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| Perhaps we are blinded by the Obvious |
From time to time we are reminded of global issues deserving of far more attention.
In this age of the informed, let us be honest; North Americans know we endlessly consume the limited resources of the earth with little concern for the future.
We are encouraged, yea, lauded by politicians and rich, profitable corporations to spend and enforce the status quo merely because a few individuals offer "jobs", build "corporate interests" --making not reasonable, but obscene profits in the process. Corporate consumer culture brainwashes the very young, grooming potential customers for life. The rich become richer as we consume everything. There is always more to consume. Do not think about it, just buy, buy, buy.
Products are designed with limited shelf life, made of inferior, cheap and failure-prone materials, are shoddily produced at the absolute minimum cost, and are specifically engineered with planned obsolescence in mind. Products built to wear out within a specific period of time make the replacement of that product inevitable, and early. Advertising shames consumers into buying new models of everything, the product itself usually only superficially changed. Such a problem in society might be labeled as "deliberate and wasteful consumption by planned obsolescence".
Can we resolve that issue? Perhaps we are blinded by the obvious, but is there hope for a brighter future?
In overview, resources should be treasured instead of plundered. Clean technology should be used in all facets of production and consumption. People should understand what is really happening, and in turn, should educate and feed others, encouraging them also to be aware. We can do this if we try.
Here at Incoming Bytes I am therefore delighted to include and feature Adriana Heep, in this post.
Adriana is a writer and young thinker that offers hope by cutting to the chase with a direct message for society, consumers, Corporate North America, and those in power. She has clearly thought about our dilemma and offers hope points out solutions in her own words:
" The way our economy works is the most wasteful system. All of our products come from the earth in some way. And the earth only has so many resources to give in x amount of time. It takes an incredibly long time for certain things to form. many gems were formed more than a billion years ago. And in order for companies to continually make profits, they purposely do not make the best product they can. And this has been in the news numerous times on how companies will built a product to break after a certain amount of time so you go back for more. May be good for the rich man, but its horrible on the environment for so many different reasons and on the less fortunate too. The rich people probably won't care until there's absolutely nothing left alive on this earth.
They'll hoard whats left til they die, but then their children will be stuck in a horrible dying world. In my opinion it's up to us to put the rich people out of power and change how things work to save the Earth. Only problem is getting people to do that. Most people only act once their personal comfort is taken away, sadly.
Adriana Heep(c)2011
The implications of Adriana's observations are staggering, and worth repeating;
"it's up to us to put the rich people out of power and change how things work to save the earth" .
If change is not forthcoming from those in power, do they even have the moral right to remain in charge of the planet? In the real world of logic, with wealth and power also comes responsibility and leadership.
Clearly Adriana is part of a thinking generation that offers hope. She has carefully observed the ultimate limitations of planned obsolescence, foolish consumption and irresponsible corporate behaviour.
Interestingly, as she astutely observes, "the rich (in power) " do not appear to have made the same simple observation on their own behalf --in spite of the disaster that will be foisted upon their own children.
Do they need to be protected from themselves?
It seems that the future is not completely dark. Hope has been offered to us. Clearly Adriana's generation has been paying attention to what is being done to the world around us in the name of profit.
The question of the day must then be:
"Why is a mature civilization allowing this obvious and catastrophic abuse of limited world resources?
Clearly there is hope if brilliant young thinkers are recognizing the problems and offer solutions. Where does that leave us?
It is inevitable that the responsible reader must determine if apathy and the status quo are reasonable or logical.
Most noteworthy, in Adriana's words,
"Most people only act once their personal comfort is taken away, sadly..."
Does it really have to come to that extreme?
One thing for sure, accepting the status quo and a polluted, contaminated and deadly environment is clearly not the solution required for the future.
Our fondest hope is that the rest of us somehow get the message.
Thank you, Adriana.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Biography of a young thinker: Adriana Heep
With an educational background in governmental international studies, Adriana is inspired, among other things, by psychology and the arts. The former was born of a desire to understand people, an aspiration encouraged by her parents who always gave real answers to toddler questions others found exasperating. The latter serves as a channel for expression.
