Greed

I have been looking at some recent headlines trying to think of the next Conscious Parent Post. There is the tainted milk crisis in China (which is now apparently in Chocolate too.) I was thinking about the chemicals in our food and toys. Then I thought about the oil and gas industry and thought about why we are so enthralled in oil so deep that we can't get out. Then I thought about politics and wondered who these individuals were who were making these decisions and what made them even want to do that for us in the first place. And of course I was thinking of the current economic situation with problems in major financial institutions and the housing market and the fact that the Dow lost over 777 points on Monday. What is causing all of these problems? It turns out it all comes from the same source... Greed.

Wikipedia defines Greed as the selfish desire for or pursuit of money, wealth, power, food, or other possessions, especially when this denies the same goods to others. It is also one of Catholicisms 7 deadly sins.

We are feeding our children foods with preservatives and chemicals like corn syrup because it is cheaper than producing raw foods. We are taught to medicate our children for no reason simply because huge drug companies make us believe we need their products. We continue to buy gas guzzling cars because that is the only option we are given thanks to lobbyists in Washington. Now tax payers are bailing out Wall Street.

I recently read an article where the author was talking about the 'Bigger Sucker' rule. The rule is basically that the key to investing is simply finding a bigger sucker. In the real estate market it works like this... The builder builds a home for $X and person A buys it for $XX. The builder laughs all the way to the bank. A year later person A sells the same house to person B for $XXX, and so on. The key is don't ever be the last sucker in line. As long as you can find a bigger sucker than you, you can't lose.

If you examine the educational system you could make an argument that we are raising a new generations of suckers. The standardized testing is a way to remove the teacher interaction and thought provoking discussions. Instead our kids are taught to just worry about what is on the test. If they don't think for themselves they can just join the ranks and be that next sucker in line.

Please join me in stepping out of line. Sadly many people are losing huge amounts on money in the housing market and on Wall Street. But someone had to be the last sucker.

The only way to have your voice heard is to Vote With Your Dollars...

• Drive past that big box store and get your groceries at the local market



• Support your local farmers market

• Buy items from family owned companies that are run on integrity like Hip Mountain Mama.



• Buy clothing made from sustainable sources such as Hemp



• Provide your children with toys that help them learn and develop an imagination



• Attend Sustainable Living Fairs and Conferences



• Support renewable energy



• But most importantly teach your children the truth