It is sad to see that uncertainty, fear and hate are popping up all over the world right now and show their ugly heads in even the highest places. And in explicit racist and even new-fascist movements. Can we think of a way to counter these trends?
Yes
The best remedy IMHO is to respect, honor and support Btwieners in society, wherever they are.
Definition: A ‘ Btwiener ‘ (pronounce “betweener”) is a member of more than one tribe
and are respected and has credible contributions in each of them. In that way
they can build “bridges” between those tribes.
It is another word for ‘ weak ties ‘, first identified by the sociologist Mark S.
Prof. Peter Csermely discovered that molecules and other living creatures
perform the btwiener function all over Nature to repair and stabilize
communities, see his book “Weak Links – the key to stability
in networks and complex systems”
What I did was to replace the “weak tie/ link” name with “Btwieners“
which sounds more strong for the vital bridges between diversity they construct.
Role model: Gandalf the Grey, visitor.
Function of Btwieners: They travel, visit, and communicate with and connect
people, across physical, mental and cultural borders and walls.
In the flesh or on social networks. And they make society more
stable by making the diverse tribes less isolated.
Betwieners construct and maintain the collaborative
links for problem solving TEAMS *), between isolated
and inward looking tribal CLUSTERS of people;
in order for them to work together: to solve complex
problems which require a wide diversity of expertise, where
different backgrounds and different points of view and creative
contributions are an asset.
.
When such teams work well they can mix and synthesize those different views into solotions that exhibit Synergy. Thus the term #SYNTHECRACY I coined for this new vast bottom-up constructive movement.
Examples: the young expatriates in London, who are not really amused by the upcoming Brexit consequences.
Yes, I am proud to say “Ich Bin Ein Btwiener “, to paraphrase JFK in his famous speech in Berlin. We better now cross the walls instead of erect new ones. *) But the engine at the core of such Teams is the synergy between the diverse team members if they can really synthezise their mental models into new solutions. The VALUE, wealth, prosperity and jobs thus created will drive the post-neoliberal-1% SYNTHECRACY for the 99%.
A fantastic example of Synthecracy was shown in New Power (closed discussion group on Facebook ) by Lee-Sean Huang
Over the last week I have been involved in some new power-inspired peer production and activism as a coordinator for the Letters For Black Lives. It’s an all-volunteer initiative that started as a crowd-sourced letter written by Asian-Americans to foster intergenerational dialogue about #BlackLivesMatter, and has since grown to include almost 30 language translations and localizations to include other communities like Canadians, Latinos, Brazilians, and more. There was also a video version of the letter made by volunteers in San Francisco.
Here’s an interview with me and some of the other coordinators on the history and behind the scenes of the project:
The Connectivist 
I am interested in what you are writing about here. I would have to consider myself a “btwiener” in the most obvious sense of being a felon with a Masters Degree in Communication. This is possibly while the most obvious bridge, not the only one. I write about my experience and struggle at CommunicatingConvict.Com and if there is a way for me to be of assistance or my skill of being in multiple tribes…I woud love to connect more on this. TY.
Thanks for your confirmation of my view. Please answer this question though: Are you often asked for help & assistance in complex situations people are in? And do you help them directly or refer them well to other btwieners you trust to help? Without any direct benefit or financial compensation from the help seekers? If you are able and curious & empathic you probably will. And surely the “payment” you get is the satisfaction to get things working and … you learn something every time 🙂
Really interesting article and I am with you on the strength of weak links that form the glue between otherwise isolated communities. But I have to admit that I have my doubts with the Btwiener word. The reason for that is the ‘wiener’ part which is slang for penis in German and that conjures up a whole range of images that really have nothing to do with the message you are conveying. I can already see the memes pop up should the term become more widespread.
Please propose a better word , which is not yet in general use. My reason was that “weak-links” sound so WEAK, while they are in fact often more effective and stabilizing than “strong links” ( family and close friends in tribes). Btwieners function between tribes. #btweeners ?
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