How does it come about that a seminal story in western world history begins, with one brother killing another?  Is it too late to create seminal stories where one brother helps another brother and together they both rise up.  Or,  is the Bible story telling us that we are doomed for all time to kill one another and  that killing one another is in our DNA.  Or,  can we use epigenetics to change our inner architecture?

Instead of the western bible, for those inclined to look at humankind through the alternate prism of evolution,  homicide began the first time one man subjugated another to do his bidding.  No matter what the means,  be  it verbal persuasion, bribery,  or physical threat,  once that pact was made between the two men we were on the road to the creation of vast armies ready, and willing,  to  do the bidding,  and die,  when necessary, under orders of a leader.   Two men could more easily subjugate a 3rd  followed almost infinitum.

Once again, in history  brothers are killing one another for the Jewish armies  in Israel  and the Hamas terrorist  Muslims share the same ancestor in Abraham.

However here on this  idyllic piece of our planet referred to as California’s north coast we are setting a different tone.

We are a collaborative, cooperative community sharing clean air, clean water, and creating very little violence against one another.

What we have created here on the coast  is what everyone wants and  which cannot be bought with money…authenticity.  We are real people,  living  real lives with real values who are not taken in by the superficial value system which supports such things as what is called bling. The bling mentality gives status to those who adorn themselves with pieces of metal called gold and silver and piece of stone called rubies and diamonds. We give value to safety, security, and sustainability.  Drive through our city and you will witness clean streets on  which only very rarely is  one seen racing.  Our store owners do not live in fear of groups of people storming in and stealing.

Our community has suffered great financial hardship with the closing of the lumber mill, resulting from outside ownership  dramatically over  logging, the   limitations   placed  on commercial fishing,  the economic recession of 2008 and then the pandemic which began in 2020.  As a result our  coastal area is dependent upon tourism for financial viability.

So lets ask ourselves, who are we and how do we want to brand ourselves to the world’s tourists.  When considering a brand one of the very first tasks is the name of the brand.  Right now our brand name is Fort Bragg.

Lets deconstruct our brand name together.  What does the word Fort bring to mind?  Obviously it has military connotations. How can one say Fort Bragg without thinking of the world famous military base in North Carolina formerly called Fort Bragg, and now called Fort Liberty.   

Do we want to send a  message to potential tourists that we are a community built around  a military tradition and related to the Carolina military base?   Do we want to send a message that we are part of the tradition of brothers killing brothers, or do we want to start new traditions of collaboration, cooperation and true love thy neighbor as thyself?

And now for the name Bragg.  This name comes to us from the Confederate Civil war general Braxton Bragg, who fought in favor of slavery and personally owned over 100 slaves, whom he is known to have profoundly abused.

Earl Hess, the author of Braxton Bragg: Most Hated Man of the  Confederacy, states that Bragg had a reputation for incompetence, for wantonly shooting his own soldiers and for losing battles.

If we decide not to brand ourselves descended from a military  Fort or from a racist confederate general, Bragg,  who never even saw our city,  how do we want to brand ourselves?  This is the question we are  obliged to answer if we want to get out from under the specter of Fort Bragg  representing the military and a racist.

Who are we and what do we stand for?  By asking ourselves these  questions, by engaging in these open discussions, we will achieve the wisdom necessary to give ourselves a new  name and begin our new traditions.