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The Salt Mind
The Salt Mind
By
Want to further explore Cog's 'Salt Mind'? Stop by TwoIceFloes and check out the latest by Mr. and Mrs. Cog.
The plan was always for me to return to ‘work’, aka gainful employment, after finishing several major sustainability improvement projects to our mountain top homestead. After nearly two years of continuous work on over a dozen undertakings large and small, several months ago the time finally arrived. Of course, the plan always assumed local and national financial conditions were such that a job was available for me to fill. If not…..well, that was precisely why we had improved our ability to self sustain in the face of national (or global) economic disaster.
So for those of you who have been wondering where the hell Cog is………now you know. Cog has been willingly laboring away at the local (assuming anything twenty four miles away can be termed ‘local’) big box retail salt mine. And no, I am not a Wal-Mart greeter……yet. Suffice to say I work in a physically demanding retail sales environment as an hourly wage slave working swing shifts any day or evening of the week including holidays and weekends. At least it comes with full benefits, though I don’t think I will be joining the 401(k) ‘retirement’ plan or the company discount stock purchase plan anytime soon.
Combine nine hour work days with an hour and a half of commute, add in the physical exhaustion experienced as I return to fighting shape and my weight of thirty plus years ago, sprinkle on top the occasional errand while visiting civilization, the time spent on daily prep for work as well as the unwind when returning home (one does not go directly to sleep after getting home at midnight) and clearly my writing has suffered.
Mrs. Cog, to her credit and my relief, has been quite supportive, picking up much of the daily homestead work load while packing dynamite lunches/suppers filled with yummy healthy food and love notes galore. It just doesn’t get any better than this. My biggest regret is not being able to devote as much time as I wish to the love of my life. Mrs. Cog and I have been inseparable over the last four years, so clearly the last two months have been a shock to the family unit. Thankfully our relationship has never been stronger and is based upon clear lines of communication, mutual respect and understanding and, most importantly, a deep and lasting love.
A surprisingly significant, though not in the least unexpected, change within me has been the partial metamorphosis from independent thinker and sovereign individual to punch card corporate drone who is no longer master of his universe. It has been utterly fascinating observing firsthand over the last two months the at times subtle, at times monumental, changes to my mindset. Who says you cannot be reinserted into the Matrix because the steak is quite ‘real’ and tastes great to boot.
For more than ten years I have been either self employed or just plain old unemployed, though most certainly I have been hard at work during my self-imposed hiatus from a corporately structured ‘work’ environment. Such is no longer the case and I have been genuinely shocked how easy it has been to slip back into the ‘Salt Mind’ while laboring away at the salt mine. The sad reality is the ‘real’ world is structured first and foremost by the ‘work’ environment, and then firmly cemented in place by the fictional world of fiat and its associated debt. I owe, I owe, so off to work I go.
Let me count the ways my ‘Salt Mind’ is slowly subverted even as I am fully aware not only of the effects, but the underlying subjugating process. It all seems so natural, normal even, warm and fuzzy and oh so familiar. Like riding a bike or driving a car after a long absence, the natural born skills of the slave mind bred from birth eagerly springs to the surface when willingly summoned from the depths. The sweet smell and comforting familiarity of my indentured servitude is a powerful aphrodisiac and comes complete with mind numbing tunnel vision and powerful natural pain killers.
Being the type of personality who enjoys interacting with my fellow man, I have quickly bonded with my ‘teammates’ as we put our noses to the grind stone and our backs into the oars as we row, row, row our retail boat in circles. Yesterday’s sales were great…..but what have you done for me lately? There is nothing quite like the narrow perspective and near total mental blackout imposed by the corporate sales treadmill.
With just enough carrot and plenty of beating stick, it doesn’t take much to spur me and my fellow peons on as we row the Imperial Roman galley ever onward. Technology may change the mode of operation, but the mindset remains the same. Battle speed! Attack speed! Ramming speed! Number forty one, you’d better pick up the slack or you’ll taste my lash. Another day of rowing to the mind numbing beat of the corporate sales drum.
Another day older and deeper in debt.
