"The Breach" was an excellent film about the pernicious impact of logging, aquaculture, overfishing, and dams on salmon stocks. Unfortunately the filmmaker is backing a wild salmon manufacturer and sending an overly simplistic (in my opinion) message to just 'eat wild.' No matter how sustainable the salmon becomes in Alaska, it is not capable of 'sustaining' in a 'sustainable' manner, the unmitigated demand of the U.S. (let alone abroad).
"Food Chains" was a lovely work about tomato pickers in Florida demanding more in wages (one more penny per pound of tomatoes picked!), but fell short in terms of focus. Organizers note that the extra penny doubles worker wages, which translates into an additional 44 cents per year per customer for tomato consumption at the grocery store. They demand the extra penny from the grocers directly, noting that the massive grocery conglomerates (of which there are only 4), but not the farmers, can afford the pay. Unfortunately, this reads as giving the workers a raise and then expecting them (plus the rest of the general public) to pay for it. My belief is that this argument is what impedes progress in wages, including raising the minimum wage, by failing to place the burden on CEOs and the rest of the top 1% at the expense of the consumer.
- The above makes me wonder if the first assignment of the new year should be to identify "how much you need" for future happiness in all realms of life (done by interviews, research, etc.)?
"Racing Extinction" was the interesting new documentary by the maker of "The Cove" (and a native Dubuquer) whose next project will focus on the issues related to livestock production and the imperative to go vegan. [He plans to focus on this by profiling high endurance vegan athletes.] During the Q&A, however, I was a bit disappointed by his reluctance to address the e-waste associated with modern gadgets, but did not find it altogether surprising given his backing from both Paul Allen and Elan Musk!
No comments:
Post a Comment