From Cape to Cairo - and All the Way Round

History Nerd alert!

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I came across this interesting tidbit of knowledge today on the Mental Floss Blog:
According to historian Stuart Laycock, Britain has invaded the majority of countries IN THE WORLD. Only 22 current states have not had the British army (or pirates, explorers, etc. sanctioned by the crown) forcibly enter their territories.

Here's the lucky list:
Andorra
Belarus
Bolivia
Burundi
Central African Republic
Chad
Congo, Republic of
Guatemala
Ivory Coast
Kyrgyzstan
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Mali
Marshall Islands
Monaco
Mongolia
Paraguay
Sao Tome and Principe
Sweden
Tajikistan
Uzbekistan
Vatican City

Read the full text here: http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/150473#ixzz2Bdh2v4wi


Basically, the British Empire has, at one point or another, touched (or slapped, bit, grabbed) 88% of the world, according to this study. This may have more to do with why people the world over love french fries (chips) than the spread of McDonald's... oh and why so many people speak English. Kinda of makes the map look like a huge game of Risk - and Great Britain as the ultimate champion.

However, it's also incredibly disturbing - look what can happen when a small group of individuals have unlimited power AND the all consuming belief in their own righteousness. We talk about a lot of other heinous crimes in world  history - from dictators to warlords and perpetrators of genocide - but have any of these classic "villains" have as much of an affect as the "civilizing" forces of the British empire? Perhaps part of the disparity in their historical representation is the fact that British colonial influence is so mixed - they grabbed territories like greedy children, placing the inhabitants in 2nd class status and killing those who rebelled - and also established education, infrastructure and commerce that arguably saved millions of lives and helped countries develop into the modern nations we know today. Some interesting food for thought on your Thursday morning...

Are Americans Just Selfish?

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Or can you?

Driving home last night, I caught the tail end of a discussion on NPR's marketplace. A budget expert was discussing the main paradox of America's budget crisis - voters are increasingly expecting more benefits from the government AND refusing to pay higher taxes. His argument was that the American people had essentially voted ourselves into this mess with the implication that it won't get better until we can let go of our demands either for increased social services OR lower taxes. I'd never heard the budget issue described in quite this way and it struck me with this question - are Americans just plain selfish? 

In many European countries, social services are legendary - public healthcare, incredible maternity and paternity leave, and job procurement assistance for the unemployed.  And in exchange for these services, taxpayers pay a HUGE chunk to their government. A fair trade? I think so - but then again I'm the kind of person who likes to simply ignore the line on my paycheck that shows my deductions. Hurts too much to look at it, right?

In some ways it feels like the American love for bargain hunting (some argue that we, the consumer, created a space for commercial behemoths like Walmart to abuse producers in the name of a good deal) could be behind all this. Get social security and medicaid and not pay taxes for it? Sounds like extreme couponing on an epic scale. And in some ways, that American ingenuity is pretty impressive. But we all know that, at least in this case, the savings won't last and the aftermath may be worse that we can imagine. 

Your politics will determine whether you think we should increase taxes to continue social services or leave taxes alone and become more stringent on the government dole-out. Either way you lean, we have to agree - we just can't have our cake and eat it too.

Can we trade fair?



Love those colors! From here.

Brand loyalty is a dangerous thing. Take Apple, for example. I've loved Apple ever since they came

out with those candy-colored desktops ages ago. Who would have known then that innovations like the iPod and iPhone would entrench Apple even further into our daily existence. But on top of its amazingly intuitive products, it has always felt like Apple is selling something more - a lifestyle - that so many people identify with. Maybe it's their great taste in music or their great design asthetic, but Apple is seen as smart, modern, cool and visionary -- pretty much what everyone aspires to be.

The dangerous part? When you find out the company you identify with has some shady skeletons in the closet. The Times was the first to blow Apple's cover (I preferred the watered down Daily Beast version, here) on their exploitative labor practices in China where factory workers live crammed in company dormitories, work 12-14 hour days on their feet and are kept from talking or taking bathroom breaks. Their hands grow useless after repeating the same tiny motions day, after countless day. No heathcare to help that problem, of course. And to top it all of, many of the workers are 12-14 years old.

