Mentatul

Tag: environment

  • Smoke and Water, Environmental Downs and Ups

    Smoke and Water, Environmental Downs and Ups

    When looking at the bigger picture, it sure seems like there are more “environmental downs” than “ups” at the moment (2019). Sure, there have been several small victories recently, but overall, our hyper-consumerist^ ways are still driving us on a highway to hell.

    Smoke

    Nine years after such information was widely available, I finally got to understand just how insanely terrible sea shipping is for our planet. Consider that a single massive cargo ship puts out more cancer and asthma-causing pollutants than 50 million cars:

    https://newatlas.com/shipping-pollution/11526/^

    This is because these ships use a very dirty type of fuel. And there are a lot^ of cargo ships on Earth. Not all of them may be as massive as the monstrous OOCL Hong Kong^, but consider that even back in 2009, just 16 of the world’s biggest ships emitted more pollution than all of the cars on the planet combined^. And while vehicle pollution has started to improve thanks to more efficient engines and electrical cars, cargo ship pollution is almost completely unregulated and still running amok.

    I remember being surprised to hear how much fuel^ an airplane uses. Then again, turns out airplanes are actually pretty efficient^ compared to a car transporting less than 3 people. In any case, all my surprise regarding airplane fuel has now been completely snuffed out by the sea of jaw-drop I’m drowning in after getting the facts on cargo ships.

    And here we are thinking buying a Tesla will save the world. No. Nothing short of fully-committed activism will prevent the disastrous ecosystem changes that might will put future generations at great risk.

    Big Waves

    Surf’s up (pun not intended)! A 23.8 meters high wave was recorded in the Southern hemisphere. For reference, that’s about as high as a 6-stories building. And it wasn’t from a tsunami. Just good ol’ mother Earth reacting to global warming:

    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-44078255^

    And all this nicely leads to…

    Ocean Heat Buildup

    This is a phenomenon which has long shadowed the true extent of global warming, because the planetary ocean gives our world a certain amount of thermal inertia.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/energy-environment/2018/10/31/startling-new-research-finds-large-buildup-heat-oceans-suggesting-faster-rate-global-warming/??noredirect=on^

    As pointed in the article above, the research has seen a few corrections. Even so, there are several other studies that ocean heat buildup is a major problem, one that is seriously underestimated:

    https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-ocean-heat-content^

    That solar panel problem few people talk about

    “In November 2016, the Environment Ministry of Japan warned that the country will produce 800,000 tons of solar waste by 2040, and it can’t yet handle those volumes. That same year, the International Renewable Energy Agency estimated that there were already 250,000 metric tons of solar panel waste worldwide and that this number would grow to 78 million by 2050.”

    Ugh…

    https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2018/10/25/18018820/solar-panel-waste-chemicals-energy-environment-recycling^

    How about cleaning the atmosphere?

    Is global warming worrying you? Do you think we’ve run out of time? Well, here’s some good news. If we, as a species, would for once work together, we could actually achieve negative carbon emissions. This would require a massive economic shift, but it is already within our technological reach:

    https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/energy-and-environment/2018/10/24/18001538/climate-change-co2-removal-negative-emissions-cdr-carbon-dioxide^

    The conclusion?

    We can switch technologies all we want, but unless we don’t switch (off) our way of (consumerist^) life, the ecosystem will suffer some catastrophic changes in the next decades.

    Here’s a soundtrack for all that…

    Skeler – Falling Apart^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/03563-SmokeWaterEnvironmentalUpsDowns-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Smoke and Water, Environmental Downs and Ups’ desc=’Consumerism's hidden costs (shipping), the dark side of solar energy, the ocean is heating up and how could we clean our atmosphere? Your February 2019 environmental debriefing is here.’]

  • Earth’s Humming a Little Tune

    Earth’s Humming a Little Tune

    Well, it’s only “little” when considering the ultralow frequencies involved. In fact, it’s a massive tune. It’s a world-wide phenomenon and probably as old (thus long) as the Earth itself. The article below summarizes years of research into a perpetual hum that has been detected in places such as Antarctica, Algeria and on the floor of the Indian Ocean:

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2017/12/08/scientists-are-slowly-unlocking-the-secrets-of-the-earths-mysterious-hum/?utm_term=.dd2b27f1f139^

    I always had a gut feeling that there’s more to what our bodies need from Earth, other than oxygen, water and nutrition. This primordial vibration that permeates all life on this planet should probably be considered if we think about relocating to another planet. Unless this can be replicated somehow, there could be unforeseen consequences to us departing our world long-term.

