The Wages of Rampant Greed

[Murali_Mohan_das]

Notice the super-title of the article: The Chinese Poison Train.

 

Articles like this are everywhere these days. India is right behind China in their rush to modernize and expand their economy.

 

http://consumerist.com/consumer/chinese-poison-train/boy-catches-fire-after-wearing-pajamas-with-500-times-the-safe-level-of-formaldehyde-291690.php

 

Boy Catches Fire After Wearing Pajamas With 500 Times The Safe Level Of Formaldehyde

 

 

[Kulapavana]

The lab where I work sometimes tests Chinese made products for various contaminants. In most cases they fail the US standards, even if the "certificate of the analysis" provided by the producer says otherwise. They routinely falsify documents and make false claims to the importers.

 

Free trade is only good for the traders. It is the biggest scam the trader tribe was able to come up with in centuries. The consumer has no choice but to buy only the stuff that the traders put in their stores. The consumer will pay the same retail price for both US and Chinese made goods, but the trader often makes three times as much money on the imported products. The consumer usually has zero choice in these matters - the US made goods are simply avoided by the corporate buyers for companies like Walmart, K-mart, Lowes or Home-depot. Thus traders win every time.

 

Yes, it is all about greed - the greed of people who already have billions, and want more, and more money.

[Murali_Mohan_das]

That's interesting about the results of your lab tests!!

 

However, consumers *do* have choices, but often opt for quantity and convenience over quality and uniqueness.

 

I've never been to the Oregon Country Fair, but I understand there are quite a few vendors there selling hand-made goods. Of course, one probably won't have much luck finding a washing machine to buy at the Country Fair, but...one can always take one's clothes down to the river and beat them on a rock!

 

I have a back-yard that is mostly empty space--I could easily be growing a fair amount of fresh vegetables and legumes.

 

In our cities, we have policies *preventing* the planting of fruit trees and food plants in our parks and other public spaces. Why shouldn't we have community gardens everywhere?

 

As has been mentioned from time to time on the forum, Srila Prabhupada emphasized self-sustaining communities as an ideal. No doubt, for the sake of distribution of mercy, devotees may have to endure less-than-ideal conditions.

 

We have choices. Often, though, making a better choice takes some courage. If we're willing to sacrifice some modern conveniences (or even how often we rely upon them), we can more closely approach the ideal of "simple living, high thinking."

 

 

The lab where I work sometimes tests Chinese made products for various contaminants. In most cases they fail the US standards, even if the "certificate of the analysis" provided by the producer says otherwise. They routinely falsify documents and make false claims to the importers.

 

Free trade is only good for the traders. It is the biggest scam the trader tribe was able to come up with in centuries. The consumer has no choice but to buy only the stuff that the traders put in their stores. The consumer will pay the same retail price for both US and Chinese made goods, but the trader often makes three times as much money on the imported products. The consumer usually has zero choice in these matters - the US made goods are simply avoided by the corporate buyers for companies like Walmart, K-mart, Lowes or Home-depot. Thus traders win every time.

 

Yes, it is all about greed - the greed of people who already have billions, and want more, and more money.

[theist]

 

That's interesting about the results of your lab tests!!

 

However, consumers *do* have choices, but often opt for quantity and convenience over quality and uniqueness.

 

I've never been to the Oregon Country Fair, but I understand there are quite a few vendors there selling hand-made goods. Of course, one probably won't have much luck finding a washing machine to buy at the Country Fair, but...one can always take one's clothes down to the river and beat them on a rock!

 

I have a back-yard that is mostly empty space--I could easily be growing a fair amount of fresh vegetables and legumes.

 

In our cities, we have policies *preventing* the planting of fruit trees and food plants in our parks and other public spaces. Why shouldn't we have community gardens everywhere?

 

As has been mentioned from time to time on the forum, Srila Prabhupada emphasized self-sustaining communities as an ideal. No doubt, for the sake of distribution of mercy, devotees may have to endure less-than-ideal conditions.

 

We have choices. Often, though, making a better choice takes some courage. If we're willing to sacrifice some modern conveniences (or even how often we rely upon them), we can more closely approach the ideal of "simple living, high thinking."

 

We should not be surprised. This corner of the mahat=tattva is set aside for exploitation.

 

It is easy to imagine a better way of even material life but pulling it off in this present atmoshere is really hard. It is hard to be simple in today's world.

 

For instance I would think every house built would naturally come with a green house for growing veggies and flowers even in the city. But as humans we have lost our natural connection with the Earth, our Mother.

 

These demons are even trying to control all the seeds that produce the foodstuff. Occasionally a Johnny Appleseed type hero will arise but too little too late.

 

I expect a major catastrophe wiping out the majority of the human race at anytime. It's gone too far.

[Vigraha]

 

We should not be surprised. This corner of the mahat=tattva is set aside for exploitation.

 

It is easy to imagine a better way of even material life but pulling it off in this present atmoshere is really hard. It is hard to be simple in today's world.

 

For instance I would think every house built would naturally come with a green house for growing veggies and flowers even in the city. But as humans we have lost our natural connection with the Earth, our Mother.

 

These demons are even trying to control all the seeds that produce the foodstuff. Occasionally a Johnny Appleseed type hero will arise but too little too late.

 

I expect a major catastrophe wiping out the majority of the human race at anytime. It's gone too far.

 

If it happens it will only be partical, there is still 427,000 years left in Kali-yuga, good post though. Sometime in the future there will be a 'short' golden age that will spread all over the whole planet of Lord Chaitanyas Sankirtan movement. We are at the very beginning of it. As you once said in another post "we've seen nothin yet" Can you imagine what six million devotees in LA would be like. The human race may get worse before it gets better, but it will get better long enough for billions of devotees to return back home back to Godhead. The Christians call this period the Rapture however, unknown to Christian theology, due to its primitive education, this is always happening because devotee are continuiosly returning back to Goloka or Vaikuntha from their 'dreams' in the mahat-tattva.

[Murali_Mohan_das]

This got me thinking: what if the description of the four yugas is akin to the material influence of the astral bodies on us (astrology)?

 

That is to say, as the stars influence our material predilictions, but that influence can be overcome through devotion, perhaps the description of Kali Yuga is just of the natural progression.

 

Perhaps, if enough of us exercise our free will and go against the degenerative tendencies of this age, Kalki Avatar will come, as one Vaishnava suggested, to participate in the Sankirttan movement of Mahaprabhu.

 

 

If it happens it will only be partical, there is still 427,000 years left in Kali-yuga, good post though. Sometime in the future there will be a 'short' golden age that will spread all over the whole planet of Lord Chaitanyas Sankirtan movement. We are at the very beginning of it. As you once said in another post "we've seen nothin yet" Can you imagine what six million devotees in LA would be like. The human race may get worse before it gets better, but it will get better long enough for billions of devotees to return back home back to Godhead. The Christians call this period the Rapture however, unknown to Christian theology, due to its primitive education, this is always happening because devotee are continuiosly returning back to Goloka or Vaikuntha from their 'dreams' in the mahat-tattva.