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