Have you ever wondered why there is such an abundance of food here on
earth, yet people are still going to bed hungry and starving to death?
The following is a brief report on what is happening with the food and
how I tie in individualism.
I relate individualism with pure selfishness and greed. Here are a
few statistics in regards to food waste: “An estimated 25% of the
world’s food calories and up to 50% of total food weight are lost or
wasted before they can be consumed. In rich countries most of that waste
occurs in home, restaurants, or supermarkets.”(1)
We see that half the world’s food is wasted by consumers in the more
developed countries. I see a problem as mentioned in the three areas as
overstocking to fit the needs of expediencies and conveniences. This of
course creates poor food distributive practices.
It is said that “consumers in the developed world could reduce waste
by taking such simple steps as serving smaller portions, eating
leftovers, and encouraging cafeterias, restaurants, and supermarkets to
develop waste-reducing measures.”(2)
Once again here is where individualism shows its appearance. We live
in a world that for the most part doesn’t care about eir fellow humyns’
real living conditions. As long as the individual continues in eir life
of luxuries what is it to em how much food ey throws away?
Once we as a society can learn to care about one another and become
more altruistic, no longer viewing one another as a possible profit,
then we can have a society built around a more harmonious and genuine
comradeship. We can erase the cut-throat capitalist market that only
seeks to exploit humyns worldwide. Once this system is done away with we
will see a world without hunger and starvation.
I am a true believer in internationalism, seeing that we are united
world-wide regardless of the pigment of our skins. We cannot be blinded
by nationalism playing both blind and deaf to the sufferings of our
fellow humyns across the globe.
MIM(Prisons) adds: This article takes on new meaning in the time
of coronavirus, where mandates to stay home are in effect around the
globe. Where some people are hoarding food items due to their
individualism and fear, others are going without.
Petty-bourgeois people who are used to having every possible food
item available to them, and oftentimes with two-hour delivery, are
facing some form of food scarcity, many for the first time in their
lives.
For many people, it’s simply unsafe to go shopping for themselves,
and people are relying on their family and neighbors to bring them food.
In the United $tates it is private delivery drivers and grocery store
workers who are providing these life necessities during this time. And
they are often doing so while facing dangerous situations because the
individualistic behavior of their customers is unpredictable.
Meanwhile, there are parts of the world where the state is providing
food packages to the homes of people so they can stay in. And these
aren’t even socialist countries.
Whether it comes to deciding what precautions to take during a
pandemic, or deciding how to avoid wasting food, we cannot rely on a
culture that puts individual choice first to do a good job. The United
$tates currently has more people with coronavirus than any other
country, including China where it began and where there are many more
people. This is in large part due to our individualist culture.
And while this comrade’s call is very relevant today, we must
disagree with the blanket condemnation of nationalism. The national
contradiction is coming to light as it always does during crisis; from
New Afrikans dying disproportionately in the United $tates to dire
situations developing in the Third World. That is why in calling for the
world to come together as one, we must be calling for an end to
sanctions and embargos, a halt to military operations and debt
forgiveness to the exploited nations of the world so that they can have
a greater degree of national autonomy in meeting their peoples’ needs in
this pandemic.
Individualism is a cancer to society, with or without a coronavirus.
Hopefully COVID-19 helps illuminate this to people, and gives them a
vision of what society could be like when we work together for the
benefit of all of humynity.
Notes:
1. May 2019 issue of National Geographic, Pg45
#FutureFood
2. May 2019 issue of National Geographic, pg 46
#FutureFood