> I do not allow insects into my "personal space"...
>
> Seeing the universe as divided into "us and them" has the drawback of
> negating possible benifits from nature, but it has the distinct
> advantage
> of removing debilitating influences, such as disease.
>
Sorry, but thinking that identifying with others
means letting them overrun you seems like
sheer silliness to me. If you can feel for a
small, but very angry child, who is doing his
best to hit you, and hold him at arms length,
while remaining ready to hug him as soon
as he calms down a little, then you should
have no difficulty whatsoever
understanding this. Sometimes you have
to maintain a physical distance for
practical reasons. The point is, you don't
have to match that with emotional
distancing. You can defend yourself with
deciding the other is your enemy.
> The faults of the world cannot be laid at the feet of identity.
>
Most or all inter-personal conflict can.
Robin