    The coming decades will clarify the relation between our body and certain facts about the environment on this planet, particularly previously-hidden “features” such as this humming. I’m going to keep my ears on the ground for more news about the Earth’s song. See what I did there?

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/02829-EarthsTune-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Earth's Humming a Little Tune’ desc=’A summary of years of research into a perpetual hum that has been detected in places such as Antarctica, Algeria and on the floor of the Indian Ocean.’]

  • Does Cryptocurrency Have a Future?

    Does Cryptocurrency Have a Future?

    The cryptocurrency craze is on! Social media websites have been swarmed by advertisers hoping to entice people to jump on the Bitcoin wagon or tempting them to invest in any of the ICOs (initial coin offerings) popping up almost on a weekly basis for various competing cryptocurrencies. It’s almost hysterical.

    The Bitcoin has grown by more than 1400% in about a year. That’s a staggering development no matter who you ask. Many analysts warn that the bubble will soon burst^, but they’ve been saying this^ for months and the Bitcoin is still growing.

    There are a lot of Bitcoin pessimists out there, including people that worked with blockchain technology for a long time. It’s interesting to read what this senior Bitcoin software engineer^ was saying back in January. I wonder if he still has the same opinion now when the currency has climbed this much.

    I would love nothing better than to see the current financial system shaken to the core and forced to evolve. Competition is great. We’ve been abused long enough by banks using centuries-old practices and mentalities, working like packs of ruthless sharks instead of collaborators in the world we build for our children.

    Increasing in value the way it does, the Bitcoin’s upcoming crash seems more inevitable with every psychological threshold it passes. And given the network’s already known weaknesses (such as long transaction confirmation times) not if but when this correction occurs, it risks bringing a lot of people to tears. Or, as an analyst put it: “it’s going to be pandemonium”.

    As it crashes, the Bitcoin will drag along with it the rest of the cryptocurrency market whose growth, to be honest, is even more ridiculous than that of the Bitcoin. Just look at this insane list of one hundred different cryptocurrencies, most of which are not even more than a year or two out in the “market”:

    https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/19/100-cryptocurrencies-described-in-4-words-or-less/^

    The Bitcoin may survive any number of crashes and even the dents in reputation that come with such an erratic evolution. What the Bitcoin will not survive, however, is a heavy-handed regulatory crackdown that may happen if the rich & powerful 1% see it as a threat to the financial status-quo. China is already taking steps towards regulation^ and the fact that countries such as North Korea rely on Bitcoin to sponsor shady deals might bring cryptocurrencies in general under serious scrutiny. The enemies of an independent financial system are waiting for their moment to destroy this initiative.

    But then again, there’s other, more devious ways to tarnish the reputation of cryptocurrencies for years to come. For example, a disastrous cryptocurrency crash that will send investors scurrying back to their comfort zones of old. Oh, how banks would love that! I wouldn’t be surprised to see banks one day investing and the next day dumping their Bitcoins faster than most people can escape the collapsing hell. It’s the little guys that usually get squashed during a market crash.

    On an entirely different note, what about the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining? Yes, there is such a thing. In a previous version of this article, I was wondering if this is a worthy question. Just weeks later, this excellent article^ showed up. BitCoin is the worst offender when it comes to wasted energy. During late 2017, mining BitCoin amounted to the output generated by anywhere from 1 to 3 nuclear reactors. All this for a currency that is backed by little more than public sentiment.

    How much will cryptocurrency mining waste in the coming years? There are better things to do with our energy supplies than investing in digital currency. I want and believe in an alternative to the current financial system, but the costs at which it comes might be too great. Fortunately, alternatives to BitCoin are less wasteful, but investing too much of our resources in this digital coin rush seems reckless and even disrespectful towards our ecosystem.

    Update 2017-12-14: A bit over two weeks after publishing this article, the BitCoin fever is still in full swing, with the currency having gained another massive ~20% on top of its already huge price point – all within a single week. Here’s what Reuters had to say about it:

    https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-markets-bitcoin-risks-insight/bitcoin-fever-exposes-crypto-market-frailties-idUSKBN1E724X^

    The risks are higher than ever. If I’d own BitCoin, I’d sell at least 75% right now.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/02551-DoesCryptocurrencyHaveAFuture-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Does Cryptocurrency Have a Future?’ desc=’The cryptocurrency craze is on! The Bitcoin has grown by more than 1200% in about a year.’]

