Happy New Year 2021

I had to take a break from blogging and other activities in mid-December as my home was in need of some repairs.

Moreover, my  PC has to be replaced ( haven't done that yet) as its old operation system XP gets no technical support any more. I definitely have to have Windows 10.

Now, we've entered third Lockdown for a period of at  least two weeks . 

Hopefully, new mutations won't make covid -19  vaccine a joke, as in the case of the flu- vaccine. The later has to be administered to people every year according to the virus mutation of that year. There are still many deaths in the world following flu complications with or without the vaccine, and yet pharma companies get richer and richer with their product.

Anyway, right now the covid-19 vaccines seem to be the only ray of light at the end of the dark tunnel, at least on the medical front. (So far, two  mutations of the virus have been spotted: in Britain, and in India).

No idea what's going to happen on the other major fronts: economic, social, educational. Not good things, I'm afraid.  Coronavirus has revealed to us the true face of so-called democracy: utter lack of discipline on one hand  (citizens) versus total incompetence on the other hand (governments).

Not a matter of human rights here, but of human greed and stupidity.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year!

Duta

The Anniversary...

 

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On 26 of April, the world marks the nuclear disaster of Chernobyl, Ukraine (26 April 1986).
In the past, I wrote two posts on the subject (if you type Chernobyl in the search box on my sidebar, you'll get to them). At this time of the year, I tend to re-read them; it has become sort of an annual ritual for me. I'm  haunted and even fascinated by the subject. 

(Maybe I'm haunted by Ukraine in general. My Mom, exiled from Roumania to Ukraine during WW2, lost a baby girl and a young sister to famine and brutality there, and the two victims were burried in a mass grave in a region called Moghilev Podolsky. I wanted to go visit the bloody place ,when it became possible, to lit a candle, and say a prayer - but couldn't make it after all).

Anyway, I used to think that after a nuclear event at ground level like that of Chernobyl (unlike Hiroshima  where the bomb exploded in mid air), no living organism will ever survive. Well, I was wrong. Chernobyl area is full of animals and vegetation; there's almost a jungle out there, say  visitors. True, many of them have mutations, life span is probably short, but hey, they live and multiply.

The area, however, remains uninhabited by humans as radiation is very high, and they say it will remain so for thousands of years.(Unlike the bomb detonated in Hiroshima which was 14 pounds only, the reactor at Chernobyl had 180 tonsֱ!! of nuclear fuel).

Whenever I happen to read about the current situation in the 30 km exclusion zone of Chernobyl , I come upon the words 'flourish', 'thrive', 'rule', 'take over' - regarding Nature in general, and animals in particular. Unbelievable! Even scientists are shocked. 
32 years now after the disaster,  animals have greatly increased in numbers and variety, and are doing all right. Nature, it seems, has taken over the place abandoned by humans. 

Is there some kind of message in all this? such as: 'without humans, the world is better', 'Nature doesn't need humans, it's the humans who need Nature', and so on...? I wonder.
(There are some good videos  on the subject worth watching, on Youtube).

*  web picture - Baby Crying - graffiti in the ghost city of Prypiat adjacent to Chernobyl.