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The inspiration to start this blog came to me after seeing Andrew Bacevich, the guest interviewed on the Bill Moyers Journal. Mr. Moyers quotes from Mr. Bacevich’s book, “The pursuit of freedom, as defined in an age of consumerism, has induced a condition of dependence on imported goods, on imported oil, and on credit. The chief desire of the American people is that nothing should disrupt their access to these goods, that oil, and that credit. The chief aim of the U.S. government is to satisfy that desire, which it does in part through the distribution of largesse here at home, and in part through the pursuit of imperial ambitions abroad.” Mr. Moyers continues, “ In other words, you’re saying that our foreign policy is the result of a dependence on consumer goods and credit.”

Mr. Bacevich goes on to say that there is a negative trade deficit with the world to the order of about $800 billion per year. “That’s $800 billion of stuff that we buy, so that we can consume, that is $800 billion greater than the amount of stuff that we sell to them. That’s a big number. I mean, it’s a big number even relative to the size of our economy.” Mr. Bacevich expresses in his book that we need to look at ourselves before change can happen to alleviate the crisis at home and abroad.

To me, the need to look at ourselves is what the spiritual journey is all about. It’s that coming home to ourselves as I mentioned in my last post, that is going to be the key to solving our own and the world’s problems. It takes great courage to embark on the spiritual journey in the face of going against the flow of society and its lifestyle based on a false sense of freedom and happiness from consuming more and more. President Bush said just two weeks or so after 9/11, “Go to Disney World. Go shopping.” In other words, distract yourself, so you don’t have to look at what is going on around you and how it connects to you. The spiritual path is the path of the warrior. It takes great strength, discipline and endurance.