Day 114: The Psychology of Crimes against Life: Capitalism Part 2 Death in the work place - the solution

This blog is a follow up on:

Day 113: The Psychology of Crimes against Life: Capitalism Part 1: Death in the work place.

"MUMBAI, INDIA — Global clothing brands involved in Bangladesh’s troubled garment industry responded in starkly different ways to the building collapse that killed more than 600 people.

Some quickly acknowledged their links to the tragedy and promised compensation. Others denied they authorized work at factories in the building even when their labels were found in the rubble. 

The first approach seems to deserve plaudits for honesty and compassion. The second seems calculated to minimize damage to a brand by maximizing distance from the disaster. Communications professionals say both are public relations strategies and neither may be enough to protect companies from the stain of doing business in Bangladesh.

There have been several deadly disasters and fires in Bangladesh’s $20 billion garment industry in the past six months. A factory fire killed 112 workers in November and a January blaze killed seven. As a result, experts say, possibly the only way retailers and clothing brands can protect their reputations is to visibly and genuinely work to overhaul safety in Bangladesh’s garment factories.

“Just public relations is not going to do it,” said Caroline Sapriel, managing director of CS&A, a firm that specializes in crisis reputation management.

Minimum wage: $38 monthly 

Over the past decade major players in the fashion industry have flocked to Bangladesh, where a minimum wage of about $38 a month has helped boost profits in a global business worth $1 trillion a year. Clothing and textiles now make up 80 percent of Bangladesh’s exports and employ several million people.

Yet the country’s worker safety record has become so notorious that the reputational risks of doing business there may have become too great — even for retailers and brands that didn’t work with factories in the collapsed Rana Plaza building or the Tazreen Fashions factory that burned late last year.

“I don’t think it’s enough any more to say, ‘We’re not involved in these particular factories,’ ” Sapriel said. 

Many clothing brands were quick to distance themselves from the five factories that were housed in Rana Plaza. The building, which was not designed for industrial use and had three illegally added levels, collapsed April 24.

Labels found in rubble 

Benetton said none of the factories was its authorized supplier, although Benetton labels were found in the rubble. Spain’s Mango said it hadn’t bought clothing from Rana Plaza factories but acknowledged it had been in talks with one factory to produce a test batch of clothing.

German clothing company KiK said it was “surprised, shocked and appalled” to learn its T-shirts and tops were found in the rubble. The company said it stopped doing business with the Rana Plaza factories in 2008. It promised an investigation.

Wal-Mart said there was no authorized production of its clothing lines at Rana Plaza but it was investigating whether there was unapproved subcontracting. Swedish retailer H&M, the single largest customer of Bangladeshi garment factories, said none of its clothes was produced there.

The Walt Disney Co. in March responded to publicity from last year’s fire at the Tazreen factory, where its branded clothing was found, by pulling out of Bangladesh production altogether.

A few come forward 

Only a few companies, including Britain’s Primark and Canada’s Loblaw Inc., which owns the Joe Fresh clothing line, have acknowledged production at Rana Plaza and promised compensation. Loblaw’s CEO said there were 28 other brands and retailers using the five factories and urged them to end their “deafening silence.” 

Companies downplaying involvement in Bangladesh’s factory safety problems may be counting on the short memories of Western consumers, who tend to focus on price and may not even check where a piece of clothing has been made. But that’s a risky strategy, said Rahul Sharma, public affairs executive with the India-based public relations firm Genesis Burston-Marsteller. 

“Reputation is built over a long period of time. But to lose it, it can take seconds,” Sharma said. 

Sharma said that if he were advising any retailer doing business in Bangladesh, he would recommend swift action in the form of a concrete plan to overhaul the entire industry, working with government, factory owners and labor unions. 

“They need to send out the message that they are addressing this problem — and then they need to actually do it,” he said."

Source: http://www.tennessean.com/viewart/20130507/BUSINESS01/305070035/Reputations-risk-Bangladesh-after-building-collapse


 Following up on the previous blog with examples of tragedies in the work place - considering for myself as I am sure you have done - whether I would find this type of living acceptable for myself or others - I answered NO. Look for yourself at the reason and purpose of 'working' - for the 'working-class' it has become an ABSOLUTE point of survival without it you are pretty 'screwed' and within it you are still limited to a life of survival depending on the job you get and the debt bracket you find yourself in. Either way - life on this planet - has unfortunately become about supporting those who have money to make more money. Therefore the rich are not the ones to die in these tragic accidents - because they send the working force as cheap labour - cheap lives - to do literally 'the dirty work'.

