In December of 1952 L. Ron Hubbard delivered a series of lectures called the Philadelphia Doctrate Course lectures. They were quite extensive-about 60 lectures-and, in fact, he completed the series with 16 additional lectures in London in January of 1953.
In one of these lectures (tape 35, the DEI Scale) Ron addressed himself to the subject of responsibility, asking what made him so special that he was able to figure out the solutions to the problems man has suffered with forever. He made a very simple point; he was willing to be responsible. Not only that, but the job he was doing was every man's job, not just his.
Now, fit that into our current level of social thought, where we are constantly encouraged to look at how we have been done wrong, victimized, are effect of everything (and, if we are lucky we can make a load of dough with a lawsuit against the bad people who did us in, or vote in a government who will pay us for our inabilities).
The simple truth of life is that if a person would be free, he must be responsible, willing to be cause, willing to accept that he had his own part in whatever happens to him, and be willing to use his strength, force, etc. to make things happen. Moreover, his thinking must encompass all of life, not just his own personal interests, and he must compute on the basis of the greatest good for the greatest number. Put this level of computation together with the willingness to be responsible and you get someone who will actually change conditions around him for the better. A much better way of going about life than looking for scapegoats.
In a taped lecture called The Road to Truth, L. Ron Hubbard said "All I am trying to do is get you to look." This strikes me as a deceptively powerful truth. What I observe is that quite often people don't observe at all; rather they have a fixed set of ideas with which they confront life. When something comes their way, they already have an evaluation of it, which they picked up from someone else or some other time, and they use that evaluation as a substitute for observation. We have all heard someone say "I don't like Thai food" or some such thing, only to find they have never tried it. This operating basis leaves one blocked off from experience and knowledge in many cases and also, whether the person is aware of it or not, their ability to observe life is often hindered by someone else's evaluations. Mama didn't like men, so Suzie knows all men are bad. Obviously, not a smart way to go through life. Aside from the fact that it is an insane generality, Suzie is operating on Mama's conclusions about life based on who knows what; Suzie is not observing for herself and making her own conclusions. It is true that this takes some courage, but making an attempt to LOOK at things for oneself, and then, make up one's own mind about them is the route toward true personal knowledge and integrity.
