What is geography and why do we study it?

World Political Map.

Most people think that geography is about the land, which means countries and states but "geography puts this understanding of social and physical processes within the context of places and regions - recognizing the great differences in cultures, political systems, economies, landscapes and environments across the world, and the links between them. Understanding the causes of differences and inequalities between places and social groups underlie much of the newer developments in human geography." (Royal Geographical Society). It also studies the causes and consequences of natural disasters. Devastating it also is for animals and other living species because they might leave their settlement when the storm is arriving but they would not always find a new shelter. Whats more, a natural disaster can occur in a place where there are species in danger, which can make them extinct. Some of the features that affects the earth are nature, deforestation along with pollution and the use of energy.

Why is geography studied?

There are several reasons for this, one of them is because people need to learn about the world they are living in. Understand how the environment works so that we can build settlements accordingly to conserve the land we live in. As an example we can take the technology, it is something we need to make our lives easier but with each new gadget comes new materials to get, new factories that are built far away from the city, usually chopping down trees action that damage the flora and fauna. They are not only being harmed with the construction of this new place, but the  damage is even worse after the factory starts the production causing a lot of pollution, which is harmful for every living organism on earth.

                    Water and air pollution.

People also study geography to be aware of the species they live with, because its not only about human beings and their needs, its also about animals and plants because without them many things would go out of control. For example, what if people only eat meat from cows? Of course that with technology and chemicals, scientists and developers can increase cow's pregnancy rate therefore we would have more meat but there are always secondary effects affecting people's life. They can also find another similar meat but the human population is increasing, in consequence there would be another cow meat's shortage. With this example we should understand that individuals need to be educated on this topic because they should stop exploding non renovable natural resources, which are necessary to survive and to have a better life.

Another reason geography is being taught all around the world is for people to get to know other cultures. Traditions are the customs and believes that differentiate one country from another. Indirectly they inculcate different ways to act to various life escenarios, also the reactions to problems will change depending on the country people we are raised in. 

Nature and geography.

Natural disasters.

Natural disasters have always been a developing process for the earth and the individuals and species living on it. Everyone gets affected by them in a direct or indirect way which make them change their behavior according to the new circumstances. There are several kinds of natural disasters, which are avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, hydrological disasters like floods and tsunamis; blizzards, cyclonic storms, heat waves and tornadoes which are called meteorological disasters, also health disasters such as epidemics, space disasters such as impact events and gamma ray burst and many more.

The effects of these disasters are many, it can be direct or indirect. The most visible is the physical destruction, it leaves people without a home, transportation vehicles and other possessions. When it happens the government of DC's (developed countries) have an immediate response to help the citizens as soon as possible to avoid further problems. However the government of LDC's (less developed countries) might not have the needed health resources and money to  help their citizens right after the storm strikes so, they have to ask for help to other countries and this might take a long time to arrive so further problems are likely to appear and maybe take more lives. People's emotions are affected after the disaster strikes taking with them the life of friends and family members and sometimes, more than a thousand individuals. The effects can be so strong and the memories so disturbing that the affected people adquire mental disorders.

Economic concerns are obviously visible even though the damage is not as big as expected. Almost every time a disaster occurs damage has a place, it doesn't have to be because of a building was destroyed but also private possessions get lost and that must be replace in a future. Although when big disasters strike, economic damage can be devastating, for example "according to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Katrina cost the U.S. $75 billion when it slammed into New Orleans in August 2005" (Jennifer Ratliff) this was a big hit for the US but it could have been worse if they were a much smaller country without the money, resources and partners they have nowadays. The visible effects of natural disasters are strongly felt on communities leading to a disruption in utility services around the area. Medical assistance is slowed down because of the huge increase on attention from the one's affected. Depending on the seriousness of the impact, banks and other businesses might close economically affecting the owners.

Global Warming.

"Global warming is the rise in the average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans since the late 19th century, and its projected continuation." ( Wikipedia). According to the NASA the "cost and benefits of global warming will vary greatly from area to area. For moderate climate change, the balance can be difficult to assess. But the larger the change in climate, the more negative the consequences will become. Global warming will probably make life harder, not easier, for most people. This is mainly because we have already built enormous infrastructure based on the climate we now have." Global warming causes rise in sea levels worldwide, more storms, massive crop failures, widespread extinction of species and disappearance of coral reefs. It is a problem which cannot be stopped but it can be slowed down, therefore new generations must be instructed on how to save energy and do less damage to the planet. 

