{"id":458,"date":"2007-10-24T23:04:56","date_gmt":"2007-10-25T03:04:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/example.org\/playing-a-bet-3"},"modified":"2007-10-24T23:04:56","modified_gmt":"2007-10-25T03:04:56","slug":"playing-a-bet-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/?p=458","title":{"rendered":"Playing a better game of life – part 4"},"content":{"rendered":"

Think of your environment as the playing field.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Your environment is an essential component of the game of life. Your
\nsurvival depends on how well you understand this fact and take
\nappropriate action to level the playing field or tilt it in your favor.<\/em><\/p>\n

In any game, the playing field has an effect on the outcome of the
\ngame. You would not expect to play a topnotch game of soccer or
\nbaseball on a field littered with garbage and potholes, because the
\nneglected environment introduces unnecessary obstacles and will cause
\nloss of control and possible injury.<\/p>\n

An office environment where mold or harmful vapors exist can
\nseriously affect your health. Ignoring these clues can significantly
\nshorten your career and your life. <\/p>\n

If you work in a foundry or a paint
\nshop, you are prepared for a life-threatening environment and usually
\nwear protective equipment. Office workers, on the other hand, will placidly continue
\nworking while workers use caustic solutions to remove paint or lift
\ncarpets in the same bay where office work is being done. In the same
\nmanner, office workers will continue working in offices with
\nrain-soaked carpets and moldy ceilings because the boss has not told
\nanyone they can go home or work elsewhere.<\/p>\n

For example, deciding not to protect employees from black mold
\ninfestations in Research Triangle Park offices was probably not a
\ndecision made by IBM top management, but it affected fifty lives, some
\nof them fatally. Somebody decided that it would be more efficient to cover up the problem<\/a>
\nrather than deal with it. It is still being covered up.  The
\ninteresting point as far as I am concerned, is that other employees are
\nstill working in the affected buildings…<\/p>\n

The home is becoming a workplace for more and more people as
\ntelecommuting and self-employment spread. If ones home is cluttered and
\ndisorganized, it acts as an impediment to efficient production. If the
\nhome is filled with strife and unpleasantness, that is a major
\ndistraction to getting work done. A pleasant and orderly home makes a
\nwonderful workplace. Those who work in such surroundings are to be
\nadmired.<\/p>\n

Your town or neighborhood is the playing field for much of your
\nsocial life, and in some cases, your working life. You have a
\nresponsibility to contribute to the town or neighborhood so that it
\nremains a safe and healthy place to live. Only the most degraded expect
\nthe Federal Government to bear the responsibility for activities that
\nare the responsibility of any local government. <\/p>\n

For example, if you build your town in a swamp or a flood plain, why
\nshould the Federal Government be responsible for keeping you safe from
\nmosquito-born diseases and flooding? State and County governments may
\nbe involved because of the possible economic returns, but the basic
\nproblem is an irresponsible choice of a high-risk playing field.<\/p>\n

As an individual looking out for the interests of self, family, and
\nneighborhood, you have a responsibility to ensure that your environment
\nwill aid you in your playing the game of life. Sometimes, the
\nneighborhood gets overwhelmed by factors that you and your neighbors
\ncannot overcome. If you have done all that you can do to rectify the
\nproblem and the neighborhood becomes more unsafe as time goes on, you
\nmay have to find another playing field before harm comes to you or your
\nfamily. <\/p>\n

This is an extreme situation, as you can usually enlist allies to
\nclean up even the worst of situations if there is some underlying
\nfinancial return from doing so. When there is a long-standing situation
\nof unhandled corruption and criminality, the economic viability of a
\ncity, corporation, or township can be so marginal that it will no
\nlonger support legitimate businesses. This is one of the times it is
\nwiser to relocate and start again elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Do your best to improve your environment and make it a safe place to
\nlive or work. If your actions are being strongly opposed, you may wish
\nto find another playing field and get on with your life.<\/p>\n

(This was originally published on Sept 3, 2005 and it still applies today.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Think of your environment as the playing field. Your environment is an essential component of the game of life. Your survival depends on how well you understand this fact and take appropriate action to level the playing field or tilt … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1805],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3R4iK-7o","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=458"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/makingripples.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}