Date: 19 Jan 2013 21:39:00 -0400
To: am-global@earthlink.net
From: Miguel
Subject: Big Questions About World Events
Baba
=== BIG QUESTIONS ABOUT WORLD EVENTS ===
- Part 1 -
Namaskar,
These days the ongoing trend is that countries, both the so-called wealthy ones and impoverished, spend huge money on constructing fancy buildings and glamorous stadiums to enhance the prestige of their nation for international sporting events like the Olympics and the World Cup.
Yet side by side the living standard of their own citizens is shockingly low: shanty towns, no running water, lack of food, no clothes for the children, etc. This has been the unfortunate trend and now we see that continuing with the upcoming events in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
BRASIL TO HOST TWO BIG EVENTS
At present, Brazil is gearing up to host both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, both of which will be hosted in Rio. At minimum, estimates are that Brasil will spend nearly $35 billion to host these two events. That figure does not take into consideration private sector and future public sector funding.
They are building 12 fancy new or renovated stadiums, airports, hotels and so many other works - and that is just for the World Cup. Two years later in 2016 there will be far more in place for the Olympics. Actually since 2009, Rio has been pouring money into construction in preparation for the Olympics.
While all these tens of billions of dollars are spent on these sporting venues, not less than 25% of Rio's population, or 1.5 million people, are suffering and live without the basic necessities. The million-plus residents of Rio de Janeiro’s shantytowns (favelas) still find their lives controlled by violent drug gangs and that the crime rate in Rio ranks among the highest in the world, and many of them will be uprooted and relocated before 2014. Their lives will not improve an ounce due to the spending of $35 billion, just they will be forgotten.
And before anyone thinking that the $35 billion will jumpstart the economy let us not forget this recent history:
"Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, which were so over budget and rife with scandal and corruption that the benefits for the city were practically nil."
So this is the long-standing problem. Host nations spend billions, the nation's poor are trampled upon, and in the end there is little to show except financial debt and stadiums that will never be used again.
SYSTEMIC PROBLEM
So many other nations have been involved in similar propositions - both past and present, everything from the building of the Konark temple (Orissa) in the vipran era to countries hosting the Olympics in this present vaeshyan era.
In all such cases huge resources have been allocated by the state to create glorious structures and impress people across the world stage, yet side by side those living in the vicinity of those stadiums lack the basic necessities (food, water, shelter) and will never ever get the chance to enter or use those facilities either.
Should such activities be allowed to continue? What is the cause behind such maneuvers? What is Prout's stand?
TWO MAIN CAUSES: Part 1
There are two main causes behind this current problem: (a) wastage of money, and (b) heartlessness and lack of concern for the suffering humanity.
Prout's stand is for the rational utilization and proper distribution of all resources (physical, psychic and spiritual) and the very essence of Prout is about giving a voice to the voiceless, i.e. having heart-felt sympathy for those in need.
Thus whether it be the huge monies spent by countries like Greece (2004), China (2008), Canada (2010), London (2012) to host the Olympics or lavish airports in cities like Chicago or Bangkok, those governments indulge in tremendous spending to show the world how modern and perfect their land is, when in fact all around there is struggle and strife amongst the masses.
When governments procure just a little extra money then they embark on such prestigious projects and completely overlook the well-being of the common people - i.e. the very people whom they are supposed to serve. Plus those same leaders spend all their brain power convincing the common masses that this is indeed that right way to spend the state's money. That is how both the over accumulation of physical and psychic resources plays out in these scenarios.
For instance, Greece spent every penny they had to host the 2004 Olympics - not only that they incurred a huge debt, from which they are still suffering today. So the huge amount of funds they poured into the Olympics failed to resolve so many internal issues for their citizens - things like education, job stability etc. Now today, their situation is even worse as their entire government faces bankruptcy. And one of the root causes is spending on lavish arrangements for the Olympics.
