The Dalai Lama’s Little Book of Wisdom by His Holiness the Dalai Lama (15 Sep 2003)
Many other books also available by the Dalai Lama from Amazon
Mark Tully questions the pursuit of economic growth at all costs:
Something Understood Why do we have to get richer?
The BBC is here, as Ed West might agree, in full on pious clerical mode passing on their divine wisdom as they ‘question the Holy Grail of perpetual economic growth.’
Ironic that they counter that ‘Holy Grail’ by bringing on that Holy of Holies, the Dalai Lama…and I have to say it’s no wonder the rapacious, capitalist Chinese don’t want him in Tibet…he’s a bloody communist!
The D.L (PBUH) reveals that money can’t make you happy…it may bring quantity but it doesn’t bring quality….the pursuit of riches and the increase in wealth have not diminished suffering….science and technology, and the great Western science of Economics, have not brought any real benefits or reduced suffering.
Always the West’s fault….no one ever thought of getting rich before the advent of ‘The West’.
Well you can certainly quibble with his suggestions that science and technology, and indeed economics, have brought little benefits or improvements in quality of life….as his brethren flying around the world covered in bling know all too well.
What’s Tully’s solution?
We can all have little farms…or a field each…communes in fact….Market driven economics doesn’t help anyone….you don’t need your car, we need more public transport…Consumerism is based on greed.
Perhaps Tully would like to give a definition of consumerism…when does the accumulation of ‘stuff’ become ‘greed’? What if you actually use that ‘stuff’? Is that consumerism or just buying ‘stuff’ that is useful for your life?
Perhaps the BBC is saying we have too much ‘life’, too much fun…cut it out…shave your head, relax, meditate….give all your money away.
“It costs a great deal of money to keep Gandhi living in poverty,” one of his patrons said….funny how all those churches preach that we should give away our money…who to? er…to the Churches of course.
Gord bless the BBC though….lawks…I was a wrong ‘un I was until they puts me on the right path….the path to redemption, and poverty.
Hallelujah! Praise the DG and pass the TV remote.
Why do we have to get richer, indeed!
Perhaps the government can remember this the next time the BBC funding negotiations come round. Cut their budget to a fraction of what it is now. After all, you’d be doing them a favour – it’d make them happier, see?
Yes, I do see. Them buggers above are even in a private jet!
Corrr.. how the other half live, eh, Mr Lama?
It’s always comfortably-off, powerful people who preach poverty – like Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, visitors to Glastonbury, BBC employees, Caroline Lucas……
My favourite of them all–King Obamessiah.
But the license fee needs to increase, right?
Well, they need to increase their budget from £4bn/year to £5bn/year.
Cuz them poir n’stuff.
Oi, Big Nose! Is this Monty Python Week? First we have “You were lucky” and now Life of Brian.
Next item: the knights that say cnicht!
And a chorus of “Sit on my face”
I wonder what the price of an air ticket to Cloud Cuckoo land is these days? Because if I find time I may visit Mr. Tully.
“Something Understood Why do we have to get richer?” – on the BBC pages the title is followed by : “Mark Tully questions the pursuit of economic growth at all costs.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qn7f
Some would say that ignoring the words following the programmer title is “bias by omission”. What do you think Alan?
Adding “at all costs” would also significantly change your assertion that:
“The BBC is here, as Ed West might agree, in full on pious clerical mode passing on their divine wisdom as they ‘question the Holy Grail of perpetual economic growth.”
“Perhaps the BBC is saying we have too much ‘life’, too much fun…cut it out…shave your head, relax, meditate….give all your money away.”
Is that really what the “BBC” is saying? It could equally be argued, as many scholars have, that money can satisfy many of an individuals needs but not all of them.
LOL so he drops one bit and you charge in with a loud ‘aha’ funny but there are here hundreds of posts about BBC cutting and massaging to create false impression yet I see no alb shouting ‘but no ‘ say like endless use of ‘bedroom tax ‘ when it isn’t a tax but ‘Licence fee’ when it is a tax ?
Oh and ‘many scholars’ what like what those in academia who have never had a real job with real people in real towns that they have never visited because it’s safe and protected in the university campus with the Marxist /Stalinist BBC loving friends !
“…..so he drops one bit….”
Seems to me it is a pretty key “bit” but then again you did ignore that point.
“……………but there are here hundreds of posts about BBC cutting and massaging to create false impression……..”
Is the new bBBC tagline going to be “we are just as bad as those we accuse”?
“……………………… like what those in academia who have never had a real job with real people in real towns………………..”
I suggest a quick search on “motivational theory” followed by some reading and then perhaps you will understand the point I am making.
The overall tone of your reply (because I know that “tone” is important to this site) would suggest that I have a valid point.
If I could be bothered to try I may actually read your post but sadly like you I am participial to ignoring things that don’t agree with my world view! see that what happen when I read too much by the hit and hide merchants of the BBC glee club !
Once again Albaman makes an appearance in a thread about (with all due respect to Alan) not very much at all. And yet vanishes without trace from others, when the BBC is found bang to rights
Personally, instead of this navel-gazing, possibly UN Agenda 21-inspired guff, I’d like to see a BBC programme with the theme ‘Why do we need fracking?’ which might just cover issues of energy security, the energy gap, useless ‘renewables’, continuing worship at the altar of CO2 emissions reduction (when eveidence points to it making not a scrap of difference to the climate), countless wasted billions on ‘addressing climate change’ and the resulting impoverishment of people, the destruction of their economies and even loss of lives through energy shortages and/or fuel poverty etc etc.
Between this moment in time and my deathbed however, I won’t be holding my breath.
Perhaps somebody should suggest to Mark Tully that, to ensure his future happiness and well being, he should only work for the minimum wage, with only bus fares for travelling expenses.
Mark Tully is actually one of the better BBC journalists and his reports from India over the years have been very good with no obvious bias. This radio programme didn’t raise any hackles for me unlike some other items on the BBC.