Stephen Colbert had this guest on last night that was talking about the problems with what consumerism has become. He says that it used to be that products were created in order to feed the needs of consumers. But NOW - things are invented first and the need is developed after. As a result, we've developed a culture of overabundance and excessiveness.
This is definitely something I agree with, although I hadn't even thought about it that way until now. In marketing, we used to do case studies where we would research what needs people had, but by this, they mean needs that people didn't even know they had. Food, consumer electronics, clothes, shoes, etc. Kind of crazy. I wonder what would happen if the economy didn't work that way...
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Please. To Answer the Question
I know people will have very strong opinions about this, but I have to ask : should we even bother voting in Presidential elections?
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Make your life zen
I just read this really amazing book. It's called "Zen: 24/7." It literally goes through almost any action, chore, errand, activity any person would go through in a day. It then relates that activity to something in the history of Buddhism and talks about the zen way to approach the activity.
My favorite is zen dessert. It talks about the importance of indulgence and learning how to savor things in life. It seems like such a simple thing, but so many people either neglect to do it at all or if they do, do not fully enjoy what they are taking in.
This book is wonderful because it reminds me of how easy it is to become mesmerized by little things in life that you go through the motions of every day without even thinking twice. If everyone in the world stopped to think about how all the components of their life contributed to a better existence for them, I think everyone would get along a lot better and the world would be an exponentially better place.
Lots of very trustworthy sources will tell you that spirituality is a common factor amongst the happiest people in the world. I can definitely believe that. People who are unhappy tend to get caught up in their problems and focus too much on introspection, which can sometimes lead to wallowing. It's important to take a step back and examine something bigger than you. Note that I think this is different than religion, which I am not a big fan of. Religion to me seems cultish and group motivated. Spirituality is self motivated and reminds people to put things in perspective. I've been reading a lot about Buddhism lately, and although this IS a religion, it seems different. In Catholicism, for example, it's an all or nothing deal - you either choose to be completely Catholic, participating in all the rituals, taking what you believe with what you find to be preposterous just to be a member of the Catholic community. It seems pretentious. Buddhism really attempts to reach people on any level. You can choose all, or just parts, but any attempt to understand is welcomed.
Anyway - this book is one of the best I've read so far (it's the final one for now in a series of six) so check it out!
My favorite is zen dessert. It talks about the importance of indulgence and learning how to savor things in life. It seems like such a simple thing, but so many people either neglect to do it at all or if they do, do not fully enjoy what they are taking in.
This book is wonderful because it reminds me of how easy it is to become mesmerized by little things in life that you go through the motions of every day without even thinking twice. If everyone in the world stopped to think about how all the components of their life contributed to a better existence for them, I think everyone would get along a lot better and the world would be an exponentially better place.
Lots of very trustworthy sources will tell you that spirituality is a common factor amongst the happiest people in the world. I can definitely believe that. People who are unhappy tend to get caught up in their problems and focus too much on introspection, which can sometimes lead to wallowing. It's important to take a step back and examine something bigger than you. Note that I think this is different than religion, which I am not a big fan of. Religion to me seems cultish and group motivated. Spirituality is self motivated and reminds people to put things in perspective. I've been reading a lot about Buddhism lately, and although this IS a religion, it seems different. In Catholicism, for example, it's an all or nothing deal - you either choose to be completely Catholic, participating in all the rituals, taking what you believe with what you find to be preposterous just to be a member of the Catholic community. It seems pretentious. Buddhism really attempts to reach people on any level. You can choose all, or just parts, but any attempt to understand is welcomed.
Anyway - this book is one of the best I've read so far (it's the final one for now in a series of six) so check it out!
Monday, March 19, 2007
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Unveiling "The Secret"
It was actually last week that I watched this movie, so I guess I'm a bit slow on the uptake. Let's just say I've been absorbing the information since then.
So, for those of you don't watch Oprah, this movie is about finding the secret to happiness in life. It basically states that if you visualize something, anything - money, cars, people, houses, etc. it will find a way into your life somehow. It's presented documentary style with people giving testiomonials of sorts. Some of them are truly eerie.
