Going Where

Will the Season a Presidential Candidate is Born Influence the Outcome of the 2008 Presidential Election? (Part 2 of 2)

Both Native American tradition and hundreds of scientific studies show that the season in which you are born has a profound influence on our lives. Will these influences have any effect on the 2008 Presidential race?*

    

Why Romney and Giuliani lost to McCain and Huckabee

In Part 1 of this article, we looked the relationship between season of birth and the outcome of American Presidential elections. There were a number of surprising findings. According to Native American Tradition, those born in the spring are builders of communities, they have a strong relationship to their higher purpose in life, and their spiritual beliefs are important to them. Both Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani are spring births.

   

What's interesting to note about each of these men is the different roles that they have played in their respective communities. Romney successfully worked with the world community to clean up the mess with the U.S. Olympics. He led the effort to create universal health care in Massachusetts. He is a deacon in his church.

    

Giuliani was instrumental in leading New York City through the terrible days following 9/11. His programs reduced crime throughout the City and improved the quality of numerous neighborhoods. Each of these achievements coincides with what Native Americans believe to be the best about the spiritual or community part of the Wheel.

The challenge is that in the last 108 years, Americans have only elected one President who was born in the spring, John F. Kennedy. Americans today prefer their Presidents to have feeling—that’s why we have elected so many Presidents who are born in the summer, the “feeling” part of the year.

The Triumph of Hope and Feeling

Prior to Romney, Giuliani, and Thompson dropping out of the campaign, Republicans couldn’t seem to get behind a single candidate. The reason? Huckabee, McCain, Paul, and Thompson are all born in August. So were Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Since 1988, all of our Presidents have been born in the summer. It seems highly probable that 2008 will repeat the same pattern. This will be a foregone conclusion if Obama wins the Democratic nomination. Hillary, who was born in October (fall), is the only remaining candidate who is not a summer birth.

      

Those born in the summer have nervous systems that are able cope with stress and adrenaline more effectively than those born at other times of the year can. This may explain part of McCain’s ability to survive torture in Viet Nam. It may also explain why he has a reputation as a hothead. In fact, bad tempers are common to those who are born in the summer. Bill Clinton’s temper has been on display as have Huckabee’s and Obama’s as well.

    

The positive side of those born in the summer is their ability to inspire others emotionally. Numerous research studies show how important hope and optimism is in keeping us healthy. Furthermore, Americans as a group, tend to be optimistic. Ronald Reagan played well to this in his Presidential bid. Bill Clinton billed himself as “The Man from Hope.” Huckabee and Obama have had success with a similar approach. Furthermore, when Huckabee was asked why he refused to drop out of contention, his response was “My passion keeps me in the race.” Emotions are what America wants and Americans love an underdog. This also helps to explain why Ron Paul’s supporters are so loyal and passionate about his candidacy.

    

Hillary's Uphill Battle

Hillary’s initial campaign played upon her experience and her ideas. This is exactly right for her. Native Americans believe that strength results when you move with the energies of the seasons in sequence. In Hillary’s case, her starting place is in the fall or the physical. The correct “sequence” for her would be winter, mental; spring, belief; and summer, feeling.

    

The challenge for Hillary is that she is now being forced to play in the realm of feeling. In fact, many believe that Hillary’s emotional tears help her to win the New Hampshire primary. For Hillary to go to her “feelings” is akin to going backwards from fall to summer. It’s not what is natural for her. As a result, many people felt that her tears weren’t real.

    

Obama's and Huckabee's Challenge

Obama and Huckabee have created an interesting challenge for themselves if you consider the model of moving forward following the seasons. Huckabee has made his religious/spiritual beliefs the cornerstone of his campaign. This is akin to moving from the summer to the spring. It’s backwards. Huckabee has done better when he focused on his achievements as governor (experience—moving from summer/emotion to fall/ physical accomplishment.)

    

Obama has been likened to JFK. He possesses the emotional power to excite audiences and to make them feel hope and optimism. He paints the picture of a better world community, one where we share the wealth and everyone has access to health care. The challenge he faces, however, is that he lacks Hillary’s and McCain’s experience. For a person born in the summer, the physical experience or what he has accomplished in the past (what he knows) is the next logical step to creating desired outcomes. Focusing exclusively on feelings and beliefs ignores the wisdom that comes from experience as well as the logic necessary to implement the changes that he wants to make.

