24th World Conf report.doc
Version date: Oct. 10, 2005
Page 28 / 52
ISGF 24
th
World Conference 2005
Conference Report
Keynote Speaker speech
"Building the future together"
ISGF conference, Lillehammer, June 13, 2005.
Henrik Syse, PhD.
Senior research fellow at the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO) & the
Ethics Program of the University of Oslo.
e-mail:
henrik@prio.no
/
hsyse@online.no
A Swedish comedian yes, we do quote Swedes now and then, even here in Norway once
said that it is not enough to be on the right track, if you just sit there ... Because if you do, you
will get run over by the train, no matter how right the track you're on is.
I guess that reminds us also of the famous saying that if you're in a tunnel and you believe
you can finally see the light at the other end; remember, it may be a train in the other
direction.
So what's the lesson from these sad, train-related stories? Well, let me try two more before I
start making a point: First, there's the one about the American who visited Norway for the
first time, and sat on the train towards Lillehammer. The American kept bragging about how
great and fast everything is in the US and the conductor who was in the car with him had to
listen to this for hours: "You know," the American said, "in the US, one day we lay the
foundation of a house, and the next day it's up." As they approached Lillehammer, the
conductor was getting very tired of this and wanted to get back at him, so when the American
leaned toward the window and asked, as the city was approaching: "Hey, please tell me,
what city is that?" the conductor replied "Oh, goodness, that city wasn't there yesterday!"
And my final train-related story is the one about the man who came to a city and noticed that
the railway station was situated a bit outside of the city centre, so he asked a man why it was
that way, whereupon the local man replied: "Well, we thought it was best to build the station
close to the railway tracks."
OK, let me sum up: As we you are facing the future together as the International Scout
and Guide Fellowship, you need to be on the right track, and it may take some time finding
that. But not just that, you need to move along and make sure you have the right speed. You
have to be alert towards dangers that may be heading your way, especially if they come at
you from the other direction. You should be honest and humble regarding the progress you
are making. And last but not least: You should make sure that you are where you need to be,
which is not always where everyone else thinks you should be ...
Let me start my philosophical journey at that last point: We live in a time when, in the
industrialized world but also elsewhere, trivialities are filling up our lives. In spite of, or maybe
even because of, all the huge challenges we should be spending our time on HIV/AIDS,
poverty, conflict, infant mortality, child prostitution we sedate our minds every day with
endless amounts of gossip, sex, TV, computer games, and downright garbage. I do not
mean that everything on TV or computer screens is garbage, nor for that matter that sex
is necessarily so (having four children, I can hardly hold that opinion!). My point is,
nonetheless, that we easily give young people the impression that the truly important things
in life are about physical pleasure, power, good looks, and brain-dead entertainment. Those
