Read + Write + Report
Home | Start a blog | About Orble | FAQ | Sites | Writers | Advertise | My Orble | Login

The Shame of China

June 6th 2008 01:56
By Fletcher Diamentis.

As night falls, the children in the village are playing and laughing. In the rooms above, their unwanted new born sisters moan quietly. In the morning, they will be gone. Most of the orphanages in China have barely enough money for cots and beds for these children, let alone enough food for all of them. Only 4,000 children in China make it out of these grim conditions each year. The rest…gone forever.

In China, female offspring’s are treated as a second class to boys. Although for many girls their arrival is greeted with happiness, there are others who lives are never even acknowledged. Many girls are abandoned by parents, who perhaps wanted a boy. Some families may not be able to afford another child, or many families live in a village with too many girls and they have to be taken away. These baby girls have no hope in their lives. Their future is extremely bleak and they long to be adopted one day. The only problem is, the adopters don’t want a girl, they want a boy so he can work and earn the family money. These girls are forgotten in orphanages and if they don’t die before the age of ten, they are sold as prostitutes. So, to compare a girl with a boy, would be like comparing a filthy pest and a cute little puppy dog.


Orphanages in China are over crowded and only one woman is on hand to care for the many children placed in her care each day, including the other children who have been there for a couple of years. That one woman can only do so much for every one of them. Before going home, she props a bottle against the mouth of each baby and changes them. These tiny babies are far too young to be strong enough to feed themselves; they are only a couple of days old. If however, the older ones do manage to get a gulp or so, the mixture is thick gruel which does not contain the nutrition that they need. In result to this, they are very weak. When a child looks weak or unwell, they are placed in a room called the “dying room”. 1000 children die in that room each year. Most being girls. If only there was just one other woman at hand, this figure of deaths would hopefully be less.


China calls ‘their’ children the ‘flowers of the motherland’. This expression means the children are the hope of the future. Very few people care about the lives of these defenceless babies in the hands of those carers. These children will never know love and happiness and because they die before they can every crawl in the “dying room”. Their lives end in misery and pain. China is a proud country, yet they will not seek outside help for these hideously treated orphans. China can not explain why girls and women are not treated as equals to men. If“China’s” children are the hope for the future, then China should be urged for support and care from other countries.



48
Vote
Shared on
   


By Phillip Blain.

Over the past 150 years, the Earths climate and environment has been affected by pollution and waste due to human negligence. Since the Earth has revolutionized with cars and factories the carbon emissions and waste has greatly been increased.
It was about 150 years ago when large industrialisation began and just over the last 20 years the Earth has taken the hit from harmful gases and waste. Gases produced from large industrial factories, power and motor vehicles are harming human beings and living organisms.
Greenhouse gases, rubbish and wastes produced by industries are some of the factors which contributes to the Earths pollution. Over the past decade the greenhouse effect has greatly been increased. Transportation methods are the blame for this as they produce 30 billion tones of co2 (carbon dioxide) every year.
Statistics show that the USA is producing 20% of the worlds co2 emissions followed by China with 18% of the world’s emissions. The most polluted cities in the world according to wikipedia are Cairo,
Egypt followed by Delhi, India. Dr Raupach from the CSIRO says “Australia, with 0.32 per cent the global population, contributes 1.43 per cent of the world’s carbon emissions”.
All of these harmful gases rise into the atmosphere producing a blanket for the Earth. Forcing our Earths temperature to increase. In time we will see ocean levels rise due to the melting ice caps.
Litter is the most visible sign of pollution. Cigarette butts, wrappers, paper, cans, plastic and many more products that can harm the environment are floating around in parks, streets and waters. “Its such a disgrace, while I walk the dog down the beach I see this pollutant waste” described John Smith, a local resident of Warrnambool. A large majority of littering in Australia is cigarette butts with a staggering 21% with plastic and confectionary wrappers second with 15% according to a littering website blacktown.nsw.gov.au.
Rubbish thrown from motor vehicles is a major source of litter according to EPA (Environment Protection Authority) Victoria. Studies show that areas that are filled with litter are more likely to get dirtier as it is an invitation to deposit rubbish onto.
Citizen’s health will slowly deteriorate in these larger cities due to immense amounts of pollution. Diseases and rats are attracted to waste in third world countries, and with little maintenance the people of these effected countries are strongly at risk.

Fast food consumers and ignorant people are to blame for the rubbish and waste littered in our streets and cities. Rubbish that ends up in these waterways is harmful to wildlife such as fish and other animals as they have a tendency to get caught up in or eat this waste. This can result in certain species of fish or animals to become extinct.
This is the only world we have, countries and cities around the world have to reduce waste and emissions for us to remain here. Everyday plastics and industrial products are produced, this has no place to go but into the waste tip or environment.
Earth is evolving and as the years go on money and jobs are important. Every day and every year millions of tones of harmful gases rise into the air as do litter on our streets.

