Consumerism and Beliefs, or the Lack Thereof
Consumption of goods and services is an essential part of our current economic existence. Having things that make our lives better and more convenient is certainly a good thing; however, our perspective on consumption is not always the healthiest for ourselves or our society. This discussion explored the relationship between our ethics and religious beliefs and our consumption behaviors.
Our ethical and religious teachings instruct us to exercise restraint in our consumption and good stewardship of our resources. In contrast to those teachings are the pervasive cultural messages encouraging us to consume excessively. We are bombarded by messages that tell us that we need to consume goods as a means to status and personal fulfillment. Further compounding the conflicting message are the economic policies in place that create the perception of cheap consumer goods as a means to drive consumption as a patriotic duty.
These conflicting messages we receive leave us in a state of “tug of war” between what we are taught as ethical behavior and what we are told we should do by the popular culture. As consumers stuck in between these conflicting forces we need to be cognizant of the effects of our consumption decisions on ourselves, our children, and the larger community of the world. If we understand the larger implications of our consumption habits we then have a perspective and framework with which to make the most beneficial choices of how and what we consume.
As an example, how many of the participants would have changed their behavior on that Black Friday morning where a human being was trampled to death in the zealous pursuit of a good deal, had they known the outcome in advance? We’ll never know the answer to this question, still the question has ramifications beyond this instance. The point being whenever we consume things the means of acquisition, the cost, and the impact of that consumption send messages to those around us as to what is acceptable. Our children may learn to postpone the desire for something until we can pay for it through savings as opposed to credit. Conversely, they may learn that so long as credit is available, the standard practice is to buy now and pay later, if ever. Manufacturers learn that even though they employ unscrupulous labor practices, we are willing to consume their products for the lower price the labor practices make possible. Every time we consume something we send messages to the “marketplace,” demonstrating and reinforcing behaviors in fellow consumers and suppliers of good and services.
The act of consuming in this context is very powerful, and it seems we readily allow ourselves to be influenced by others around us and the sellers of good and services. I would propose rather than ceding our power to those who sell and those who demonstrate their status through consumption, we examine our behaviors in the context of our religious and ethical teachings and the impact positive or negative of our consumption behaviors.
We live in a world of abundance. We all work hard to obtain the things we consume, and we make purposeful choices as to what we consume. There is nothing wrong with the act of acquiring and consuming goods and services in the perspective of our ethical beliefs. When our consumption does damage to ourselves and those around us we need to examine what we are doing. The first step in this process is awareness of our impact on the world when we consume, followed by a willingness to take corrective action when needed. The fact remains that even though the marketplace sends us messages to consume things we may or may not need, ultimately the marketplace listens to what is being demanded by the consumer. We have the power to make better choices with our consumption. The marketplace will listen.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Twilight's Peace Ongoing Discussion Series: Modern Slavery, Who, Where, How, Why, and What you can do about it
Click on the player above to see the slide show prepared as a backgrounder for our discussion on Slavery in the world today. (pause the player to read the slides they "should" advance on a 5 second interval)
As part of the Second Life Human Rights Festival Please join us at Twilight's Peace RiverWalk Gallery at 6:00 P.M. SL time on Sunday December 14, 2008 for this discussion. Our topic Modern Slavery, explores the various forms of slavery from a survey standpoint. It is our hope that the collected participants will share their knowledge and offer tangible examples of actions we can take in our daily lives to combat this heinous practice.
We hope to see you there
Your Friends from Twilight's Peace
If you can not view the above slide show please see the slide text below:
Modern Slavery
Who, Where, How, Why, and What you can do about it
Who
- Experts estimate that today there are 27 million people enslaved around the world.
- 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked internationally every year. Approximately 80% of them are women and children
- The CIA estimates 14,500 to 17,000 victims are trafficked into the “Land of the Free” every year.
Where is Slavery....
- Slavery is everywhere.
- The examples shown to here are just a few of the locations worldwide participating in the slave trade as a supplier or user
How are people enslaved?
- CHATTEL SLAVERY
- DEBT BONDAGE
- SEX SLAVERY
- FORCED LABOR
- Closest to the slavery that prevailed in early American history.
- Chattel slaves are considered their masters’ property — exchanged for things like trucks or money and expected to perform labor and sexual favors.
- Once of age, their children are expected to do the same.
- Chattel slavery is typically racially-based
Debt Bondage
- The most widely practiced form of slavery around the world.
- In Southeast Asia, where it is most prevalent, debt bondage claims an estimated 15 to 20 million victims.