Of course slave ‘working’ conditions have greatly improved since the days of Ben Hur, though I would strenuously argue the ‘Salt Mind’ has greatly degraded under the guise of so called free will, self rule aka ‘democracy’, consumerism and the accompanying self will run riot. The only thing more impenetrable than an addicted mind is the co-dependent ‘Salt Mind’. I’ll gladly accept pitiful wages two Friday’s hence for a meaningless day’s work today. For those who scoff at this analogy just wait and see how disastrously co-dependent the ‘Salt Mind’ becomes when they abolish cash/currency and economic marginalization is just a despot’s computer click away.
Those who warn of a disastrous dystopian future coming around the bend are hopelessly blind to the obviousness of the ‘Dystopian Now’. It is not a matter of if or even when, but rather of depth and degree. Anyone who thinks the lives we live are ‘natural’ doesn’t understand the power of alternative reality creation and deep seated generational human conditioning. We are what we think more so than what we eat.
Our own imagination, creativity and adaptability, the root power of our sovereignty and individuality, is brilliantly leveraged against us in the name of the common good and personal sustenance. The belly growls daily and our minds become increasingly desperate and narrow the longer we go between meals. Bottom line, as long as my meager porridge bowl is filled on a daily basis I ain’t gonna stop rowing. God forbid they don’t fill it again tomorrow.
I haven’t punched a time clock in nearly thirty five years, having either worked for myself since I was 23 or in a corporate sales environment where I was strictly commission compensated, therefore I determined my own hours and working conditions. If I didn’t sell, I didn’t eat, greatly simplifying for me (and my ‘employer’) when, where and how I was to actually ‘work’. No need for the lash since my hungry belly punched its own time clock. A self regulating slave is so much more profitable and efficient for the master.
So it has been with growing shock and awe that I have watched myself willingly, even gratefully, arrange my life, and to a great extent that of my family, around the corporate schedule handed down each Wednesday via internet delivered stone tablets. This is where I shall be when I am told to be, so help me God. There is even a helpful drop down box used to request special dispensation from the corporate Gods when I must attend personal, medical or legal appointments. Thank you Sir, may I have another. The corporate lashing isn’t so bad if you can dull the pain and discomfort. The mind numbing relief afforded by the glowing idiot box makes more sense to me now, though I continue to resist that dead end.
The Cog household soldiers on primarily because my employment is temporary in nature and for the most part voluntary. It affords us the means and opportunity to further our goal of increasing our independence and sustainability. Several weeks in the salt mine means another row of solar panels will be added to the growing roof top array. Several months fighting the ‘Salt Mind’ will put us that much closer to a new tractor or other needed power equipment. More efficient windows are sorely needed and a third alternative heating source is on the drawing board. And of course the new greenhouse is that much closer to fruition.
Sadly for the vast majority of my fellow laborers the ultimate goal is the failed and fictitious American Dream, that of a prosperous and productive working life followed by ‘retirement’, meaning the ceasing of manual labor and the total pursuit of self centered happiness. Walk into any retail store or big box outlet these days and carefully study the attending staff. Chances are you will find the majority sporting gray hair and an old age shuffle. There’s your retirement in glorious full frontal nudity.
A surprisingly large proportion of my fellow wage slaves were at one time small business men and women who were pushed out of their chosen (self-employed) occupation for any of a hundred reasons, most of which have to do with the continuing economic slowdown (I would argue reversal) and the crowding out of their means of independence by abusive taxes and regulations, corporate elbowing and political disadvantages. Small fish in big ponds usually get assimilated or eaten.
At some future date I shall explore more thoroughly the prevailing characteristics of the ‘Salt Mind’ from the first person point of view. Stay tuned as I continue my self-lobotomization.
05-28-2015
Cognitive Dissonance
No need to leave the 'Salt Mind' for entertainment.
- advertisements -
CD
Since your move to the country I have only tried to give you fair advice from someone who has made it on the farm all these years.
This missive and your responses to the comments show a lack of understanding on your part as to the total makeover in your lifestyle and mindset based on your commitment to go rural.
"corporate Slave"? There was a bargain reached between you and your employer as to pay versus performance, and you can walk away anytime.
That's not slavery.
