Cav's Place

Today is Blog Action Day and the issue is water. You know, the blood of the Earth, which should be clear but is in fact filled with most of humanity’s waste, spreading our poison far and wide just like any animal’s blood spreads a snake’s venom throughout its own body very quickly after it is bitten. We consider liquid water to be the key prerequisite of life, to the point that astronomers say that a world without it can’t sustain life but one with it almost certainly does, yet we use the water we have as if it were an unlimited supply and soil it as if it were a bottomless pit.
With 80% of the world’s population living in areas where the fresh water supply is not secure, I could write this from a humanitarian perspective. But I won’t, because the problem affects the world and, despite what the vast majority of people think, Earth is far greater and far more important than humanity. After all, even though those most affected by such environmental problems tend to be those least guilty of causing them, we are all guilty of perpetuating a state of affairs that brought us to this point. Each and every one of us most likely actively worsens, or at the very least allows others to worsen, overpopulation, pollution and overconsumption, which are the real causes of all these environmental problems. The other species we share this planet with, however, are not guilty of such crimes against it, yet they are hit by their effects far worse than we are, so they’re the ones I’m more worried about.

With people using more and more water and building systems to make as much of the Earth’s water as possible usable for their own ends, the other species have to make do with less and less. And it’s not just that pretty much all species need to drink, but also that a whole lot of species live in water, including dolphins, which are at least the second most intelligent species on Earth. In fact, speaking of dolphins, October 14th is the International Save Japan Dolphins Day, so I’d like to take the opportunity to draw attention to that problem as well.
Dolphins also show us how much filth we dump into our rivers and oceans, because they’re at the very top of the aquatic food chain and therefore the toxins ingested by pretty much all other aquatic species end up gathering inside their bodies. So we have turned a species that’s very nearly as intelligent as we are into a group of living toxic waste dumps, because we have turned the oceans which are their home into the planet’s waste dump. And that’s not just because of frequent spills and accidents, like the disastrous Deepwater Horizon oil spill or the recent toxic sludge spill in Hungary, but also because of constant runoff that fills our planet’s waters with all sorts of toxins and waste products, such as fertilizers, heavy metals, medicines, plastics or bodily waste, spreading such substances far and wide and reducing the amount of usable water available at the same time as our requirements keep increasing. Judging by this, the dolphins no longer sound like only the second most intelligent species on Earth, because at least they don’t destroy the very thing their survival depends upon…

And then we have climate change, which is also mainly caused by humans and has massive effects on the global water cycle. Normally, a warmer climate would mean more evaporation but also more rainfall, since that water can’t stay up there forever, which would be a situation that would cause significant problems of its own, but things are even worse, as Earth seems to no longer be able to put up with the punishments we subject it to.
Our planet’s pulse is indeed quickening, but not uniformly. Most of this quickening is noticed over oceans, with dry land no longer keeping up and weather patterns changing significantly. As a result, dry areas get even drier and wet areas get even wetter, the living conditions in both deteriorating more and more for humans and other species alike. The only ones who don’t really mind what we’re doing to the world are probably microbes and moss… And maybe also cockroaches…

I wrote about water once before, though there wasn’t much to that post. If you want some real information and statistics, including a calculator to determine how much water you really use, according to your consumption and activities, you could check out waterfootprint.org, among many other sites that provide such information and advice.
Personally, I do try to reduce my water footprint when possible, but I’m still quite unhappy with the results because I can’t seem to manage to do some relatively simple things that could perhaps have a noticeable impact. Admittedly, I don’t have that much of a choice in what I eat or use, since I’m not the one making the purchases, and my footprint is likely relatively low as it is. I used the calculator on waterfootprint.org with some extremely rough estimates of my consumption, since I don’t have a clearer idea, and it gave me a result of 1130 cubic meters per year, which is nearly 10% under the worldwide average of 1243 and a full third under Romania’s average of 1734, not to mention only about 45% of the USA average of 2483. The real results may be a bit higher, around the worldwide average, but those averages have probably increased as well, as they only have full statistics available for the 1997-2001 period.
Either way, my potentially low water footprint is due to not eating much, not using much and in general not doing much of anything, not thanks to good choices regarding my consumption and activities, so that’s what I’d really want to work on… It would be a pretty good sign for the world if everyone would at least try to do the same, but unfortunately people will be people and the vast majority won’t do a good thing unless forced. Which only means we must find a way to force them…

