisting that Turkey is an “outsider” to the “European tradition,” insist on measuring events in Turkey according to a variety of yardsticks crafted by that tradition. In fact, as with every country, there are vital areas in which Turkey’s history and recent conditions are specific and cannot be evaluated according to measures commonly used when discussing most Western European societies. There are yet other respects, still largely unexamined by foreign commentators, in which Turkey’s history is very similar to other European societies. In the twentieth century, for example, Turkey suffered under a military regime similar to those endured by Spain, Italy, Portugal, and Greece, and much of South America – and for similar reasons. This similarity is rarely acknowledged outside of Turkey, let alone examined. Thus, Turkey is viewed through a number of distorting “orientalizing” lenses, and all its troubles attributed to “Islamism.”

However, to understand contemporary social phenomena in Turkey, one needs to understand the changing circumstances in which the attempt was made to establish, and then hold on to, a nationalist, laicist, and Westernized republic after the end of the Ottoman Empire. With respect to the emergence, dynamics, and outcomes of social and political movements in Turkey, the political system, its institutions and processes, and the larger social and cultural ethos all constitute highly significant material factors. Thus, it is necessary to trace the seeds of collective action in Turkey to the early Republican years, when a new state and society formed. To this end the book starts with a brief history of the early years of the Republic of Turkey.

A few months before this book went to press and just before local and metropolitan elections in March 2014, the police in Turkey laid charges against more than 40 people for bribery, rigging state tenders, violating the laws on construction in protected sites, forgery, and smuggling gold to Iran (breaching international sanctions). This was not the first time rumors of corruption had touched the government, but this time the investigation involved government ministers and their families. The then-Prime Minister Erdogan immediately swung into action to stifle the investigation.

Without any disciplinary procedure, several thousand members of the police and bureaucracy, and over a hundred judges and prosecutors, were dismissed. Many more civil servants were reassigned to other regions or cases. Simultaneously, as in the 2013 Gezi Park protests, the Prime Minister directed a highly pugilistic rhetoric at a selection of scapegoats to deflect public attention toward foreign “foes” (Turkey’s allies and trading partners, such as the US and Israel) or minority groups labeled as the “enemy within” (in this case, the Hizmet movement; on other occasions, it has been the Kurds, the Alevis, etc.).

While a number of public officials dared to brave the Prime Minister’s ire and publicly contradict his claims, evidence of corruption continued to leak on the internet. In response to this defiance, the government issued an order to close down Twitter and YouTube in Turkey.

At the same time, although the Speaker of the House questioned the extent to which the executive was interfering with the judiciary, the ruling party managed to push through Parliament a bill extending the executive’s power over the judiciary, undoing the constitutional reforms of 2010—reforms which had been endorsed by the Venice Commission, the European Union, and, indeed, by the public in a referendum.

In the course of the election campaign, there were mass resignations from the AK Party among local councilors; and 10 Members of Parliament have resigned from the AK Party so far. I was among them.

In spite of this political turbulence, the populace prioritized economic stability and growth over financial probity, and the AK Party won 43% of the vote in the local elections on a turnout of 80%. This was perhaps not so surprising. The opposition parties in Turkey were still demonstrating their lack of capacity to produce viable policy alternatives, even at the level of local services. Thus, the various civil society organizations which expressed their concern were reduced to asking the public to vote against something negative (corruption), rather than for something positive (a raft of alternative policies or principles).

Despite heavy criticisms levied against Erdogan, especially due to his style of ruling and addressing others, his party won the local elections and then later, in August, he was elected as President. Thus, Turkey becomes an interesting field of experiment where the society is split into two polarized groups: those who oppose the government and those who support it at all costs. While the former ones are extremely concerned for democracy and basic human rights, the latter seems to be ready to suspend all these rights for the sake of another term for the government.

These events have thrown up new questions. The “heroes of the periphery” seem to have swallowed whole the political strategies of their former foes. Will the “new elite” be even more protectionist than the old? What will be the outcomes in the next few years?

The aim of this book is to provide some background from an “insider” perspective for journalists, academics, researchers, and students who study Turkey’s internal and external relations and who look to the country as an experiment of democratic evolution. I also hope it will be illuminating and interesting for the general reader.

