Tag: Video

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Are We Destined To Pay The High Price Of Materialism Until We Die, Or Is There Another Way?

The Grip Of Materialism

  • Every day Americans are bombarded with hundreds of messages suggesting that ‘the good life’ is attainable through ‘the goods life,’ by making lots of money and spending it on products that claim to make us happy, loved and esteemed.
  • On the news shows we hear a near constant refrain from economists and politicians about the importance of consumer spending and economic growth.
  • Around 150 billion dollars are spent most years to embed consumer messages in every conceivable space.
  • Commercialization and consumerism also reach deeper, warming their way into people’s psyches and encouraging them to organize their lives around higher salaries and owning more stuff.”

The Problem Of Materialism

  • Research consistently shows that the more that people value materialistic aspirations and goals, the lower their happiness and life satisfaction, and the fewer pleasant emotions they experience day to day.
  • Depression, anxiety and substance abuse also tend to be higher among the people who value the aims encouraged by consumer society.”

The Stronger The Grip Of Materialism, The Lower The Care For Others And Nature

  • Scientists have found that materialistic values and pro-social values are like a see-saw; as materialistic values go up, pro-social values tend to go down. This helps explain why people act in less empathic, generous and cooperative ways when money is on their minds.
  • When people are under the sway of materialism, they also focus less on caring for the earth. The same type of see-saw is at work here: as materialistic values go up, concern for nature tends to go down. Studies show that when people endorse money, image and status, they’re less likely to engage in ecologically beneficial activities like riding bikes, recycling, and re-using things in new ways.”

The Hope For Happiness = A Shift From Materialistic Values To Intrinsic Values

  • If we hope to have a happier, most socially just, and more sustainable world, then we need to develop ways to diminish materialistic values in our personal lives and in society … and promote intrinsic values for growing as a person, being close to one’s family and friends and improving the broader world.
  • The grip and consumerism and commercialism have on our world can seem inescapable, and there are certainly powerful forces that push materialistic values on us, but by making changes in our personal lives and by working for broader societal changes, we can break the hold of materialism and be freer to live our intrinsic values. That, in turn, would help us to take important steps to our greater personal well-being, a more humane society, and a more sustainable world.”

What Are Intrinsic Values To You?

In other words, what do you consider as being the most important values for you and for society?

Also, if you were given the task to plan how society as a whole would come to treat intrinsic values with more importance than materialistic values, what would you include in that plan?

Quotes in this post were taken from the above video “The High Price of Materialism” by the Center for a New American Dream, which are the words of psychologist Tim Kasser.

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What Is Systems Thinking? – Peter Senge Explains Systems Thinking Approach And Principles

http://youtu.be/HOPfVVMCwYg

What Is Systems Thinking?

Whenever I’m trying to help people understand what this word ‘system’ means, I usually start by asking: ‘Are you a part of a family?’ Everybody is a part of a family. ‘Have you ever seen in a family, people producing consequences in the family, how people act, how people feel, that aren’t what anybody intends?’ Yes. ‘How does that happen?’ Well… then people tell their stories and think about it. But that then grounds people in not the jargon of ‘system’ or ‘systems thinking’ but the reality – that we live in webs of interdependence.”

What Is The Fundamental Rationale Of Systems Thinking?

[The fundamental rationale of systems thinking] is to understand how it is that the problems that we all deal with, which are the most vexing, difficult and intransigent, come about, and to give us some perspective on those problems [in order to] give us some leverage and insight as to what we might do differently.”

3 Characteristics Of A Systems Thinking Approach

  1. A very deep and persistent commitment to ‘real learning.’
  2. I have to be prepared to be wrong. If it was pretty obvious what we ought to be doing, then we’d be already doing it. So I’m part of the problem, my own way of seeing things, my own sense of where there’s leverage, is probably part of the problem. This is the domain we’ve always called ‘mental models.’ If I’m not prepared to challenge my own mental models, then the likelihood of finding non-obvious areas of leverage are very low.
  3. The need to triangulate. You need to get different people, from different points of view, who are seeing different parts of the system to come together and collectively start to see something that individually none of them see.”

