尊貴的消費者

Nowadays most media promotes consumerism, some do it nakedly.

South China Morning Post gave a glowing report of plans by a caviar (魚子醬) restaurant to open a branch in Hong Kong ("Blueblood of caviar has trust in taste of HK elite", Sunday Morning Post 21 September 2008), without mentioning that the sturgeons (鱘魚) from which the caviar is obtained are fast approaching extinction and that sturgeon have been known to be contaminated with mercury which damages the brain annd reproductive system of mammals by interfering with sperm formation.

A friend of mine wrote to the Post to draw their attention to this, and the newspaper is now inviting comment. Write to the Post (letters@scmp.com) also and let them know what you think.

婚禮革命

From 1-555-CONFIDE

我想到婚宴應該就現時世界情況而改變的細節

• 改用電子請帖，年長或沒有電腦的可改用電話或當面邀請。減少使用紙張及印刷包裝材料。餅卡可於參加婚宴時索取。
• 停止食用深海魚類及魚翅，這個之前已經講過。因為深海捕漁破壞海床，部份魚類又因為濫捕而滅種。應改食淡水魚，因為養淡水魚理論上是可永續的經營。香港養魚業對環境的破壞比其他農業為少，實在應該支持。
• 減少現有飲宴食物份量，因為幾乎 100% 吃不了全部，造成浪費食物。目標是減少每個菜的份量至現時平均的 70% ，但不減少菜的碟數。由其是通常放在最尾的雞、伊麵、飯、紅豆沙，應該大量減少。原因是一餐飯如果一次過上八個菜，你會吃多了，飽而不知。但是當菜是一個一個的上，再加上婚宴各式大龍鳳如敬酒、玩新娘，整頓飯的時間拉長了，你會更易有飽肚感，因為食物開始消化，血糖開始慢慢升高，強化神經飽足訊號。不要忘記不少人是用拉長食飯時間來減肥。
• 飲宴食物亦以肉類及醣類佔大多數，應該增加菜蔬的份量。上文指最尾的菜如雞、伊麵、飯，應增加菜蔬成份。如炸子雞可改為菜膽沙鍋雲吞雞；伊麵和飯，可改為排骨上海菜飯。之前的燒豬、熱葷及蒸魚還吃不夠肉了嗎？
• 飲宴飲酒過量亦是問題，如新郎哥不慣飲太多，突然飲太多身體出急性反應；又或酒後駕駛問題。當然喜興場合完全不飲酒又有點那過。我建議不提供烈酒，只提供啤酒。啤酒飲得多，要屙很多尿，會大量減少酒精吸收量。當作 Oktoberfest 那樣搞。

當然，這些意見我想不少新人都會想到。奉行這些改革，會減低新人辦婚宴的支出。但想到還想到，沒有太多人會實行。因為婚宴有傳統，而這些傳統是要跟足，很多人不想與上一代撐。辦婚宴亦要有體面，進行以上改革會給人寒酸的感覺。我認為只是了解進行改革的原因，傳統是可以慢慢改變的。我亦想做個調查，問問大家，請排行以上幾點接受程度，由最不能接受排起。

無樹之都

得知某政府部門將7棵健康的牆樹砍了，心中憤怒。是為了怕赤柱事件重演所以“有殺錯，無放過”罷？更“可怒也"的是不知道有什麼可以做。6個政府部門互相“拋波”，根本不知該從何入手。媒體罵大樹傷人？他們就砍樹。沒有樹就沒有大樹傷人。難道香港會變成無樹之都？

題外話1：這是政府的跨部門strategy嗎？先殺雞，後殺樹，一般的寧枉勿縱。

題外話2：Is this how sense of helplessness is created?

The Future is in the Present

Another extract from In the Footsteps of Gandhi: Conversations with Spiritual Social Activists by Catherine Ingram.

Thich Naht Hanh: People, in consuming a lot and trying to be rich, believe that they are happy, but… we should try to help them find real happiness from looking at the blue sky – really looking – or looking at a child or a flower. When people have a base of real happiness, they will abandon the other things. Maybe that’s the most important thing to do now in order to have the future and the present. If we have the present then we have the future.

Are We Going to Make It?

Extract from In the Footsteps of Gandhi: Conversations with Spiritual Social Activists by Catherine Ingram.

Catherine Ingram: One thing that seems to be at issue is whether or not we will actually survive. We are living in a time which has become dangerous enough and bad enough to possibly awaken us, if only out of self-interest, to live more gently on this Earth, to co-exist with the lift forms on this planet. Do you think we’re going to make it?