The opposite of altruism is the stinginess and selfishness that arise from avarice and attachment to this world. Both stinginess and selfishness are regarded as reasons for becoming distanced from the Creator, the created, and Paradise.^[1] While stinginess arises from avarice and attachment to the world, generosity, benevolence, and perfect goodness arise from altruism.

Generosity means that believers give some of their belongings to others without feeling any unease in the heart. Benevolence means considering one’s own happiness as dependent on the happiness of others and, more than that, putting the welfare of others ahead of one’s own happiness. As for perfect goodness or excellence (ihsan), it means preferring others, even when one is in need oneself. The Qur’an points to such excellence or the highest degree of altruism in this verse (59:9): They feel in their hearts no displeasure because of whatever the others are given, but rather give them preference over themselves, even though poverty be their own lot.

Altruism is valuable when one attains and follows it freely; it has no value if one is forced or if one performs such an act not out of one’s own free will.

The generosity and benevolence that arise from and are dimensions of altruism have degrees, as follows:

• Sacrificing one’s soul in God’s way (for God’s cause), therefore for the sake of belief and for the good of the believers, is considered the highest degree of nobility.
• Being able, when it is necessary, to renounce a (rightful) claim to leadership or similar high position for the well-being and unity of society, is seen as altruism one step below the first degree.
• Preferring the (economic) welfare of others over one’s own, is a third degree of nobility.
• Allowing others to benefit from one’s knowledge and ideas without expecting anything in return, is a virtue not quite as noble as the previous ones.
• Giving to others out of one’s income – this includes responsibilities for the giving of the prescribed and voluntary alms (zakah and sadaqa).
• Showing warmth, speaking soft and kind words, being of use to others, and being the means of various instances of good – these are examples of altruism that almost anyone can strive for in any situation.

The first of these degrees of generosity and benevolence is a profound and fundamental dimension of altruism that not everyone can achieve. Mawlana Jami’,^[2] the author of Baharistan (The Land of Spring), expresses it most memorably:

It is easy to show generosity with gold and silver
Worthy of respect is he who shows generosity with his soul.

Among the characteristics and degrees of those who practice altruism are:

• Offering food and feeding others at the cost of one’s own hunger and thirst, and neglecting oneself in the provision of others. Provided that no one’s rights are violated, this is a virtue characteristic of truly pious, saintly people.
• Despite all adversities, spending whatever one has as a favor from God in God’s way and purely for His good pleasure, and in such a disinterested manner that one forgets what good one has done. This virtue is particular to those with considerable nearness to God, who take far greater pleasure in giving than receiving.
• Attributing to God exclusively all the accomplishments with which one is favored without seeing oneself as the agent of any good and, without expecting any return, even in the form of spiritual pleasures, for all that one does for God’s sake, always being aware of Him and experiencing oneself as the shadow of the light of His existence.

This last one is the attitude and practice of those nearest to God, including primarily the noblest of humankind and the greatest of all times and places, upon him be peace and God’s blessings. His Ascension is a demonstration of his being accorded the highest honor and being sought after (by all the angels and many among human beings and jinn) as a reward for his incessant efforts for perfect knowledge of God. His return from the realms beyond the heavens to be among people in this world is such a great degree of altruism that nobody else has ever been able to achieve it. His emerging from Paradise and letting his profuse tears fall into the pits of Hell for the salvation of humankind expresses the greatest possible altruism.

O God! For the sake of your chosen Prophet, Muhammad, make us of those who do not begrudge what has been given to their brothers-in-religion, but prefer them to themselves, even though poverty be their lot, and may Your blessings and peace be on our master Muhammad and on His family and Companions.

^[1] Sunan al-Tirmidhi, “Birr,” 40.

^[2] Mawlana Nur al-Din ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Ahmad al-Jami’ (1414-1492), commonly called the last great classical poet of Persia, and saint, composed numerous lyrics and idylls, as well as many works in prose. His Salaman and Absal is an allegory of profane and sacred love. Some of his other works include Haft Awrang, Tuhfat al-Ahrar, Layla wu Majnun, Fatihat al-Shabab, Lawa’ih, al-Durrah. (Trans.)