At the moment the Earth is scattered with green trees, birds, fish, animals and humans. In the future this paradise will cease to exist if pollution is not dealt with.
If changes are not made to waste management, production of materials, energy and transport the human race will be in a dilemma. A planet full of rubbish, polluted air and waste could and will be inevitable if people live like we do now in the next 50 years.
40
Vote
Shared on
   


Pick up the pieces in our streets

June 6th 2008 01:51
By Phillip Blain.

Out in our streets, parks, rivers, beaches and schools we constantly see litter. It is not a good image and reflection to our city or area. Something needs to be done about it now!
Wildlife and people suffer from this pollution all the time. Animals die from it and we are the ones left picking it up. It is the most visible sign of pollution and it needs to be reduced.
In some places our environment resembles a teenager’s bedroom. It has been left untidy and cluttered with litter; a virtual health hazard will remain a mess for a long time, unless we clean it up.
All this mess starts with the storm water drain and works its way to our rivers. Cigarette butts, plastic bags, fast food containers, chemicals and garden waste are constantly thrown into the streets ending up in storm water drains. In time this can block drains and cause potential flooding or pollute rivers and water ways. This affects the health of the fish and habitat in our rivers. If they die this means no fish for the people who love to fish.
Looking back 50 years ago products were not made like today’s standards. Back then products could be recycled such as paper bags, milk bottles, newspaper as the fish and chip wrappers were recyclable products. But now plastics and containers are regularly made and sold in fast food restaurants. These usually are left on the table in the park by lazy/careless people and ultimately this ends up in streets and rivers.
Rubbish filled areas give people a reason to litter and that’s why there is rubbish everywhere we go. People drop their rubbish where they walk and out of the car. Studies show cigarette butts are the most common form of litter item in Australia. Junk food wrappers, bottles and papers are amongst the common product wasted. Fast food companies producing mass amounts of food packaging and un-recyclable products are causing this dilemma.
The safety of people is a concern due to the rubbish on our streets and recreational areas.
Broken glass and used syringes are a potential hazard for people who don’t wear footwear on beaches and parks. People and children are in danger of cuts and illness if these bottles and syringes are not properly disposed of.
Through the years, businesses and shops try to endorse their product with flyers and junk mail. Nature forces these papers off car windscreens and out of mailboxes then we see it blowing around all over the city. This puts a bad image on the company and is adding more litter to the pile that no-one wants.
Some countries that lack in clean up funds struggle with a clean country and society.
Rats filled with germs and plagues live in these mountain high piles of rubbish.
We are the only people to blame for a rubbish filled country or earth. That’s rubbish ends up in our society by our carelessness and ignorance.
We have to remember that rubbish is not going to throw itself in the bin. So to get it there we have to place it in the bins ourselves constantly.
40
Vote
Shared on
   


Insight into Poverty

June 6th 2008 01:42
Thank you for coming Mr. homeless guy.

How do you cope with been homeless


[ Click here to read more ]
38
Vote
Shared on
   


Polar Bears In Trouble

May 30th 2008 02:53
Dear Editor

Polar bears are now set to be labelled “Endangered” after the Bush administrations stressed concern for the bear’s survival in the near future. How much more evidence do we need to start acting on global warming? The irony is clear when the U.S.A claimed that the bears are endangered, but they still refuse to reduce their carbon emissions. How can the U.S.A have the nerve to publicly announce that Polar Bears are in trouble when the United States is one of the worst countries for global co2 emissions? No wonder the polar bears are now endangered. Because of our ignorance and disregard for the environment we are now faced with a serious issue, how to fight global warming? You may think your just one person, what could I possibly do? But together we can help fight global warming by turning off unused appliances, change to a greener energy and turn off the car engine


[ Click here to read more ]
61
Vote
Shared on
   


Carbon Crisis Effects Us All

May 30th 2008 02:52
By Daniel Fary

Our carbon footprint is increasing in size every year, but what are we doing to stop it? Every year the global economy pumps toxic c02 into our atmosphere, slowly killing our environment. If the earths atmosphere was an air-line, c02 would stack up some serious frequent flyer points. What sort of environment are we leaving behind for our children? We need to step up and take on the challenge of fighting industrial c02 emissions. We should be focussing on Australia, we should be researching greener sources of energy, so that we can live the life we are accustomed to, without eroding the environment. As a society we are now aware of what we’re doing to the environment, we watched Al Gore’s shocking documentary, we’ve seen the chart, but we are still reluctant to change our lavish lifestyle. It really is an inconvenient truth. If we want to be sustainable we desperately need to change the way we think about burning fossil fuel and other pollutants. One day there will be no water, no fuel, no trees and our society would crumble. The drought would worsen and our cattle industry would no longer exist, what would we eat? What would we drink? How would we get from one place to another? These things can be prevented with little things like, walking to the corner shop, switching off unused appliances and investing in solar panels


