Sunday, September 07, 2008
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/health/story.html?id=0bc86d0a-e500-4c31-b6aa-b64d5aa3
This article is about the seven cases of cholera diagnosed in Iraq in just two days due to poor sanitation, which lead people to being exposed to water of unsafe sources. As a result of the scorching and dry weather during the summer times in Iraq, many citizens have been desperately seeking for any sources of water, and many have succumb to poor quality water that is a major detriment to your health. It is reported that 4,000 cases of cholera was diagnosed in Iraq last year. Iraq's General Director of Public Health Ihsan Jaafar stated that as long as Iraq's water source is still in scarcity, then the problem of cholera will remain as a big problem to all Iraqi citizen. To make matters worse, the cholera is characterized in its most severe form which can cause death by severe dehydration and kidney failure within hours.
Connections to Introduction
The connection I make with the current situation in Iraq and the chapter in our text has to do with Scarcity. Scarcity is defined as "an insufficient amount or supply." There is obviously a big problem in terms of scarcity with water because even in develop countries, the scarcity of water is becoming a big issue. When you put Iraq into this situation, what you have is a bigger problem that is extremely hard to solve, because Iraq is not a rich country and it's more than just scarce water, but the water is contaminated through the wars this country has been hindered with. Due to the scarce water supply Iraq have, many citizens have to take a chance and just hope that the water isn't contaminated. We can also relate the situation in Iraq to the topic of opportunity cost, because there is guaranteed a price to be paid when you decide to drink these contaminated water. But in reality a human must have water in their body, so they must take a chance with the water supply sooner or later.
Reflection
Scarcity in water is definitely becoming a global issue, but when you put countries that live in much dryer area into the mix like Iraq, then they will definitely be hit the hardest. Even to the point where they have no choice but to take a chance with the contaminated water. Us living in such a develop country should be extremely thankful that we have access to safe water and should not be wasting our precious water on unnecessary matters, since us develop places are the one that is causing the scarcity of water right now in the world.
