Balancing Act
An editorial by Michael Gerson in today's Hutchinson News, "Balancing Austerity and Morality" aroused some indignation here--not because I didn't like what he said, but because it reminded me of a whole jumble of problems that I keep puzzling over and not really finding resolution for.
Gerson's column was about the financial situation in America. I especially liked what he said about what makes a good leader in lean times:
A sense of proportion (Focus on the things that matter most.)
The courage to take on large interests (Powerful voting blocs are not always right and may need reining in.)
A sense of humanity (Support programs that preserve human life--above building highways, for example.)
On the heels of the news coming out of Bangladesh about a garment factory fire that killed over 100 workers who had no way of escaping the blaze that began on the first floor of a multi-story building, I've been thinking again about the ethics of American companies doing business with companies that treat their employees with such disdain. One business who does so is my husband's employer. That same business has a very loyal following among cost-conscious shoppers, including most of the conservative Mennonites I know.
On the one side is the "hard place" of economic necessity (People like us finding a way to earn a living and needing to make every dollar stretch), and on the other hand is the rock of injustice (The human misery costs of insuring our access to cheap goods.) I keep looking for wiggle room in this spot. I'd like to take my business where I know people in the supply chain are being treated right. I also know that if we don't make some economical choices, we could become more financially dependent on others than we ever hope to be.
I'm convinced that examining our accumulation-driven impulses, being committed to community building by supporting local businesses, minimizing waste, and producing what we can on our own are part of the answer, but somehow it doesn't seem like quite enough. Gerson says leaders need the courage to take on large interests. All of us need courage, even if we are not political leaders.
*********************
Just above Gerson's column was an editorial by Jack Wempe, a retired teacher and legislator from Lyons. In "The Overreaching Reality," he asked the question, Why does the accumulation of political power so often result in overreaching? Cannot politicians learn from the past and avoid that trap?" Among the examples he cited were Egypt's president Morsi, Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama, the Tea Party in the 2012 election, and especially Kansas Gov. Brownback.
Wempe notes that overreaching almost inevitably results in corrective reaction at a later time. Speaking of the situation in our state, he writes, "Independence and moderation, once Kansas characteristics, may again become important to Kansans."
I'm weary of overreaching and long for moderation on many levels. I don't have a specific situation in mind at the moment, but know that the misuse of power can happen outside the political realm also. When does necessary corrective action segue into overreaching on the opposite end of the spectrum of choices? What personal choices can I make that will enable me to stay off the crazy cycle of overreaching and over-reaction?
*********************
Howard Buffet, son of financial guru Warren Buffet, is an Illinois farmer, of all things--in Decatur--the county name of the place where one set of Miller great-grandparents once lived. In an article in Parade, an insert in our local newspaper, he writes optimistically about eliminating hunger in the United States. He's got some good ideas, apparently, and is donating a lot of money toward solving the problem.
The feature article last week in Time was on how to get nutritious food at the grocery store. The article was written by Mehmet Oz, a celebrity physician/media figure.
Oz and Buffet are probably both doing a good work, but I felt disappointment with both of their approaches.
Oz didn't seem to have a handle on how chemical toxins ingested with food can create a new constellation of problems that good nutrition can hardly overcome. He also made no mention of nutrient decline because of green harvesting, decline during shipping or storage, and decline during processing.
Buffet apparently farms like all the "big guys" farm. I consider these methods part of the food supply problem.
Growing your own food, which seems like a big part of the answer to the food supply problems, is not possible for everyone. Neither is purchasing food from sources that insure a lighter toxin load. Small steps, however, make a difference. Andrew S.'s family kept track last summer of the dollar value of the harvest from their garden and came up with a net gain of $456.19. That might not have been possible in Kansas last summer, but even here, gardening can make a big difference in getting nutritious food economically.
On this matter, I'm still hoping for paradigm shifts, but will celebrate small successes in the meantime.
************************
"Fiscal cliff" news or "austerity crisis" news as this informative site calls it, includes some dire figures for what the Affordable Health Care Act (AHCA) will cost. Wal-Mart is dropping provision of health insurance for many of its workers (throwing these employees on the mercy of the AHCA), and a multitude of CEOs are publicizing complaints about the cost of providing health insurance to their employees--never mind that many of these companies have been very successful financially.
I consider health care another industry due for a paradigm shift. For years, technology has improved things in this field, and there are likely more good things in store along these lines, but many simple and inexpensive things have been forgotten. All that many people seem able to think to do is to try to find new revenue sources for paying what the allopathic-based system requires.