Continued from the previous post…

18. Please state how much confidence you have in the following public institutions:
Note: This is all the available data, specifically stating that the value listed is the sum of those who picked “very much” and “pretty much”. For my own answers, I’ll assume that the other options were “not much” and “very little”.
a) Fire department: 89%
My answer: Pretty much, no reason to say otherwise.
b) Church: 80%
My answer: Not much. I’d say very little in it as an institution, but I’m quite aware that there are some priests who really do a lot for their communities.
c) Military: 73%
My answer: Pretty much, once again no reason to say otherwise.
d) Gendarmerie: 63%
My answer: Not much, not after seeing some of the things that happen during protests or marches that they’re supposed to watch.
e) Mass media (television, radio, newspapers): 61%
My answer: Not much, considering how a few people control most of it.
f) Polling institutes: 57%
My answer: Pretty much. Even though poll results almost always favor the one who ordered the poll, I’m good enough at reading between the lines and figuring out real facts from their data to say they’re quite useful even as things currently stand.
g) Your local mayor’s office: 55%
My answer: Pretty much if you mean Negoita’s, which really is local. Very little if you mean Oprescu’s.
h) Police: 55%
My answer: Not much. I could even say very little, but let’s leave it like that for now.
i) Romanian Intelligence Service: 40%
My answer: Quite frankly, pretty much. Of course they act on Basescu’s orders, but shouldn’t they?
j) People’s Attorney: 34%
My answer: Very little, as I can’t recall ever seeing that institution be of any real use.
k) Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs): 33%
My answer: Pretty much. At least some of them really try, though others are just a front for other operations. You just have to figure out which is which.
l) Unions: 32%
My answer: Very little.
m) Courts of law: 29%
My answer: Not much, unfortunately.
n) Banks: 25%
My answer: Not much. Was tempted to even say very little, but there are a few I’d at least trust with deposits.
o) Presidency: 17%
My answer: Still pretty much, though pretty much everyone wants to have my head when I mention it.
p) Parliament: 14%
My answer: Very little. In fact, none at all.
q) Government: 13%
My answer: Very little. I can trust that many of them will try to do just enough not to get kicked out of office right away, but certainly no more than that.
r) Political parties: 12%
My answer: Very little. Let’s see if Remus’ new party will be any different (Note (May, 2012): They aren’t.), because otherwise… Well, I have a little ranking system, from +5 to -5, and so far it’s more or less like this: PNG and PRM are at -4, PSD at -3, PDL, PNL and UDMR at -2 and the Greens at -1, where they actually were even before Remus left and told how the other leaders saw things, as I still think they’d be a bit better than the rest so I didn’t take them down further. I’m not sure where I should place the new UNPR, but it’s either -2 or -3. Either way, as you can see, all of them are in the negative numbers range…

19. Overall, do you think that Romania is currently heading in a right or wrong direction?
– In a right direction: 12%
– In a wrong direction: 80%
My answer: In a wrong direction, obviously. But have to point out that this is not just the fault of the current PDL-UDMR government, because the plans put forward by PSD and PNL are at least as bad, and usually worse. It’s also certainly not just because of politics, as the vast majority of Romanian people are heading in a very wrong direction. But that usually goes for most people anywhere.