Young Chinese workers, from here.

According to reports, the speed, efficiency and sheer manpower of the Chinese workforce is one of the major factors for Apple's meteoric profit margins. So, in order to make an extra $10 billion dollars, and save U.S. consumers around $65 dollars per iPhone, one of our favorite companies, the brainchild of our beloved Steve Jobs, makes product in cramped factories staffed by children who may never get the chance to actually use an Apple product.

Now, to be fair, Apple is far from the only company following these practices. And likely they are far from the worst. I think the shock is that we like this company, and expect more from them. But how can we, really? As Americans, we treat bargain hunting like a sport - myself included - and our collective bargaining power as consumers drives companies to pound down production costs in any way possible, or risk complete failure. Would we ever stand for an American 8th grader working in conditions like these? No, never. But a Chinese kid a word a way? Apparently so.

What's the solution? Fair trade shopping is a good option. When I was in India, I saw first hand how responsible business practices could transform the lives of workers -- mainly women who otherwise had no means to earn income, save for prostitution or back-breaking manual labor. The Village Experience, a fair trade business in Indianapolis where I worked for two years, offers  products that are certified fair trade and made by workers who recieve fair compensation for their labor. Nowadays, you can buy many products fair trade - clothes, jewelry, paper products, home goods, coffee, tea, olive oil, etc. Fairtradeusa.org is a good resource to get started.

Mata Traders has really cute items, all Fair Trade.

 But while many of the products are available at reasonable prices, it is also understood that consumers pay a higher price to ensure these products are certified fair trade. And the fact that you can get a similar item (earrings or a scarf, say) at Walmart for a third of the price makes the whole idea hard to implement on a large scale. People just don't want to stomach paying more than they have to for something -- and in times like these, many Americans can't afford to. I fall into the same category -- as much as I support fair trade in theory, it's hard to take the additional effort, and spend the extra money, to make it part of my daily life.

I think it's really a political decision - putting pressure on countries like China to reform their laws for worker's rights. And we all know how long that could take. But the good thing about brand loyaly is that it gives you some modicum of power - we can collectively influence the companies that rely upon that loyalty to enact change. So, if you're up for it, here's the email for concerns at Apple: supplierresponsibility@apple.com.

And, thank goodness, Goodwill is always there as a shopping option - green, guilt-free bargain hunting! 

Hypocrite? Yes, I am

Via Pinterest

In this time of angry politicos and their accusations, flip-flops and vitriol, one hears the word "hypocrite" bandied about like a mantra. A candidate who stands for "family values" but practices public infidelity? Hypocrite! Or one who rails against abortion, but whose wife decided to abort her own pregnancy? Hypocrite! But is that really true?

I was having a discussion about this word with a good friend. She said she was feeling like a hypocrite because she was doing something in her life that she had previously judged others on. And my response: So what? Yes, the above examples of hypocrisy are pretty damning. But I don't have a problem with my friend's action. She's not out robbing a bank or selling drugs to small children - she's found that a situation, which she had questioned in the context of a friend's experience, was surprisingly working for her. So does that make her a hypocrite? I'm not sure. But is she wrong to do it? No way.

So many people today value the idea that a person "sticks to their guns," "holds tough," and "never sways." Well yeah, that's all well and good but it all depends on on what that value is. Do I respect someone who holds fast to their knowledge of themselves, and refuses to bow to the pressures to become something they are not? Of course. But I also respect the person who has beliefs and convictions but is willing to reexamine and even change them when the world presents a better alternative. The ability to stretch your mind to include multiple truths, or the fact that different things are "right" at different times, is pretty powerful.

Yes, I hate when other people sing in the car,  but love to sing loud and proud in my car. I told friends to shoot me if I ever became a housewife, but now I see how it could be an interesting option. And I was certain I'd never get married and now, well, that's definitely on the to-do list. So if that makes me a hypocrite, then, well, I own it. The world would be a better place if people, and most certainly politicians, could acknowledge that values and ideals do not apply the same way to every situation. And the ability to change your mind is actually a very good thing (especially when you've been wrong!) ;)