A Fundamental Principle Of Systems Thinking: Smart Individuals Are No Longer Needed, Collective Intelligence Is

We all have probably spent too much time thinking about ‘smart individuals.’ That’s one of the problems with schools. They are very individualistic, very much about ‘the smart kids and the dumb kids.’ That’s not the kind of smartness we need.

The smartness we need is collective. We need cities that work differently. We need industrial sectors that work differently. We need value change and supply change that are managed from the beginning until the end to purely produce social, ecological and economic well-being. That is the concept of intelligence we need, and it will never be achieved by a handful of smart individuals.

It’s not about ‘the smartest guys in the room.’ It’s about what we can do collectively. So the intelligence that matters is collective intelligence, and that’s the concept of ‘smart’ that I think will really tell the tale.”

All quotes in this post are by Peter Senge, scientist and director of the Center for Organizational Learning at the MIT Sloan School of Management, taken from the video “Navigating Webs of Interdependence.”

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Is It Possible We Can Actually Extend Our Empathy To The Entire Human Race As An Extended Family? [RSA Video]

Is It Possible We Can Actually Extend Our Empathy To The Entire Human Race As An Extended Family? [RSA Video]

Bestselling author, political adviser, and social and ethical strategist, Jeremy Rifkin, says we must “begin rethinking human nature” and “bring out our empathic sociability so that we can rethink the institutions of society and prepare the groundwork for an empathic civilization.”

Empathy Is:

  • the acknowledgement of death and the celebration of life and rooting for each other to flourish and be.”
  • based on our frailties and imperfections, so when we talk about building an empathic civilization, we are not talking about utopia.”
  • about the ability of human beings to show solidarity.”

Empathy Evolves

  • There was no such thing as Germany, there was no such thing as France. These are fictions but they allow us to extend our families so that we can have loyalties and identities based on the new complex energy communication revolutions we have that annihilate time and space.”
  • Is it really a big stretch to imagine the new technologies allowing us to connect our empathy to the human race writ large in a single biosphere?”

Science Shows:

  • All humans are soft wired with mirror neurons” meaning, “if I’m observing you – whatever it is – the same neurons will light up in me as if I’m having that experience myself.”
  • We are soft wired not for aggression, violence, self-interest, utilitarianism” rather, “for sociability, attachment, affection, companionship, and the first drive is actually the drive to belong.”
  • We are “soft-wired to experience another’s plight as if we are experiencing it ourselves.”

The Goal Is To:

  • Begin thinking as an extended family.”
  • Rethink the human narrative.”
  • Bring out our core nature.”
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Children See, Children Do

Children See, Children Do

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d4gmdl3zNQ

This video illustrates what our future may look like, depending on the examples we give to others.

Children learn by example, and so do adults.

This knowledge is true power, but have we been using it for good or bad?

Children See, Children Do

“Children learn by trying to do something, by failing, and by being told about or by copying some new behavior that has better results. This perspective is founded on the simple but central insight that children are trying to do something rather than to know something. In other words, they are learning by doing.” – Dr. Roger Schank, from Engines for Education

“The idea of public education depends absolutely on the existence of shared narratives and the exclusion of narratives that lead to alienation and divisiveness. What makes public schools public is not so much that the schools have common goals but that the students have common gods. The reason for this is that public education does not serve a public. It creates a public.” – Dr. Neil Postman, from The End Of Education

“Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe.” – H.G Wells

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Uprising 2012: The Message Of The Freedom Informant Network

Uprising 2012: The Message Of The Freedom Informant Network

Is this what it’s come to, a price tag on life, a world coursing with greed, intoxicated on monetary gain, and material conquest? Why have we allowed this? Ladies and gentlemen these are the questions you should be asking yourselves.

The world around us has been manipulated, coerced in a direction where human life is outweighed by profit.”

