Saving The Human Race?

In the afternoon, we went to Clifton Hill to buy Sam a game. You know, handheld, gamer, whatever they are called from the internet. Oh, I've tried to be interested but they are just not my thing. They just don't seem that interesting.

We stopped at the ATM to get money, on the way. I sat in the car in the side street street facing Smith Street with the motor running while Sam made a withdrawal, a couple of metres away. He was only going to be a minute, so I didn't think anything of it.

A woman on a bike rode passed me from behind, giving me a look as she rode by. I didn’t really know why? She disappeared right into Smith Street. I looked out my driver's side window to see if I was too far out from the gutter, not really sure why they would bother her, but it was the only thing I could think of. Well, you know bike riders today, always angry about something.

Then she reappeared again, crossing the road in front of me, calling out to me, “Turn your engine off,” with a voice that could shatter glass it was so awful. It was like one continuous whine.

I raised my hands in the air and mouthed Why?

She repeated, “Turn your engine off,” (complete with key turning hand gestures) in her (what sounded like a Queensland voice) voice, as she disappeared out of sight.

Oh, she was worried about the planet, how noble. (Of course, we all should) Or, was she worried about the human race? There is a difference, I think.

You know, there are 1 and 2 year olds in Africa who are going blind who could have a simple operation to save them from a life of blindness and poverty, but more than likely they wont get that simple operation. 

I read about a couple who spent 10 million dollars on a Toorak house recently, which they are going to demolish and rebuild.

At any given point half the world is starving, and half the world is eating itself to death. And you know what makes that fact worse, the half who are eating themselves to death throw away 30% of their fresh food because it doesn't look nice enough to put in the shops for sale.

790 million people do not have access to safe water.

150, 000 people are homeless in the world. 1.6 billion people have inadequate shelter.

Wealthy countries are refusing refugees shelter.

There are endless wars and endless hate.

What is it, the 50 wealthiest people have more wealth than the bottom 50% of the world's population. (or something like that)

And then I think about turning my engine off and saving the human race...

And, you know, she was right, of course, I should have turned off my engine for planet earth's sake, even if I was only waiting for not much more than one minute. But, was she worried about the planet, or was she worried about the human race?