The World is a Frog

The World is a Frog

              There was a scientific discovery not too long ago that if a frog is placed into boiling water, it will realise it's too hot and hop out. However if it's put into cold water and it's heated up, it won't realise and it'll die. As pointed out by Frankie Boyle, 'Scientists have way too much time on their hands'.
              However I find this a compelling analogy for the World and it's reactions to certain ongoings. Take for example the boiling water. For me this could represent happenings such as 9/11 and recent earthquakes in Haiti and New Zealand. The world's response to these weren't dissimilar to that of the frog's. The World put together charity and charity events looking to bring immediate aid to those that have suffered. Don't get me wrong, this is fantastic and I can't imagine anyone who objects to helping people who need help the most. This side of the coin, the World being like a frog, is by all means a good thing.
           On the other hand, if you take Global Warming and famine in Africa as a couple of examples that synbolise the water being slowly heated up, it's harder to see a froggy world as good. There have been a few massive concerns in the World for decades, even centuries, that, by no means have been completely rejected, but haven't been combatted with the same cumulative passion and effort. For example, after the earthquake in Haiti, all the World's richest, most powerful countries all delivered relief in the form of billions of dollars worth of money. If it's possible to give money to countries in need, can't this be a regular occurance?
           Now I remember the constant changing of amounts coming out of USA and China in the aftermath of the disaster in Haiti and how it almost seemed like a battle to see who was most generous. Not that I'm a fan of this macho competition, but it seemed to work. They seemed to want to outbid each other and seem more selfless. Again, this isn't my preferred brand of selflessness, but beggars can't be choosers.
          What is more annoying, is we see banks, and now even countries, being bailed out with huge sums of money, money that could surely be used for some sort of aid in developing countries. We are bailing out countries that have had a chance to succeed. Shouldn't we give someone else a chance?
           Moving on to Global Warming. This is no secret. The planet is trying to kill us. We know this. And it's society we live in today that's preventing us from overcoming it. I must confess, before I came to university, and before other significant bans in my life, I drove everywhere. I was (and still am) lazy. Now I'm at uni, I don't have that privilege so I walk and take the bus. This doesn't seem like a radical movement and it's not, but add that to the fact I take showers not baths, I don't overfill my kettle and I switch off all my lights when leaving a room, I'm a right hippie! But again, is it enough to rid the world of a slow, painful, inevitable death. No. We need another selflessness war! We need all the most powerful countries to invest in a cleaner future. And we need people to believe in these investments. People will moan that it's their tax money being spent on it, but it was your money being donated to Haiti, saving thousands of lives, and this could save the world, billions of lives; most importantly to some, your own life.
           I find it necessary to bring attention and show my appreciation to charitable organisations who are trying to make the world a better place, and to those who donate and admittedly it all helps. However, until bigger powers than Bob Geldof start action, the World will always be a frog, unaware that the circumstances around him are becoming lethal.