Dear followers,
Rest easy. I'm not dead... nor extinct? (See what I did there? Yeah, I'm clever...). But I did get pretty sick, and yesterday was the worst, as I collapsed with fever. Yet worry not, as I am crawling out of being cave ridden (yea, another witty joke), and I will be back on my feet fairly soon.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Do what's right.
Hello reader,
Usually I like to start my new posts with a very nice routine... a line of coke, then inject myself with a crazy cocktail of drugs in my eye, and then just collapse on the floor while waiting for ideas to come to me on what to write about. But for today's piece, I have actually been brewing my thoughts after the last few weeks events that have taken place in Chile, that far away land I call home. You will probably see a lesser amount of jokes and sarcasm, because this topic hits close to my heart. (Yes, I do have a heart.)
During the last few weeks, Chile has seen riots and protests all over the country regarding a wide array of subjects, being HidroAysen and its mega-hydroelectric plant the most important given the amount of people that came out to protest (a combined 100,000 country wide), as well as the chronic protest for an improvement in both quality of education and an increase of funding towards higher education. Now, if you know this caveman, then you are very well aware of my position towards both these subjects, but today I'd like to write down what I think of them with a few words and then tackle what I think lies beneath all this repressed anger.
A bit of a summary here, in order to understand better what I'm talking about. HidroAysen is a huge project that will require to flood a vast area that happens to be between eco-parks, national parks and other variations of natural parks that are both stunning and awe-inspiring in terms of beauty.
The project is heavily technical; flooded areas require compensation, both monetary and ecological, the long term damage to the ecosystem is hard to asses, as well as financial and social conundrums. However, it has been the ecological flag that everyone carries now that worries me a lot. This dam has triggered a social movement that is borderline hysterical on how we treat the environment, with over 70% of the population being against HidroAysen because of its ecological impact... and yet I don't see a massive purchase of ecofriendly products, like power efficient light bulbs, washers, etc. The reason? They are too expensive, when compared to traditional and cheap, yet energy wasting electronics. Now, the question that begs to be asked is... What is more efficient and responsible when trying to make a change: Protesting or Purchasing?
My dear readers, I know bullshit when I see it, and this, ladies and gentlecavemen, is bullshit. By protesting, we detach ourselves from any responsibilities, since we protest against THEM, the government, the evil corporations that pollute the air and water for the sake of money. By protesting, we claim that we are outside the system, yet we hesitate to buy a more expensive light bulb because of its price? If that is not the ultimate hypocrisy, then think of this... WE are ALL part of the system. And the lack of accountability that we are showing as a society is mind boggling.
What I see here is a complete disregard for our responsibilities in the current energy situation. People go and protest, raise banners calling for the authorities to cease to what they see as a tragedy of epic proportions, and yet they are not willing to make a sacrifice and spend more money in order to save the environment? That foul smell you get right now is bullshit. Protesting and taking the streets full of anger is the easy way out. To ask the government to solve these and every problems is the easy way out, since we ask someone else to fix this while we go on living without any responsibilities towards keeping our planet clean.
Before you think that I'm a dictator and that I disagree with protests, let me set the record straight. I defend our right to tell our leaders that we don't agree with the decisions being made. But to expect that just by complaining thing will get fixed, then nothing will get ever done. I will fight for our right to protest, but that requires certain responsibilities from us, responsibilities that we have yet to answer. Democracy is all about rights and responsibilities and we are only fulfilling half our bargain.
And with those words full of wisdom, this caveman gos back to his cave. Yes, there was a more serious undertone here, so I promise that the next post will be filled with sarcasm, your momma jokes, magic tricks and finger painting.
Usually I like to start my new posts with a very nice routine... a line of coke, then inject myself with a crazy cocktail of drugs in my eye, and then just collapse on the floor while waiting for ideas to come to me on what to write about. But for today's piece, I have actually been brewing my thoughts after the last few weeks events that have taken place in Chile, that far away land I call home. You will probably see a lesser amount of jokes and sarcasm, because this topic hits close to my heart. (Yes, I do have a heart.)
During the last few weeks, Chile has seen riots and protests all over the country regarding a wide array of subjects, being HidroAysen and its mega-hydroelectric plant the most important given the amount of people that came out to protest (a combined 100,000 country wide), as well as the chronic protest for an improvement in both quality of education and an increase of funding towards higher education. Now, if you know this caveman, then you are very well aware of my position towards both these subjects, but today I'd like to write down what I think of them with a few words and then tackle what I think lies beneath all this repressed anger.
A bit of a summary here, in order to understand better what I'm talking about. HidroAysen is a huge project that will require to flood a vast area that happens to be between eco-parks, national parks and other variations of natural parks that are both stunning and awe-inspiring in terms of beauty.
The project is heavily technical; flooded areas require compensation, both monetary and ecological, the long term damage to the ecosystem is hard to asses, as well as financial and social conundrums. However, it has been the ecological flag that everyone carries now that worries me a lot. This dam has triggered a social movement that is borderline hysterical on how we treat the environment, with over 70% of the population being against HidroAysen because of its ecological impact... and yet I don't see a massive purchase of ecofriendly products, like power efficient light bulbs, washers, etc. The reason? They are too expensive, when compared to traditional and cheap, yet energy wasting electronics. Now, the question that begs to be asked is... What is more efficient and responsible when trying to make a change: Protesting or Purchasing?
My dear readers, I know bullshit when I see it, and this, ladies and gentlecavemen, is bullshit. By protesting, we detach ourselves from any responsibilities, since we protest against THEM, the government, the evil corporations that pollute the air and water for the sake of money. By protesting, we claim that we are outside the system, yet we hesitate to buy a more expensive light bulb because of its price? If that is not the ultimate hypocrisy, then think of this... WE are ALL part of the system. And the lack of accountability that we are showing as a society is mind boggling.
What I see here is a complete disregard for our responsibilities in the current energy situation. People go and protest, raise banners calling for the authorities to cease to what they see as a tragedy of epic proportions, and yet they are not willing to make a sacrifice and spend more money in order to save the environment? That foul smell you get right now is bullshit. Protesting and taking the streets full of anger is the easy way out. To ask the government to solve these and every problems is the easy way out, since we ask someone else to fix this while we go on living without any responsibilities towards keeping our planet clean.
Before you think that I'm a dictator and that I disagree with protests, let me set the record straight. I defend our right to tell our leaders that we don't agree with the decisions being made. But to expect that just by complaining thing will get fixed, then nothing will get ever done. I will fight for our right to protest, but that requires certain responsibilities from us, responsibilities that we have yet to answer. Democracy is all about rights and responsibilities and we are only fulfilling half our bargain.
And with those words full of wisdom, this caveman gos back to his cave. Yes, there was a more serious undertone here, so I promise that the next post will be filled with sarcasm, your momma jokes, magic tricks and finger painting.
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