TWO MAIN CAUSES: Part 2
Side by side there is a heartlessness involved. The powers that be pay a deaf ear and blind eye to the suffering and want of the common people. Whether it be naked children, rotting schools, or food shortages, those wealthy bureaucrats justify that the poor people bring it upon themselves and the state is therefore not responsible. Or those rulers simply do not even give it a second thought. Whatever the case may be, with their callous hearts they overlook the suffering of their own people.
Huge state expenditures are made for events like the Olympics and the World Cup, yet when all is said and done, the common people receive no support at all. Just they were left to wallow in their own struggle while their elected and appointed officials revile in the glory of being a host on the world stage. For the sake of the prestige of a few, an entire people are made to suffer.
Such leaders live a heartless existence. They look away from those in need - i.e. their own people.
WASTAGE OF MONEY AT PAST SUCH EVENTS
One striking example of this is how South Africa spent 10 billion rand to erect a huge, new football stadiums for the World Cup 2010, yet that same country remains home to terrible poverty - and high criminal activity as a result.
It was reported that in 2002, that an estimated 11 million children (between the ages of 0-18) are living in dire poverty in South Africa and in the capital city itself there are 50 - 70 homicides a day. Plus there are innumerable other stark reports which delineate the extreme and dire situation in South Africa.
Yet all the countries financial and natural resources were used to hold the World Cup in 2010.
Prior to and during the 2010 winter Olympics in Vancouver B.C., there were lots of protests that this was the wrong way to spend the state's money. After all, they constructed stadiums and venues to impress the world and built an Olympic village to house the athletes, only to tear down the village the day after it was over and watch those stadiums sit empty for the coming years. That is what has happened so many times in the past from Barcelona (1992) to Atlanta (1996) to Athens (2004) and Beijing (2008).
Each time the host country tries to impress the world with their modern construction and side by side cover up and hide their poverty.
The Olympics is certainly the biggest stage but it also happens with events like the World Cup, the Commonwealth Games, and even with university tournaments etc. In this vaeshyan era, maximum money is spent on sporting venues whereas in the past during the vipran era all the public monies were used for the construction of cathedrals and temples.
Nowadays in Europe, less than 2% of the population attends church in some countries, yet still there are huge cathedrals and church lands from the days when the vipras were in power and the church controlled much of the wealth. Those days also money was used frivolously at the expense of the welfare of the common people - just so that they could boast that they had the most elegant cathedral etc.
Baba says, "While money has been spent lavishly for the construction of beautiful places of worship, money has never been arranged for food, clothing, housing, education and medical care for the welfare of the poor. While for four full years all the state revenues of Orissa were spent for the construction of the Konark temple, during that period not a penny was spent for human welfare. Needless to say, the history of all countries is replete with such examples." (1)
OLYMPICS DOES NOT BRING PEACE
Some attest that the Olympics bring peace and amity. Let's take a closer look to see if this or not. In 1936, Nazi Germany hosted the Olympics in Berlin and shortly thereafter World War II began. Throughout the Cold War period, nations like the US and USSR participated in countless Olympics, but that never eased political or military tensions. Likewise India and Pakistan have been participating in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games for years, all the while they have remained antagonistic towards one another. As Ananda Margiis, we should bear in mind that peace only comes with the eradication of exploitation. So long as there is exploitation there will never be peace, regardless of a country's involvement in the Olympic games or not.
SOLUTION FOR HOLDING OLYMPICS
Various international organisations like the United Nations etc do not build new offices every time they hold a meeting. Rather they return to the same venue again and again. The same should be done with the Olympics. There can be 4 fixed sites around the globe. The Olympics can simply rotate through those 4 venues, returning to the same site every 16 years. That way each facility can be of a premium standard and well maintained. An international board will manage the sites and distribute profits to all nations. During "off years" when the Olympics is not being held at a particular site then that location can be used for the Asia games or other competitions. This will bring regular use and income to each site. It will not be like the way things are now where an entire Olympic sporting complex is built for the Olympics, only to sit unused and fall into disrepair as soon as the games are over.
