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Archive for the 'mobile' Category

Auschwitz, Congo and Plausable Deniability

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009

There is a saying that evil prospers while good men do nothing. History has proven this to be the case. So its disappointing to see the plausible deniability approach surfacing whenever I mention the link between 45,000 dead per month in the Congo War and our technological consumerism.

No, I have to say what really does disappoint me is that whenever we’re confronted with an issue that is too large for a single day solution by a single person we’re very likely to turn our backs. It happened during the Holocaust – good men looked away. Out of fear. Out of apathy. What can I do against the machine? And if I were asking people to throw away their stereo or mobile phone then I’d see that defence might have some force… but I’m not. People are only being asked to consider before they shop for luxury items, or to think twice before upgrading the office hardware.

What I’m asking people, particularly in the tech community, is to pass the word around – its not cool to just run out and buy up that latest gizmo using tantulum capacitors – UNLESS you know for sure that the supply chain does not include Congo minerals or the stolen minerals from surrounding countries in that part of Africa. These companies can source coltan elsewhere, but then your phone will be a little more expensive. That’s it.

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About the Author

Steven Clark Steven Clark - the stand up guy on this site

My name is Steven Clark (aka nortypig) and my passions are business, web development, photography and writing. My current CV [PDF 619KB] is available for download. I have an MBA (Journalism and Media Studies) and a Bachelor of Computing from the University of Tasmania.

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My photography is at Steven Clark Studio and my regular photo blog presents an ongoing stream of latest images at Walk a Mile in my Shoes and I'm working on a long-term photography project called the King Island Project.

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Currently Reading

Ansel Adams: The Camera

As the first of three parts of Ansel Adams Photography Series, Ansel Adams: The Camera begins by discussing the idea of visualisation in relation to photography. Ansel Adams is a master of his craft; this series has sat on my backburner for some time. Book 2 in this series is The Negative and it's followed up by The Print. In them Ansel outlines his philosophy of photography rather than trying to lay down a set of rules. This first instalment is a technical book that explains the good old fashion film camera.