Power vs Force

This is another book that my childhood friend and former neighbor, Randall, recommended. It is a very interesting read. The gist of the book is that we are all one. Dishonesty, hate, and underhandedness ultimately effects everyone. The purpose of life is to live for others. The principles of this book marry neatly with most religions. I am not an expert on religions, but I do not see where any of the teachings create a conflict with the basic principles of any established religions. It does suggest, however, that some of the biggest religions have been somewhat corrupted over time and some of the original teachings have been somewhat distorted. I cannot really argue with that. Televangelists, cult leaders, and religious extremists have certainly done damage to society under the guise of the supposed word of God.

The basics of this book are aimed at improving society. There are instructions in some of the chapters that outline techniques for establishing truths and assigning scores to people and things. Scores less than 200 are perceived as detrimental to society, and scores greater than 200 are perceived as beneficial to society. The scale is described as ranging from 1-1000, and is said to be logarithmic. This scoring system made me question some passages in the book. This book was originally published in 1995 and the copy I have was printed in 2012. It has had several additions, yet there are some glaring mathematical errors in it. I would think they would have been discovered by now.  The author shows “three-hundred to the tenth power” in figures as ten to the three hundredth power. There are also “scores” for famous people, many of whom are deceased. I may have missed something, but I do not understand how someone, like Einstein, for example, can be assigned a score forty years after his passing.

I also find it a little strange that the author rates certain music, such as heavy metal, as detrimental to society. Everything categorized as heavy metal is bad for society? The book details how to actually score, or using the author’s terminology, calibrate, people and things. This act requires a partner. I have yet to try it out. I do like much of what I read in this book, but am pretty skeptical about the calibration process. I have not actually tried it, so I will not officially knock it until I have.

Overall this book is great for promoting positivity over negativity and for promoting living your life in a moral and just manner. Spread joy, love, and compassion. It has an endorsement from Mother Teresa herself, on the back cover. I found the science mentioned in this book to be a little hand-wavy, but the overall message is so overwhelmingly positive, that I recommend it as a good read.