- Staggering poverty forces many parents to offer themselves or their own children as collateral against a loans which are impossible to repay.
- The Debt is often inherited by the bonded laborer’s children, perpetuating a vicious cycle that can claim several generations.
Sex Slavery
- Women and children forced into prostitution. Many are lured by false offers of a good job and then beaten and forced to work in brothels or are sold into prostitution by their male relatives to pay off debts.
- In other cases, victims pay tens of thousands of dollars to get to another country and are then forced into prostitution in pay off their own debts.
- In still others, women or girls are plainly kidnapped from their home countries.
- The sex slavery trade thrives in Central and Eastern Europe and in North America. An estimated two million women and children are sold into sex slavery around the world every year.
Forced Labor
- Often results when individuals are lured by the promise of a good job but instead find themselves subjected to slaving conditions
- Working without payment and enduring physical abuse, often in harsh and hazardous conditions.
- Victims include domestic workers, construction workers, and even human mine detectors.
- Migrant workers are particularly vulnerable, as their constant changes of location make the organized crime rings that traffic them difficult to bust
Why.......Slavery still persists
- $9 billion business worldwide (Paulk, 2005)
- In the top 3 revenue earners for organized crime (Leach, 2004)
- In 1850 slaves cost $40,000 (todays dollar), today they only cost $30 (Bales, 1999)
Destinations for Slaves....
- Domestic servitude
- Exploited for commercial sex
- Forcibly recruited as child soldiers
- Factories and sweatshops
- Forced agricultural labor
Products of Slavery
- Chocolate. Hand-woven carpets. Cotton. Coffee. Tea. Tobacco. Sugar. Tomatoes. Cucumbers. Oranges. Grains. Clothing. Sneakers. Soccer balls. Gold. Diamonds. Jewelry. Fireworks. Steel. Glassware. Charcoal. Timber. Stone. Tantalum (a mineral used in laptops, pagers, personal digital assistants, and cell phones). Products in all of these industries have been found made with slave labor, then sold in the global market.
It’s an integrated problem
- Sadly slavery has woven itself into the very fabric of modern life.
- From legal and generally accepted Walmart “Save Money, Live Better” concept
- To forced labor in domestic service, sex, industry, and agriculture.
- Slavery and its products touch us all every day and the average western consumer is blissfully unaware
We need an integrated solution
- Government
- NGO’s and Faith Based Organizations
- Local Organizations
- Personal Action
- It will take all of the above working together consistently to conquer slavery.
So one Question
How do we as individuals impact these solution organizations with our actions ?
- Government
- NGO’s and Faith Based Organizations
- Local Organizations
- Personal Action
Sources of Information used in this presentation
- The American Anti-Slavery Group http://www.iabolish.org/index.html
- Oregon State University, Davey Jones Locker http://dawn-drupal.science.oregonstate.edu/facts
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Consumerism and Beliefs, or the Lack Thereof
The next topic in our Twilight's Peace ongoing discussion series centers around consumerism and our belief systems. We will discuss the conflicts between the two, the global effects of thoughtlessly acquiring "stuff," ways to bring our consumer habits more in line with our belief systems, and much more. A series of questions follows this discussion description. We hope you will review them in advance, then join us for another lively discussion in our Cetus RiverWalk gallery on Monday December 1st at 7:00 P.M. SLT.
Here are some thoughts to get you going...
Thinking about this concept of consumerism, I thought it would be useful to explore the idea of how, as a culture, we have so indoctrinated ourselves in fulfillment through "stuff." In researching this topic I found a several excellent articles covering aspects of consumerism. Some topics touched upon include: how we treat some of our children, how we spend our resources, our beliefs as defined by our spending and the impact of consumerism on the world. The following paragraphs summarize some of the salient points from my research, and I attempt to string a logical progression of thought through this article. The source documents used are cited in end notes should you wish to read the articles.
As a young philosophy student I recall a class where we evaluated China’s political philosophy by reading and discussing a book on women and child care in China. I always have thought this was an excellent way to look at a culture. After all, what is more telling about a society than what we do to raise the kind of people to be the next “responsible” generation? The first article, from the Wall street Journal, is a critique of parental consumerism run amuck, titled “Nestled in the Lap of Luxury,” by Christine Rosen(1). This article outlines how we as a society often use our children as signs of our affluence by lavishing them with consumer goods. Specifically, the article discusses how we as parents are encouraged by marketers to create “little sanctuaries” for our children in their rooms with designer furniture, decor, the latest electronics and all manner of convenience products. Is this a bad thing? You can make that decision, but Pottery Barn Kids catalogs, $40.00 toddler rugby shirts, a television and computer per child in their rooms? In our house that would be considered excessive. The driving point is as a consumeristic society we objectify our most precious gifts, our children, to be signs of our success and affluence. In doing this we create an expectation for our children that they are entitled to this stuff which simply perpetuates the cycle. These extreme examples of “window dressing” our kids provide some disquieting insights into our own values with regard to stuff and the expression of love.
