We have seen that activities related to transportation and store in the stolen property system (SPS) can be shared by fence and thief. The sharing of responsibility for these functions is not, however, haphazard nor random in nature. Instead it is determined by the degree of control which each is considered to determine by the degree of control which each is considered to exercise over the stolen property at a given point in time. Thus, any storage or transportation activities that are required, pursuant to an agreement reached in the exchange process, are likely to be performed by the thief. Once this exchange agreement has been satisfied any further need for transport or storage becomes the fence’s responsibility. To require the thief to perform such functions beyond those pursuant to the exchange process would be to defeat one’s prime motivation for making an agreement with the fence, which is to divest oneself of the stolen property. Similarly, to require the fence to perform these functions prior to an exchange agreement would force one to exercise control over property which one has not as yet decided to purchase. Both thief and fence recognize that their possession of (id est, effective control over) stolen property requires the performance of certain activities; neither, however, will be willing or likely to assume responsibility for such activities once possession has been relinquished or before it has been undertaken. The final activity area, marketing mode, which includes transportation and storage, demand analysis, packaging, and advertising, of the SPS is the preparation of property resale. #RandolphHarris 1 of 21

This is almost exclusively the province of the criminal receiver who, following the exchange with the thief, becomes the new seller of the merchandise. It is the fence who takes responsibility for decisions relating to modification of the goods prior to sale, in what quantities one will sell the goods, and in what manner one will present the items to potential customers. With some items, such as automobiles, the fence will find it important to remove or disguise identifying numbers while keeping the make and model apparent. In other cases, with fair-traded appliances for example, it may be more important to disguise make and model than identifying numbers. The type of customer which the fence serves, whether retail or wholesale, corporate or individual, knowledgeable or native, will determine the quantities in which the merchandise is sold and the manner in which it is promoted. The planning and coordination of activities in the packaging and promotion area emphasize again the organizational know-how and financial base which a fence needs to operate efficiently. It also serves to explain why one may not be able to “afford” to reward the thief too generously for one’s efforts. There are certain limited cases in which the thief shares responsibility for preparing stolen property resale. One such case is that of the professional thief. ITEM 16: (interview with Greg, professional burglar) “As soon as we finished a job we always went back to my apartment. There I’d remove all the stones from their settings, weight them, appraise them and put them in jeweler’s paper to protect them.” #RandolphHarris 2 of 21

Greg explained that this was done for two reasons: first, as a form of protection. Often the only identity possessed by a gem is its setting. By removing a gem from its setting, then, its identification becomes much more difficult so that even upon apprehension by the police one and one’s associated had a good chance of not being charged with anything. Second, Greg found that he could make better deals with fences with loose stones since he had saved them the trouble of removing the setting. In addition, the origins of the items could remain somewhat obscure protecting both of them. The professional thief is probably one of the few classes of thieves who has sufficient skill or motivation to perform such preparatory activities. It is obvious that one does not perform them as a favor to the fence but out of one’s own self-interest. This activity area in mode 4, then, is similar to the area of transportation and storage where activities are performed by the individual in control of the property. Because of the nature of the packaging and promotion activities and the point in time in which they occur, it is the fence who in nearly all situations is in possession of the merchandise. Responsibility for these activities, therefore, falls primarily on one. From our review of mode 4 activity areas it also becomes quite clear that the fence is the prime mover in the marketing process of the SPS. Nonsequential activity performance—the second axiom of the SPS relates to the nonsequential nature of the functioning modes. #RandolphHarris 3 of 21

 In order to demonstrate the sort of variety which this axiom suggests, we will discuss three modal configurations in the SPS: (1) the system beginning at mode 2 (extraction) and proceeding spontaneously; (2) the system beginning at mode 1 (planning), moving to mode 3 (exchange agreement) then to mode 2 (extraction) and finally proceeding to modes 4 and 5; (3) the system beginning at the mode 5 (redistribution) then moving to modes 1, 3, 2, and 4 in that order. Each of these configurations represents not only different degrees of determinateness in the SPS, but also different degrees of integrative control exhibited by the fence. The SPS beginning at extraction mode 2, having eliminated a research and planning phase. This configuration can be termed the “cheapest opportunity” model. It is likely to be initiated by the least killed thief or the addict thief. Because of the lack of planning involved, it will also be the least determinate, least integrated and least efficient model in the SPS for one of two reasons. First, it is unlikely to yield property of great resale valuesince its targets must be those which can be attacked spontaneously and with a minimum effort. For example: ITEM 17: (police radio message item) “B & E at pawnbroker’s shop on____ St. Window broke and two trays of jewelry removed. Assailant believed to be on foot.” In some cases, this model of the SPS will yield nothing at all and instead will serve only to create a disturbance within the environment surrounding the system. #RandolphHarris 4 of 21

ITEM 18: (police activity report) “Alarm sounded at warehouse on ____ Avenue. Two w/m seen running from building. Would-be thieves didn’t have time to get anything. Pct 2. will put a patrol car in the area in case they try again.” The second reason why the “cheapest opportunity” model is inefficient is that it fails to predetermine a demand for merchandise. For example, consider the luckless thieves below who managed to steal merchandise of some value but whose lack of planning rendered it not only valueless to them but also incriminating. ITEM 19: (police activity report) “X and Y (thieves) were arrested this AM in the act of trying to peddle meat from the ____ warehouse. They did not have a refrigerated truck so most of it had already started to spoil when recovered.” This model, if it is to be effective at all, requires the existence of the generalist fence who is willing to handle a wide range of items of varying quality and indeterminate quantity. The SPS does of course provide for this sort of individual in the form of owners of secondhand and general merchandise outlets and used furniture and appliance stokes. Fences who engage in this sort of trade do so because they can acquire property very inexpensively from hard-pressed thieves whose lack of planning has put them in precarious possession of stolen property. If, then, the thefts initiated of the least rewarding variety to the thief. For the fence they also represent the “cheapest opportunity” since they comprise the best bargains one can get from any set of thieves. #RandolphHarris 5 of 21