I have to say, that I think my first automatic response was skepticism. I'm not sure if that's just been ingrained in me through years of being taught that good things only come with hard work and dedication...or some sort of insecurity that I would be foolish to believe it because ... what if I did and then it didn't work? I guess above all, it just seems too easy. I found myself spending the movie searching for factually based scientific reasons why the secret might work in certain situations - like of course if you're focused on what you want, you're more likely to work toward a certain goal and achieve it eventually.
I think that the conclusion that I came to, at least for right now, is that it actually doesn't matter why it works. Sometimes not knowing why you're doing something can be the best way to go about it because you have less of a chance of overanalyzing things and getting in the way of yourself. Blind faith can be really powerful because there is way less room for second guessing and internal confusion.
I have definitely not implemented this secret into my life as much as I would like to or as much as I plan to, but I think it's a gradual thing. Particularly because it seems to be a process that requires some patience, and I know that jumping into something with full force can be dangerous, particularly for me because I am way more likely to get bored more quickly and give up all together. I do, however, believe whole heartedly in the message being put out by this secret. It tells us to think every day about what we're grateful for in our lives (which people do not do NEARLY enough) and use those things to guide what we want for our future. It's always a good idea to be clear about what you want, because then all you have to do is figure out how to make it happen :).
So, for those of you don't watch Oprah, this movie is about finding the secret to happiness in life. It basically states that if you visualize something, anything - money, cars, people, houses, etc. it will find a way into your life somehow. It's presented documentary style with people giving testiomonials of sorts. Some of them are truly eerie.
I have to say, that I think my first automatic response was skepticism. I'm not sure if that's just been ingrained in me through years of being taught that good things only come with hard work and dedication...or some sort of insecurity that I would be foolish to believe it because ... what if I did and then it didn't work? I guess above all, it just seems too easy. I found myself spending the movie searching for factually based scientific reasons why the secret might work in certain situations - like of course if you're focused on what you want, you're more likely to work toward a certain goal and achieve it eventually.
I think that the conclusion that I came to, at least for right now, is that it actually doesn't matter why it works. Sometimes not knowing why you're doing something can be the best way to go about it because you have less of a chance of overanalyzing things and getting in the way of yourself. Blind faith can be really powerful because there is way less room for second guessing and internal confusion.
I have definitely not implemented this secret into my life as much as I would like to or as much as I plan to, but I think it's a gradual thing. Particularly because it seems to be a process that requires some patience, and I know that jumping into something with full force can be dangerous, particularly for me because I am way more likely to get bored more quickly and give up all together. I do, however, believe whole heartedly in the message being put out by this secret. It tells us to think every day about what we're grateful for in our lives (which people do not do NEARLY enough) and use those things to guide what we want for our future. It's always a good idea to be clear about what you want, because then all you have to do is figure out how to make it happen :).
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
24: Fact or Fiction
I love 24, but sometimes it scares me.
Last night, the vice president was talking to Tom Lennox about how they should cover up who really attempted to assassinate the president because it would be better for American morale if it looked like the "terrorist" did it.
So, does the government lie to us because we can't handle the truth? Probably. And that's scary. That means that we have no choice but to completely trust these people who we don't really know and who might be dumber than rocks. We certainly don't know that we would agree with decisions they are making that affect us. Voting is crap. The system is outdated, and apparently someone who the majority of the country chooses as to lead can still...lose the election. Any takers on why it isn't being changed?
I don't know - I couldn't possibly pretend to know the extent to which the government "protects" us by lying about important things, and I'm not necessarily advocating honesty as the best policy - there are a lot of people in America who are not informed enough, nor are they smart enough to become informed enough to know about everything to be trusted with information or decisions. What's the solution here?
Last night, the vice president was talking to Tom Lennox about how they should cover up who really attempted to assassinate the president because it would be better for American morale if it looked like the "terrorist" did it.