How can animals in the wild hunt during the night as if it were day? A remarkable biological feature acts as a pair of “natural” night vision goggles.

Animals can move and even hunt in the pitch-dark of the night. How do these animals see comfortably in the dark? How are their eyes different from ours?

Anatomically, the eye consists of three layers called the Tunica fibrosa (outer layer), the Tunica vasculosa (mid layer), and the Tunica nervosa (retina). The outer layer of the eye is composed of the sclera and cornea; the middle section of choroidea, corpus ciliare, and the iris; and the inner section of the retina.

Light rays reflected off objects first pass through the eye’s translucent layer (the cornea), then into the black round part located in the front of the eye (pupillae, or pupil), and later go through the lenses. The colored section around the pupil, covered by smooth muscles, is in charge of regulating the amount of light entering the eye. The real and inverted image of an object is projected on the retina by the refraction of light through the lens; the image is transmitted to the optical center of the brain as a result of nerve cell stimulation via the optical nerves. Sight happens as a result of these causal chains.

Now, there is a twist to all this: the optical center in the brain accepts spots that do not emit light as black. For humans, this means a loss of sight. Black objects are not visible because they absorb and keep all the light reaching them. 

How could these animals, without night vision goggles, see in pitch blackness despite having the same optical mechanisms as humans?  

The answer to this question was hidden in an anatomic structure (tapetum lucidum) located in the eyes of some vertebrates. This special structure, lacking in humans, monkeys, squirrels, birds, red kangaroos, and some other mammals, is found in equines, ruminants, and many carnivores. This structure is located in the cytoplasm of the choroidea layers in between the innermost light sensitive ocular layer and sclera, and it acts like a biological reflector. With its crystalline composition of varying colors from golden yellow to white, tapetum lucidum is a wonder of creation. The eyes of these animals shine when a light source is projected due to the aforementioned structure.

The primary task of this formation is to reflect the light which is projected to the rear section of the eye again without absorbing it. This happens due to the crystalline makeup. Thus, lower light levels are enhanced by the repeated reflection in the eye, and sight is enabled for animals.  The second job of Tapetum lucidum is to elevate the sensitivity of the retina to light in order to transmit signals with no stimulation strength to the optical center.

This reminds us of night vision goggles. Night vision cameras are electro-optical devices that strengthen the light that is present. Light enters this device through the lens and hits the charged cathode, which has a lot of high energy. The energy load hits the phosphorous screen where the image is focused after passing through the vacuum inside the charger. The image is an enhanced picture on the phosphorous screen and it is not visible directly through the object. Tapetum lucidum however, is such an artistic work that it cannot even be compared with the night vision systems of technology. While the lifespan of a night vision system is only 2,500–4,000 hours (104–167 days), animals with Tapetum lucidum can benefit from this for a lifetime. The newest night vision systems, with a maximum optic range of 30-120 meters, cannot provide sight under light conditions one fourth of the moon’s illumination strength, whereas animals with Tapetum lucidum can see objects hundreds of meters away in much dimmer light.

This isn’t the only example of how masterfully and diverse eyes can be. Damseflies have over 30,000 simple eyes, called ommatids; eagles can see their prey from thousands of feet above them. 

By the principle that “certain things are appreciated best in their absence,” if we imagine a dark night in which we are unable to see anything and cannot even step a foot safely, we can perhaps understand that Tapetum lucidum is a great blessing for these animals.

Reference

Veterinary Ophthalmology (2004) 7, 1,11–22. Comparative morphology of the tapetum lucidum (among selected species), F. J. Ollivier,* D. A. Samuelson, D. E. Brooks, P. A.Lewis, M. E. Kallberg and A. M. Komáromy.

Discussions over personal liberty and government intervention are as old as modern governments, as J.S. Mill’s writings show.

John Stuart Mill was among the many philosophers, both before and after, who attempted to determine when government intervention in the private lives of individuals was legitimate.  The authoritarian regimes of 19^th century Europe triggered thinkers to study citizen’s rights and state powers.  Mill attempted to regulate the actions of these authoritarian regimes by distinguishing between legitimate and illegitimate government intervention in his book On Liberty.  Mill’s ideas were one influence among many on the structure and laws of the modern nation state.  Using his ideas on freedom and government as a starting point, we can discuss psychological harm, human fallibility, and social responsibilities.