AND...if it is your true goal to become self sufficient, why haven't you found a farmer (or logger) in your area to work for. You seriously need to learn those trade secrets that come with living off the land that will not be found at a retail store 30 miles away.
For years it has always been a reading pleasure of mine to find one of your missives printed here. Your insight into group think is illuminating.
As another commenter said, you might be more productive in writing a book, not bitching about a dead end job that does not forward your goal.
Remember to cultivate your rural relationships, they will pay more dividends than the employment direction you have chosen.
Good luck
Obviously you haven't read enough to know what Cog has written nor how productive he has been. We have accomplished plenty this past year as we cut all the wood needed from our mountain to heat our home, kept all the logging roads cleared and grew a good portion of our own organic food. "Trade secrets"? lol
Cog has stated plainly that our goal is NOT to go off grid or shrug but to become more self-reliant. He has also repeatedly mentioned ways he has developed business and friendly relationships with the locals. It just never ceases to amaze me that people feel the need to criticize our homesteading and forays into self-sufficency. "You're doin' it wrong, " sounds like a disgruntled teenager.
I guess this piece pushed your buttons because he wasn't bitching about a dead end job. He was sharing some fascinating insights as to the mentality and psychology of working in retail America while making light of participating in it for a time. You don't like the term slavery? That agreed upon bargain to work there is no more "freedom" than your choice at the voting booth.
I don't get the need for loyalty to some declared mission or purity in tactics or form. Everybody got to stake out their own course. Being honest with yourself is what is important.
Being honest with yourself is what is important. Yes it is but that my friend is very hard to do. Ego tends to fight it at every step. It fights dirty too.
The very idea that one could make themselves into perfection is just as silly as not trying too. Catch 22. The real deal may simply be the chase itself? To know that we could do better and then try to do it. The start of this trip is when it hits you that its all bullshit. So ya look around a bit and find proof. Yep its all bullshit! Now what? Fuck if I know. For now Im just calling bs and can prove it.
I can say with great faith solutions do indeed exsist. So for now its about taking the dogma out back and shooting it in the head.
The best labor is the labor of love. Thats the only kind that pays in anything worth having.
Cog, put down the timecard and start a small business writing creative for social networking , blogging, case studies, etc. 3 companies paying you 500 / month would likely replace your wage slave income, use only half your time, and it would keep your cogs from rusting. Let me know when you do, i'll probably be customer number 1.
Keep up the Good Work C.D.!
PS. Nobody blames you for being a "Corporate Slave" most of us (who can find a job) are ;)
What is even funnier is most who are 'corporate slaves' don't wish to admit it. So they find all kinds of ways to rationalize away their servitude.
I do the same thing (rationalize).....but with eyes wide open and mind open. Or at least I try. :-)
Cog, were you able to get your water pumping issue resolved?
The solar PV system I installed is robust enough to run the existing submersible pump if the need arises. And I have been steadily adding to the PV system since then. But I do want to eventually swap out the deep well pump for a more efficient one designed for PV systems.
We also installed a deep well mechanical backup. More on that in a future article.
SunPumps...
I can share what I'm doing to get the well off grid for myself and others.
DaddyO
The system is whack. Look for and Find another way.
RuitenAas: "Het probleem van een slechte businesscase is dat er geen inkomsten staan tegenover de uitgaven".
http://www.volkskrant.nl/binnenland/fyra-verhoren-faillissement-hsa-was-...
PsychoseGelovige bestuurder: “De Russische lijst ontbeert elke fundering op internationaal recht en is niet transparant”.
http://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2015/05/29/drie-nederlandse-parlementariers-mog...
Nederland en de EU willen van Moskou weten wie allemaal op de lijst van RuitenAas staan. Deze personen zullen direct door het personeel van hotel GradjA worden geïnformeerd over 'wat nu te doen'!
http://www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/33880/Ger-Groot/article/detail/4042072/2015/05...
Netwerk @SuperWil weet dat de ziekte van alzheimer de tol is, omdat de mensheid de normen van het systeem 'Liegen om te Leven' heeft moeten verinnerlijken met zijn intuïtie.
SPion van de 1: "De FIFA strijdt tegen matchfixing, racisme en discriminatie".
http://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2015/05/29/blatter-ik-ben-niet-verantwoordelijk...
