That be me at the very back.
It's been nearly a year since my trip to Ecuador. I sure do miss the wonderful, warm people there. While the indigenous people I met are dirt poor, I assure you that they have feelings, dreams, and hopes just like you and me. They want nice things and a better life just like we do. The 12+ million people of Ecuador are my brothers and sisters.
But the state of their country grieves me. The country is desperately poor, heavily in debt, and has a high birth rate. Industry exploitation is harming the nation, especially in the beautiful east where the rainforests are getting scalped. Ecuador's elite, who are in cahoots with foreign corporations, rob the country of its natural resources, with little regard for the workers or the environment. The government is infested with corruption, and civil unrest is common. In 1999, the country faced a major economic crises that was so bad that they gave up their currency and started using U.S. dollars.
As long as the people of Ecuador suffer, I suffer too. I worry about them at night. They live in small block homes and have few possessions. Who will take care of them? What will happen when their population doubles in 35 years? How will they survive when their soil is ruined and eroded by the large corporate plantations? What will happen to their coastal fisheries when the herbicides and pesticides from the farms wash into the ocean and kill the marine life? What happens when the Great Amazon Basin becomes a desert?
Do the Americans in their big pickups care? Hell, they don't even care about their own people. As I was walking home today some cowboy in a Ford 150 nearly flattened me. They flick their cigarettes butts out the window, along with their McDonalds bags. I have a feeling they don't care about the people of Ecuador.
When I was there last August, I made a promise to myself that I would come back to help Dr. Lena, Vincente, and the other wonderful people. They are human, just like you and I. Except we live a charmed life and swim in material goods, while they have almost nothing. We are rich, they are poor. But we are all still humans.
Canary, What Do You Think Is the Solution???
All humans must live in a way that it sustainable for the long haul. For starters, I must insist on the following:
• Total, absolute equality for women. Males must stop using "tradition" and "religion" as an excuse to subjugate and marginalize over half the population. Machoism is nothing but immaturity and insecurity. Get over it guys, you are better than NO ONE! And for those who have told me that I have no right to criticize someone's religion, I say that when it hurts individuals and harms the Planet, then I sure do. When Orthodox Jews make their women stand in the rain during Al Gore's visit, or when African tribes practice female genital mutilation, I say that IT IS WRONG without exception.
• In the same vein, there MUST be democracy for all. I recently went through a stage where I thought, "Who are we to assume that our form of government is the only 'right way?'" I now backtrack on this position. Everyone in the world — especially China, Saudi Arabia, and North Korea — must be under democratic government. This is the only way that a human can be truly free. I hear many criticisms about democracy, and I know that our own government is broken. The main problem with democracy is the apathy of the citizens. When people are supportive and have faith in their democratic process, it really works.
The primary elections were last Tuesday and the voter turnout was disgustingly low. It is a sad time in our country. As for Saudi Arabia, the term "monarchy" is a nice word for "dictatorship." Who are we fooling? The people of this country must be freed.
The Canary has spoken .... now he sleeps.
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