Following the idea of our values I came across this tidbit in The Atlantic Monthly(2). This articled showed, according to a study by the Journal of Consumer Research, that people who felt more powerless than those in positions of power and material wealth were more likely to purchase expensive consumer products to flaunt to their peers. The study posits that this is a means of compensating for our inadequacies and powerlessness. This compensation behavior is a target for many consumer marketing campaigns.
The concept of using consumerism as a status compensator for ourselves, and in doing so objectifying our loved ones, points to an even more startling issue that many consumers operate in complete disregard to their belief systems. In the article "THEY BELIEVE CAN I?"(3) the author uses a fashion advertisement depicting young people in the French protests of 1968 to associate a belief, revolutionary credibility, with his products. The article goes on to explain how we as consumers are relative zombies, ritualistically consuming goods with little thought to the consequences beyond the immediate gratification of obtaining the belief associated with a particular product. I think the disconnect between our values and beliefs and our consumption habits give rise to many of the problems identified with out of perspective consumer behavior. Marketing and advertising leverage this belief disconnect as a way of persuading us to purchase products we might otherwise decline.
To sum up this critique, for a variety of reasons many affluent and near-affluent societies focus on and perpetuate the idea that material goods are a panacea for what ails us and encourage us to be consumption focused. Often times this consumption focus interferes with more pressing issues we as people are confronted with, both on a global level and on a personal level. For example, many of the damaging trade policies contributing to 100 million people world wide to living in poverty are designed to protect our conspicuous consumption in affluent countries(4). On a personal level, we see finances driven to the breaking point by crushing consumer debt generated by the need to have more stuff. As ethical people, at some point we must examine our behaviors and the effects they have on ourselves and our fellow occupants of the globe.
Am I saying it is bad to have nice things? Should our loved ones go without gifts showing our affection for them this holiday season? Certainly not. We all have worked hard for the right to have nice things in our lives and to share them; however, our ethics should call into question the popular definition of “nice things” and what is enough. These definitions are moving targets at best, impacted by a variety of cultural and commercial influences. As we discuss this topic I would like to address the following questions as guidelines.
What does your belief system say about material things and the efforts we as individuals expend to acquire them?
What aspects of our consumer culture are good for children? Bad for Children? What implications resulting from these aspects do you see society having to contend with in the future?
World hunger, poverty and environmental degradation are all byproducts of overly consumeristic cultures. What actions should be taken to remedy these wrongs? How extreme should the action be? What consequences (trade offs) do you see occurring as a result of these actions?
As the holidays approach, do you set priorities for your spending on gift items? If so what do you do? Are charities included on your gift list?
If you were to amend one of your consumer behaviors to be more in line with your belief system what would it be and why?
1 Christine Rosen (2008, October 31). WEEKEND JOURNAL; Taste: Nestled in the Lap of Luxury. Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition), p. W.11. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 1586476311).?
2 Power Premium. (2008, October). Atlantic Monthly (10727825), Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.?
3 Duncombe, S. (2008, July). THEY BELIEVE; CAN I?. Afterimage, 36(1), 7-9. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date
4 Palmberg, E. (2008, July). A Human-Made Disaster. Sojourners Magazine, pp. 12,15. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.
Here are some thoughts to get you going...
Thinking about this concept of consumerism, I thought it would be useful to explore the idea of how, as a culture, we have so indoctrinated ourselves in fulfillment through "stuff." In researching this topic I found a several excellent articles covering aspects of consumerism. Some topics touched upon include: how we treat some of our children, how we spend our resources, our beliefs as defined by our spending and the impact of consumerism on the world. The following paragraphs summarize some of the salient points from my research, and I attempt to string a logical progression of thought through this article. The source documents used are cited in end notes should you wish to read the articles.