The quotes in this post are taken from the video at the bottom of this post: Uprising 2012: The Freedom Informant Network

Wake From The Dream

All the while you chase the dream life they’ve created for you, waving it in front of your face like a carrot on a stick. Stop it, stop being guided through life. We need to quit letting the decisions of a few control the lives of the many. We need to take our future, our children’s future, back into our hands.”

Reestablish Connection

When did we lose our connection with others, with community, and family? Stop focusing on the differences and start acknowledging and building upon our common grounds. Start sharing, connecting, teaching one another, and learning from each other as well.

Build our bond as human beings. Find your strength in unity. Find your voice, and then let it be heard.”

Be The Change You Want To See

What you have to say does matter. We just need to get off our knees, stand on our own two feet, and remind them just how much we do matter. Become the change you want to see.

Build the future together, a decent future, a future where life is cherished, rather than spent worshiping money.”

Value Education

Rid yourself of your cynicism, your ego, your fear. Instead open your hearts, your minds, and your eyes. Broaden your horizons… It’s time to change our ways, to evolve and break free of this viscous cycle. It’s time to educate ourselves on the issues affecting us and work together to create progressive affective solutions.

Welcome to the future. Welcome to the freedom informant network.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZwqQo4_B2E

Image: 12M 15M Global Revolution Revolución Global Zaragoza by gaudiramone’s photostream.

The Freedom Informant Network.

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Redefining Prosperity

Redefining Prosperity

Prosperity – at least in economic terms – has always been defined within the remit of very narrow boundaries.> Typically it has always meant growth, a six letter word that obsesses politicians and economists. But when attempts to create growth prove counter-productive then it’s time for a rethink. The ultimate aim of growth is prosperity, yet – for the vast majority at least – it remains an elusive dream. The question that needs to be asked is: What is prosperity? And if our previous attempts to attain it have proved unsuccessful then how can it be achieved?

The following excerpts are from the book Prosperity Without Growth: Economics for a finite planet, by Tim Jackson. The excerpts are quotes from Zia Sardar, a London-based scholar, writer and cultural-critic who specialises in Muslim thought, the future of Islam, futures studies and science and cultural relations.

Prosperity Depends On The Society You’re In & Your Responsibility To It

The good life of the good person can only be fully realised in the good society. Prosperity can only be conceived as a condition that includes obligations and responsibilities to others.”

The prevailing vision of prosperity as a continually expanding economic paradise has come unravelled. Perhaps it worked better when economies were smaller and the world was less populated. But if it ever was fully fit for the purpose, it certainly isn’t now. Climate change, ecological degradation and the spectre of resource scarcity compound the problems of failing financial markets and economic recession. Short term fixes to prop up a bankrupt system aren’t good enough. Something more is needed. An essential starting point is to set out a coherent notion of prosperity that doesn’t rely on default assumptions about consumption growth.”

It is perverse to talk about things going well if you lack the basic material resources required to sustain yourself: food and water to be adequately nourished or materials for clothing and shelter. Security in achieving these aims is also important. But from at least the time of Aristotle, it has been clear that something more than material security is needed for human  beings to flourish. Prosperity has vital social and psychological dimensions. To do well is in part about your ability to give and receive love, to enjoy the respect of your peers, to contribute useful work and to have a sense of belonging and trust in the community. In short, an important component of prosperity is the ability to participate freely in the life of society.”

Prosperity can only be conceived as a condition that includes obligations and responsibilities to others.”

Image: Responsibility by Marco Buonvino

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The Missing Puzzle Piece: Cooperation, The Third Integral Aspect Of Evolution

The Missing Puzzle Piece: Cooperation, The Third Integral Aspect Of Evolution

Scientists from a wide range of disciplines have attempted for more than a century to explain how cooperation, altruism, and self-sacrifice arose in our dog-eat-dog world. Darwin himself was troubled by selfless behavior. Yet in his great works, the problem of cooperation was a sideshow, a detail that had to be explained away. That attitude prevails among many biologists even today.”

The above and subsequent quotes on cooperation in evolution and human society come from Martin Nowak’s and Roger Highfield’s book, Super Cooperators: Altruism, Evolution, and Why We Need Each Other to Succeed.

