Apologies for the delay. Chronic laziness.
I’ve been working on two pieces which I hope to put up over the next few days/weeks. One on violence, the other on predatory lending. At present each is still a jumble of knots and tangents. Virgin abundance to be tracked, appropriated, ordered, trimmed, processed, formulated, edited, garnished. And presented.
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Previews:
1) Vegetarianism. Non-violence. Violence. Violence as a necessary element of survival? Scarcity. Competition. Forceful extraction of energy and resources. As opposed to peaceful photosynthesis. “The tragedy of being an animal.”
Western animal-rights vegetarianism. Well-meaning. Inconsistent? Indian Hindu/Buddhist vegetarianism. Philosophically rigorous worldview. Jain vegetarianism. Pure. Extreme. Supererogatory?
Orientalist?
India. Gandhi. Mahatma. Ahimsa. Dignity. Love. Love? Hatred. Hitler. Duh. Dallaire. Responsibility to protect.
Gandhi. Love. Hitler. Hatred. Gandhi’s two letters to Hitler. Pleas for peace. Enlightened? Wise? Deferential? Naive?
Hunger versus hatred (Thanks, Dora). Necessary versus unnecessary violence.
Remove veils. Remove moral distance. Remove insulation from violent consequences of choices. Accurate picture of the ethical footprint of choices. Make real choices.
More to come.
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2) Predatory lending. Predatory mortgage servicing. Credit default swap. People losing their homes. Michael Moore. “Capitalism: A Love Affair.” Gordon Gekko. “Greed is good.” Enron. WorldCom. Criminals.
Contempt. Anger. Rant. Property is theft.
Investment bankers. Stock brokers. Analysts. Financiers. Gambling with other people’s money. Hyper-aggressive Wild West mentality. Plutocrats. Parasites. Cattle-rustlers and robber barons. Monsters.
Contempt. Anger. Rant. Property is theft.
But. Twist. Old friends from high-school. Very smart. Business-school grads. Now going to work on Wall Street. Bay Street. Goldman Sachs. JP Morgan Chase. Deloitte. Price Waterhouse Cooper. Junior aspirants. I knew these people. Horns, no. Forked tongues, no. Cloven hoofs, no. Nice to their grandparents, yes.
Monsters? Don’t they teach compassion in business school? Haven’t seen them in five years. Have they changed so much in five years? Have I changed so much in five years? Different values? Divergent paths? Inevitable?
Must learn more about economics. Must substantiate accusations.
Joseph Heath. Philosophy professor. Brilliant. “Filthy Lucre: Economics for People Who Hate Capitalism.” Promoting economic literacy. Six common right-wing economic fallacies. Brilliant. Six common left-wing economic fallacies. Brilliant. Troubling. Good intentions. Unintended consequences.
Must learn more about economics. Must substantiate accusations.
More to come.
–Kevin Philipupillai