RuitenAas: “Natuurlijk draag ik verantwoordelijkheid als voorzitter. Maar laten we die met 209 bonden dragen.”
In zijn openingstoespraak durfde FIFA-baas Sepp Blatter vanochtend niet te vertellen dat hij onmogelijk verantwoordelijk kan worden gehouden voor de werking van het systeem 'Liegen om te Leven'.
Bij de G7-bijeenkomst in de Duitse stad Dresden benadrukte Christine Lagarde, topvrouw van het Internationaal Monetair Fonds (IMF), dat er pas weer noodleningen aan Griekenland worden toegekend op het moment dat er een alomvattend akkoord is. Het IMF gelooft volgens Lagarde niet langer meer in het script van KlaverenTeam.
http://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2015/05/28/lagarde-eurozone-zou-vertrek-grieken...
Dit betekent het failliet van het SCHULD=H00P-principe en nu mag netwerk Juncker ervoor zorgen dat ...?!?!?
http://www.ftm.nl/column/de-tweet-van-17-miljard-dollar/#comment-1023100425
Netwerk @MinPres jokt over de rentelasten van de Nederlandse overheid, omdat ook hij niet weet wanneer het RENTE=BELASTING-plan van Stichting Met Elkaar door netwerk Juncker wordt gepromoot.
http://www.ftm.nl/column/rutte-jokt-rentelasten-nederlandse-overheid/#co...
Ondertussen wordt de Staten Generaal blij gemaakt met een 'Miezerige dooie mus'.
http://www.ftm.nl/column/miezerige-dooie-mus/#comment-1076050841
Natuurlijk wordt ook Prinsjesdag 2015 gekaapt door cijfertjes en modellen die de 3e SpinozaGolf niet kunnen voorspellen.
http://www.ftm.nl/column/prinsjesdag-gekaapt-economen/#comment-1078518031
Dus krijgen we weer 'drogredeneringen, desinformatie en halfleugens' te horen, om de bevolking de illusie te geven dat onze rechtstaat de verantwoordelijke is om een mislukte ambtenaar zoals KnottigeKlaas de rol te geven van ...
http://www.ftm.nl/column/drogredeneringen-desinformatie-halfleugens/#com...
... de toekomstige moNARch!
http://www.ftm.nl/column/knotsgekke-klaas-knot/#comment-1077349090
where have you been?
the 'salt mine' has always been there.
ohhh i forgot you do not live in a country with heavy industry or mfg jobs.
it's all service and consumer (stockboy) type work.
this is really funny. a grown man finally going to work.
"We are what we think more so than what we eat."
what you eat is what you think. no comparison here. --you are what you think --period :)
Plenty of manual labor every day in the USA. Yard work, tree work, digging for all manner of things, stocking goods, trucking, cleaning, sweeping and mopping in every retail and industrial facility, farm work, janitor work, construction work, facility maintenance work, collecting garbage....
I worked construction for over 20 years as my first 'career'. So this grown man isn't only now going to 'work'. But thanks for the general observation.
Cog, been there. Men used to go to sea for 2, 3 years to save up money. Moby Dick, etc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r01rjeTAwf8
SAM COOKE- CUPID
.
the rest ...
good luck.
salt, coal, silver, gold; it is all mining. then storing material. materialism, i get it. they get it. it is what it is. . Lee Dorsey - Working In The Coal Mine (1966) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA3Royf9_zM
And, of course, Devo covered the song nicely. :-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ms79633njIg
.
Working in the Salt Mind, the Salt Mine, sounds like that song written by Allen Toussaint and performed by Lee Dorsey, "Working In A Coal Mine"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_in_the_Coal_Mine
I been working in the coal mine, going down down down.
Working in the coal mine. Whew! About to slip down.
"Being the type of personality who enjoys interacting with my fellow man, I have quickly bonded with my ‘teammates’ as we put our noses to the grind stone and our backs into the oars as we row, row, row our retail boat in circles. Yesterday’s sales were great…..but what have you done for me lately? There is nothing quite like the narrow perspective and near total mental blackout imposed by the corporate sales treadmill."
lol...you have been "out of the loop" for a while haven't you? ;-)
Team! is the latest "feel good" incarnation of what I like to call Corporate Ratism taught to CEO's, board members and the aspiring suck up Yes Men that tag along with them to their "business conferences"...on the corporate dime no less.