Does Cooperation Hurt Survival Of The Fittest?

Why weaken your own fitness to increase the fitness of a competitor? Why bother to look after anyone besides number one? Cooperation goes against the grain of self-interest. Cooperation is irrational. From the perspective of Darwin’s formulation for the struggle for existence, it makes no sense to aid a potential rival, yet there is evidence that this occurs among even the lowliest creatures.

… This looks like a fatal anomaly in the great scheme of life. Natural selection should lead animals to behave in ways that increase their own chances of survival and reproduction, not improve the fortunes of others. In the never-ending scrabble for food, territory, and mates in evolution, why would one individual ever bother to go out of its way to help another?”

To Compete Or Cooperate

We are all cells in the same body of humanity.”

—Peace Pigram (Mildred Lisette Norman)

In the game of life we are all driven by the struggle to succeed. We all want to be winners. There is the honest way to achieve this objective. Run faster than the pack. Jump higher. See farther. Think harder. Do better. But, as ever, there is the dark side, the calculating logic of self-interest that dictates that one should never help a competitor. In fact, why not go further and make life harder for your rivals? Why not cheat and deceive them too?

… Humans are the selfish apes. We’re the creatures who shun the needs of others. We’re egocentrics, mercenaries, and narcissists. We look after number one. We are motivated by self-interest alone, down to every last bone in our bodies. Even our genes are said to be selfish. Yet competition does not tell the whole story of biology. Something profound is missing.”

The Third Integral Element Of Evolution

Previously, there were only two basic principles of evolution—mutation and selection—where the former generates genetic diversity and the latter picks the individuals that are best suited to a given environment. For us to understand the creative aspects of evolution, we must now accept that cooperation is the third principle. For selection you need mutation and, in the same way, for cooperation you need both selection and mutation. From cooperation can emerge the constructive side of evolution, from genes to organisms to language and complex social behaviors. Cooperation is the master architect of evolution.”

Implications For Humanity

The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation.”

—Bertrand Russell

Human society fizzes with cooperation. Even the simplest things that we do involve more cooperation than you might think. Consider, for example, stopping at a coffee shop one morning to have a cappuccino and croissant for breakfast. To enjoy that simple pleasure could draw on the labors of a small army of people from at least half a dozen countries.”

“Our breathtaking ability to cooperate is one of the main reasons we have managed to survive in every eco system on Earth, from scorched sun-baked deserts to the frozen wastes of Antarctica to the dark, crushing ocean depths. Our remarkable ability to join forces has enabled us to take the first steps in a grand venture to leave the confines of our atmosphere and voyage toward the moon and the stars beyond.”

Cooperation—not competition—underpins innovation. To spur creativity, and to encourage people to come up with original ideas, you need to use the lure of the carrot, not fear of the stick. Cooperation is the architect of creativity throughout evolution, from cells to multicellular creatures to anthills to villages to cities. Without cooperation there can be neither construction nor complexity in evolution.”

Here is Roger Highfield describing cooperation in evolution [12 minutes 59 seconds]:

… cooperation is the third pillar of evolution. And without cooperation, there is nothing constructive really going on in biology… we’re not only talking about cooperation with each other in this generation. If you look at the state of the planet we have to think carefully about cooperating with future generations too.”

Current Problems/Crises Lack Cooperation

Many problems that challenge us today can be traced back to a profound tension between what is good and desirable for an individual. That conflict can be found in global problems such as climate change, pollution, resource depletion, poverty, hunger, and overpopulation. The biggest issues of all—saving the planet and maximizing the collective lifetime of the species Homo sapiens—cannot be solved by technology alone.

They require novel ways for us to work in harmony. If we are to continue to thrive, we have but one option. We now have to manage the planet as a whole. If we are to win the struggle for existence, and avoid a precipitous fall, there’s no choice but to harness this extraordinary creative force. We now have to refine and to extend our ability to cooperate. We must become familiar with the science of cooperation. Now, more than ever, the world needs SuperCooperators.”

