I don’t know folks. It’s probably just a quirk in my personality. I have noticed a pattern lately in the way I engage with the Integral Universe. I post every month or so with a thinly veiled cynical or critical attitude about something. There’s no real dialogue with Wilber; The audio/video clips on Integral Naked are becoming more and more like commercials; I hate the spiral dynamics lingo; blah blah blah. Now I read this on the Integral Naked forum:
“Once you’ve completed I-I Certification (coming soon), or completed the accredited courses in Integral Theory currently being offered by JFK or Fielding, or passed the (coming soon) sentence-completion tests based on Jane Loevinger’s work, or assessed by internal I-I folks as having your center of gravity at least 2nd tier, then welcome inside the Berlin Wall. This highly selective circle is the cream of the crop at I-I. Eventually, our ‘I-I 411 / Yellow Pages’ will enable you to be acknowledged by rank, your rank based on your level of integral education, your test results and the quantity of feedback you get from I-I peers ranking your altitude.”
I read this, and my stomach turned. I know, I know — I must be Green because Green hates ranking and hierarchy. This might be true, but I’ve gotta go with my gut (another Green thing, I suppose). Maybe I just need to step away from the Integral Scene for a while and see how things take shape. Maybe I’m just tired and cranky from too many hours working at the hospital.
I wonder how others feel about having their “altitude ranked?” My first reaction was to cancel my I-I membership and write the whole thing off as another failed experiment. Shadow stuff creeping up? Legitimate concerns about creepy aspects of this community? I don’t know. I’m going to sleep on it.