EARTH STATUS REPORT 2006
I got a little irked about a conversation that ensued in a lecture class we had this arvo. The issue started with Outcomes and Policies for 'National Education' (I don't know what that is except talking about Singapore) and had winded itself to raising dissapointments and sympathies over the recent GST hike. People were upset because they felt "GST wasn't going to help the poor" as the politicians claimed it would.
Seriously speaking, what are the odds of some of these people having 'helped the poor' recently? I wish I could say I did, (Oh yes, maybe the time I bought a sarong from a street vendor in Thailand and then bargained it down. Not because that 50 cents really made a big difference to the already cheap merchandise but because that was the culturally right thing to do. See, I was giving him business. Gah.) Seriously though, its been such a while since I did anything genuinely helpful for them that I thought I should keep my mouth shut on the matter. It's not as if I do as much as I should about it so why should I be griping that the infrastructures in place arn't?
And it may be hilarious that the GST reflects Singapore's first world nation status but our salaries are apparently being compared to the developing nations. But as the earth status report kindly shows, we are STILL immeasurably fortunate.
Yes, life's a bitch, the world is unfair and all the variations of these problems exist in the rest of the countries but thank God (and here's why I moved to Singapore) there are jobs to have in this country if only I wasn't so picky and would do it; I have a stable job, in politically safe country where medical facilities are reliable and there is freedom of religion and a cultural smorgasboard of immigrants, the leaders in this country arn't going to revoke my pay anytime soon and if they blackmail me about having to pay taxes to own cars, then at least they are upfront about it. In Myanmar, you buy the car and THEN a couple of years later when the coffers are empty, they tell you that there will be a tax when it suits them.
Of course there are problems but the problem is also me and change should start with us, the individuals. Honestly though, when was the last time I did anything useful to make a difference to the 'poor' and what can I do for them here?
---------------------------------
Earth Status report - 2006
If the population of the Earth was reduced to that of a small town with 100 people, it would be 57% Asians, 21% Europeans, 14% Americans, 8% Africans. Of these, 52% will be women, 48% men; 70% will be coloured-skins, 30% caucasians.
6 people would own 59% of the whole world wealth and all of them will be from the United States of America.
80% would have bad living conditions
70% would be uneducated
50% underfed
1 would die
2 would be born
1 would have a computer
1 (only one) will have higher education
(how many people do I know who don't have some form of tertiary education?)
This morning, I woke up relatively healthy, more fortunate than the 1 million people that will not survive next week.
I have never suffered a war, the loneliness of the jail cell, the agony of torture, or hunger. I can enter a church without fear of death or jail, unlike 3 million other people in the world.
I am richer than 75% of the world - there is food in my fridge, I have shoes and clothes, a bed and a roof over my head. I have some money in my bank and even less in my wallet and some coins in the money-box, but I still belong to the 8% of the people on the world, who are well-to-do.
I don't belong to the 200 million people on this planet who cannot read and I am that 1 out of a 100 people who have a computer. An apple, mind you. I guess that should be a third of all computer users who have gained the truth.
Perspective, people. Perspective.
Seriously speaking, what are the odds of some of these people having 'helped the poor' recently? I wish I could say I did, (Oh yes, maybe the time I bought a sarong from a street vendor in Thailand and then bargained it down. Not because that 50 cents really made a big difference to the already cheap merchandise but because that was the culturally right thing to do. See, I was giving him business. Gah.) Seriously though, its been such a while since I did anything genuinely helpful for them that I thought I should keep my mouth shut on the matter. It's not as if I do as much as I should about it so why should I be griping that the infrastructures in place arn't?
And it may be hilarious that the GST reflects Singapore's first world nation status but our salaries are apparently being compared to the developing nations. But as the earth status report kindly shows, we are STILL immeasurably fortunate.
Yes, life's a bitch, the world is unfair and all the variations of these problems exist in the rest of the countries but thank God (and here's why I moved to Singapore) there are jobs to have in this country if only I wasn't so picky and would do it; I have a stable job, in politically safe country where medical facilities are reliable and there is freedom of religion and a cultural smorgasboard of immigrants, the leaders in this country arn't going to revoke my pay anytime soon and if they blackmail me about having to pay taxes to own cars, then at least they are upfront about it. In Myanmar, you buy the car and THEN a couple of years later when the coffers are empty, they tell you that there will be a tax when it suits them.
Of course there are problems but the problem is also me and change should start with us, the individuals. Honestly though, when was the last time I did anything useful to make a difference to the 'poor' and what can I do for them here?
---------------------------------
Earth Status report - 2006
If the population of the Earth was reduced to that of a small town with 100 people, it would be 57% Asians, 21% Europeans, 14% Americans, 8% Africans. Of these, 52% will be women, 48% men; 70% will be coloured-skins, 30% caucasians.
6 people would own 59% of the whole world wealth and all of them will be from the United States of America.
80% would have bad living conditions
70% would be uneducated
50% underfed
1 would die
2 would be born
1 would have a computer
1 (only one) will have higher education
(how many people do I know who don't have some form of tertiary education?)
This morning, I woke up relatively healthy, more fortunate than the 1 million people that will not survive next week.
I have never suffered a war, the loneliness of the jail cell, the agony of torture, or hunger. I can enter a church without fear of death or jail, unlike 3 million other people in the world.
I am richer than 75% of the world - there is food in my fridge, I have shoes and clothes, a bed and a roof over my head. I have some money in my bank and even less in my wallet and some coins in the money-box, but I still belong to the 8% of the people on the world, who are well-to-do.
I don't belong to the 200 million people on this planet who cannot read and I am that 1 out of a 100 people who have a computer. An apple, mind you. I guess that should be a third of all computer users who have gained the truth.
Perspective, people. Perspective.
posted by The Chilibuddy @ 12:38 am ::
2 Comments:
Perspective indeed! Its too easy to get tied up in a simplistic worldview of things like poverty and education.
Speaking of Myanmar, I'm heading there in a couple of weeks. In fact, I'm stopping by Singapore on the way if you want to catch up. (I'm assuming you are still there??)
ray
AT remlap.net
sweet...interesting perspective! you are gonna love the irresistable revolution by shane claiborne!
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