1) The women’s group at my church has had many guest speakers over the years. Just before the start of the Covid pandemic, we had a young woman come in and speak to us about human trafficking and modern-day slavery. The idea that my much-loved coffee and chocolate might be produced at the hands of an exploited person suffering forced labor was startling, to say the least, and made me feel a bit sick. I would never have thought that my South American based favorite coffee might be produced by enslaved workers. I would never knowingly support that practice, so the thought that I may have inadvertently done so was very upsetting to me. The stories that were shared were exceptionally sad, presenting workers facing long days in grueling and often unsafe conditions for little to no pay. Some of these workers are children. I cannot even imagine the life that they are enduring while my own children play video games and complain about having to do their own laundry.
The immediate solution presented during our meeting was to check the product labels for the fair-trade seal, displayed on the front of the packaging on brands in compliance with the rigorous standards required for certification. These products are produced by companies that value human rights and use ethical trade practices. Another potential solution is shopping local, using farmers markets and co-ops to obtain items frequently produced using unfair or unsafe practices. I have also spoken to the purchasing manager at my local chain grocery store and requested that they consider carrying a larger variety of fair-trade certified products in their store. I’m pleased to say that was effective, and there are now several additional brands of fair-trade coffee and chocolate on the shelf in addition to my regular brand. The most functional way that I feel we can combat this problem is with the power of our purchasing choices, although there are also several non-profit organizations that assist those trying to free themselves from forced labor conditions that accept donations.
It has recently come to my attention that flowers imported for arrangements are frequently picked by exploited workers. I do not frequently order cut flowers, but when I do, I will now be more selective with where I purchase them, and I will look to see that they are ethically sourced to ensure that I am not supporting practices I do not agree with.
Petition · Ask 1 800 Flowers to Offer Fair Trade Flowers That Aren’t Picked By Exploited Workers · Change.org
2) For this discussion post I chose environmental waste as my ethical issue, specifically I am covering plastic waste. I chose this topic because it is an issue that impacts todays society and all future generations. Because one of the major concerns for plastic is its effects on the ocean this could be appealing to both the anthropocentrism centered citizen and the ecocentrism citizen. This is appealing to the ecocentrism citizen because of the effect on the creatures of the ocean. This is appealing to the anthropocentrism citizen because ocean creatures are a food supply for a majority of the human population. The average citizen can help contribute to this problem one three fronts. First, the average citizen can stop using single use plastic bags when shopping at the grocery store and instead use reusable bags. This
(Links to an external site.) is a petition that can be signed to ask Target executives to eliminate the use of plastic bags in their stores and only offer reusable bags for purchase. Second, the average person can discontinue the use of single-use plastic products. These include but are not limited to straws, coffee stirrers, and most food packaging. This (Links to an external site.) is a petition to eliminate the use of single use plastics. Third, the average person can support products that recycle ocean bound plastic. This (Links to an external site.) is a petition to create The Ocean Plastic Filter on the Yangtze River. I hope that we can all come up with some creative ways to solve various ethical issues and provide resources for petitions.
V/R
3) I hesitate to use the words “immediate global attention” when talking about most social issues. When I think of that, I think of something like an act of war by a world power, a plague, or a major human rights violation. Something that commands the attention of the world, with haste, belongs only to the most grave situations with the most predictably dire consequences.
With that, I’m going to address the threat of war with Iran. Every nation throughout history has participated in skirmishes and shadow wars with other nations for various reasons; good and bad. History is full of petty human conflict. I don’t think true world peace is something that can be won with any words I know, to say nothing of a petition. That is not my point. However, history has shown us again and again that there are very few wars that are fought with justice and virtue. I know it sounds obvious, but when there is war, people are killed. Some of the worst atrocities of human history were committed during times of war, often outside the conditions of battle, and I think America’s long-standing blood feud with Iran is at risk of escalating into something more serious than anything I’ve seen in my lifetime.
Iran is strongly opposed to the Untied States on numerous socio-political areas, and it is likely we may never make peace with Iran. As a military power, Iran likely would not withstand the full might of the US armed forces either. Those are, again, not my point. My worry is that, with recent pressures from the Coronavirus and other issues causing unrest, an attack from Iran or an Iran-led coalition may push the United States into doing something desperate. During world war 2, both Germany and Japan were in dire economic and political situations when they began aggressive action. A few aspects of society I see today leads me to think of this.
Ultimately, there is little to do but be aware of it. As we discussed in the previous chapter on Eastern philosophies, it isn’t like an American can just up and destroy everything they know about their country without utterly ruining themselves, and I would expect and encourage America to defend and retaliate if something did happen. The justice of war is complicated like that. I think what people should do about it now is be merciful when possible. Remember that our status with Iran has nothing to do with Iranians as a whole. Speak with temperance, and do not support voices who favor war initiatives or otherwise incite petty violence.
There is a petition for this. It is a bit old, but still receives a few votes. I know not everyone will agree with me, it is a very complicated issue, and I admit that even my own opinions on this are still half-formed. Still, I pray I will not see any more war in my lifetime, and if there is a measure to push humanity away from its tendency to war, I would certainly speak about it plainly.
Petition · Stop War with Iran · Change.org
Last Completed Projects
| topic title | academic level | Writer | delivered |
|---|