Social Cannibalism:
SimplyRecipes.com vs. SimplyRawRecipes.com
The indoctrination of corporate thinking begins at a very young age. We begin this process by allowing our children to believe that things are more important than people. If you have more than one child, how often have you bought two of something in the name of fairness? When young children fight over a toy, the resolution is usually determined by who owns it, or they’re forced to share, a solution that guarantees resentment. Right out of the gate we unwittingly teach our children that things are more important than people. These everyday situations could be used as an opportunity to build our children’s character instead of indoctrinating them with the corporate mindset.
When I saw this dynamic begin to play out in my household, I took the problematic toy away and told my children I wouldn’t allow them to put an object before their relationship. I explained how important their relationship is and how unimportant things are. Of course my children still argue over toys, but I continue to enforce my indoctrination of people over things.
When I look at some of the very acceptable attitudes held in our society, especially in business, I can’t help but think how off track we are, how we need to go back to preschool and relearn the importance of people over things. I believe these dysfunctional attitudes are the seeds for war and the destruction of our environment.
Mike Lieberman’s situation is a good example. Mike stepped out of the corporate world because he recognized its dysfunction and its things over people mentality. He blogs on his site simplyrawrecipes.com to share knowledge on how to improve health and the environment. This guy cares so much about people, he keeps sandwiches in his backpack to hand out to the homeless throughout the day.
Not long ago, Mike received two threatening letters saying he needed to take down his blog site. The first was from Elise Bauer, the owner of Simply Recipes, the second from her lawyer. It is their stance that the name Simply Raw Recipes is too similar to Simply Recipes and therefore it infringes on her trademark.
Mike wrote a blog post about the situation and soon the comment section was flooded with posts. While many supported Mike, many others spouted the things over people mentality. The opposition argued that the other site owner MUST defend her trademark, that to do so is following the law. Those who commented in Mike’s defense were chastised for being ignorant. It didn’t matter that Mike’s site wasn’t a threat to Elise’s site. The only thing that mattered was their belief that Elise MUST protect her trademark in the name of the law.
To that I say, “Huh?”
Even a well known green blogger spoke up and shared his things over people attitude, when he told Mike to move to Sweden if he didn’t like our trademark laws. He said Mike shouldn’t even have a blog if he doesn’t have the money to defend it.
To that I say, “WTF?”
This mindset is social cannibalism.
In a things over people world, the business owner is obligated to protect her business over all else. This is no different than a corporation choosing a higher profit for shareholders over fair labor rights or over protection of our land, water, and air.
In a people over things society, Elise Bauer would have assessed the situation a little more thoroughly before lawyering up. She would have seen that Mike Lieberman’s raw food audience is very different than her standard American diet audience. And even more to the point, she wouldn’t have cared.
The only way to stop injustices on a global scale is to be aware of them on a personal scale. We have to be responsible on a higher moral level than the law enforces. We need to put people above things, business, profit, etc. We need to be conscious of how to handle ourselves, not just in business relationships, but in every relationship.
Changing the way the world thinks may be an impossible task. But changing the way I think and being aware of my own thoughts and actions is in itself a world changing act. I know that I need to ask myself, “What or who am I trying to protect my things from? Where in my life am I putting things over people?” I need to ask myself those questions often until a people over things mentality is my only mentality.
"Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again." -- Og Mandino
Jeanne Weierheiser