All other aspects of our lives are then also controlled for one outcome - profit an greed. Therefore most are unable to afford health care, a comfortable life style, sufficient nutrition, clean water, a decent education etc - all the things which the human physical (and animal) body requires to sustain its Life.

This becomes the next question then doesn't it - why do we value our own lives so much that we would go into extreme forms of fear - at the idea or picture of our lives plummeting into such disastrous circumstances - all for the purpose of making a few rich -and yet we do not consider that others also do not want to DIE and/or live in suffering and misery? Therefore we see here another example of the Human Psychology behind suffering - we accept that suffering is a 'natural' part of life - which indicates Mental Dysfunction from my perspective - and then we wil actually within our society 'filter' who we believe should we selected - before us (please 'god') - to be placed in these situations of suffering and abuse.

For example - all humans secretly believe that it is ok for those who are suffering in these minimum-wage slave labour situations to be there and also secretly believe that there is a divine plan by some cosmic foce why it is happening 'to them' and not me. Again looking at the Mind-set of the serial killer, mass murderer and one prone to violent crimes - as I covered in previous blogs - we can draw a parallel here between the Psychotic Mind Set - of taking the lives of others and inflicting suffering for 'my survival and pleasure'. This is the common denominator between all who stand by and allow abuse to others - so that 'my self-interest/freedom of choice' is maintained. Why else would we all firstly as society accept the harsh living conditions of a large portion of the world population and then SECONDLY and most curiously - we will defend the same system that are responsible for the suffering of millions - by a) fighting to keep the same system because we dont want others to have what we do and even b) threatening any new system that works towards the removal of all corruptive/life abusive systems - to work with the implementation of Life-Supportive Systems...


Further reading: 


 http://marlenvargasdelrazo.wordpress.com/2013/01/30/287-you-get-happy-with-your-paycheck/

http://marlenvargasdelrazo.wordpress.com/2013/02/02/289-our-lives-as-money-making-machines/

http://marlenvargasdelrazo.wordpress.com/2013/02/03/290-how-to-end-slave-servility-equal-money/



Interviews:

Bernard Poolman - What the FAQ - Equal Money System

Life Review - The relationship between Fear of Death and Money

Day 113: The Psychology of Crimes against Life: Capitalism Part 1: Death in the work place.

In the following series I will be exploring some common sense insights and considerations into the Psychology behind the crimes against Life, that occur within and due to the Capitalistic System -which has become the one system - we all have to live by, cannot avoid - but suffer the most within - through our lives from the moment of birth until we die. In the blogs I will explore various avenues/dimensions of ur Capitalistic System, to show and share the direct situations of Abuse that could be prevented if we as Humanity came together to change such a system - however - no matter how much Abuse and suffering happens every day - humanity will not and does not consider changing the Capitalistic System. Instead as I have noticed most support the system and wil even defend it vigorously as if we have been brainwashed into believing that no matter how bad it gets - we do not and will not question Capitalism - as if the Earth itself was created with Capitalism in place - and not simply a man made creation, created with so many flaws and inconsiderations, which are now allowed to run automatically on our behalf with the majority of beings on this planet, crying out in pain and suffering each second of each day - indicating that Capitalism itself has been the biggest Holocaust - the biggest form of Mass Murder known in the History of Mankind - and yet strangely enough - nobody cares?

Why is this allowed to happen, how did we get to a point where we decided that Hitlers Holocaust is absolutely unacceptable and to even speak of someone like Hitler without hate and content, will result in internet attacks and questions to your Humanity - and yet that which kills and maims and tortures the most individuals to date - Capitalism - is not only left to proceed with its destruction on Life - but is never questioned by the same Humans who claim to not agree with Murder, Mass Murder, Rape, Child Abuse, Suffering, Holocausts, Victimisation, Starvation, Animal Abuse etc... but if it is done in the name of a system that we could change if we wanted to - but seem to not want to change - then it remains 'ok'. How did we do the maths?

So in the blogs I will share crimes against life by Capitalism plus the Psychology (the psyche of the Human) behind why we say we do not support Harm - but continue to support Harm. The question is, why do we keep turning a blind eye?



