I knew a guy who studied old nomad texts. He was translating a piece from a mongol leader to his generals in the field, and came upon the line, "These are my orders; to verify them I send my underwear." The instructor explained that, in the days before notary publics and regular baths, sending one's underwear was the one trustworthy way of authenticating a message.
I have been thinking about issues of trust and trustworthiness lately. The University of Minnesota tries to close a long established institution, the General College, defending this move as necessary within a larger vision of higher education in Minnesota, backed by the authority of the University leadership. The General College claims its own authority, in response. The Roman Catholic Church institutes suicidal personnel policies, excluding prime candidates for ordination and leadership, on the authority of the Pope. Parishes, responding to these edicts, claim the authority of their local, established traditions.
As I try to sort through all of this, I think about the value of seeing people speak, up close. When you see people talk, you can make a guess about where what they are saying is coming from in them, about how sure they are, about how much thought has gone into what they are saying. It's different from reading a statement; statements can be crafted endlessly and borrowed from other people. But speaking is one's own thing, and it is very hard to speak without supplying vast amounts of information.
For the last couple of days, I have been attempting to document the value of the University General College by asking many people to explain, in 7-10 minutes, why the College matters to them. It's an enlightening project, one I would recommend as a preliminary to any major policy decision.
We have lost the nomad's nose, but we still have eyes and ears.
Posted by shea0017 at April 6, 2005 1:21 PM