Stop and Think, Just For A Minute...

I do it, you do it, we all do it to one extent or another...

But, just for a minute, while you are sipping your latte, or typing on your mobile device, or watching your widescreen TV stop and think.

Stop and think about the price that other people in the world are paying for our vast consumption of consumer goods, fast food, cars and all the things we take for granted.

Stop and think of the previous, present and future wars that our politicians are REQUIRED to undertake on our behalf to ensure that we keep our standard of living, IF they want to be re-elected.

We live in a harsh world, but we have also created a political and economic system that feeds on our personal greed - and we feed the system that gives us what we want.

Not only that, but we also perpetuate it - when we visit another culture, we do not immerse ourselves in that culture, instead we demand the comforts of home, even though we are hundreds or thousands of miles away from out home.

WE are the very thing that we rail against.

WE are the military industrial complex that gives us our gas guzzling cars.

WE are the people who, no matter what we are given, demand more, and better, and bigger and faster.

So, we sit here in our Ivory Towers of unimaginable wealth (to many) and we pass judgement, about what they are doing, and why they are doing it - and the simple fact is that we don't have a clue about real poverty: poverty that we perpetuate by simple dint of demanding that our lifestyles not only remain the same, but GET BETTER!

I am telling you that this cannot and will not carry on.

The poor countries of the world are rising, slowly but surely - the very same countries that we have raped, plundered and pillaged, and they will have no sympathy for us when the wheel turns and they are in the chair.

What can we do about it?
Nothing.
Most are so thoroughly entrenched and indoctrinated that they will not believe a word I say - their loss.

The rest of us CAN do something - we can drive out the old elite, use our votes wisely, and effect change through our electoral system

But we won't...
cos we don't want to give up our comforts, our cars, our widescreen TV's and cable, our lattes, our burgers and everything else.

And when the hammer falls, we will blame everything and everyone except our own greed.

You sound like Obumr. No disrespect. I agree to an extent. If improvements of our world will happen, it must be a gradual change. Its the only way that it will stick. Abrupt drastic measures will only kill more and make people suffer more than ever, and wont last. Its a balancing act that starts with critical thinking. Politicians will hide behind peoples concerns and call for drastic measures. Those are just measures for power.

Did you say "use our votes wisely"? You kinda had me until that. If you're still voting, then you're still in that illusion.
There are too many sedated cows walking around and driving cars out there, nothing we can do to help them, they have to help themselves, and that will NEVER happen as long as the power is on in their homes... or until McDonald's goes out of business.

For those of us who are awake & aware, we can stop contributing to all of this BS, I've stopped, my gf stopped, her family is waking up, our friends have changed their habits by our example of content and health. Lead by example, these fluoride heads can't even speak or write English anymore, but they still can copy & imitate what they see that works for others.

I gotta be honest...

I read your posting OP and all I could think about was how awsome we are and how nice it is to be us.

Why would I use my votes to lower my standard of living?

reply to post by JibbyJedi


There are groups and people who you could vote for under our current system.

Maybe it's the first small step in achieving somthing positive that we can build on.

Lots of small steps make big steps

Originally posted by budski
What can we do about it?
Nothing.
Most are so thoroughly entrenched and indoctrinated that they will not believe a word I say - their loss.

I am going to buck the trend and believe you. That of course means that there is nothing we can do about it. I've reconsidered, I'm going to disbelieve you so that I can believe we can do something about it. Crisis averted.

Originally posted by ararisq
I am going to buck the trend and believe you. That of course means that there is nothing we can do about it. I've reconsidered, I'm going to disbelieve you so that I can believe we can do something about it. Crisis averted.

You've had a crisis?

There IS a personal forum...

Originally posted by YourPopRock
I gotta be honest...

I read your posting OP and all I could think about was how awsome we are and how nice it is to be us.

Why would I use my votes to lower my standard of living?

Would you use your vote to deliberately harm someone?

No, of course not - but the people in power do it anyway.

It's like a burglar saying: "I'm not robbing this house because it has lots of money and diamonds, I am robbing this house to free people and bring democracy"

The owner of the house says"We have plenty of that thanks" BUT they get invaded anyway - worse than those religious types that try to step inside your door.
Which gives the average person a reason to be angry or upset - someone has just stepped into your house despite the fact you said "NO!"

So, I think that might be a reason to be a little fraught.

Listen to this song:

www.youtube.com...

Hits it on the head, in my opinion.

Click here for more information.

I was watching a documentary on Shell Oil in Africa and how it was implicated in environmental catastrophes and funding the assissination of a populist grass roots political leader opposing them.

That was enough for me, I realized that it wasn't just what was going on in Iraq, that there is a high price the world over in blood that is being paid for oil. Not my blood, but I didn't want it on my hands.

I sold my car a couple days later and bravely and with a little amount of trepidation bought a bicycle.

That was two years ago and I have to say it's one of the smartest things I have ever done and I sincerely wish I had done it years earlier.

Times have been tough for me as many these last few years as my business's revenues dropped at the height of the economic crisis by close to 80%.

