money, money, money! how do economic values control so much of government, community and social...
TRANSCRIPT
Money, Money,
Money!
How do economic
values control so
much of
government,
community and
social life?
What is economic value?
Economic value as defined by dictionary.com states
“the amount (of money or goods or services) that is considered to be a fair equivalent for something
else.”
= $4.00Fair or unfair?
What does the Bible teach us about Money?
"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:24-25, 31-33)
The cost of economic success is beginning to outweigh the benefits and will only get worse if people do not begin to change their ways. Affleunza causes more
pollution; peoples lives become revolved around maintaining things; people are forced to work more to
get what they want and remain under constant pressure to have the “right” stuff.
(Pelletier, J. 2009).
Money makes the world go round!
Or does it?
“In rich countries today, consumption consists of people spending money they don’t have to buy goods they don’t need to impress people they don’t like.”
- anonymous-
In the private domain, Australia is beset by a constant rumble of complaint—as if we are experiencing hard times.
When asked whether they can afford to buy everything they really need, nearly two-thirds of Australians say ‘no’. If we
remember that Australia is one of the world’s richest countries and that Australians today have real incomes three times
higher than in 1950, it is remarkablethat such a high proportion feel so deprived.
Average earnings exceed $50 000 a year, yet a substantial majority of Australians who experience no real hardship—and
indeed live lives of abundance—believe that they have difficulty making ends meet and that they qualify as battlers.
Clive Hamilton, 2005, p.9
Are you and your children suffering from Affluenza?
Af-flu-en-za n. 1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Joneses. 2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by dogged pursuit of the Australian dream. 3. An unsustainable addiction to economic growth. (Clive Hamilton)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFZz6ICzpjI
Watch the video below… Are you really deprived?
Do you have these symptoms?
•Shopping Fever
•A rash of debt
•Chronic Stress
•Fractured families
•Resource exhaustion
•Constant envy for those who flash Gucci Bags and Armani sunglasses
•Never ending desire for the ‘Great Australian Dream’ at any cost
Do you own three or more of these items?
If yes, you will need to seek immediate advice from an Affluenza specialist
“Affluenza describes a condition in which we are confused about what it takes to live a worthwhile life. Part of
this confusion is a failure to distinguish between what we want and what we
need” (Clive Hamilton, 2005, p.7)
A penny for your thoughts.
Shopping FeverFact: On average, Americans shop six hours a week
and spend only 40 minutes playing with their children. What is the lure of shopping and material possessions?
What kinds of pressures do you feel to "keep up with the Joneses"?
Chronic Stress"We hear the same refrain all the time from people. I
have no life....I get home at night, there's laundry, bills to pay....I'm exhausted, I go to sleep, I wake up and the
routine begins the next day all over again." - Gerald Celente, Trends Research Institute
How has this "work-spend" treadmill affected your life and those of your loved ones?
A Rash of BankruptciesFact: In 1997, more than 1.1 million Americans
declared personal bankruptcy, more than graduated from college.
How have credit cards made it possible for us to spend beyond our means? Imagine if you didn't have credit cards. How would that alter your spending habits?
Fractured FamiliesFact: In 90 percent of divorce cases,
arguments about money play a prominent role. How do materialism and other money issues create conflict in your family? How can family members work together to overcome this and
build stronger bonds?
Social ScarsFact: The gap between the rich and poor in the U.S. is
the widest in any industrial country. How does Affluenza contribute to this gap?
What are some of the ways the gap between rich and poor affects us individually and as a society?
Resource ExhaustionFact: Since 1950, Americans have used more
resources than everyone who ever lived before them. Developing countries would like to consume as much
as Americans do. How can we present a different role model to the world to help secure a sustainable future for the generations
to come? How can we encourage corporations to produce more
environmentally-sound products? Prevention and CureFact: Studies suggest the Earth could sustain a standard of living nearly as comfortable as our
own for every human being. But that would demand social as well as personal change.
Could you live a contented life with fewer material possessions?
What would make this possible? What personal and social changes would you
be willing to consider making or helping to make?
HypercommercialismFact: By the age of 20, the average American has seen a million commercials. In addition, advertising accounts for 2/3 of the space in our newspapers and 40 percent
of our mail. How does advertising affect your life and buying
habits? What advertisements especially affect you? Why?
http://www.pbs.org/kcts/affluenza/treat/vguide/vguide.html#discussion
What has the Australian Federal
Government identified as “social
priorities”?•Supporting children at greatest risk of long term disadvantage by providing health, education and family relationships services
•Helping jobless families with children by helping the unemployed into sustainable employment and their children into a good start in life
•Focusing on the locations of greatest disadvantage by tailoring place-based approaches in partnership with the community
•Assisting in the employment of people with disability or mental illness by creating employment opportunities and building community support
•Addressing the incidence of homelessness by providing more housing and support services
•Closing the gap for Indigenous Australians with respect to life expectancy, child mortality, access to early childhood education, educational achievement and employment
outcomes.
Reflective Questions related to the
clip on Social Inclusion
What is a socially inclusive community?
Why is social inclusiveness important to any society?
What importance does economic value play in providing a socially
inclusive community?
How has economic values changed the “mateship” society that previously
existed in Australian culture?
What do you think are the main factors that would contribute to an
‘underclass’ in Australian society?
What is Australia’s economic value of the world?
The Australian Government is committed to the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals—agreed targets set by the world's nations to reduce poverty by 2015.
These include halving extreme poverty, getting all children into school, closing the gap on gender inequality, saving lives lost to disease and the lack of available health care, and protecting the environment. These are achievable commitments to improve the well-being of the world's poorest people
The Australian Government has committed to increasing Australia's aid to 0.5% of Gross National Income by 2015.
HOWEVER…..
The United nations states “In order to tackle global poverty, countries need to commit 0.7% of Gross national income.
BibliographyDictionary.com. (2010). Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/
McLachlan, S. (2003). World on Fire On Afterglow [CD].
Pelletier, J. (2009). Human Architecture. Medford: Summer 2009. Vol. 7, Iss. 3; pg. 173, 8 pgs.
Hamilton, C & Dennis, R. (2005) Affluenza, Allen & Unwin; Sydney Australia
Public Broadcasting Service (1995-2010) http://www.pbs.org/kcts/affluenza/show/show.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFZz6ICzpjI
Commonwealth Of Australia (2010) Social Inclusion and Participation Group. http://www.socialinclusion.gov.au/Videos/asib/Pages/Interview2.aspx
Commonwealth Of Australia (2010) AusAid. http://www.ausaid.gov.au/default.cfm