20. Are you a member of an association or organization that does not bring you any income, such as, for example, a professional association, party, union, religious group, sports club, NGO, etc.?
– Yes: 8%
– No: 91%
My answer: No…

21. What kind of association or organization are you a member of?
Note: Percentages are out of the 8% who said they were members.
– Professional association: 26%
– Union: 26%
– Political party: 25%
– Recreational / sports: 9%
– Civic / ideologic: 6%
– Religious: 4%
– Pensioner’s / welfare: 3%
My answer: Not applicable.

22. How important do you believe the mass media is for a democracy?
– Very important: 58%
– Pretty important: 28%
– Not really important: 8%
– Not important at all: 3%
My answer: Very important, obviously. But it all depends on who controls it.

23. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
a) In Romania, the mass media is independent.
– Agree: 62%
– Disagree: 31%
My answer: Disagree, in most cases.
b) In Romania, the mass media serves the people’s interests.
– Agree: 69%
– Disagree: 27%
My answer: Disagree, obviously.

24. Overall, what is your primary source of information?
– Television: 71%
– Internet: 13%
– Written press (newspapers, magazines): 9%
– Radio: 6%
My answer: Internet. I do go through the newspapers dad brings daily, but I rarely get much information from them and usually look up anything that does catch my eye on-line as well anyway. The fact that he usually just gets tabloids certainly doesn’t help.

25. During a normal weekday, how many hours do you spend on average following politics or current events on:
a) Television? 2.7 hours on average.
My answer: No time at all on an average day. I only follow the news on TV when something really important is going on and I believe the coverage is good.
b) Radio? 1.3 hours on average.
My answer: No time at all, period.
c) Written press (newspapers, magazines)? 0.8 hours on average.
My answer: About 15 minutes, I think.
d) Internet? 0.8 hours on average.
My answer: Varies greatly, but actually following such news… Maybe I could say 30 minutes? I read quickly.

26. Can you tell us how much did the Internet help you:
Note: Notice the huge number of people who didn’t answer this, 64-65% on each part of it. Still too few people using the Internet…
a) Keep in touch with people or groups who share your passions or hobbies?
– Very often: 12%
– Pretty often: 10%
– Rarely: 4%
– Very rarely / never: 10%
My answer: Well, since I only keep in touch with people on-line, it has to be very often.
b) Keep in touch with people or groups who share your religious or philosophical beliefs?
– Very often: 6%
– Pretty often: 7%
– Rarely: 5%
– Very rarely / never: 17%
My answer: Since these are not primary criteria, I pretty rarely met such people, but I’ll say pretty often because all those I did meet were met on-line, obviously.
c) Take part in common actions in support of the same viewpoint?
– Very often: 4%
– Pretty often: 6%
– Rarely: 7%
– Very rarely / never: 17%
My answer: Clearly very often, especially if petitions count.
d) Keep in touch with people or groups who share your political opinions?
– Very often: 5%
– Pretty often: 4%
– Rarely: 5%
– Very rarely / never: 22%
My answer: I’ll say pretty often, because I only started to seriously get involved in this before last year’s presidential elections.
e) Get involved in actions organized by the groups or organizations you are a member of?
– Very often: 3%
– Pretty often: 5%
– Rarely: 4%
– Very rarely / never: 24%
My answer: Once again, very often if petitions count.
f) Take part in street protests?
– Very often: 1%
– Pretty often: 2%
– Rarely: 3%
– Very rarely / never: 29%
My answer: Let’s say rarely because I was sort of around at one and meant to take part in another but got cold feet when I got there and saw how few people had gathered…

27. How interested are you in politics, overall?
– Very interested: 11%
– Pretty interested: 27%
– Not really interested: 31%
– Very little / not at all interested: 30%
My answer: Pretty interested, but that’s about things that deal with politics in general, not the mockery that passes for politics here now.

28. How often do you discuss politics and its effects on daily life?
– Daily: 28%
– A few times per week: 31%
– A few times per month: 13%
– Once per month or less: 13%
– Never: 14%
My answer: Considering how often I butt in when Remus or his associates post something, I’ll say daily.

