Foreclosure Crisis in USA Has Raked Up Questions About Eternal Values of Equality in Society

April 29th, 2009 | Tags: Foreclosure Crisis

The foreclosure crisis in USA has been a slap on the face – it has raked up questions about eternal values of equality in society. While the housing market and the economy in general smoulder, people are doing a lot of rethinking about the principles that run our society. Out of the ashes is rising the ideal of human equality.

The tears from the burning smoke is returning us to the humane side of mankind A book by Professor Richard Wilkinson and Dr. Kate Pickett highlights tickling issues. The book is The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better. The book is the fruit of 25 years of research work. It material provides us with the indicators with which to reconstruct our societies. It outlines a practical approach to make our life and living radically better. Wanting to do so is always a nagging need in the human psyche – the goal to reach Utopia.

The last hundred years the obvious way of improving human life was to lift up the material standards of living. It was simple – give us food and water – plenty of it, right here and now. But reams of study are showing that once basic needs have been satisfied and it crosses the magic number of $25,000 – something also changes.

We go on hoarding and hoarding because we have been taught to think that this will translate into happiness. But the reverse happens – the more we have the less happy are we. After sometime this uncontrolled running after riches make us miserable and erodes our basic human values.

From the crown of feathers and skulls in the ancient world to the Kohinoor diamond in the royal crown – status is something that man has always coveted after the first two basics of food and shelter. In evolutionary terms we have only lived a few minutes outside the stage of being egalitarian groups of hunter-gatherers. Thus when we feel our status is being compromised we begin to malfunction in many ways. When the status or position is threatened our hearts and lungs pick up speed, our blood vessels shrink and we burn up energy very fast. The body opts for either fighting or in taking flight. Cortisol floods our system. For a short period it is stimulating and helps one to run away from the lion. But if this goes on for days on end running into weeks and months serious ailments set in.

The foreclosure crisis was one such symptom of the ailment.