I tightened my belt, and tightened it some more, resolved to stay in business and not paying for gasoline, insurance, tolls or parking all thanks to the bicycle sure helped.

I stopped indulging my every consumer whim and started looking to do two things, one to save money through how I purchased things when and where I could and two to try to spend my money locally and not to reward the corporations selling cheaply made foreign products.

THIS IS MY VOTE, it's not at the polls, it's with my money that I am voting.

I am voting against your multi-national corporation by NOT doing business with it.

I am voting against your OIL Wars by not buying oil.

I am voting against your Banking System by not keeping my money in it, and when and where possible bartering and trading with my clients in my business for goods and services.

There is another way to vote that has nothing to do with the polls, because support for this system or against this system that all revolves around money and control of resources doesn't have much to do with how you vote at the polls, it has to do with how you vote at the cash register and which ones.

I got rid of my TV about the same time as my Car, and that was a very wise thing too, I am no longer being 'programed' by their programs and having my mind turned into a vast consumer wasteland.

Business has slowly picked up a little more and with all my new life strategies I have managed to save a bit of money. I recently sat down on a beautiful sunny and warm weekend here in Miami my work all done and took stock of my financial situation and asked myself what did I want to go out and treat myself too?

I then took stock of what I already possess and have and realized there wasn't anything I really needed.

So I went to the park and the beach instead and enjoyed the very best things in life instead, which are always free.

Some of you Vote once every two years, others once every four, some never at all.

I am here to tell you I vote every day, I vote with my money, I vote with my words, I vote with my actions, I vote with my decisions.

I know what I do matters, that it has a ripple effect, and I know not to listen to people who tell me otherwise.

They are just making excuses and trying to deminish me even as they deminish themselves.

It all changes when you free yourself from the box and the constructs that they make for you.

Woah woah woah, I have no idea who the hell you think is sitting on any tower of any riches, but it sure as hell isn't me or anyone that I know. Even as an American I have been living in poverty all my life. Yes I may have a luxury or two, such as a computer and the internet, but I'm not sitting on any tower of wealth, wishing any worse for anyone else. That stuff we take for granted that costs so much, is Chinese made CRAP that costs next to nothing to produce because it's outsourced. Also, who is feeding the system besides the system its self? I don't remember getting up and telling big government to go ahead and take all my money because its for the greater good. Before you wake up in the morning and decide 'who can I blame for the crap-hole the world is in right now' maybe you might want to consider what good you have done yourself, if any. Not all of us are rich fat cats, sitting on our asses watching the big game on our 70 inch plasma television. So before the next time you want to start pointing fingers, stop and think, just for a minute.

reply to post by Vortiki


And yet your PC and internet could feed an african family for a year...

That's what I mean by SOME thinking what we take for granted are for them unimaginable riches.

reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler


I don't drive, and have only the essentials, apart from a decent TV to watch sports on - it's not an expensive TV, but even so, when I read about what goes on in the world, I still feel just a little guilty.

I know many will say that "so what, I earned the money for it" etc, and in a sense they'd be right, but in another sense, that way of thinking simply confirms the programming (pardon the pun)

It wasn't until I got into my 30's that I started to look at things in a different way, and explore other options.

So, I now use my local credit union - it's a bit more expensive than a bank, but I don't miind as it goes back into helping my local community.

I pay electric on a meter, and keep usage as low as possible.

I am on a meter for water, so I try to keep that consumption low as well.

I cycle when I can (which due to back problems isn't often atm) and catch public transport when I need to go somewhere further afield.

I'm not saying that everyone who doesn't cut back or look at things is wrong - it's my choice and it's my decision, everyone must make their own and I respect their right to do so.

BUT, if you make those choices to be the kind of consumer they want you to be, it seems obvious to me that you forfeit the right to complain about the system we live in.

reply to post by budski


I fail to see how my computer and internet could feed anyone for any allotted amount of time. How about this big guy: 80% of the clothing and shoes you buy goes to foreign Nations and takes away from jobs here at home. Every time someone buys a Mitsubishi or a Honda, they are supporting foreign Nations and taking away from jobs at home. Here's a slice of fried gold for you: why don't you go sell all of YOUR possessions, donate all the profit to Africa, THEN you can complain about ME having a computer and internet access. Speaking of my computer and internet access, had I not had either of them, I would have been incapable of donating HALF of my cable connection bandwidth to the peoples of Egypt during their disconnection from the rest of the net. What the hell have you done lately besides moan and complain about what everyone else has?

You can sit there on your computer, using your internet access and tell ME that my computer could feed someone else whom is less fortunate and that I'm taking it for granted. Yet, aren't you using your computer to complain about how unfortunate others on the planet are? Doesn't that seems slightly, hypocritical? Something that I really can't stand is when someone whom is in the same shoes as myself or better off tries to tell me that I'M not doing enough to help out the less fortunate. I refuse to feel guilty because I have the occasional luxury. However I will be one of the first to share my luxuries with those whom don't have. You want to go save everyone then be my guest, but don't you DARE try to put others down and claim they take things for granted because others don't have the same things or liberties. I have a roof over my head, that I have allowed plenty of others to use when they needed shelter, free of charge. I let them sleep under my roof, fed them my food and clothed them with my own clothes. So before you start saying how my computer can feed a family, maybe you should start thinking about how some of us are already helping the less fortunate, weather we have things of luxury or not.