    

McCain's Secret Advantage

For John McCain to go from his feelings to his experience is the same as moving from summer to fall. It’s a natural progression according to Native American tradition. So far, this combination has lead McCain to be the likely nominee. The question is will it lead to the Presidency?

       

When You Play with Fire, You Will Probably Get Burned

America is in an era where emotions seem to be more important than logic. Democrats have been rightfully concerned about a major battle on the convention floor for their nomination. This fight could be brutal. Unlike the Republicans who have their convention in September (the fall or “harvest” time of year), the Democrats are holding their convention in August, the height of the emotional time of year according to Native Tradition. People who are passionate now will be even more so in August. The challenge is that when people become highly emotional and they don’t get their way, it’s easy for them to act out of spite. This means a huge block of voters may vote for McCain to retaliate for their candidate not getting the nomination.

    

Bottom line—no matter what happens we’ll have a South or summer born President living in the White House. The question is whether it will be Barack Obama, John McCain, or First Husband Bill Clinton.

   

*See Part 1 for an explanation of each of the seasons and their meaning. 

   

Posted by Bernice Ross

Photos by Marcn , Dan Delay,

Bernice Ross, Ph.D. is the author of Going Where, Ancient Wisdom for People Today, a ground-breaking work that marries scientific research with ancient Native American traditions to guide readers to creating happier and more fulfilling lives.

Will the Season a Presidential Candidate is Born Influence the Outcome of the 2008 Presidential Election? (Part 1 of 2)

Native Americans believe that the season in which we are born influences the energy that we carry throughout our lives. Surprisingly, hundreds of scientific studies support this traditional belief. Could the season in which a President is born actually have an important influence on the mark they will leave in American history? Could it possibly influence the outcome of the 2008 Presidential election?

According to Native American tradition, winter or “North” on the Native American Medicine Wheel (December, January, or February) is the time you do your mental planning or thinking for the year ahead. Spring or “East” (March, April, or May) is the time you plant, which involves an act of faith that your plants will grow. Springtime relates to your higher purpose and your beliefs as well as how you interact with your community. In the summer or “South” (June, July, or August), you nourish what you have planted. Summer is about feelings and emotions. In the fall or “West” (September, October, or November) you reap your physical harvest. Fall is about past experience, physical activity, and what you know.

The science and the ancient wisdom agree on the fact that winter births are more thinking oriented, summer births are stronger emotionally, and that fall births have a physical advantage. Currently, there is no research showing that spring births are more belief-oriented; however, there is considerable research that shows that thinking, believing, feeling, and knowing use different parts of the brain.

Does America have a preference for certain candidates based upon season of birth? Assuming that season of birth does have an influence, what, if any effect would it have on the outcome of the election for 2008? Length of Term When we examine the season in which each of our past presidents were born, we see a perfect distribution: 11 born in the winter; 10 born in the spring; 10 born in summer; and 12 born in fall.

The Table below, however, shows some very interesting patterns that appear to also be playing out in this year’s Presidential election.

Spring born Presidents Support America’s Vision of Community: “All men are created equal.” During the first 111 years of our existence, 52 percent of the time, our country was lead by Presidents born in the Spring or “East” part of the Medicine Wheel. Of our first ten Presidents, five (50 percent) were born in the spring. According to Native Tradition, the East is about your community, your spiritual beliefs, and/or your higher purpose in life. Americans believe in equality and fair play. We have willingly opened our arms to people from all over the world and probably have the most ethnically diverse culture in the world. Today we still strive to create communities where “All men are created equal.”

2. 1901 to 2008: A Profound Shift—the Vision Left Behind? At the beginning of the 20th Century, there was a profound shift from a preference for spring born Presidents to those born in the winter or in the summer. In fact, in the last 108 years, Americans have only elected one President born in the spring—John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was a visionary who tapped the best of the qualities of spring births—community, giving back to others, and creating a vision of a better world. Since he’s the only 20th Century President that was born in the spring, it’s not surprising that he will also be remembered as the most inspirational and visionary President of that Century.