Link between South Park's episode "Whale Whores" and the movie: The Cove

South park

"Whale Whores" is a South Park episode about a real show called "Whale Wars". This episode is about japanese whaling and the fact that they do not care about any sea creature. "As savejapandolphins.org puts it: in the small fishing village of Taiji, entire school of dolphin are driven into a hidden cove after a prolonged case. Once trapped inside The Cove, the fishermen kill the dolphins, slashing their throats with knives or stabbing them with spears. The water turns red with their blood, and the air fills with their screams" (Ramsey Isler, 2009). 

After Stans acknowledge the existence of these japanese groups, he tries to involve Eric Cartman on this issue to then do something about it. Since Cartman is the kind of person who despise tree huggers (environmentalists), only Stan decides to join a crew that defends these species and tries to stop the perturbant and inhuman actions from the japanese, which leader is Paul Watson an environmental activist. 

Paul Watson's crew is based on the reality series called Deadliest Catch. At first they have some encounters where they win over the japanese, stoping the whaling for some time. Afterwards Cartman and Kenny decide to join the crew supported by the argument that they just want to save whales when on the contrary, they do not care for them, they only want to appear on T.V. By then the Japanese air force decide to launch kamikaze attacks on them where everyone is killed except for Stan, Cartman and Kenny, so they are captured, brought to Japan and imprisoned. Then they met Emperor Akihito which tells them the first motive for Japan's whaling is because of Hiroshima's bombing and shows the trio a picture of a dolphin and a whale being in charge of the Enola Gay aeroplane which started the attack.

Knowing the image is fake, Stan decides to change the story claiming that the U.S authorized him to show the truth and gets a picture of a cow and a chicken in charge of the aeroplane. The Japanese apologize and stop with the whaling acts but instead they start killing animals in farms. The episode concludes with the message, that now the Japanese are "normal, like us."

Movie: The Cove

Is a documental focused on showing people how dolphins are being inhumanly treated by fisherman in Taiji, Japan, to then take actions against it and stop the acts. A crew of activists, film makers and free divers is recruited to find "the cove", get evidence of it and finally demonstrate the truth. The cove is a place where fisherman bring a pod of dolphins and while some of them are sold to water parks and aquariums such as Sea World the rest are brutally killed with harpoons leaving a huge blood stain which is later washed by the sea. 

"The world outlawed commercial whaling in 1986 and yet, dolphin hunts remain legal because the members of the International Whaling Commission have not agreed to protect so-called small cetaceans" (dosomething.org, 2011). Some fishermen said it was a tradition but when people was asked about such traditions, they were unaware about it and did not agree with the idea of killing dolphins just for their meat. Another question was if they would eat dolphin meat, the answer most people gave was no, which is the contrary as the fishermen's statement. Dolphin's meat is not healthy because of the high mercury concentration it has, reason why it is not sell on supermarkets; at least not tagged as what it actually is. It is also sold at an extremely low price and it has been decreased even more.

Personal opinion

The link between the movie and the show is obviously, the topic of Japanese whaling and dolphin killing. It shows how wrong it is and there is not a good reason to keep doing it. Japan is a wealthy country which citizens do not live of dolphin killing, for some people in Taiji it might be different but it can be changed, they could just stop and find another source of income, such as farming.

In South Park, Cartman is the guy who lies to the world for fame, like in many cases. In The Cove, although is a movie which won numerous awards such as the Academy Award, and now many of the actors there gained recognition (just as Cartman's egoist desire) they did it for the purpose of opening people's eyes (just as Stan's idea). The fact that they South Park episode finished by saying "now they are normal like us" referring to the Japanese means that eating cows, pigs, chickens and the most  consumed meat is fine. Is alright to kill them because as human beings, we need that protein but we do not need dolphin's meat in any way.  

I think it is fine to eat cows, pigs and chicken because there is farming for it. I would stop if I could find a better way to keep getting the proteins but the most natural is that one. Also dolphins are known for being so intelligent they can actually help people, they enjoy the interaction with them, mostly with children with special needs.

It is against nature to kill animals such as those, its no longer about tradition and culture, it's about respect for the nature. The massacre that has been on for many years must stop, and I'm not only talking about dolphins now, I'm referring to all the species that the human being erasing from earth. We all made the planet, we should have the same rights, people do not need animal fur in their wardrobe or the head of them in the walls. If you NEED it, to survive then go ahead because animals would do the same but if we do not NEED them, why should we do it? If a piece of paper is more important to you than your integrity as a respectful individual, then it's a shame you were shaped that way. The world is slowly dying now, mostly thanks to people with that kind of thinking.