“Make Loud Noise”

by Joni Kamiya, Hawaii Farmers Daughter, September 26, 2016

Last night as I was going through my newsfeed, several friends posted a video of the attacks still happening in Aleppo.  On the video was a very young child who was covered in dirt and blood who was a victim of the attack.  It also showed other young children who were maimed by the attacks there.  I cried after watching it and am still so sad by it.  It hit even closer to home since that baby looked so much like my son.

I can’t help but think about what kind of world we are creating if people are so willing to bomb communities and harm innocent children.  What are we doing wrong in the world that is making this happen?  That baby could’ve been one of our kids and there wouldn’t be much that we’d have control over to stop it.  It’s utterly heartbreaking.

Is this the world that my children will have to face when they grow up?  Do we want a world where you can’t even go to the mall or school without fear of some crazed person coming in and wanting to shoot or stab you?  I sure as heck don’t want to them to face that.

I’m starting to think that we as a free society are creating a very angry one.  Though a petition to ask a burger company to provide an option that they’ve never had and throwing them under the bus while doing it sounds inane, there’s something that bothers me about it.  It’s not about the petition or wanting a vegetarian option but the prevailing attitude that you can change things by making a loud noise.  Like the GMO issue where millions marched against Monsanto in anger got so much attention, a loud noise isn’t always the best way to do things.  Even with the protests against the pipeline making a media stir, I have to ask if being angry and making noise is really changing the bigger picture?

I’m starting to see that loud noises are only temporary and no truly having an impact overall.  It’s fueling an attitude that if you’re loud and mad about something, that’s the best way to see quick change.  It’s not necessarily good change if it wasn’t thoroughly thought out.  The loud noise against GMOs in Europe and the US have stymied efforts to adopt this technology in places that’s needed the most.  The idea that having enough people not always standing on fact but desires is enough to change policy is an dangerous stance to take.  The protests of Greenpeace worldwide has blocked the world’s ability adopt Golden Rice for nearly a decade.  The environmentalists have claimed victory in saving the earth from it, but malnourished and disabled children have suffered from the loudest demands.  They’ve made change but it hasn’t been for the betterment of society as a whole.

What has happened to the concept of making change by taking your own path and creating that better way that you think is superior?  Instead of resorting to attacking established businesses, why not be innovative and create your own company to to fulfill that perceived consumer demand?  Why use others successes to fundraise for your cause and go on your own merits to make that change you want to see?  Are you willing to take on that work to do that or do you choose the self-serving, easy path to create your “success?”

The prevailing attitude lately is make plenty noise to change things.  Once the noise is done, the work is over so one thinks.  The world doesn’t work that way and problems aren’t solved with a Band-Aid of noise.  Everyone has to take a commitment to be a part of the process to work together to figure out how to take the next step and what your contribution will be to address it.  Not only do we have to embody this attitude, but we need to teach this to the next generation so that they can be contributors to society instead of noisy complainers who aren’t sincere about making a world a better place.

People have to be in the fields, getting their hands, dirty, and committed to solving a problem.  Just making noise  over consumer demands have never had a truly lasting impact on society.