3. Ten Times More Feeling: Prior to 1900, America elected only two summer born Presidents—John Quincy Adams and Henry Harrison. Adams served 1461 days and Harrison served only 31 days. That’s 1,492 days (under 4 years) out of 111 years. In stark contrast from 1901 to 2008, summer-born Presidents have served 16,427 days or over 10 times as much time as before 1901. In fact, since the end of World War II, six out of our 11 Presidents (54.5 percent) have been summer births.

4. Spring and Fall Contenders Lose Big Time In the last 108 years: Presidential contenders born in the summer have won 75 percent of the elections in which they competed vs. 69 percent for those born in the winter. In sharp contrast to winter and summer born contenders, those born in the spring have only won 1/12 elections (8.5 percent—the 1960 Kennedy win) and those born in the fall have only won 3/12 (25 percent) of the elections in which they competed.

Is there a reason that Hillary continues to emphasize her experience while Obama and Huckabee are on a message of Hope? What made John McCain the choice over Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani? Why are Ron Paul’s followers so emotionally committed to him? How will McCain fare against Hillary or Obama? In part 2 of “Will the Season a Presidential Candidate is Born Influence the Outcome of the 2008 Presidential Election?” we’ll look at what Native Tradition can tell us about the candidates as well as the challenges they will face.

Posted by Bernice Ross, Ph.D. the author of Going Where, Ancient Wisdom for People Today, a ground-breaking work that marries scientific research with ancient Native American traditions to guide readers to creating happier and more fulfilling lives.

Photos by SoggyDan and DCJohn

Loving vs. Liking

You can only love that which God created, but you may like that which man created. You have to accept the part you have created. What you do with what God created, creates what you do for you that you like. You create what you like. You use God’s gifts to create more for yourself.

The Bible begins with the story of creation and ends with the destruction of the apocalypse. Each of us has a birth date and a time when we will die. How we choose to fill our time on earth is our decision. In fact, many people believe that we create our own reality. Is this really true? Are we actually responsible for what happens to u? Or are we totally without power to do nothing more than respond to whatever life and fate dish out to us?

Imagine for a moment if you were completely responsible for everything that happens to you. There are no accidents and no chance happenings. Instead, everything springs from your thoughts. If you were unhappy or if bad things kept happening to you, would you continue keep thinking in the same way or would you change your thoughts? What would happen if you could create exactly what you like by altering your thoughts?

Well, you don’t expect me to believe that someone who is hit by a drunk driver is responsible for deliberately creating that situation?
Didn’t the person who was accidentally struck by a drunk driver make a decision to be out on the road at that time rather than at home? Didn’t that person have a series of thoughts leading to a chain of events that brought him or her to that particular place and moment in time? Clearly there were two sets of thoughts, two sets of actions, that lead these two individuals to cross paths in such a horrific manner. If the drunk had chosen not to drink, the accident could have been averted. If the victim had chosen to stay home, the accident could have been averted, but who is to know?  Who is at cause? 

Challenge:  Each of us has a gift (and probably more than one). What is your great gift?  Do you keep it to yourself or do you share it with others? For the next week, make it a point to share your greatest gift with at least one person each day. At the end of the week, have you created more or less for yourself? And if you have created more, why not continue to share your gift and create even more?

Posted by Bernice Ross, author of Going Where, Ancient Wisdom for People Today and Marilyn Naylor

Photo by raj_nair81

Make a Telephone Call? That’s Way too Confrontational!

Recently, a Boomer was chatting with her Gen Y niece who needed some information. The aunt suggested calling the person.  Her niece's response, "That's way too confrontational!" The generations definitely differ in terms of they communicate.

For the first time in history, the way we communicate with each other is contingent upon the generation into which we were born. Traditionalists (born before 1946) and Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), often don't get texting and social networking. They prefer face-to-face, telephone, or email communication. In contrast, Gen X (born 1964 to 1977) and Gen Y (born 1977 to 1994) prefer texting and instant messaging.

The Native American Medicine Wheel is an excellent tool for coping with these differences. Native American tradition holds that the season in which you are born influences the energy you carry throughout your life. Thus, winter (December, January, or February) is the time you do your mental planning or thinking for the year ahead. Spring (March, April, or May) is the time you plant, which involves an act of faith that your plants will grow. Springtime relates to your higher purpose and your beliefs as well as how you interact with your community. In the summer (June, July, or August) you nourish what you have planted. Summer is about feelings and emotions. In the fall (September, October, or November) you reap your physical harvest. Fall is about past experience, physical activity, and what you know.

