Cambodia Chronicles Part Two (Subscriber Exclusive)
Cambodia Chronicles Part One (Subscriber Exclusive)
We're Alright..
Source [header.](https://global.unitednations.entermediadb.net/assets/mediadb/services/module/asset/downloads/preset/assets/2018/12/03-12-2018-OCHA-RF283834-Yemen.jpg/image1170x530cropped.jpg)
This Corona pandemic affects us all, in some way or another. Some people are forced to work from home, some even lost their job, and some may feel agitated by the inability to party in the club.. It's a disaster, I know;) But, we should be glad that we can take proper precautions without endangering our access to basic needs – as in food, and clean water.
Yesterday I read an article published by the United Nations on the dire situation in Yemen.
The Title of the article goes..
Source [image.](https://global.unitednations.entermediadb.net/assets/mediadb/services/module/asset/downloads/preset/Libraries/Production+Library/13-12-2019_Sana-Yemen-2019.jpg/image1170x530cropped.jpg)
Yemen government troops are backed by a Saudi-led coalition, which announced a ceasefire for an initial two-week period. Currently they are in negotiations with the Iran-backed Houthi rebels to reach a consensus over a nation-wide ceasefire to prevent the possible disastrous spread of COVID-19. They have made some progress with the negotiations, but, for now civilian casualties keep rising.. According to the UN's article, casualties have risen every month since January.
Epidemiologists warn that due to the already dire humanitarian situation in Yemen, COVID-19 could spread faster and with deadlier consequences. The war in Yemen has resulted in five years of non-stop fighting, which has ''degraded the health infrastructure, exhausted people's immune systems, and increased acute vulnerabilities.''
Currently, about 80% of the civilian population of Yemen requires some kind of aid to survive. On top of this, due to a lack of funding, 31 of the UN's 41 major aid programmes will shut down in the coming weeks..
The World Food Program, the food assistance branch of the UN, has been forced to cut its aid by 50% because it simply does not have enough funds. Families will now only receive aid once every two months, instead of monthly.
You might've noticed that the United States has halted funding to the WHO (World Health Organisation), which is a part of the United Nation's Sustainable Development Group.
Source [image.](https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_iBjBNBIbwlyKN-yMMEkJxShBBN7_lipgTMHJi52kkvM.webp)
The United States was the biggest single donor to the WHO. Contributing roughly 15% of the WHO's annual budget (please, somebody shoot the Donald).
This week the first official case of COVID-19 was reported in Yemen.. However, Yemen's inability to do proper testing could mean that it isn't just this one case.
It's deadly, it sure is. But, if you're lucky enough to be healthy, can take proper precautions without endangering your access to basic needs, then I would say you're fine. Take a moment to imagine how life in Yemen is right now. You're already as fucked as a human can be, and then there is this deadly pandemic looking around the corner.. Oh, and, desperately needed foreign aid is deteriorating.
''The horror, the horror.''
My Movie Picks – Second Edition
Source [header.](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/38/d3/ca/38d3cae6c6a7dec4a27ede93da81b934.jpg)
Hello everyone,
It's been a while since My Movie Picks – First Edition came out on Coil. The idea of the My Movie Picks series is to highlight some terrific movies that might've slipped under your radar. In today's world, with COVID-19 keeping all of us locked inside, one might experience some of the severe symptoms of boredom.. This is not acceptable! So, here I present to you some of the movies that I think can solve that desperate longing for redemption;)
A Mighty Heart
Directed by Michael Winterbottom.
Short after 9/11 most of the journalists have come home from the Arabic world. However, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl still has one lead he wants to investigate before departure. He, and his wife travel to the Pakistani city of Karachi, where Daniel has scheduled an interview with Sheikh Gilani. Unfortunately, the interview never happened.. Instead, Daniel was abducted and brutally murdered by pathetic extremists. The movie beautifully captures the chaotic presence of Karachi. Also, Angelina Jolie's portrayal as Mariane Pearl is both strong and heartbreaking. Definitely worth the watch if you're into surreal true stories.
The Peanut Butter Falcon
Directed by Tyler Nilson & Michael Schwartz.
Friendship where you least expect it. Shia LaBeouf plays a struggling fisherman who's on the run for his fresh made enemies. Eventually he crosses paths with Zak, a runaway Down syndrome patient. An unique friendship arises between the two gentlemen, who are both eager to re-connect to the roller coaster ride that's life. A heartwarming story, filled with a wide range of emotions. One that makes you smile, and appreciate the little moments of human interaction.
Source [image.](https://www.enola.be/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/71010-shia-lebouf-the-peanut-butter-falcon.1200w.tn_.jpg)
Subscribers have access to more content..