If this model is to have any determinateness, it is the fence who must introduce it by manipulating the rewards offered in the exchange mode. By giving such direction to the thief’s activities, the fence is not generating a planning process but only narrowing the range of products which one is likely to encounter. This can help make the thief a bit more predictable and the system a bit more determinate and efficient. This model of the SPS remains, however, the least integrated configuration. The SPS in the modal sequence of planning (mode 1), exchanging (mode 3), extraction (mode 2), marketing (mode 4), and redistribution (mode 5). This is the “exchange-oriented” model of the system in which thefts are planned but not carried out until the terms of the exchange agreement and the responsibilities for activities pursuant to that agreement are determined. This model is significantly more determinate and efficient than is the “cheapest opportunity” model, although this is only true through the exchange-extraction process. The marketing and redistribution modes retain an indeterminate quality in this model. The degree of integration in the “exchange-oriented” model depends upon who generates and plans the theft and who initiates the terms of the exchange agreement. Two basic situations are possible: the thief-generated pact, and the fence-generated pact. The thief-generated pact is the situation in which the thief assures a market for the theft one envisions by making preliminary arrangements with a fence to buy the product of one’s activities. In some sense, then, t is the thief’s insurance policy which one hopes will prevent one from being caught holding stolen property unnecessarily. #RandolphHarris 6 of 21

ITEM 20: (Robert E. Barnes) “one…must always remain conscious of the fact, it is impracticable for the thief to steal what one cannot sell. What should be of vital importance to law enforcement officials is the fact that semi and professional thieves seldom steal before they sell, thus proving the fact that all major crimes whereas [sic] merchandise is involved would never occur if there were no outlets for this merchandise.” In many cases the professional thief wants more than the assurance of a market, one may also want to make sure that one’s efforts will be sufficiently rewarded before attempting a “big score.” Perhaps the most important element of the above statement is the fence’s “if.” It is clear that the professional thief can succeed in getting binding agreement upon the fence before one has seen the merchandise. Robert E. Barnes, for example, maintains that fences are notorious for promising to pay a certain price prior to the thefts of goods and then defaulting on the agreement later. The thief-generated pact under the exchange-centered model of the SPS, then, does not display very much integration. All it really does is assure the thief of a buyer and notify the fence as to the type of property one is likely to receive and when. The fence-generated pact is somewhat different. Here a high degree of integration can be introduced into the system as the fence has opportunity to specifically direct the activities of the thief and to beneficially determine the products one will acquire. #RandolphHarris 7 of 21

The fence who plans the theft and who provides information important to its commission is also in a position to extract from the thief a specific exchange agreement. This makes for a highly rationalized extraction process which has been preplanned with an exchange phase that is predetermined. The integrative control of the fence over the exchange-extraction process produces a more efficient and determinate model of SPS behavior. The SPS beginning at the redistribution phase (mode 5) and proceeding through mode 1 (planning), mode 3 (exchange), mode 2 (exchange), and mode 4 (marketing). This final modal configuration of the SPS is by far most complex and sophisticated sequence. The most apt term for this configuration s the “production to order” mode. What happens in this case is that no activities relating to  theft are initiated until and order for the merchandise has been received. Once this order is received, the theft is planned; an exchange agreement decided upon; the extraction carries out; and the marketing activities completed. And all of the above processes are coordinated and directed by the fence. The “production to order” model is an accommodation made in the legitimate marketplace to avoid the stacking up of inventory surpluses and gluts in the marketing process. The fence uses the model for similar reasons but has the advantage over the legitimate marketer that one’s suppliers (thieves) are likely to produce goods quicker than is the legitimate manufacturer who supplies the legitimate businessman. The model, then, is likely to be much more effective within the SPS than it has been found to be in the legitimate marketplace. #RandolphHarris 8 of 21

The most frequent cited example of the “production to order” model in the SPS is the auto theft ring. Instances have been reported of automobiles being stolen to meet the exact specifications of buyers, with color and bogus engine numbers added before resale. Robert Earl Barnes suggests that the “production to order” model is not limited to the stolen auto area, being particularly prevalent in the hijacking and cargo theft arena: “Prior to any hijacking, the merchandise has already been sold to underworld sources, and once the crime has been set-up, and carried out by the thieves, the merchandise is extremely difficult to recover, as it may go out for resale on the legitimate market to as many as 50 to 100 middle men.” Both the “cheapest opportunity” and “exchange-centered” models of the SPS require the fence to have increasing amounts of control over the forces of supply in the system. The “production to order” model requires of one the ability to generate the forces of demand as well. Demand control by the fence is somewhat more amorphous than is supply control. It will depend on such things as one’s individual abilities to forecast the desire of disparate customers: the kinds of contacts one has been able to cultivate at the wholesale and retail levels of the legitimate marketplace; and often upon one’s particular occupation. For example, the individual described blow pursues a legitimate occupation of which generating orders for merchandise is an integral part. Their additional abilities to initiate an illegitimate supply process, allows them to operate a tight and effective stolen property distribution system. #RandolphHarris 9 of 21

