A World We Dare to Imagine

I feel like we live in a very difficult period where the fear of terrorism is making us insane. The threat is even bigger than the 9/11 tragedy. Terrorism has reached a global scale unlike in the past. Brussels, Jakarta, and Paris were the last three major cities being attacked. No where in the world is safe enough. 

What's even scarier is that social media has become a platform for terrorists to communicate to public and to recruit new members. At the end of the day, we are the ones who develop technology. We develop the Internet, various social media, and weapons at the same time. 

Thus, my ultimate questions are: Are we becoming so advanced that we create our own enemies? Where's the humanity?

Should We Keep Animals in Zoos? Or Shouln't We?

For many centuries, various animal species have been kept in zoos to save them from extinction as well as to educate the public. Recently, animal right activists have been arguing that zoos outweigh their benefits and that the violation of animal rights is unacceptable. This brings up one question: “Should we keep animals in zoos?” From my own perspective, I would say that animals should not be kept in zoos for two reasons:

1.  zoo is a prison for animals
2.  zoo is actually endangering animals

Though for many people, the zoo is a source of childhood amazement - swinging monkeys, laughing hyenas and growling tigers – it is a prison for innocent animals. The major problem with zoos is that the animals are kept in enclosures, prohibiting them from living their lives in a natural way. No matter how big the enclosure is and no matter how beautiful the background is; these can't compare with the natural habitat the animals were meant to be in. The zoo animals have to spend day after day, week after week, year after year in the exact same enclosure, making them suffer from stress, boredom and confinement.

Further, removing animals from the wild will further endanger the wild population because the remaining individuals will have more difficulty finding mates. In addition, not all zoos provide the best living environment for animals. For example, in developing countries like Indonesia, zoos are not as pleasant as they are supposed to be. Indonesia is a corrupt nation; even some officials corrupt funds for zoo management. As a result, animals in Indonesian zoos get less food and healthcare. Many died from starvation and diseases.

Indeed, animals should be observed in their natural habitat, where they are living the live that they were meant to live. Children can learn about these amazing wild animals from books, television programs or even documentaries. It is simply not right to enjoy seeing these animals while they are living a horrible life. Simply stated, it is always the best to leave animals free in the nature.

An Interview with Jacob Needleman

JB: So, if it's not wealth, what does money represent?

JN: It's a social promise, a representation of work. It represents the desire part of human nature which is so strong... Money makes things real in human life. People tend not to want to see it that way, or else they give it too much power.

This is a very short section from the interview with JN, which reminded me a lot of what I used to learn in high school: "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely." People these days associate money with power, and thus, they become greedy about it. However, this is not we should see money. According to JN, money is meant to be "an instrument of love, an instrument of service." If people see money the way JN does, the world can be a better place to live than it is today. 

Chapter 8 - Toward a Topography of Financial Transactions

The acts of transactions of a person depict rapture in the integrity as well as in the consciousness of an individual. In this regards, one is not compelled towards unified aesthetic which lead to the realization of an integral part of the inner landscape which leads to such rapture. It is perceived that with money a whole numeric system is dictated and thus allowing one to count as well as an account but not to know the expression as well as its meaning. The system of money is based on its objectivity as well as in its measurements and most importantly in quantification in the tyranny of human invention. In this regards, the physical aspects can be found to be simple as it measures the abstract concepts which entail the price, value as well as wages which is deemed to be rational in the acts of instant transactions.

Talking about the topography of transaction, it involves several layers and conditions. Each transaction has four components—the physical, the participatory/circulatory, the quality of feeling, and consciousness or recognition. Physically, it has at least two parties and involves the aspects of time and function. Also, physical material(s) is exchanged during the transaction, which can be the documents, paper, coins, card swiping, or even a handshake. Beside the physical dimension, value, which is more subjective and perceptive, is also important within a transaction. Then the author raise a question of how people sense and assess the value. Not only the measurable and public aspects are important in a transaction, so does the personal perceived value. This non-material aspect has no economic value in scientific theory; however, it possibly has larger long-term impact in the human energetic level.

Consciousness sees the connection between the value provided to the world through investment and the expected financial/social return driving the investment in the first place. This creates as a dynamic tension between community interest and self-interest. The author clearly states that he attempted to reclaim what lies behind the human invention of money. The bottom-line is every transaction has both inner space and outer manifestations. As money moves through the strata of physical, circulatory, value, and consciousness in time, financial transactions become human transactions. Every human being has consciousness that could determine his or her participation in the circulation of money.