29. How often do you end up thinking that politics is too complicated for you to understand?
– Always: 7%
– Often: 29%
– Sometimes: 34%
– Never: 25%
My answer: Quite frankly, never. Sometimes I understand all too well…

30. How often do you think that politicians think the same as people like you?
– Always: 2%
– Often: 9%
– Sometimes: 37%
– Never: 46%
My answer: Well, sometimes, some of them, those that never end up having a lot of authority. But even they usually quickly get over it, unfortunately.

31. Do you approve of making voting mandatory in Romania?
– Yes: 60%
– No: 36%
My answer: No. Just make it very clear that anyone who doesn’t vote has no right to complain afterwards. But also only allow people to vote if they prove that they’re at least somewhat informed.

32. Do you approve of reducing the voting age, so people will be able to vote at 16?
– Yes: 30%
– No: 65%
My answer: Yes, but keep in mind what I said above. Regardless of age, voting should be a privilege you earn once you prove you are at least somewhat informed regarding the options available and the issues at stake, not a right you automatically have.

33. Do you believe elections in Romania are frauded?
– Yes: 80%
– No: 10%
My answer: Yes, but I think the “voting machines” of PDL and PSD were pretty equal for the past few years, so I don’t really think this affected which of them won, but only made them appear to dominate the political scene more than they really did, since PNL could steal far fewer votes than either of them, UDMR could perhaps only work in the small area it more or less controls and the other parties never had the strength to do anything along these lines.

An NGO from here released a survey through which they supposedly attempted to figure out Romanians’ views on “democracy, citizenship and civic participation” 20 years after the fall of Communism. In fact it’s 20 years since the NGO in question was founded, close to 21 since the fall of Communism, but doesn’t matter. I’ll just try to post the results and my own answers to the questions here because I still have no further information regarding the matter that has pretty much paralyzed me in fear for the past several days and certainly can’t think enough to actually write something on another issue…
If the percentages add to less than 100%, it’s usually because I don’t include the “don’t know or refuse to answer” part. If there is any other reason, I’ll specify it. The answers are listed in the order provided. If you want to take this as a random survey to fill, just replace Romania with your own country I guess…

1. Do you approve of democracy?
– Yes, fully: 62%
– Somewhat: 21%
– Not really: 5%
– Not at all: 10%
My answer: Somewhat. It is a bad system, but most likely better in practice than all the others humans have tried so far. We can’t go back to others, but we urgently need to move forward to something new.

2. Do you believe that people are free to do what they want in a democracy?
– Certainly: 26%
– Probably: 35%
– Probably not: 16%
– Certainly not: 23%
My answer: I was tempted to say probably, but I think I’ll go with probably not. Not just because most people wish to harm others and of course nobody should be allowed to do that without just cause, but because either the majority or those elected tend to force their views upon the rest.

3. Which of the following do you most agree with?
– People are free from birth, naturally: 47%
– People must earn their freedom during their lives: 49%
My answer: Free from birth, of course. I thought slavery was abolished some time ago…

4. How much do you agree with the statement “freedom is the most important thing in a person’s life”?
– Fully: 72%
– Somewhat: 21%
– A little: 4%
– Not at all: 1%
My answer: Somewhat. I could in fact say I don’t agree, because there are a few things I’d certainly give up some or perhaps even many freedoms for, but let’s leave it like that.

5. Which of the following do you most agree with?
– People are born unequal: 14%
– People are born equal but then, during their lives, become different due to different circumstances: 60%
– People are born equal and remain equal throughout their lives: 21%
My answer: People are born unequal. Seriously, gather a random sample of children and see for yourself. Many will probably be comparable overall, though noticeably different from each other, but there will always be some clearly above and some others clearly below the rest, no matter the criteria used. It’s just a fact of life.

