Tragedies and Miracles

I was browsing MSN.ca a little while ago and a couple of things piqued my interest...

The first was an article titled 10 Things That Aren't As Cheap As You Think. I followed the link to get to page 2, and ended up here. Most items on the list were not news to me, but the controversy surrounding coltan - a mineral used in cell phones and other technological items - I had previously been unaware of, so I moseyed over to War Resister's International from there (which I had also never heard of until today) and read about the No Blood In My Cell Phone campaign to check it out. This enlightening pit stop prompted me to investigate further. I found this documentary online soon afterwards, which is quite thought provoking. The impressions I got in the beginning of the documentary began to transform at about the halfway point, I think. Like all good documentaries, nothing is clear cut and there are no easy solutions (...well except maybe the fact that it is a problem that needs to be addressed and that a good way of doing that would perhaps be for companies to look at bypassing the majority of middlemen involved and find more direct and ethical routes to mining/collecting the coltan to lessen opportunities for exploitation by all the dishonest and/or desperate individuals and corporations the coltan is channeled through on it's journey from the mines to the production plants - themselves included if current practices continue) but the intricate web surrounding the issue is somewhat untangled for the viewer to ponder and perhaps to do something about. At the very least it will create increased awareness. The documentary mentions Nokia and Motorola a couple of times and their supposed positions on the use of coltan from the Congo. However, it has got me wondering about my beloved BlackBerry. Sigh...one more thing to feel guilty about... (Also of interest on this topic: http://Mvemba's video report on coltan's role in Congo's civil war , Appfrica Maps Coltan From Congo to Your Cell Phone and War, Murder, Rape... All for Your Cell Phone).

And now, on to the miracle...

which also stems from a tragedy...

Four weeks after the 7.0 quake that devastated Haiti comes this incredible report:
Doctors: Haitian may have survived 4 weeks in rubble . It seems a little far fetched and hard to believe (hence the title on CNN, I suppose), but, like the doctor in the video, who am I to argue? If it is real and not a publicity stunt or something (which would be in seriously bad taste), this man may be one of the luckiest to have ever graced our planet.

The Crows (and Republic of Doyle, Episode 5)

I've been really busy with rehearsals and performances of late, and have therefore been neglecting the blog. However, I thought I would post a quickie tonight before heading to the bunk here in a bit.

If you haven't seen this, I recommend you watch it. I haven't been able to look at crows the same way since. It never occurred to me to consider their intelligence and I never dreamt they could be so crafty. On the one hand, this program was very informative and it was extremely cool. On the other hand, to think of how watchful crows are and to now realize that there is a thought process going on behind those cold, hard stares has resulted in them totally creeping me out now!

And now, on to my reactions to episode 5 of R.O.D....

I was a little more interested in the story again this time around, which was a good thing. I thought some of the stuff with Nicki was overdone. I was a bit disappointed that Jake and Cst. Bennett were making out at the end (still too soon), although it was good to maybe see a light at the end of the tunnel of what is fast becoming the Jake/Nicki annoyance. Tinny was tolerable. I am intrigued to find out what's up with Rose's mail (in particular, what came from the jail). I got a kick out of the line about Des being from Gander and the shot Malachy took near the beginning of the episode about skeets (both totally inside jokes thrown in for the native Newfoundlanders and Labradorians). I enjoyed seeing St. Pierre et Miquelon. I'm not sure yet what to make of Gordon Pinsent's performance, but I enjoyed the scene with the gun on the table between him on one side and Jake and Malachy on the other. I did not enjoy Mark Critch(?)'s character (I'm not sure if I got that right...it looked like Mark Critch to me though...)at all...and the rest I'm going to have to sleep on and maybe come back to later...

Out of Control: A Disturbing Documentary

Last night I watched Out of Control with Hana Gartner on The Fifth Estate at cbc.ca. It was deeply disturbing and thought provoking in such a way that I am still trying to organize and articulate my views on the problems brought to light in the story. By the look of the comment section, a lot of other viewers have also found themselves powerfully affected by the program.

A number of thoughts, questions and impressions entered my mind while watching the documentary. These mostly pertained to the importance of following protocol and the need to change and modify some of the protocols that are currently in place, the necessity of following through with consequences, the shifting of responsibility and blame, the lack of accountability, the ineffectiveness of certain aspects of the penal and social support systems, and the circumstances in which members of the most vulnerable and misunderstood segments of the population often find themselves. I try to look at all aspects of an issue, and I can honestly say that I still haven't figured out where I stand on some of these points, and suggestions for valid solutions continue to elude me.

I can understand that Canada's corrections workers are obligated to follow the procedures that have been put into place for them and that there must be consistency (and that many of them are tired and overworked due to shortages in certain areas and the crap they have to deal with day in and day out). I also understand the frustration that comes from knowing that some methods one is expected to use are clearly ineffectual and tend to place a huge demand on available resources, yet being caught up in a cycle and powerless to change what has been dictated down the chain of command from the top. Likewise, I can identify with the need to protect yourself and your livelihood by complying with the rules and regulations in the face of threatened disciplinary action.

What I find difficult to grasp is how the public image concerns of institutions and the need for individuals to safeguard their jobs somehow managed to surpass the importance of saving a life in this instance. I don't understand how someone could order others not to help a person who is clearly sick and how this particular situation escalated to that point. When the corrections officers were told not to enter Ashley Smith's cell unless she had stopped breathing, what meaning were they to infer from that? Does "not breathing" mean "passed out" or "dead"? And once that last act of self-strangulation had been put into play, did it really take that long to figure out that she wasn't breathing? Out of an audience of seven attending her death, I would assume at least one had adequate powers of observation to note the absence of breathing before it was too late. Or was it a case of mob mentality/ brotherly solidarity/peer pressure or whatever you would like to call it, with no one wanting to be the first to suggest or attempt going into Ashley's cell for fear of being attacked by the inmate once more or disciplined by the powers that be for disregarding orders?

From the outside looking in, it was clear from a very early point as this tale unfolded that the routines Ashley Smith and her guards fell into did nothing to discourage her behaviours or otherwise improve things. In addition, transferring her from one place to another did nothing to address her the problematic circumstances of her incarceration. If anything, it only served to exacerbate her behaviours and their consequences by teaching her that no one was equipped to deal with her and leaving her new captors to keep using the old methods to no avail.

I guess one can never truly comprehend a given situation unless they are forced to navigate it, but Hana Gartner and The Fifth Estate have certainly reminded us that Canada has some definite issues that need to be worked out...and that will take people much smarter than me to figure out. I only hope that the people who needed to get that wake up call - and anyone who is in a position to create change, really - have received the message loud and clear and plan to act to prevent history from being repeated.

Have any of you seen it? Any thoughts?