humane Nature Knows Best!

Everyone agrees on only one definition: nothing. There is another definition people will now agree on: humane nature (the positive side of human nature), which is also a newly coined behavioral definition.

This News Release marks the public born-on date, 12/12/12 for humane nature on the last alliteration date of this century. According to US Today, 65,000 American couples married on the most recent alliteration day, 07/07/07. This was more than ten times the daily U.S. wedding average. We trust that today will, nonetheless, be remembered more for the "soft" launch of humane nature rather than as a popular wedding date on the last alliteration date of our lifetime.

The human condition is a phrase that envelops what it means to be human. The spelling difference between being human and humane is a "little e" tacked on the end yet the behavior of being human versus being humane are all too often distant worlds apart. This is more than a language distinction as being humane differs in conduct from merely being human. That’s because the latter so dominates everyday interpersonal interactions, habits and beliefs while the former is caring-based and around fifteen times less likely to be used in a Google search.

The coinage of humane nature reframes what is inbred in the instinctive way people care and provide for those who require or appreciate assistance whether they’re infants or the infirmed. This occurs in many settings including as a humanitarian, caregiver, volunteer, paid provider, family member, friend or philanthropic giver to simple gestures of kindheartedness and genuine understanding in daily life. It’s built on a human inclination to be caring.

Consider how people think and what they say. A typical use for the phrase 'human nature' is to describe the misbehavior of others. "Oh, that’s human nature." This is usually uttered to excuse, degrade or condemn some human misbehavior. It is commonplace to lump all kinds of selfish, angry, harmful or destructive actions by others (or ourselves) under the common banner of "That's human nature."

In contrast, if it's a positive behavior from one to another (or others), then people typically describe it variously as being heroic, brave, compassionate, generous, altruistic, sympathetic, loving, empathetic, nurturing or some other positive and very specific descriptive word. We treat it as if the conduct was an exception and rarely call these positive behaviors ‘human nature’ nor, and more importantly, is there a composite word that groups and fully describes all of these positive acts and actions. Being humane natured, however, remains anonymous only in a collective sense. This notion has not, until now, been described in its totality or with a naming beyond human nature although some of its elements like caring for offspring are also deep-seated behavior in other mammals in a way that is equally essential to survival.

humane beings and humane rights are catchall phrases with cameo appearances in the upcoming book, HealthCARING: Rewire Minds, Simplify Change to Reset Health, Healthcare, and Well-doing as is the overall desire for a more aware, caring and engaged humanekind. So why not experiment further with this change in meaning by slotting in "humane" rather than "human" in compound words ending with… race, development, factors, psychology, and relations, to name but five additional ones. Consider the weighty implication of each alteration. One of these new compound words is partially covered under the definition of 'humanitarian', which overlaps with the actions of being a humane being.

A clear signal is sent by adding the "little e" to any closed or open compound word that begins with human. That is because the efforts of Open4Definition are less about the eloquence of language and more about its effect on large-scale change. As anthropologist-linguist Edward Sapir wrote, "Human beings...are very much at the mercy of the particular language which has become the medium of expression for their society. ...The fact of the matter is that the 'real world' is to a large extent unconsciously built up on the language habits of the group." It is with a shared, good fortune that humane nature and healthcaring intertwine in ways that positively reinforce each other. As to the latter, by naming what already exists for a subgroup of committed individuals as healthcaring, an intense caring about health and healthcare will help amplify our underlying humane nature.

For a publication notification or to pre-order the book, HealthCARING: Rewire Minds, Simplify Change to Reset Health, Healthcare, and Well-doing, email b@open4definition.org today.