Mill, in On Liberty, identifies two mechanisms for determining legitimate government intervention: the harm principle and utilitarianism.  The harm principle states that government can only legitimately interfere with the actions of individuals if the actions of the individuals harm others against their will.  Thus, if an action does not harm another against their will, the government cannot interfere.  Notice that an individual can harm themselves or even other people with the appropriate consent.  Effectively, the harm principle constitutes an absolute bar to government intervention on unharmful private action.

The second mechanism, utilitarianism, comes into play after government intervention is considered to be legitimate due to harmful consequences of private actions.  At this point, the government must do a utility calculation, or a cost-benefit analysis, in which it must determine whether government intervention will result in more harm than the private action it will attempt to stop.  If the analysis indicates that government intervention will result in more harm, government intervention would be considered illegitimate, and vice versa.  Thus, while the harm principle constituted an absolute categorical bar, the utilitarianism mechanic requires a case-by-case determination of the legitimacy of government intervention.

In order to apply the harm principle it is important not only to know what the principle is, but also what constitutes harm.  The broader the definition of harm becomes, the larger the pool of actions that the government can interfere with becomes.  In general, the classification of physical damage to body and property as harm is generally accepted by society as well as by Mill.  However, the definition of harm can include things other than just physical damage.  In order to properly apply the harm principle, it must be determined whether psychological harm and failure to act can be classified as harm, warranting government intervention.

Psychological Harm

Can feeling distress, being upset, or experiencing psychological harm due to another individual’s actions be categorized as harm?  If one were to accept distress as harm, then the definition of harm has effectively been broadened to include every instance in which one feels discomfort or is upset by another’s action, expanding the sphere of legitimate government intervention.

Mill does not determine distress or psychological harm to be harm.  The distress or psychological harm Mill refers to is one originating from a disagreement of values between two individuals.  For example, one individual may like the color blue while another dislikes it.  The distress, anger, resentment, or any other negative feelings the other may feel when the first wears a blue shirt is the psychological harm that Mill refers to.  A more consequential example would be the distress that a Democrat may feel about the ideas expressed at a Republican rally.  The views expressed at the rally are clearly contrary to the individual’s beliefs, yet the distress originating from this ideological difference cannot be categorized as harm.  If it was categorized as harm, then the government could intervene whenever actions or speech was contrary to the ideology and beliefs of the most powerful or the most vocal.

Mill, in On Liberty, states that “unless we are willing to adopt the logic of persecutors, and to say that we may persecute others because we are right and they must not persecute us because they are wrong, we must beware of admitting a principle of which we should resent as a gross injustice the application to ourselves” (1).  Here he attempts to stop the use of the harm principle in attempts to impose beliefs or one’s own moral values on others.  He argues that imposing views on another is wrong, because one would not want others to impose their views on them.  Additionally, Mill emphasizes the fallibility of human reasoning and preferences, stating that despite one’s conviction in one’s own position in an argument, there is always the possibility of error.

Admittance of the fallibility is not only a sign of humility and recognition of possibilities, but also a very real demonstration of understanding one’s own limitations inherent in being human.  This principle has been recognized and applied by many scholars and thinkers in addition to Mill, like Socrates and Said Nursi.  For example, in The Republic, Plato quotes Socrates as exclaiming “[a]s for me, all I know is that I know nothing” (2).

Similarly, Said Nursi demonstrates the same recognition of the fallibility of human beings in his Risale-i Nur and attributes true knowledge only to God.  This is clearly displayed in his use of text from the Quran at the beginning and ending of all the chapters in The Words. Thus, Nursi begins his work by drawing from what he considers the true source of knowledge and ends with that same infallible source.

Lastly, English philosopher Thomas Hobbes seems to support Mill’s position against persecution by arguing in Leviathan that “do not that to another, which thou wouldst not have done to thyself” (3).  Hobbes’ view is in effect a version of the golden rule, limiting social interaction to only actions one would deem acceptable if done to him/her.  In congruence with Hobbes’s golden rule, Mill argues that imposing one’s views on others is wrong, and that feeling upset due to the failure of others to conform to those views is not harm.  Thus, even if the actions of an individual upset or cause psychological harm to others, the government cannot legitimately interfere.