Understand that if you're a good "team player" it does not necessarily equal a better wage for you as an individual, it just means you've been accepted into the "Borg collective".
No, you still have to pay your own individual income taxes, you are still held individually responsible for your work, you still have to individually drag your ass to work everyday depending on no one but yourself and your own motivation.
So you can be a member in good standing with the "Team"...lol.
As long as you realize it (Team!) is all corporate bullshit, you'll be fine ;-)
Most of the jobs I've done became obsolete which looks the way of the two I do at the moment. I do other work, however, that can be stimulating, creative and satisfying but unfortunately pays nothing. The Machine brings All to its Will.
Good to see an update. Try to enjoy the moment, even if it is salt mind. Some years ago during a slow period in my self employment I took a part time job at the Census Bureau--it was really a blast. I hadn't had a "I have to be in this physical location at this time" job in many years, but once I got over that I felt great--I got to meet a lot of new people, hear interesting stories, and drive all over LA. And they were even paying me $17 an hour plus gas for it! The only thing that was odd is they told me to slow down on my work after a few weeks I was going too fast and it was making some slower employees look bad. I'd been used to private sector jobs that rewarded me for being fast and good, and now I needed to spend a little extra time hanging out at th beach. And they had me doing real work sometimes...but that's government...enjoy. At least for you it"s a means to an end...
Jet Set,
My stepson had a similar experience with the Census Bureau a few years ago. He is a self-admitted lazy ass (good kid, but he lacks motivation in several minor areas of life), but he got the same lecture several times. "Slow down boy, you are making us all look bad!" Fucking .gov, and the "salt mind" that Cog describes are just two of the things destroying us.
Nice piece Cog, and best wishes to you and Mrs. Cog.
what exactly is so necessary to you 'simple life' that an I phone can't cure? Gosh you almost had me thinging you were on dial up.
So humble...go sell you 401k and come back and tell us that you followed your scrupples! that must be the "necessary stuff" ...right?
You make me sick
"So humble...go sell you 401k and come back and tell us that you followed your scrupples!"
LOL..........We did.
The 401(k)'s, IRA's and 'retirement' annuities are all long gone along with the rental properties that contained capital gains and could be sold for a profit. The only one left is underwater and losing money. Paid the tax man a HUGE amount of money while doing all that (the game is rigged to keep you in the game or the tax penalty is debilitating) with the remainder 'invested' in the homestead.
And the DSL we have here on top of the mountain is so slow that on average it is only 3 or 4 times the speed of dial up. Does that count?
May I suggest Dramamine?
As a man, I feel it is my responsibility to provide certain things for the Wife and kids. They get the best I can give 'em, but how I define what's best ain't necessarily how society at large would. It isn't just for me that I keep stacking physical, work feverishly to make practical and useful improvements to the homestead, keep a small garden, a few animals, lay on stores, add to my home library, and what not. When engaged in providing for my Family's well-being, both now and for the future, I feel I am working for myself. Our quality of life, in my opinion, is good. Simpler, but vastly more rewarding. I am not wealthy, but live a rich, rewarding life.
I have to wonder if some of those folks that got squeezed out of their former lives and are now nothing more than mere wage slaves (like myself) might also be well aware of the "life ain't work, life is what you do outside of work" adage.
Resignation, defeatism, simply throwing in the towel, all for whatever reason... As long as people remain productive in their personal lives. Sometimes the other stuff is necessary to enable the fulfillment of personal goals.
That's not a bad thing.
It is pleasant to here from you Mr. Cog. I had been wondering.
never have I read something by a man so obviously in need of a joint and a few shots of no fuckin' around single malt.
ever consider writing a book, fiction, an e-book? I feel like you might be pretty good at sci fi or fantasy, no kidding.
Good to see the greenhouse on your list.
No farming jobs near?
The Distopian Now is the mis-application of skills by a ruling elite's controls. The American Promised Land is a barren desert. I obey and work therefore I survive is one new American mantra. Cog's labors are a loss to the enlightenment of his generation, just as war was mindless labor.
http://www.abroadintheyard.com/lost-and-greatest-generations-ww1-ww-in-c...