  • A Minute to Breathe

    A Minute to Breathe

    Sometimes art is the best way to get a point across. I could say much more, but let’s leave it at that. See the video, get the message, spread the message (if you care about it):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwwQ4uVGGSE^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/02196-AMinuteToBreathe-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’A Minute to Breathe’ desc=’Sometimes art is the best way to get a point across.’]

  • The Tesla-driving Real Estate Agent

    The Tesla-driving Real Estate Agent

    It was late August, 2016, when my wife and I parked our gasoline-powered Toyota Yaris in front of a house in Tullinge, a suburb of Stockholm. We were there for a showing. We arrived a bit ahead of schedule so we waited patiently in our car. After about five minutes, I saw a beautiful black Tesla car turning onto our street.

    “Oh look, a Tesla”, I tell her.

    This isn’t really a common brand around here. I always enjoy seeing it around because I like it when people support the underdog. It encourages competition. Not to mention that Tesla’s cars are part of a new generation of vehicles that is more forward-looking and cleaner than the outgoing petrol-powered generation.

    To my amusement, the Tesla enters the driveway of the house we are about to view and, sure enough, the real estate agent exits. He brands a neat black suit and gives us a thin smile.

    “Looks like we got an environmentally-friendly agent here”, I enthusiastically tell my wife.

    The guy takes out sign that spells “Visning” (that’s “viewing” in Swedish) and places it at the entrance of the driveway. Then, he strolls over to the house. His car takes up most of the driveway so, he walks close to the garden. On his way towards the entrance, the thin green-leafed branch of a tree gently touches his head.

    He takes one more step forward then suddenly stops, casually steps back and, with a firm and determined hand, proceeds to bend the branch backwards until it snaps. With its new-found shape, the mutilated branch can now be shoved among its sisters so that it can wither away from the foreheads of Homo-sapiens. The cheeky tree will interfere with people going to the viewing no more. It is all done with fluent, calm, precise moves. We’re seeing a true professional at work here.

    It all happens so fast that we are barely able to think about it. As he calmly makes his way to the house to open the door, I find myself looking at my wife and am met by her equally shocked expression.

    “Do we dare to get out of the car? I’m afraid now. This guy is going to break us”, she jokes.

    ***

    I don’t remember if I heard the branch snap, but I have a pretty vivid imagination. I remember how I cringed when he did that. For sure, something snapped inside of me. To better illustrate my level of surprise, imagine how a passenger enters the bus through the front door and presents his ticket to the driver. Everything being in order, the passenger makes a step towards his seat then, as if he forgot something, comes back and punches the driver in the face. After that, he proceeds and takes a seat as if nothing happened. Like the driver, the tree was just doing its job, growing and making the garden prettier. The tall and “environmentally-friendly” agent ruined a thin branch that would have barely touched anybody.

    Sometimes people cheat our expectations in the funniest ways. I saw this guy as some sort of example of environmental-awareness because of the car he drove. Sure, I am fully aware of the fact that real estate agents earn a lot of money, especially during a time when Sweden has been experiencing a decade-long property bubble. Even so, I liked the fact that he chose to buy a Tesla. I was thinking that he’s probably such a swell guy. Perhaps he really is a swell guy, but his gesture betrayed a gross disrespect for environment and life (which is not incompatible at all with being a swell guy, among humans at least).

    I don’t want to paint this man as if he’s an agent of evil. We’re all different. Diversity is beautiful. What we think is right or wrong varies wildly from person to person, especially when it comes to things that our culture doesn’t bother too much educating. I do find it sad that our species finds it easier to bulldoze nature around rather than collaborate with it.

    Perhaps in the world this brother lives in, a low branch barely infringing upon the edge of the driveway counts as a nuisance, but for my wife and I, that branch would have brought our garden closer to us. The very reason why we’re looking to buy a house is exactly so that we can be closer to the earth, with all its life. We’re not fanatics about protecting nature, we’re aware that in order to survive we have to eat and at times manipulate our environment. But there is such a thing as taking it too far.