ITEM 23: (police activity report) “Mr. S who owns a jewelry manufacturing company is alleged to be fencing for some of our better burglars. He supposedly has nationwide customers and contacts. Should be kept in mind whenever jewelry is taken in residence jobs.” The control which the fence has over the sequencing of events in the SPS under the “production to order” model makes it possible for one to bring the forces of demand and supply into a fairly stable equilibrium. This makes the model highly efficient and determinate. It also serves to protect all of the persons involved since by insuring that all aspects of the system are coordinated beforehand, stolen property can move swiftly to its final destination, minimizing the risk of either thief or fence being found in possession of it. The limits upon the “production to order” model are of two orders. The model is limited, first, by the individual ability of the fence to generate demand (id est, contacts and outlets to do business with one.) Second, the model hinges upon the amount of organizational and financial resources at the fence’s disposal which can facilitate the completion of all activities based in mode 4, the marketing mode. This is perhaps the more important limitation since it defines the size and scope of one’s operation. If one cannot command the use of storage and transportation, or cannot finance the performance of such activities by others, no matter how organizationally skilled the fence is his business volume will remain small. The “production order” model need not, then be characterized by large scale operations. Instead this model describes a highly integrated, tightly controlled and finely precisioned model of the SPS in which the fence is both the orchestrator and the central character. #RandolphHarris 10 of 21

The Powershift Era has only begun and already, it would appear, the future is up for grabs. With the “East” in upheaval, the “South” increasingly divided, and the leading powers of the “West”—Europe, Japan, and America—on a collision course, we face a frantic, endless round of summits, conferences, treaties, and missions as diplomats meets to construct a new global order. No matter how much hammering, sawing and wordsmithing they do, however, the new architecture of World power will depend less on their words than on the quantity and quality of power each brings to the table. Are the United States of America and the Soviet Union both now global has-beens? If so, how many new “superpowers” will arise to take their place? Some speak of a World organized around Europe, Japan, and the United States of America. Others see the World broken into six or eight regional blocs. Still others believe the bipolar World is turning into a five-sided star, with China at one of the points, India at another. Will the new Europe stretch from the Atlantic to the Soviet border—or beyond? No one can solve these puzzles with certainty. However, the powershift principle can help. It reminds us that while many other factors—from political stability to population growth—all count, violence, wealth, and knowledge are the three main rivers from which most other power resources flow, and each is now in the process of being revolutionized. Take violence. #RandolphHarris 11 of 21

So much has been written about “peace breaking out” that World attention has drifted away from the menacing fact that as the two former superpowers scale down their arms, other nations are racing to fill the gap. India, for example, despite its image as a backward, peace-loving land, has been the World’s biggest arms buyer since 1986, purchasing in 1987 more weapons than warring Iran and Iraq combined. This policy had drawn fire from the Japanese and a sharp riposte from New Delhi. India already possesses nuclear weapons and is party to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which allows the country to develop a missile with a range of over 300 km weighing more than 500 kg but not to export it to other countries. This is true even in the case of the supersonic BrahMos missile, the latest variant of which has a range of 500 km. The export version is capped at 290 km to comply with the MTCR restrictions of 300 km. The BrahMos-II is expected to be capable of travelling at speeds of up to Mach 7 and had a range of over 300 miles. It is being designed to be launched from multiple platforms, including land, air, and sea. Hypersonic weapon systems are advanced military technologies that can trave at extremely high speeds, typically defined as Mach 5 or higher (five times the speed of sound). These weapons are designed to be extremely maneuverable, able to change course quickly and evade enemy defence, an dcan travel long distances in a very short time. #RandolphHarris 12 of 21

Furthermore, HWS are capable of carrying out launches from a variety of platforms, including ground-based systems, aircraft, and submarines. They are typically designed to carry conventional or nuclear warheads and are seen as a potential game-changer in military operations, particularly in terms of their speed, range, and ability to penetrate enemy defence. Pakistan continues to expand its nuclear arsenal with more warheads, more delivery systems, and a growing fissile materials production industry. Analysis of a large number of commercial satellite images of Pakistani army garrisons and air force bases shows that appear to be launchers and facilities that might be related to the nuclear forces. We estimate that Pakistan now has a nuclear weapon stockpile of approximately 165 warheads. The U.S.A. Defence Intelligence Agency projected in 1999 that Pakistan would have 60 to 80 warheads by 2020, but several new weapon systems have been fielded and developed since then, which leads us to the higher estimate. Pakistan may become the World’s third-largest nuclear weapon state—with a stockpile of some 350 warheads by 2030. If the trend continues, their stockpile could more realistically grow to around 200 warheads by 2025. According to William Webster of the CIA, fully fifteen countries are known to produce ballistic missiles: the United States of America, France, Russian, China, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Pakistan, Iran, Israel, Egypt, Syria, Ukraine, and Argentina. #RandolphHarris 13 of 21

