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“AGREED! The game that promotes world peace” |
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Duluth News Tribune Article ARE YOU GAME? Two Harbors man creates game of quotes to promote world peace Linda Hanson Duluth News Tribune If you pitted the wisdom of Mother Teresa against the wisdom of Mark Twain, who do you think would win? In the game Agreed by Steve Benson of Two Harbors, people read the quotes of two sages and decide which quote they like better. If the players agree that one quote is better than another, the sage with the winning quote advances to the next round. If people can’t agree, they pick two more quotes by the same authors and try again to reach agreement. The quotes have to do with such things as peace, love, honesty and friendship. The game is set up similarly to a tournament bracket that starts with eight sages, prophets, poets and authors. The elite eight are narrowed to a final four, then to two, who are pitted against each other for the championship. Each time you play the game, it can have a different outcome because you might be playing with a different person or discussing different quotes. Benson described the game as simple and elegant. People discuss the quotes and why they think they are or aren’t meaningful to them. It’s not only entertaining and fun, it promotes world peace, he said. “There’s not a winner or a loser,” he said. “Everyone wins.” The motto of the game comes from Mohandas Gandhi: “What kind of victory is it when someone is left defeated?” The game was born in a discussion over a few beers with a friend about 10 years ago, Benson said. His friend began reading out loud the words of Jesus and challenged Benson to “top that.” So Benson began offering quotes by the renowned college basketball coach John Wooden that he thought were more powerful. For example, his friend would quote Jesus saying, as in this passage from the Gospel of St. Matthew: “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye.” And Benson said he would respond with a quote like this from Wooden, who was grounded in his Christian faith: “If we magnified blessings as much as we magnify disappointments, we would all be much happier.” The two put up a large poster board, penciled in tournament brackets and, over the next few weeks, had fun pitting the words of wisdom of sages against each other. As he recalls it, Rumi won. Rumi was a 13th-century Persian poet and lawyer who was a follower of Sufism, a mystical form of Islam that includes the whirling dervish dances. Benson said Rumi is considered one of the greatest mystical poets. Benson, who has a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling, said that over the years he has written down quotes he finds inspiring. Benson, 42, lives in a cabin in the woods off the electrical grid and now does contract work for Soltreks Inc., a Two Harbors-based wilderness therapy program. He also sells a curriculum he designed to help special-education students with life planning (www.onehourlifeplan.com). In the fall 2006, Benson was going through work, life and relationship struggles and, to cope, he turned making the game with the words of prophets, poets and sages who had written about such things as positive regard, peace, honesty, friendship, trust and love. “It was good therapy for me,” he said. Benson had long thought that the quotes game he had once played with his friend would make a good game for others. Last year, he created the game Agreed and shared it with friends. Last summer, Benson also offered the game as a prize at a booth at an energy fair in the Bayfront Festival Park. The game attracted attention and people seemed to like the idea that everyone wins, he said. Jason Edens, executive director of Rural Renewable Energy Alliance, has played the game many times and said it’s different every time. “It’s extremely thought-provoking. And you can play it with any number of people,” he said. The purpose of the game is to build consensus as you talk about which quote is more interesting or moves you, he said. “It’s not divisive. Everyone agrees,” he said. Benson includes information with the game on how people can work toward a consensus. Each person rates from one to five how strongly they feel about a quote advancing in the game. Then the author of the quote with the most points advances. The game costs $35, which includes a wooden game board, sets of 30 quotes each from eight people, and directions. The eight in the basic game are Mohandas Gandhi, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Mark Twain, Jesus, Buddha, Lao Tsu (an important figure in Taoism), Confucius and Muhammad (prophet and founder of Islam). Benson also sells additional sets of quotes from such people as Eleanor Roosevelt, Jane Austen, Henry David Thoreau, John Muir, William Shakespeare and Socrates. He has compiled quotes from 32 people and hopes to increase that to 64 by the end of this year. He is looking for a balance from different traditions and from both men and women. Many of the wise people whose quotes he uses came to the same conclusions about life. Benson said they highlight the importance of the here and now, and of being nice to other people and trying to get along. Benson has approached two large game companies to see if they wanted to produce the game, but was told there was no mass market for it because there’s no winner and loser, he said. “It’s the opposite of [the TV show] ‘Survivor.’ No one loses. If you look into society, that’s hard to find,” he said. LINDA HANSON covers family issues and religion. She can be reached weekdays at |
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