Plastic bags should it be, Yes please or no thanks?

By, Uwe Paschen.

 It is that time of the Year once again, where many of us go shopping for the Holiday’s festivities, may we be Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Atheist, Hindu or even Muslim, we all have great celebrations coming up in the next four to twelve weeks.

 From Hanukkah to the Chinese New Year it is the season of great celebrations for all around the Globe. Parties are being held, as well as family gatherings and community events.

 Now, one thing all this has in common is the shopping in supermarkets, Farmer Markets and stores to buy the Gifts, the food and the decorations for the festivities to come.

 This of course does require packaging, and transportation as well as means to get it all from the Stores back home and there comes in a handy little idem called the chopping Bag.

 Now, until 1957, we used to go shopping with our baskets and cloth bags or even little carts we dragged behind us. However, since 1957 we have discovered the plastic bag that made its début in the US and by 1960 had spread around the Globe like a wild bush fire. To the point that by the 1970th it could be fund almost any where on this planet and has been causing major problem ever since.

 Since we discard those "trow away bags" so easily, they can be fund not only on land fields but also along roads, in Rivers, in the Forest and even on mountain pics and in the Ocean. There they cause great harm and kill million of birds, animals and fish that are trapped in them and most of them suffocate. This is no easy way to die or be killed what so ever.

 We discard about 1.5 Million Tons of Plastic bags each Year and most of this around the Holidays shopping time. Keep in mind that it takes 220 Million litres of Oil to produce those bags every year and this is not counting the additional energy cost for transportation and recycling or land fields. There are 4 to 5 Trillion Plastic bags used every Year, enough to engulf the entire City of New York so you would not even be able to see the tallest buildings any longer. And this with just one Years plastic bags waste.

 North America accounts for 60% of all this plastic bags waste and Europe for 20% the rest is more or less divided around the World evenly with Africa having the lowest share of plastic bags being used of all continents.

 Now even though we have recycling facilities and program in some Nations, Fact is, unfortunately, that only 0.6% is being recycle, the remaining 99.4% end up in lad fields as well as in the Oceans ad Nature at large.

 We could do with out and go back to Shopping baskets, Cloth bags and little carts we can easily pull and taken just about any where, some of those are so compact and easy to fold that they fit in a bag. It may be time to Refuse plastic bags given out to us and to ask to use our own cloth bag in stead. Leading by example for a better future for all living creatures on Earth.

 These Holidays do think twice about using a plastic bag and with the New Year around the corner, it may be a great time for an Eco resolution, not to ever use plastic bags again. There are some great cloth bags and carts, that even look sharp and would get you some positive attention as well.

 Happy Eco Friendly Holliday’s.

See Sources below.

 Food and Water Watch, 

garbage for food.

National Tap Water Database.

fact sheet on bottled water.

http://www.worldwatch.org/node/1499

Think twice about taking a plastic bag if your purchase is small and easy to carry. Keep canvas bags in your home, office, and car so you always have them available when you go to the supermarket or other stores. Ask your favorite stores to stop providing bags for free, or to offer a discount for not using the bags. Encourage your local politicians to introduce legislation taxing or banning plastic bags.

Try to go at least one week without accumulating any new plastic bags. If every shopper took just one less bag each month, this could eliminate the waste of hundreds of millions of bags each year.

http://www.bpiworld.org/

The curses and blessings of typhoon Ma-on.

Typhoons are common this time of the year through out Asia and here in Japan they are seen as part of life just like earthquakes and tsunamis are as well. The country is well prepared for natural disasters and most people do not really worry nor concern them self with any of those natural occurrences . Through out their lives they have been put through countless drills , those especially during their school years from elementary through high school.

Even though all are well prepared and always ready, every now and then nature still comes up with the unexpected, such as the March 11^th earthquake, that in it self did cause only little damage. It was the tsunami that followed which devastated the East Coast region of Japan with a force and height that Japan has never seen before nor expected to be possible. The present typhoon, "Ma-on" is also one of these exceptional powerful forces with 1170 millimetres of rain in Shikoku leaving one dead, three missing, fifty nine injured and hundreds evacuated. The town of Odai in the Mie prefecture received 1000 millimetres of rain which flooded 900 residences and caused some land slides. Here in the Kanto area up to 600 millimetres of rainfall are expected in the next twenty four hours, since Ma-on is now headed our way. So far the Kanto area received 80 millimetres of rainfall due to this typhoon and another 600 millimetres will flood some lover areas and a land slide warning was issued by the Japanese meteorological agency as well as a coastal warning since the weaves can reach 12 metres high now. This typhoon has already caused power outages and left much damage behind. The roofs that where covered with blue tarps and sand bags due to the March 11 earthquake are now seeing further damage broth to them. The sand bags are no match for a typhoon. I put steel rims from old tractors on our roof, each weighing 40 kilograms, those spread along the entire roof at half a metre from each other and attached with steel wire to the roof and the tarp. They just got lifted up by the powerful winds that managed get under the tarp and propelled those rims into the air breaking the wires and landing them tree metres from the roof as if they where merely toys. Fortunately no was was close by at the time. The tarps are gone from many roofs now and some put new tarps up but this time inside their houses to cover furniture and other belongings. Nevertheless, the centre of the typhoon is still approaching and may cause more damage. The temperatures fluctuated greatly as well, from plus 32 degree Celsius down to 18 degree Celsius with in minutes. It is as if the elements where playing roller-coaster. However, there is also a good side to all this, the air is crisp and clean, the toxic fumes from farmers burning their plastics after harvesting their vegetables and this on an almost daily basis in this area are gone now due to this storm, nor can they burn more plastic at the moment either, which I welcome. Even though the plastic has to be recycled by law it is still being burned by way to many and those toxic fumes are just as bad as the radiation emitted by our nuclear power plant since the melt down of three reactors last March. I do enjoy the clean air for now and try not to worry about my roof any longer. I think it may be time to give up on the roof and figure out a cheep way to tear down the building and recycle as much material as possible.    