Beyond this lie a number of terrifying scenarios. Soviet nukes are located in Azerbaijan and other Muslim republics where ethnic fighting has broken out, leading some experts to speculate on the nightmarish possibility that a breakaway republic might seize some of these weapons. Asks one alarmed U.S.A. official: “Will the fourth-biggest nuclear power be Kazakhstan?” So serious are the risks that Moscow had reportedly begun withdrawing nuclear arms from the tense Baltic region, and a top Soviet official, speaking privately to the author, has said: “I used to be against SDI [Washington’s Strategic Defense Initiative whose goal is to intercept and destroy income nuclear missiles]. But now I’m for SDI. If the U.S.S.R. splits apart, the World could suddenly find itself confronted with ten more nuclear-armed countries.” In fact, a civil war in the Soviet Union—or any other nuclear power-raises the possibility that rebel forces might seize the weapons, or that rebel and loyalist forces might each seize part of the nuclear arsenal. Even more ominously, some “developing countries”—Iraq and Libya are not alone—are designing plans to manufacture chemical and bacteriological weapons as well. The present distribution of weapons in the World, and especially nuclear weapons, neither fixed nor stable. A key source of state power, therefore, the capacity for hyper-violence that was once concentrated in a few nations, is now becoming democratically but dangerously dispersed. #RandolphHarris 14 of 21

At the very same time, the nature of violence itself is undergoing profound change, becoming increasingly dependent on such knowledge-intensive technologies as microelectronics, advanced materials, optics, artificial intelligence, satellites, telecommunications, and advanced simulation and software. Thus, whereas the first F-16 fighters needed 135,000 lines of computer programming, the Advanced Tactical Fighter now on the drawing boards will require 1,000,000 lines. These changes in World military systems do more than merely shift power from here to there; they revolutionize the nature of the global game. Shintaro Ishihara, a former Cabinet member in Japan, blew up a storm in Washington recently with a brief book called The Japan That Can Say No, which consisted of speeches he and Akio Mortia, co-founder of Sony, had made on various occasions. In it Ishihara pointed out that to radically improve the accuracy of their nuclear weapons to the United States of America and the U.S.S.R. alike would need extremely advanced Japanese-made semiconductor technology. Referring to the United States of America, he said, “It has come to the point that no matter how much they continue military expansion, if Japan stopped selling them the chips, there would be nothing more they could do. If, for example, Japan sold ships to the Soviet Union and stopped selling them to the U.S.A., this would upset the entire military balance. Some Americans say that is Japan were thinking of doing that, it would be occupied. Certainly, this is an age where things could come to that.” Mr. Ishihara’s remarks underscore the growing dependence of violence on knowledge, a reflection of today’s historic powershift. #RandolphHarris 15 of 21

Meanwhile, when it comes to powershifts, China has become the largest international lender for developing countries, and it rapidly emerging as one of the World’s leading lender nations. China’s overseas development finance is almost as sizable as the World Bank’s, though more intermittent in nature. From 2008-2019, Chinese overseas development finance amounted to nearly half a trillion dollars–$462 billion. In the same time period, the World bank (through its sovereign lending windows, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and International Development Association), barely exceeded this amount, extending $467 billion. China has also become a global infrastructure powerhouse, reflecting the goals of the Belt and Road Initiative. Over half of the finance commitments listed in the dataset–$249 billion—went to construction of infrastructure projects, particularly in the sectors of transportation and power generation and distribution. In terms of assets, Chinese commercial banks, especially the Big Four (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, and Agricultural Bank of China), are rapidly approaching the World’s top 10. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is the sixth largest bank in the World, and has total assets for the quarter ending September 30, 22 of $5,774.397 billion, a 19.3 percent increase year-over-year. CITIGROUP INC $2.4 trillion, BNP $2.67 trillion. Chinese commercial banks are becoming increasingly important lenders for Western companies. #RandolphHarris 16 of 21

When the self-actualized first hear of the possibility of counterfeits in the hierarchy and sacred things, they almost invariably ask, “How are we to know which is which?” It is enough, first of all, for them to know that such counterfeits are possible. Then, as they mature and seek light from the ultimate concern, they shall learn to know for themselves, in a way that no human being can explain to them. However, they cry, “We do not know, and how can we know?” Well, they should remain neutral to all forms of enlightenment. There is among many self-actualized a wrong anxiety to know, as if that knowledge alone would extricate them. They think that they must be solidly for or against certain things, things which they cannot decide are from the ultimate concern or an unenlightened source. They desire to know infallibly which is which, that they may declare their position. However, self-actualized should take only a tentative attitude of “for” or “against” while uncertain whether the things in doubt are sacred or of the unenlightened nature—maintaining the wisdom and safety of the neutral position. In time, by a means which cannot be fully described, they will know what they have wanted to understand. Over-eagerness in desiring certitude can result in mental suffering, restless anxiety, worry and grief, which can cause a loss of moral poise and power. #RandolphHarris 17 of 21

It is important in seeking one source of knowledge not to destroy another. In seeking certainty in these matters of the ultimate concern, let not the self-actualized lose patience, and calm, quiet restfulness and assurance. Let one watch oneself, lest the offenders gain advantage, and rob one of moral power even while one is keen to get light regarding the way of victory. The battle for truth may keep us awake at night. The source of expression can sometimes be a mystery. One’s thoughts and feelings come, not from any attempt to force change, but from an intense and compelling desire to live and respond fully to life. One’s communication may be strong and intense, a response to indifference, to purely self-centered interests, to sleep in the face of tragic searching and suffering. Perhaps these intense feelings are potent enough to break into one’s own detachment, isolation, and loneliness. In the face of human struggles met with complacency and indifference, one may begin to feel deeply the tragic nature of the life before one. One may begin to experience once more an involvement and intoxication with life. The mystery of what it is all about remains to be unsolved for some. The metaphysical solution one seeks may never come to one but that is not the ultimate concern. Once one is in touch with people of like-mind, fully awake, with all of one’s sense, a search for communal values is underway. This is essential beginning. Everything is moving toward this reality. People will appear in the dawn of the new day. Everything has to recrystallize. #RandolphHarris 18 of 21

