Absorbing feelings

According to a recent read, Stories are powerful. They're part of what makes ideas stick in our head. In fact, while we hear a story we are roll playing it on our minds, becoming part of our experience.

So, what to say about all the stories we are fed everyday in the news: murders, child abuses, accidents and all kinds of gratuitous violence?

Thoughts on Donating money | Burma update from Avaaz

I told you in a previous post about Avaaz.

Once in a while I get mails from them keeping me up to date on several issues that require humanity's attention (that means me and you!).
While I did sign up for several of the petitions, when they sent an email asking for monetary help I became less receptive to the idea. In the first occasion I dismissed the mere possibility, after all... I'm "getting by on a small budget :\".
The first time that justification was enough for ease my conscience. :D

But recently... as the International Day Against Poverty was celebrated and portuguese university students gathered to shed some light on the subject something curious happened: all the inquired by the journalists, when asked what did they normally do to (help others) fight poverty answered "er... nothing, really".

And that's just it. No one gives a damn! All of us are merrily living our merry lives, going out at night, going to the cinema, wasting money on lots of non-vital stuff...
Thinking about my own futile monetary expenses got me to decide on using the money for something useful for once.
I donated the minimum 20€ (unfortunately I am really on a tight budget :|) but by doing so I know I made a difference. And I don't mean "how much I changed burmanese people's lifes", but a difference within me, in the way I look at money spending in a global way.

I'm not becoming Mother Theresa here, I can hardly say no to my strong desire to travelling and meet the world. :) But who knows... instead of seing more of Europe, why not travel to Africa on a NPO? My older sister did it... I lost count... 3 times now? :)

Lets see what the future holds.
Humm... this Africa NPO idea does have it's appeal. Humm....

And now... A scotchman on a horse!

Dear Avaaz member,

What Avaaz members have done so far: 789,479 petition signatures, hand-delivered to UK Prime Minister and UN Security Council member Gordon Brown. (Video here.) $315,000 raised for the Burmese democracy movement. 33,403 emails to EU leaders urging targeted sanctions. 1,952 messages sent to Singapore's Foreign Minister George Yeo. 100+ protests in cities worldwide against the Burmese regime. 1 global ad campaign, including a full-page ad in the Financial Times pushing China to act. If they haven't yet, ask friends to sign the petition!

Burma's streets are quiet--no mass demonstrations, no riot police. But the calm is an illusion. Change is coming to Burma, and we are all a part of it.

Here's where we stand: The regime has massacred, tortured, and intimidated its critics at home, and continues its night arrests and brutal interrogations. But while it has momentarily silenced the domestic opposition, its attacks on the revered Buddhist monks ignited an anger amongst the Burmese people that cannot be extinguished. Contacts inside Burma tell us that the demonstrators are steadily regrouping, even in the face of the deadly crackdown.

And around the world, the roar has grown deafening--so powerful that governments are scrambling for ways to bring new pressure to bear on the junta. Government leaders and the media have publicly credited the outcry of global civil society. Look at the statistics in the box on the right to see how, working alongside allies around the world, Avaaz members have begun to make a difference.

Many Burmese members of Avaaz have written in. Here's a note from one of them--Trisa, now living abroad:

I am one of the 8888 uprising generation. Since the September uprising in Burma, I can't get good night sleep. I can't contact my remaining families and friends if they are ok... The voice of the world is very powerful. I have heartfelt thank you for all the supporters. Your voice can change our lives!

And here's a note from an Avaaz member, Lynn in London, who joined a group of Burmese monks to hand-deliver the Avaaz petition--contained in a big red box--to UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, on the steps of 10 Downing Street last week:

When I put my hand on the red box, which held the 753,000 signatures from around the world collected by Avaaz, I imagined the outrage of the many people from every country in the world, every culture, every race, and every religion, contained within this box which was about to be presented to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. I thought about what it might mean for these Burmese monks whose religious brothers far away had been hurt and mistreated by the crackdown, to know that in every country in the world, people were supporting them.

And here's what May Ng, a Burmese writer, editorialized on the news site Mizzima after seeing our petition:

As their voices have been heard and their faces have been seen, Aung San Suu Kyi and the people of Burma will no longer be alone. Avaaz.org, whose mission is to ensure that the views and values of the world's people shape global decisions, will make sure that Burmese people will have a voice over their own fate from now on.

Avaaz will share the struggle of the Burmese people until the struggle is won. Our goals are constant: transition, dialogue, reconciliation, and democracy. We will also continue to take action together on many urgent issues, from climate change to peace in the Middle East to human rights--but we will not turn from the cause of the Burmese people. We believe that every human life has equal value, whether in Berlin, Beijing or Rangoon.

As Aung San Suu Kyi once urged, we will use our freedom to promote theirs.

