Training

Training is going OK, and the scale is continuing to move downward (just under 210 this week). I will say the lower body work has been feeling heavier than I would like it to, but the upper body work has been going well. I would really just like to get down to the leanness I desire so I can get back in a caloric surplus! One thing this has shown me is just how small I am! Need to put on some mass, stat!

Respect

How to fix the mess we’re in? Everyone is to blame, don’t misunderstand me. But I think we have to get a few things out of the way first.

The problem is that you cannot legislate people’s actions. The way people treat one another. The desire to treat others as people, and not merely numbers or cogs in your machine cannot come from a person dictating to you. You must desire to do so, and set out to do so from the start. This, I feel, is the fundamental disconnect along party lines in America.

I should also note that “party lines” reflect, perhaps, how the parties sell themselves – however, the further one digs, the more you realize that the politicians themselves are essentially all on the same side (money). With that said, I would say the prevailing attitudes of the populace perhaps, rather than party lines.

One side feels that it is on the individual to make their lot in life. While this is the side I tend to agree more with, it also operates under the assumption that everyone is starting from the same spot on the track. Unfortunately, we also know this isn’t true. Some people are starting so far behind as to not even really be part of the race, while others start out so far ahead they can stumble as many times as they feel and still get to the finish line well ahead of everyone. Don’t misunderstand me – I have no problem with those who have built their wealth through hard work. But those who were merely born into it and have done nothing to contribute, I have a major problem with.

The other side feels that those who have wealth (whether they started out ahead or not) owe it to those who don’t to help them out. They feel that the way to do this is to dictate to them how to spend and distribute their money. The problem, as I have noted, is that this only creates resentment, because they don’t want to be told how to spend their money, run their business, etc. They want to decide what to do with it.

And unfortunately, many who have managed to get well ahead of the pack, have done so through a mindset of always wanting more. This is not inherently a bad thing (it’s likely what got them there in the first place), however, at a certain point, when is enough, enough? Additionally, if they want more this is understandable, but why not do something with that “more” in order to raise other boats.

Listening to Dan Carlin recently, he talked about a woman who has built tremendous wealth through mining (her name escapes me). She has made her way onto the Forbes richest whatever list, and I believe is somewhere in the top 20 or so. She also has said that Australian miners (she is Australian) need to be more like African miners, working for $2 per day, or the mining industry will go under. WHAT?!?! A woman who has more money than she could ever hope to spend, telling those who are likely scraping by that they need to be willing to take less. Unbelievable.

That also brings up the point of the way money is distributed – who is more important, those who broker the deals and sell the goods, or those who produce the goods? Without the broker, seller, mastermind behind the technology, there are no goods to produce. On the other hand, without the producers, there are no goods to sell. Therein lies a great disconnect. The producers (the miners, the builders, the factory workers, etc.) are seen as interchangeable because, to some degree, the labor is “unskilled.” That is, it is not overly difficult to learn (regardless of how physically difficult it actually is to perform). Therefore, the rationale is that they are easily replaceable and are not particularly valuable. Of course, that is without factoring in the cost of training new workers and so on.

The brokers, the owners, are seen as irreplaceable. Without them to mastermind the whole operation, who will take charge and determine how things should be run? Who will ensure that the greatest profit is made on the goods? I can’t say that this dichotomy (“unskilled” labor vs. what most would view as “skilled” in some sense) is entirely incorrect – you often can simply replace the laborer and continue on. However, this is a limited view that I don’t wholly agree with, either. Because it fails to take into account that happier workers likely produce even more, and willingly, than one who is essentially a prisoner.  Thus, I think it behooves both owner and laborer to ensure that a fair wage (or more) is paid. There is more than enough to go around, this we know.

“We’re fucked.” Shane Smith’s words ring in my ears on a daily basis. Recently, a NASA-backed study was released which states that, in essence, the human race is likely headed straight for irreversible collapse. This is based on a number of things, climate change and wealth disparity among them. For those unaware, Shane Smith is co-creator of Vice, a magazine of sorts, which goes around the world covering a plethora of stories you simply won’t find anywhere else. Recently, he went to Greenland to talk to the top climate scientists in the world. Of the many things he learned, he found that we are currently 60 years ahead of the worst-case projections which came out, I believe, 10 years ago in regards to climate change. Essentially, he was confirming everything that you read.

It’s easy to dismiss the study – while I haven’t read it much, or seen the details and methodology, it’s likely pretty well done – as basically a doomsday prophecy we’ve heard many times before. It’s also likely that most feel that we as humans are too big to fail. There’s no way that civilization will crumble – we’ve got so many safeguards in place! Well guess what, I’m sure the Romans, the Ottomans, the Soviets, and any and all empires you can think of before this, thought they couldn’t fail either. But it’s absolutely possible.

I can’t help but think just what will happen. The fact is, no one can actually predict. But I think we owe it to ourselves to try.

A culture of love and respect simply can’t be legislated. It must be desired by all who are a part of the culture.

This is why I get so pissed off, and actually offended, by those who peddle bullshit. They care not what impact it has on others – so long as it lines their pockets, that’s all that matters. It aggravates me to no end, especially because you know those same people wish to be treated with respect. Despite the fact that they clearly don’t respect others.

And in the end, I suppose, all we can do is take it upon ourselves to act in this way. To constantly respect others, and realize that everyone has their hopes and dreams and wishes. That some of them started well behind the 8 ball. That we weren’t all given the same opportunities. And certainly, we won’t all succeed. It just isn’t going to happen. But I do think that the opportunity is vital. If someone fucks up their opportunities? Hey, that’s their problem. We don’t constantly need to pick someone up and spoon feed them. But I think we do at least owe them that first or second chance. In the end, I think it’s the only chance we’ve got.