Failure to Act

Though Mill prevents distress or psychological harm from being used to legitimize government intervention over an individual’s actions, he permits failure to act to be classified as harm.  In situations where a failure to act causes a negative or harmful outcome, government intervention would be legitimate.  For example, the government may prosecute a firefighter if his negligence allowed a building to burn down.  However, classifying failure to act or inaction as harm is dangerous, because people are not capable of infinite actions in a moment.  The jurisdiction of government intervention is expanded tremendously by this classification.  Why would Mill, who constructed a mechanism for limiting government intervention, expand government power in this way? And what restraints can be applied to the failure-to-act classification?

Socrates’ ideas, as expressed in The Republic by Plato, provide some insight into answering the previous questions.  After examining Plato’s views in The Republic, it is possible to claim that Socrates would agree with Mill in including the failure-to-act as harm.  His definition of a just society is a society in which everyone is doing their job or role in society (4).  From this, one can assume that a just action within a society would be whatever action is in accordance with the job of the individual as determined by his soul and position in society.  Thus, failure to perform one’s job would then be classified as an unjust action by Plato, open to government intervention for the restoration of social justice.

Socrates’ view seems to emphasize the nature of the action that the individual is failing to do.  If the failure to act involved the failure to do one’s job in society, then the failure to act would be considered unjust.  On the other hand, if the failure to act involved inaction about an issue that was not the individual’s responsibility, then it is possible to conclude that the failure to act in this instance is not an unjust action.  Thus, this approach distinguishes between a firefighter who chooses not to stop a fire from a regular citizen who chooses not to stop a fire.  The firefighter neglects his responsibility, opening him to criminal prosecution, while the regular citizen’s inaction is not open to prosecution.  By allowing the failure to act to be considered as harm, Mill avoided conflicting with the conditional nature of determining whether the failure to act is just or unjust as extrapolated from Plato’s views.

Socrates’ and Mill’s analysis regarding the failure to act is based solely on the legal and formal responsibilities of the individual.  The police have a responsibility to stop crime, and parents have a responsibility to take care of their children, etc.  Each nation’s unique constitution and laws make legal responsibilities country-specific and unique.  For example, many European states, like Germany and France, require citizens to provide assistance to persons in danger (5).  However, the duty to rescue those in peril does not exist in other countries, like the United States (6).  Of course, most people call the authorities for help and attempt to provide first-aid, but the fact remains that in most of the United States, there is no legal obligation to rescue.  Each country determines the legal responsibilities of its citizens, some choosing to expand and some choosing to restrict the extent of responsibilities.

For many people, informal responsibilities extend beyond formal responsibilities; these are often based on the individual’s religion, culture, and ethics.  While government intervention may not be legitimate for failures of informal responsibilities according to Mill, informal responsibilities constitute an important piece of the society.  For example, children have an informal responsibility to care for their parents, especially during their old age.  If children ignore this responsibility, the government cannot and should not intervene.  After all, the government is not the ultimate solution for every social problem, and each member of the country may not believe in the same informal responsibilities due to different culture, religion, and ethics.  Instead, the true solutions to failures in informal responsibilities are education in social values and decency, social structures, communities, and institutions.

Mill’s principles on government intervention in the lives of free people provided a platform to discuss psychological harm and social responsibilities.  Government can provide solutions for certain social issues, but not for all.  In recognition of this, Mill wrote of an alternative limited government to the authoritarian regimes of his time.  In this alternative, conflicting and controversial ideologies could co-exist, and government would only regulate formal responsibilities.  The burden rests on the society to care for the informal responsibilities.