Ambiguity is a characteristic not of the structure of being, but of the process of life, according to which positive and negative elements are mixed in such a way that definite separation of the negative from the positive is impossible. The positive elements are essential elements, and the negative ones are existential; however, they cannot be separated simply into good and evil, for in all life processes an essential and an existential element, created goodness and estrangement, are merged in such a way that neither one nor the other is exclusively effective. For example, one of the ambiguities of being self-actualized, is that, on the one hand, it is self-transcendent—it points beyond itself to the ultimate concern, on the other hand, it is profanized—it becomes a finite institution, a sociological unit subject to the same laws that govern secular groups. Life basically consists in a going-out and a return-to-self. Against this movement of life there is always a counter-movement, so that the life process of self-integration struggles against disintegration; self-creativity struggles against destruction; and self-transcendence struggles against profanization. This struggle of tendencies—one positive, one negative—is ambiguity. The sacred is ambiguous because it embraces the clean (the positive) and the unclean (the negative), both of which produce “numinous awe.” However, this ambiguity is merely an instance of the more radical ambiguity of the scared which embraces bot divine and the demonic. #RandolphHarris 19 of 21

The sacred manifests itself in consecrated objects, for without the finite bearer of the revered, the sanctified would remain unknowable. These objects are not sacred in themselves, but they become consecrated only by negating themselves in pointing to the sanctified which they are the medium. If their sacredness is considered inherent, they become demonic. They are still sacred, but their sacredness is anticonsecrated. These sacred objects, whose function is to represent man’s ultimate concern, usurp the place of the hallowed and establish themselves as his ultimate concern. They are transformed into idols. Sacredness provokes idolatry. As an example of demonic, we can consider the Roman empire which became demonically possessed in compelling men to worship itself. Both the sacred and the demonic appear n the concrete as ecstatic, overpowering, and awe-inspiring. However, the demonic refuses to bow to the unconditioned, and, in fact, elevates itself to the same level. If the ambiguity of the divine-demonic loses its tension and the two elements are separated, the result is a religious dualism such as Manichaeism. Religious dualism concentrates divine holiness in one realm and demonic holiness in another realm. Reality is then partitioned between the two realms, and what belongs to the demonic realm is essentially evil. The concern is to keep the divine and the demonic, the clean and the unclean, ambiguously united, as they re in the primitive notion of the holy. One never ceases to remind us that the demonic’s favored place is the holy. #RandolphHarris 20 of 21

This analysis of the experience of the holy lays bare the root of faith. The unconditionality of ultimate concern springs from an encounter with the mysterium tremendum et fascinans, the ground and abyss of being and meaning. The total demand of ultimate concern is explained by the stern “ought-to-be” of the holy, while ultimate concern’s promise of total fulfilment arises from the majestic presence of the holy. The ambiguity of faith, the possibility of its deterioration into idolatrous faith, is accounted for by the ambiguity of the holy itself which is open to invasion by the demonic. A systematic analysis inevitably dilutes the intensity of a religious experience. As a gesture to offset this loss, we conclude the exposition of faith with the poetic description of the moment of faith. It is only in a concrete situation that the ultimate power of being, the ground of reality appears and reveals the infinite depth and meaning of the present moment. Yet, in the light of the ultimate the concrete present is shown in all its shallowness. Thus it affirms and negates; it is transparent for its ground which is also its abyss. The experience is like a blinding flash of lightning at night. Reality is seen as something new, for in the ecstasy of faith its ground is glimpsed. Nor do we remain as detached subjects staring at an object, for we are seized in the very center of our personality. We are grasped, in the experience of faith, by the unapproachably holy which is the ground of our being and breaks into our existence and which judges us and heals us. #RandolphHarris 21 of 21

As young adult, we might find the temptation to give in to jealousy especially strong. We are all eager (if not anxious) to find the sense of security that comes from becoming self-reliant and reaching certain cultural and spiritual milestones. Watching someone else get what you righteously desire at this phase of life can leave you feeling frustrated and even envious. Experiencing feelings of jealousy is natural in mortality. However, what really matters is what we do with those feelings. Do we let them fester and cause relationship-damaging resentment? Or do we turn to the ultimate concern to find a way to manage our feelings? Everyone’s experiences will be different. Sometimes feelings of jealousy are what leads to people committing burglaries. In some ways, female residential burglars may differ from their male counterparts. However, we need more information. Do female burglars, for example, tend to play “secondary roles” during offenses? We need to consider the typology of female residential burglars. In constructing our typology, we used the categories of accomplice and partner. (Our sample contained no sole perpetrators. By definition, conspirators were not included in research because they did not participate directly in committing the offenses.) We categorized six of the females in our study as accomplices because of their subservience to others—usually men—during their burglaries. (Not only females act as accomplices; a few of the males whom we interviewed also assumed this role. In no case, however, did a male respondent admit to being subservient to a woman during offenses.) #RandolphHarris 1 of 14