I wish for more confidence that the government regulatory agencies and pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies are operating with integrity.
Check out this TED Talk to hear what one Multiple Sclerosis-afflicted physician tried and now recommends after having recovered from severely debilitating MS. She eats three cups of each of the following each day:
--Leafy greens
--Cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, etc.)
--Brightly colored vegetables and fruits
In addition, she eats small amounts of legumes, fish, poultry, and lean red meats from grass-fed animals.
I think she's on to something good, but I probably would never be able to manage to do what she does. I take food supplements instead. And I take two teaspoons of vinegar and two teaspoons of honey in hot water twice a day.
On a side note, I mentioned this vinegar-honey drink at school the other day, and found out that our principal, Wesley, has been doing a more intense version of this for some time. He said, "My parents did it for years, and it seems to have worked out pretty well for them, so I thought it was probably time I got started." He takes two tablespoons of vinegar and only 1/2 teaspoon of honey.
Henry and Elizabeth S. and my Aunt Mary are good advertisements for the vinegar-honey tonic. Aunt Mary credits this remedy for deliverance from miserable seasonal allergies. She is remarkably youthful for being in her ninth decade of life.
Local honey and unpasteurized vinegar are reputedly necessary for the best results. It makes sense to me, but as Hiromi would say, "What do I know?" Check it out for yourself.
Gerson's column was about the financial situation in America. I especially liked what he said about what makes a good leader in lean times:
A sense of proportion (Focus on the things that matter most.)
The courage to take on large interests (Powerful voting blocs are not always right and may need reining in.)
A sense of humanity (Support programs that preserve human life--above building highways, for example.)
On the heels of the news coming out of Bangladesh about a garment factory fire that killed over 100 workers who had no way of escaping the blaze that began on the first floor of a multi-story building, I've been thinking again about the ethics of American companies doing business with companies that treat their employees with such disdain. One business who does so is my husband's employer. That same business has a very loyal following among cost-conscious shoppers, including most of the conservative Mennonites I know.
On the one side is the "hard place" of economic necessity (People like us finding a way to earn a living and needing to make every dollar stretch), and on the other hand is the rock of injustice (The human misery costs of insuring our access to cheap goods.) I keep looking for wiggle room in this spot. I'd like to take my business where I know people in the supply chain are being treated right. I also know that if we don't make some economical choices, we could become more financially dependent on others than we ever hope to be.
I'm convinced that examining our accumulation-driven impulses, being committed to community building by supporting local businesses, minimizing waste, and producing what we can on our own are part of the answer, but somehow it doesn't seem like quite enough. Gerson says leaders need the courage to take on large interests. All of us need courage, even if we are not political leaders.
*********************
Just above Gerson's column was an editorial by Jack Wempe, a retired teacher and legislator from Lyons. In "The Overreaching Reality," he asked the question, Why does the accumulation of political power so often result in overreaching? Cannot politicians learn from the past and avoid that trap?" Among the examples he cited were Egypt's president Morsi, Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama, the Tea Party in the 2012 election, and especially Kansas Gov. Brownback.
Wempe notes that overreaching almost inevitably results in corrective reaction at a later time. Speaking of the situation in our state, he writes, "Independence and moderation, once Kansas characteristics, may again become important to Kansans."
I'm weary of overreaching and long for moderation on many levels. I don't have a specific situation in mind at the moment, but know that the misuse of power can happen outside the political realm also. When does necessary corrective action segue into overreaching on the opposite end of the spectrum of choices? What personal choices can I make that will enable me to stay off the crazy cycle of overreaching and over-reaction?
*********************
Howard Buffet, son of financial guru Warren Buffet, is an Illinois farmer, of all things--in Decatur--the county name of the place where one set of Miller great-grandparents once lived. In an article in Parade, an insert in our local newspaper, he writes optimistically about eliminating hunger in the United States. He's got some good ideas, apparently, and is donating a lot of money toward solving the problem.
The feature article last week in Time was on how to get nutritious food at the grocery store. The article was written by Mehmet Oz, a celebrity physician/media figure.
Oz and Buffet are probably both doing a good work, but I felt disappointment with both of their approaches.
Oz didn't seem to have a handle on how chemical toxins ingested with food can create a new constellation of problems that good nutrition can hardly overcome. He also made no mention of nutrient decline because of green harvesting, decline during shipping or storage, and decline during processing.
Buffet apparently farms like all the "big guys" farm. I consider these methods part of the food supply problem.
