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Post by The_L on Dec 18, 2011 7:30:53 GMT -5
Warning: This will probably make you very disgusted with humanity. www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-15/victoria-s-secret-revealed-in-child-picking-burkina-faso-cotton.htmlSummary:The rules for fair-trade crops are that they have to be grown by adults paid a living wage. That's not what's happening in Burkina Faso. Most, if not all, of the country's fair-trade certified cotton is grown by children under horrific conditions: plowing, weeding and harvesting by hand, and on some days, a meal. Farmers there claim to believe that they are obeying the child-labor stipulations by Fairtrade so long as the children working themselves to death on their land are not their own children and are not under the age of six. |
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Post by Meshakhad on Dec 18, 2011 13:55:03 GMT -5
Gun the farmers down, and divide their possessions among the children.
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Post by brendanrizzo on Dec 18, 2011 13:57:54 GMT -5
Well, this is illegal and against regulations, so they might get their comeuppance now that this is exposed.
...Eh, what am I saying, this is a Third World country we're talking about. Even in First World countries people brazenly disobey these rules.
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Post by Dragon Zachski on Dec 18, 2011 15:33:45 GMT -5
Well... now I'm going to be super-suspicious of anything that has the "Fair Trade" label on it  |
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Post by Vene on Dec 18, 2011 16:01:25 GMT -5
Well... now I'm going to be super-suspicious of anything that has the "Fair Trade" label on it If it makes you feel better, stuff without the label is just as bad. |
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Post by Art Vandelay on Dec 18, 2011 21:16:04 GMT -5
Huh, I've always thought fair trade is bullshit, and it turns out I was right.
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Post by SpukiKitty on Dec 18, 2011 22:27:35 GMT -5
Well, I'm not going to dismiss ALL fairtrade because of a few nasty bad apples. I will not give in to cynicism. This is a minority of people pretending to be Fair Trade. If you give in to cynicism, you quit buy Fair Trade ANYTHING & The REAL Fair Traders who do things right won't get your business....Then the unethical Big Shots WIN!
No, you MUST embrace the superior values of Optimism, Hope, Idealism, Confidence, High Morale & Faith in Humanity! NEVER let the bad apples spoil the whole bunch!
THEY want you to be hyper-cynical! They want you to eshew altruism & "Good Samaritanism".
"No Good Deed Goes Unpunished"...BULL! Rather, "Be careful who you do good deeds for because some will bite you in the butt!"....See? Good deeds will be rewarded in many cases. Only some lead to heartache.
Yes, it's good to have caution & realism but one needn't sacrifice their idealism, optimism & hope!
Both Rousseau & Hobbes were right.
We can be like peaceful Bonobos or be like brutal Chimps. Which road will YOU take?
Take the middle road...no extremes...don't chuck a good thing because of a few bad apples. Compared to centuries ago, the world has GOTTEN BETTER! The News seldom reports what's RIGHT with the world! So lay off the Pessimism, Misanthropy, Hyper-Cynicism, etc!
CHEEZE LOUISE!
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Keiro
Full Member
An Puis?n Faolch?
Posts: 214
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Post by Keiro on Dec 18, 2011 22:36:39 GMT -5
Well, I'm not going to dismiss ALL fairtrade because of a few nasty bad apples. I will not give in to cynicism. This is a minority of people pretending to be Fair Trade. If you give in to cynicism, you quit buy Fair Trade ANYTHING & The REAL Fair Traders who do things right won't get your business....Then the unethical Big Shots WIN! No, you MUST embrace the superior values of Optimism, Hope, Idealism, Confidence, High Morale & Faith in Humanity! NEVER let the bad apples spoil the whole bunch! THEY want you to be hyper-cynical! They want you to eshew altruism & "Good Samaritanism". "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished"...BULL! Rather, "Be careful who you do good deeds for because some will bite you in the butt!"....See? Good deeds will be rewarded in many cases. Only some lead to heartache. Yes, it's good to have caution & realism but one needn't sacrifice their idealism, optimism & hope! Both Rousseau & Hobbes were right. We can be like peaceful Bonobos or be like brutal Chimps. Which road will YOU take? Take the middle road...no extremes...don't chuck a good thing because of a few bad apples. Compared to centuries ago, the world has GOTTEN BETTER! The News seldom reports what's RIGHT with the world! So lay off the Pessimism, Misanthropy, Hyper-Cynicism, etc! CHEEZE LOUISE! ... My response to that?  |
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Post by Art Vandelay on Dec 18, 2011 22:39:32 GMT -5
This, people, is why you don't post while high. It makes you look like an imitation flower child.
