70 replies to this topic

[Imaginarynumber1]

Beckys_Mom, on 14 December 2012 - 01:43 AM, said:

Take your head out of the clouds, those happen to be mine   lol

I propose a race around the world to settle this! We shall meet at noon tomorrow, in London Square.The Queen herself shall see us off.

[JGirl]

Professor T, on 14 December 2012 - 01:45 AM, said:

I think that's spot on.

I also think we have a lot to learn from the Amazon tribes... except canibalism..

i learned you don't eat meat that eats meat. so i guess i could eat a vegetarian. yes? no?

i read a book called Mutant Message Down Under that fascinated me. in the story a woman goes on a four month walkabout in the australian desert with a mysterious aboriginese tribe. they were the exact society i could see myself thriving in. i'd even eat the grubs.
have you read it?

[JGirl]

Imaginarynumber1, on 14 December 2012 - 01:49 AM, said:

I propose a race around the world to settle this! We shall meet at noon tomorrow, in London Square.The Queen herself shall see us off.

pics or it didn't happen you guys

[Imaginarynumber1]

JGirl, on 14 December 2012 - 01:56 AM, said:

pics or it didn't happen you guys

Oh... there will be pics, all right. But they will be MINE!

[lightly]

i think it's a form of selfishness ?   ..  too obvious?    Not knowing any better i always like to blame ego for most of our faults .   Ego seems like a fearful thing to me somehow..   maybe it's just MINE!   that feels that way?    lol



greed |grēd|
noun
intense and selfish desire for something, esp. wealth, power, or food.   .      .      ( food?   .. ok  guesso )
ORIGIN late 16th cent.: back-formation from greedy.

[Professor T]

JGirl, on 14 December 2012 - 01:54 AM, said:

i learned you don't eat meat that eats meat. so i guess i could eat a vegetarian. yes? no?

i read a book called Mutant Message Down Under that fascinated me. in the story a woman goes on a four month walkabout in the australian desert with a mysterious aboriginese tribe. they were the exact society i could see myself thriving in. i'd even eat the grubs.
have you read it?

I suppose you could eat a Vegan? I guess they'd taste like chicken..

*shudders* I couldn't eat the grubs, I've got some Huhu Bugs very similar to whitchity grubs in the forest.. I haven't read that book either, sounds interesting..

There is something very interesting to learn from people who have no form of currency.. They trade openly and fairly because there is no incentive to have more than their neighbours, and no incentive to be wealthier than their fellow man.. I mean.. Imagine that! Trading fairly without making a profit!! Wall street would crumble!!  Sure these people might live in a bracken hut with a dirt floor and they cook their food with dried dung... But they are happier living like that than a lot of us will ever be.. And there is no reason why these people or us, couldn't live the same way in modern towns or cities and drop the greed the monetary system has created.

Edited by Professor T, 14 December 2012 - 02:45 AM.

[synchronomy]

We are born with basic needs for food, shelter, and love.  These give us a sense of security.
Our capitalist societies play upon that to "condition" us to be consumers.  That's our "job" in the economy.  Work to earn money, buy "stuff", use it, throw it away, then repeat.
Television bombards us with "conditioning" to the point that exuberance in today's society is sickening to the point of being pornographic.  Consumption beyond definition.  Bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger boats, designer clothes.  Christmas has been corrupted to the point where it is now disgusting.  Some large retailers do 25% of their annual business in the 6 weeks before Christmas...then Boxing Day the programmed masses are back out spending more money on big sales.
The rich and famous are worshipped by the media, bombarding us with their lavish images and driving the "wanna be like them" mentality deep into our subconscious.
For many people, their favorite pastime is "shopping".
We're not born greedy, Big Brother conditions us to be so in order to drive the big wheel called the economy.
Consumers, do yourselves a favor...start thinking for yourselves and not the corporate world.

Edited by synchronomy, 14 December 2012 - 02:56 AM.

[whitelight]

Humans are "greedy" because they want to live.

[whitelight]

synchronomy, on 14 December 2012 - 02:54 AM, said:

We are born with basic needs for food, shelter, and love.  These give us a sense of security.
Our capitalist societies play upon that to "condition" us to be consumers.  That's our "job" in the economy.  Work to earn money, buy "stuff", use it, throw it away, then repeat.
Television bombards us with "conditioning" to the point that exuberance in today's society is sickening to the point of being pornographic.  Consumption beyond definition.  Bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger boats, designer clothes.  Christmas has been corrupted to the point where it is now disgusting.  Some large retailers do 25% of their annual business in the 6 weeks before Christmas...then Boxing Day the programmed masses are back out spending more money on big sales.
The rich and famous are worshipped by the media, bombarding us with their lavish images and driving the "wanna be like them" mentality deep into our subconscious.
For many people, their favorite pastime is "shopping".
We're not born greedy, Big Brother conditions us to be so in order to drive the big wheel called the economy.
Consumers, do yourselves a favor...start thinking for yourselves and not the corporate world.

