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Monday, February 12, 2007

China and the environment

We all buy a lot of stuff that's made in China. It's life. It's hard to find things that aren't made in China. However, when we think of things made in China, it's worth considering, for a second, what buying those things does to the economy. Think about this: 2 out of every 5 people on the planet are from China or India. China has 1.3 billion people. And they are getting hungry for energy. According to Spiegal Online, China is really polluting the planet.
"In order to feed its appetite for energy, China is building coal-fired power plants as fast as it can. Every seven to ten days a new plant begins spewing smoke into the sky. The amount by which China increased its power production last year alone is greater than Britain's entire capacity."
Every seven to ten days? Here's the article that talks about China and the environment.

What does this mean to your $1.95 made in China shirt from Wal-Mart? Well, it means each purchase helps a country continually rape the environment. And since we live in the environment, it's not so good long-term. I know it's hard to not buy things made in China. It's hard to pass on the a $2.00 shirt, or a $5.00 kid's toy. I don't expect people who read this to stop buying things made in China.

But after reading this article, I'm thinking the planet could use us all thinking a little harder about the country of origin of our stuff. This is the planet we're leaving to Autumn and her generation. Lets at least think about telling China to quit screwing with it.

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