A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world
You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one
John Lennon ~ Imagine
One of the principles of the Buddha’s Eightfold Path is Right Livelihood.
‘Right livelihood means that one should earn one’s living in a righteous way and that wealth should be gained legally and peacefully. The Buddha mentions four specific activities that harm other beings and that one should avoid for this reason: 1. dealing in weapons, 2. dealing in living beings (including raising animals for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution), 3. working in meat production and butchery, and 4. selling intoxicants and poisons, such as alcohol and drugs. Furthermore any other occupation that would violate the principles of right speech and right action should be avoided.”
From the website – http://www.thebigview.com/ Website has since moved to FaceyBook
This principle as well as several others can be distilled / referenced back to the Golden Rule. One of my favorite manifestations of The Rule is “One going to take a pointed stick to pinch a baby bird should first try it on himself to feel how it hurts.” – from Nigeria
I was out of work for a while, and I was contacted several times about working for a particular credit card company. My particular set of IT skills matched their need for programmers. I declined each invitation as I see that whole industry as not ethical. Not that credit and lending of money is bad in and of itself, but the way this industry handles itself is exploitive, abusive and cynical in the most favorable light you can shine on them. Several folks thought I was crazy, as I needed the work.
One phrase that I absolutely detest is, “It’s just business.” Why does the fact that it is just business excuse the folks involved in from ethical behavior. Somehow the real god of this country and many others has become money and wealth. It seems that anything goes in the pursuit of gold. This seems to be especially true when it is a corporation that throws that layer of “It’s just business” between the actors. But I rant as folks have ranted for millennium. Somehow the basic theme of human existence seems not to change.
I describe myself as a Utopian. Not because I believe humanity can ever achieve Utopian, but because it is a wonderful goal to have. Set your sights high, to achieve high.
Can you imagine a world where people refused to work jobs, avoided businesses that used or harm people? If the majority of us would do this, I can only imagine this behavior would go away. Can you imagine what a wonderful place this would be?