Growing your own food, which seems like a big part of the answer to the food supply problems, is not possible for everyone. Neither is purchasing food from sources that insure a lighter toxin load. Small steps, however, make a difference. Andrew S.'s family kept track last summer of the dollar value of the harvest from their garden and came up with a net gain of $456.19. That might not have been possible in Kansas last summer, but even here, gardening can make a big difference in getting nutritious food economically.
On this matter, I'm still hoping for paradigm shifts, but will celebrate small successes in the meantime.
************************
"Fiscal cliff" news or "austerity crisis" news as this informative site calls it, includes some dire figures for what the Affordable Health Care Act (AHCA) will cost. Wal-Mart is dropping provision of health insurance for many of its workers (throwing these employees on the mercy of the AHCA), and a multitude of CEOs are publicizing complaints about the cost of providing health insurance to their employees--never mind that many of these companies have been very successful financially.
I consider health care another industry due for a paradigm shift. For years, technology has improved things in this field, and there are likely more good things in store along these lines, but many simple and inexpensive things have been forgotten. All that many people seem able to think to do is to try to find new revenue sources for paying what the allopathic-based system requires.
I wish for more confidence that the government regulatory agencies and pharmaceutical companies and insurance companies are operating with integrity.
Check out this TED Talk to hear what one Multiple Sclerosis-afflicted physician tried and now recommends after having recovered from severely debilitating MS. She eats three cups of each of the following each day:
--Leafy greens
--Cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, etc.)
--Brightly colored vegetables and fruits
In addition, she eats small amounts of legumes, fish, poultry, and lean red meats from grass-fed animals.
I think she's on to something good, but I probably would never be able to manage to do what she does. I take food supplements instead. And I take two teaspoons of vinegar and two teaspoons of honey in hot water twice a day.
On a side note, I mentioned this vinegar-honey drink at school the other day, and found out that our principal, Wesley, has been doing a more intense version of this for some time. He said, "My parents did it for years, and it seems to have worked out pretty well for them, so I thought it was probably time I got started." He takes two tablespoons of vinegar and only 1/2 teaspoon of honey.
Henry and Elizabeth S. and my Aunt Mary are good advertisements for the vinegar-honey tonic. Aunt Mary credits this remedy for deliverance from miserable seasonal allergies. She is remarkably youthful for being in her ninth decade of life.
Local honey and unpasteurized vinegar are reputedly necessary for the best results. It makes sense to me, but as Hiromi would say, "What do I know?" Check it out for yourself.
posted by Mrs. I (Miriam Iwashige) at
6:35 PM
3 Comments:
Criticizing WalMart for poor conditions of Bangladesh workers is like criticizing Kid Club for poor condition of kids. It seems irrelevant to the critic that Kids Club and Walmart have already vastly improved the people's lives, but are not omnipotent to plop them into a cuddly Beachy/American state of being. Very unfair thinking, IMHO.
By
Hans, at 12/05/2012
I think it's safe to say that people who invest in Kids Club do so out of compassion and benevolence, and Wal-Mart's involvement in places like Bangladesh is strictly a profit motive. The motive is important, as is the case in everything that involves choices. The fallout/outcome of those choices is important too, but is not always under the control of the "chooser." You're obviously aware of this, as evidenced by the parallels you identified.
You're surely familiar also with the news story that prompted the comments on the poor conditions of workers in the supply chain of American retailers. In Kids Club, I might approximate similar conditions by locking the kids into the upper-floors of a large building, and paying them to make widgets--which I then sold to you, and you re-sold them at a significant profit, but still at a good price for the customers. When you and I made the business deal, you knew that I was putting the kids' safety at risk in the production of these goods, but I offered you such a good deal financially that you turned a blind eye. Therein lies the problem--profit for you and me and a good deal for your customers over protection for the kids.
With very minimal corporate investment, American retailers could have paid for fire-escapes on that Bangladeshi factory where more than 100 people died. That might have been an act of benevolence. My cynical self thinks it might still have involved less noble motives (i.e. we can't have an inconvenience like a fire disrupting our flow of goods), but if it had been benevolence, the motive and the outcome would likely both have been much better. The profit might even have been preserved all around.
No cuddly Beachy/American state of being or patronizing attitudes need be involved--only minimal safety provisions for other worthy human beings. I understand that a "fatherly" care of workers by an employer is a very strong tradition in Bangladesh, so the ignoring of minimal safety measures may appear even more galling there than here-where it is a legal requirement.
This is fair thinking IMHO.
By
Mrs. I (Miriam Iwashige), at 12/06/2012
But you don't know the safety conditions that they worked in before.
By
Hans, at 12/06/2012
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