Speaking of handling wealth, I am drawn to the idea of socially responsible investing. There are now several credit unions and financial planners that specialize in investing in companies that are environmentally responsible & socially responsible, as well as environmentally progressive. They weed out the companies that support violence/war efforts, non “green” companies (oil companies are the most obvious), and companies that don’t do business in a sustainable way. You can invest and make money this way regardless of how much money you have:

• They say if you have enough money for a checking or savings account, you can open your account in a credit union or community bank that invests this way, and gives you a small return in those accounts. Much like putting your money in a normal bank, but with the money going toward something good.
• If you don’t need the money for a few months, you can put it into a liquid Money Market fund at a similar institution and get a little more interest paid.
• If you don’t need the money for about 12 months, you can put it in a CD and earn even more interest.
• You can put it into bonds if you don’t need it for a few years.
• You can invest with a socially responsible financial planner in a mix of stocks & other green investments if you don’t need the money until you retire.

They say the “green” market has actually out-performed the “normal” S&P-type market over its lifetime, but to be aware that when gas prices are high, or during times of war, that the general market will outperform the green market due to the Lockheed Martins, the Exxon-Mobiles, etc.

When I left Chevron, I cashed out my 401K. Part of the reason was to pay off some credit cards. But another reason was that I was becoming aware that I didn’t know exactly what kinds of companies or investments my money was going into. I was broadly diversified nationally & internationally, and I had no way of knowing who or what kinds of practices I was funding. This way of thinking actually started when I tried to launch an investment club while living in Bakersfield, CA. We were getting to the point that we would have to start choosing companies to invest in, and I starting thinking that their ethical practices would come into the picture and I may not be able to contribute with good conscience, even if the profit potential was substantial.

Just something I felt like sharing today…

I’ve been thinking about the exploitation involved in capitalism. It seems a little like a pyramid scheme, where the ones that get in first have the most to gain, where the ones on the way up are fed big dreams and exploited to work for the benefit of those higher on the ladder. Think of the American companies that have so quickly resorted to outsourcing to cheaper markets.

Everyone wants the American dream: that anyone with a good work ethic will live a comfortable life of their choosing.

Companies can claim that the low salaries paid to these workers are relatively competitive for their countries and that the dismal & unsafe work environments are acceptable by that country’s standards–that sometimes the worst lifestyle an American can imagine is still better than the best lifestyle of a person in a bad environment. Is it truly exploitation if both parties feel they are getting a good deal? Is it for the good of the world if these people end up marginally increasing their standard of living by providing cheaper products for the rich?

On the other hand, think of the animals that have been exploited from our domestication & mass-production facilities. Clearly the animals have not gotten additional benefit. It makes you wonder who was the first person to line a bunch of cows up on concrete, hook them up to machines, pump them full of steroids & antibiotics, watch them get sores and become crippled, and think, “Oh well, we’re making lots more money this way.”

I suppose it comes down to the fact that we are competing with people for resources…the more cheap, available resources, the better. I think everyone at heart (at least those without power) feel that democracy is the best way we’ve figured so far to run a society, but economically, is capitalism the best way? Or is capitalism just broken, or unrefined?

The age old disparity between haves & have-nots continues to play out…are we Americans setting the best example for the world? For history? How can we do better?

“Not all those who wander are lost” ~J. R. R. Tolkien

“I didn’t tell my heart to beat; I didn’t tell my eyes to see.” ~Ron Kauk, Yosemite rockclimber I listened to, on the wonder of all nature, including the wonder he has of himself.

More from that rockclimber, paraphrased (poorly):

I think of rockclimbing like yoga, or a martial art. I’m trying to relax and even out my breaths, to be more fluid and graceful. Sometimes I just admire the rock before I climb it–each one is like a work of art. It’s not about being competitive, or how fast I get to the top. It’s about perfecting each move, about finding a better way to get to the rock through the woods; it’s about the process, about being logical, having “common sense”, and learning to survive and protect yourself.