I start this series with a recent event in the news:

Daughter’s agony as she discovers her mother is among 230 dead in Primark factory disaster while rescuers fight to save survivors screaming in the rubble

"Bangladeshi rescue workers are continuing their increasingly desperate for survivors in a collapsed clothes factory building where workers made cheap clothes for Primark.
Hundreds were killed when the eight-storey Rana Plaza in Savar on the outskirts of Dhakar collapsed yesterday, the day after cracks were seen in its walls. The death toll continues to rise and currently stands at more than 230. Forty people have been pulled alive from the rubble today.
There were agonising scenes of grief as relatives lined up to identify corpses laid outside a local school building. One woman screamed in anguish as she reached out to her mother, pulled dead from the heartbreaking scene of destruction."
-40 people pulled alive from the rubble today after building collapse which killed more than 230 people
-Police said factory owners appeared to have ignored a warning after crack was detected on Tuesday
-Workers tell how they were threatened with the sack if they refused to go work after seeing the cracks
- Charges of criminal negligence have been filed against the building's owner."

We tend to look at these pictures and feel a pang of fear, anxiety and it sickens us for a moment - the thought moves through our mind 'oh shame those poor people' and then we might consider our lives, our safety in the work place and the safety of our family and close friends when they leave for work in the mornings - And that is pretty much it. Have you noticed as I have, that no matter how many gut-wrenching pictures people show of horrible tragedies that happen each day, each second to people, animals and the planet - nothing happens, nothing stirs within the human other than shallow emotional reactions and further thoughts of fear around 'hoping this does not happen to me or my family. Other than that - have you noticed that other than developing all sorts of Fear thoughts and reactions within the Mind - and holding onto religion and Hope as a means of alleviating the Fear in our minds in relation to what 'could happen to us', to 'our families' when we leave our homes for the day - NOTHING -no action, no words, no changing of anything - why? Why have we detached ourselves from this reality and yet we have such an extensive Fear of this reality - as these events unfold each day? Firstly, we acknowledge that these events are very real and very painful and could cause the end of ones life. This drives us, as I mentioned previously to heightened fears about our world, ourselves, our children and others - as we live in constant worry and Fear about what 'others' could do to us. However - we do not stop to question why these things happened, and then when faced with the simplicity actually of why these things happened, most humans - as I have noted for myself turn tail and run in the opposite direction. Most will then deny that the underlying cause is in fact the underlying cause and will make up all kinds of excuses once faced with the reality of why the underlying system that was the direct result of such a tragedy is still ACCEPTABLE and OK - though the agreement of Mankind.

So here I draw a parallel between the two points I mentioned in the first section of my blog - we just dont care enough. How did we get to this point? Do we notice that something is off with our Empathy and our Humility -that we shed tears for Movie stars, but do nothing about real Suffering? Another example of our pre-selected system of 'caring and love': If a parent is faced with a child molesterer wanting to take their child - the pattern will do whatever they can, even threaten their own safety to ensure that the child remains safe, is never harmed and the child molesterer will be hunted down and prosecuted. However when it comes to Abuse to Life on this planet for the Self Interest of Man - then we choose and protect the Self Interest of the Individual with the biggest voice over the Rights of the Individuals that are harmed - such as in the case of Corporations and the fundamentals of Capitalism that we as Society - the Consumers and the ones that support those who implement and control the System. We are the ones allowing the Abuser not only to continue - but we will smile and agree and even reason - as to why this Abuser has all the right to do what he/she does. As long as it is not me and my family being harmed - as sad as it is this as we have come to see - has only resulted in ALL humans existing in FEAR ALL the time - because we actually know and understand - that if those people could die in a collapsed building - what prevents me from dying tomorrow on my way or at my workplace? God, aliens, hope, my lucky charms, some cosmic plan? Here I will not yet go into the Illusions and Delusions we use to Cope with these constant fears and understanding of what might happen to us - you know those coping mechanisms like religion, drugs, entertainment etc. If you look inside the Mind of ALL humans equally - you will see individual Fears around the what' if's - where each human smiles and puts on a brave smile as we leave our door. We all have the exact same fears of death, fear of survival, fear of being hurt - and yet we all Lie to each other and claim we are not in Fear - that we are protected because we are lucky or god loves us or we paid our way to our place in the world and therefore Greed and Deception cannot take our lives...

Myself for example - I ask myself the question - would I want to go to work tomorrow and Die in a horrible accident - willingly - knowing that cheap clothes can be sold to the public - which allows the Wealthy Elite to become richer - ABSOLUTELY NOT! - and I challenge any human to place ourselves in the shoes of the person who dies for someone else MONEY - for GREED - so that the minority may experience ABSOLUTE ABUNDANCE and WEALTH. Would you trade shoes with every being that is harmed in every most excruciating way each day on this planet in the name of the capitalistic system - the system that not only is the only way we have chosen to Live currently but hold each of us - by choice prisoner to this system of 'Life', 'Death' and 'Struggle'.



To be continued...


More recent News:

'There was a foot of dust... it was like 9/11': Shock as 100-year-old building collapses to ground in a pile of rubble