- Charles Zhang
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It is no longer possible for a society to regard any living man or woman as a hero in the modern age.
Because the reputation of anyone who is subjected to media scrutiny will eventually be diminished. It is really hard for the celebrity to keep a nice image to the public.













Mellecha Blake
edward long 100+
kamana kapu
Beata Stasak
http://beatastasak.hubpages.com/hub/PEOPLE-WHO-CHANGED-OUR-VIEW-OF-THE-WORLD-FOR-THE-GOOD
kamana kapu
Carlos Barahona
The only entity the human male can ever be a hero to is the human male."
The cliche voices "Never is such a long time" This quote is saying that its author had a timeless knowledge of history and consequently can predict the future. I do not intend to pass judgement to what you advocate but parting from the present and coining a meaning of hero, isn't a father his child's--girl or boy--hero? Doesn't a mother think of a particularly successful son as a hero?
Please let know the author to whose wisdom you emphatically support.
shawn disney 10+
shawn disney 10+
Jose Checo
Don Wesley 50+
I love your postive statement "a Hero will always be someone who stands to do what others do not dare,"
You express hope in our collective ability to overcome the "evil" of media business.
Don Wesley
Gao Popol
There are always heroic stories, and the protagonists of which are heroes. Nevertheless, these heroes are also ordinary human like all of us, and they would also make mistakes of even be evil in other circumstance.
Sorry I might neglect the problem about media, but that's something I think about hero.
Cristina Córdoba
There are thousands of people who do heroic things on daily basis. If we are afraid some people may judge the person why not talk about the deed? After all, the superheroes in comics keep their identities for a reason...
For mostly all the people, everywhere, saving a life, fighting with peace and flowers, teaching, getting up after a horrible experience, discovering a cure,... are heroic deeds; and as the world need so much good examples and hope, shouldnt we spread this news?
Mitch SMith 50+
They are falsified by worship, and they are falsified by villification.
What is a hero?
Nothing more than a behavioural ideal that some choose to follow.
All ideals are false.
But by action, we might become a hero to those we love.
And they will perfect it.
Leonard Ramirez
Mitch SMith 50+
I have said All ideals are false.
I have not said to abandon the quest.
As you follow it, it becomes more and more like a creature.
And .. then you become that creature.
Have you not done this yet?
We are not a perfection - we are a path.
We follow or we lead.
Leader and follower are perfection in progress.
To rest is to fail.
Don Wesley 50+
A hero according to Zimbardo, get things done by others.
His behavioural deed can be see in longitudinal studies with results seen centuries away.
And so I disagree with your seemingly hopeless view.
Don Wesley
Mitch SMith 50+
By definition, all first steps are wrong.
The hero is he/she who dares to take that step.
It s in the lovers f the hero that the second step is often taken.
And perfection might take many generations of love.
But it does not die.
Now - can you call me hopeless?
Don Wesley 50+
You have extended the debate into some other idea of logic, and extending is dishonest argument.
I will not follow you into your extended argument and therefore I haven't missed anything that is relevant to this debate.
Don Wesley
Mitch SMith 50+
It is consistent.
(btw - this is all in good spirit).
Don Wesley 50+
Start your own arguments Mitch.
I learned about dishonest argument when I was in High School and nothing has changed.
Very few take time to learn about dishonest arguing.
An argument will never end if you keep extending[unpacking to use your term] the argument that we have been invited to debate.
When someone can’t win an argument they will try to extend it; it is a common tactic used by lawyers.
I will acknowledge that unsolvable problems can often be resolved by extending borders of the paradigm; but this takes starting a different argument. Fairness says start a new argument. You seem to want the last word on everything Mitch.
I am sure you are a lovable guy Mitch.
Don Wesley
Mitch SMith 50+
I stand corrected.
And many thanks!
So, now on a more stabilised basis - can you explain "seemingly hopeless"?
Mitch
Don Wesley 50+
Now to your question "can you explain seemingly hopeless."
I am thinking and... yes maybe this will work.
Think about the statement "the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”
Now consider that anything else, must be misleading and in a court of law maybe considered perjury.
Now factor in Zimbardo’s lesson [the finest of lessons] which celebrates the hero and in doing so gives us hope.
What could be stronger lesson for negating Charles Zhang argument. Acknowledge the truth and beauty of his lesson and talk no more. Stand in awe of his creative offering; he will reciprocate if you announce something more creative.
To add more “seemingly unending talk” about unpacked ideas of your own, [where others can hang their opposite thoughts,]
minimizes Zimbardo’s lesson; a lesson of hope. Your talk is a story yet untested for its truth. He is in the spotlight right now; your turn may come later. Be humble Mitch and you will have followers. Adding more stories hides the full truth and therefore misleads; don’t be accused of perjury.
