Sometimes it might just pay to be selfish

"Louisiana isn't the only place that has shrimp."
- BP CEO

I believe that is the quote. If not it's close.
If anyone can confirm the actual quote, please
let me know.

Have you ever considered how things fit together?

Have you ever considered how those clothes that
you wear come together, and how many people are
involved? The designer, the materials, the
threads, the people and machines that make the
clothes, the distributors, the boxes the materials
are shipped in, the materials that ship the
clothing to the distributors, the materials that
ship the clothing to you (if bought online), the
marketers, the energy used to produce the clothes,
the companies that create the energy, how the
communities in all of those areas are affected?
How those people use that money to buy food which
has its own chain, how that food comes from grocery
stores, from shippers, from growers...

And on and on it goes.

When we are disconnected we don't realize how many
connections there truly are in the world. And...
whether or not there is shrimp in other places does
not help the people whose livelihoods depend on the
shrimping industry there. It doesn't help the poor
shrimp (and other types of ocean critters) affected
by what is happening in the gulf at the moment.

It doesn't help the ocean which has its own chain
of effects that affect things that we may not be
aware of but DO matter to us.

I am really sorry to hear him make this comment.
However, perhaps it is a good thing, IF it helps
people to become more aware of things outside of
their limited perspective and perceptions.

Hypnosis of any type will minimize our attention.
It's time to pay attention. The things we take for
granted are at risk when we assume that it will
always be that way, and that everything will be fine.

Ever see the site StoryofStuff.com? If not, check it
out, it may give you something to think about.
It is amazing how cheaply things are made today,
and how they are made to fail. It'll also make
you more aware of what this approach is costing
us, in more ways than one.

What is a solution here? I don't really know.
However having conversations,
and asking questions
can't be a bad place to start.

Complacency and a
willing ignorance
is the enemy
of us all.

We can't know everything,
but we can recognize that
there is a picture bigger
than what we can see.

And within that picture
are things that can affect
our fellow planet dwellers,
and that alone should give
us a reason to consider
what we do.

However, if we put that
aside, just because all too
often people can be caught
up in their own self interests,
one has to begin to realize
how things outside of their
own scope can have a unpleasant
trickling effect the result of
which could land smack dab in
the middle of their seemingly
untouchable world.

In some ways taking care of
others, and this planet is one
of the most selfish things we
can do...and in this case, it
might just pay to be selfish.