The old saying ''He who rides a tiger is afraid to dismount.'' has been in my mind a lot lately. Each time is see the economic news the same model is trotted out over and over. To get jobs we have to have economic growth. To have growth we have to consume more. This seems like a prescription for how to go to hell more quickly. We are consuming our children's future as we ramp up consumption today and exploit resources they will need tomorrow. What are the ways to get off the consumption creates demand for stuff.... which creates demand for jobs..... which can create more stuff ...... What are the possibilities for community in thinking about ways to take a different path? Will leaders help us learn together to see new ways?
I wanted to get this thread started as we combine our economic anxiety with the great spending and consumption binge that is the economy of the Christmas season. What do you think?
Some background:
From Yahoo Answers
''Ch'i 'hu nan hsia pei'' is the original Chinese proverb, translated as ''He who rides a tiger is afraid to dismount.'' A rough interpretation of the proverb would be ''Once a dangerous or troublesome venture is begun, the safest course is to carry it through to the end'' . Or in plain speak, it is easy to get on the Tiger but very difficult to get off without incurring danger to oneself.
For some comparison on United States spending and saving see
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/25/opinion/why-we-spend-why-they-save.html
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