Why have a high paying job today? You'll just be exploited by the rich to make themselves richer, or supporting the system that goes to war needlessly. You'll just spend your extra money on a house bigger than you need, or a car that pollutes the atmosphere and gives your children asthma, or a swimming pool full of fresh water that others would shed blood to drink.
Count me out. I'll save my best efforts for fighting the good fight."
I just watched Julian Assange on TED- so cool.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I really like this quote. I don't completely agree, but I like its essence.
The quote's definitely though-provoking.
ReplyDeleteAnd Julian Assange is a fascinating character. Did you see his interview on the Colbert Repor? At one point it seemed like Colbert had him backed into a corner, but then Julian turns things around and Colbert just starts making jokes.
I just watched the Colbert interview. Assange does a really good job of keeping up with Colbert and parrying his jokes and questions- a better job than most people Colbert interviews.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think about the quote in your actual post? Do you think there is a disconnect between "high paying jobs" and "fighting the good fight" (whichever fight that may be)?
I don't think there's anything wrong with wealth in and of itself. However, there's an extreme disparity of wealth in this world, and I do believe that those on the more fortunate side of things have an obligation to use that wealth for the good of mankind.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that apathy and greed are huge problems in this country. It's all too easy to get a comfortable salary and forget that this world is a horrible place for much of the population.
As far as the quote goes, I'm not sure that having a high paying job means you'll always be exploited (although given recent events, that point it certainly debatable). However, I firmly believe that letting greed keep you from seeing the problems of this world and living a worthwhile life is pure evil.
I couldn't agree more. I don't think there is anything wrong with working a job (you enjoy and etc) which pays you a lot of money. I think the key is how you care, what kind of lifestyle you have, and what you do with your resources.
ReplyDeleteComfort, as you said, makes it really easy to ignore injustice and suffering. Actually, comfort makes it really easy to ignore everything. It seems to me that comfort is a deep value of our society, and I'm not sure I like that. I think rest is a good thing, but rest implies refreshing and recovery from hardship and conflict. I think a lot of Americans work to avoid those things, hence the value of comfort.
I agree. I've never dwelt on our obsession with culture before. You've given me something new to think about :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm still not quite sure what to make of Wikileaks. On the one hand, I don't really see an alternative to combating governments who use their ability to declare something as confidential to hide embarrassing things. On the other, Wikileaks has a ton of power and they have no problem editorializing what they release.
Well, then my work here is complete ;D
ReplyDeleteAs for Wikileaks, this is the kind of stuff we spent hours discussing in my media studies courses. The issue, in this day when everyone has access to a platform for their voice, is remembering that everyone is editorializing all the time, to some degree. We all have to keep our minds sharp and our emotions under observation.
Personally, I'd rather know than be ignorant. I want someone to get the truth out here.
Also, you should watch this video that Wikileaks linked to from their twitter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3adw9oLBkBI
Haha, I meant to say "comfort," not "culture."
ReplyDeleteI don't see an alternative. The extremes Wikileaks resorts to (small staff, secrecy, safeguarding measures) are unavoidable given the nature of their work and who they're upsetting. Those things probably make their bias and potential to leak something they shouldn't increase. But how else can you hold governments and corporations in check while utilizing the power of the internet?
And that video is awesome. They rhymes are actually really good =X
haha, i didn't feel the need to point out your typo. i knew what you meant.
ReplyDeleteyeah. their bias is, imho, unavoidable. I am saddened by the potential damage some of these documents might do to actual people on the ground. I read that one of the documents contained the name, rank, and etc of an active Polish intelligence agent- it's like a whole Valerie Plume affair in Poland.
Wikileaks defends themselves by saying that they reached out to the White House for help in the harm minimization process, but the White House ignored them. They also already withheld 15k documents on the request of the source. I don't know what else they could do.
I think the government has a long way to go in realizing the political potential of the Internet. It's not just for hacking and social media; it's a whole new layer of civilization.
Anyway, I'm leaving tomorrow morning for my last work trip of the summer- 9 days of camping without electronic communication. I very much enjoyed our conversation here. Talk to you later!
Wikileaks said that they did all in their power to make minimize harm. However, why not slowly release the documents over time, as they have time to review? They could start with what they think is the most important, review that, and then release what's safe. I feel like they wanted to make a political impact more than minimize harm.
ReplyDeleteAlthough in their defense, that would probably keep them very tied up for a year or two, while not giving them much time to release other important items. It's hard to know what's best.
Anyway, good talking to you too. :-)