Brother David Steindl-Rast: It’s a good question, but I’m not sure it’s a question that should be answered. I’m not sure that the answer one way or the other is going to help anybody. If we say, “Yes, we are surely going to make it,” – first of all it would be difficult to substantiate that claim – and, if the idea is really accepted, it could have damaging effects. We may just go on like before and not do anything to stop the destruction.

Now the opposite answer, “We’re not going to make it,” can also have enormously damaging effects because people would say, “If we’re not going to make it anyway, why bother?” So neither of these two answers is going to help very much. We must put as much effort into everything we’re doing as if whether or not we’re going to make it depended upon it. And we must find a way of living in which even if we are not going to make it, in the last second you can say to yourself, “Well, what I did was worthwhile.” But the worthwhileness must never depend on the success.”

Business of the Heart

不驚不覺已經寫了差不多200個post，發現能引起我興趣的其實不是傳統的節約式環保，而是what's really needed for happiness。印度村婦開懷地笑，不見得她比我們擁有更多的金錢財富。小孩兒們一身破爛滿身泥漿，可他們比我們的小大人輕鬆自在。大象被殘害，獵人心中竟被觸動，提早完結“貓補鼠”的遊戲。雖然它們不會説話，但老樹給倒了，還是有很多人不忍心。很多我們以為擁有才會快樂的東西，沒有也可以很快樂；有些我們以為不相干的事情，原來很有相干。I guess, ultimately, happiness is a business of the heart。

生活素質 2

這個女的呢，眉開眼笑，為的就是因為居然有人想拍她的照片，一個農家村婦的照片。這種由心底發出來的笑容，看着看着連自己都無端端高興起來。Source: The Guardian

生活素質 1

照片想表達的是quality of life，生活素質。誠然。贏了足球，就算滿身泥漿又有什麼關係？瘋一點才得盡興。Source: The Guardian

直徑（圓形） = 邊長（正方形）

你會聯想起什麼呢？那天在跑馬地馬場外近養和方向見到它以意想不到的形式出現：圓形的樹幹，周圍鋪滿地磚，形成一個直徑（圓形） = 邊長（正方形）的景象。抬頭一看，發現葉子乾燥，沒有夏季應有的濕潤和旺盛。最令人心痛的是老榕樹也遭同一待遇，地面不平，樹根在下面努力掙扎的情況可以猜想的到。這樣子搞下去，它們早晚也會倒下。這直徑 = 邊長的法子是哪個渾人的主義？

跑馬地的區民們，你們付了很多鈔票才買到的馬場景應包括香港已經不多的大樹景，想辦法保護你們的投資罷！

在本市保護樹木先要破解政府的“拋波”策略，並不容易，成功者應有資格上一仔的非常人語，所以有些人選擇求人不如求己，如龐永欣校長。

樹會倒下來嗎？　

[明報] 某天早上工友通報說：「校長，校舍近街一帶的樹木給白蟻蛀了，有些還會有傾倒危機。」我慌忙巡視，發現不少樹木都有蛀口，翻開泥土後還看到一巢巢蠕動中的白蟻。樹塌會釀成事故，須即時處理。先請工友用鐵絲抓緊樹幹，但樹高數米，這非良策，故囑咐職員立即向政府部門求助。　

兩天了，電話遍及建築署、土拓署、路政署、漁農署、食環署，都說樹和蟻都在校內，非其工作範圍。唯一得到的忠告竟然是：「環保規定，不得斬樹」。　

問題來了，樹內傾危及師生，外倒禍及人車，「已知」的危機是不可能不理的。法律上校舍物業權屬於政府，我便撥電話給教育局的分區辦事處，通報情和擔憂。翌日回電說：教育局幫不了忙。我再三解釋這會對師生和公眾構成危險。可能對方聽得厭煩，官腔來了：「龐校長，你又不是生物學家，怎能一口咬定所見到的是白蟻？」　

自求多福，我只得自己動手。我反覆「研究」，了解白蟻築穴繁殖過程，認識什麼蒜頭驅蟻法、火攻水灌法，又接見多家滅蟲公司，比較噴藥滅殺、帶藥傳染、召伴吃餌等方法……半年後，在職員和熱心家長的幫忙下，終把問題解決了，而我也成了半個白蟻專家，也明白到無奈的困境會逼你學習。　

朋友說，既然教育局給學校的編制中沒有管理物業的專才，可否訓練一位老師專管這些？很多學校已是這樣做了。我說：「不要煩老師了，他們的任務應是把學生教好。」　

[龐永欣 pongdidit@gmail.com]