susan spotless says every litter bit hurts

Not to discount or dismiss the role of consumer-choice and the positive impact of reduction and reuse—and recycling programmes that are honest-brokers and not more greenwashing out-of-hand, but the manufacturing industry behind throw-away society has managed to deflect attention from itself and conveniently shift the onus and the guilt of pollution and over-consumption from themselves—saving their bottom-line, to the public.
Thoughline shows how industry launched a major re-education campaign to convince the public there was little need for thrift and re-use and to accept the single-use paradigm, seemingly enraged and enervated when the state of Vermont enacted legislation that outlawed the sale disposable glass-bottles, since they were ending up in pastures and the broken shards were dangerous for livestock gazing there. Fully aware of the down-stream effects of their actions and to sustain their profligacy as long as possible, food and beverage makers turned to the Ad Council to craft public sentiment with mascots (to include first that insufferable scolding child above, Lassie the television canine, and later Iron Eyes Cody, “the Crying Indian”) and public service announcements that make the disposable not just more palatable but patriotic (see also here, here and here). Their efforts have been pretty successful and tenacious, people internalising the message that our own greed, laziness and carelessness are the biggest contributors to the climate crisis and not industry or governments too cowed or complicit to regulate them. Listen to more episodes at the link above and subscribe for more disabusing origin stories.

genomkörning på svenska

Whilst some organisations have taken to deputising fast-food franchises with plenipotentiary and consular powers, we discover that a few such outposts in Sweden (fifty-five at least) are installing drive-thru charging stations for electric vehicles to supplement the coverage of state-sponsored infrastructure that leaves just enough gaps as to dissuade some drivers from committing to this other mode of transportation. While a full re-charge takes a bit longer than fulfilling one’s order, it still offers a nice alternative and adds extra value to queuing up.

first do no harm

We really appreciated this primer on cultivating the practise of meditation and mindfulness from Open Culture and found the segue, introducing our urge to conflate what’s by its nature simple with what’s easy and effortless, especially resonant and a draws one into reading the rest of the article.
Easier said than done, vice is far more amenable to marketing and branding than virtue, and our intuitive senses fail us along with patience and persistence and the advice we dispense to ourselves.  Like misapprehending the better for the Good, we imperil ourselves with overexposure to the vulnerabilities of denying gradualism in favour of the illusion of big and sudden change and instant results.  We cannot avail our compassion, I think without some impossibly big ask of enlightenment that’s unreasonable to expect of novices just muddling through, for institutional, caretaker sort of change and progress without sacrificing or compromising something of ourselves.  Much more to contemplate at the link up top.

blockbuster

The region of Bretagne is particularly dense with prehistoric megalithic structures and though not seeing the largest collection assembled at Carnac, we were still able to inspect quite a few of the amazing sites up close and all to ourselves. The biggest formation was in Camaret-sur-Mer, a row of seventy-two menhirs called the Alignement de Lagat-Jar (the Breton word for the monoliths) said to have inspired René Goscinny to create his Astérix le Gaulois and Obelix characters (adventures set in the Roman province of Armorica) when the author first saw this enchanted spot.
We stumbled across other dolmen too in fields and forests, once encountering local dog walkers (Kerloaz in Plouarzhel) that had a particular, ritual way of greeting the great stone.  Of some three-thousand once catalogued, only around seven hundred remain standing in situ, displaced for roadway construction or used as building materials. Surely not cannibalised from ancient sites, memorials like this French naval monument evoke the area‘s wealth of standing stones. Six to seven thousand years old, their purpose is a matter of speculation though the Matter of Britain (and the Matter of Brittany which has its own version of the legend) accounts for the precision and straightness of the lines due to the fact that they were Roman soldiers on the march, turned to stone by Merlin or were the artefacts of giants.

most serene

This day in 301 AD marks the traditional founding of the state sometimes referred to as the Titanic Republic due to the location of its first church at the summit of Monte Titano built by stonemason Marinus of Rab and his compatriot Leo who fled Emperor Diocletian’s persecution of Christians after helping to rebuild the city walls of neighbouring Rimini after a raid by pirates, and the national day of San Marino (Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, previously here, here, here and here), the world‘s fifth smallest country and an enclave of Italy, is a good invitation to reflect on the nature of res publica and governance.
Looking at San Marino’s constitution, stability, solvency plus its longevity, one has to question whether we’re even understanding the subject. Prior to 1243, San Marino had no true head of state with only the Pope was nominal ruler and affairs of the city were governed by a oligarchy of the great families called the Argengo. Genoese Innocent IV, fearing that the families were growing too powerful, intervened to check their authority by investing democratic processes in the Grand and General Councils. From this elected body—sixty representatives, members elevate two Captains Regent to govern for a term of six-months. Like the Argengo’s roots in the patrician senate, the policy of nominating a pair of leaders (the co-rulers being from opposing political parties), short incumbency periods and frequent elections date back to the Roman Republic’s consulship, the city state being formed as the Empire began its decline. San Marino has had more female heads of state than any other country.  At the expiration of their half-a-year term, there’s a three day evaluation period during which the public can levy complaints against ex-leaders (consecutive terms are not allowed) and initiate legal proceedings if warranted. I think we owe a great debt to the Sammarinese for this civics lesson alone.

la célèbre maison

Hiking along the seashore from Plougrescant (Plougouskant) on a trail that wound around Porz Hir (the undertaking a bit more ambitious than we expected, and we drove the last part of the stretch later) past la Point du Château—a tall outcropping with the silhouette of a manor house—we came to le Gouffre, the tip of the peninsula with a pretty rugged and wild landscape reminiscent of Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, made even more famous with its house wedged between two giant boulders. 

Castel Meur, also known as La Maison du Gouffre, was built in 1861, defiantly with its back towards the unforgiving sea and seeking a measure of shelter from the native terrain, has been maintained by the descendants of the original builder who currently reside their and whose privacy (along with their neighbours) ought to be honoured and the cottage admired from a respectable distance.

An earlier incident for the granddaughter of the first occupant that involved some rather invasive tourists put up boundaries for all of us. As much virtue there is in deviating from the prescribed, there are certain norms to be upheld, especially for visitors and guests.

fire and i.c.e.

Though ultimately denied her alibi to skip out on a visit with Trump’s viceroy but not because liberal-Green prime minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir changed her itinerary and rather the US mission did shift their schedule from today to tomorrow rather than perpetuate another diplomatic gaffe, the Reykjavík Grapevine reports, Pence coming to Iceland following additional investment does yet put the country in an awkward position, the understudy being rather antithetical to everything that Iceland has come to embrace and stands for and steals the spotlight and upstages Trump himself regarding some issues. There’s sure to be protests whether the US is successful in making vassals out of Europe’s fringes or not, so stay tuned.