sway2sway
01-16-2008, 01:14 PM
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/14/world/africa/14fishing.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
This is about African fisherman struggling to survive as their fish stocks are being depleted, mostly by other countries. The fishing rights have been sold off by the government, cause they're a poor country, I'm guessing the usual, transient unstable governments looking for a short term solution. These coastal africans are attempting to follow the fish (illegally immigrate). Leaky boats, money paid to unscrupulous 'ferryman', deportation, death- that kinda thing.
A vast flotilla of industrial trawlers from the European Union, China, Russia and elsewhere, together with an abundance of local boats, have so thoroughly scoured northwest Africa’s ocean floor that major fish populations are collapsing.
That has crippled coastal economies and added to the surge of illegal migrants who brave the high seas in wooden pirogues hoping to reach Europe. While reasons for immigration are as varied as fish species, Europe’s lure has clearly intensified as northwest Africa’s fish population has dwindled.
Last year roughly 31,000 Africans tried to reach the Canary Islands, a prime transit point to Europe, in more than 900 boats. About 6,000 died or disappeared, according to one estimate cited by the United Nations.
Sometimes you know things in theory- like fishing is not sustainable these days- or poor countries sell off valuable natural resources for short term gain. Then sometimes you read an article and it just hits you a little differently, a few different facts, a few different humans giving their side of the story, how it impacts their lives- and then you can see it differently.
voila, relevant and contexual- or at least more so than previously.
You know that song yesterday by G (now this quote is outta context, I admit, but it fits for my purpose)-
the world is getting smaller, but you still can't seem to be getting anywhere that you wanna be
Funny, how the world is getting smaller for some of us, with advances in technology, transportation, and such. But for some, like poor coastal africans, the world is much the same as ever. And the thing is, ours is smaller, so we're moving in on them. They got the same bigger world as ever- they're living in one spot, with limited global mobility- and now we're infringing on their thing, they got going.
Not saying, it's all our fault, or you should stop eating the fish, or here- sign a petition. There are policies in place which mandate that countries are only supposed to sell off their surplus fish, as fishing rights- but somehow this was not upheld from the get go, or it came after the fact, I don't know. Pretty hard to stop something that is seen as mutually beneficial by 2 governments.
It's an ugly pattern though.
slashing rain forests for beef.
burning bogs to grow biofuel.
natural disasters potentially related to climate change increasing, with the poor countries seemingly hit the hardest and with no structure or $ to recover.
and the lest we forget the animal & plant kingdoms, they don't even get anything back outta our 'mutually beneficial' deals, on them we just take, take, take.
To me, it's more sad, that a lot of these africans trying to leave, still want to fish. Maybe that's all they know, but maybe it's also preservation of a way of life, culture, heritage. That's a very sad thing to be taking that away, even besides fish. It's like a new take on the hunter/gathers of before, only now you gotta travel to the ends of the earth to keep up with the food, and even then it might not be far enough.
I was thinking of those cartoons last night, after I read this, you know the future, space kind- where people one day will eat food pellets that come right out of a machine and taste like a whole meal ( ha ha, we really are in a big rodent cage- run on the wheel, push a button, pop a scientifically calibrated pellet, ooh la la positive reinforcement, better get back on that freakin' wheel and repeat this shit, over and over and over and over)
anyway I was thinking- when I was littler girl, I always imagined this futuristic food was a matter of of convenience, progress, efficiency, simplicity. But, perhaps, what if it was cause there was no food left? fish gone. not enough agricultural land to feed our population, screwed up meat supply. could we live on laboratory food, synthetic shit?
ewggh and hmmmm...... definately not mmmmmm.
anyway, I liked the article
This is about African fisherman struggling to survive as their fish stocks are being depleted, mostly by other countries. The fishing rights have been sold off by the government, cause they're a poor country, I'm guessing the usual, transient unstable governments looking for a short term solution. These coastal africans are attempting to follow the fish (illegally immigrate). Leaky boats, money paid to unscrupulous 'ferryman', deportation, death- that kinda thing.
A vast flotilla of industrial trawlers from the European Union, China, Russia and elsewhere, together with an abundance of local boats, have so thoroughly scoured northwest Africa’s ocean floor that major fish populations are collapsing.
That has crippled coastal economies and added to the surge of illegal migrants who brave the high seas in wooden pirogues hoping to reach Europe. While reasons for immigration are as varied as fish species, Europe’s lure has clearly intensified as northwest Africa’s fish population has dwindled.
Last year roughly 31,000 Africans tried to reach the Canary Islands, a prime transit point to Europe, in more than 900 boats. About 6,000 died or disappeared, according to one estimate cited by the United Nations.
Sometimes you know things in theory- like fishing is not sustainable these days- or poor countries sell off valuable natural resources for short term gain. Then sometimes you read an article and it just hits you a little differently, a few different facts, a few different humans giving their side of the story, how it impacts their lives- and then you can see it differently.
voila, relevant and contexual- or at least more so than previously.
You know that song yesterday by G (now this quote is outta context, I admit, but it fits for my purpose)-
the world is getting smaller, but you still can't seem to be getting anywhere that you wanna be
Funny, how the world is getting smaller for some of us, with advances in technology, transportation, and such. But for some, like poor coastal africans, the world is much the same as ever. And the thing is, ours is smaller, so we're moving in on them. They got the same bigger world as ever- they're living in one spot, with limited global mobility- and now we're infringing on their thing, they got going.
Not saying, it's all our fault, or you should stop eating the fish, or here- sign a petition. There are policies in place which mandate that countries are only supposed to sell off their surplus fish, as fishing rights- but somehow this was not upheld from the get go, or it came after the fact, I don't know. Pretty hard to stop something that is seen as mutually beneficial by 2 governments.
It's an ugly pattern though.
slashing rain forests for beef.
burning bogs to grow biofuel.
natural disasters potentially related to climate change increasing, with the poor countries seemingly hit the hardest and with no structure or $ to recover.
and the lest we forget the animal & plant kingdoms, they don't even get anything back outta our 'mutually beneficial' deals, on them we just take, take, take.
To me, it's more sad, that a lot of these africans trying to leave, still want to fish. Maybe that's all they know, but maybe it's also preservation of a way of life, culture, heritage. That's a very sad thing to be taking that away, even besides fish. It's like a new take on the hunter/gathers of before, only now you gotta travel to the ends of the earth to keep up with the food, and even then it might not be far enough.
I was thinking of those cartoons last night, after I read this, you know the future, space kind- where people one day will eat food pellets that come right out of a machine and taste like a whole meal ( ha ha, we really are in a big rodent cage- run on the wheel, push a button, pop a scientifically calibrated pellet, ooh la la positive reinforcement, better get back on that freakin' wheel and repeat this shit, over and over and over and over)
anyway I was thinking- when I was littler girl, I always imagined this futuristic food was a matter of of convenience, progress, efficiency, simplicity. But, perhaps, what if it was cause there was no food left? fish gone. not enough agricultural land to feed our population, screwed up meat supply. could we live on laboratory food, synthetic shit?
ewggh and hmmmm...... definately not mmmmmm.
anyway, I liked the article