    So, little did he know that in our eyes, he just committed an act of savagery against our possible future garden. Well, we didn’t get too far in the bidding process for the house anyway. But looking back, I think I should’ve told him, as a joke at least, that his gesture has just decreased our interest in the property with about ten thousand kronor. After all, real estate agents are interested to get as much as possible for a given house. Perhaps he would have thought more carefully about his gesture if a possible customer, especially a non-Swede, would have administered a bit of advice into the ways of respecting nature. Especially since Swedes pride themselves with having an innate respect for the ecosystem.

    I won’t even remotely blame him for his behavior. It’s full of fake environmentalists out there. The only reason I’m even writing this story is because his gesture was in such stark contrast with who I thought I’m dealing with. First impressions can be deceiving.

    More importantly, “deceived first impressions” will matter a lot especially during the first hours spent with a person. The guy turned out to be quite polite and friendly. But the indifference with which he snapped that branch seriously affected my opinion of him. Perhaps this is an exaggerated reaction, but I like to think of it as an indication that I can have empathy towards many forms of life.

    Sure, plants are quite different than us, but they’ve also been here much longer than we have. Plants are the ramp upon which more complex organisms launched themselves into existence, ourselves included.

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  • That Foul Thing We Buried in Greenland

    That Foul Thing We Buried in Greenland

    Late in the sixties, the USA, along with Denmark who controlled Greenland at the time, thought that it’s pretty safe to bury the remnants of a military nuclear reactor within the ice sheet. They assumed continual snowfall would only bury the waste deeper.

    http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2016/0805/What-to-do-about-toxic-waste-buried-in-Greenland-s-rapidly-melting-ice-caps^

    Needless to say, the assumption was not only wrong, but the exact opposite is happening. Due to global warming, in as little as 75 years, the buried remnants will resurface and will have to be dealt with, or else. Or else they’ll enter our ocean.

    Taking care of the problem isn’t really rocket science. Extract the waste, haul it some hundred kilometers north and bury it again, this time in a concrete or metal sarcophagus. It won’t be cheap but it’s probably the easiest solution. A more complicated solution would be to mail it to Washington.

    Sadly, we’ve proven ourselves once again to be incapable of finding a good long-term solution for the mess we’re making through irresponsible use of technology (which is more often than not related to the military industrial complex). But humans eventually learn from past mistakes, even if sometimes the lesson needs to be repeated a hundred too many times.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/00938-ThatFoulThingWeBuriedInGreenland-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’That Foul Thing We Buried in Greenland’ desc=’Late in the sixties, the USA, along with Denmark who controlled Greenland at the time, thought that it's pretty safe to bury the remnants of a military nuclear reactor within the ice sheet.’]

  • To Be or Not to Be an Activist

    To Be or Not to Be an Activist

    Being an activist has never been easy. Even in the 21st century, the death sentence for speaking the wrong words can be delivered unexpectedly by those that happen to disagree for whatever reason. This happens despite millennia of social development, now culminating with a sharp rise in our ability to exercise the right for free speech thanks to the Internet.

    Last month, just before UK’s referendum on whether or not they should stay in the European Union, a member of parliament was killed, probably because she was holding peaceful views in a country that is increasingly dominated by hate. Jo Cox was stabbed, shot, and then stabbed again, in a horrifying illustration of how the wrong politics and education have mutilated our society:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Jo_Cox^

    And, almost four months ago, Berta Cáceres, an activist that was militating for the rights of indigenous people was shot and killed in Honduras.

    http://edition.cnn.com/2016/03/03/americas/honduras-activist-berta-caceres-killed/^

    No, being an activist has never been easy. Yet, some amazing people have not been deterred by the fatal risks. I am humbled and honored to know that I have lived among such courageous beings. These two women, along with countless others sisters and brothers throughout history, have led us out of savagery and hate.

    I dream of a day when any man or woman can express their thoughts without fear of death. Even more, I dream of a day when everybody will care about what these driven individuals have to say. The most important thing that I believe we should all be aware of is that it is within our power to change our society’s course. Don’t let this blood be spilled without a change. Don’t let any more blood be spilled…

    Updated 2016-07-20: today the news came out that another “inconvenient” person was murdered, this time in Ukraine. Rest in peace, Pavel Sheremet^.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/00805-BertaCaceresToBeOrNotToBeActivist-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’To Be or Not to Be an Activist’ desc=’Being an activist has never been easy. Even in the 21st century, the death sentence for speaking the wrong words can be delivered unexpectedly by those that happen to disagree for whatever reason.’]

