The last few issues on my blog all dealt with looking beyond your nose. It seems in a world that has become more interconnected, we at the same time developed or held on to shortsightedness, a localism. It seems logical that even in a connected world, the individual interprets everything from within his own context. This is what he or she knows best. The question is, what is his or her context?

When we are bombarded with information through television, internet and advertising how do we cope and define what we are? Are we ourselves determining or is our context determining through these elements? Do we make judgments by mere reasoning or by the sentiments evoked by these information sources? Some economists think that we judge merely by reasoning, but one listening to the radio or television would beg to differ. If we objectified everything then locality would not be an issue. Facts would be facts. Some have argued that sentiments are playing a larger role than before. I would hope not, as it would mean our context, our reference, would be short-termed. The sentiments evoked by news and advertising e.g. do not allow taking distance when we are too caught up in them. And it is distance we need in times of crisis before we can get hands-on.

I wonder if this same localism has penetrated our consumption, because do we realize when we spent our money, we set in motion a whole chain of business? Whatever we spent our money on, that’s what we support. The money represents the energy it took to make it. When we work sixty hours a week, that’s a lot of energy. So when we spent it, it’s not just that we receive a good in exchange, but we keep that chain of business alive by giving it our energy. This chain is not necessary local and the consequences may well reach beyond our understanding. Easily put, when we buy diamonds, they may well be blood diamonds. Someone in Africa may have sweat his or her blood for your jewels and if we continue to buy these diamonds, we keep giving it our energy.

Don’t misinterpret me; my vision is just as much blurred by my locality. I just strive to look beyond my nose, so I won’t end up like Dick Fuld (pictured above). More in 2009.