BABA'S RELEVANT TEACHINGS
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "It is desirable that the management of industrial, agricultural, trade and commercial enterprises not be in the hands of the central government or the world government (after the establishment of the world government). If it is, the common people will not get the direct or even the indirect opportunity to participate in the management of these enterprises. In such cases capitalists, opportunists or self-seeking politicians can easily take control of them and misappropriate public wealth." (2)
"That is, these days, a person who possesses wealth is respected and revered whereas a person without money is a person honoured by none. The poor, whoever they may be, have to woo the rich just for the sake of earning their livelihood. Human values have become meaningless, for human beings have become the means for the rich to earn money. The rich, having purchased the human mind with their money, are busy playing a game of chess with the other members of society. Bereft of everything, people toil round the clock to earn a mere pittance. Today the motto of people is, “I have to send some food particles into the apathetic stomach after somehow taking a dip in the muddy water amidst hyacinths.”" (3)
"Those who are at the helm of society, constantly suspicious of others, forever count their losses and profits. They have no desire to think about the plight of humanity. Rather, to gratify themselves they are ready to chew the human bone, and suck human blood. For the self-centred there is no place for feelings of mercy, sympathy or camaraderie. The railway stations and market places are full of half-clad beggars and lepers desperately stretching out their begging bowls, earning their livelihood in the only way they know. They are fortunate if anyone contemptuously flings them a copper coin. The old blind beggars sitting all day long on the steps of a bridge automatically lift their bowls whenever anyone walks past. But their hungry pleas fall on deaf ears. On the other side of the social coin, sumptuous dishes are being prepared to entertain the rich dignitaries. These contrasts ridicule the present human society." (4)
"Today, those who occupy high posts are also respected. Dignity is attached to post or rank. A station master will take great pains to prepare the railway minister's visit, but will never trouble himself with the inconveniences faced by the ordinary passengers. Luxurious houses are built for high-ranking officers while the poor live in shanty towns, barely protected from the elements. I don't say that large houses should never be built, but that everyone should be provided the minimum requirements. “I admit that both rice and tasty dishes are necessary for people, but I shall not demand a sumptuous dish from the goddess of food until I see that India has been overflooded with an abundance of rice.”" (5)
"These days educated people are so proud of their erudition that they detest illiterate people and avoid the company of commoners. Thus they shun village life and live in towns. When the question of returning to the village crops up, they say, “What on earth would we do in a village? There's not a single person to talk to. Only idiots live there.” This explains why almost all attention is focused on the urban areas to the detriment of the villages. While soliciting votes, political leaders pay a short visit to the villages with a mouthful of attractive promises. They promptly inform the ignorant populace about their great achievements in constructing huge dams; though perhaps village cultivation is becoming impossible due to want of irrigation. They give detailed descriptions about their plans to build bridges and bungalows and install television sets, though perhaps in that village people die for want of medicine, or beg for food in poverty-stricken desperation. And yet the common villagers constitute the backbone of society. Even in the towns not everyone gets equal opportunities. The pavements have become the home for so many people. Rabindranath says, “There are always a number of uncelebrated people in the human civilization. They are the majority, and they are the medium, but they have no time to become human beings. They are raised on the leftovers of the national wealth. They are poorly dressed and receive little education, yet they serve the rest of society. They give maximum labour but are rewarded with ignominy – they die of starvation or are tortured to death by those they serve. They are deprived of all life's amenities. They are the candlestick of civilization: they stand erect with the candle resting on their head. Everyone gets light from it, while they suffer the discomfort of the wax trickling down their sides. In this way, the dishonest of humanity or the neglect of human values has become a social malady.”"(6)
Namaskar,
at His lotus feet,
Mantreshvar
Note 1: REFERENCES
(1) Rahr-6
(2) Problems of the Day, #11
(3) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(4) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(5) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(6) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
To: am-global@earthlink.net
From: Miguel
Subject: Big Questions About World Events
Baba
Namaskar,
These days the ongoing trend is that countries, both the so-called wealthy ones and impoverished, spend huge money on constructing fancy buildings and glamorous stadiums to enhance the prestige of their nation for international sporting events like the Olympics and the World Cup.