That's a great essay worthy of your online namesake. It's almost dizzying to get my head around the fact that you are making these observations as an awakened individual who can discern the difference between the truly natural state of a sovereign free man and the unnatural structures of habitual enslavement, the procedures and social norms masquerading as the "natural life" of the wage slave. I can almost feel the discomfort emanating from the page.
Thank goodness for humour, else it would be a depressing read indeed. :).
"Anyone who thinks the lives we live are ‘natural’ doesn’t understand the power of alternative reality creation and deep seated generational human conditioning."
Artificial constructs from human tradition covers a multitude of sins about how we live our lives and treat each other, but I dare say it takes an astute mind to recognise that these work processes are indeed completely unnatural and arbitrary. In my view, so much of it depend upon the old feudal model of exploitating those beneath the socioeconomic ladder to benefit the owners and their drivers. It's positively medieval if I think about it.
Somewhere along the way, willing participation, cooperation, mutual benefit and the sense of organizational stakeholding have been lost in the race to squeeze the last drop of profit and performance in the employee relationship. That's the natural consequence of corporation worship I suppose.
It's none of my business and I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but alarm bells rang for me when I read, "Thankfully our relationship has never been stronger" in the essay. That's the sort of starting sentence my married friends would volunteer just before they imploded. So, I'll leave this post with my hopes that you guys really are coping well with the changes and my best wishes for your future together. From what I have read, you two have something wonderful and precious so very rare in the world, I have a natural inclination to root for your happiness.
I get what you are saying and there are two sides to this. Unfortunately I am not informed well enough to present a clear narrative.
If I ran a business I would look for less regulations, less paperwork, less need for experts to do my bookkeeping, finance, and Taxes.
- In Latin America you can open a business in some places in a few days and not have regulations.
- My guess is it is very British to have lots of Laws & Regulations
- Food service is one area I might prefer certificates of training
- Simplify, Streamline, Standardize Regulations & Laws so that a 12 year old boy can understand them, this would serve people better, Banks & Lawyers like you confused
- The Fact that Cops, FBI, DEA, IRS, Secret Service can take your bank account or cash with no evidence when 9/10ths of the law is possession shows that the Rule of Law has Collapsed, laws became too complex for humans like officers of the court to assimilate
Code of Hammurabi and Code of Ur-Nammu, provided key laws but also kept regulations minimum.
Who is the Most unregulated? Washington DC, Congress, IRS, Banks, Lawyers, Lobbyist,... the destruction wrought by Lawyers on the Courts, the Laws, and on us. The don't even pass a budget anymore (6 years now).
But maybe I confuse enforcement, implementation of laws with Self Regulated Professions. Congress is Self Policing except for the odd FBI work on Obvious Bribery.
A self-regulatory organization (SRO) is an organization that exercises some degree of regulatory authority over an industry or profession. The regulatory authority could be applied in addition to some form of government regulation, or it could fill the vacuum of an absence of government oversight and regulation. The ability of an SRO to exercise regulatory authority does not necessarily derive from a grant of authority from the government.
- Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)
- American Arbitration Association
- National Association of Realtors (NAR)
- American Medical Association (AMA)
TPP is completely Self-Regulatory Organization.
Bankers & Lawyers are SROs, so they can wreak havoc on everything apparently. No one looks back and says you just trashed the US Constitution, Tax Law, and Conservative Banking & Accounting.
"My guess is it is very British to have lots of Laws & Regulations"
Hongkong and Singapore are run on British common law.
It takes 2 hours to register a company in Singapore, less in HK.
Rules and regs are a recent British invention.
You can't rule the world buried in t red tape, that's how you know it's recent.
:)
Squid
"After a fiscal crisis in 1991, India has increasingly adopted free-market principles and liberalised its economy to international trade. These reforms were started by former Finance minister Manmohan Singh under the guidance of Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao. They eliminated much of Licence Raj, a pre- and post-British era mechanism of strict government controls on setting up new industry. Following these economic reforms, and a strong focus on developing national infrastructure such as the Golden Quadrilateral project by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the country's economic growth progressed at a rapid pace, with relatively large increases in per-capita incomes.[35] "
Just saw this a few hours ago and remembered this post.
