Here's another question: One person truthfully answers the above question with, "I would never press that button." Another answers truthfully with, "All the money in the world." Who is the more successful person?
There are correct answers for both questions. The correct answer for the first question is the first answer for the second question. "I would never press that button." Ironically, in today's world, the answer to the second question is the person who answered the first question incorrectly.
The person who would risk the entire world to satisfy his/her greed is the person who climbs the corporate ladder, who becomes a captain of industry, who rises to a position of power, and who is elected to a position of leadership. There have been a few notable exceptions, but in general this is the truth about our world.
You may think I'm wrong. You may think that only a person without much love or empathy or social conscience would EVER press that button. You've just described a lot of people who are incredibly successful. So successful that their lack of love, empathy and social conscience is considered their greatest "virtue." And if I gave you a list of those people, you might say, "He has empathy," or "He is married and has kids so he has love." But love, empathy and social conscience are easily enough faked, and in each example you used to object to my proposal, one might list that as their SECOND greatest "virtue." Show me a "successful" man who's only been married once and in all likelihood it'll be one of my few notable exceptions. Or he looks at the portrait of Ben Franklin on the 100 dollar bill, (insert different portrait/currency) with an emotion that, if not for its pure evil, may approximate love, and it's at a strength not shared with any human connections.
These people are sick. They have the most dangerous undiagnosed disease known to man. You don't need to be a doctor to see it. The problem is, most doctors, and for that matter the majority of the medical industry, are in constant exposure to the virus and are therefore at higher risk of catching it than most. Call it "currencitosis," "lucritis," "moolahbola," or just call it the money disease, whatever it's called, it's very real and very dangerous. Look at Martin Shkreli or J. Michael Pearson. Are they healthy, reasonable, clear-minded individuals or are they plagued? For that matter, look at any billionaire. Now, some of them might tell you they don't NEED a billion, but try to take a buck from them in taxes and you'll see genuine attachment, unwillingness to part, you'll see NEED! And that's nothing compared to the whining and complaining you'd hear from right wing "don't tax the rich" political groups.
But seriously, nobody NEEDS a billion dollars because nobody could spend it (reasonably). Give this a read. Is that not an "unimaginable amount of money?"
Relax, this is not going to be another post about Trump although, to mix a metaphor (with a simile) the shoe fits like a glove. The shoe of the money plague, not the billionaire. I don't think he's ever made a billion though I DO believe he's lost that much. I am more concerned with the danger these highly functioning basket cases pose to our society, way of life and even our existence. If you're like me and you think Noam Chomsky might be about the smartest guy alive today, you know with the possible exception of an incurable, highly contagious and very deadly virus (like Moolahbola, which could be the cause of one of the following here), there are two things that are the biggest threats to our existence today: nuclear war and climate change. Nuclear war is not my topic but with the leaders of nuclear capable countries getting dumber and dumber I wouldn't be surprised to witness a nuke before I die. Like I mean just a fraction of a second before I die.
Here's another smart guy who concurs. Yuval Noah Harari said there were three main threats to human existence: nuclear war, climate change and technological disruption. I don't think the robots are going to kill us, but there's another noted intellectual who is worried about climate change. And (he just keeps coming up!) of course it's Trump as his foil. Another UN embarrassment too. Remember that when the world leaders all laughed at his made up list of his accomplishments? That was a good chuckle for me too.
There is an overwhelming consensus that the earth is warming and in the extreme likelihood that the causes are man made. Like a 97% consensus of publishing scientists according to this. But to be fair, there are some scientists who disagree. And here they are. It's not a very long list and it's not growing. The science is not 100%. That's the point here. But it seems to me, the more salient point is if all 97% are wrong and we go with them and cut back on pollution, the result is a cleaner planet and (boo hoo) some super rich fossil fuel companies losing some money. Whereas, if we go with the minority in the face of great odds against, and continue irresponsibly polluting our planet and burning fossil fuels so those companies can make more money to throw on their impossibly massive piles, the result could be the end of the world. It seems like the no-brainer here is to play it safe. In January last year the Doomsday Clock was changed to two minutes to midnight. Can we change our focus away from making money and concentrate on survival yet?
Well, not according to some, and I'll get to them later, but I think you might have guessed who the star of this post was going to be. I used a quote from a young girl named Greta Thunberg above, did you notice? It was the unimaginable amount of money comment. I find her story so delicious I am compelled to write about, not to say "sing it from the mountain tops!"