With hope,

Ben, Ricken, Paul, Galit, Graziela, Iain, Sarah, Pascal, and Milena--the Avaaz team

PS: 52 years ago today, the UN charter enshrined "the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples." Twelve years ago today, Aung San Suu Kyi was imprisoned. And today, in key cities around the world, protesters held a new wave of protests; the first shipment of supplies, paid for by Avaaz members, left for Burma--and the junta agreed to re-admit Ibrahim Gambari, the U.N. envoy who is working to build a dialogue between the regime and the opposition, earlier than previously announced. It's been a long struggle, but the most important ones always are.

PPS: If your friends haven't yet signed the petition, urge them to sign at: http://avaaz.org/en/burma_hope_lives/6.php

PPPS: Some further reading:

Voices from within Burma:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7058610.stm
and
http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/-/world/east-asia/myanmar-burma/
and
http://www.mizzima.com/MizzimaNews/Interview/01-Oct-2007.html

Avaaz's Paul Hilder "People Power can win": http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/paul_hilder/2007/10/people_power_can_win.html

____________________

[-525.866375-]
ABOUT AVAAZ

Avaaz.org is an independent, not-for-profit global campaigning organization that works to ensure that the views and values of the world's people inform global decision-making. (Avaaz means "voice" in many languages.) Avaaz receives no money from governments or corporations, and is staffed by a global team based in London, New York, Paris, Washington DC, Geneva, and Rio de Janeiro.

O Global Warming, Where Art Thou?

A friend of mine just shared this video with me:


In the video, professor Bob Carter, rebuts global warming as something natural within earth's history and criticizes the hype that is driving money into stopping global warming, which could be focused on other importante matters, such as getting potable water or basic sanitation to the people that still don't have access to it.
I must agree that this is the first "scientific information" that I've encountered that dispels human responsibility in global warming, so I really don't know what to think of it. I'm divided between believing in this one man or the crowd's current meme, dammit... I must be human! :) Well... only one way out of it: I'll be stoic about it.

Either way, I'm not going to "wish" the money was being spent otherwise. It's plain counterproductive: no matter how hard I clapped the heels of my shoes Bush ain't going back to Texas and not invade Iraq for its oil.

The "global warming" hype has come to stay and I don't think that's a bad thing!
It's bringing environmental awareness to the mind of everyone (children being the important ones to mind about), and by doing so it's improving humanity's relationship with its surrounding environment and species. And other than educating human beings into becoming well behaved animals, the big advantage is that the current trend is breaking down the big oil lobbies and gettting fuel efficiency to everyone's mind. New technologies are popping up everyday and this will lead in the medium term to the elimination of oil dependency among nations.

Why is that important?
Dependency on natural resources has been fueling human conflict for ages. Oil, diamonds, gold... all of these have lead to blood shedding between neighbours (either people or countries).
Getting something into width spread human focus in hard (unless your get nasty on an oval room) so we better take advantage of this current hype to reduce this one cause of human greed.

As for the water issue, when oil is out of the way the next conflict will be on water - which will correspond to the "water shortage" hype.
We just have to make the most of each worldwide hype to help "shift democracies into acting" on problems, one problem at a time.

Dalai Lama viaja de Powerpoint

Algumas frases inspiradoras (que o powerpoint que recebi por mail atribui ao Dalai Lama). Reorganizei-as para tirar partido da nossa capacidade de retenção ideal: 7 itens +/- 2.

Aprendizagem

1. Se perderes, não percas a lição.
2. Recorda que, às vezes, não conseguir o que queres é um maravilhoso golpe de sorte.
3. Aprende as regras para que saibas incumpri-las quando convenha.
4. Abre os teus braços à mudança, mas não abandones os teus valores.
5. Compartilha os teus conhecimentos. É a forma de conseguires a imortalidade.
6. Julga o teu êxito em função do que ou a que renunciaste para o conseguir.
7. Ama e trabalha com absoluto empenho.

Vida

1. Vive uma boa vida honrada. Depois, quando fores mais velho e olhares para trás, serás capaz de disfrutá-la de novo.
2. Quando descobrires que cometeste um erro, toma imediatamente as medidas necesárias para corrigí-lo.
3. Sê bom para com a Mãe Terra.
4. Uma vez por ano, visita um lugar a que nunca tenhas ido antes.
5. Passa algum tempo sozinho todos os dias.

Relacionamentos

1. Tem em conta que os grandes amores e enganos comportam um grande risco.
2. Aplica a regra dos “3 erres”:
• Respeita-te a ti mesmo,
• Respeita os demais, e
• Responsabilíza-te pelas tuas acções.
  
3. Não permitas que uma pequena discussão afecte uma grande relação.
4. Recorda que, às vezes, o silêncio é a melhor resposta.
5. Quando não estiveres de acordo com os teus seres queridos, preocupa-te unicamente com a situação actual. Não faças referências a anteriores disputas.
6. Um ambiente de amor no teu lar será a base para a tua vida.
   
7. Recorda que a melhor relação é aquela em que o amor mutuo é maior do que a necessidade mútua.
8. Ama e trabalha com absoluto empenho.