I am not ignorant, but I do sleep well
Feb 03 2011, Written by Jason Liu in Backpages, 2 Comments
Most of the time, the majority of tables on the Plaza revolve around some sort of free merchandise, free food, or club promotion. Those tables are usually quite easy to walk right past. However, sometimes walking through the Plaza morphs into an obstacle course I like to call the “Gauntlet of Guilt.” This “gauntlet” only exists when the number of tables led by the self-righteous with “cause awareness” as their goal reaches a critical mass. At that point, ignoring tables means ignoring injustices. Fortunately for me, I am immune to their powers of persuasion and can walk on to class without a flinch.
Part of my resistance comes from the fact that the self-righteous crowd quite honestly is not being self-righteous enough. I have seen tables talking about problems of questionable scientific veracity like man-made global warming. I have seen tables mentioning problems of questionable significance such as how my meat is being killed (seriously, as long as it is sanitary). However, I have never seen tables dedicated to the coltan problem. Coltan is the key mineral used in capacitors, which are essential for all electronics. Let me explain: If diamonds could earn a Leonardo DiCaprio movie, then coltan needs a trilogy of movies in which Leonardo DiCaprio will be lucky just to have a part. People in Africa are dying so that we can check our e-mail, watch the Super Bowl, spam text our friends, and play Call of Duty at an absurdly affordable price.
That then leads me to the conclusion that pretty much anyone using an electronic device to aid them in soliciting donations is failing the righteousness test. They actually seem quite ignorant. Think about all of those tables on the Plaza that have some sort of electronic device to help them aid in their cause, ranging from a computer to sign up for a listserv or a Flex reader. That means by helping Darfur or curing cancer, I am also helping fund more violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
This does not have to be limited to just the coltan problem. Every sort of cause has someone who ignored something more important. For example, I noticed very few boycotts of the 2010 World Cup, considering the South Africa’s history of violence after apartheid ended. Haiti was already one of the poorest countries on Earth before the devastating earthquake, and I continually wonder why so little effort was spent trying to solicit donations from me in the past.
Thus, I have given away my secret to how I ignore all those charities yet sleep well at night. I hope everyone who reads this finds a way to use my technique of making it through a “Gauntlet of Guilt” completely guilt-free.
However, I know that not everyone can go to sleep knowing about darker more severe problems, so I even propose to you a way to deal with that part. You should rationalize that since you have a better life with better opportunities, you will somehow find some way to parlay your situation to improve the rest of the world. Once you use that sort of logic, you have no reason other than to live long and prosper.
Jason Liu is a Pratt senior. His online column will run every Thursday.
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2 Comments
October 4, 2011 1:23 am
Justin Time
If I understand your argument correctly, you are saying that it’s okay to ignore “self-righteous” tablers trying to make the world a better place because our privileged lives will give us opportunities to make the world a better place at some point in the future. This argument reminds me of the story where the man is waiting out on a rooftop in a flooded city. He ignores a bunch of lifeboats that try to rescue him, telling them, “God will rescue me.” Then he drowns and meets God. When he asks why God didn’t rescue him, God says, “What do you mean? I sent you all those lifeboats.”
Tablers aren’t necessarily a lifeline from God, but they’re a good opportunity to use our somewhat privileged lives to make a difference. Of course they don’t do everything, but they do something, and that’s a start. They certainly do more than the people who make a point of ignoring them.
Also, climate change and the meat industry are neither questionable nor insignificant issues. Just ask any professor at the Nicholas School. And as far as sanitary, do you know what goes on in a slaughterhouse? It’s no coincidence that E. coli is on the rise.
Finally, the World Cup didn’t ignore the issue of Apartheid. The whole reason it was so special is that South Africa has largely overcome Apartheid. It was able to come together as a peaceful and stable country in order to host one of the world’s largest sporting events.
October 4, 2011 12:22 pm
Jason Liu
Wow, I am glad someone actually read this; in fact, I am shocked anyone read this and left a comment. Nonetheless, I might as well address what you criticize me for being dismissive towards.
Obviously, this article was written as somewhat of a sarcastic self-obsessed rant, so hopefully you did not find any of it truly that serious. On the issues you mention:
The food comment was directed at people who want “humane” killing of animals that wee eat. The global warming comment was a reference to the constant supply of ClimateGate sort of events with faked data.
My South Africa reference however needs further explanation. The media does not cover the real South Africa, post-apartheid as it should. At the time of the post, my editor did not seem to understand the reference as well. Calling South Africa a “stable” country that has made progress since apartheid ended is a laughable notion. The country is run by the equivalent of the violent wing of the Black Panthers who actively promote black on white violence with leaders who believe that showering after sex will prevent HIV transmission. The country has even been put on Genocide Watch because of how ridiculous the levels of of black on white violence have gotten. Canada has even accepted white South Africans for asylum; eventually, I assume the United States will be doing the same. That is just the racial violence aspect of what I briefly alluded to. Then there is the fact that since Apartheid ended, South Africa has become a hotbed of violent crime, namely murders and rapes.
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