Quote (anonplanz @ Nov 23 2011 05:06am)
Many people will blame man's way to be on the way things are in the world.
But it is simple to clear the haze that blinds peoples ideologies with a simple scenario.
Now keep in mind this scenario is a bit far fetched, as resources are ultimately finite, however with proper use
of land and technology, man can peacefully exist, and sustain itself for as long as the earths conditions remain viable.
Scenario:
We live on a massive island of sand. And this sand will never ever run out. It's useful in every single aspect in our lives.
So useful in fact that we eat it, we drink it, we sustain, we build, we wash, we do all the things that man needs to sustain itself,
with this never ending supply of sand....
One day, a greedy man came to me with force and said, "Hey you! That sand! It's mine!"
I looked at him perplexed and I said calmly, "Sure, take as much as you need"
(you can laugh now)
So the concept that there is enough, dictates if greed exists or not. Having enough, means you really don't care if people are stealing it, it never runs out. And why would people steal it anyway, if they had enough of their own in the first place? The people of the island would frown upon this behavior as non productive, and socially unacceptable.
But in walks man in the real world, who dominates and hoards land, stealing its water supplies and food supplies and resources, and criminally regulates them through labor (slavery) systems. And not all jobs are that great, in fact many jobs are not available to many people. And rather than use technology to abandon mundane labor forever, they opt not to, and keep a system going whereby there are a few winners and MANY MANY losers. All fighting each other, for their own little piece of life.
This is what creates greed. In fact, this is what creates most social issues, including and not limited to war, child trafficking, drug trades, criminally corrupted governments, medical industries, piss poor educational systems etc.
If man used technology properly, and educated it's people to sustain themselves, rather than leading a life of labor on the hamster wheel, to sustain institutions of corrupt power, man could work for an hour a day or less, and sustain his entire family with ease. Through automation, robotics, scientific advancements in energy and made to last and sustain products and automated services, man doesn't have to work very hard to enjoy a GREAT QUALITY OF LIFE.
But I digress. The military men will opt to defend their nations flags, under which tyranny is a part of the grand scheme, and the police will opt to protect and serve, but only themselves and their own institutions, the lawyers and judges will create lucrative lives out of sacrificial lambs, the governments and leadership will continue to be led by a monetary system, and endorse fully the "some have it some don't" game, because it keeps them in power over people, despite that most of us suffer from common things that are completely avoidable.
How did it get this way? Hmmm.. A better question is, why on earth is it STILL This way?
Sincerely,
-Z
the middle east has more sand than us; war is inevitable