DUCKPOND

Growth, properly understood, when it applies to living things or economies is qualitative in nature, which is not to say it cannot be misunderstood in quantitative terms. Growth, as a concept, like energy, is not easy to clarify and explain. Hence, among other reasons, my reference to Gestalt theory.

Measurement might be treated with caution. My doctor tells me when examining a patient, it is not sufficient to work through all the recommended decision trees of diagnosis, the process is not completed until the gut feel, the global sense is satisfied.

Our quantitative goals can sometimes miss the point. According to Dannielle Teutsch, in the Sun-Herald:

AUSTRALIANS are resigned to the fact their political leaders are taking them down a path of economic reform in the pursuit of greater material wealth, but that is not where they want to be heading, a survey reveals. Instead, an overwhelming majority of people – 93 per cent – polled for the Ipsos Mackay survey said they would prefer a greener, more community-based society.

Richard Eckersley, a fellow at the ANU’s National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, said the survey showed a widening gulf between political attitudes and public opinion. “The future, as seen by political leaders, is based on a strong economy and higher wages, but that’s not the future Australians want,” Mr Eckersley said.

A prime example was the voter backlash against the Federal Government’s industrial relations legislation, he said. “It suggests that we need to think about whether the future our leaders are promising us – the fast-paced, high-tech, good life scenario – makes for a high quality of life,” he said. “Growth is not the main game any more.”

I am incredulous that this is what Australians say they want, and I would expect such a sentiment, if true, to be reflected in comparable societies.

There were reports, which I did not link to, suggesting that people were experiencing increased levels of stress due to the intensification of work, which can become antithetical to productive learning and creativity. Work without creativity, is life without meaning. For example, consider this report , of the International Futures Forum, as giving substance to my shadow-play sketch.

Postscript: I have deliberately mixed a few things together here. It is not that they are unrelated, in my view, but require to be reconfiqured, so as to be seen anew.