Japan Silk Farming is rapidly disappearing!

Photos

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By, Uwe Paschen.

I went to Nagano for 3 days to see a Good Friend of mine, There I attended a Silk Farmers meeting that reminded me some of the long Farm Organisation meetings I used to attend in North America. The Problems are similar. Low prises, over production due to free trade with Asia and an ageing Farm population without any one to take over from the next Generation! The average age of the Farmer being 65 years old in some areas. Abandoned Farms States and over grown rice fields in many areas!

I ended up staying with Mister Horiuchi, Shinya, his wife Kitie Horiuchi and my friend Rie, Silk worm Farmer, as well as vegetable Farmers! The Silk Worm being their speciality there are some of the last traditional Japanese Silkworm Farmers operating and alive, since Shinya is already approaching his seventies and the last specialist of the Golden Silk worm, used mainly for traditional Japanese Kimonos, however also for the production of high quality contact lenses and skin replacement in accident victims!

I stayed with them in their village of Nakajo, about an Hour away from Nagano. High in the mountains, where fresh air and fresh water are still abundant.

I saw many abandoned Farms though and bear laying Rice Fields over grown by weeds and the forest taking back the one’s fertile land. Houses falling apart and school Houses being abandoned for lack of children living in the Country side!

The prices of fruits and vegetable slowly rising over the years, due to a lack of local Farmer producing them. I was told that in 10 to 15 years, Japan will no longer be able to supply it’s large city’s with food and have to rely on imports alone, wish for any nation and community is a dangerous thing to be dependent on, making one vulnerable and dependent. Especially with rising fuel cost and more and more transportation and political challenges around the World. Local Food production has always been and still is a key factor for peace and independence. Something that in the euphoria of World trade and Savage Capitalism is largely been ignored and down played. Nevertheless, Capitalism is now reaching its limits and may even collapse in the coming decades, as the Soviet Union did not so long ago! It has been naïve and dangerous of us to believe in exponential growth and disregarding the balance of Nature it self. Our modern society is based on credit and eternal Growth, wish is simply neither Logical nor feasible in the long run!

Unfortunately, we will only learn one’s it is to late since to few dare to see the warning signs and try to rebalance the system, wish will require some major restrictions on our part as consumers and excessive waist producer!

In Nakajo many things are still done the old way, for one Bath water is shared by the whole Family to preserve energy and resources, something I had to learn my self again!

Heat is being used only in restricted areas under a table covert up with blankets and to keep once Feed and legs warm. It is like my Uncles Farm in Germany used to be as I lived there as a Child for a vile! The Kitchen was the only warm place in the whole house! Even the Local stores where rather Cold and people just put on more close and used a small stove that was used to make tea to warm them self up! We need to go back to this type of conservation and let go of fashion trends and excessive comfort and luxuries! Nakajo can get rather cold, -10 or lower is the norm in the winter month, How ever I have not been more comfortable and well of for some time, as I have been in Nakajo! Buddha preached respect and compassion to all living things, whether they are Large or small. We may want to look at his teaching again!

I went to visit the temple in Nagano on my way back to Tokyo and spend sometime meditating there hopping to find the anthers or at least some of them to our global mess, we have managed to make in such a short time!

I will truly miss Nakajo and it’s wonderful people and the good friends I made there, and I hope I may be able to come back some time! Hopping that the Japanese Silk will still be there and well so we may still be able to have traditional Kimonos for many generations to come!

 My stay in Nakajo with The Hiriuchi gave me much to think about! The passion, love and pride Shinia and Kitie had for their work, Farm and history was refreshing to see!

Something I can understand well, since I used to have the same passion, love and pride for my Sheep and our cheeses being made only with the best ingredient. Where the art and the quality of the product become more important than Money and profits!

It is what I Dreamed of for Zurich, motivating a town to make something of it self, involving every one in milking sheep and starting many small farms and a community owned Creamery to produce high quality cheeses. I am still convinced it would have been to the benefit of that Village of Zurich, just has Shinya is persuaded to be able to revive his dying Village and the Silkworm industry! I do hope he will succeed, because I know he does deeply care not only about the Silk, but also about his Village and especially about the people and their future and the next generation especially! What is life without the next generation taking over and being able to live as well as we did!?

Today we think just about profits and our self’s, for the most part any way and especially in the industrialised world of ours. How ever, does it mean anything at all? I think not!

What is life without passion, compassion and Love? Our material world cannot fulfil us or the suicide rates in our large City’s would not be as high as they are!

Our Family values are at the heard of every society and a society with out Family unity and with out Children and with out passion, pride, and Love before profits is doomed

To self-destruct. If it was not for People such as Shinya, Kitie and Rie still struggling to keep values alive, I believe our Post Industrial Material and consumer society’s would already have self destructed! Yet because of these few, they give many other still some hope even though they seem to remain paralyzed has to what they could do!

I am not sure at this point, what it will or would take to motivate people to move and change. To find meaning again as well as pride in what they do and are!

I know since I failed my self at motivating people even though the potential was there as well as the opportunities!

May it be Europe, North America or Japan the problems and symptoms of the illness of those societies are very similar as well as the causes! Soon even China and India will suffer the same fate if we cannot learn nor change and reform our self’s and our society, since we are the problem, how ever we are also the solution if we dare to take the lead!

Maybe repetitively if necessary!!

On the other hand who am I to talk, since I failed to start that flame in my own Children and Community in spite of relentless efforts!

We need to reinstate some sort of balance and values in our out of control system.