Monday, September 24, 2012

A Celebration of Literacy

Despite its rather lengthy history, yesterday was the first time my wife and I attended Toronto's Word On the Street, a celebration of books, literacy, and the dispelling of ignorance. As a retired English teacher and keen observer of the political machinations that envelop our society, it was very heartening to see so many thousands of people, many families with their children in tow, recognizing the crucial role that reading plays in a balanced and productive life.

This morning's Star reports the following:

Amidst the myriad of folks of all ages swarming Queen’s Park Circle for the Word on the Street Festival are parents like Stephen and Tara Palmer.

For them, it’s vital that twins, Tristan and Jacqueline, 4, develop a lifelong love of reading as early as possible.

“I think to be successful later in life in the field they choose to be in, (our kids) are going to need those skills. They’re going to need those skills to be basically happy people in society, to be well-rounded and to be able to think for themselves. The only thing you really own in this life is your mind,” said Stephen Palmer, 39, of Scarborough.

A profound observation: The only thing you really own in this life is your mind. When you think about it, that observation cuts through all of the propaganda we receive on a daily basis about the keys to fulfillment lying in the next purchase, be it the newest IPhone, the newest car, or the biggest house. Indeed, if we really can think for ourselves, we will inevitably conclude that constant growth and expansion through consumerism really is unsustainable.

And that was certainly the message of two of the 'rock stars' of ScotiaBank's Giller Prize speakers' series yesterday at the festival. On a tour together, Canadian icon and renowned scientist and environmentalist David Suzuki, and Jeff Rubin, the economist who has now written two books projecting our future as our energy costs rise, both agree that 'smaller' is an inevitable part of what awaits us.

Listening to these two men, and the intelligent questions that ensued after their presentations, made me realize even more acutely how blinkered and Manichean the Harper regime's outlook is. While regarding people like Suuzki as the enemy of the economy, the regime ignores the fact, as he pointed out, that a healthy biosphere is essential to a healthy economy, and that the two are really part of the same equation. For his part Rubin allowed that he would not expand the development of the tarsands until Canada had extracted much more of its value by refining the bitumen in Canada instead of exporting it away to be done in the U.S., thereby denying the creation of good jobs here.

Both men said much more, but I came away from the festival, having listened to other speakers as well, with the renewed conviction that an informed and literate electorate is the only real weapon against those who would further enslave us through our collective ignorance.

10 comments:

  1. Indeed, Lorne, what we need is an electorate who are keenly aware that they own their own minds.

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  2. As my favourite literary character, Hamlet, said, Owen, 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished."

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  3. A positive and refreshing story of a walk downtown.. merci beaucoup .. plus the profound observation ! Plus renewed conviction .. Awesome .. Wish I'd been there !

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  4. It is an experience I hope to repeat next year, Salamander.

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  5. Thank you, Mrs. S., for your kind comment.

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  6. But, but, but....Suzuki flew in a jet plane, or something...

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  7. And he did address that, thebanana, when he admitted he paid 'guilt money' for carbon offsets because he uses planes so often. While admitting it wasn't complete compensation for his carbon footprint, he did talk about how that offset money goes toward developing renewable energy projects in the developing world, something that otherwise wouldn't happen.

    There is no doubt in my mind, however, that he was acutely aware of the irony/perceived hypocrisy of his situation.

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  8. No, a healthy biosphere isn't essential to a prosperous economy, at least not for the balance of this electoral cycle and probably the next. These charlatans care only for today's profits and remain indifferent to the price our children and grandchildren will pay for their indulgence.

    Several years ago James Lovelock addressed the concept of "sustainable development" and opined, that as man's appetites had already outgrown the limits of our biosphere, our long term prospects depended entirely on "sustainable retreat", steadily growing smaller, another way of phrasing reducing our footprint and not just in emissions but in consumption generally.

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  9. The really sad part, Mound, is that this information, as you point out, was put out there years ago by Lovelock, expanded upon and promoted by others such as Susuki and Al Gore and is now widely known, yet governments and the general public remain resistant to anything that would curb our lavish lifestyle, even as the fate of humanity rests in the balance.

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