A NATION OF ADDICTS

[Jcrowley]

We have become addicted to our way of life and to our way of thinking. We must drive our cars, use our clothes dryers, smoke our cigarettes, drink our alcohol, earn a profit, look good, behave in a socially acceptable fashion, and never speak out of turn or speak the truth, for fear of rejection.

The problem with addicted people, communities, corporations, or countries is that they tend to lie, cheat, steal to get their "fix". Corporations are addicted to profit and governments to power, and as Henry Kissinger once said, "Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac."

The only way to break addictive behavior is to love and cherish something more than your addiction. When a mother and a father look into the eyes of their newborn baby, do they need a glass of beer or a cigarette to make them feel better? When you smell a rose or a gardenia, do you think of work or do you forget for a brief, blissful moment everything but the perfection of the flower? When you see the dogwood flowers hovering like butterflies among the fresh green leaves of spring, do you forget your worries?

Now, try to imagine your life without healthy babies, perfect roses, and dogwoods in spring. It will seem meaningless. We take the perfection of nature for granted, but if we woke up one morning and found all the trees dying, the grass brown, and the temperature 120 degrees Fahrenheit, and if we couldn't venture outside because the sun would cause severe skin burns, we would recognize what we once had but didn't treasure enough to save.
- Helen Caldicott, If You Love This Planet (1992)

[Redstone]

1. Excuse me? I do like to have a drink and smoke a cig, but I don't "lie, cheat, and steal"

in order to do so.

That's an awfully broad brush that ms Caldicott is tarring us with.

Redstone

[ClassWarrior]

2. Then, if you're being honest with yourself...

...you're apparently not addicted to them.

By the way, why did you single out those two examples in particular?

NGU.

[Redstone]

3. Just because those are the two I like.

Redstone

[Jcrowley]

4. She may not have been speaking to you

but in her overall assessment of American culture one couldn't hardly argue the broader point.

[Redstone]

5. You got me there. I will indeed agree that Americans in general are a spoiled,

self-centered, lazy lot.

Yes, I can't argue the broader point at all. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to say that.

(No sarcasm whatsoever in this post.)

Redstone

[hughee99]

10. Does the US lead the world in all of these "addictions"?

I'll concede the the cars, clothes dryers (though I think it's a stretch to call this an addiction, unless your talking about gadgets in general), and perhaps profits but the other stuff?
For Percentage of Daily Smokers by country, the US is 29th (at 17.5%), behind most of the countries of Europe.
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_dai_smo-health-daily-smokers
The US is certainly not tops in alcoholism either
http://www.who.int/substance_abuse/facts/alcohol/en/index.html

I'm not sure how you would even quantify this part...
"look good, behave in a socially acceptable fashion, and never speak out of turn or speak the truth, for fear of rejection."

So I have no idea how one would even single out the US for any of these particulars.

[usregimechange]

6. Kick! R.

[seabeyond]

7. we are an imperfect human. always have been, always will be n/t

[MazeRat7]

8. Well then colour me addicted....

I like looking good by being clean and well groomed, polite when out in public (and at home), and financially successful so I can care for my family...


As far as "imagining life without babies".... I can only hope to see such a glorious day when the breeders stop breeding.

MZr7

[davidinalameda]

11. breeders?

oh my goodness

:rofl:

[Sapphocrat]

13. Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

:rofl:

[praeclarus]

9. fine. but don't blame it on beer...

... "Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
- Benjamin Franklin and amen to that.

[ellisonz]

12. Hubert Selby Jr. would agree...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubert_Selby_Jr.