As a young philosophy student I recall a class where we evaluated China’s political philosophy by reading and discussing a book on women and child care in China. I always have thought this was an excellent way to look at a culture. After all, what is more telling about a society than what we do to raise the kind of people to be the next “responsible” generation? The first article, from the Wall street Journal, is a critique of parental consumerism run amuck, titled “Nestled in the Lap of Luxury,” by Christine Rosen(1). This article outlines how we as a society often use our children as signs of our affluence by lavishing them with consumer goods. Specifically, the article discusses how we as parents are encouraged by marketers to create “little sanctuaries” for our children in their rooms with designer furniture, decor, the latest electronics and all manner of convenience products. Is this a bad thing? You can make that decision, but Pottery Barn Kids catalogs, $40.00 toddler rugby shirts, a television and computer per child in their rooms? In our house that would be considered excessive. The driving point is as a consumeristic society we objectify our most precious gifts, our children, to be signs of our success and affluence. In doing this we create an expectation for our children that they are entitled to this stuff which simply perpetuates the cycle. These extreme examples of “window dressing” our kids provide some disquieting insights into our own values with regard to stuff and the expression of love.
Following the idea of our values I came across this tidbit in The Atlantic Monthly(2). This articled showed, according to a study by the Journal of Consumer Research, that people who felt more powerless than those in positions of power and material wealth were more likely to purchase expensive consumer products to flaunt to their peers. The study posits that this is a means of compensating for our inadequacies and powerlessness. This compensation behavior is a target for many consumer marketing campaigns.
The concept of using consumerism as a status compensator for ourselves, and in doing so objectifying our loved ones, points to an even more startling issue that many consumers operate in complete disregard to their belief systems. In the article "THEY BELIEVE CAN I?"(3) the author uses a fashion advertisement depicting young people in the French protests of 1968 to associate a belief, revolutionary credibility, with his products. The article goes on to explain how we as consumers are relative zombies, ritualistically consuming goods with little thought to the consequences beyond the immediate gratification of obtaining the belief associated with a particular product. I think the disconnect between our values and beliefs and our consumption habits give rise to many of the problems identified with out of perspective consumer behavior. Marketing and advertising leverage this belief disconnect as a way of persuading us to purchase products we might otherwise decline.
To sum up this critique, for a variety of reasons many affluent and near-affluent societies focus on and perpetuate the idea that material goods are a panacea for what ails us and encourage us to be consumption focused. Often times this consumption focus interferes with more pressing issues we as people are confronted with, both on a global level and on a personal level. For example, many of the damaging trade policies contributing to 100 million people world wide to living in poverty are designed to protect our conspicuous consumption in affluent countries(4). On a personal level, we see finances driven to the breaking point by crushing consumer debt generated by the need to have more stuff. As ethical people, at some point we must examine our behaviors and the effects they have on ourselves and our fellow occupants of the globe.
Am I saying it is bad to have nice things? Should our loved ones go without gifts showing our affection for them this holiday season? Certainly not. We all have worked hard for the right to have nice things in our lives and to share them; however, our ethics should call into question the popular definition of “nice things” and what is enough. These definitions are moving targets at best, impacted by a variety of cultural and commercial influences. As we discuss this topic I would like to address the following questions as guidelines.
What does your belief system say about material things and the efforts we as individuals expend to acquire them?
What aspects of our consumer culture are good for children? Bad for Children? What implications resulting from these aspects do you see society having to contend with in the future?
World hunger, poverty and environmental degradation are all byproducts of overly consumeristic cultures. What actions should be taken to remedy these wrongs? How extreme should the action be? What consequences (trade offs) do you see occurring as a result of these actions?
As the holidays approach, do you set priorities for your spending on gift items? If so what do you do? Are charities included on your gift list?
If you were to amend one of your consumer behaviors to be more in line with your belief system what would it be and why?
1 Christine Rosen (2008, October 31). WEEKEND JOURNAL; Taste: Nestled in the Lap of Luxury. Wall Street Journal (Eastern Edition), p. W.11. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 1586476311).?
2 Power Premium. (2008, October). Atlantic Monthly (10727825), Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.?
3 Duncombe, S. (2008, July). THEY BELIEVE; CAN I?. Afterimage, 36(1), 7-9. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date
4 Palmberg, E. (2008, July). A Human-Made Disaster. Sojourners Magazine, pp. 12,15. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.
Discussion One Synopsis
On Wednesday October 22 we held our first discussion series “Applying Religious Ethics & Teachings to the Economic Crisis.” We would like to thank everyone who participated. It was a lively discussion to say the least.