Notes

1. Mill, John Stuart. On Liberty, 155
2. Plato, The Republic, (Plato 354c, book 1)
3. Hobbes, Thomas. Leviathan. Pt. 1, Ch. 15, para. 35
4. Kara, Mahmut. “Rethinking Plato: Philosophical Idealism and Political Totalitarianism.” Fountain Magazine, April-June 2001.
5. Weinrib, Ernest J. “The Case for a Duty to Rescue.” The Yale Law Journal , Vol. 90, No. 2 (Dec., 1980), pp. 247-293 Published by: The Yale Law Journal Company, Inc. URL:<http://www.jstor.org/stable/795987>.
6. Yania v. Bigan, 397 Pa. 316, 155 A.2d 343 (1959)

There is blood and sweat on the brow of the past
Iron fetters on its feet,      
A bitter smile on its lips.
What a red spirit it clashed with…


There is still occasional darkness on the horizon;
However, day follows the night…
Autumn fell in and all the orchards decayed.
Leaves turned yellow and flowers faded.

The hero died, and his steed was tired;
He had fought with a huge malicious demon.

Now even if it seems impossible for him to return, 

We’re waiting for him at rosy dawns…
The crowns that once shone,
The slopes that opened their bosoms to the crowned.

Emerald trees on golden slopes,
Reached the caravan of separation and left.


There’s a spark from that frightful extinction

There are messages in the spark from the return.

Are cities the same as water? It’s possible to look at chemistry for new understandings of social dynamics.

The universe is a field where existence is transformed from state to state. The transformation of matter from one state to another is generally called a “phase transition” and each phase has its own characteristics. A phase transition is possible via the alteration of some parameters and variables. For instance, heat is one of the parameters required for the transition of ice (solid) into water (liquid) and later into vapor (gas); the increased heat causes ice to change states. The characteristic feature of each phase (ice, water, and vapor) is unique. For example, ice has a certain volume; however water and vapor take the shapes of their containers. In contrast to ice, water and vapor have flowing properties.

In a similar way, if the temperature of a ferromagnetic material displaying magnetic properties is elevated, at a certain temperature, it is observed to lose its magnetism; this is called the “Curie point.” In some materials, such as some solutions, the transition into different phases can be achieved by adding solvents.

Seasons can also be considered different phases. Each season has its own specific traits and features. Seasons are generated by the alteration of the angle between the axis of earth and its orbital plane.

As these examples show, the universe resembles an erase board where continuous transitions are taking place, new sentences are being written, and existing writings are dismissed to form new sentences with new meanings.

In a recently completed academic study, a new definition of a phase transition encountered in social life has been made and this phase transition is called “freezing by heating” [1]. It is well known in daily life that the less individuals are informed about their temper and the direction they are headed, the weaker the efficiency of cooperation among individuals. If people in a unit or group behave irregularly, a dead end or bottleneck could occur. Solving dead-end problems and bottleneck situations, or preventing them before they happen, is among the topics scientists study today. In Figure 1, cases showing the traffic stream of people moving in opposite directions obtained in this study are displayed.

It is stated that there is less “noise” in situations in which there is a reduced amount of irregular behavior taking place. The term “noise” is used to define concepts that can be disruptive human relations. The higher the noise, the more the degradation of human relationships, and as a result, a disruption or even an arrest (freezing) may happen regarding social events. The elevated temperature of a melting solid material provides it with the properties of a fluid, whereas in social events, an increase in temperature ends up with a jam and freeze in social life. In Figure 1a, a pedestrian traffic flow in which there is less noise present – in other words, a situation that characterizes ideal relations among people – is displayed. Here, it is observed that people with yellow marks have a stable flow towards the left and those with red marks move towards the right side. They do so via lanes of people going towards both directions. A stable flow indicates that the system is not frozen (not in an arrest), or free of a bottleneck. In such a flow, relations work in such a way that fluidity results.

Figure 1

An intermediate noise level causes an increase of irregular behaviors (in other terms, unpredictable human behavior) and shows the presence of serious problems that are experienced regarding the relationships among people. The corresponding situation for this case is shown on Figure 1b. Here, the pedestrian traffic is now jammed and the flow is almost halted. It is impossible for lanes to form since irregular behaviors are above a certain critical level. For a system to be rescued out of this state, oscillations of sufficient magnitude are necessary.

