Blog 7

 A theme that was carried in all three readings was that spectacular or catastrophic environmental events need to take place in order to receive public attention. This is specifically laid out in Chapter 64, in which Greenpeace receives media attention when their protests are “visually spectacular.” This included sending a ship out that tailed a Russian whaling fleet or having activists climb a 180-ton water tower and placing a banner. These outrageous and exorbitant acts receive media attention, while smaller villages or people with fewer resources are ignored. Due to this, only certain environmental issues are being addressed by the public, even if Greenpeace addresses many issues. This theme of large-scale events receiving attention is carried in Chapter 68. A large section in Chapter 68 is dedicated to climate-related disasters, such as floods, hurricanes, droughts, etc. There are about 250 million people affected by these disasters every year. These numbers and the disasters themselves are quite large and spectacular and receive media attention. For example, when a hurricane takes place aid is often sent within the first few months, as the event is recent and destructive. However, the same large aid and attention is not sent to areas dealing with the effects of long-term pollution as seen in the Washington Post article. This article highlights the effects graphite factories have had on the surrounding villages. Air pollution, water contamination, and crop failure are just some of the issues in this area due to the factories. However, due to the lack of spectacularness of this issue, it is receiving little attention. Once more, the local governments are paid off by the factories to not address the issue. These people do not have the resources or means to cause spectacular events that would probe public interest.