We would like to reiterate that, as with all our forums, all of the discussions are held within the context of the Twilight's Peace charter:
“There comes a time when people – after growing weary of intolerance, violence and oppression – must band together in an effort to bring peace to our communities. Twilight’s Peace is an interfaith group dedicated to bringing people together from all religions, races and cultures to advance peace worldwide. Members employ art, music and discussion as tools for working toward this goal.”
Please keep this in mind when thinking through each discussion topic, not that we will ever “censor” a well thought out opinion being expressed simply because it is not in context of our charter.
Another housekeeping point, disruptions and denigrating IMs will not be tolerated. If you receive a denigrating IM while attending our discussion, please copy and paste the IM and send it to one of the Twilight's Peace personnel via IM, and we will address the issue. It is very important to us that all people are comfortable freely expressing their opinions in the context of their belief systems. Likewise, publicly disruptive people will be removed promptly, ensuring a thoughtful discussion experience.
Synopsis
Several common themes reoccurred during this, our first discussion. One primary theme was the belief that as ethical people we have a moral obligation to care for those less fortunate and victimized around us. Belief systems subscribe to the this concept to varying degrees. (Here we define belief systems as being inclusive of Atheism.) The underlying question that evolved throughout the discussion is "How do we care for our neighbor in the context of a complex financial system with incentives encouraging actors to behave to the contrary?" Most of the other themes presented were sub themes to this fundamental question.
The lack of self responsibility and absence of governmental regulation were cited as the primary factors causing the financial crisis and the attendant human suffering. Lack of self responsibility with credit and living within our means were often identified by discussion participants as drivers of the financial crisis creating demand for loans. Also recognized was the counter cultural nature of exercising self restraint in current modern culture, we live in a “have it all now world”. Continuing along this thought process, adding the demand generated by lack of consumer self responsibility to an unregulated financial environment where unintended collusion between underwriters, loan agents, security brokers, and the like provided fertile ground where sub prime loans could flourish. This unhappy combination is the foundation for the current crisis.
This toxic combination relates to the concept of caring for your neighbor on several levels; it was universally agreed that the real estate and financial establishments acted in an unethical manner by overtly manipulating the consumer and the security purchasers, both ends of the value chain. It was universally agreed that these people acted in conflict to their responsibility to society and their business institutions. In many cases one of the best ways to help those around you is by simply doing what you do well and ethically. In this situation that was woefully missed.
The concept of stewardship or caring for the resources entrusted to you is another common theme running through all belief systems. While not directly mentioned in the discussion, is directly related to the topics of governmental deregulation, predatory lending practices, financial institution profiteering, and lack of self responsibility, all of which were mentioned in the discussion. It seems at each level in this crisis, from the high level governmental policy makers to the consumer, the concept of stewardship was disregarded. For example, lack of personal saving and government financing of the national debt overseas were each equally viewed as abusive to the concept of good stewardship by the discussion group.
The need for effective safety net mechanisms driven by the combination of the above mentioned factors was raised, triggering a discussion as to weather government or private agencies were best able to provide these safety nets. No conclusive answer emerged from this debate other than it is by necessity a combination of government and private agencies that are required to provide the safety nets for those victimized by this crisis. In addition, the definitions of both victim and adequate response were raised. Should we as a society assist those who have put themselves in financial turmoil out of their own greed-motivated actions? Again, no clear answer emerged, but a lively discussion around this question did result in the concept that one way to care for and help those less fortunate than us is to help them learn how not to make such greed-driven decisions to their own detriment.
In summation, the answers the group arrived at to the question of what to do in the face of this crisis to prevent it from reoccurring and to address the human suffering are as follows:
Re-regulate the financial institutions to prevent the collusion and abuse that grew in those institutions.
Personally live within your means and encourage those around you to do the same. Fix the larger economy by fixing it locally starting with your own.
Provide financial and educational assistance to those in financial distress so they become self-sufficient as opposed to simply holding there hands out. Essentially, offer tough love assistance where necessary.
This synopsis was derived from the chat log of the discussion it will be posted at the Twilight’s Peace Blog http://twilightspeace.blogspot.com/. We encourage you to continue the dialog by posting comments at our blog. Again we would like to thank all who participated please watch for the topic of next months discussion which will be posted soon. Also, if you have a topic you would like us to consider for a discussion please drop Winnie Sweetwater a note card outlining your idea briefly.