So, does the government lie to us because we can't handle the truth? Probably. And that's scary. That means that we have no choice but to completely trust these people who we don't really know and who might be dumber than rocks. We certainly don't know that we would agree with decisions they are making that affect us. Voting is crap. The system is outdated, and apparently someone who the majority of the country chooses as to lead can still...lose the election. Any takers on why it isn't being changed?
I don't know - I couldn't possibly pretend to know the extent to which the government "protects" us by lying about important things, and I'm not necessarily advocating honesty as the best policy - there are a lot of people in America who are not informed enough, nor are they smart enough to become informed enough to know about everything to be trusted with information or decisions. What's the solution here?
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Wicked
So now - I've read the book, seen the show and bought the piano music :)
The show and the book are so different - I was talking to Meg and began to wonder whether or not it was a good thing that I read the book first. I certainly went into the show with preconceived notions aside from the plot structure. To me, it seemed sillier and more light hearted than the book. The book certainly attempted to drive its point about moral ambiguity home.
I guess the main point I've ascertained from the basis of this story about the witches of OZ is that we shouldn't judge the wicked. It attempts to justify the behavior of the Wicked Witch of the West. She was an outcast her whole life, her father disliked her, etc. etc. She used to be a good person, but then something changed ... There's something about the whole situation that makes me a bit uncomfortable. If, in fact, the original plan behind this whole idea was to justify immoral behavior by revealing an uncomfortable childhood, then that seems to me to be a cop-out. Just because someone has a difficult time, we should excuse their behavior. Actually, as I think about it now, this was really more the point of the book and less so for the show. In the show, I don't know that I ever really viewed Elphaba (the wicked witch of the west) as being a truly wicked person. It seemed more like she got the shaft from the Wizard who got everyone in OZ to hate her for his own personal gain (a theme I can certainly relate to). It was more like a conspiracy theory and less like an examination of human nature and the origin of evil.
But in the book, to continue my above argument - if they AREN'T attempting to justify evil behavior by grounding it in personal history, I think I like the message a lot more. If it is simply to shed light and understanding about another person's seemingly irrationally evil behavior by providing context, I firmly believe in its soundness. In fact, I have subscribed to this theory for a long time. I think that a lot of the problems human have stem from an unwillingness to put yourself in someone else's position. People make all sorts of excuses for the way they treat other people. That's a real problem in my eyes.
The show and the book are so different - I was talking to Meg and began to wonder whether or not it was a good thing that I read the book first. I certainly went into the show with preconceived notions aside from the plot structure. To me, it seemed sillier and more light hearted than the book. The book certainly attempted to drive its point about moral ambiguity home.
I guess the main point I've ascertained from the basis of this story about the witches of OZ is that we shouldn't judge the wicked. It attempts to justify the behavior of the Wicked Witch of the West. She was an outcast her whole life, her father disliked her, etc. etc. She used to be a good person, but then something changed ... There's something about the whole situation that makes me a bit uncomfortable. If, in fact, the original plan behind this whole idea was to justify immoral behavior by revealing an uncomfortable childhood, then that seems to me to be a cop-out. Just because someone has a difficult time, we should excuse their behavior. Actually, as I think about it now, this was really more the point of the book and less so for the show. In the show, I don't know that I ever really viewed Elphaba (the wicked witch of the west) as being a truly wicked person. It seemed more like she got the shaft from the Wizard who got everyone in OZ to hate her for his own personal gain (a theme I can certainly relate to). It was more like a conspiracy theory and less like an examination of human nature and the origin of evil.
But in the book, to continue my above argument - if they AREN'T attempting to justify evil behavior by grounding it in personal history, I think I like the message a lot more. If it is simply to shed light and understanding about another person's seemingly irrationally evil behavior by providing context, I firmly believe in its soundness. In fact, I have subscribed to this theory for a long time. I think that a lot of the problems human have stem from an unwillingness to put yourself in someone else's position. People make all sorts of excuses for the way they treat other people. That's a real problem in my eyes.
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