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Planning works

February 10, 2022   ·   0 Comments

By Constance Scrafield

Do you ever wonder how much of what happens is planned and how much is spontaneous? No conspiracy here, honest, the pandemic was not a set up by the wealthy to become more wealthy. Yet as soon as the pandemic was a go, as it were, having been clearly predicted years ago, as hospitals started to fill up and many administrations were still in a state of dalliance, were wealthy people planning how best to use the pandemic to build their wealth?

Seven years ago, Bill Gates was talking about preparations for a global virus, warning in considerable detail how it would fall out and how to mitigate the danger. His was an honest effort to stem the flow before it began, to lead the world safely through the stormy waters of a pandemic to a reasonable conclusion by invoking military style precision of pre-planning and being ready to save lives before it was too late.

In 2017, Obama’s team walked Trump’s staff through pandemic preparedness and procedures. How to deal with a pandemic at the outset, control it and protect the public.

Scientists have been warning that a global sweep of disease was possible again, probable even, given the history of such disasters over centuries.

We see the dangers coming and we can plan for how we cope with them, plan at the top of our national and international administrations what to do, not get caught like a surprise party when the birthday boy comes in late and drunk because he thought no one cared.

Back in the mid 1800’s, writers described the foul fumes machines spewed, all the way to the mid-1900’s when scientists were banging away about the pollution we were creating – the harm of cigarettes to our own bodies, the poison we were pouring on to the land and into the water and air; then came plastic and Styrofoam and we soon enough understood the waste from those “conveniences” was ruining oceans. There could have been planning to reduce the poisons and handle our own waste.

We could easily not be in such dire straits as now.

Well, well. Here we are and maybe for the sake of something else to think about, three of our “zillionaires” are running their own space race – mainly for the sake of tourism and photo opts, mind you. The Space Station is the new Eiffel Tower although the ticket is pretty pricey. Then, alternatively, there’s those five minutes of space travel, hanging over Earth, still looking wonderful – free of borders – free of woe – a lie of course but sweet to ponder so briefly.

Currently, planning is about getting “out of Dodge,” as it were, escaping to another planet X. The first frontier is Mars, using the moon as stepping base to launch the more ambitious voyage, from which there is no return and where there is nowhere to settle except underground or under constructions which have been tested in the Canadian Shield. Researchers lived under the type of cover that would be necessary on Mars for six months and were glad to be out of them to breathe real air and have a drink down in the pub 500 kilometres away.

The great scientist, Stephen Hawkins did indeed advise us to find another planet in order for the species [us] to survive.

Please note that the biggest money is being frittered away on such projects – Mars is a dream for which it is too late. Only science fiction writers poured optimism into how we would live after the Twentieth Century, as far as our economies and environment but still at war naturally: no plans for dealing with our violent and murderous natures – perhaps, that isn’t possible.

What about right here and right now on planet Earth, which we are surely wanting to pass on to our children and their children, what plans will work at this late date? Norway and it should be said that the northern European countries have been leading the way, in many ways, of how to stop the damage – Norway has issued 13 licenses to oil companies to drill in the northern seas. This is a complete denial of what our future must look like – right now.

Canada is still supporting fossil fuels – pipelines have been stopped while some are still under construction – how does this fit in with the plan to eliminate fossil fuels from our menu of energy suppliers?

Greta Thunberg has been leading students to protest on behalf of the planet by sitting on the steps of the Swedish parliament in August, 2015. Since those days, her student protests have been joined by hundreds of thousands of students and – everyone. She has spoken to major climate change conferences, delivering her blunt accusations to leaders who applauded enthusiastically, made their promises and went back, pretty well, to business as usual.

Planning can work. Everybody needs to be on board. So, what is the final impetus to inspire us to plan well?

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