First of all she has Asperger's Syndrome and calls it her superpower. Some of the symptoms may be difficulty with social interaction, hypersensitivity to sensory assault like loud noises or crowds, trouble changing routine, repetitive behavior, challenges with empathy and extreme focus on specific topics of interest. Well I think she might have that last symptom. Her extreme focus on calling out global governments on their climate change apathy has lead to thousands, even MILLIONS of people protesting worldwide. Here's a pic from my country:
They estimate half a million marched in Montreal on Friday. That's the biggest strike in the history of that city. And guess who was there braving the loud noise and crowd:
She got the key to the city and I heard Schwarzenegger lent her his electric car to drive there. Prime Minister Trudeau met with her and promised a 3 billion dollar climate fund if re-elected. Liz May was there and Jagmeet Singh marched in Victoria. Scheer didn't march, rather he used the opportunity to call Trudeau a hypocrite saying he is also funding the Trans Mountain Pipeline. Well if you read my blog you'll know that Trudeau HAS to build that pipeline because of a deal Scheer's hero and Canada's worst PM ever Stephen Harper made. I'm sure he knows that but it's election time so tell some lies and sling some mud. Asshole comment of the day was won by Maxime Bernier who has always portrayed climate activism as "alarmist," when he described Thunberg as "clearly mentally unstable."
Not long before this, on Sept. 23, Greta spoke at a UN climate summit scolding world leaders saying, "How dare you? You have stolen my dreams and my childhood." And then, "You say you hear us and that you understand the urgency, but no matter how sad and angry I am, I do not want to believe that. Because if you really understood the situation and still kept on failing to act, then you would be evil and that I refuse to believe." I dunno. I'm a bit older and more jaded than our Greta and I believe there might be a touch of evil here...
Trump, who pulled the US out of the Paris Agreement, endured maybe 15 minutes of this summit before leaving, and has made countless anti-environment moves as POTUS, got this now famous look from Greta:
In January of this year, Greta was in the Swiss Alps at a World Economic Forum in Davos where she did the same thing. "Some people, some companies, some decision-makers in particular have known exactly what priceless values they have been sacrificing to make unimaginable amounts of money, and I think many of you here today belong to that group of people." Journalist and climate activist Naomi Klein said of Greta, "It takes deep courage to go to Davos and tell the masters of the universe to their faces that they knowingly torched the planet to become filthy rich." Greta met Jane Goodall at this summit. Check out the difference in facial expression!
Maxime Bernier has long been a proponent of the oil and gas industries and proposes to inexplicably "reduce corporate welfare" by reducing taxes on fossil fuel corporations, which is corporate welfare. He says he believes the climate is changing but that CO2 is just food for plants. He says a carbon tax would have zero impact on the climate. To employ some Trumpian sarcasm, I just can't imagine why he wouldn't like Grata Thunberg.
And you knew we'd get back to him, Donald future ex-president Trump doesn't like her either. The guy who four times said he didn't know there were category five hurricanes while category five hurricanes became part of his presidential duties. The guy who may have done more for the fossil fuel industry than anyone in the last 3 years. The guy who was ready to go to war when somebody bombed his oil buddies and some of his best, hard cash paying customers, Saudi Arabia. He says, with heavy sarcasm, "She seems like a very happy young girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future."
Well, even a broken clock is right twice a day. Unless it's digital. I think she does have a bright future. And I think she will contribute to something that IS wonderful! And I'm not talking about the Nobel Prize she's nominated for and Trump isn't. I mean a huge increase in international awareness and action on saving our planet. And she will continue, as a 16-year-old kid, dressing down these adults acting like children and giving them the verbal spankings they deserve. "Shame on you! NO NO NO! That's a BAD billionaire!" And even though she has a condition that limits things like social interaction and empathy, she will school these money-addled social deviants on how to behave like the responsible leaders they're supposed to be. If a child can overcome these drawbacks, even use them for good, surely these adults using the similar antisocial symptoms they acquired through their love of money, can transform them from evil greed to the superpower of climate activism.
"And a child shall lead them." In that scripture verse the "them" includes wolves, leopards and lions! Greta Thunberg is taking on a massive challenge. And I say MORE POWER TO HER!
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