P.S. Whining about people having things doesn't help the less fortunate.

reply to post by Vortiki


Or how about you read what I actually wrote, and get down off your high horse.

You seem to be unable to comprehend what is actually being said, or perhaps you do comprehend but have decided to deliberately misinterpret it for some reason.

reply to post by budski


I read everything you wrote word for word. You claim we are greedy people that perpetuate a system that enduced poverty to other nations. I'm telling you that you're freaking wrong dude. WE do NOT perpetuate poverty by ANY means. You see those people that are on tv, telling you that for as low as a dollar a month you can support a third world nation child? Yeah, those are freaking Americans that have as much as anyone else helping those kids. Also, I don't remember ever saying "hey, screw those poor people that haven't eaten in a week, I'm going to go play xbox" you're assuming everyone feeds into a system that causes poverty elsewhere, well let me fill you in on something, pal. When we outsource our jobs to these third world nations to give them jobs because it's cheaper, we're doing the EXACT OPPOSITE of what you are claiming. We're strengthening the poorer nations and weakening our own. Those big screen televisions everyone buys up aren't made in the united states. The shoes on your feet are 70% chance made out of the United States. The engine in the public transportation bus that you ride everywhere is made IN ANOTHER COUNTRY. You want to talk about poverty everywhere and we're the cause? Well you are half right, poverty is everywhere, including HERE. Yet people like you are only concerned with kids in Africa, forget the starving people of anywhere else. So you go ahead and walk in your Tiwan made shoes to catch the bus made in China so you can go home to the television made in Japan, get on your computer that was put together in India, and cry to everyone around the world about how these countries have it worse than anyone else and its our fault.

There was a time when I'd be on board with you. I actually don't feel good about where certain products come from and how we have obtained them, but let's just sit down and list all the things we use every day, all over the world, and figure out how likely or possible it is to stop using all products obtained in an immoral way:

Products made from oil:

- Asphalt roads
- Plastics such as computers, bottled drinks, video and photo cameras, TVs, radios, phones, pens, plastic containers of any sort, refrigerators, printers, inks, electric cords, car/airplane/motorcycle/boat components, etc.
- Medical supplies such as heart valves, antiseptics, rubbing alcohol, bandages, aspirin, vitamins, etc.
- Food preservatives
- Toiletries such as shampoo, lotions, cosmetics, shaving cream, toothpaste, deodorant, etc.
- Paint
- Fabrics

and the list goes on and on. I haven't even listed the things that get produced with the help of oil (lubricating and running machinery), which happens to be a very long list. Oil is the blood of our civilization. Look around you and count all the things in your house that contain plastic components. There's probably more than you thought. Outside the realm of your house there are businesses you may be supporting by purchasing their services or items which were created with the help of oil. Should we boycott every store, restaurant, park, social service or TV/radio/internet network who uses plastics to conduct business? What happens to all the jobs around the world when we stop using the products and services? Do we all go back to farming and hunting, fighting for the land our cows must graze on in order to survive? At what point will humans stop fighting for resources of any kind?

Without these products we would have no way to communicate the way we are doing now. We wouldn't be able to receive news from the other side of the world, no pictures or evidence of the atrocities, no internet,.... basically human civilization would be completely different than it is now.

Before you even put a tiny little dent into the war for oil, you would need to toss out hundreds, if not thousands of useful and life-saving products, or find an alternative material to produce them from. If you want to lessen the human need for oil, you're going to have to find an effective substance to replace it with first. Otherwise the war will go on. There is no country on this earth who doesn't make use of this precious resource. We all have blood on our hands when you consider it. Is it right? No, I don't think it's right that people have to die for it. Why not negotiate fair prices instead and pay what it's worth without complaints or threats? We all need it, so why can't we strike a peaceful deal? What is standing in our way of doing so? That's what we need to ask ourselves.

reply to post by Vortiki


You may have read it, but you have obviously missed the underlying message, or have chosen to take it the wrong way.

Never mind.

reply to post by 2manyquestions


You want to know why no one can strike a peaceful deal? I'll tell you why. Money. Money, money, money. Money gives people the means to do anything they can think of. It is the one thing that is wanted by nearly everyone. There are PLENTY of alternatives to energy and such things, but they are all tossed aside because there is no money to be made off it. If anyone seriously wants to "fix the planet" that's where they need to start. The majority of crimes that happen are in some way, shape, or form, related to a monetary gain. Big companies do what is cheapest and most profitable and we pay for it on an individual and world wide level. It has nothing to do with these citizens being in poverty because those citizens buy things.

Resourced based economy vs "capitalist economy" resourced based will win every time. That's what happens when we work together to do things because we can, not because we can afford to. Prime example, we still rely on oil and fossil fuels when we have had the capability for free energy since Nikola Tesla in the 1800's. You can point whatever finger at whatever reason/person, but when it all comes down to it, people don't 'do', merely claim that someone should.