This I give to you Mitch; it is, what I believe.
Brotherly love,
Don Wesley
Mitch SMith 50+
This is quite a valuable gift - I am homoured.
I've also started working throough Zimbardo's Social fittness Challnege on his website.
Best regards
Mitch
Don Wesley 50+
You are I think on a new path to glory.
Don Wesley [From the Silent Generation]
Rich Perez
Don Wesley 50+
I believe your father was right.
I believe a very large society can be led to see a hero and sustain their new found belief.
"Never doubt that a small, group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." — Margaret Mead
shawn disney 10+
Fritzie Reisner 100+
Don Wesley 50+
I love you super short and vibrant argument; it is a winner.
Don Wesley
kamana kapu
The human female has never needed nor ever had a single male hero;
Neither will the human female ever need or ever have a single male hero.
The only entity the human male can ever be a hero to is the human male.
shawn disney 10+
Ranjith Annepu
Don Wesley 50+
Don Wesley 50+
However we do have the Internet which until now can be received without the "Media’s" message. Can we keep it free; "no", not without heroes who must reveal the evil that Media businesses can grow.
Kent Spencer 10+
Don Wesley 50+
In reply to an earlier question of mine, you wrote "Watching the talk, I just thought about the Chinese Culture Revolution. The power of mass."
I had asked you "My question is,
how valuable is this link about Zimbardo; has it made a contribution to your debate? "
I am truly curious about what you are urging me to contemplate.
Were the collective groups under Mao, heroic or evil; Mao, hero or devil.
I will find your reply most precious.
Charles Zhang
I think it is rather hard for me to answer the question in short. Let me have a try!
Evil or heroic, I think in different cultures there are different criteria. Mao is a legendary or even god-like man. However, the tragedy is that, the mass took him as the god, the only god. So there is no doubt can be cast on him. That is a crime to all Chinese, while the criminals are also Chinese. Evil or heroic? Who knows.
Charles
Don Wesley 50+
I do find your one statement to be free of ambiguity, that being "However, the tragedy is that, the mass took him as the god, the only god."
Shift cultures to the Christian one and you have dropped in the Devil.
During WWII we had to deal with Propaganda from both sides; Mass Propaganda, controlled by the Media.
Now with the internet[outside the control of media] we have a chance to see what humanity will say about God.
I thank you again for your splendid reply.
Don, from "The Silent Generation."
Ken brown 30+
A heroe of astronomy for me is Halton c Arp,he dared to push his conclusions against the flow.
Charles Zhang
I can understand this as it is quite close the requirement of a standard East Asian hero. however, i think this criterion is a little bit our-dated.
Don Wesley 50+
I urge everyone to talk less about their fleeting notions of what heroes are.
Please talk about serious work of Philip Zimbardo.
To talk about celebrities and heroes in the same breath is hypocrisy, the opposite of truth
We need truth not just a bunch of personal stories.
Don Wesley 50+
I can only point to the best argument I have heard about this debate and here below is the link -
"Philip Zimbardo knows how easy it is for nice people to turn bad. In this talk, he shares insights and graphic unseen photos from the Abu Ghraib trials. Then he talks about the flip side: how easy it is to be a hero, and how we can rise to the challenge."
http://www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_on_the_psychology_of_evil.html
Charles Zhang
Don Wesley 50+
how valuable is this link about Zimbardo; has it made a contribution to your debate?
Charles Zhang
Carlos Miranda Levy 500+
But heroes are not gods, supernatural beings and much less perfect individuals. They are often ordinary people who rise to specific challenges and overcome them in particular conditions. In other cases they are people who have particular strengths, values, beliefs and exhibit special abilities, tenacity and commitment. In any case, outside the particular environment or framework within which they are to be considered heroes, they are people like the rest of us, with "luces y sombras" (lights and shadows), positive and negative qualities, weaknesses, failures and the occasional lack of judgement.
It is important to understand that a hero's weaknesses or mistakes outside the framework of his heroicity or heroic acts have no relation to it and should not, in most cases, affect his/her hero status and the inspirational value and recognition of their accomplishment and achievement.
I would think so, in most cases at least.
Such is the case of most real life heroes, and even some mythical ones too.
Charles Zhang
I got your point.
Admittedly, in the East Asia culture, Hero means perfect. The god is perfect, every great people or non-people is perfect.
So I think maybe the schism of definitions on heroes is one of the reason.
Lorraine Owen
Charles Zhang
David Hamilton 50+
Charles Zhang
PS:
I come up with a idea where to find the heroes. Perhaps the last heroes are who control the media. But I am wondering, does the men exist?
David Hamilton 50+
I agree with Phillip Zimbardo on how everyday people become heroes or villains, given circumstances and conditioning. I think there are also slightly larger heroes than just the everday folk who do good when they get the chance.