How does this play out in terms of generational communication? The best place to look is how each generation approaches the community, spiritual, or belief part of the Wheel.

Traditionalists believe in respect, responsibility, and self sacrifice. Many willingly sacrificed what they held to be most dear for the higher good. This is the ultimate service to the community. They communicate best through traditional channels such as handwritten notes, face-to-face communication, and by telephone.

The challenge for Traditionalists is realizing that respect, duty, and responsibility do not resonate with younger generations. Many believe that out of respect, younger generations should communicate the way Traditionalists communicate. Younger generations typically expect Traditionalists to communicate the way that they do. Everyone suffers when they lack the flexibility to adjust their communication to fit the needs of others.

Boomers, the original Me Generation, focus more on their personal experience. Service to the community and self sacrifice is not as important as “finding” or “being true to yourself.” Nevertheless, making a difference to their community is a key belief for most Boomers.

In terms of communication, Boomers prefer handwritten, email, or telephone communication. Communication serves to build trust and relationships. From their perspective, you don’t build relationships by text messaging. Texting pales in comparison to face-to-face communication that is rich in body language or telephone communication that incorporates intonation, inflection, and numerous clues to the authenticity of the person sending the communication. Boomers believe that these other components are critical for effective communication. For them, service generally arises from personal beliefs rather than from duty or responsibility.

Gen X believes “Let’s break the rules” and "I’ll do it my way." When the Boomers went off to work to make money, many Gen X kids were left alone to figure things out without adult supervision. They learned to rely on themselves and their personal research to make decisions. As a group, most have poor people skills. The community is a place to research information from which you make your own decisions. This trait makes it hard for Gen X'ers to work collaboratively. They believe that personally researching information (the thinking or mental portion of the Wheel) is the best way to approach decisions.

Much to the frustration of their Boomer bosses, Gen X employees believe that the other generations rely on information in the same way that they do. Clearly, when Gen X works with Boomers or Traditionalists, this inability to build relationships and be of service hurts their chances for success. Their focus on the mental part of the Wheel (information) rather than the community part of the Wheel hurts their ability to be more effective.

Gen Y's focus is community based. The “New Me Generation,” approaches decision making based upon what their peers agree to be important. The challenge for Gen Y's is that they focus only on input from their peers without regard to the experience and wisdom of other generations. Furthermore, they have difficulty making decisions by themselves. They often rely on peer based data that has no basis in experience. Because they agree, it must be right.

Ultimately, the best thing we can do to communicate more effectively with each other is to ask, “How would you like me to communicate with you?” We must then be willing to meet the other person where they are in terms of their communication. The best of all possible approaches occurs when both parties are willing to adjust their style to fit the other person’s preferred communication style.

Posted by Bernice Ross

Photo by Phillie Casablanca

Actor vs. Reactor

Reactors transform the tiny atom to awesome power and there is always someone willing to manipulate the reactor to explode. Actors cannot be manipulated, for they see their choice and consequently, do not generate power for others. Instead, they use their strength to empower themselves.

When I was in grade school we had air raid drills rather than earthquake drills. As a child, I didn’t take too much of this very seriously until the night President Kennedy appeared on television to tell us about the missiles that were based in Cuba. As he announced his plans to blockade Cuba, I remember my fear that we were going to die because someone was going to start dropping atomic bombs.

As an adult who witnessed the end of the Cold War, I never expected to see my community going up in flames. Yet in April of 1992, that’s exactly what happened in Los Angeles. Sadly, it still continues to happen. People who have lost hope, who have constricted choices, now seek power by banding together in gangs or militia groups to protect what is rightfully theirs.  Instead of using their power to improve their community, they actively seek the violence of one explosion after another, often destroying not only their own homes in the process, but their being as well.   

But what can I do about this?
What would happen if each of us sought to unite rather than ignite?  If each of us would look for ways we can be in harmony with others as opposed to focusing on how we can exclude them or do things to make them angry, we could defuse much of the anger that surrounds us.

Challenge: Whenever you have the urge to ignite rather than unite, remember this quote from Ann Landers: “The next time you feel like fighting fire with fire, remember the fire department uses water.”

Posted by Bernice Ross, author of Going Where, Ancient Wisdom for People Today and Marilyn Naylor

Posted by bcmom