6. How much do you agree with the statement “the state must ensure greater equality between people”?
– Fully: 70%
– Somewhat: 19%
– A little: 5%
– Not at all: 3%
My answer: Fully, but only when it comes to circumstances. No affirmative action or other methods that artificially promote some and/or pull down others regardless of their respective abilities.

7. Which of the following do you most agree with?
– Freedom is more important, even if it leads to inequality: 58%
– Equality is more important, even if it leads to less freedom: 33%
My answer: This is a really difficult one, but I’m going to answer freedom, though only up to a point.

8. Do you agree or disagree with the following statements?
a) In a democracy, the political system favors the rich.
– Agree: 83%
– Disagree: 15%
My answer: Agree. Extremely obvious, unfortunately.
b) In a democracy, the political system malfunctions.
– Agree: 75%
– Disagree: 21%
My answer: Same as above, agree.
c) Minorities must bow to the will of the majority, regardless of the majority’s position.
– Agree: 72%
– Disagree: 23%
My answer: Very firmly disagree. That’s tyranny of the majority people, and there’s really no difference between it and a dictatorship when someone else rules your life.
d) Human rights are respected in Romania.
– Agree: 36%
– Disagree: 62%
My answer: I was thinking to say I won’t answer this, but let’s say agree, somewhat… Certainly far less than in some countries, but also far more than in many others, so…

9. How do you think most wealthy people managed to earn their fortune in Romania?
– By breaking the law: 69%
– By having connections: 17%
– Through work and personal merit: 5%
– By chance: 4%
– All of the above: 1%
– Some other means: 0%
My answer: By breaking the law. Once again, all too obvious…

10. Would you agree or disagree with:
a) One of the people close to you converting to another religion?
– Agree: 33%
– Disagree: 63%
My answer: Agree, of course. Well, obviously depends on the religion and what would be asked of them in order to follow it, but nothing wrong with the conversion itself.
b) Converting to another religion yourself?
– Agree: 6%
– Disagree: 92%
My answer: Well, I’ll say agree because I’m of course always searching and if something that seems noticeably more accurate would present itself I won’t reject it. But I spent quite a lot of years coming up with the system I now have and it can accept a lot of changes as it is, so that seems quite unlikely. There’s also the fact that converting to a certain religion usually implies that someone else came up with it and you’ll just be following it, and I’d much rather come up with my own beliefs, more or less.

11. Lately, crime in Romania has constantly been on the rise and the authorities can do nothing to stop it. The death penalty could stop this trend. If a referendum about reinstating the death penalty would be called, how would you vote?
– In favor of reinstating the death penalty: 50%
– Against reinstating the death penalty: 42%
– I wouldn’t vote: 1%
My answer: Against. Way too lenient for the few crimes that’d truly be so bad as to require such a punishment, way too harsh for anything else.

12. Lately, Romanian Gypsies have been involved in illegal activities in Western countries: theft, prostitution, drug trafficking and others, badly staining Romania’s image. If a referendum about withdrawing such people’s citizenship would be called, how would you vote?
– In favor of withdrawing their citizenship: 55%
– Against withdrawing their citizenship: 32%
– I wouldn’t vote: 4%
My answer: In favor, but with one very important note: This applies to all Romanian citizens who go to other countries and commit either major crimes or crimes which become major due to receiving a lot of media attention; ethnicity has nothing to do with it.

13. Lately, some ethnic Hungarians have been requesting autonomy for the Székely Land. If a referendum about withdrawing such people’s citizenship would be called, how would you vote?
– In favor of withdrawing their citizenship: 36%
– Against withdrawing their citizenship: 46%
– I wouldn’t vote: 6%
My answer: Against. It’s their right to bring up the issue and there should be serious discussions about it, not the kind of reactions we currently see. Independence is clearly off the table, but I wouldn’t see the problem with administrative autonomy, for example. Romania could even become a federal state, made up of a number of mostly autonomous regions answering only in certain matters to a central government, and this could be one of those regions, so they could get most of what they want without even requiring to be given a special status.

