I have just watched an item on Campbell Live about the school holiday programme at Auckland Zoo, which is supposed to start next week. It seems that the Zoo has had to cancel the programme because the sponsors have withdrawn thier support.
The reason for this withdrawl is related to the completion of a workbook which is part of the programme. One of the questions in the workbook was about the orangutans, specifically, it asked what is the greatest threat to the survival of orangutans. The answer is palm oil.
Palm oil is something most consumers know little about, yet eat and use on a daily basis. It is used in hundreds of different types of processed food from margarine to noodles to crackers to chocolate. It is also used in cosmetics and cleaning products. And it is increasingly being used as a biofuel. As a result vast swathes of countryside in tropical regions is being cleared to for palm oil plantations- out of sight and out of mind for most Westerners. Honduras is one of those places. ALthough more known for fruit growing (the original ‘banana republic’), following Hurricane Mitch much of the fruit growing land has been converted to palm oil plantations. We travelled through miles and miles of these on our last trip to Honduras.
Malaysia is one of the worlds largest palm oil producers, and the destruction of rain forest for palm oil has been accelerating significantly. This rainforest is the home of the orangutan, and the destruction of it’s habitat is placing the already endangered primate at even greater risk- hence the question and answer in the Auckland Zoo workbook.
Turns out the sponser for the school holiday project is Tourism Malaysia. Tourism Malaysia objected to the workbook question and asked Auckland Zoo to remove itd. Auckland Zoo said no, education about Palm Oil was part of the programme. So Tourism Malaysia has pulled thier support for the programme.
Of course the supreme irony is that I’m blogging on this now. Because I’m only blogging about it because of the item which was broadcast on national tv. The issue has obviously gained significantly more exposure now than it would have if they had just left the holiday programme alone.
I feel like a failure as a wife (don’t ask), and the thesis work is all tied up in knots and just too big to comprehend today. The internet is a diversion, but a holiday on a tropical beach or even just a nice pampering massage would be better.
This humorous post on Ethnography.com is a bit old in internet terms but it made me smile today (somewhat of an achievement as things are particularly stressful at the moment…).
“Frankly, we’re just tired of it.” stated Jason Natuktu, an Inuit Elder of Afognak, Alaska. “Look, haven’t these people heard of the internet? Just go look it up already.” His son, Atol agreed, “How many inept questions do we really have to answer over and over again?” He continued “Yes, we were oppressed, no we don’t envy people living in Florida, yes we really eat blubber. Really, this is the best and brightest?”
I particularly like this line-
“Look, we understand these kids have to do this to satisfy a bunch of grumpy old SOBs that believe you can’t be an anthropologist unless you’ve experienced nine months of dysentery.” Said Quaticatl, “but ya know, we have access to Amazon and eBay here too”.
I am tying this on my laptop, sitting in a hospital room while I wait for my husband to return from surgery. He has been limping around since injuring his knee in January and after a few months caught in the cycle of GPs, physios, specialists and ACC he is now finally getting the cartilage repaired.
I could complain about the waiting and the paperwork and the wasted time, but I’m not going to. Because last week we watched Michael Moore’s ‘Sicko’, and now all I feel is grateful.
ACC (the NZ government accident compensation corporation which replaces private insurance for accidents) may have taken 3 months to arrange the surgery but he is getting what he needs. Completely free. And in a nice comfortable private hospital.
We have also been through years of struggle with his head injury and subsequent migraines, and he is only just getting the care he needs, but that is more to do with unhelpful doctors than the system itself. As with the knee injury, all specialist appointments and any tests required are paid for by ACC. And presriptions for his expensive medicine are significantly subsidised.
When our little girl was born the midwife and hospital stay were free, as were 6 weeks of midwife visits at home and the all health care for the first 6 years of her life.
When my Dad had 2 heart attacks last year he got full emergency care immediately, cardiac catheterisation (twice) and all follow up rehabilitation care free.
I have posted on this subject before, and my opinion has not changed. Having have seen both ends of the system, as a nurse and as a patient (and obviously as a patients relative!) I simply cannot comprehend the American fear of “socialised medicine”. I remember having drawn out discussions about it with American friends, who mirrored the concerns shown in Sicko- worries about government control, higher taxes, rationing and waiting lists. There is of course some validity to it. Prioritisation and rationing are facts of life in this system. Private hospitals exist here because those who have the money prefer to have thier surgery as quickly as possible, and in hotel-like surrounds. But I’d much rather live in a country where everyone is able to access health services regardless of socio-economic status, and where I know we will get emergency care immediately than the alternative. And I’d rather pay for it with my taxes than through an insurance company. At least I know the government isn’t trying to make a profit out of me.
I thought about boring you with a ‘woe is me’ post on my computer trials (short story- PC fixed but laptop back to manufacturers) but instead thought I’d post a link to this article that was forwarded to me today.
The question, though, is which comes first: happiness or democracy? Despite our earlier thinking, there is now growing evidence that a happy population, one where people are satisfied with their lives as a whole, is a prerequisite for democracy…
What the evidence on happiness demonstrates is that happy people are much more likely to express satisfaction with their country’s political regime, regardless of what kind that might be, than unhappy people. That’s not to say that democracy doesn’t matter. It does. All things being equal, democracy does provide a happiness boost. But all things are rarely equal.
Puts a whole new spin on the war in Iraq doesn’t it…
My computer is sick. So using some of my scholarship funds I bought a new laptop (which I needed to get for study and travel anyway). Unfortunately that started doing odd things almost immediately and so has had to go back to the shop for a few days.
I am now realising just how attached I am to computers and the Internet. I surprised myself at just how upset I got when the technician told me on Wednesday that he hadn’t found the problem with the laptop and would have to keep working on it (although it didn’t help that he was dismissive and almost rude on the phone). I think I might be in withdrawl.
I have to confess. I totally understand this today….
I came across this video today while doing some online searching (my PhD is internet- related so it was study…. really), by Michael Wesch, an anthropology professor. It is very interesting, very watchable and very thought-provoking.
I don’t know much about the context of this photo except that it was taken during a dialogue on youth and spiritual connection in Seattle, Washington, but I love it. It gives me some hope for the world.
Following on from my post of food riots a couple of days ago, George Monbiot has posted an article about the crisis, focusing on the problem of meat consumption.
…But there is a bigger reason for global hunger (than using food crops for biofuels), which is attracting less attention only because it has been there for longer. While 100m tonnes of food will be diverted this year to feed cars, 760m tonnes will be snatched from the mouths of humans to feed animals(9). This could cover the global food deficit 14 times. If you care about hunger, eat less meat.
I’m pleased to say I have been more or less vegetarian for a week now. I say more or less because we spent the weekend at my parents home and I had decided not to tell them until I was a little more certain that this would last and wasn’t a 2-day wonder, so I did have a very small amount of lamb on Saturday night. And we had fish on Friday night but it was caught by my Dad! I think however, that I have reached a decision that I am happy about, and will be able to maintain. Actually I have been very happy since making the decision, and I think it is because I have been feeling increasing uncomfortable about eating meat.
Along with the post about meat, Monbiot has also recently posted about growing your own veges. I’ve had a garden before (with mixed success) and it is something I will do again- once we are out of student accomodation! For now I’ll have to stick with local markets.