Yet side by side the living standard of their own citizens is shockingly low: shanty towns, no running water, lack of food, no clothes for the children, etc. This has been the unfortunate trend and now we see that continuing with the upcoming events in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
BRASIL TO HOST TWO BIG EVENTS
At present, Brazil is gearing up to host both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, both of which will be hosted in Rio. At minimum, estimates are that Brasil will spend nearly $35 billion to host these two events. That figure does not take into consideration private sector and future public sector funding.
They are building 12 fancy new or renovated stadiums, airports, hotels and so many other works - and that is just for the World Cup. Two years later in 2016 there will be far more in place for the Olympics. Actually since 2009, Rio has been pouring money into construction in preparation for the Olympics.
While all these tens of billions of dollars are spent on these sporting venues, not less than 25% of Rio's population, or 1.5 million people, are suffering and live without the basic necessities. The million-plus residents of Rio de Janeiro’s shantytowns (favelas) still find their lives controlled by violent drug gangs and that the crime rate in Rio ranks among the highest in the world, and many of them will be uprooted and relocated before 2014. Their lives will not improve an ounce due to the spending of $35 billion, just they will be forgotten.
And before anyone thinking that the $35 billion will jumpstart the economy let us not forget this recent history:
"Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, which were so over budget and rife with scandal and corruption that the benefits for the city were practically nil."
So this is the long-standing problem. Host nations spend billions, the nation's poor are trampled upon, and in the end there is little to show except financial debt and stadiums that will never be used again.
SYSTEMIC PROBLEM
So many other nations have been involved in similar propositions - both past and present, everything from the building of the Konark temple (Orissa) in the vipran era to countries hosting the Olympics in this present vaeshyan era.
In all such cases huge resources have been allocated by the state to create glorious structures and impress people across the world stage, yet side by side those living in the vicinity of those stadiums lack the basic necessities (food, water, shelter) and will never ever get the chance to enter or use those facilities either.
Should such activities be allowed to continue? What is the cause behind such maneuvers? What is Prout's stand?
TWO MAIN CAUSES: Part 1
There are two main causes behind this current problem: (a) wastage of money, and (b) heartlessness and lack of concern for the suffering humanity.
Prout's stand is for the rational utilization and proper distribution of all resources (physical, psychic and spiritual) and the very essence of Prout is about giving a voice to the voiceless, i.e. having heart-felt sympathy for those in need.
Thus whether it be the huge monies spent by countries like Greece (2004), China (2008), Canada (2010), London (2012) to host the Olympics or lavish airports in cities like Chicago or Bangkok, those governments indulge in tremendous spending to show the world how modern and perfect their land is, when in fact all around there is struggle and strife amongst the masses.
When governments procure just a little extra money then they embark on such prestigious projects and completely overlook the well-being of the common people - i.e. the very people whom they are supposed to serve. Plus those same leaders spend all their brain power convincing the common masses that this is indeed that right way to spend the state's money. That is how both the over accumulation of physical and psychic resources plays out in these scenarios.
For instance, Greece spent every penny they had to host the 2004 Olympics - not only that they incurred a huge debt, from which they are still suffering today. So the huge amount of funds they poured into the Olympics failed to resolve so many internal issues for their citizens - things like education, job stability etc. Now today, their situation is even worse as their entire government faces bankruptcy. And one of the root causes is spending on lavish arrangements for the Olympics.