Thank you,
Your friends at Twilight’s Peace
We would like to reiterate that, as with all our forums, all of the discussions are held within the context of the Twilight's Peace charter:
“There comes a time when people – after growing weary of intolerance, violence and oppression – must band together in an effort to bring peace to our communities. Twilight’s Peace is an interfaith group dedicated to bringing people together from all religions, races and cultures to advance peace worldwide. Members employ art, music and discussion as tools for working toward this goal.”
Please keep this in mind when thinking through each discussion topic, not that we will ever “censor” a well thought out opinion being expressed simply because it is not in context of our charter.
Another housekeeping point, disruptions and denigrating IMs will not be tolerated. If you receive a denigrating IM while attending our discussion, please copy and paste the IM and send it to one of the Twilight's Peace personnel via IM, and we will address the issue. It is very important to us that all people are comfortable freely expressing their opinions in the context of their belief systems. Likewise, publicly disruptive people will be removed promptly, ensuring a thoughtful discussion experience.
Synopsis
Several common themes reoccurred during this, our first discussion. One primary theme was the belief that as ethical people we have a moral obligation to care for those less fortunate and victimized around us. Belief systems subscribe to the this concept to varying degrees. (Here we define belief systems as being inclusive of Atheism.) The underlying question that evolved throughout the discussion is "How do we care for our neighbor in the context of a complex financial system with incentives encouraging actors to behave to the contrary?" Most of the other themes presented were sub themes to this fundamental question.
The lack of self responsibility and absence of governmental regulation were cited as the primary factors causing the financial crisis and the attendant human suffering. Lack of self responsibility with credit and living within our means were often identified by discussion participants as drivers of the financial crisis creating demand for loans. Also recognized was the counter cultural nature of exercising self restraint in current modern culture, we live in a “have it all now world”. Continuing along this thought process, adding the demand generated by lack of consumer self responsibility to an unregulated financial environment where unintended collusion between underwriters, loan agents, security brokers, and the like provided fertile ground where sub prime loans could flourish. This unhappy combination is the foundation for the current crisis.
This toxic combination relates to the concept of caring for your neighbor on several levels; it was universally agreed that the real estate and financial establishments acted in an unethical manner by overtly manipulating the consumer and the security purchasers, both ends of the value chain. It was universally agreed that these people acted in conflict to their responsibility to society and their business institutions. In many cases one of the best ways to help those around you is by simply doing what you do well and ethically. In this situation that was woefully missed.
The concept of stewardship or caring for the resources entrusted to you is another common theme running through all belief systems. While not directly mentioned in the discussion, is directly related to the topics of governmental deregulation, predatory lending practices, financial institution profiteering, and lack of self responsibility, all of which were mentioned in the discussion. It seems at each level in this crisis, from the high level governmental policy makers to the consumer, the concept of stewardship was disregarded. For example, lack of personal saving and government financing of the national debt overseas were each equally viewed as abusive to the concept of good stewardship by the discussion group.
The need for effective safety net mechanisms driven by the combination of the above mentioned factors was raised, triggering a discussion as to weather government or private agencies were best able to provide these safety nets. No conclusive answer emerged from this debate other than it is by necessity a combination of government and private agencies that are required to provide the safety nets for those victimized by this crisis. In addition, the definitions of both victim and adequate response were raised. Should we as a society assist those who have put themselves in financial turmoil out of their own greed-motivated actions? Again, no clear answer emerged, but a lively discussion around this question did result in the concept that one way to care for and help those less fortunate than us is to help them learn how not to make such greed-driven decisions to their own detriment.
In summation, the answers the group arrived at to the question of what to do in the face of this crisis to prevent it from reoccurring and to address the human suffering are as follows:
Re-regulate the financial institutions to prevent the collusion and abuse that grew in those institutions.
Personally live within your means and encourage those around you to do the same. Fix the larger economy by fixing it locally starting with your own.
Provide financial and educational assistance to those in financial distress so they become self-sufficient as opposed to simply holding there hands out. Essentially, offer tough love assistance where necessary.
This synopsis was derived from the chat log of the discussion it will be posted at the Twilight’s Peace Blog http://twilightspeace.blogspot.com/. We encourage you to continue the dialog by posting comments at our blog. Again we would like to thank all who participated please watch for the topic of next months discussion which will be posted soon. Also, if you have a topic you would like us to consider for a discussion please drop Winnie Sweetwater a note card outlining your idea briefly.
