Australia's Broken Promise to Foreign Aid

The failure of Australia to increase its foreign aid contribution to 50 cents per $100 is a sad reflection of our nation's compassion fatigue.  This apathy is even more unbelievable when we see how such a tiny contribution multiplies exponentially in terms of the impact it has in developing countries.  The contribution of just 50 cents per $100 by the Australian government means vaccines for 10 million more children, clean water for 8.5 million more people and education for an additional 4 million children.  You can link through UNICEF to facebook and twitter spread the word.  This is what each of us can do to keep up the pressure on the government and continue the goal towards ending poverty - we can Make Poverty History - sign the petition and add your name to the movement and let the Australian government know you care

 After all, compassion fatigue causes many problems too.

Dad's Dementia

My father has a great brain that took him on a journey from a small village in India across the world to Melbourne, Australia through many countries on the way.  He showed the ability to question and analyse and never took anything at face value.  An avid reader, he informed himself extensively on a wide range of topics from physics, religion, politics, philosophy, history and his pet subject - mathematics.  He was able to captivate an audience at the many dinners he attended and hosted for friends and family with detailed descriptions of his views on politics, religion and mathematics.  He was involved in self-directed research on several mathematic problems that engaged him for half a century as a "hobby" outside of his career as a pathologist.  He always intended to publish his work one day.  However, that day may never come.  My father is probably on the way to developing dementia.  The specialist is ready to start him on medication, but true to my father's style, he does not accept the diagnosis.  So we are embarking on a series of highly specialised tests - the SPECT scan and PET scan - to give us the necessary information for a definitive diagnosis - more to convince my father and help him comply with therapy.

But the progression of his memory loss is markedly evident.  He was not able to tell, upon questioning, that he had worked as a pathologist.  He was unsure of the year when he had to sign a form.  His constant confusion with regards to recent events is obvious from his repeated questioning.  He tries to cover it up, as is the way with this illness - it is called confabulation.

I want to do something to help but I am helpless.  However, others are working hard to raise funds for research into this illness which will affect 1 million Australians by 2050.  I "donated a memory" on the Fight Dementia website which gave me my own page to raise funds.  Please consider donating if you are moved by this issue.  Some of the research includes the use of man's best friend, the dog.   Some of the research looks at the rates of dementia in Aboriginal Australians (three times higher than the rest of the population).  Some of the research looks at when might be the best time for treatment interventions.  Whatever the research, more is needed if we are to find a cure.  It is too late for my dad, but others can be helped in future.

Take an interactive tour of the brain.

India - Abuses and Ambitions

India is going through it's own sort of Cultural Revolution.  The world's largest democracy, in terms of number of people, is facing some real challenges.  In her book, Field Notes on Democracy, writer Arundhati Roy describes how the police regularly abuse their powers, how the politicians and media are in collusion in spreading lies, how there are no questions asked, and how the poor are murdered and manipulated by a corrupt system of government.

A view held by a prominent political theorist Rajeev Bhargava is that the Constitution in India still has an important role in upholding the rights of the people, a role for which it was designed.  The Constitution in India is worded to protect freedom and liberal democracy. Militant nationalists such as the BJP need to pay heed to it and even invoke it to try and suit their purpose, for the very reason that they are functioning in a democracy.  See how the nature of the wording of the Constitution has led to a thwarting of their plans in his report. 

A worrying outcome is that with the current pervasion of silence around the nature of human rights abuses in India, there may be no debate concerning India's lobbying to become a member of the UN Security Council.  The Australian government supports such a claim.  Indians need to lobby both in Australia and India for more transparency in the Indian democracy, for more accountability and for more responsible government.

Arms Trade Treaty a Failure?

As forecasted by some sceptics, the Arms Trade Treaty which we finally have after 20 years may be a failure.  This is due to the weakening of its obligations by accommodating the demands of key stakeholders, such as the USA, a major arms exporting nation.  In a report that describes the major failures of the treaty, British diplomat Chris Wright has been quoted from his blog that the treaty poses no major obstacle to exporting arms to Britain's allies.

The premise of the ATT was simple - to reduce the damage and suffering to human lives caused by the transfer of arms internationally.  It is still worth mobilising people for.  However, major NGOs such as Amnesty International and Oxfam, who have been funded by governments in the campaign for the ATT have now hailed it as a success.

The question still needs to be asked: "Is the Arms Trade Treaty a success or a failure?"

We need to keep asking and keep analysing the effect of it "on the ground".

Save Lives This Mother's Day

If you are having dilemmas about what to get your mum for Mother's Day, how about a gift from UNICEF of 200 measles vaccine for those who need it?  Send a donation and receive a gift card sent to your mum (or an e-card).

Another way of supporting mums all over the world is to join in the Global Mum Relay.  Share a post on facebook or twitter and unlock a donation of $5 towards initiatives designed to help women and children in developing countries.  Sponsored by Johnson and Johnson and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, all it takes is a little bit of time.

 



Feel The Pain

Some people are born with the ability to feel other's pain.  For others, the ability is acquired after an injury, according to new research being done at Monash University.  It appears that the article is talking about physcial pain, although it would be interesting to unravel the linkages, if any, with empathy to psychological pain as well.  Intuitively, there would appear to be a link in that empathetic people feel the physical as well as the psychological pain of others.  Or even, perhaps, that they are primarily reacting to the psychological pain that is experienced and expressed by the person with the physical infliction.

Where will all this research lead to?  Perhaps to a better understanding of empathy and maybe even how it may be taught to students of, say, medicine, nursing, social work.... The research may lead to a better understanding of how pathologic processes in certain individuals can lead them to commit acts of cruelty and may help in better rehabilitation efforts for these people.  It may advise us on how to raise our children to be more empathetic.

Personally, I believe we are born with a measure of sensitivity and empathy, the ability to care for others which would benefit the group (and indirectly the individual; see The Altruistic Gene).  Acts of charity and upholding morality are thus of evolutionary benefit to social organisms such as humans (and even bacteria as seen in the previous link!).  Christianity helps explain our duty to God and Man as a prerogative from above - but then God did say, "It is all good."

Health and Happiness

Whilst our ability to manufacture body parts takes on new dimensions, the need to manage other not so easily treated conditions becomes increasingly important. The real challenge for this new age is easing of the burden caused by mental illness. With 45% of the Australian population having suffered a mental illness at some time in their lives, this is an area of interest.

Over 90% of mental illness is caused by common disorders such as depression and anxiety. Perhaps our brains, having evolved to develop a sense of identity and of the self, are also hard-wired to question our very existence, and to ruminate over the preservation of that existence.

Anything that makes life more meaningful, such as a pet, a partner, or a passion for a hobby is worthwhile. There is a lot of evidence for meditation and mindfulness - the ability to turn off our cognitive noise and focus on the "observing self" - that part of you that is pure awareness, that simply exists and observes yourself observing yourself....

There is also good evidence for "Acceptance and Commitment Therapy" or ACT as a way of living a more fulfilling life.  Dr Russ Harris has written a very readable book called "The Happiness Trap" and I recommend it.