TWO MAIN CAUSES: Part 2
Side by side there is a heartlessness involved. The powers that be pay a deaf ear and blind eye to the suffering and want of the common people. Whether it be naked children, rotting schools, or food shortages, those wealthy bureaucrats justify that the poor people bring it upon themselves and the state is therefore not responsible. Or those rulers simply do not even give it a second thought. Whatever the case may be, with their callous hearts they overlook the suffering of their own people.
Huge state expenditures are made for events like the Olympics and the World Cup, yet when all is said and done, the common people receive no support at all. Just they were left to wallow in their own struggle while their elected and appointed officials revile in the glory of being a host on the world stage. For the sake of the prestige of a few, an entire people are made to suffer.
Such leaders live a heartless existence. They look away from those in need - i.e. their own people.
WASTAGE OF MONEY AT PAST SUCH EVENTS
One striking example of this is how South Africa spent 10 billion rand to erect a huge, new football stadiums for the World Cup 2010, yet that same country remains home to terrible poverty - and high criminal activity as a result.
It was reported that in 2002, that an estimated 11 million children (between the ages of 0-18) are living in dire poverty in South Africa and in the capital city itself there are 50 - 70 homicides a day. Plus there are innumerable other stark reports which delineate the extreme and dire situation in South Africa.
Yet all the countries financial and natural resources were used to hold the World Cup in 2010.
Prior to and during the 2010 winter Olympics in Vancouver B.C., there were lots of protests that this was the wrong way to spend the state's money. After all, they constructed stadiums and venues to impress the world and built an Olympic village to house the athletes, only to tear down the village the day after it was over and watch those stadiums sit empty for the coming years. That is what has happened so many times in the past from Barcelona (1992) to Atlanta (1996) to Athens (2004) and Beijing (2008).
Each time the host country tries to impress the world with their modern construction and side by side cover up and hide their poverty.
The Olympics is certainly the biggest stage but it also happens with events like the World Cup, the Commonwealth Games, and even with university tournaments etc. In this vaeshyan era, maximum money is spent on sporting venues whereas in the past during the vipran era all the public monies were used for the construction of cathedrals and temples.
Nowadays in Europe, less than 2% of the population attends church in some countries, yet still there are huge cathedrals and church lands from the days when the vipras were in power and the church controlled much of the wealth. Those days also money was used frivolously at the expense of the welfare of the common people - just so that they could boast that they had the most elegant cathedral etc.
Baba says, "While money has been spent lavishly for the construction of beautiful places of worship, money has never been arranged for food, clothing, housing, education and medical care for the welfare of the poor. While for four full years all the state revenues of Orissa were spent for the construction of the Konark temple, during that period not a penny was spent for human welfare. Needless to say, the history of all countries is replete with such examples." (1)
OLYMPICS DOES NOT BRING PEACE
Some attest that the Olympics bring peace and amity. Let's take a closer look to see if this or not. In 1936, Nazi Germany hosted the Olympics in Berlin and shortly thereafter World War II began. Throughout the Cold War period, nations like the US and USSR participated in countless Olympics, but that never eased political or military tensions. Likewise India and Pakistan have been participating in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games for years, all the while they have remained antagonistic towards one another. As Ananda Margiis, we should bear in mind that peace only comes with the eradication of exploitation. So long as there is exploitation there will never be peace, regardless of a country's involvement in the Olympic games or not.
SOLUTION FOR HOLDING OLYMPICS
Various international organisations like the United Nations etc do not build new offices every time they hold a meeting. Rather they return to the same venue again and again. The same should be done with the Olympics. There can be 4 fixed sites around the globe. The Olympics can simply rotate through those 4 venues, returning to the same site every 16 years. That way each facility can be of a premium standard and well maintained. An international board will manage the sites and distribute profits to all nations. During "off years" when the Olympics is not being held at a particular site then that location can be used for the Asia games or other competitions. This will bring regular use and income to each site. It will not be like the way things are now where an entire Olympic sporting complex is built for the Olympics, only to sit unused and fall into disrepair as soon as the games are over.