14. Lately, some people have been disagreeing with Orthodox Christian teachings and displaying a critical attitude towards the Orthodox Christian religion and the Romanian Orthodox Church, so they could potentially be accused of offense against a public institution and blasphemy. Charging them with a criminal offense and punishing them through fines or even incarceration could stop this trend. If a referendum about punishing these people in such a way would be called, how would you vote?
– In favor of such punishments for these people: 42%
– Against such punishments for these people: 41%
– I wouldn’t vote: 6%
My answer: Against, of course! Or do I need to quote the Constitution to you, where it says Romania has no state religion?

15. Do you believe that:
a) Most people would try to take advantage of you if they could?
– Yes: 64%
– No: 32%
My answer: Yes. Once again, it’s unfortunately all too obvious.
b) Most people try to be of use to society?
– Yes: 42%
– No: 56%
My answer: No, most people just try to be of use to themselves. Not that this particular society we live in is worth fighting for in any way, but that’s another matter.
c) We can generally trust most people?
– Yes: 31%
– No: 68%
My answer: Absolutely not. See what I said above about most just looking out for themselves.

16. If you were to rate from 1 to 10, where 1 means you have no confidence at all and 10 means you trust most, which confidence rating would you award the following categories?
a) Your family members: 9.3 on average.
My answer: 4.
b) People who share your views: 7.6 on average.
My answer: 8.
c) Your coworkers: 6.9 on average.
My answer: Not applicable.
d) Your neighbors: 6.6 on average.
My answer: 3.
e) People whose religious beliefs differ from yours: 6.3 on average.
My answer: I refuse to answer this. That in itself has no relevance on the matter at hand and I couldn’t possibly know a statistically significant number of them to be able to estimate otherwise.
f) Foreigners: 5.6 on average.
My answer: Same as above, I can’t answer this.

17. If you were to lose your wallet or purse, how likely do you think you’d be to get them back if found by:
a) A neighbor or someone who works nearby?
– Likely: 56%
– Unlikely: 43%
My answer: Let’s say likely. Not likely to have the money returned as well, but they didn’t ask that. Not that I have a wallet, but let’s just go with it.
b) A cop?
– Likely: 54%
– Unlikely: 43%
My answer: Likely. Hopefully…
c) A stranger?
– Likely: 17%
– Unlikely: 82%
My answer: Unlikely.

But this is getting too long already and I think I’d better stop here. Part two, if I’ll still be in any condition to post it, will start with one of the things that the media tends to focus on a lot when it comes to such surveys, namely people’s confidence in public institutions.

Just noticed something, maybe 30 minutes ago… At first I meant to try to ignore it until I could gather some more information, once I realized what it could mean, but it’s obviously impossible to ignore something like this. So now do I just sit here and panic until I can somehow find out more, try to ask and obviously go back to sitting here and panicking while I’ll obviously get no reply or just… Yeah, if I could do that I wouldn’t still be here in the first place…
Shaking like I just witnessed the world ending and holding a knife I haven’t used in three years… But if this means what I think it does, my world did just end for good… Or it ended a while back, actually, but I just now got some information to back up that feeling of doom I’ve been having for quite some time… Should trust such feelings more…
Can’t be! Just can’t! Curse and damn you all, from the highest divine being to the lowest bacterium, and particularly any and all humans in between, who can or could do something to prevent this from happening and choose or chose not to, to endless lifetimes of unbearable suffering!

The ideas are certainly interesting, though I’m not exactly fond of the whole religious note. The writing can occasionally leave a little to be desired, but there are also really nice moments, especially during dialogues. In all, not exactly something I ended up being enthusiastic about, but a good book nevertheless, and one that I’m sure was a whole lot more work than it appears, as alternative history always is, even when you don’t try to turn all known science on its head, create your own and actually have it make sense while still roughly sticking to the world we live in!

Rating: 4/5