We did classify the 12 remaining females as partners because they participated as equals in their burglaries. Although some of these females co-offended with males, they did not take orders from them. Partners could be distinguished from accomplices in a number of important ways, including their motivation for committing the crimes, their participation in target selection and planning, and the work roles they adopted while committing burglaries. The factors that the female burglars regarded as leading them to commit their crimes differentiated the partners clearly from the accomplices. Those whom worked as partners, whether with other women, with men, or both, reported making an independent decision to commit their burglaries. They did not see themselves as drawn into offending against their will by other offenders or by the irresistible pressure of circumstances. The independence of such offenders is illustrated in the following quote: “My partner ain’t got to influence me. I just want to do it. I’m so used to doing it.” Women who carried out burglaries as partners often were motivated by material or instrumental concerns. Their responses reflected an affirmative commitment to burglary. Some, for example, saw the offense simply as an easy way of obtaining money. As one of them said, “[Burglary’s] a damn good way of getting over. It’s like a white-collar crime. Hell, it’s just fast money.” The women who worked as partners displayed considerable diversity in motives. Some reported engaging in burglary because they found it fun or enjoyable. These women derived a psychic reward from such offense. #RandolphHarris 2 of 14

One of these women said she committed burglaries for “the thrill,” adding “I get off on it. I do it for the enjoyment, ‘cause I do truly enjoy it. It’s a hobby; it’s recreation to me.” The women who worked only as accomplices had a far different perspective. These offenders felt that they were caught up in circumstances beyond their control, which compelled them to commit burglaries. Often these circumstances arose in the context of an unequal relationship in which the females were reduced to carrying out the will of other, more dominant people. They dominant parties in such cases typically were males, though occasionally they were females. The women quoted in the following passage expresses the belief that she was trapped by her companions’ activities: “[The burglaries] got worse when we moved and I started hanging with a different crowd. It wasn’t too bad where I first did it. It’s getting worse now, though, ‘cause I’m with older guys and they go for bigger things, and when they go, they got things planned—if somebody walks in before they are done, they would rather hurt them first.” Another entanglement for accomplices involved the lack of employment: “Sometimes I have to wonder myself my I [commit burglaries]. And I always come to the conclusion that my kids need things. I always go and fill out applications and everything like that, but they don’t never seem to call back. Every time I want to go and finish school, something is always in my way.” #RandolphHarris 3 of 14

Drugs also played a prominent role: “I got into this thing with cocaine with my friend, and she don’t work or anything, and it ain’t cheap. So I pretty much go out with the boys to get what we want. It is getting pretty deep.” Alcohol also was contributory factor. One woman explained that she and a male friend were enticed into burglaries by a third offender while they were intoxicated: “[Another offender would] always get us both either drinking alcohol, or [my friend] smoked marijuana a lot. I only smoked it two times in my life and I didn’t like it and I don’t do it, but he would get me drunk and say we need some more money. Then they would go to a house.” Females’ participation in burglary can be examined with reference to their role in finding targets and planning offenses. The extent to which offenders participate in these tasks distinguishes partners clearly from accomplices. A number of the women with partner status played an important role in finding targets and planning offenses, as illustrated by the following quote: “Last time I took hm. It was a real good, decent neighborhood, you know, like in the country. I mean, we just sit up and…spot them up, and I find what I find and get what he get and we just go. It’s like a sharing thing with us. He come to me and ask me what’s up. I tell him nothing, but I know where we can get some money. We just come to each other. ‘I ain’t doing nothing, what’s happening?’ ‘Well, I ain’t got no money either, but I know where we can get some.’ #RandolphHarris 4 of 14

“He asked me if I been watching a house. ‘Yeah, I’ve been watching a house. There’s some old people and they go to church every Sunday. Every Sunday they go. They be gone from like about four to five hours. They go to church in the morning, Sunday school then, you know, all of that. I had watched that one. They be old people. They be having good stuff.’” Planning was crucial for many of the females who worked as partners in committing burglaries: “That’s one reason why we got so many youngsters in jail today. I see this, so let’s make a hit. No, no, no. If they see this and it looks good, then it’s going to be there for a while. So the point is, you have to case it and make sure you know everything. I want to know what time you go to work, the time the children go to school. I know there’s no one coming home for lunch. So plan it with somebody else. We’ll take the new dishwasher, washing machine, and this other stuff. We just put it in the truck. Do you know when people rent a truck, nobody every pays that any attention? They think you’re moving [but] only if you rent a truck. Now if you bring it out of there and put it in the car, that’s a horse of another color.” A few of the females classified as partners occasionally engaged in more spontaneous burglaries. The women who worked in this way, however, did not do so exclusively. These “spur-of-the-moment” burglaries emerged in the course of their day-to-day activities. #RandolphHarris 5 of 14

Women involved in burglaries as accomplices exercised much less control over the selection of targets and the planning of crimes. (In fact, some were unaware that a burglary was going to take place until they arrived at the site.) Other people invariably set up the burglaries: “He’ll call e, you know. And he’ll say, ‘I don’t think we’re going out today.’ I’ll say ‘OK.’ It’s nothing really specific why he do it that way. He just stop for a little while and start back…[H]e’ll pick them out. You can tell if it’s a nice neighborhood or bad neighborhood. What areas we go in, he picks them out. However, the self-actualized individual should investigate and decide all things. The self-actualized is to use one’s renewed judgment. The ultimate concern respects the intelligence of those who follow the righteous path, and knows that such a person judges and examines one’s own workings by one’s cognitive functions. One does not need to be spoon fed by a higher power as to the path to take, while it is good to study ethics, morals, laws, and virtues, a self-actualized being should reject all things that are deviant, and until such a time one knows who to discern with clearness what are the things that are proper. And not only is the self-actualized to discern or judge the things of ultimate concern—id est, all things in the higher realms of the pyramid—but one is also to judge oneself. For if we discriminated ourselves—the Greek word means to make a thorough investigation—we would not need the dealing of a higher power to bring to light the things in ourselves which we have failed to discern by discrimination. #RandolphHarris 6 of 14

