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Posts Tagged ‘consciousness’
People today know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Oscar Wilde
Raj Patel has written The Value of Nothing a new book inspired by this Oscar Wilde quote. I like to slightly rephrase this as the value of no thing. The basic idea in the book, is that the free market economy has failed us by shifting our thinking to believe that considering price is the only determining factor of value. Yet, there is value in other things that a price cannot be attached to. For example, a hamburger that has a price of $4 really should be priced at $200 if you factor in the environmental costs of producing the hamburger, but the markets work in a way to exclude things like the value of the air we breathe, the safety of the water we drink, and the damage caused by a junk food diet. Unfortunately we have learned that if we can’t or don’t attach a price to something it is valueless and, therefore unimportant.
Since the economic collapse we are discovering that the free market centric model of thinking is, in Alan Greenspan’s [former chairman of the Federal Reserve] own words, flawed. Those things to which a price cannot be attached have the highest value. Unfortunately, the flawed model of how things work has been dominating the USA, if not the world since the end of World War II. That means that one change in crisis of consciousness must be that we begin to understand what we really value and act accordingly. Free market thinking may have brought us lots of material prosperity at the cost of our fundamental values. The truth is that free market thinking is only one world view. There are others, and the shift in consciousness begins when you reassess your own values and begin to act on what your true values are. For example, is it more important to get a 15% pay increase that demands 20% more time or is it a higher value to spend time with your children. On a more global level, is it more value for you to get that new BMW every year or two or is more valuable to see that all Americans have reasonable health insurance.
The second example focuses on what I will call a “I’ve got mine and the hell with everyone else because I want to get more” way of thinking that has arisen out of market-centric views of the world. Suppose, instead, that we think in terms of “I’ve got mine now how can I help others” way of thinking, not at a billionaire philanthropic level, but at a day to day personal level. The best example of this that I can think of are Buddhist Bodhisattvas and the Bodhisattva Vow. In Mahayana Buddhism a Bodhisattva is sort of like a Christian saint. They are people who have achieved a considerable degree of enlightenment who but forgo their ultimate enlightenment to help others achieve liberation. In Christian terms they give up immediate rewards of heaven in order that other people might achieve heaven. The Bodhisattvas understand the interconnectedness of all human beings and that they will not be fully enlightened until everyone else is. The Bodhisattva Vow is simply the commitment that a monk may take to work as a Bodhisattva as his/her own wisdom increases.
Putting this in another context, are you willing to have a Chevy instead of a BMW so that everyone can have a car?
Today brings home the point because of the huge earthquake in Haiti. People are suffering unbelievably. So, what are your values? You can begin to restructure your life to fit your values using The Warriors Time Management System. Get it free by clicking here.
Posted in Synchrony is often abounding. It was today as I picked up the audio version of Dan Brown’s latest Robert Langdon thriller The Lost Symbol to keep me company during a 9 hour drive from Washington D.C. to Atlanta. Didn’t really know what the novel was about. I just knew that I liked both The Davinci Code and Angels and Demons, so I figured that this would be a good way to occupy the time. Well, it was fun that the novel is set in the city that I was just leaving and had done some of the tourist stuff in a few of the locations in the book. The really interesting content was on the last of the 5 CDs.
This forum has been discussing the change in consciousness that is required for a better world. My ears perked up when I heard the word Elohim popping out of the speakers. Dan Brown asked the same question that had surfaced in my brain several years ago, “Why is the word for God in the Old Testament (Elohim) plural?” Well, Dan Brown had an interesting take on this. Genesis says that man was made in God’s image. What does that mean? Most people automatically think, and Renaissance painters supported the idea that somehow man looked like God. No doubt an interesting idea, but kind of crazy when you really think about it. The notion that a guy that looks like you or me created the entire Universe isn’t really a fit… and what about women? So what does that leave? Dan Brown says that leaves Man’s mind being created in the image of God’s mind. OK, so what does that mean? Suppose that it means, as The Lost Symbol suggests, that man’s mind has the ability to shape matter and energy like the mind of God. An interesting thought (no pun intended). What we think can actually manifest in the physical world… sounds a little like the Law of Attraction doesn’t it.
