Poverty on the Brain..

[tomdesigns]

Just to clarify.. we are talking about a penny worth of shampoo. Being almost 50 I certainly do not need allot of shampoo these days.

So that is what I was referring to when I said I have never thought like this in my life.. a penny worth of something is taking up space and energy in my thinking.

It is interesting that something like one cent worth of shampoo is creeping into my mind.. it is obvious that the exposure to the poverty is effecting me.

 

[John.St]

Just to clarify.. we are talking about a penny worth of shampoo. Being almost 50 I certainly do not need allot of shampoo these days.

So that is what I was referring to when I said I have never thought like this in my life.. a penny worth of something is taking up space and energy in my thinking.

It is interesting that something like one cent worth of shampoo is creeping into my mind.. it is obvious that the exposure to the poverty is effecting me.

That's exactly how Scrooge McDonald started - one penny, now he owns fantazillions.

 

[Ashley]

Just to clarify.. we are talking about a penny worth of shampoo. Being almost 50 I certainly do not need allot of shampoo these days.

So that is what I was referring to when I said I have never thought like this in my life.. a penny worth of something is taking up space and energy in my thinking.

It is interesting that something like one cent worth of shampoo is creeping into my mind.. it is obvious that the exposure to the poverty is effecting me.

Is it just the poverty though or do you think that inflation has something to do with it (especially if you've been here for a while)?
My bog-standard Pantene shampoo now costs me over 20 pesos a bottle...which I'm pretty sure is more than it costs in the UK. I think that even if I wasn't earning in pesos (and therefore paying out a small fortune in shampoo) I'd still be stunned at the % salary people have to fork out here on such basic items and would feel ashamed at being even mildly wasteful...

 

[gsi16386]

This is also good for the environment. I really dislike the belief in first-world countries that you have the 'right' to buy anything you want just because you own the money for buying it. It is somehow a tragedy that the most civilised and educated people in the World are also the worst polluters and those who don't give a s*** about the environmental problems (some few people do, but the masses don't).

I feel like this forum is full of tree hugging hippies. And first world countries don't give a shit about pollution? Are you all serious??? We are the pioneers that put all the policies in place to prevent polution. Ever gotten your car tag in the US? Remember the car having to pass emissions?? They don't have that in BA, only in the provinces. Ever heard of Green Power? Emissions credits? Recycling programs? Yeah, they don't have any of that shit in BA.

Keep saving your utensils and shampoo, but don't believe for a second you're "helping the environment" moreso than the first world countries by doing so.

 

[AkBill]

i have poverty in my brain

 

[bebero]

I feel like this forum is full of tree hugging hippies. And first world countries don't give a shit about pollution? Are you all serious??? We are the pioneers that put all the policies in place to prevent polution. Ever gotten your car tag in the US? Remember the car having to pass emissions?? They don't have that in BA, only in the provinces. Ever heard of Green Power? Emissions credits? Recycling programs? Yeah, they don't have any of that shit in BA.

Keep saving your utensils and shampoo, but don't believe for a second you're "helping the environment" moreso than the first world countries by doing so.

argentina may not hava 'all that shit' but it runs 28th in the ranking of most polluting countries and the us runs second. argentina represents 0.6% of the total world waste and the us 20%.
the average tones if CO2 a year for an american is 20. the world-average is 4.
my point?

1) learn your facts before getting in an argument
2) developed countries are "pioneers" because they pollute the most.

 

[Ashley]

I feel like this forum is full of tree hugging hippies. And first world countries don't give a shit about pollution? Are you all serious??? We are the pioneers that put all the policies in place to prevent polution. Ever gotten your car tag in the US? Remember the car having to pass emissions?? They don't have that in BA, only in the provinces. Ever heard of Green Power? Emissions credits? Recycling programs? Yeah, they don't have any of that shit in BA.

Keep saving your utensils and shampoo, but don't believe for a second you're "helping the environment" moreso than the first world countries by doing so.

That is hilarious! Seriously...and the Kyoto Protocol??
We have so many "environmental policies" in the first world to help us numb the sting of screwing everyone else. But we are still the biggest polluters and a good part of the reason for that is that individuals take no responsibility for their own actions yet bask in the glory of their governments' (very flawed) policies. It is perfectly acceptable in the US/Europe to have one car per person, despite the emissions (industrial and from personal use) that this implies. It is perfectly acceptable to "upgrade" your mobile phone, laptop, ipad, whatever, every six months to a year, despite the industrial emissions and the fact that they contain conflict metals. In Argentina, environmental awareness may be no better than in the US/Europe but people simply cannot afford to consume on the same level. I think that living in a place where there is less pressure to have so much "stuff" makes you think about being more individually accountable when it comes to the environment, hippy or not.

 

[tangobob]

I am loving this thread.
I was brought up in 1950s Britain, only just out of rationing and nothing is ever wasted in our houshold.
They say that out of every pound spent on food 15 pence is wasted, well it neverhas in our house.
Maybe that is why a poor electricista from Gales can buy a property in Buenos Aires.

 

[citygirl]

To be fair, I would surmise that Argentina is only ranked 28th because there are a lot less people here than there are in the US. Recycling doesn't exist. People throw garbage on the street. The regulations on environmental waste - if they exist - aren't really enforced. Seriously - have you looked at the rivers around Capital? I wouldn't step in them much less eat something from them. And the frugality you see here is a result of economic limitations AFAIK, not any deep routed consciousness to be careful of the environment.

(Not absolving the more developed countries - the US is a clusterf@*% when it comes to being environmentally responsible. There is a whole lot of shame to go around).

All that being said, as I originally stated, I consume a lot less here than I did in the US. Again, I'm not sure if it is that my lifestyle has changed, i've grown up, I'm much more aware of poverty, I feel more guilt shopping, etc so I don't, a dose of paranoia - no one here really flaunts their wealth because they don't want to be a target - or maybe a little bit of all of the above.

But yes, whereas in NYC, I wouldn't think twice about buying well, anything and tended to feel I "deserved it" (whatever it was - new shoes, massage, vacation, etc) as a result of working so hard - now I just don't want to do that anymore.

 

[jp]

Recycling doesn't exist.

Cartoneros?