I've been trying to frame this idea in my head for a while. Not so much the idea that COVID might be here to regain some balance on a besieged planet. That's already been suggested by others. I'm more interested in which types of human activity this virus is actually 'targeting'. What is the catalyst for an outbreak and why it hits certain areas? It's probable that it will eventually get to every corner of the globe, but do those places hit hardest now have something in common?
And there it was in a promo for an upcoming ABC documentary by Craig Reucassel called 'Fight for Planet A' - not the title itself but the distillation of an idea. I've been saying things like 'the virus seems to be targeting 'decadence' or 'affluence' - except that's not correct. That is a conflation of my judgment about what is 'essential' activity and what isn't in the context of lockdowns - a judgment tied in with the idea that the virus is a 'disease of globalisation'. To say globalisation is all bad is not correct either, because there have been some real benefits.
But when you look at a simulation of global flightpaths - and this was 5 years ago - you'd have to be out of your tiny mind not to think this was just bloody ridiculous.
How was the world's ecosystems ever going to sustain this level of activity?
I'm left with the hard sell that this type of activity is 'non-essential'. It is a value judgment most people I know - including my close family - would be unimpressed with. They are all seasoned world travellers who escape their boring/unfulfilled/shallow lives by taking at least one overseas annual holiday and a luxury cruise every few years. (And before everyone starts throwing stuff at their screens: yes, I do recognise that cross-cultural exchanges can be a positive thing, but let's face it - most travellers don't want to see the REAL lives of other cultures. They just want to indulge their pleasure receptors)
Anyway - let's forget about whether flying and cruising all over the world is 'essential' or 'non-essential', whether these are 'decadent' practices embedded deeply in contemporary culture or predominantly requiring a certain level of 'affluence'. It's more likely we'd all agree that this level of human activity on a planet with finite resources is 'excessive'.
We only have to look at the factors that are contributing to the success of COVID - an abundance of people 'shoulder to shoulder' moving around in pubs, restaurants, cruise ships, overpopulated urban areas - including affluent ones - people criss-crossing the world as if they were going to the corner shop. Excess is the one thing places like the US and sub-Saharan Africa have in common - whether it's an excess of people, an excessive lifestyle or both.
Edit: I've just noticed that there is a clear correlation between the areas most affected by COVID and those with the highest number of flights.
Edit: I've just noticed that there is a clear correlation between the areas most affected by COVID and those with the highest number of flights.
Meme: Author.
Map: Ben Logan, Flight path Visualisation, 2015 https://mrbenlogan.wordpress.com/2013/06/27/global-flight-path-visualisation/
A stunning image supported by perceptive commentary, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI've heard of so much "hardship" with this virus: the person who can't go to Hawaii for his 50th, the person who doesn't know if they will meet the mortgage payments on their holiday house, the person who might be unemployed for the first time in 30 years (and that is hard, but they've had a good run)
ReplyDeleteI've had a very hard time for money the last few years (and I'm still one of the richest people in the world) so any sympathy I might have had for these people has vanished.
My son in law is from Vanuatu and the whole place is shut down to locals when a cruise ship comes in, the tourists don't see the truth and they don't care what happens when they get there. Cross cultural exchange, phooey
So glad to have some allies Kylie. You are right. I have struggled with insecure work for decades but I consider myself lucky and wealthy - I still have a job, and we own our own home. It's modest, and our lifestyle is really modest too. But in truth I want for nothing. I really think people who feel the need to be on the move all the time are basically unhappy and looking for distractions. That's not to say we should never go overseas - it's just the way it has become a way of life to move around the globe at will. And bugger the planet - can't imagine all those flights are helping fix global warming either.
DeleteI was just talking to someone yesterday that said he thinks this is the planets way of trying to get humankind's attention. I don't know that I entirely disagree.
ReplyDeleteI am like you and want for nothing at all. I spent six weeks out of work and got kind of cranky because I don't know to do with myself when I don't have work. I am out of practice. I will not complain except for the inequities of this country and how the poor and disenfranchised are affected and treated. I will continue to speak out (for what that is worth) and vote my conscience (for all the good it does).
Yes this virus is exposing inequity more and more. It's like water seeping into the cracks and widening them - which is something I am at least enjoying about it.
DeleteWe have family members who cruise and fly across our planet for the sheer pleasure of having a cocktail in an unfamiliar setting. The toll our human presence takes on earth is both measurable and beyond measure.
ReplyDeleteOMG I find the behaviour of those family members quite obscene. No wonder when humanity is in such a mess. There must be more of us who hate this sort of behaviour but there must also be a majority who either turn a blind eye or indulge in it themselves. I know it's counterproductive but I find myself feeling very angry at many of my fellow humans for being like this. They are dragging us all - as well as other species who have no part in it - over the existential cliff.
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