We change the world by changing our thoughts! Think about it.
Taking Back Your Life
There really are a lot of forces that seem hell bent on making the worst of this planet and our lives. Whether we look at the Bilderberg Group, the international banking community, or just plain corporate greed that puts profits over people, it’s clear that there are people out there that arrogantly think that they are so much better and deserve so much more than other people that they have the right to destroy other people’s lives. It doesn’t even have to extend up to the level of the Bilderberg group. It can be the person you work for.
The theme of this web site is that we want to Make A Better World And Enjoy It. That seems pretty tough with all the forces that are making it worse. The fact of the matter is that it is pretty unlikely that you yourself as one single person will be able to do much to influence people like Henry Kissinger, David Rockefeller, or even Barack Obama. So what do you do? Answer… take personal responsibility for making your world better then let the light of your example shine on others. Here are some tips.
Arm yourself with knowledge
A warrior is known by their weapons. The best weapon in this battle is knowledge. There are plenty of web sites with information about the things that government and business are doing that are against your self interests. Read them and use that brain of yours to sort out what is true from what isn’t. This isn’t rocket science. Find out what is really happening and what you can do about it. Here’s a simple example. Governments at state and local levels are promoting or doing the fluoridation of drinking water. The population is told that fluoridation is a good thing because it prevents tooth decay… and I’m sure that a lot of the people in government believe that because, frankly, many don’t have the time or wisdom to research the matter.
The truth is that while fluoride may have some real dental benefits, the dangers of fluoride far outweigh the benefits. The reality of fluoride is that it is a byproduct of creating aluminum… and it’s expensive for the aluminum industry to dispose of it. So, they investigated how they could turn it into a profit and ended up funding a lot of the research that “proved” it was useful in reducing tooth decay. So the aluminum lobby is pushing for water fluoridation while their marketing departments are selling toothpaste and mouthwash companies on the idea of putting fluoride in their products.
Bottom line, you learn that you can’t trust government to deliver fluoride free water to you and that your family’s health depends on you taking responsibility to see that happens. You’ve got to buy a filter. That leads you to more knowledge about the dangers in the water supply and the right type of filter to buy to actually get safe water. See how this works!
Share the knowledge you get
Not everyone is going to be able to do complete research on everything. That means that you’ve got to take responsibility to share what you know with others. Be sure that what you know is really true, then share it. I can tell you for a fact that water fluoridation is a bad thing, that it is being banned in many European countries, and that you can purchase water filtration systems that will eliminate it from your water. I have done the research and now I am going to share the knowledge. To help the overall sharing process I will post your articles, comments, and even posts on any topics relating to making the world better on this site. Of course, I will do a bit of review to check out accuracy. All you need to do is send your information and article to articles@enjoyabetterworld.com or use the small contact form at the right to send me your contact information. Be sure I get your name and email (you can use a pen name if you like).
Take action and get your friends to take action
Armed with knowledge you get by research or from shared research, take the action to make your world better. Go buy that water filter… and get your friends to do that too. If a company is causing harm, don’t buy their products and ask your friends not to do so either. If you are tired of people acting against your self interest and just plain lying to you about what they are doing then stop buying their products and vote the cooperating politicians out of office. Get your friend to do it. Have them get their friends to do. Ultimately corporate behavior will change if they see damage to the bottom line and political behavior will change if they see damage in the voting booths.
Good and Evil
The problem is that the very entities that are causing the problem have also been shaping the debate. Monied interests have been amazingly effective at getting people to think and act against their own self interest. They buy the media and politicians to focus attention away from real dangers and problems and onto issues that actually matter very little to you personally. It’s like a magician that diverts your attention to one hand while the other hand is doing the manipulations that make the magic seem to work. For example, people actually believe that a gay couple living a mile away is more important than the contaminants in the water they are drinking. So, it’s time to start thinking in terms of what is really good and what is really evil. Companies acting against people to protect their profit are evil, period. Politicians voting against or stalling a bill that will help people in order to protect the companies that contribute to their campaigns and put money in their pockets are evil, period, no exceptions.
Take personal responsibility to find out the truth and to take action to make your world better so that you can enjoy it.
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