Musings on the topic of 'Growth' - Part 5

but there is growth and there is growth…

Dec 26, 2024

[Part 5 of a series including the following tentative headings:

permanence of freedom [Part 1]
growth paradigms [Part 2]
growth strategies [Part 3]
purpose and meaning [Part 4]
but there is growth, and there is growth… [Part 5]
expanding the paradigm [Part 6]
[This is Part 5 of a six-part article on the topic of ‘Growth’. Parts 1, 2, 3 & 4 are available here: [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6]]

but there is growth and there is growth…

Aspects of growth that play major part in the choices individuals, businesses and nations make daily are being evidenced through other examples too. These provide a sense of what community is all about while pointing to a type of growth we may not judge desirable.

Here is the perspective on the growth or spread of the coronavirus from outside China, from Taiwan particularly, right at the beginning of the pandemic:

The United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently listed six countries with significant community transmission on their website, including Taiwan. The remaining countries were Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. In addition, the CDC also ranked Hong Kong's tourism warnings as ‘first level’, calling on visitors to Hong Kong to pay more attention to the coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) epidemic. There are currently 24 confirmed cases in Taiwan. [1]

The CDC website states that ‘community spread’ means that people have been infected with the virus, but that some cases include situations where the origin of the infection and other conditions are unknown. As for the four major signs of community transmission outlined by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the source of infection cannot be found in confirmed cases. The number of local infection cases has far exceeded the number of overseas migration cases. A continuous transmission chain has emerged, and a widespread cluster of infections have occurred.

The CDC did not list Taiwan as a province of China but wrote ‘Taiwan’ directly. In its National Tourism Alert today the CDC issued warnings for China as a ‘third-level red’, and Hong Kong as a ‘first-level green’. As for the six countries apparently included in the community alert, including Taiwan, was there a travel warning? The CDC will continue to assess the status of the epidemic. [2]

One of my internet news one-minute reads dated February 18, 2020, says:

Apple may miss mass production schedule for new, cheaper iPhone – Nikkei [3]

Another one reads:

APPLE CRUMBLES Apple hit by coronavirus outbreak as tech giant admits deadly disease has caused iPhone shortages and low revenues [4]

This article goes on to say:

Coronavirus has killed over 1800 people worldwide and infected over 73,000 to date. The official figure is disputed however due to a renewed clampdown on free speech in the country leading some to believe that the real numbers are far higher. The closure of factories in China, which make up 25 per cent of global factory labour, is having a massive impact internationally as many firms rely on them for making everything from phones to cars to clothing. Countries importing to Chinese consumers and tourism have already reported suffocating financial growth. There are fears that the crisis could cause Japan to fall into a recession and limit Europe’s already weak growth. [5]

The negative consequences triggered by the growth of phenomena that undermines the positive aspect of societal development, but which is, in effect, a type of growth (negative forces, events, trends, etc.), [6] must also be considered in conjunction and with as much, if not greater attention than those that lead society to grow in a positive or orthodox way.

Merely concentrating our attention on what makes us richer, healthier, happier, loftier, and or greater is a largely distorted approach when it is clear, no matter what aspect of our planet’s existence we consider, that the growth we all experience has negative as well as positive properties.

In dealing with both, we are bound to benefit from paying closer attention, seeking further understanding, and focussing on preparing for what, in the light of history and recurring experience in the realms of health, politics, agriculture, industry, science, or in thought itself, have proven to be detrimental elements within the life cycles of all sentient beings sharing the planet.

Acknowledging the precedence of the growth exchange with both positive and negative consequences, the nature and ultimate power of this relationship in daily endeavours, those of self and other alike, through personal, non-judgemental example mainly, may help refocus our activities on to the sun-like splendour of a freedom whose reality we frequently fail to recognise in the growth cycles of our lives.

[This is Part 5 of a six-part article on the topic of ‘Growth’. Parts 1, 2, 3 & 4 are available here: [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6]]

Musings on the topic of 'Growth' - Part 5

but there is growth and there is growth…

but there is growth and there is growth…

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