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Thinking About Sad Things: Environmental Problems

It was a little difficult to decide on the focus for this missive. I

started thinking about environmental problems, a subject that

I've had to study over the years for professional reasons. Then, asI began to reflect on the technical aspects of the picture shown,

more difficult problems of how the and why environmental

problems appeared. These ideas led me down a more

philosophical line of thinking, including the interrelationships

between, power, powerful people, politics, government, ethics,

the rich and poor, etc.

Let's take as an example, an apparently "simple" environmental

problem as shown in the picture to the left? Its not just a picture

of any old mud puddle near our house. Its a picture of rainwater

and sewage that has been serving as a breeding ground for the

type of mosquito that transmits Dengue or Breakbone fever for over two years. This disease is

epidemic in the region. As to the city's public health program, there is an on-going campaign to

clean up the neighborhood and eliminate similar standing pools of water, big or small.

For some time now and still to no avail, others and I have been pointing this problem out to

the mayor of So Sebastio in the state of So Paulo and the local health authorities. The

owner of the adjacent lot, called Vila Guaec, is not at all worried about the fact that his

swimming pool and septic tank are the most significant contributors to this mud puddle. He

has done nothing to correct the problem which his construction of a small apartment complex

essentially caused.

It usually seems pretentious when someone starts talking philosophically and quoting

Aristotle. Nevertheless, nowadays, anyone has easy access to Aristotle; for better or worse, I'm

not sure! Anyway, I found a link on Wikipedia about the "Rule of Law" that started with this

reference: "Aristotle,who wrote 'Law should govern'".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_law

This reference is quite detailed but easy to read, and even has some historical references to

the American Revolution and political situation at the time. It helped me, at least in part, to

understand why I think the way I do. There is a phrase in the Wikipedia reference that goes like

this: "Others, including a few legal theorists, believe that the rule of law necessarily entails

protection of individual rights." Reading this, I thought "And what about our societal or

collective rights?", because there sure seems to be a need for laws that protect society too.

Certainly, environmental rights may be collective, as health problems also are. In the mud

puddle example under consideration, both heath and environmental concerns need protection

in a collective and societal manner.

Now, my point here isn't to study and debate individual rights versus collective rights.

However, the topics certainly seem to need to be reconsidered, particularly by the So

Sebastio municipal government.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotlehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_lawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle

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Going on, I could get into considering the ethical aspects as to how to have the mud puddle

eliminated. Then there is the possibility of how to do this in a civilized manner, rather than a

more violent way - should I dare use the current words in favor: Black Bloc?

Now how do I, or better, we proceed? What are the options? How can we, ordinary neighbors,

take money from an inconsiderate, rich and powerful man to fix the situation (mud puddle)so the collective visitors and inhabitants will have a healthier life? Moreover, how do we do it

peacefully? I could never support even a minimally violent proposal for solving the problem.

As an individual action for now, my only current options seem to be: continue complaining,

insisting and writing, both here and through the internet. And as for a suggestion, DON'Trent

an apartment this summer on the Guaec beach in So Sebastio that looks like this:

Below, is a copy from my Facebook page where the municipal government said that urgent

measures would be taken. As of November the 2nd

, (two weeks later) nothing had changed.

Now the summer tourist season is arriving at this beach. I ask you: how many cases of dengue

will be contracted, because of this "little" mud puddle?

Your comments are always welcome, if not always agreed with!

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Update - January 2014

This photo shows the owners finally initiated

improvements in drainage in order to solve the

problem reported above. It seems that it is still

necessary to finish the job.. We will monitor thesituation to confirm the complete elimination of

this little mud puddle, that must have

represented a significant contribution to the

spread of dengue around the beautiful beach

Guaec - San Sebastian. However, we are not

sure that everything is resolved. We would

apreciate that the City of San Sebastian, with the Department of Environment, Department of

Health and other agencies of the municipality accompany what was done, if it is correct or not,

and to follow up on what still needs to be done.

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Dengue fever, also known as Breakbone fever, is an infectioustropical disease caused by the

dengue virus.Symptoms includefever,headache,muscle andjoint pains,and a characteristic

skin rash that issimilar to measles.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dengue_fever.

"The rule of law (also known as nomocracy) primarily refers to the influence and authority of law within

society, especially as a constraint upon behavior, including behavior of government officials .[2] The

phrase can be traced back to the 16th century, and it was popularized in the 19th century by British

juristA. V. Dicey.The concept was familiar to ancient philosophers such as Aristotle,who wrote "Law

should govern".[3] Rule of law implies that every citizen is subject to the law. It stands in contrast to the

idea that the ruler is above the law, for example bydivine right."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_law[2] ^Jump up to:

abThe Oxford English Dictionary has defined "rule of law" this way:

The authority and influence of law in society, esp. when viewed as a constraint on individual and institutional behaviour;(hence) the principle whereby all members of a society (including those in government) are considered equally subjectto publicly disclosed legal codes and processes.SeeCivil Affairs and Rule of Law,Dudley Knox Library,Naval Postgraduate School(accessed October 18, 2013)(quoting the OED). The phrase "rule of law" is also sometimes used in other senses. See Garner, Bryan A. (Editor inChief).Black's Law Dictionary, 9th Edition, p. 1448. (Thomson Reuters, 2009). ISBN 978-0-314-26578-4.The leaddefinition given by Black's is this: "A substantive legal principle", and the second definition is the "supremacy of regularas opposed to arbitrary power". Black's provides a total of five definitions of "rule of law".

^Jump up to:abAristotle, Politics3.16

David C. Meissner

Sunday, Nov. 11, 2013

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