Seriously?  We are not born greedy?  Did you not cry when what you wanted wasn't already there?

[Professor T]

whitelight, on 14 December 2012 - 03:07 AM, said:

Seriously?  We are not born greedy?  Did you not cry when what you wanted wasn't already there?

there is a difference between need & greed.

[JGirl]

Professor T, on 14 December 2012 - 02:13 AM, said:

I suppose you could eat a Vegan? I guess they'd taste like chicken..

*shudders* I couldn't eat the grubs, I've got some Huhu Bugs very similar to whitchity grubs in the forest.. I haven't read that book either, sounds interesting..

There is something very interesting to learn from people who have no form of currency.. They trade openly and fairly because there is no incentive to have more than their neighbours, and no incentive to be wealthier than their fellow man.. I mean.. Imagine that! Trading fairly without making a profit!! Wall street would crumble!!  Sure these people might live in a bracken hut with a dirt floor and they cook their food with dried dung... But they are happier living like that than a lot of us will ever be.. And there is no reason why these people or us, couldn't live the same way in modern towns or cities and drop the greed the monetary system has created.

when you find the place let me know!

[Professor T]

Mr Walker, on 13 December 2012 - 11:40 PM, said:

Deliberately vague. Deliberately open. I dont want to say any more, including my own train of thought, for fear of directing peoples' thoughts, but I'd be interested in any opinions, spiritual or physical, on this.

You will be letting us know your thoughts eventually I hope?

[Mr Walker]

Order66, on 14 December 2012 - 01:08 AM, said:

"Greedy" is a subjective judgement which not only depends on who you ask, but is based on abstract ideals of right and wrong which are meaninggless to nature. Why then should it be assumed to be something inherent or natural to the human condition?

That is why i put greedy in quotation marks.

To elaborate. Humans tend to use more than they need ot survive or even to live comfortably. They throw away perfectly good items to buy new ones. eg mobile phones They buy new clothes each year in the name of fashion. They actually desgn mnufactured goods, not to last, but to break down after a period of time.

Planned obslescence has long been a part of modern industry.I take other writers points. We tend to act like squirrels or animals who go through lean and good times  but we are also self aware. We know we do not have to eat constantly.Wwe know the damage unbridled consumption does, yet we continue with it.

  I will keep watching for some deeper reasons Eg are we taught from childhood to be greedy and self centered. or is it a "natural" condition?

Ps the number of replies  in such a short time took me by suprise, but perhaps it struck a chord, especially at this time of year.

[Mr Walker]

synchronomy, on 14 December 2012 - 02:54 AM, said:

We are born with basic needs for food, shelter, and love.  These give us a sense of security.
Our capitalist societies play upon that to "condition" us to be consumers.  That's our "job" in the economy.  Work to earn money, buy "stuff", use it, throw it away, then repeat.
Television bombards us with "conditioning" to the point that exuberance in today's society is sickening to the point of being pornographic.  Consumption beyond definition.  Bigger cars, bigger homes, bigger boats, designer clothes.  Christmas has been corrupted to the point where it is now disgusting.  Some large retailers do 25% of their annual business in the 6 weeks before Christmas...then Boxing Day the programmed masses are back out spending more money on big sales.
The rich and famous are worshipped by the media, bombarding us with their lavish images and driving the "wanna be like them" mentality deep into our subconscious.
For many people, their favorite pastime is "shopping".
We're not born greedy, Big Brother conditions us to be so in order to drive the big wheel called the economy.
Consumers, do yourselves a favor...start thinking for yourselves and not the corporate world.

This is a significant point. I agree with it as probably the greatest driver of greed today.

However there are other factors. My mother and father lived as young people through great depression where  hunger was common and they didnt have shoes to wear so couldnt go to school. As a consequence, as a married couple, they tended to be cautious with money and to hoard things. They were establishing a buffer against hard times which never really came again to the same extent, but the way of life served them well through the downturns of the fifties and seventies. Theirs was not the sort of greed we see today but they tended to accumulate possessions and hang onto them for decades.

[Mr Walker]

Professor T, on 14 December 2012 - 06:04 AM, said:

You will be letting us know your thoughts eventually I hope?

Yes. As i said, it seemed like i only stepped away from the computer and there were 20 responses. For many reasons, fromm being a geographer/historian and sociologist through to my love of humanity, I worry about how people use so much more than they need. How we waste enough food to feed all the starving people Howw e consume all the earths resources just to have the latest gadget or dress And yet western humans are more unhappy and depressed today than ever before. It doesnt make sense to me, so i asked others. I was particularly motivated by the time of year when people spend huge sums on presents and entertaining,  yet end up stressed and angry, while others have nothing to eat and no where to sleep.