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The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

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Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#21

Post by giraffe_lady »

Originami wrote: post #9

If not working in a mine, these children will be working subsistence agriculture, which is equally as back-braking. The underlying problem is an excess of manual labor in Africa, caused by excessive birth rates. Take fertility rates down to sub-replacement like they are in the rest of the world, and mining will just be automated.

> The underlying problem is an excess of manual labor in Africa,

In what fucking world holy shit. Good lord, seriously. Labor IS PEOPLE. There is no such thing as an excess person.

The underlying problem is an economic system that allows/depends on the exploitation of vulnerable and precarious labor. If you're going to justify this then grow a spine and do it, don't deflect it back on the people being hurt the most saying they should cull themselves for our moral convenience.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#22

Post by hunterb123 »

kekebo wrote: post #17
hunterb123 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This comment is pure whataboutism, you laundry listed other problems to deflect from this one. Noone here or in the article are saying those things aren't a problem, just this is as well. Everytime a business (like Hyundai) or industry gets caught using child labor in their supply chain it's an issue and news worthy. EDIT: now my comment is downvoted, and the article is flagged, ask yourself why can't this site's com…

I think it's valid to point out that this is part of a larger systemic issue as opposed to a singular localized one. Which doesn't necessarily preclude the comment from being whataboutistic.

Basically the format was, "well what about X Y Z"

X = textile industry issues

Y = environmental issues

Z = industrial farms issues

How is that not whataboutism? Noone is saying those aren't problems, but that's not what the article is about.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#23

Post by throwaway0a5e »

superchroma wrote: post #3

Well, you're taking a singular vertical slice. How many plastic widgets and doodads in your house were made by an effective slave in China? What about clothes - from sweatshops in vietnam, bangladesh, etc.? We periodically see sensational stories where workers slip tragic notes into goods, but that's about it. On top of that, what about the animals we've hurt systematically? In the industrial revolution, we rendered…

The ideology(s) that enables rich westerners to pick and choose what supply chains to care about based on politics and feel justified in their double standards is a far greater threat to me than some guy half a world away who's bribing local officials to let him discharge toxic waste into the water I get my sardines from.

Unrelated nitpick: We've been running on outsourced atrocity since all of human history.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#24

Post by oneshoe »

2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote: post #5

Why should the consumer need to worry about supply chains?

Some believe it is their moral obligation to do so. I, personally, believe that "blaming myself for the worlds problem" is a step to becoming a more mature (accountable) person in our society.

I also believe that corporation will do literally anything to make a profit - including slavery - and the only thing that stops them from doing so is because they stop being profitable. Knowing this allows the consumer to pressure the company to align with their values or loss their business.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#25

Post by PeterStuer »

Originami wrote: post #9

If not working in a mine, these children will be working subsistence agriculture, which is equally as back-braking. The underlying problem is an excess of manual labor in Africa, caused by excessive birth rates. Take fertility rates down to sub-replacement like they are in the rest of the world, and mining will just be automated.

Did you ever consider that in "sub-replacement" populations they still send poor people down the mines, as that is way cheaper than robots?

Never mind the perpetual political destabilization of that region because our oligarch owned nations want the natural treasures buried beneath that African soil for cheap. It's their own fault for having babies. Djeez.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#26

Post by giraffe_lady »

2OEH8eoCRo0 wrote: post #5

Why should the consumer need to worry about supply chains?

Because of... things like... this?? Or am I misunderstanding and the question is "why should I care about the misery at the other end of my consumption?" Which, I got my reasons and I hope you can find some of your own too.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#27

Post by hunterb123 »

duncan_idaho wrote: post #19
hunterb123 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This comment is pure whataboutism, you laundry listed other problems to deflect from this one. Noone here or in the article are saying those things aren't a problem, just this is as well. Everytime a business (like Hyundai) or industry gets caught using child labor in their supply chain it's an issue and news worthy. EDIT: now my comment is downvoted, and the article is flagged, ask yourself why can't this site's com…

It's like you learned "whataboutism" and jumped at your first chance to use it. Still got it totally wrong. What part of this comment is deflecting? Seems to be just adding additional info.

No it's literally whataboutism. I know people here usually use it wrong when they disagree with a comparison or analogy, but this is not the case.

They didn't expand on anything about the article or topic or use it to compare the issues or find contradictions in logic, they just laundry listed other topics that are known and non-disputed.

This article is about exposing a lesser known but large issue of mass child slave labor (40k+) in the battery supply chain.

Most of the things they listed aren't even in the same industry supply chain (textiles, farms, shipping), how are they relevant?

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#28

Post by smsm42 »

The title is a bit exaggerated, but the problem is real - how much of the "clean" high-minded Western solutions rely on the backing of the practices that would be appalling and impossible to tolerate in the West, to be practical? Energy production - and production in general - has its risks and its costs, and there's a very real tendency of solving these problems by just shipping them away to the places where the press does not reach and consider them solved. The shining (or stinking) example is the "recycling" system based on collecting plastic waste in the West, and shipping it to South-East Asia, where huge part of it is just dumped into the rivers. Another example is energy policy, where "clean" Western energy is relying on very non-clean sources and practices.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#29

Post by iforgotpassword »

hunterb123 wrote: post #22
kekebo wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's valid to point out that this is part of a larger systemic issue as opposed to a singular localized one. Which doesn't necessarily preclude the comment from being whataboutistic.

Basically the format was, "well what about X Y Z" X = textile industry issues Y = environmental issues Z = industrial farms issues How is that not whataboutism? Noone is saying those aren't problems, but that's not what the article is about.

Ok well, they literally did say "what about..."

But generally whataboutism refers to comments that try to deter from the original issue by saying "X does it too so it's alright until they stop too". I didn't read the initial comment that way.

Re: The Green Revolution Is Fueled by 40k Trafficked Congo Child Slaves

#30

Post by registeredcorn »

hunterb123 wrote: post #22
kekebo wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it's valid to point out that this is part of a larger systemic issue as opposed to a singular localized one. Which doesn't necessarily preclude the comment from being whataboutistic.

Basically the format was, "well what about X Y Z" X = textile industry issues Y = environmental issues Z = industrial farms issues How is that not whataboutism? Noone is saying those aren't problems, but that's not what the article is about.

It doesn't count when it goes against the narrative.
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