Chapter 15 - The Transcendentalist and the Immigrant

Two Views of Money in America

History of money in America:

• Alexander Hamilton’s monetarist approach
• a monetary system as an accounting tool for economic trade - exchange of goods and currencies
• any physical things could be monetized - labor, natural resources, and commodities

Two perspectives on money and its effects in the American culture:

1. Ralph Waldo Emerson: moral challenge of accumulating wealth

“Nobody should be rich but those who understand it"

2. Eva Hoffman: the force that money bears, and the causal relationship between the creation of wealth and the rise of poverty

“Money, in America, is a force so extreme as to become a religious force, a confusing deity, which demands either idolatry or a spiritual education"

 “Those in poverty will never have enough; those with wealth will face … never-ending demands to spend.”

Chapter 8 - Economic Chiaroscuro

Georges de La Tour: The Payment of Taxes

• Georges De La Tour illustrates not just a physical painting but one of the interior person in his piece, regarding a tax exchange.
• The three positions of the taxpayer, the collector and the power authority are all symbolic of relations to money and economic life that is relatable for all individuals in different situations. They reflect societal and economic tensions in La Tour’s day, which are issues of class and power. He is not cynically critic however but rather observant of the societal dynamics.
• “In painting, as in life, both the light and the shadow, the chiaroscuro, are different sides of the same coin and share a common source.”

Written by: Asako and Amanda

Building a Better Sandwich

An insight into Mendocino Farms' sandwich philosophy based on in-person interview with CEO and co-founder, Mario Del Pero. 

I fell in love with Mendocino Farms from the very first time I visited this restaurant. It has great sandwiches and friendly atmosphere. Husband-and-wife Mario Del Pero and Ellen Chen happen to be the dynamic due behind this upscale mini-chain sandwich shop. My curiosity led me to approach Mario Del Pero via LinkedIn for the very first time.

I. Meet Mario

Brief Background

Mario Del Pero grew up in Northern California. When he was a kid, his family owned a meat company, so he grew up in their R&D kitchen around chefs who are innovating different types of food items. He graduated from USC in 1995 with a degree in international relations when he deferred admission to Berkeley’s law school. Instead, his curiosity on building a brand led him to continue working as manager in his friend’s new restaurant.  

Entrepreneurial background

After a few years, Del Pero was ready to go out on his own. In 1998 he opened Skew’s, a teriyaki restaurant in Manhattan Beach. Two years later, a Downtown outpost came in, followed by a Westwood branch. He sold all three restaurants about a decade ago. In his early 30s, he came up with the idea of Mendocino Farms.

II. Mendocino Farms

In search for a perfect sandwich, Del Pero first wrote the concept of Mendocino Farms 13 years ago based on three movements:

1. People are starting to care about where the food comes from. He called this the “Whole Foods Market Effect.”  Del Pero wants to support sustainable farming, and thus, will be using local, natural and organic ingredients in his sandwiches and salads.
2. Gap in the sandwich category. Del Pero identified an obvious gap in the sandwich category. There's Subway on the low-end, and gourmet sandwich places like Joan's on Third on the high-end. Considering that the sandwich category is the largest in the restaurant-based, filling this gap would create a lot of value. “I wanted to taste like an $11-$14 sandwich, but I wanted to do it at a $9-$10 level,” he said. According to Mario, what makes a great sandwich: modernize the classic or make entrée into sandwich form
3. “Gathering place” beyond coffee shop. The powerful notion of coffee shops being a third place, sort of like a gathering place, has led Del Pero to see the opportunity to work beside them. He wants to provide a bigger space and do better sandwiches, and thus, establish a family-friendly neighbor sandwich shop with unique culture of “selling happy"

Mendocino’s unique business culture helps drive their food, innovation and hospitality. Del Pero really established what he call as filters: “The things that we actually define that makes us who we are.”

Today, there are 11 Mendocino Farms stores across Southern California. "Mendo," as its fans call it, has become a foodie destination. I highly recommend you to stop by and try its not-so-fried-chicken sandwich and Korubuta pork bahn me! Trust me, you won't regret.