TRIAD Chapter Two - Purpose

Chapter Two -
Purpose

So, why would you wish to use a TRIAD? So, why would you wish to use a TRIAD? TRIADs were made known (at this moment it is too early to say that they were popularized) through TED Talks. TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conferences, formed to disseminate "ideas worth spreading", are owned by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation. There may be over a thousand TED Talks that you can now watch on YouTube. The one that first presented to me the TRIAD concept was given by Dave Logan, a professor at the University of Southern California. Dave Logan also coauthored, with John King and Halee Fischer-Wright, the book "Tribal Leadership" that became #1 on the New York Times Best Seller List in June, 2011. It may be that the TRIAD concept per se is to be attributed to John King. Logan's, et al., concepts, which we won't go into here, are used extensively in business consulting and by non-profit organizations seeking to make a contribution to society. The authors have most generously shared them with the public. The form of the TRIAD was mentioned in one of Logan's talks and note made that those who had used it found it to be the single most useful tool - but I have found no other in-depth development of the concept other than what I present here.. In general, it has been my impression that the TED Talk presentations, with some exceptions, have not been particularly religiously oriented. Indeed, quite the opposite, for it appears that the attendees and presenters are part of a subculture that is very 'scientifically', 'humanistically' oriented, that often gratuitously insert minor aspersions against religion. Therefore, I am not certain how appreciative they may be of the direction in which I have taken the TRIAD concept. In any case, the TRIAD technique, in what I call ‘lower applications’, does not require reference to religion and can be applied to a great variety of business, social or personal purposes. The specific initial motivation for this book was that it be applied by individuals wishing to prepare for disastrous times. However, while this book will specifically address that application - the same technique, just as I describe it here, is also very applicable to other aspects of one's life.. I am strongly convinced that many people will soon be facing great difficulties. I have been expecting a Great Catastrophe for many decades and am notorious for the preparations that I have made - particularly regarding Ark Two, a large survival complex in Canada, and probably the largest in the world that is open to anyone and everyone who wishes to participate, without regards to religious, philosophical, political or other affiliation. I am also founder, or at least co-founder, of the SAFE organization. The original concept for that coming from Anna Flatt, an Ark Two member.. Ark Two is really the local facility in Canada, and SAFE is our international arm with TEAM Leaders in every state of the fifty US States, plus other countries. It is through SAFE that we hope to be able to net other prepper TRIADers together in preparation for the disastrous times.. I was most prepared to be receptive to the TRIAD concept after having read "Reinventing Collapse" by Dmitry Orlov, a book that I highly recommend to anyone trying to comprehend what may be happening in our society and what they should do to prepare for it. One of Orlov's main conclusions was that a key factor to survival is having a network of people you can rely upon. The TRIAD concept, and particularly as I present it here, creates the means of developing a network in a manner and depth never before imagined. The purpose of the network, in Orlovian terms, is one of having access to skills and materials that would not otherwise be available once the present conventional sources of supply have been interrupted. No one person by themselves, or even in their own family, has all the skills, physical resources, strength, and certainly not the brain power or experience to solve the immense problems that they may come to face in the event of societal collapse. More than that, we all need personal, individual, psychological support groups as the society around us disintegrates. Employment, income, financial, family, health, and other problems will become increasingly oppressive. That is another reason why, for the individual, the TRIADs will be so important. Most of all, if people are receptive to my recommendation, I think the greatest need - and the greatest resource - that one can have in these times will be spiritual resources, and I highly recommend that people also use TRIADs, as I have described them here, for that purpose. True to the stated purpose of this book, preppers will find in it how to locate, form, join and use TRIADs in preparation for disastrous times. Nevertheless, in the process of coming to understand TRIADs, they and you will also learn how TRIADs can be developed and utilized for other purposes. A Word About The Stories At the end of each chapter, throughout the rest of the book you will find a box, like the following, that contains a TRIAD type of dialog. You can follow the dialog without knowing the details of the notation; however, the notation is explained in detail in Chapter Twelve. The following story may be considered typical because it is the application of a TRIAD to a unique situation. Most all life situations are unique and hence every application is unique. The strength of the TRIAD is that it is so adaptable. The stories at the end of the chapters are to provide an example of the variation of TRIADing. Some of the stories are directly related to the chapter with which they are associated, but others perhaps not at all. TRIADing in practice is more an art than a science. The techniques and skills of TRIADing are learned almost through osmosis. The better the TRIADers that you TRIAD with, the better you will be at TRIADing. The stories simply give some examples of how it is done. Some types of stories may appeal to some people and if they don't appeal to some others, hopefully those others will find among them some that do appeal to them. On each of the TRIAD stories I give a TRIAD level rating for that story. For a discussion of the rating criteria please see Chapter Nine. Signs of the Times by Beth Wegscheider TRIAD Level Rating 8.1 James (A) is a profoundly deaf teenager. Joe (B) is a hearing teenager. John (C) is James' brother and is hard of hearing. The boys are next-door neighbors, and, although they attend different high schools, they have been skateboarding together for a couple of years. Joe attends public school, while James and his brother attend the state school for the deaf and the blind. John frequently acts as an informal interpreter for James and Joe when he is around, which he usually has been, until recently. Even though James and Joe are able to communicate fairly well online at home, their in-person communications (when John is not with them) are limited to lipreading, pantomime, and texting. Their TRIAD goal is to equalize communications and reduce their dependence on John so as not to elevate him into an authority figure. -------- James ran down his three front steps, hopped on his skateboard and glided over to the driveway leading to Joe's house. Joe was sitting on his skateboard in his open garage, waiting for James. They had agreed to meet at 4:00 and then skateboard over to the park. Joe had assumed that John would be coming as well. B-A Joe looked at James and held up his hands with a confused look on his face, as if to ask, "Where's John?" A-B James made a serious face and held out his hands to form a book, "He's studying." B-A Joe sighed. He always became frustrated when it was just the two of them. Joe pulled out his phone and texted, "You didn't tell me he wasn't coming." A-B James texted back, "I didn't know. We can just go by ourselves. It's OK." B-A Joe got on his skateboard and motioned for James to follow him. They skated back over to James’ house. Joe rang the doorbell and waited until John answered. C (A.B) "Hey," John said. "I'm sorry I have to study for my English test, but I can meet you guys at 5:00." B-C Joe said, "That's cool, but it's always so boring when you're not there. I can't talk to James, because we're paying attention to our skating. It's too dangerous to watch each other." C-A John signed to James, "Joe says he gets frustrated because you guys can't talk to each other very well when you're skating." A-C James started to sign back to John. C-(A/B) John pointed to James' pants pocket. A-B James made a face but pulled his phone out and texted to Joe, "Right. Well, that's how I feel all the time around hearing people." B Joe didn't know what to say. It never occurred to him that it bothered James as well. He thought he was just used to it. C-(A.B) John closed the door and sat down on the steps. He signed and talked at the same time so that both of the other boys could understand him. "Maybe you guys need to think about how you can work on communicating with each other better. I love hanging out with you guys when I can, but when I leave for college, I won't be here to interpret for you."