  • Mitsubishi’s 25 Years of Lies

    Mitsubishi’s 25 Years of Lies

    Not even a year has passed since Volkswagen was caught cheating emission tests. The scandal that followed pummeled the company’s stock value and profits. But now, the German automaker has to stand aside for a bit, because we have a new champion of deception. Mitsubishi has been at it for 25 years:

    http://time.com/4308223/mitsubishi-motors-fuel-testing-cheating/^

    It’s almost impossible to estimate how much damage this has done to human health in Japan, but it’s probably a lot. By doctoring emission tests, there was less pressure for the company to improve its cars. Those cars are still out there on the streets and they won’t be going anywhere for some time.

    Studies regarding how many people die yearly due to air pollution are inconclusive. This one puts the figure at three million, yearly^. What is certain is that pollution will shorten and decrease the quality of life for everybody. What’s even scarier is that, by now, it’s pretty obvious that most vehicles on our streets today have been sold with understated pollution records (other companies have been caught cheating or admitted that this is a wide-spread practice). Exactly on the day when I published this article, Suzuki was in the news^ regarding their fuel economy lies.

    I’ve said a while back that we’re partially to blame for the behavior of companies in the past decades. I don’t want to defend Mitsubishi, but the company has an additional excuse in the fact that it’s from Japan. Their culture is one of extreme performance. There’s even a special word for people who die from being over-worked^.

    Under these conditions, I am not entirely surprised that a bunch of engineers decided to lie to their superiors in order to look well at the salary review. In more ways than one, Japan is one of the worst cases of mixing Western values with another culture.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/00599-Mitsubishi25YearsLies-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Mitsubishi's 25 Years of Lies’ desc=’Not even a year has passed since Volkswagen was caught cheating emission tests. Mitsubishi has been at it for 25 years.’]

  • A Few Words About the Wonderful Mining Industry

    A Few Words About the Wonderful Mining Industry

    When the balance sheet looks bad, what’s a good executive to do? Cut worker benefits, of course! A bankrupt coal mining company just agreed to give millions of dollars in bonuses to its managers, as a reward for their clever financial strategy. I’d be more sarcastic if it wasn’t so damn tragic.

    Here’s the article that breaks the story:

    http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2016/02/16/3749331/coal-company-executive-payments/^

    It’s not the first time when these mining conglomerates are meat-grinding their own employees. From disastrous oil spills^ to catastrophic dam breaks^, down to transforming pristine nature into apocalyptic landscapes^, there are but a few crimes against the ecosystem that mining companies haven’t committed yet – don’t ask for a list.

    When are we going to wake up to the fact that our current economic model is not only unsustainable, but downright murderous? Mining companies are the scourge of the Earth. I suppose they have the excuse that they’re just following orders – it’s our society that “needs” their goods. The truly disgusting thing is that while all this is going on, politicians pad their bank accounts and judges look the other way.

    It’s quite hard to be balanced when analyzing this subject, almost impossible to be diplomatic. I am aware that we should be understanding towards investors and other interested parties. But when a CEO is paid 8 million dollars, it’s very difficult to argue in favor of cutting health and disability benefits for the company’s workers. There’s only one name such practices can be given: slavery.

    Unless we urge our governments to intervene, this situation will only get worse, because these corporations with bully mentality will only become more daring with every passing year. If they do this to their workers, it’s easy to extrapolate and realize that they’re applying the same budget cuts when it comes to maintenance and safety protocols. No wonder we’re hit by one environmental catastrophe after another.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/00372-AboutTheWonderfulMiningIndustry-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’A Few Words About the Wonderful Mining Industry’ desc=’When the balance sheet looks bad, what's a good executive to do? Cut worker benefits, of course! A bankrupt coal mining company just agreed to give millions of dollars in bonuses to its managers, as a reward for their clever financial strategy.’]

  • How the Stock Market Drives Companies Insane

    How the Stock Market Drives Companies Insane

    In the past decade, we’ve witnessed countless cases of companies breaking the law and harming the environment in their frenetic quest for profits. The most recent high profile case is Volkswagen’s cheating in the emissions scandal^. Or was the toxic spill from a mine in Brazil^ worse? In case we’re undecided, perhaps the disastrous explosion in China^ can take the prize? All of these happened in the space of four months in 2015.