"The Licence Raj or Permit Raj (r?j, meaning "rule" in Hindi)[1] was the elaborate system of licences, regulations and accompanying red tape that were required to set up and run businesses in India between 1947 and 1990.[2]"
"The term plays off "British Raj", the period of British rule in India. It was coined by Indian statesman Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari, who firmly opposed it for its potential for political corruption and economic stagnation and founded the Swatantra Party to oppose these practices."[4]
In his newspaper, Rajagopalachari wrote:
"I want the corruptions of the Permit/Licence Raj to go. [...] I want the officials appointed to administer laws and policies to be free from pressures of the bosses of the ruling party, and gradually restored back to the standards of fearless honesty which they once maintained. [...] I want real equal opportunities for all and no private monopolies created by the Permit/Licence Raj."
- Some damning parallels to what happened to the UK and now what is happening in the USA.
- Perhaps not red tape or bureaucracy, but low investment and banking control??
Thanks Squid, very decent of you.
Here is something from Paul Craig Roberts recent Post.
"When gold hit $1,900 an ounce in 2011 the Federal Reserve realized that the precious metal market was going to limit its ability to provide enough liquidity to keep the thoughtlessly deregulated financial system afloat."
I guess we all Agree Banking was deregulated from the Great Depression reforms. But still the Exchanges and much of Banking are unregulated from the get-go, like Holding Companies, Cede & Company, and DTCC.
dear mr. and mrs. ....
i would like to propose an alternate
possibility that we are what we do NOT eat,
we really are. i suspect that is enough
said for the usual advanced thinking
crowd one encounters around these parts.
also , we may be more what we do NOT think
than we think.
.
humility and learning are
bothers in arms, no?
aye, that was to be "brothers", not
"bothers". so close but for the
missed "r", are, and conceptual
slight or neglect? the field is way deep
going back to the beginning, all the way
i say.
anyway poems^tm
You have to eat, that's just reality not something worth complaining about. Walmart takes advantage of your need by requiring you to work? Guess what, someone else has to work to take care of your wants and needs - Walmart is helping you take care of other people's wants and needs in exchange for money. If you can do it on your own without Walmart, more power to you.
They make you keep to a clock? I'll bet when you are on your free time doing errands you want the stores open and manned.
But its a corporation! Thats just a bunch of free individuals making voluntary agreements with each other to try to make money, that is create value. After Walmart pays all its expenses and sells things to willing buyers who find its prices and products the best choice for their dollars it has money left over, or profit, or created value.
Classic piece, CD. Glad you're a temp;)
What is that bottom pic? Quite appropriate scale, but I can't place it.
A salt mine turned amusement park in Turda, Romania.
Wheels within wheels.
Thanks.
Kaisehoff,
Your commet reminds me of a song by RUSH. One of my personal favorites. Just a snippet of the lyrics below, but actually dovetails nicely with some of the comments today.
Wheels within wheels in a spiral array
A pattern so grand and complex
Time after time we lose sight of the way
Our causes can't see their effects
Read more: Rush - Natural Science Lyrics | MetroLyrics
Excellent piece Cog.
The snippet below however, is the nut of it all.
"...and the crowding out of their means of independence by abusive taxes and regulations, corporate elbowing and political disadvantages."
I was shocked how many of my fellow employees were former small businessmen/women. I would say at least 25% of the rank and file workers where I am working. As I have got to know them a little better I have engaged them in conversation about the reasons they are no longer self employed. The answers are wide ranging, but all of them fit into the categories I summarized.
Sad....very sad.
Good God, Cog, tell us it's not Wal-mart! For me, working there would be the ultimate surrender!
Not Wal-Mart? The local businesses all bit the dust, but everything you touch at other grocery stories costs a DOLLAR more! Where would you have us go?
Nope, not Wal-Mart. At least not yet.
Though my heart goes out to some of the older Wal-Mart workers who are clearly not there by choice, but rather desperation.
Reminds me of the land of the orange aprons, former employee here. Many there that had been self employed previously and that was 1997ish.