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A good day for change
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As usual, there's nothing particularly profound or new in these thoughts, it's just more of an online diary.
I was listening to some interesting things on NPR today. One was a story about how Citigroup, the enormous banking megalopothingamabob, had decided to devote $50 billion to reducing its own environmental footprint (via energy conservation, green building, etc), as well as through investments targeted at combatting global warming. The report (and citigroup) acknowledged that this was a profit-driven decision--they are a for profit company, and believe it's a good investment--and that's fine.
The other story was about how the advent of digital TV recorders is causing cable companies trouble, since most people who have them use them to skip commercials, and the people paying for advertisement (and thus the programs) aren't happy about that. The segment was about how the cable companies are trying to find new ways of dealing with the issue.
while I was listening, I found myself feeling pretty happy. I was enjoying watching the changes occurring. I find that I really like seeing how lots of smart, motivated people come up with innovative solutions to problems, and how businesses might actually decide that it might be in their best interest to try to deal with major incipient problems like climate change.
while I then filled my gas tank, I was musing on the cost of gasoline. Where I filled up, basic unleaded was $3.38 a gallon. And yet, when I think about it, that doesn't actually seem unreasonable. Gas probably should cost that, or more, because the long-term costs of driving my car by burning gasoline need to be accounted for. The more it costs, the more incentive I will have to find a different way of getting to work. They'll be putting in a local light rail later this year...
So I was just thinking about how the costs of things should reflect their real cost (no more subsidies!), and how nice it is to see people being smart and innovative, and realizing that as things change, we're actually pretty resourceful, especially when we might make a buck from it.
The unbridled love of money may well be the root of evil, but perhaps the desire to better one's position--at least when tempered by an awareness of the real costs and consequences of our decisions--might still produce a good outcome.Centralized, dispassionate decision-aking may be able to take long-term consequences into account better than unfettered markets (which seem fairly shortsighted, usually, to me), but the markets will produce more innovative solutions to problems more quickly.
In her Parable books, Octavia Butler creates a religion which sees God as Change--unconscious, amoral, ruthless change--and suggests that the goal of religious people should be to "shape God"--to act with forethought, in such a way as to make the consequences of inevitable change as endurable (or beneficient) as possible. I think there is a lot to be said for the idea, whether or not I agree with the concept of God. Change happens, but it can be directed.
So I'm feeling pretty positive about change today.
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