What Do You Think?

How has the absence of cooperation being taught as a key integral aspect of evolution, affected your view of the world?

How would your viewpoint change if you were taught: Cooperation is needed for evolution to continue. It is needed for the development of more complex and harmonious human societies. It is essential for solving problems/crises today?

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Global Youth Unemployment On The Rise

Global Youth Unemployment On The Rise

The current, unprecedented level of global youth unemployment has raised the risk of creating ‘a lost generation’… [Y]oung people account for 40 percent or more of all unemployed people in Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia, and nearly 60 percent in Syria and Egypt.”

  • Nemat Shafik, deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

The world is facing a worsening youth employment crisis: young people are three times more likely to be unemployed than adults…”

The United Nations estimates that last year 74.8 million youth between the ages of 15 to 24 faced joblessness, with 6.4 million young people dropping out of the labor market in 2011 alone. The highest youth unemployment rates are in North Africa (27.1%) and the Middle East (26.2%)…

In the ostensibly prosperous Euro-area countries, over one-in-five young people (21.3%) cannot find a job. When this regionally-averaged figure is broken down to remove countries like Germany, the results are stark: In Spain and Greece, nearly half of all youth are without a job (48.7% and 47.2% …”

The Consequences Of Youth Unemployment

  • Lower life expectancy: Unemployment more generally has been linked to lower life expectancy, a higher incidence of heart attacks later in life, and even higher rates of suicide.
  • Higher crime rates: Increased unemployment has been linked to higher crime rates.
  • Increased costs to the economy: Youth unemployment results in higher unemployment insurance and other benefit payments, lost income tax revenues, and wasted productive capacity.
  • Lower lifetime earnings: Youth unemployment leaves a “wage scar” in the form of lower earnings that can last into middle age. The longer the period of unemployment, the bigger the effect.”
The following video gives a brief overview of the youth unemployment crisis:

Is More Economic Growth The Answer?

Albert Einstein once said, 

Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them.”

Unfortunately, the current trend of solutions being proposed to tackle continued youth unemployment, and unemployment in general, has tended to steer towards further economic growth as the answer to the problem.

What do you think?

Is further economic growth the answer? Or is it from the level of thinking which has helped to create the global youth unemployment crisis?

Image: chitral photos 91, 95, 98, 102, 99 by groundreporter.

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Alan Watts – A Conversation With Myself [Video]

Alan Watts muses on the difference between the world of nature and the world of man. The following are some quotes from the video:
Alan Watts – A Conversation With Myself [Video]

  • There seems to be a complete difference of style between the things that human beings do and the things that nature does, even though human beings are themselves part of nature
  • There is an interdependence of flowers and bees. Where there are no flowers there are no bees, and where there are no bees there are no flowers. They’re really one organism. And so in the same way, everything in nature depends on everything else. So it’s interconnected! And so the many many patterns of interconnections lock it in together into a unity, which is, however, much too complicated for us to think about
  • Each one of us, not only human beings but every leaf, every weed, exists in the way it does only because everything around it does
  • Everything we’re doing to try to improve the world was a success in the short run, made amazing initial improvements, but in the long run we seem to be destroying the planet by our very efforts to control it and improve it
  • When the wrong man uses the right means, the right means work in the wrong way. In other words there’s something wrong with the way we think. And while that is there, everything we do will be a mess
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World Economic Collapse Explained In 3 Minutes

A classic, funny skit showing how economically interdependent nations have become, and what a horrific cascade of events happens when everyone tries to make a profit off of one another.

…the banking system must continually expand – not necessarily because it is the right (or wrong) thing to do, but, rather, simply because that is how it was designed …the extremely wealthy are saving incredible amounts of money, while at the lower ends the savings rate is deeply negative. Why is this important? Because as the Greek philosopher Plutarch once stated, “An imbalance between rich and poor is the oldest and most fatal ailment of all republics.”

– Dr. Chris Martensen, taken from his Crash Course In The 3 Interconnected E’s: Economy, Energy, Environment