Thank you,
Your friends at Twilight’s Peace
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Discussion one October 22nd 7:00 PM SLT
Applying Religious Ethics & Teachings to the Economic Crisis
The sub prime mortgage crisis in the USA has created a global economic threat of unprecedented magnitude. Every faith has statements and guidance pertaining to the behaviors that have created this crisis. Jim Wallis, a prominent Christian writer, wrote the following statement in his blog:
“The behavior of too many on Wall Street is a violation of biblical ethics. The teachings of Christianity, Judaism, and other faiths condemn the greed, selfishness, and cheating that have been revealed in corporate behavior over decades now, and denounce their callous mistreatment of employees. Read your Bible.”
-Jim Wallis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sojourners; where he is editor-in-chief of Sojourners magazine
Jim’s statement calls into question the self-interested actions of corporations as conflicting with religious ethics. If you were to confront any of the CEOs of the major institutions involved in this scandal, they would no doubt justify their actions on two points. First, everything they did was completely legal in the USA, and their primary charge as CEO is to provide maximum returns on investment to the shareholders. The latter statement is the cornerstone of the world investment-based economy.
As people of various faiths and ethical perspectives, let's discuss the guidance and teaching each belief systems offers with regard to this problem.
Discussion Questions:
-This financial crisis has been driven by the making of high risk loans and subsequently unregulated investment securities based on the high risk loans. The media have been very quick to condemn as predatory on the consumer the large financial institutions who developed and promoted these questionable but legal loans. While complying with the law, clearly these loans were of suspect nature. Based on your teachings, were the institutions making these loans unethical?
The individuals who borrowed money under these high risk loans have a personal responsibility to be prudent. Was their behavior ethical?
The original intent of the regulations permitting these high risk loans enabled people who could otherwise not have afforded home ownership access to housing. Is it right to condemn the entire system based on the failures we have seen to date?
The government's role in this has been significant. The aggressive deregulation of the financial markets created a period of rapid economic growth followed by a crisis of confidence and widespread defaults on the loans. Given that the government enabled this situation to occur, based on your ethics, should the government have intervened to correct the problem, or should it have stayed out of it and let the market correct itself?
The effects of this crisis impact the world. As capital markets tighten and money for financing new enterprise becomes scarce, often the first to suffer are the emerging markets in the world. The emerging economies, while very dynamic, are fragile. When they fail, human suffering is of a much larger magnitude than in the established economies with social safety nets. Should this be addressed by the governments and institutions involved in originating this crisis?
Please come prepared to share you belief system's basic teachings on money, personal resource management and business ethics. I know we could spend hours on this but I think it would be useful to share the overview finding the contrasts and commonalities.
thanks
Winnie Sweetwater
The sub prime mortgage crisis in the USA has created a global economic threat of unprecedented magnitude. Every faith has statements and guidance pertaining to the behaviors that have created this crisis. Jim Wallis, a prominent Christian writer, wrote the following statement in his blog:
“The behavior of too many on Wall Street is a violation of biblical ethics. The teachings of Christianity, Judaism, and other faiths condemn the greed, selfishness, and cheating that have been revealed in corporate behavior over decades now, and denounce their callous mistreatment of employees. Read your Bible.”
-Jim Wallis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sojourners; where he is editor-in-chief of Sojourners magazine
Jim’s statement calls into question the self-interested actions of corporations as conflicting with religious ethics. If you were to confront any of the CEOs of the major institutions involved in this scandal, they would no doubt justify their actions on two points. First, everything they did was completely legal in the USA, and their primary charge as CEO is to provide maximum returns on investment to the shareholders. The latter statement is the cornerstone of the world investment-based economy.
As people of various faiths and ethical perspectives, let's discuss the guidance and teaching each belief systems offers with regard to this problem.
Discussion Questions:
-This financial crisis has been driven by the making of high risk loans and subsequently unregulated investment securities based on the high risk loans. The media have been very quick to condemn as predatory on the consumer the large financial institutions who developed and promoted these questionable but legal loans. While complying with the law, clearly these loans were of suspect nature. Based on your teachings, were the institutions making these loans unethical?
The individuals who borrowed money under these high risk loans have a personal responsibility to be prudent. Was their behavior ethical?
The original intent of the regulations permitting these high risk loans enabled people who could otherwise not have afforded home ownership access to housing. Is it right to condemn the entire system based on the failures we have seen to date?
The government's role in this has been significant. The aggressive deregulation of the financial markets created a period of rapid economic growth followed by a crisis of confidence and widespread defaults on the loans. Given that the government enabled this situation to occur, based on your ethics, should the government have intervened to correct the problem, or should it have stayed out of it and let the market correct itself?
