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Developing countries

Africa is poor. There is a high unemployment rate. People are uneducated. Food is scarce. Environment is a big mess.

 So cool that the situation in Rotterdam is nearly perfect. Take a look at the Duysstraat this morning:

The newest trouble of Africa is the urbanization. El Dorada has moved to the city center. From morning to evening cars, buses, trucks, and scooters are stuck in endless traffic jams. Everybody is on their way to make money.



Let me tell you a little bit about the bus system in Dar es Salam, Tanzania. Investors buy buses, have them painted in the color of their district, and rent them out to two guys. These two guys take rounds in being conductor and driver, dressed in ragged uniforms. Everyone who hops on a bus pays 20 ct. At the end of the day the conductor and driver fill the tank, take back the bus to the owner, pay him € 25 and keep the rest.

 What is the reality? Every popular destination has a lot of buses taking commuters home. If there is a construction on the way, buses find ways around it. Some drivers ask a higher fee and allow fewer passengers than the average 26 on a minibus. Every time someone wants to drop they shout "shuka" and get dropped. If there is an old lady wanting to board, they wait for her. She means money!



Now let's look at the situation in Netherlands right now. Buses are on strike. Does anyone see it as an opportunity for starting their own bus service? No, they can't. Regulations. Do taxi's start to compete with each other now that there's an abundance of customers? No, they don't. Regulations. Do kids start biking to school? I see this mother on TV, saying that "her daughter isn't that fond of cycling."



It leaves me puzzled. Who is being more inventive here? Who is more innovative?

posted by kaospilots on 6/ 4/2008 6:33 pm | COMMENTS (3)
Comments (3)

Innovation, creativity, invention and imagination are always stymied when ruled from on high by governments, corporations or industry-specific organizations. Yet the people allow themselves to be regulated.

posted by Usiku on 6/12/2008 10:29 pm

Well, here in Brazil you really have to look after your life while walking on the streets.

There are no cars, buses, vans, or anyone for that matter that respect the traffic laws; people get hit by cars in the stairwalk and, obviously, nothing happens to the driver. It's like we don't live in a society with laws and good manners and respect. Or worse, it's like we don't live in a country in which about 80% of the population is catholic. In fact, Rio should be like the Vatican city, and not like, well, Rio.

Traffic jams are impossible and are getting worse everyday. In normal traffic I'd take 50 minutes to get from my house to university - when I'm goig back home (in the rush hour, unfortunally), I take 3 hours. That is a LOT of time wasted doing nothing but standing in a very crowded bus in a 35ºC hot.

I'd love to ride the bike everywhere I go, but due to the violence on the streets, my mom simply won't' let me - and I must say that she's not being overprotective.

The thing is, if people do not get more conscious about their role in all the bad things - and good things - that happen where they live, the lives of every living soul in this concrete jungle we like to call city, will just remain chaotic.

posted by helena.kremer on 6/ 8/2008 5:18 pm

Here in america, we have SUVs

In the netherlands, there are cargo bicycles

We keep telling these people we need to develop more light rail, mass transport, and light rail.

The americans, they complain that gasoline is 4 dollars a gallon, but they need to see that really they need to get of their fat arses and walk instead of driving their gas guzzling monster cars. Maybe pedal a cargo bicycle

So much of the time I feel like I live in the stupidest country with some of the dumbest people and the most unintelligent president.

I really wish we would make everything equal in the world, so that people in Afrika would have the same access to resources as the fat and complacent people living in Boston USA.

If everything could just be equal, everyone would pay 12 dollars a gallon or whatever that is in Euros. That would be right. The additional would go to carbon offsets, and frankly should also go to the people of africa who are not going in on the capitalist fallacy.

Peace

posted by realitylefty on 6/ 6/2008 11:43 pm

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