We are definitely living in interesting times right now. The US economy is in turmoil. Corporate greed and shady business practices have finally caught up with capitalism...witness the meltdown on Wall Street right now. Also, people trying to live the American dream without the means to pay for it (which is 95% of the people in this country) are finally having their bills come due. Declining home prices, a falling stock market, and piles of debt are leaving people in the dust. Maybe we did not need that giant house, the four gas-guzzling cars and the big screen TV with surround sound. Maybe we should not buy things that we cannot afford. Yet we see the government operate in debt each and every day. How can this country run on debt?
The environment is in peril. The arctic is going to be ice-free in the spring by 2012. This is years ahead of what scientists thought only a short while ago. Increasingly frightening predictions are made by the day and yet we do nothing. Tornadoes in Atlanta anyone? Drought-ridden Georgia trying to redraw its border with Tennessee in order to lay claim to the Tennessee river. With an exponentially increasing population, along with an ever increasing threat to our resources, what magnitude catastrophe has to hit before people take real notice that we are not playing a game.
Increasing world tensions. Witness the protests over Chinese rule in Tibet. Tibetans are traditionally a peaceful people, steeped in the Buddhist tradition. But you can only step on a people for so long before they grow weary and start fighting back. The fighting in the Middle East. The genocide in Darfur. The United States bullying and telling everyone what to do. When will it end? Things are only going to get worse as resources grow more scarce. I personally do not want to live in interesting times, do you?
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Just a few years ago, almost everyone, especially the self-proclaimed Republican/Christian conservative fools, prayed the virtue of Capitalism and greediness. It was good to be wasteful, greedy, selfish, and ruthless for they are the "must have" characteristics of Capitalism. And according to them, Capitalism and the free market economy are the miracle cure for all the problems of society. They claimed that private industry promoted competition and the wealth of the mega millionaires is trickling down to their minimum waged hourly workers (or more correctly slaves). Of course the mainstream media, which is owned by big corporation, played a major role in spreading those propagandas. What they didn't tell you is that it is not free market and their version of Capitalism is just of form of corporation socialism. The term "private" applies to the fact that whenever things works in their favor, they claimed on the miracles of "Capitalism" and keep the loots for themselves. However when things are falling apart due to their own incompetency, greediness, or stupidity then it was either due to "unfair competition" or "unregulated marketing" or many other reasons. Of course tax money ALWAYS used bailing them out. Now suddenly their problem became everyone's problem. When they are doing well, they received tax cut from the federal, state, and local government in the name of "creating job". When they are failing they also receiving money, but in the name of "job/market stabilization/stimulation". Thus the wealthy businessmen and big corporation always get public assistance regardless of the economic cycles. Corporate welfare money will always keep them survive to brag about their wonderful system of "Capitalism". In the mean time they scorn and consider the word "welfare" that used to help the poor, the sick, and the old people as dirty word. It had happened before. Don't forget the Great Depression, and now it could happen again.
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