Discuss

Tyrn just recommended a documentary called The End of Suburbia to us a day after the globe and mail ran a frontpage article about immigrants becoming lost in the isolation of the suburbs.

He also mentioned an internet essay by Jim Kunstler predicting the collapse of the international banking system. Last week Kylie and I watched Enron, the smartest guys in the room an excellent documentary about the "house of cards built over a swimming pool full of gasoline" that was Enron. This movie gives you a bit of insight into how bizzare our financial system is.

I'm still waiting for Aaron's thai spiced, endorphin influenced thoughts on the matter.

My friend Jarrid replied to my last post in an email as follows:

Regarding your latest blog post.

I too concern myself with this issue. Another scary point is the race for developing countries to catch up to our "evolved" lifestyle.

I don't feel as though I have been told what to want. I do feel that anything I want is at my finger tips, and in any shape, colour, texture, etc I may desire and that there are people out there who would love for me to have all I desire.

It all deals with desires, Marc. Marketing capitalizes on our desires, some of them our most dark and selfish. A major part of the problem about desires is their tendency to create unhappiness when unfulfilled.

The Four Noble Truths:
With life comes suffering. Desires lead to suffering. Eliminations of suffering leads to happiness. Eliminate desires by following the 8 fold path (Right Views, Right Aspirations, Right Speech, Right Conduct, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right contemplation)

We must realize that all that we desire can be found within ourselves, and that "Who is content with nothing possesses all things."

I feel that modern society is on a crash course. It is a pessimistic view, but I am convinced that changes to society's consumption will not change until it has to, and by that time it will be too late ( we have to change NOW!). I feel as though only once the oil runs dry, that alternative energies will be accepted, then people will clue in. That being said, I'm not about to just stand by and let it happen. I do agree that there are learned behaviors and habits that we have adopted from previous generations ( baby boomers, etc) and that these behaviours require diligent effort to modify, but it can be done.

Jarrid