We are related to everything. We all need the same things: air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat.

The days are shorter in the winter; maybe it’s nature’s way of telling us to slow down and take it easier for a while.

I learned something valuable in Yosemite that I’m applying to life in San Francisco: Don’t feed the bears. Or in my case, beggars. Almost every major intersection in San Francisco has at least 1 beggar with a cardboard sign. I’ve been contemplating, since I moved here, the best approach to take with them. On one hand, my first instinct is always to help someone in need. But I’ve been bitten more than once. A beggar will mistake friendliness with generosity, for example, and expect something from you, or sometimes they will be rude when you decline to help when you’ve already given them help days or weeks before.

I would go broke handing a dollar out at every intersection, and there are a million other justifications for not giving hand-outs. But I like the way the park rangers look at the bear feeding problem: If a bear learns there may be food in a car, they will be more likely to approach it, and occasioinally they will become violent and will have to be put down. So park visitors are required to keep all food in bear-proof boxes. The bears go back to hunting berries and are discouraged from the easy food finds.

I like to think of the beggar situation the same way. It’s not like we are living in a third-world country with no government or infrastructure for the homeless and downtrodden. These people have resources they should be taking advantage of, yet they are choosing to beg on the streets. I try to put myself in the position of someone who is forced to beg for money, and I just can’t imagine the scenario in which our system would fail someone so badly that that was their only option for survival. Please correct me if this is generally not the case.

Beggars seem to me to be like bears that have left the woods for the campgrounds in search of easier food targets. And giving handouts just encourages them to come around more often, and to be more and more aggressive with their demands. The difference between human beggars and bears is that humans have agreed to be bound by laws against hurting or killing someone for resources, wheras the bears aren’t intellectually burdened by the consequence of jail time or death, so we have to take more precautions with bears than with human beggars.

Anyway, we’ll see how long my beggars as bears theory holds up in real-life.

Yosemite Falls, 6/3/07 by CMC

Click Here for Slideshow of Day 2 in Yosemite

Today I hiked to the top of North America’s tallest waterfall: Yosemite Falls. I was very proud of my climb today (almost 8 miles round-trip, with hundreds of switchbacks) and thanked my grandma Ruth for the rock-climbing and hiking genes! Afterward, I rewarded myself with a plunge into the icy cold river below. I found the perfect spot to dive in, swam across the river, and back.

On strenuous hikes like this is when the city disappears. Almost everyone you meet or pass on the trail says hello and offers words of encouragement. None of the busy callousness and rudeness of city life, just people at their best, trying to reach a common goal, and helping each other through it.

'I light a candle when I go to fold my laundry.' When I heard a yoga teacher say that, it both repelled and appealed to me. But her words stuck with me, and helped me tonight when I noticed how dirty the kitchen floor had gotten in 2 days. The kitchen floor is one of my house chores here, and my first reaction was 'I don't want to have to sweep right now.'

But I got out the broom and meditated on my teacher's words and gratefulness. I am lucky to have a nice place to live and lucky that I am healthy and able to sweep a floor. I am grateful for roommates that make me smile, even if they track dirt in the house. I am grateful for the cats whose litter is caught in the rug, but who bring joy and companionship to my life.

A floor is easier to sweep when seen as a chance to be grateful, rather than a mundane waste of time & energy.

I wonder what I would do and believe if I had been told nothing about the world from anyone. If my observations alone would lead me to the same place I am today. If my parents, my culture had not influenced me, would I view the world the same?

Would I still have studied the subject with the highest starting salary?

Would I have a closer connection with the spiritual?

Take away capitalism & Christianity, and would I have gravitated to them on my own?

Lost? Yes, if you want to go somewhere no one has ever been, you must get lost. If there was a known way to go, everyone would be there.

Or something like that, curtesy of Pirates.

Some religions have an aversion to pork as it is the closest to cannabalism that humans can get. I love pork.

The moment you declare victory is when you lose.

The question isn't could you live forever, but could you live with yourself forever.