Do not be led by false information and misunderstandings. However, in your mind know how to see the truth without fiction. Make sure you are mature and reasonable in all dealings. And when you make a statement, be sure to bring proof, and prove all things. Self-actualized beings are abound in knowledge and all discernment, so as to distinguish the things that differ, that one may be sincere and void of offence unto all minds have been enlightened. But we want to delude ourselves that love is the root. It is not. It is only the branches. The root is beyond love, an unveiled kind of isolation, an isolated me, that does not meet and minge, and never can…it is true what I say; there is a beyond, in you, in me, which is further than love, beyond scope, as stars are beyond the scope of vision, some of them. The way back is within you. Within the darkness inside of each individual, there must be a light that will shine forth in one’s solitude. What it requires is an unveiled kind of loneliness. It is understood that one’s life may not move forward through the caring or help of others. It is even possible to be completely at home with oneself in one’s detachment from significant communication and relationships. The passions within may had died, the joys of living may diminish, yet in solitude, one may be convinced that something vital will emerge and awaken one’s soul. At many crucial times, it is not therapy or love and understanding that move a person forward but rather what happens between meetings when the person is utterly alone. #RandolphHarris 7 of 14

It is in this state of unveiled isolation and loneliness that the potential for growth and change exist, that the desire to live and to be joyous again are reborn. We have emphasized the value of relationship and communication with others as essential in learning and in living, and how little we have encouraged and assisted the individual to know the significance of solitude, how little we have recognized the significance of communion with one’s self in all real living and personal growth. What we do not see is often what matters; invisible sources of life contain the seeds for new growth, and a profound experience of inner silence is required to start the new life. One may only be able to discover this on one’s own. What matters is not what others do for us but what we do for ourselves in the internal sense when we are alone with the powers of life that surround us—the stars, clouds, water, Earth, and air, and senses, feelings, and awareness that emerge from the unknow. In days of isolation, one may realize that out of conflict, tension, and despair a new truth arises that enables a person to return to life with others. In a time of personal crisis, it is important that the individual not seek an answer from outside. Neither friendship nor therapy can provide the awareness, direction, or shift that is required when a pattern of living is ending, when life has lost its vitality and meaning, when the person is no longer responding in depth, in a full way. In such times it is essential that the person look within, detached and isolated, that he or she be opened to the unknown sources of energy in life and in the Universe. The alternating rhythms of work and solitude are in one’s salvation. #RandolphHarris 8 of 14

Each day, one should honor the simple, ordinary routines that help one to move with real energy. Nothing seems to matter, yet everything one does as one waits to be reborn. Remember to keep faith with internal rhythms, with the integrity of one’s self. The new life will come in a resounding way, not while one is alone but in a heavy stream of involvement with others. Sacredness is an experienced phenomenon. The mysteriousness of the ultimate concern veils itself even when it reveals itself. The individual feels one’s annihilation is near; so does the soul which echo’s this feeling. A twofold meaning s expressed in the soul’s cry: majesty and purity. The terrifying and annihilating encounter with the majesty of the ultimate concern shakes the foundations, masking, yet revealing itself. The purity of the ultimate concern implies the moral perfection, the goodness, truth, and justice of itself which compels the individual to confess with one’s whole being that he or she is unclean. This concrete example indicates the two elements which constitute the notion of the sacred: The experience of the sacredness as being, and the experience of the sacred as what it ought to be. The sacred has a double relation to man, a relation of giving presence and commanding transcendence. Furthermore, man experiences the sacred as a gift and as a demand. This leads to the sacredness of the “is” and the sacredness of the “ought.” There are going to be times in our lives when someone else gets an unexpected blessing or receives some special recognition. May I pled with us not to be hurt—and certainly not to feel envious—when good fortune comes to another person? #RandolphHarris 9 of 14

The King Lear Problem: “Tell me, my daughters, since now we will divest us both of rule, interest of territory, cares of state, which of you shall we say doth love us most? That we our largest bounty may extend where nature doth with merit challenge.” Shakespeare, King Lear. King Lear was worried about how his children would treat him in his old age. Much to his regret, he discovered that children do not always deliver what they promise. In addition to love and respect, children are also motivated by the possibility of an inheritance. Here we look at how a strategic use of inheritance can manipulate children to visit their parents. Imagine that parents want their children each week to each visit once and phone twice. To give their children the right incentives, they threaten to disinherit any child who fails to meet this quota. The estate will be evenly divided among all the children who meet this quota. (In addition to motivating visits, this scheme has the advantage of avoiding the incentives for children to suffocate their parents with attention.) The children recognize that their parents are unwilling to disinherit all of them. As a result, they get together and agree to cut back the number of visits, potentially down to zero. The parents call you in and ask for some help in revising their will. Where there is a will, there is a way to make it work. But how? You ae not allowed to disinherit all of the children. As before, any child who fails to meet the quota is disinherited. The problem is what to do is all of them are below the quota. In that case, give all of the estate to the child who visits the most. This will make the childrens’ reduced visiting cartel impossible to maintain. We have put the children into a multiperson dilemma. The smallest amount of cheating brings a massive reward. A child who makes just one more phone call increases his or her inheritance from an equal share to 100 percent. The only escape is to go along with the parents’ wishes. (Obviously, this strategy fails with only children. There is no good solution for couples with an only child. Sorry.) #RandolphHarris 10 of 14