If the situation in Figure 1c occurs, forming a vertical interface (please note the vertical interface that separates people going left and right), this case is called a “frozen state” and much bigger oscillations are required to get out of this state. Figures 1a, 1b, and 1c exhibit before our eyes how elevated noise affects pedestrian traffic: an increase of the noise in the system (for instance, an increase in the number of people who do not stop at red lights and do not continue on green) changes it from a fluid phase to a frozen one, resulting in gridlock. It is possible to compare the increased noise of the pedestrian traffic to an increase in temperature; the elevation of temperature also causes an abundance of irregular movements inside matter. Just like that, the rise of heat in a society due to a particular issue (like turmoil or other problems) may generate an increase in chaotic behaviors. Let’s try to explain this with certain events happening right now.

Let’s think about motor vehicle traffic in any city. If every individual driver observes the rules of the road, this means a low temperature – less noise, and little traffic. Fluidity is present here. On the contrary, if there is not any consensus in terms of traffic rules among the citizens – in other terms, if majority of the people are failing to abide the rules – there will be “heat”; the noise will be high, and there will be a traffic jam. If drivers cannot assess the rules at a four way intersections, or if people with no knowledge of red, yellow, or green lights are driving, a city will have a major problem with traffic.

When a freezing event takes place, waiting becomes inevitable. Unfortunately, most people don’t like waiting. Thus, such “freezing” events should be avoided, so as to keep citizens happy. For example, public announcements of road closures due to scheduled road works limit the reactions against traffic problems on certain routes. However, if traffic is announced and no reason is given, people might still be very unhappy.

For a second example, let’s consider a judiciary system. Just like the example of motor vehicle traffic, the presence of irregular moves independent from rules can lock a legal system. If laws are insufficient, or existing laws are not universally implemented nationwide, or the laws are executed and interpreted differently according to individuals, it is inevitable for a bottleneck or a freeze in the legal system. Actors within the system may anticipate a “freeze” about to happen. People in a state of anticipation need to be convinced and satisfied pertaining to legal practices. Otherwise, they may not enforce the laws properly, and legal chaos may ensue.

Freezing by heating may also apply for certain economic processes. Some economic uncertainties or some actions of unknown cause can be considered as noise by elements of the economy, thus enforcing a behavioral change that is able to affect the entire economy. Therefore, any applied change is followed carefully by the actors of the market and these actors must be satisfied about the changes taking place. Higher noise levels and dissatisfaction of members who are waiting affects the liquidity of the market and can lead to the withdrawal of funds. Withdrawal of money negatively impacts the parties who are in need of cash in various ways and the economic system gains momentum towards a “frozen state.” Negative factors are not the only reason for a bottle neck. Conservation of balance and the fluidity of the economic system are considered as the essence of this issue.

The principles briefly given above can also be applied to socio-psychological events. It is impossible not to encounter a bottleneck for a society consisting of members who are aggressive, stressed, or have less knowledge of their destinations. If a decision can be made with a peaceful state of mind and there is no doubt present regarding current practices, patience becomes the most important parameter. Hence, until a state of balance is established, it is advised to wait with understanding and patience. Patience is a healing aid that plays a role in reducing the temperature in all bottleneck situations.

Fasting prayer is very important for people in terms of gaining this habit. Even for a person who observes fasting one day or two in a week, it becomes more possible to deal positively with any bottleneck situations encountered that week. Another way to lessen the impact of a bottleneck is living to be aware of the fact that each event may serve a purpose. As Nursi stated, each negative or positive event that has been experienced has a purpose. Every event will be over once its purpose is reached. For a sincere believer who is aware of this, realizing that patience also means to appreciate time; thus, it is possible for him to disperse the negative elements that this waiting will bring.

It is possible to expand the “freezing by heating” phase transition to various different mediums across many other disciplines. However, the only necessary element in all of them to prevent such freezes, or to break present freezes, is the reduction of noise (temperature). It’s possible to find guidance by acknowledging that this world is a place of wisdom and service, and rewards do not always come in this life.

References

1. Dirk Helbing, Illes J. Farkas, Tamas Vicsek, “Freezing by Heating in a Driven Mesoscopic System,” Physical Review Letters 84, 1240-1243 (2000).
2. H.Eugene Stanley, “Non-equilibrium Physics: Freezing by Heating,” Nature 404, 718-719 (2000).