[ Click here to read more ]
42
Vote
Shared on
   


Carbon Crisis

May 30th 2008 02:51
By Daniel Fary

Our climate is rapidly changing because of our disregard for the environment. What kind of eco-system are we willing to leave behind for our grandchildren? How can we possibly repair the damage already sustained to our environment? How can we save the earth? We can tell our-selves that global warming isn’t real, and that is doesn’t affect us now. But the reality is, that our climate is changing. For the worst. We can shrink our carbon footprint, by switching off our unused appliances, change to an energy efficient light bulb, invest in solar panels and turn off the car and walk to the corner shop. These simple actions can help fight global warming


[ Click here to read more ]
29
Vote
Shared on
   


The Rising Road Toll

May 30th 2008 02:49
By Corey Gallichan.

The road toll is getting worse and worse. There are too many people, mainly p-platers, dying on our roads. The government have made campaigns, such as television advertisements to tell people to slow down, but the message doesn’t seem to be getting across. There are still hoons on our roads and there needs to be more serious consequences for them, because they just keep speeding and risking other peoples’ lives. In 2006-2007, there were 329 people killed and in 2007-2008, there were 330 people killed on the roads. This shows how many people die just from the driving on the road. These statistics are shocking and there needs to be action with hoons and drink-drivers on the roads. Young p-platers think it is funny to speed on our roads when really; it’s a death sentence to other drivers


[ Click here to read more ]
40
Vote
Shared on
   


Hitting The Grim Reaper Head On

May 30th 2008 02:47
By Corey Gallichan

The road toll in Victoria is getting worse and worse every year and it is not dropping. Rural Victoria is one of the worst areas for road deaths with 189 deaths between 2007 and 2008. This number continues to grow. The great amounts of fatalities on our Victorian roads are due to drink-driving, speeding and ignoring the road rules. The roads are also an immense problem and need to be fixed, with a lot of them too windey, full of pot holes and surrounding trees


[ Click here to read more ]
32
Vote
Shared on
   


Dying Too Soon

May 30th 2008 02:46
Dear Editor

It has recently come to my attention that the overall Victorian road toll over the last year has brought 330 deaths. This is an increase from the previous year’s 329 deaths. This is a figure that makes me angry, not just that the road toll has risen in the last year, but there are a great amount of deaths in Victoria alone. The road is to drive on, not a place for people to die on. The country roads around Victoria are so dangerous because drivers think they can speed on the roads as there is hardly any traffic, and then they end up killing themselves by driving into trees or poles. During 2007 and 2008, there were 188 deaths in rural Victoria, compared to Melbourne’s 153, according to the TAC website. It annoys me why people do these things. Why would you drink and drive? Why would you speed just to look cool? In my opinion, it’s just sheer stupidity. The consequences of speeding and drink-driving can either result in a measly fine, or result in a loss of a life. Which one would you rather? It’s not just the drivers to blame; it’s also the conditions of the roads. Many roads aren’t sealed and there are a lot of pot holes. The roads are too windey for some drivers to handle and they veer off into trees. The government needs to do something about these roads, and fast, or else the road toll will continue to grow and grow. The government could fund more money into fixing the roads and making them more suitable to drive on and fewer trees surrounding country roads. The amount of level crossing accidents in Australia over the past two years has been shocking. A lot of these crossings have had no boom gates or warnings, which needs to be put in to stop the amount of fatalities. The government need to fund more money to get these boom gates and warning lights so the level crossing accidents don’t happen as often. The drivers of cars are also to blame; sometimes they are the ones that cause the accident. They either ignore the red light signals or just don’t want to stop, which could become a life or death situation. Lets just hope that the motoring public realise how much damage these people do on the roads and think again about speeding and drink-driving, because the consequence could be a loss of a life


[ Click here to read more ]
35
Vote
Shared on
   


More Posts
4 Posts
35 Posts
39 Posts dating from May 2008
Email Subscription
Receive e-mail notifications of new posts on this blog:

SPEAK UP!'s Blogs

I have no other blogs :(
Moderated by SPEAK UP!
Copyright © 2006 2007 2008 On Topic Media PTY LTD. All Rights Reserved. Design by Vimu.com.
On Topic Media ZPages: Sydney |  Melbourne |  Brisbane |  London |  Birmingham |  Leeds     [ Advertise ] [ Contact Us ] [ Privacy Policy ]