Making the connection

Suzy and Lem, 2 of the smartest clowns around, say that making the connection that our environment effects our health is just fantastic! They are very happy that this news has arrived right on the heels of the disclosure that all of that nasty carbon we've been pumping into our atmosphere is actually causing some pretty crazy things to be happening with our weather. Keep it up everyone! Thinking caps are very good things!

It seems that Canadians are making the connection that a contaminated environment hurts their health (Imagine!) More than 50% believe that the environment has already negatively impacted them.

With education being the first step to change, this is a good sign (well, not in the sense that more Canadians are getting sick ... but in the sense that fixing it will hopefully become a priority). Some very disturbing statistics. Scary!

In other news ....

We've welcomed a new friend into our home. Everyone, meet Hank. He loves to play, chew, cuddle and eat eat eat. Although Thales was a little moody for the first few days of his arrival (becoming more like a teenager everyday that one ...) he is very happy to have a new buddy.

Good ideas

I find myself being in constant limbo: eternal optimism combined with sharp cynicism.

"I think all people are truly good at heart" ... fuck I hate people most of the time.

The world is going to hell in a handbag ... BUT, maybe not ...

Enter (Product) RED. Spearheaded by Bono, backed up by heavyweights like Spielberg, Oprah, Alycia Keys etc, the RED movement is using the power of the consumer to help buy Anti-retroviral medicine in Africa. I love campaigns like this, where everyday people who assume that they can't make a difference in the world, CAN. When you buy a RED product, you will be donating money to stop the spread of aids, and to help those living with aids to have quality lives. 40 cents a day buys the anti-retroviral drugs for a person. For 40 cents a day, you can save a life. Christmas is coming, people will inevitably buy stuff, why not give RED gifts? There's a whole price range of products, from T-Shirts at the GAP, to iPOD nano's from Apple, you can support the movement. The more consumers choose the RED products, the more brands will become RED.

I hate consumerism, but at least people can see the power of the consumer. Where and what you choose to buy, whether it's local, organic or RED, can make a difference.

Also, there's a new campaign by the government of Manitoba called Seeing Green in MB that outlines why Seeing Green is beneficial to our health, economy and way of life, as well as easy steps that everyone can take to be greener.

Today, eternal optimism wins!

The falling mercury

Yesterday, as Mother Nature rang the "winter's coming!" bell, I thought about Pakistan. About how millions of people who lost their homes that day still live in camps. How they're bracing their tents for a bitterly cold winter much like ours. How they're dealing with the trauma. Most importantly - How lucky we are.

I also wanted to write about the upcoming civic election, which made me think about how disgustingly uninformed I am. I think that because I'm not originally from Winnipeg, I have a hard time getting involved. BUT, since I'm always the first to harp that young people need to be involved in the democratic process, I need to put my money (and time) where my mouth is. Today I used the lovely CBC search engine and I'd love to share some articles with you:

Nobody gets a free ride!

... And then I realized there wasn't much really going on, which is probably why I didn't really know anything, since there's nothing to really know. Sam Katz is talking about bringing in wireless Internet downtown, banning spray paint to make things look pretty. There are probably some really clever other candidates with some great ideas jumping up and down for attention, but since Sammy doesn't like showing up or, you know, actually trying to get elected (since it's probably in the bag anyway) the media doesn't really have much to cover.

So, if you have a mayoral candidate (or someone in your ward) that you think deserves my vote and some attention, let me know! If they have a blog or web pages send the link and I'll post them!

Karla's Wedding

Karla and Allen

October 7, 2006