Old habits die hard

Ignorance is indeed bliss. After reaching that level of understanding knowing something is not done right, it is hard to go back to a time when it didn't feel that way. Then it constantly nags at the conscience until counter measures are taken to do what is right. Or at least, that's how most things are with me.

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Since I've voluntarily taken on the role of an activist for conservation, I feel obliged to practice what I preach or I'll be the equivalent of a hypocrite. I've made a few lifestyle changes to the way I shop now. I carry my own bags when I go grocery shopping so that I don't bring home any new plastic bags or if I can't avoid it, I ask the cashier to use fewer bags (they all seem to have been trained to be very generous with using plastic bags). That's not too hard.

But here's a more challenging aspect of being environmentally friendly. We don't usually sort our garbage, instead throw it all together conveniently down a chute in the kitchen. That's what the majority of the population does. I find it so much easier to do than throwing out our plastic and paper separately and walking a block to throw them into designated recycling bins. As for biodegradable waste like raw or cooked food contents, nothing can be done in Singapore except to throw it down that chute. Elsewhere in the world, people actually bury these in their backyards to produce fertilised soil for growing plants. Come to think of it, most people from my parents' and grandparents' generation followed responsible practices that are environmentally friendly. Young children in schools nowadays are drilled with interactive lessons to make them more environmentally conscious. So it's probably us - the generation that got away - that needs a little shift of attitude.

What really happens to our garbage after it's collected by the waste disposal companies? Surely they are not going to untie our garbage bags and have people or machines sort them out? There might be some gross separation of contents involved, but it can't be a 100% effective. Separation of paper, plastic, metal and glass from stale food contents, vegetable and fruit skins, poopy diapers, litter of domestic pets and sanitary napkins can't be that effective at this stage of disposal. They probably incinerate it or bury it in landfills. It is not hard to put together "mass consumerism", "increasing human population", "tonnes of garbage of all sorts", "declining landfill space", "incineration causes pollution" and "irreversible environmental impact" to understand that things are not rosy at the moment.

A better perspective - we don't see this stage of garbage disposal when everyone's junk is collected and put together (that woman appears to be there for the dramatic effect)

It's only a matter of time before every litter bin lying around in public will be replaced with modified recycling bins for separate types of garbage. There'll come a time when it is compulsory for every household to have these types of modified bins. Then it won't be surprising to see that in a place like Singapore, there will be signboards saying "Not responsibly throwing out garbage into respective recycling bins carries a maximum fine of $500" to change the behaviour of the general population. But why wait until then?

This morning, after weeks of contemplation, I finally kicked myself to walk that block and throw out my first batch of sorted paper and plastic (plastic and polythene go in the same bin so that makes things easier). It was awkward, a few people were staring while I was doing my deed (excuse the sociophobe), but I managed to do it and flee back to the apartment. Hurrah! I know I can't change the world or make a significant impact on my own, but it's a start.

At the bins, I noticed some moron had thrown plastic bottles in the bin designated for paper, but that's okay, we have to forgive him/her for trying

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This is still a radical thought in this day and age. When a friend of mine introduced me to the idea that enjoying pirated media is wrong and it was no different from physically stealing something, it got me re-thinking about my views on the same topic. After A LOT of denying and justifying it, that is. Pirates tend to justify their actions using one or more of the following reasons;

1. I simply can't afford to buy everything song, movie or TV series (or computer software) I want to enjoy. It's too freaking expensive to be entertained in that way. And why buy when I can get it for free?
2. I'm paying for internet, aren't I? It's not like I'm not paying anything to enjoy these
3. I am fully supporting the artists by watching their shows. They should be happy to have me as a loyal fan
4. Pirated material are easily accessible
5. The formats in which pirated movies and TV series come in are easier to store and exchange than the formats they come in when purchased as a VCD, DVD or Blu-ray disc
6. How else would I watch an episode I missed on TV or a movie I missed at the cinemas, especially when it is a long time away from the official release?
7. Chances of getting caught downloading are slim
8. The artists and companies who own these are already rich making tonnes of money from sales. They are still going to be fine even after losing some of their intellectual property to pirates
9. With illegal distribution, it reaches more people across the globe. Won't that make these artists more famous?
10. It's not like I am making money by selling copies of pirated media
11. It's not like I am physically stealing a music album or a movie disk off the shelf of a store and made a run for it to enjoy it in the privacy of my home. It is not much different.

The road to reaching that point where I am going to be accountable for my actions in this area has been a very slow and painful one. If I am not a shoplifter by choice, by that same logic, I can't be a pirate - unless I'm a pirate because I know I can get away with it (wait a minute, that's what this is really about!). From an ethical standpoint, piracy spoils the market for a lot of artists, who can do nothing but watch their content being stolen, distributed and sold by other parties without their consent. It helps to know there are ways to enjoy the music, movies and series that I love in responsible ways that benefit the original artists, without having to go about dark and risky ways of getting them. Sure it's going to cost more than an internet connection sometimes, but that is how it is meant to be.

The details surrounding music piracy, software piracy and piracy of movies and TV series vary, but below are a few ethical considerations.

For music;
1. Legit phone applications like YouTube Downloader where music clips can be "downloaded" and watched without an internet connection (although it cannot be copied to other devices or played in a playlist)
2. If there's an awesome music clip that we really love and want to add to the playlist, why not buy it legally to support that artist so that they can come up with more like that? Yes, it's going to cost about $1 per song -  about the same as a chocolate bar
3. Some music artists are surprisingly okay with losing sales to piracy since they want fame more than riches, while others are not. I'm guessing for some of them, it's their way of coming to terms with something beyond their control and not letting it bear them down emotionally

For movies and TV series;
1. Cable TV with On-Demand channels for movies and TV series - they have a good variety of shows that can even be recorded and viewed later
2. There are legitimate ways of instant streaming, renting or buying movies online instead of waiting for DVDs in the post. For example, iTunes (only for Apple devices though), Amazon or Netflix (not yet available in certain countries like Singapore)
3. Streaming online - it is not illegal to watch movies and TV series online as of yet and I'm not an expert in anti-piracy laws, however, it does not take a genius to figure out that this is not entirely in the right either