Earthships

I was watching a show about Africa, and was reminded about the same thought I had during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. I had been thinking about earth ships. I had originally seen one some years ago on a "Home" show on cable.

Earthships are made of old beverage cans, glass and plastic bottles, and old tires. I know the idea of living in a home made of trash doesn't sound appealing, but the results of such items mixed with earth, cement, and adobe can be quite amazing.

With all of the trash we make, and all of the homes that need building, an earthship may be a viable option for those who need a decent home and few resources. Even if there is no running water or electricity, an Earth Ship has the potential to provide comfortable housing. I'm sure that it would be better than this:

Water Water Everywhere...

Nor Any Drop To Drink!

The average American being EATS or Drinks SEVERAL TIMES in 24 hours. 24hrs X 5 is how long these people have gone WITHOUT clean FOOD or WATER.

One Hundred Twenty HOURS!

1. no food
2. no water
3. no shelter
4. no bed
5. no bath
6. no toothbrush
7. no toothpaste
8. no deodorant
9. no combs
10. no brushes
11. no clean dry clothing
12. no shoes
13. no diapers(child OR adult)
14. no pads for menstruation
15. no medicine
16. no phone
17. no electricity
18. no working toilets

pick any ONE of these that you are willing to do without for 24 hrs, let alone 120hrs.

just one.

Now picture your thirsty, hungry, dirty, smelly, homeless existence...

Go without knowing where the members of your family, friends, & neighbors are.

Better yet, replay in your minds, their drowning in water, death by lack of food, death by lack of water, or by premature birth without hospital resources.

Look at your crying famished baby or young child and see them suffer from hunger.

Look at your ailing elders.

Think about the fact that you don't have transportation to leave..

Now picture that your suffering is overshadowed by the criminal activity of others.

The entire place is a giant write-off. As far as those people saw, NO ONE WAS HELPING THEM. They didn't have a RADIO or TV to KNOW, remember? So perhaps, wrong as it is, those people who had NOTHING and saw NO HELP were thinking that they & others could survive from those goods. They saw NO Signs of HELP..

There were certainly people who were acting like fools, but judging pictures without context is not intelligent at all. It is VERY easy to see someone of African Decent doing something, and think of them more negatively. This is a fact. And I don't even want to get into the press and their views of a "looter" v. a "finder. I hate race issues and I hope everything is resolved because clearly, regardless of race, most people feel for the victims of Katrina.

This event was a test to see where humanity is, and an opportunity to show humanity.

For goodness sake, pass the test.

-from my Blinglish blog when I pretty po'd