Have you had a good year?

  This year it's near to conclude. In few days we are going to be on november, and maybe it's time to make a re-counting or evaluation of this 2014.

   However, in general it's a little difficult to me count what things gone wrong and what things gone right. Things that I could found good now after I will think that are not so great. I can feel glad with just simple things like had music to hear or books to read, so I don't have very stricts parameters to evaluate the good things. Also I don't like to exaggerate the bad things that could going in my life. I try to take the events of the life with calm and patience.

   Just doing a very simple list, I could say that some of the things that go right this year was begin to study in the university, meet new people -not just in the university- and get a lot of important and interesting knowledge about varied kind of matters. And about the bad things of this year I can think in two right now. One it's the diagnosis of cancer that one of my cousins receive, and the other it's the death of a aunt.

   I dont' like the word achievement and I can't think about one right now. Maybe it's because that I never put myself specific objectives or things to do in the year. Also it's hard to me think in something that I haven't done yet, and that also is beacuse I don't say to myself what to do as an objective previouly established. perahps the only event to highlight this year is being study in the university.

  So, this have been a hard year, but at the same time really interesting, I have learned a lot and important things and I am happy about that. 

   

How green are you?

    On these days there is a lot of propaganda and educational initiative to incite an ecological conscience and respect for the environment. When I was a child there was not so much interest in promoting this kind of education, so, in the school, the ecological conscience there was not very promoted untill that I grew up. But now I can see -in part for my little sister of nine years old- that there is a lot of interest in promoting an education like this since the children begin to study.
   So, in general I got my environmentally friendly practices from influences like the family or readings. But I don't think that I have incorporated completely this kind of habits. I try not to do things that can damage the environment, but I don't usually do things like recycle or specifical techniques to take care of the environment. Maybe there are little things that can help. For example I hate the cars, well, in general I don't like any vehicle, so I try to walk the most I can.
   I can't say that I'm a very implicated in the care of the environment. I have not joined in any ecological organization and I don't do concrete actions for the environment or to reduce my carbon footprint. I think that it's because, in general, it's not something that I have thought really well, so I still don't have a serious conscience of this matter.
   In the case of Santiago I think that it's an interesting issue. It's an obvious thing that in this city there are high levels of contamination, smog and abuse of energy. And in the latest years there is a constant promotion of an ecological eduaction and a recurring use of the propaganda. But it's something harmless, because this promotes an inocent and easy ecologism that it's constantly stimulated by business and companies that are directly implicated in the principal damage done to the environment, and all of this to make us think in a green capitalism with a pretty and ecological face (I think, for example, in the propaganda of the malls that incites to recycle or reduce the carbon footprint).

A piece of news

   Yesterday I read a new in a national paper that I found interesting, because sometimes it sounds like a gangsters movie. It was about an investigation of a group of scientists of the University of Chile requested by the Health Ministry. This scientists publish a work where they warn about the dangers of the consume of the oil of Chía, and because of that they received aggressive phone calls and constant threats of dead if they don't retract about the report.

   According to the investigation the oil of Chía could be a risk factor of cancer to the prostate and could produce cognitive and visual damage in breastfeds. Going beyond than the anecdotal aspect of the new, it is a really shocking thing that a scientific investigation (and an assignment from the Health Ministry) receives this kind of attacks from private interest that could harm the health of the people just for the lucrative purpose of a product.

   In strict rigour we don't know if the threats were from the great interests economics involved in produce and commercialize the oil of Chía, but of course the principal suspicions goes to they, and in Chile there is sad and constant history of abuse and corruption when the economical interests are in danger like in this case.

   I feel, in general, interesting news like this, when you could find the relationship of the economy and political powers in little things, or when you discover the abuses and corrupt functioning of the great powers. The journalism in Chile it's very discredited, but the work of some good papers could be essential in the develop of a society.