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Post by Wykked Wytch on Dec 18, 2011 22:48:19 GMT -5
It's a self-perpetuating cycle in Burkina Faso. She is one of the poorest countries in the world (with an annual income per capita of $300.00 USD). Agriculture employs 80% of her population and constitutes 32% of her GDP. The country has very few other natural resources. Because the families are so poor, they have to send even the children to go work, who get criminal wages, which essentially dooms them to a lifetime of working even harder to get more money. The child labor laws are not working here because 1) it becomes even harder for families to earn money and 2) companies will find a loophole in the laws anyway so they can continue their abuse.
Besides cracking down on human rights abuses, this situation might also be helped by doing something to jump-start the economy a bit. Something needs to get the ball rolling. I just don't know what.
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Post by The_L on Dec 19, 2011 9:23:52 GMT -5
It's a self-perpetuating cycle in Burkina Faso. She is one of the poorest countries in the world (with an annual income per capita of $300.00 USD). Agriculture employs 80% of her population and constitutes 32% of her GDP. The country has very few other natural resources. Because the families are so poor, they have to send even the children to go work, who get criminal wages, which essentially dooms them to a lifetime of working even harder to get more money. The child labor laws are not working here because 1) it becomes even harder for families to earn money and 2) companies will find a loophole in the laws anyway so they can continue their abuse. Besides cracking down on human rights abuses, this situation might also be helped by doing something to jump-start the economy a bit. Something needs to get the ball rolling. I just don't know what. Donating plows and beasts to pull them might be a good start. These people can't even afford that. We need a big pull to send appropriate crop seeds and farming equipment to the third world. Unfortunately, after Wakefield's blunder it's not likely. |
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Post by SpukiKitty on Dec 19, 2011 10:08:19 GMT -5
This, people, is why you don't post while high. It makes you look like an imitation flower child. What's wrong with that? Flowerkids are cool! If I'm a Flowerkid then I'll wear that badge proudly & with honor! .....And yes, I do bathe. |
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Post by SpukiKitty on Dec 19, 2011 10:41:16 GMT -5
Well, I'm not going to dismiss ALL fairtrade because of a few nasty bad apples. I will not give in to cynicism. This is a minority of people pretending to be Fair Trade. If you give in to cynicism, you quit buy Fair Trade ANYTHING & The REAL Fair Traders who do things right won't get your business....Then the unethical Big Shots WIN! No, you MUST embrace the superior values of Optimism, Hope, Idealism, Confidence, High Morale & Faith in Humanity! NEVER let the bad apples spoil the whole bunch! THEY want you to be hyper-cynical! They want you to eshew altruism & "Good Samaritanism". "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished"...BULL! Rather, "Be careful who you do good deeds for because some will bite you in the butt!"....See? Good deeds will be rewarded in many cases. Only some lead to heartache. Yes, it's good to have caution & realism but one needn't sacrifice their idealism, optimism & hope! Both Rousseau & Hobbes were right. We can be like peaceful Bonobos or be like brutal Chimps. Which road will YOU take? Take the middle road...no extremes...don't chuck a good thing because of a few bad apples. Compared to centuries ago, the world has GOTTEN BETTER! The News seldom reports what's RIGHT with the world! So lay off the Pessimism, Misanthropy, Hyper-Cynicism, etc! CHEEZE LOUISE! ... My response to that? Is having a "Glass-Half-Full" attitude really that hard to comprehend? I'm not dismissing cynicism per se, just the overabundance of it. I'm not promoting a "Polyanna Happy-Happy-Joy-Joy Sugarcoated Dizzyland" I still believe in caution, realism, sobriety, etc. I know some things turn out tragically. However, I'm just promoting a more positive attitude about life, the world, etc. Yes, there are a multitude of horrors in this world but there's a multitude of good stuff, too. Same goes for people. For every wicked psychopath & jerkoff, there's probably 5 or more decent people, some remarkable, some not. The problem is, the jerks & psychopaths are louder, they stand out & get more attention. They stand out BECAUSE they deviate from the norm. Also keep in mind that humanity DOES learn from its mistakes....the problem is that the ones who do learn tend to not to be the ones in power. Now, If only just the good, intelligent people who "get it" would run for office..... It seems that having a negative attitude has become "vogue", like you aren't "cool" or "cutting edge" if you're positive. "True Art Is Angsty" they say....well I say that "True Art, Whenever Angsty or Not Says Something of Value". Art's subjective, afterall. Yes, there's a place for darkness. Heck, I love the dark beauty of the "Goth Aesthetic" & the musical stylings of Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, Switchblade Symphony, etc.....However, I also enjoy 1960's Flowerpower standards, The British Invasion, New Age music & anything that was big in the 80's....I even like some very old-school rap tunes & Will Smith in his "Fresh Prince" days. I like the dark & light, it's a nice balance. I'm also a big fan of Weird Al & I also get the giggles from some Ray Stevens silliness & Spike Jones' 1942 anti-Nazi goof-fest "Der Fuehrer's Face". I guess, I responded originally in a way that was ridiculous. But I always say....try to look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Every tragedy has a silver lining somewhere, you just have to find it. If there is no silver lining....MAKE ONE! Finally, not all darkness is bad & not all light is good. You just need balance & be an eclectic realist/idealist. The Human Species is simultaneously the highest & the lowest of the beasts. Each person has to make that choice. You wanna be like Chimps or like Bonobos? You want to be ethical or do you want to be a slimeball? Your choice. You don't have to agree with me. That's okay. I just thought I'd try to expand your minds a bit. People seem to swing to extremes. It's ridiculous. |
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Post by Wykked Wytch on Dec 19, 2011 18:25:54 GMT -5
... My response to that? Is having a "Glass-Half-Full" attitude really that hard to comprehend? I'm not dismissing cynicism per se, just the overabundance of it. I'm not promoting a "Polyanna Happy-Happy-Joy-Joy Sugarcoated Dizzyland" I still believe in caution, realism, sobriety, etc. I know some things turn out tragically. However, I'm just promoting a more positive attitude about life, the world, etc. Yes, there are a multitude of horrors in this world but there's a multitude of good stuff, too. Same goes for people. For every wicked psychopath & jerkoff, there's probably 5 or more decent people, some remarkable, some not. The problem is, the jerks & psychopaths are louder, they stand out & get more attention. They stand out BECAUSE they deviate from the norm. Also keep in mind that humanity DOES learn from its mistakes....the problem is that the ones who do learn tend to not to be the ones in power. Now, If only just the good, intelligent people who "get it" would run for office..... It seems that having a negative attitude has become "vogue", like you aren't "cool" or "cutting edge" if you're positive. "True Art Is Angsty" they say....well I say that "True Art, Whenever Angsty or Not Says Something of Value". Art's subjective, afterall. Yes, there's a place for darkness. Heck, I love the dark beauty of the "Goth Aesthetic" & the musical stylings of Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, Switchblade Symphony, etc.....However, I also enjoy 1960's Flowerpower standards, The British Invasion, New Age music & anything that was big in the 80's....I even like some very old-school rap tunes & Will Smith in his "Fresh Prince" days. I like the dark & light, it's a nice balance. I'm also a big fan of Weird Al & I also get the giggles from some Ray Stevens silliness & Spike Jones' 1942 anti-Nazi goof-fest "Der Fuehrer's Face". I guess, I responded originally in a way that was ridiculous. But I always say....try to look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Every tragedy has a silver lining somewhere, you just have to find it. If there is no silver lining....MAKE ONE! Finally, not all darkness is bad & not all light is good. You just need balance & be an eclectic realist/idealist. The Human Species is simultaneously the highest & the lowest of the beasts. Each person has to make that choice. You wanna be like Chimps or like Bonobos? You want to be ethical or do you want to be a slimeball? Your choice. You don't have to agree with me. That's okay. I just thought I'd try to expand your minds a bit. People seem to swing to extremes. It's ridiculous. He wasn't criticizing optimism. He was criticizing the fact that your original post made no sense. |
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Post by Wykked Wytch on Dec 19, 2011 18:28:20 GMT -5
It's a self-perpetuating cycle in Burkina Faso. She is one of the poorest countries in the world (with an annual income per capita of $300.00 USD). Agriculture employs 80% of her population and constitutes 32% of her GDP. The country has very few other natural resources. Because the families are so poor, they have to send even the children to go work, who get criminal wages, which essentially dooms them to a lifetime of working even harder to get more money. The child labor laws are not working here because 1) it becomes even harder for families to earn money and 2) companies will find a loophole in the laws anyway so they can continue their abuse. Besides cracking down on human rights abuses, this situation might also be helped by doing something to jump-start the economy a bit. Something needs to get the ball rolling. I just don't know what. Donating plows and beasts to pull them might be a good start. These people can't even afford that. We need a big pull to send appropriate crop seeds and farming equipment to the third world. Unfortunately, after Wakefield's blunder it's not likely. I'd also recommend genetically engineering seeds so that the plants are better at growing in that soil and make more nutrients as well. I know Monsanto is corrupt, and I'm against the idea of patenting genetic material, but if this was accomplished then it would be possible to grow better crops on a smaller land area. |
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