Monday, July 16, 2007

Convenience and Profit...Is it worth it?



Beijing authorities yesterday shut down a dim-sum booth that was
discovered stuffing its steamed buns with cardboard in an apparent
attempt to offset the rising cost of pork.

Disturbing??? Well...try not to think about it.

The cost of profit is high- the cost of saving money is very high. If anything is likely to back fire it is money love. Only a world that loved to make or save money so much could justify so much damage and insanity. Very bad things are condoned in the name of money. You know what I mean- I think everybody knows. I am as guilty as everyone on some counts.
The price of convenience is also high. I wonder how convenience has become the priority over all else. The saying goes that necessity is the mother of invention- but I would say that laziness is. We put up with a lot of pretty awful things to avoid inconvenience. Everything from our children's education, health, the environment, morality, etc. have been sacrificed on the alter of ease.
Thank goodness we don't have to think about what is really going on, right? Who cares if they stuff spring rolls with cardboard soaked in animal fat and chemicals? What is really in the food we eat? What is big business doing to the environment? How do certain groups benefit from the philosophies they sell?
How is all of this effecting us anyway?
So, pollution increases, our health worsens, and... we continue to use our gadgets, eat our prepackaged food, heap our waste into mother earth And that is only the physical manifestation of what is happening spiritually on a global level. We buy into destructive attitudes and behaviors; excess, self indulgence, disrespect of life and laws and materialism is served up as the caustic meal-deal du jour . The fibers of our families and society shred and our children are given a raw deal. The media and politics, encased in a fluffy spring roll... the garbage we swallow without question. Killing us softly. Because it is so much easier that way.
Why does it continue...?
One of the best analogies I have ever heard is that we can put a railing up around the cliffs edge or have an ambulance waiting at the bottom. Nobody wants to bother with the time, energy and expense of building that railing...it isn't convenient and it has a price... when we would rather go zipping by and not think of it. So here we are, in the clamor of our day, the air filled with the metaphoric screams of sirens from every corner and it is a good thing, and a convenient thing that somebody invented earphones. Drown it out, baby, and keep eating those spring rolls.
OR... start to think about it. There are good books and films being made as a backlash to our George Orwell existence. Explore and fight back against the apathy, starting with you. Because nobody will do it for you- that wouldn't be convenient or profitable. Happy hunting!

6 comments:

imageseer said...

Hmm...food wonderful food, Wait!? What are we really eating when we sink our teeth into a product of our monolithic food system? In the Book, the Omnivore's Dilemma, Mr. Pollan states something very profound: that what we do the the earth we do directly to ourselves. This cardboard dim sum isn't so far from what we eat when we subject ourselves to processed foods. Our current world favors low priced foods over high quality foods....this is the result!
There is one extremely good argument for buying locally-produced food...closer the sources, the better.

Jo Schaffer said...

Amen- fellow food and earth lover! Down with McDonalds!!!

Claremont First Ward said...

So steamed buns are NOT supposed to be stuffed with cardboard? :) I clicked on your profile yesterday on Kirsten's blog but didn't realize you were YOU. Kirsten has told me so much about you over the years but I didn't make the connection when I clicked on your profile. The funny thing is that I read your profile and loved how you wrote you're an empowered mama. It looks like we have many of the same interests (archaelogy and reading and learning) and one of my favorite classes in college was exploring (briefly) great religions of the world. I wasn't sure which blog to post on, but I hope you don't mind my exploration of all of them now. I'm really looking forward to looking at Jack's. Our little Jack's (well, mine is actually John but my intention was to call him Jack) are close to the same age. Love blogs with introspection, so I'm excited to delve into this one!

Kathleen and Stephan Seable said...

Yes. I imagine the most important thing is that we do not end up becoming cardboard wrapped in a self deceiving egg roll. Write on, baby. (pun intended) Love, mom

Mark and Kiss said...

hmmmm...wouldn't it be nice to have an abundant garden. My mother in law is amazing in that way. She always had a huge, beautiful garden and worked her tail off in the summer and then enjoyed canned or frozen fruits and vegetables all winter long. I think I will focus more on that when we finally get our house built in Oregon. She really did it right.
Love,Kiss

imageseer said...

You know that I remember a place we ate at in SLC that was shut down because the meat in their Tacos wasn't beef...it was dog food. arf, arf!