    Now, just think about how many companies get away with extremely dangerous practices just because we haven’t caught them or because disaster hasn’t struck yet. I believe there is an explanation for these behaviors. And, as it is often the case, understanding the causes of an undesired behavior can give us clues about how we can change it.

    A life-form analogy

    Profit is the motivating force behind a company’s decisions. Following a natural tendency, the individuals that have teamed up to form a commercial entity share the desire for prosperity. This collaboration between individuals is similar to the association of more cells that constitute a multi-cellular organism. Companies can therefore be seen as a sort of life-form. The environment where many of the larger life-forms exist is called the stock market.

    One of the most important changes that the stock market has seen in the past decades is the worrying drop in stock ownership time. Actually, this has outright plummeted in recent years. What this means is that companies have less time to prove themselves to investors and, often, this negatively impacts their long-term strategies.

    The stock market is forcing corporations to make a profit as large and as soon as possible, lest investors simply pull the plug and move on to the next “growth opportunity”. This childish attitude on the part of the investing public forces many economic entities into a ruthless quest for profit. The alternative is death and, like any life-form, a company will do everything in its power to survive.

    As with all ecosystems, there is a relationship of interdependence between companies and the stock market. While companies adapt to their environment, they also have the power to change that environment. The problem is that, for the time being, there’s a lot of greed and paranoia swirling inside this ecosystem.

    The rules of the game

    If the stock market influences the companies’ behavior, it stands to reason that skillful changes in the market could help companies to become friendlier. The main issue in the investment game is that most of the players are, to put it mildly, uneducated. Fewer investors than ever hold a company’s stock for more than a year. Like hyper-active children, most of them stumble into speculation, fattening the paychecks of brokers and stressing out everybody in the market.

    With or without the stock market, companies are bound to sometimes play dirty due to their desire for profit. Unfortunately, the lack of proper investment principles on the part of the public becomes yet another reason to adopt bad policies and take massive risks.

    A ruthless stock market may mean better profits for a while, but it’s us breathing in Volkswagen’s fumes; losing our planet under mountains of sludge; having our life blown to bits due to the fact that some manager decided to improve his bottom line by neglecting the security of a warehouse that contains 900 tons of ammonium nitrate. I’m referring, of course, to the three articles that are linked in the first paragraph.

    We’ve built a jungle-like environment for these corporate life-forms, and we’re reaping the rewards. As companies are becoming more and more disconnected from humanity, our values and ideals become secondary – all bow in front of the throne of the quarterly financial statements. It’s survival of the fittest.

    Solutions

    The most obvious way to break this vicious circle we’re in is, of course, education; not only financial education, but also psychological education. Financially, investors need to understand the concept of long-term investments. Psychologically, they need to be prepared to weather the ups and downs of the stock market and to hold onto their assets (provided that those assets are of a company that the investor truly cares about, has vetted and has faith in its long-term vision).

    Certain changes of policy must be applied on the companies’ end as well. We should take back our governments from the greedy claws of lobbyists. Through the increased independence thus gained, we can facilitate the creation of a strict code of conduct for corporations, enforceable through larger fines and increased regulation.

    Some will cry that this will stifle innovation. Perhaps it will, to a certain degree, which is why any such measures must be taken together with the companies and the people that brought their success. Let us not forget that these entities are comprised of our brothers and sisters.

    Too many times have we, as a species, decided that we know best when we intervene in an ecosystem. We must heed the delicate balance of the stock market and the companies that inhabit it. Now is the time for dialogue, for finding a harmonious way to co-exist with these corporations, before they decide that they don’t have any need for humans. Even if we don’t manage to create true artificial intelligence, automated processes will continue to make humans obsolete.

    Note 1: For those interested in the stock market, I can recommend one of the best books I’ve ever read on the subject of financial and psychological education in investment: Benjamin Graham’s “The Intelligent Investor”. Warren Buffett is one of the author’s students.

    Note 2: I’ve entered the stock market roughly 8 months ago and so far, never sold a single stock. I’ve invested in two established, dividend-paying North-American semiconductor companies, one major software company and a promising (but high-risk) computer games studio in Sweden.

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