October 2010 - Trout Lake School

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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .STUDENT WRITING. . . . . . .A World of HungerWith almost seven billion people on Planet Earth, we are struggling to meet people’s basic needs.We are told that Siddhartha Gautama at age 29 discoveredthe realities and horrors of life (the four sights).He escaped from the walls of his father’s palace and sawthe suffering of the ordinary humans, an old man, a verysick man, and a corpse. He could not understand thereasons behind such cruelty. So it is generally seems tobe with Americans, but unlike Siddhartha, who tried toget lessen the pain and suffering around him, we don’treally try to do anything, or we pretend to fix it so wecan try to ignore it.In our world, 100,000 people die each day fromstarvation; about one person every second. Childrenunder age five account for about 85% of these deaths.According to ‘Bread of Life’, a website trying to helpstarving people around the world, “In 2008… nearlynine million children died before they reached theirfifth birthday. One third of these deaths are due directlyor indirectly to hunger and malnutrition.” Americanshear these statistics—but do we take action, or evenunderstand what it means to starve? All of us casuallywalk around saying, “Let’s go get lunch, I’m starving!”and have no understanding of what it means to trulystarve. Every person on the planet has experiencedmissing a meal and having their stomach seize up, growl,and just hurt. That hunger consumes your mind and youcan’t think of anything else. To starve to death wouldmean that pain constantly. Over time, your body willeat away the fat around your muscles, then the muscles,then the fat around your organs, and then your organs.To see pictures of starving people is so heart breaking;especially the children.This world hunger is caused by several factors. Itseems that helping people around the world hasbecome a lower priority than helpingourselves. This said, the idea of “everyman for himself ” applies toworld hunger. Generally, oneperson will make sure theyare well cared for beforeeven considering goingout to help anyone else.Most of us Americansnever leave the countryto a place where wecan truly see thehorrors around usbecause we are toobusy focusing onourselves and what wewant. When we getout of our borders andsee the terrible povertyand hunger inourworld, we can truly see how much we have that we don’t need.Another cause of the terrible statistics around us is the world’s population growth.The world population reached about one billion in 1900, two billion in 1950, fourbillion in 1975, and it is estimated we now have a population of 6.8 billion people.This gigantic leap in the population strains the resources of the world. It is hardenough for first world countries to not push the budget and resources of their countryso it would be so much harder for a third world country. Without proper fundsthey can’t afford to feed their citizens. The people get sick from rotten food and fromunsanitary water sources. A Dollar Menu burger and small soda would be a feast tothem.It is estimated that approximately 800 million people in the world suffer fromhunger and malnutrition; about 8 million of these people die from starvation eachyear. What if we, as a nation could fix that staggering number of people sufferingfrom lack of food? Although sending money or food to other countries is a possiblesolution, there are several problems with doing so. First, not everyone receives relieffood and help and second, it is not a long-term solution. There are many ideas floatingaround for a permanent solution. One practical solution is to properly distributefood throughout the world with lower prices so poorer countries can afford it. Inan essay about world hunger by Kerby Anderson he says “The problem lies in thedistribution of the world's food. The majority of food is produced in economicallymore developed countries such as USA, but those countries that are really in need oftheir share of the food to solve their hunger problems, cannot afford the high pricesthat these farmers charge and can get from other richer countries.” Another ratherbrutal solution is using the “lifeboat” ethic. This basically means that in a life boateventually you have to leave some people behind because there isn’t enough space,food, or water.We need to take a stand against the suffering caused by starvation. The peoplearound our world are dying painful deaths and it is so easy for us to wait for someoneelse to take initiative. One way or another, we need to put an end to the lack of foodaround the rest of the world. Even if it means us giving up some of what we havethat we don’t really need for someone else whomight die without it.Amy Underwood22 | October, 2010. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . .STUDENT WRITING. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Homemade AlternativesAnother way to boycott animal testing.Animal testing is one of the most controversial issues in the worldtoday. As a consumer, I was in shock when I realized how manycommon household brands perform their testing on animals. Everydaynames like Arm & Hammer, Axe, Banana Boat, Bounty, Dawn, Glade,Lysol, and Tide have admitted to using animals, but they won’t tellyou that on their labels. A consumer has to go through a lot of researchin order to find out what products are cruelty-free. Other knownnames like Aveda, Avon, Bare Essentials, Bath and Body Works,Clinique, Conair, and Nivea, all have been proven to have cruelty-freelaboratories. In order to stop using products and giving money to bigcompanies that test on animals, my family and I decided to produceour own laundry detergents, as well as shampoos and conditioners,which we have found to be a much healthier option.Most people think that “going green” and using “green” productswould be the equivalent of using cruelty-free products. That is apopular misconception. Many products that claim to be green in thewave of wanting to be earth friendly, actually still test on animals.They also use many unnecessary ingredients that can be harmful to itsconsumers. In an attempt to be green, Tide laundry detergent createda concentrated formula as well as smaller packaging so that you coulduse less soap as well as less water. However green they may claim tobe, they still use animals in a way that seems inhumane, which wouldnot qualify as being earth friendly. Tide is a known animal testingcompany, and it turns out that they do not include an ingredientlist on their packaging. Do they not include the ingredients dueto an abundance of harmful additives? The only information thatTide has disclosed to the public, is that their formula contains nophosphates, and does contain “biodegradable surfactants”, which aresurface active agents. Anionic surfactants remove oily substances andparticulates, while nonionic are less affected by water. That leavesme wondering what else I am washing my clothes with, and yetas a consumer, there is no way for me to find out the additionalcomponents.Most detergents are made withbyproducts that are individuallytested on animals that arepotentially harmfulto you. There areproducts on themarket that fitmy family’snewhealthycriteria,and asyou know,they tend to behigher on the pricelist. For those of uswith tight budgets,it comes down toa decision betweenethics and money. Wedecided on ethics andfound affordable andsustainable solutions thatanyone can make themselves. All you need is ½ cup of baking soda(try not to use Arm & Hammer, they are animal testers!), ½ cup ofpowdered castile soap, and ¼ cup of washing soda. Then combine,and add essential oils for fragrance if desired. Throw ½ cup into eachlaundry load for cruelty-free freshness. We have found this to be agood, cost effective, and environmentally friendly solution.The use of shampoo and conditioner has been around for ages,and we all want our hair to look the shiniest and smell the fruitiest.What the average consumer doesn’t realize is that the shampoo andconditioner combo actually does a number on your hair, and manyof the ingredients are also used in experiments involving animals.Hair follicles and sebaceous glands on your scalp produce natural oilsthat are needed to maintain healthy, moisturized hair. Shampoos arecreated to strip hair shafts of all oils, and then conditioners are usedto replace them with a similarly oily substance. Natural shampooshowever, are not filled with chemicals so they do not take away oils,but cleanse the hair. Conditioner is really only needed once every fewwashes, so that extra oils are not added. Herbs such as chamomile,St. John’s Wort, and nettles are all used to moisturize overly dry hair.Others, like horsetail, lavender, and lemon balm all help preventoverly oily hair. All that you need to do to create a shampoo that ishealthy for you and your hair, is mix 12 oz. of unscented liquid castilesoap along with 30 drops of the essential oils of your choice. Thiswill make a concoction that will be naturally good for your body.As for conditioners, most homemade versions just leave your headridiculously greasy and moist. But think about it. If you aren’t using ashampoo that strips oils, then you don’t need a conditioner to replacethem! Just use moisturizing essential oils to keep your hair happy andhealthy. We are in the process of making and tyingdifferent essential oils that make the perfectcombination, and so far we have not yetgotten the key.Our family has made the decision touse alternative methods, although it issometimes more expensive. The purchaseof essential oils is a little pricey, but they lasta long time and it is worth it to stopthe abhorrent things that largecompanies are doing to animals.If we all start making our owncleaning products, then ourmoney will not be going tolarge inhumane companies.I hope that this informationhas influenced you, andthat you can join in the effortto boycott animal testing and usinghomemade products instead.Grade Anton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . October, 2010 | 23
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October 2010 - Trout Lake School

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