BABA'S RELEVANT TEACHINGS
Ananda Marga philosophy says, "It is desirable that the management of industrial, agricultural, trade and commercial enterprises not be in the hands of the central government or the world government (after the establishment of the world government). If it is, the common people will not get the direct or even the indirect opportunity to participate in the management of these enterprises. In such cases capitalists, opportunists or self-seeking politicians can easily take control of them and misappropriate public wealth." (2)
"That is, these days, a person who possesses wealth is respected and revered whereas a person without money is a person honoured by none. The poor, whoever they may be, have to woo the rich just for the sake of earning their livelihood. Human values have become meaningless, for human beings have become the means for the rich to earn money. The rich, having purchased the human mind with their money, are busy playing a game of chess with the other members of society. Bereft of everything, people toil round the clock to earn a mere pittance. Today the motto of people is, “I have to send some food particles into the apathetic stomach after somehow taking a dip in the muddy water amidst hyacinths.”" (3)
"Those who are at the helm of society, constantly suspicious of others, forever count their losses and profits. They have no desire to think about the plight of humanity. Rather, to gratify themselves they are ready to chew the human bone, and suck human blood. For the self-centred there is no place for feelings of mercy, sympathy or camaraderie. The railway stations and market places are full of half-clad beggars and lepers desperately stretching out their begging bowls, earning their livelihood in the only way they know. They are fortunate if anyone contemptuously flings them a copper coin. The old blind beggars sitting all day long on the steps of a bridge automatically lift their bowls whenever anyone walks past. But their hungry pleas fall on deaf ears. On the other side of the social coin, sumptuous dishes are being prepared to entertain the rich dignitaries. These contrasts ridicule the present human society." (4)
"Today, those who occupy high posts are also respected. Dignity is attached to post or rank. A station master will take great pains to prepare the railway minister's visit, but will never trouble himself with the inconveniences faced by the ordinary passengers. Luxurious houses are built for high-ranking officers while the poor live in shanty towns, barely protected from the elements. I don't say that large houses should never be built, but that everyone should be provided the minimum requirements. “I admit that both rice and tasty dishes are necessary for people, but I shall not demand a sumptuous dish from the goddess of food until I see that India has been overflooded with an abundance of rice.”" (5)
"These days educated people are so proud of their erudition that they detest illiterate people and avoid the company of commoners. Thus they shun village life and live in towns. When the question of returning to the village crops up, they say, “What on earth would we do in a village? There's not a single person to talk to. Only idiots live there.” This explains why almost all attention is focused on the urban areas to the detriment of the villages. While soliciting votes, political leaders pay a short visit to the villages with a mouthful of attractive promises. They promptly inform the ignorant populace about their great achievements in constructing huge dams; though perhaps village cultivation is becoming impossible due to want of irrigation. They give detailed descriptions about their plans to build bridges and bungalows and install television sets, though perhaps in that village people die for want of medicine, or beg for food in poverty-stricken desperation. And yet the common villagers constitute the backbone of society. Even in the towns not everyone gets equal opportunities. The pavements have become the home for so many people. Rabindranath says, “There are always a number of uncelebrated people in the human civilization. They are the majority, and they are the medium, but they have no time to become human beings. They are raised on the leftovers of the national wealth. They are poorly dressed and receive little education, yet they serve the rest of society. They give maximum labour but are rewarded with ignominy – they die of starvation or are tortured to death by those they serve. They are deprived of all life's amenities. They are the candlestick of civilization: they stand erect with the candle resting on their head. Everyone gets light from it, while they suffer the discomfort of the wax trickling down their sides. In this way, the dishonest of humanity or the neglect of human values has become a social malady.”"(6)
Namaskar,
at His lotus feet,
Mantreshvar
Note 1: REFERENCES
(1) Rahr-6
(2) Problems of the Day, #11
(3) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(4) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(5) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
(6) A Few Problems Solved - 2, Social Values and Human Cardinal Principles
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