Food Crisis

I've heard about the rice crisis and was reading the news today on the potential price hike for food. I guess it's a wake up call for us. For most of us, I suppose life goes on even though we may complain about the increase in food prices. We have a choice not to purchase the more expensive items and can choose to cut down on the non essential items. But not all are like us who have a roof over our heads, won't go hungry for a day (perhaps except for those who goes on a diet), can afford to buy an extra accessories or bags to match our attire. They don't have a choice. They can't choose not to buy basic items like food, education etc.

I sometimes do feel guilty buying an extra blouse, a bag, a pair of shoes etc. Could this money be given to someone who needs it more? Sometimes we get too used to seeing the poor or less privileged people asking for money in our MRT tunnels. I'm one of them. I do donate to them occasionally but I wonder if everyone has the same thought that we have already donated before, so it's enough and we've done our part. But they too need to eat everyday.

Not too long ago, mypaper did an article on monthly expenditure spent on food by different families in different parts of the world. The reporter appreciated one of the families which took them almost a day to lay out all their food items for the photoshoot and keeping them back after the shoot. Yes, it was troublesome but it also goes to show that this family is blessed to be able to afford so much food which took them a long time to lay them out.

So how much is enough? It's never enough.

When our government calls for more greener actions like 'Bring Your Own Bag' Day for supermarts, people start to collect more plastic bags on non-BYOB days for fear that plastic bags would be chargeable in future.

Many start to buy those so-called environmentally friendly bags as shopping bags, and I believe there'd be some who collect these bags too.

The NEA is advising people to adjust their air conditioning to about 25 deg celcius; yet shopping centres are blasting theirs away. Even my hubby's colleague, who is a Swiss, commented that shopping centres in S'p are very cold. Perhaps we're deprived of winter experience and the shopping centres here are trying to create that experience so as to increase their sales?

For the sake of better living comforts, we waste. We buy more shoes to match our outfits, more bags for various occasions, more food than we need...I'm guilty of that too and I wonder if I could reach to that stage where I just get what I need. What we're doing now may not affect us directly at this instance, but definitely will have long term repercussions. I guess for those who have no kids, they might think it's not their problem. Well, I agree since they have no stakes in a way. But for those with children, do you worry for what holds for them?

I've received this clip which I thought it's rather impactful and the girl had delivered her message well. And she's only 12 years old. Do help to spread this clip around.

To quote what Chinese Premier Wen Jia Bao's words on his recent visit to S'pore, "One is indeed lucky to be a Singaporean as he need not worry about basic necessities."
Indeed we are.