Globalization.  Sweatshops.  Off-shoring.  Child labor.  Free markets.  My recent reading about global poverty has opened my eyes to a variety of buzzwords (not to mention real issues) regarding economies and how they help people rise above poverty and make a living.

But never have I seen a clearer illustration of our interdependence than THIS:

The guy in the photo is wearing a 100-mile suit.  The name isn’t a statement about its durability but rather its provenance.  According to this article in Wired, educator and designer Kelly Cobb made the suit only from materials that could be found within 100 miles of her home near Philadelphia.  It took 500 man-hours and 20 artisans to make the outfit pictured above.  You don’t always get what you pay for.

Wired called the suit “a demonstration of the massive manufacturing power of the global economy” and comments that “Industrial processes and cheap foreign labor belie the tremendous resources that go into garments as simple as a T-shirt.”

I put forward the 100-mile suit as an example of how much we benefit from sharing together in a global economy. We DO need to attack the problems and abuses…because it’s worth it.  I mean who wants to wear this thing?

It’s also a decent example of the body concept of the church from Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12, eh?