The effects of this crisis impact the world. As capital markets tighten and money for financing new enterprise becomes scarce, often the first to suffer are the emerging markets in the world. The emerging economies, while very dynamic, are fragile. When they fail, human suffering is of a much larger magnitude than in the established economies with social safety nets. Should this be addressed by the governments and institutions involved in originating this crisis?
Please come prepared to share you belief system's basic teachings on money, personal resource management and business ethics. I know we could spend hours on this but I think it would be useful to share the overview finding the contrasts and commonalities.
thanks
Winnie Sweetwater
Twilight's Peace Discussion Group Anouncement
Twilight’s Peace Ongoing Interfaith Discussion Series
Do you ever wonder if people are capable of listening to one another deeply enough to solve the world's problems and reach a solution? We hope you will join our discussion series as we explore this question and many others.
Our world grows smaller everyday with advancements in communications technology conquering time and space. As the world shrinks and communications become faster and more abrupt people of different beliefs to need listen to one another to reach solutions for many issues. We are organizing a interfaith discussion series to come together and share different faiths perspectives on various issues confronting humanity.
We feel that respectful dialog between people of differing belief systems can be a powerful force leading to understanding and respect for each others beliefs and finding positive solutions to the issues that confront us all. It is certain we will not all agree on several subjects but having an understanding of the differences articulated in an atmosphere of collaboration will promote the appreciation rather than animosity of the differences between belief systems. This understanding between beliefs is essential to resolving the issues driving the destructive forces in our world. Truly one of humanities greatest strengths is our diversity it enables resilience in the human race and the exchange of knowledge so important to finding solutions.
The discussion series will follow this basic format; a topic will be selected in advance of the discussion, ideally at the suggestion of the group members. The topic will be written up with discussion questions and posted on this blog. We will send out announcements to the group giving the topic, date, time and location for the discussion. This will enable interested discussion participants to review the topic and questions and provide time for reflection and formulation of reasoned responses. We will then meet for the discussion. Our facilitator, Winnie Sweetwater, will get the discussion underway and serve to keep the discussion orderly. We do not want to encumber the discussion with excessive rules we ask that each participant conduct themselves in a respectful manner towards the other participants. Personal attacks or attacks on another faith or beliefs will not be tolerated and will result in the offending party being asked to leave.
We believe that unless we, as inhabitants of this ever shrinking earth, learn to communicate civilly with each other we will be doomed to mutual destruction. This discussion series is one small step towards opening up the communication lines between people of differing beliefs. We sincerely hope you will take time to participate with us on a regular basis.
Your Friends at Twilight's Peace
Do you ever wonder if people are capable of listening to one another deeply enough to solve the world's problems and reach a solution? We hope you will join our discussion series as we explore this question and many others.
Our world grows smaller everyday with advancements in communications technology conquering time and space. As the world shrinks and communications become faster and more abrupt people of different beliefs to need listen to one another to reach solutions for many issues. We are organizing a interfaith discussion series to come together and share different faiths perspectives on various issues confronting humanity.
We feel that respectful dialog between people of differing belief systems can be a powerful force leading to understanding and respect for each others beliefs and finding positive solutions to the issues that confront us all. It is certain we will not all agree on several subjects but having an understanding of the differences articulated in an atmosphere of collaboration will promote the appreciation rather than animosity of the differences between belief systems. This understanding between beliefs is essential to resolving the issues driving the destructive forces in our world. Truly one of humanities greatest strengths is our diversity it enables resilience in the human race and the exchange of knowledge so important to finding solutions.
The discussion series will follow this basic format; a topic will be selected in advance of the discussion, ideally at the suggestion of the group members. The topic will be written up with discussion questions and posted on this blog. We will send out announcements to the group giving the topic, date, time and location for the discussion. This will enable interested discussion participants to review the topic and questions and provide time for reflection and formulation of reasoned responses. We will then meet for the discussion. Our facilitator, Winnie Sweetwater, will get the discussion underway and serve to keep the discussion orderly. We do not want to encumber the discussion with excessive rules we ask that each participant conduct themselves in a respectful manner towards the other participants. Personal attacks or attacks on another faith or beliefs will not be tolerated and will result in the offending party being asked to leave.
We believe that unless we, as inhabitants of this ever shrinking earth, learn to communicate civilly with each other we will be doomed to mutual destruction. This discussion series is one small step towards opening up the communication lines between people of differing beliefs. We sincerely hope you will take time to participate with us on a regular basis.
Your Friends at Twilight's Peace
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