(no subject)
Umm... I'm not sure what there is to add. Money is not the essence of evil. Money in many cases can be the result of hard work. You advance quickly in the work place if you are adept at overcoming obstacles and working with the people around you.
The reason why I had beef with money and materialism in the first place is because I thought that one should set their goals based on money because it is important to be provided for financially in life. This is true, but if you realize that for you it is more important to be content with your work and your life than to have all of the expensive things available then you should choose your career and life path based on your own aptitudes and what you really enjoy. Often if you do the later then money will just come to you, but sometimes that is not the case, and you will have made a scrifice.
Business is necessary for the production of goods on a large scale. Although it is easy for me to despise big business the reality is that if it disappeared tomorrow there would be limited access to the goods that are essential for life. Transportation is provided by fuel... transportation is how we get all of the food from far away places. If that broke down so would our access to food. Yes, transportation in a leading cause of air pollution... which is why we should try to develop technology that uses our waste as fuel and produces less pollution.
Yes, I still feel that we have gone a little too far in the direction of luxury in many cases... this causes many people to be blinded by gadgets and to dedicate their lives to getting more. This is sad, but do we really all want to go back to living on communes without access to the transportation and communication systems that are so dominant in our world today. Without them I wouldn't be able to pursue my interest in India by traveling to India... and I maybe wouldn't know anything about India at all. We gain access to the music we listen to and the movies we watch and the people be keep in touch with in the same ways.
The environmental crisis cannot be prevented by isolation on communes or by criticizing technology or business. It seems more and more clear to me that if there is any hope in slowing population growth and halting the environmental degradation that comes with it... that hope lies in using the current economic systems and social pressure to generate change.
It isn't all clear yet... but there are articles in the paper here in India every day about the need for professionals in the sustainable energy sector. Schools here are going to start using solar powered and biofueled stoves in exchange for carbon credits under the Kyoto protocol. India probably has a more efficient recycling system than the US. There are still many problems and there is still garbage on the streets and in the water ways... but overall out of necessity they are more efficient at recycling than we are.
It seems clear that they may not learn from our cultural mistakes without making the same mistakes first, meaning they may have to see the dissolution of their traditional family unit, a more materialistic attitude in their youth, and a rise in junk food consumption before they see the negative side effects and begin to appreciate pieces of their traditional culture again.
However, there is enough pressure to bring up the quality of life, and the population is so large... that in the process of development they will institute policies that are sustainable and that take full advantage of the opportunity to use the technology developed in the west to prevent environmental degradation. That is the most cost efficient way for them to develop and that is why they will do it. Although they might have a greater appreciation for the natural world... I'm not sure that the reasons for their actions are anything but the desire to be a world power.
This is also the result of looking through an architectural digest and realizing how beautiful many of the homes built are. They are just as beautiful as a green forest... and I felt humbled at man's creations in the world. Those creations come from the materialism that I previously tried to reject, but they might be our most clear expression of our minds and the universe.
This is all jumbled.... I'm sure it made more sense before... I still don't really know what I am talking about. But I am feeling a little more willing than ever before to put on a business suit, heals, and makeup... to act like most other people and join the world of money and power. That might be the only real way to make change.
Ebb and flow... back and forth... never a clear decision... only thoughts... next come actions???
The reason why I had beef with money and materialism in the first place is because I thought that one should set their goals based on money because it is important to be provided for financially in life. This is true, but if you realize that for you it is more important to be content with your work and your life than to have all of the expensive things available then you should choose your career and life path based on your own aptitudes and what you really enjoy. Often if you do the later then money will just come to you, but sometimes that is not the case, and you will have made a scrifice.
Business is necessary for the production of goods on a large scale. Although it is easy for me to despise big business the reality is that if it disappeared tomorrow there would be limited access to the goods that are essential for life. Transportation is provided by fuel... transportation is how we get all of the food from far away places. If that broke down so would our access to food. Yes, transportation in a leading cause of air pollution... which is why we should try to develop technology that uses our waste as fuel and produces less pollution.
Yes, I still feel that we have gone a little too far in the direction of luxury in many cases... this causes many people to be blinded by gadgets and to dedicate their lives to getting more. This is sad, but do we really all want to go back to living on communes without access to the transportation and communication systems that are so dominant in our world today. Without them I wouldn't be able to pursue my interest in India by traveling to India... and I maybe wouldn't know anything about India at all. We gain access to the music we listen to and the movies we watch and the people be keep in touch with in the same ways.
The environmental crisis cannot be prevented by isolation on communes or by criticizing technology or business. It seems more and more clear to me that if there is any hope in slowing population growth and halting the environmental degradation that comes with it... that hope lies in using the current economic systems and social pressure to generate change.
It isn't all clear yet... but there are articles in the paper here in India every day about the need for professionals in the sustainable energy sector. Schools here are going to start using solar powered and biofueled stoves in exchange for carbon credits under the Kyoto protocol. India probably has a more efficient recycling system than the US. There are still many problems and there is still garbage on the streets and in the water ways... but overall out of necessity they are more efficient at recycling than we are.
It seems clear that they may not learn from our cultural mistakes without making the same mistakes first, meaning they may have to see the dissolution of their traditional family unit, a more materialistic attitude in their youth, and a rise in junk food consumption before they see the negative side effects and begin to appreciate pieces of their traditional culture again.
However, there is enough pressure to bring up the quality of life, and the population is so large... that in the process of development they will institute policies that are sustainable and that take full advantage of the opportunity to use the technology developed in the west to prevent environmental degradation. That is the most cost efficient way for them to develop and that is why they will do it. Although they might have a greater appreciation for the natural world... I'm not sure that the reasons for their actions are anything but the desire to be a world power.
This is also the result of looking through an architectural digest and realizing how beautiful many of the homes built are. They are just as beautiful as a green forest... and I felt humbled at man's creations in the world. Those creations come from the materialism that I previously tried to reject, but they might be our most clear expression of our minds and the universe.
This is all jumbled.... I'm sure it made more sense before... I still don't really know what I am talking about. But I am feeling a little more willing than ever before to put on a business suit, heals, and makeup... to act like most other people and join the world of money and power. That might be the only real way to make change.
Ebb and flow... back and forth... never a clear decision... only thoughts... next come actions???