Firstly, as a small child, you were taught mathematics. The first thing you were taught was simple arithmetic - what numbers are. You were told that the number 1 was called an “
integer”. You were also told (and probably don’t remember) that the number 1 was a whole number. You were also told that the number 1 was to be referred to as a rational number. So, this was your first introduction to the word “
integer”, meaning whole, rational. From this word “
integer” is associated the word “
integrity”, which means
wholeness, rationality, sanity.
Secondly, and further, there is a secondary meaning implied in integrity - the understanding that the means are the ends. I will explain. As I have read elsewhere, when you take a bucket to the well to fill it with water: if the bucket is dirty, the water you draw from the well will end up becoming dirty - the water you draw will be unfit to drink, it will be toxic. This means that when you use untoward means to get something, the means affect the ends, the end result. Therefore, it is clearly seen that the means define the ends; in other words, the means are the ends.
Now, there are always those kinds of people who have an agenda; and, of course, having an agenda, they would be very fearful of revealing what that agenda is or of anyone discovering what that agenda is. (You may all know the old story of the young kid who saw that the emperor wasn’t wearing any clothes.) Having an agenda that they hide/conceal from others is usually the trademark of someone who knows perfectly well that if others were aware of what their agenda really was, they would be unmasked as the most charming and disreputable people for who they are. Usually full of clever words, such people lie; and, later, when found out, they rationalize, justify, and make endless excuses regarding their progress as they move to get what they want. Moreover, such people never apologize for whatever they get caught with. Their behaviour is akin to the dirty bucket, and constitute the
means. It is always interesting to see that such people always think that they can get what they want “
by any and all means”. Of course, what they think/feel that they want to achieve is the
ends.
And, so, as they progress to their desired goal, they cause a lot of damage, because when using untoward means, they ignore the consequences of their means. In other words, they always cause conflict. And, that is why a person who uses dirty means to get their ends met always causes conflict among others. In other words, they are inherently destructive.
[Please note that the word “
progress” actually means - what it originally meant (before those in power altered the word so as to be more palatable to the masses) - entering into the enemy’s camp fully armed, whence its associated word “
aggression”.]
It is always interesting that such people - by their cleverness with words - usually attract followers (especially followers who are messed up and needy), who will unwittingly (that is, unwisely) support them because of their conditioning - of their original damage which they had suffered in childhood. Please note that without support, such disreputable people would be found out much earlier. (Remember the old story of the emperor who wasn’t wearing any clothes, and the kid who spoke out the truth - speaking truth to power.)
Most criminals require accomplices. The thing which happens when the gang of criminals is caught is that accomplices (even though their actions in the crime may have been found to be minimal) can be sentenced almost as heavily as the perpetrator of the crime. So, even though the accomplice may protest that they themselves didn’t use untoward means themselves, justice doesn’t see it that way; because, had it not been for their support (however minimal), it is highly unlikely that any crime may have been committed. Insofar as I am concerned, any person who supports anyone who acts in an untoward way is as culpable and as toxic as the perpetrator.
To summarize, such a toxic person will use any and all means to achieve their result; they will slander people, use
ad hominem attacks (calling people names), they will try and usually succeed at sabotaging discussions, by using the classic
straw man argument (bringing up ideas that have nothing to do with the main subject of the discussion, just to distract others). They will use manipulation, domination, and influence to try and modify another’s understanding of any situation.
Moreover, they consistently draw on opinions to form conclusions. Instead of relying of facts, they prefer opinions, and using the fear that others have of being insecure, of losing security. Moreover, they can even misinterpret facts.
Such people have no problem in muddying the waters (obfuscation), making the issue so complicated as to make others feel inferior and feeling unable or unsure about how to respond, and thus engendering confusion and conflict wherever they find themselves.
It is their pleasure to bait others, to bully them, all to puff up their big ego. Curiously, it naturally follows that they are incapable of restraining themselves.
In general, they always leave a large number of broken people and considerable damage in their wake.
In other words,
such people have no integrity whatsoever. They are the toxic people your mama warned you about (or should have warned you about).
Thirdly,
integrity also has another rather significant meaning, which derives from the above - that of
saying what you mean, and
meaning what you say.
Well, trust you have enough for now as to what to think about, to ponder about, to reflect on (all derived from the word "
ma", which means to
meditate). The word "
ma" also provided the English language with another word "
measure", which I will discuss in a later post.
Namaste
