The "Western Buddhist" meditative stance is arguably the most efficient way for us to fully participate in capitalist dynamics while retaining the appearance of mental sanity. If Max Weber were alive today, he would definitely write a second, supplementary, volume to his Protestant Ethic, entitled The Taoist Ethic and the Spirit of GlobalFeb 21 2010I agree with Zizek. As a mass religion, California New Age is kind of superficial. People work like dogs here, in jobs that are killing them. They buy enlightenment on the weekends by adopting the New Age hipster look, forking out serious money for Raw Food, Yoga and New Age dance. Following Zizek's logic, the four dollar Heirloom Tomato from the Farmer's Market, is a fetish object or transitional object that we cling to, in order to repress the fundamental alienation that we feel in our Contemporary, Californian, Elite Lives.
I disagree with Zizek about the Mystic Traditions springing out Asia. Zen and other Buddhist models have a very sophisticated epistemology, and set of body-mind-breath disciplines for investigating the Self.
