Just Chuck it Out!

I 've owned an Everio JVC video recorder for a few years now. Not long ago, as I was getting ready for a trip, I pulled it off the shelf and tested its functionality. It didn't work! When I purchased the camera I asked the salesperson about repairs. He told me to bring it in if there was a problem. I took it back to the store and was given a phone number. I went home and dialed the number. I was told it would be $80 just to look at it, followed by the cost of repairs!

I then called Everio and was put through to the service shop. "When did you use it last?' an elderly voice asked. I told him about two months ago. He then instructed me to remove the battery cover, take an ordinary eraser, and rub the little shiny bars that were exposed. I did. It worked! Charge $0. Of course I was lucky to have the proper tool on hand -  a pencil with an eraser!

We hear a lot about the environment these days and that is a good thing. But there are two important reasons why, as individuals, we should move beyond merely a general statement ("the environment"), to our own behaviour (1) and health (2).

 What we don't hear asked often is why we are throwing so much stuff into the dump and the recycling bins in the first place! Whatever happened to repair shops, there used to be one on every corner? As consumers we do have options - fix it or get it repaired if possible! But even that is becoming next to impossible. It would appear that manufacturers now make things that are unrepairable. They don't sell parts because they want the customer to buy new. They use low wages in developing countries to make cheap products that we are expected to throw away, and, of course, buy new again. Somehow we are forgetting that 'buying cheap leads to spending more down the road'.

 Just think of the lamps, coffee makers, clocks, smart phones, T.V. sets, recorders, computers, vacuum cleaners, cameras, clothes and even junk jewelery that could still have a useful life if repaired. Think of the mountains of stuff that would remain in use and not lie rotting in the local dump, as much of it does in spite of our efforts to recycle.

Equally important is our personal environment, both outside and inside. Our health is pretty much determined by the quality of our environment. Air pollution is often linked to premature death, cancer and severe respiratory problems. In some parts of the world, including parts of Canada, water is becoming an infectious agent and the chemicals it contains are causing severe illnesses.Think of toxic waste and what it is covertly doing to our health and well being. The bottom line is that our health is pretty much determined by the quality of our environment.

Naomi Klein in her book "This Changes Everything" points out that the climate crisis is a result of capitalism. For sure human activity is involved. Mankind (especially we Canadians!) has historically treated our earth, as simply a bundle of resources waiting to be exploited! Thus the environmental problems fundamentally rest on over population, expanding demands on resources, resources that exist in a very finite and limited world.

This octogenarian is left with this troubling thought: If we, as consumers, have so readily bought into the idea of a 'disposable world' and a 'non-fix-it' mentality - what will happen to you when you get old and sick?

And that's Dick's View of the World this Week

Did you Know?

 That the matter that spews out of smokestacks and our exhaust pipes hurts more than just the climate. It harms our health as well!