The dramatic death of state socialism in Eastern Europe and its bloody anguish from Bucharest to Baku to Beijing did not happen by accident. Socialism collided with the future. Socialist regimes did not collapse because of CIA plots, capitalist encirclement, or economic strangulation from outside. Eastern Europe communist governments toppled domino-fashion as soon as Moscow sent the message that it would no longer use troops to protect them from their own people. However, the crisis of socialism, as a system, in the Soviet Union, China, and elsewhere was far more deeply based. Just as Gutenberg’s invention of moveable type in the mid-15^th century led to the diffusion of knowledge and loosened the Catholic Church’s grip on knowledge and communication in Western Europe—ultimately igniting the Protestant Reformation—so the appearance of the computer and new communications media in the mid-20^th century smashed Moscow’s control of the mind in the countries it ruled or held captive. As recently as 1956, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev could dream of “burying the West.” Ironically, this was the very year when blue-collar workers in the United States of America were first outnumbered by knowledge and service workers—a shift that signaled the coming decline of the smokestack and the rise of the super-symbolic economy. Equally ironic is the fact that mind-workers were typically dismissed as “nonproductive” by Marxist economists (and many classical economists as well). Yet it is these supposedly nonproductive workers who, more perhaps than any other, have given Western economics a tremendous shot of adrenaline since the mid-fifties. #RandolphHarris 11 of 14

Today, even with all their supposed “contradictions” unresolved, the high-tech capitalist nations have swept so far ahead of the rest of the World in economic terms as to render Khrushchev’s boast merely pathetic. It was computer-based capitalism, not smokestack socialism, that make what Marxists call a “qualitative leap” forward. With the real revolution spreading in the high-tech nations, the socialist nations had become, in effect, a deeply reactionary bloc led by elderly men imbued with a 19^th-century theology. Mikhail Gorbachev was the first Soviet leader to recognize this historic fact. In a 1989 speech, some thirty years after the new system of wealth creation began to appear in the United States of America, Mr. Gorbachev declared, “We were nearly one of the last to realize that in the age of information science the most expensive asset is knowledge.” He rose to power not just as a remarkable individual, but as representative of a new class of better educated, largely white-collar Soviet citizens—precisely the group despised by earlier leaders. And precisely the group most closely connected with symbolic processing and production. Mr. Marx himself had given the classic definition of a revolutionary moment. It came, he said, when the “social relations of production” (meaning the nature of ownership and control) prevent further development of the “means of production” (roughly speaking, the technology). That formula perfectly described the socialist World crisis. Just as feudal “social relations” make it all but impossible for socialist countries to take advantage of the new wealth-creation system based on computers, communication, and above all, on open information. In fact, the central failure of the great state socialist experiment of the 20^th century lay in its obsolete ideas about knowledge. #RandolphHarris 12 of 14

China is on its way to becoming a World Superpower. America can still sharpen its competitive edge without becoming an appendage to China. It could help them to enhance the lead in the lead in the fastest growing sector of the global economy having the greatest potential for the expansion of demand in the future. For America and Europe and, maybe, also Japan, time is ripe to use their edge in full to conquer the Chinese services market, still largely underdeveloped. In this regard, a combination of three factors is working in favor of Western service providers. First, in today’s China, the level of development and penetration of most services is low. Second, Chinese consumers’ awareness about various kinds of services and their importance is growing. Third, contrary to manufacturing, Chinese domestic service companies are growing significantly. Let us pick up the insurance industry as just one of the examples. Life insurance penetration (total insurance premium income as percent of GDP) in China in 2022 stands at a 13 percent against the 7 percent global average. America has a life insurance penetration rate of 11.7 percent. However, China’s general insurance penetration rate is at 1.3 percent, which is below developed markets’ average of 4 percent. This may be due to culture. Some people in China see insurance as a curse. It is like casting demons on a person. Americans penetration in the non-life insurance stood at 1.00 percent in 2022. #RandolphHarris 13 of 14

As domestic public and private institutions do not provide a sufficient level of protection against accident, disease, disability and death, as well as against the risks associated with unemployment and retirement, families in Chia are boosting their low-yield bank deposits to have money at hand for the “rainy day.” Around 72 percent of all personal financial assets are held in cash deposits. On the other hand, as time foes by and consumers’ education progresses, more and more people come to understand the advantage of being insured, especially the fact that long-term insurance products can help them address the risks mentioned in a much more efficient way, freeing significant funds for consumption activities. The Chinese government is gradually pursuing deregulation and improving the regulatory framework. Steps are made to promote insurance services in the vast country side. The industry’s growth rates are remarkably high even by Chinese standards. For instance, between 2009 and 2022, the life insurance industry grew by 200 percent. The total assets of Chinese insurers amounted to USD $3.91 trillion at the end of December, up 11.5 percent from the beginning of 2021. That is 56 percent of the Americas total assets of insurers, which amounts to $7 trillion. Chinese insurers are quickly catching up. As a result, for service exporters, man believe the Western government should press Beijing harder to open up its services market. This way, the West will not be just exporting jobs to China, they will be in China making Chinese money. #RandolphHarris 14 of 14