I think there are national heroes, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and Michio Kaku would qualify in America nowadays, because they bring science into peoples living rooms. Barack Obama wrote the rhetoric that proved that, at least in the realm of president, most people no longer judge a man by the color of his skin.
There are artistic and cultural heroes, Howard Zinn who just left us recently, HH The Dalai Lama regardless of religion has written some brilliant work, Akira Kurosawa The Master... The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour. His Holiness Jon Stewart.
Lots of people on Ted are heroes. The people who invented the eyeglasses made with water, the rolling water jug, the straw that can drink anything. Really what's going on right now in the modern world though... is a bit disturbing... I can't name those three people off the top of my head... and part of the reason why, is because I can always look it up now, I can probably even find a way to contact them... So I don't have to remember there name.
Culture, in America, but also I think in the greater digital world, is not doing it's job. Real artists, real cutting edge science, really honest and enlightened philosophical thinkers... Inventors, engineers... We're not watching, or demanding television, or stadium tickets for them anymore.
Don Wesley 50+
You say "it is no longer possible." I wonder where your certainty comes from, you are so very young to have certainty about anything.
We need to celebrate the notion of heroes in the manner that Zimbardo defines one. We need hope to fight evil, not despair; like "it is no longer possible."
Your passion David is needed however.
Don
David Hamilton 50+
It's peoples good behaviors we should idollize, not the people themselves. Making idols out of people, just doesn't work in general, but even more so nowadays. People are rarely entirely great people, but they often do great things.
As far as Zimbardo, while I agree with his findings. I disagree with the prescription. I think we have enough heroes like the Zimbardo ones... We don't have enough heroes actually engaged in leading people, or solving problems. To me the lesson of Zimbardo's experiment, is that one psychopath with too much power, can destroy the psychology of hundreds of people, in almost no time.
He doesn't seem to want to teach that part of the lesson. There are an unacceptable number of sadistic and insane people in control of our world, and being prepared to save someone from a train, isn't going to save us from them. My certainty comes from the culture I grew up in, or rather, the complete lack of culture I grew up in. The way we're living is abhorent and utterly impossible to sustain. It is possible to walk and chew gum at the same time. You can be a productive, and impressive person, but also stop to help people in need.
Don Wesley 50+
I will with some righteous anger scold.
I will say your story has too many ifs to warrant being analysed. What is Zimbardo’s prescription; I didn't see one; he does have useful wisdom to share however.
David, let your elevator take you to the top floor and you will see that suffering is sustained by organizational cultures that are evil. We own those organizations. We as humanity must accept ownership. Don’t put down the messengers. Zimbardo is such a messenger. Your ifs, buts and more, veil the very message that needs to get out to humanity to get the change we need;
You may well be become a leader we need; however I offer you my view; your ego is in the way at this moment in time. Your explanatory comments are just too long and too many. David just read your profile to see your ego overshadow the good in you. You are young and do see “living is abhorrent and utterly impossible to sustain.” Praise excellent Talks like Zimbardos’s.
There is passive anger in your message. Build upon Zimbardo’s building block, don’t exclude it. Join the fight together and be reciprocal in your praise of good workmanship and show it with a thumbs-up to him. You come across as saying you are the only answer; and that is just not believable.
Humble yourself and get the thumbs-up support that you need.
God Bless,
Don, from the “Silent Generation.’
David Hamilton 50+
You obviously didn't read most of what I wrote, because I did not put down Mr. Zimbardo at all, and I've already favorited his stuff. I don't need thumbs up, and I have no intention to lead anyone... I like writing. I'm eccentric, and crazy, and wrong about all sorts of things, but it's fun to express that honestly.
The fact that in a forum where there is a limit of 2000 characters, you find my "explanatory comments are just too long and too many"... Is disturbing, on so many levels. I think most people agree with you. Does everyone have the attention span of a goldfish? I'm sorry, I don't tweet.
Don Wesley 50+
You now have confessed and that is good for the soul.
Most wise people have compassion [a virtue] and will read "once" a tirade, but not a second time.
Scolding takes great care and awareness [empathy a virtue] for a troubled soul. It takes fortitude [a virtue] to risk giving someone truthful feedback. Feed-back is the breakfast of champions; I remember my son explaining this to me long ago.
You do talk about things that need to be said; just practice good essay writing.
Write essays which have value; TED value. It is heavy work. Weed out the negative.
Everybody, including you David, needs thumbs-up; just practice reciprocity.
See - http://www.ted.com/talks/frans_de_waal_do_animals_have_morals.html
Blessings
Don.
Victor Valentour
A hero is one that acts without media endorsements.
Charles Zhang
Don Wesley 50+
I disagree, since heroic actions such as the type Zimbardo talks about can get the hero killed.
Believe me I know so.
Don