Lex Libertas

Dalai Lama on Western Extravagance

My feeling on the Dalai Lama is that he's hit-and-miss. Sometimes he's right on, other times he's way off mark. For example, in the first part of this article, he says that killing Osama bin Laden would cause ten more to be created. I don't buy that logic at all. I don't think that there is anyone on the margin who would be pushed into terrorism if Osama was killed. There are probably people that would become terrorists if a family member was killed, but I don't think Osama's death would push anyone over the edge that hasn't already crossed that line.

That said, I really have to agree with his critique on Western affluence:

In the West, you have bigger homes, yet smaller families; you have endless conveniences -- yet you never seem to have any time. You can travel anywhere in the world, yet you don't bother to cross the road to meet your neighbours.

I don't think people have become more selfish, but their lives have become easier and that has spoilt them. They have less resilience, they expect more, they constantly compare themselves to others and they have too much choice -- which brings no real freedom."

I would also add, and I'm sure he'd agree, that while we are so materially rich, many of us are spiritually empty.