More Monkey Madness August 6, 2008
Posted by Mark T. Market in Cognitive Dissonance.Tags: monkey, tradition
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I posted a colorful anecdote about monkeys a while back. Here’s another one I picked up online from Jordan Maxwell’s website.
It talks about tradition and conditioning–and is very apt for our times.
Start with a cage containing five monkeys. Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it. Before long, one of the monkeys will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana. As soon as he touches the stairs, all of the monkeys are sprayed with cold water.
After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result: that all monkeys are sprayed with cold water. Pretty soon, none of the monkeys will try to climb the stairs. Now, put away the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs. To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him! After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.
Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm! Likewise, replace a third original monkey with a new one, then a fourth, and then the fifth. Every time the newest monkey takes to the stairs, he is attacked. Most of the monkeys that are beating him have no idea why they were not permitted to climb the stairs or why they are participating in the beating of the newest monkey.
After replacing all the original monkeys, none of the remaining monkeys have ever been sprayed with cold water. Nevertheless, no monkey ever again approaches the stairs to try for the banana. Why not?
Because as far as they know, that’s the way it’s always been done around here.
The Myth of AIDS and HIV May 31, 2008
Posted by Mark T. Market in Reflections.Tags: africa, aids, deception, documentary, drug abuse, epidemic, hiv, homosexual, monkey, movies
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You’ve heard of AIDS and HIV before, it’s almost a cliche as bad as hunger in Africa.
But do you really know about AIDS? Do you really know enough to protect yourself?
Do you know exactly what you are protecting yourself against?
In the same spirit as Zeitgeist and Esoteric Agenda, both of which I’ve posted in Image Therapy, Gary Null presents a film about the AIDS that people don’t know.
Check out the film under Image Therapy and learn more about the dreaded “epidemic of the modern times”.
Do you still believe any of the following statements?
- HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.
- HIV was first contracted in Africa from monkeys.
- HIV is primarily transmitted through sexual contact with infected partners, secondarily from infected needles, tertiarily from infected mothers to their infants.
- Irresponsible homosexual males and intravenous drug abusers are at high risk from AIDS, but everyone is at risk from the disease.
If you do, it’s time to revisit what you know. Open your mind to the truth.
Making Monkey of Reality April 14, 2008
Posted by Mark T. Market in Quotables.Tags: jeweler, monkey, price, reality, scammer
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If you browse investment websites and forums, chances are you’ve come across the following anecdote:
Once upon a time, in a village a man appeared who announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10. The villagers seeing that there were many monkeys went out in the forest and started catching them.
The man bought thousands at $10 and as supply started to diminish and villagers started to stop their effort he announced that now he would buy at $20.
This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms.
The offer rate increased to $25 and the supply of monkeys became so low that it was an effort to even see a monkey let alone catch it. The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50! However, since he had to go to the city on some business his assistant would now buy on behalf of the man.
In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers. “Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at $35 and when the man comes back, you can sell it to him for $50.” The villagers squeezed up with all their savings to buy the monkeys.
Then they never saw the man nor his assistant again, only monkeys everywhere!
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Oddly enough, my father had an anecdote of his own along similar lines which he shared over dinner one night:
I remember when I was a teenager, and a cousin of your lola’s suddenly came to visit, introducing herself as a jewelry agent. She showed your lola her wares. Your businesswoman lola, who was more business than woman, was not really interested. This was until your lola’s cousin made her an offer.
“Ating, here is a newly imported ring with a rare gem from South Africa. This can easily fetch a Thousand in the open market, but I’m offering it to you for only Five Hundred. Who knows, we might find a buyer and you could make some money.”
Your lola’s interest was piqued. The jeweler further offered to leave the ring with us for a couple of days so that your lola could have it appraised, as a gesture of good faith. The next day your lola took the ring to some of her jeweler friends, who confirmed the quality and make of the ring and gemstone. Two days later your lola’s cousin returned, and as agreed, she sold the ring to your lola for Five Hundred, which was quite a sum back in those days.
A week passed and the jeweler returned. “Ating! Good news, I found a buyer for your ring. If you’re interested, here is your Five Hundred back, and I will take the ring to Manila and we can split the profits fifty-fifty.”
Your lola agreed. And two days later the jeweler returned. “Ating, we sold your ring for One Thousand One Hundred!” And she handed your lola Three Hundred as her share. Your lola was quite happy at nearly doubling her money at so short a time. She thanked her cousin and told her to return any time she might have another deal worth investing in.
And return she did, in a week. This time she showed your lola two gemstones, even larger than the first. “Ating, these two gems newly imported from the middle east. Both are worth One Thousand Five Hundred a piece, but I’ll let you in for just One Thousand for both.”
As before, the jeweler allowed your lola to keep the gems for a day so she could have them appraised, and your lola was ecstatic when she learned that the gems could easily fetch Four Thousand in Total. Her share alone of the profit would be One Thousand Five Hundred, more than the value of her original investment!
Your lola waited anxiously for her cousin to arrive. One late afternoon three days later, the jeweler arrived with great news. “Ating! I found a buyer for your gems! An American is leaving Manila tomorrow morning and already commited to buy them for Five Thousand! If I leave before dark I can barely make it before he flies tomorrow.”
Your lola, eyes gleaming, quickly gave the gems to the jeweler who left for the nearby bus station running. Five Thousand was a fortune in those days, and her share of the net would be Two Thousand: tripling her original stake in just a matter of days. It was a businesswoman’s heaven!
That was the last time we ever heard of the jeweler, or your lola’s One Thousand. Less the original Three Hundred she paid your lola on the first deal, the jeweler made Seven Hundred in a month’s time, or more than doubling her money in a month. It was a scammer’s heaven.
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Of course, the lessons are obvious, about not believing in a sure thing. Or is that the only point of it? For me these two quaint anecdotes are lessons in reality. People dictate their reality, in the case of the villagers and my deluded grandmother, the reality of money. The value of an object–monkeys, gems, or in this case, their own sensibilities.
I recently wrote about how people ascribe value to themselves using mundane measures, such as salary, or job titles, which is downright insane. There are also other, less mutable labels: such as pedigree, place of work, place of residence, college/university attended, age, car driven, race/color, mixed blood, last name etc. etc.
There’s that quote, almost nearly a cliche, but still rings true:
“People can only bring you down if you give them permission to do so.
As a trader, I know that value is relative in the market place. However I also know that for every quote of value, there are usually two parties in a transaction: a buyer and seller. One proposes the value, one takes it.
If you feel your worth as an individual slipping or strengthening, this cannot happen without your agreement. You allow that value to exist. Ultimately it is you who ascribes value to yourself.
Are you selling out at a bargain?