Climate Change cannot be Solved on a Global Scale
Source [header.](https://www.travelwires.com/assets/images/storage/full/xM8ZizNEmSZxX75fWXhM_full.jpeg)
We recently entered the third decade of the 21st century, and the threat of Climate Change is now more severe and real than it has ever been before. The United Nations call Climate Change ‘’the defining issue of our time,’’ and its impacts are ‘’global in scope and unprecedented in scale.’’ After all, it concerns our shared home, doesn’t it? However that may be, in this essay I like to argue that climate change cannot be solved on a global scale, but, at best, only at the national level. Within the borders of a nation is where we find the strong central political power and incentives that are necessary to undertake serious action.
First of all, I like to show that climate change can’t really be seen as the same problem for every nation. To quote Tara Law from Time Magazine: ‘’Climate change is expected to affect every country in the world, but its impact will not be felt equally across all regions and some will be worse hit than others because of a range of different threats.’’ If the potential threats that climate change poses deviate for each individual country, then, how can we pretend as if it’s the same “global” problem for everyone? – it poses a far bigger, and contemporary threat to some nations than others. Law rightfully mentions that “Developing countries, places with widespread poverty, and countries with ineffective governments sometimes face the gravest risks from the changing climate.”
Germanwatch developed the Climate Risk Index, which reflects countries’ vulnerability to the direct consequences – deaths and economic losses – of extreme weather events.
According to the data on weforum.org, only two countries (United States, and China) are responsible for 40% of all CO2 emissions. A look at the Climate Risk Index table above reveals that these two gigantic emitters don't rank within the top ten most affected countries by the direct consequences of Climate Change. To continue, the top 15 emitters generate an astonishing 72% of the global CO2 emissions. We should ask ourselves, do we expect the big emitters to take responsibility for the negative effects of climate change in the rest of the world? Clearly, for them, there is more incentive to focus on national economic growth instead. Our changing climate causes without a doubt significant threats that will eventually concern all of us, in some way or another. But, as, for example, the COVID-19 outbreak and the fight against poverty show us, these “global” issues will only be dealt with properly by nations if there’s enough incentive to do so. When is there enough incentive to take proper action? – Usually when it affects own soil (in the not so distant future), or produces opportunity for economic gain.
Global efforts to deal with ''global'' problems are here today, and have been around in the past. The current global effort to our changing climate, the Paris Agreement, proves itself to be, as expected by many, not much more than a formality. ‘’Untold human suffering is in our future as nations miss their Paris Agreement targets by a long shot.’’ – sounds the sub-header of a recent National Geographic article. A strong central political power is necessary to impose order. If not, who’s gonna make sure that proper consequences are faced once rules aren’t respected? That’s what international climate negotiators sought for decades and decades: a way to collectively bind the world’s countries to ambitious emission-reduction commitments. Nevertheless, something truly effective never came to fruition. Now, with the Paris Agreement they tried something different. The agreement simply asked countries to submit voluntary commitments, hoping that eventually peer pressure would kick in.
On November 4th, 2019, the United States began the process of withdrawal from the Paris Agreement. Trump stated that ‘’The Paris accord would undermine (the U.S.) economy.’’ The participation of the United States was considered very important, because it signaled that the biggest emitters would be role models. However, the US's departure builds the case that, in order to meet the required targets, some kind of force, that’s not applicable on a global scale, is necessary to accelerate countries' responses.
There’s a lack of strong central political power and incentives to solve the problem of Climate Change on a global scale. I’ve shown how the urgency and the scope of the threat strongly deviate between countries, and how the willingness to act properly depends on whether it is in a nation's best interest to do so. Furthermore, global efforts, like the Paris Agreement, have failed to make a significant impact because of their inability to bind the world’s countries to ambitious commitments. Climate Change cannot be tackled effectively on a global scale, so, let's focus on how we can neutralize the threat from under the dome of national jurisdictions instead..
Thank you for reading;)
Guatemala Travel Fun
Vietnam Backpack Video
Secluded Waterfall #TravelStories
I remember the sweet smell of fresh nature surrounding our every sight. The sound of scattering water from the triumph in the distance. When I jumped out of the black pick-up, a soft breeze almost knocked me over. The cans of beer we'd consumed during the ride through the vivid jungle interfered with my basic motor skills. My cousin moved into the direction of the local woman and her little girls. They smiled. While I tried to locate our current being, one of the girls pulled my arm, and whispered some Spanish words.
''Coconuts for sale'' - my cousin conveyed, while he laughed.
Her beautiful tinted skin, and dark brown hair floating in the tender air, had taken my eyes off the object she was holding in her right hand. A fresh coconut prepared with purple straw. I kindly accepted. We all enjoyed one of the tasty products of nature, as we took five.
So far it had been a dreamy day. Left the big villa on the waterfront in the early morning. Sun rise drew upon my definition of aesthetics. My uncle and aunt had enjoyed its infinite occurrence on the main terrace, while we, the youth, filled our bellies with egg white protein. Water bugs bouncing on the rhythm determined by the fisherman's boats. When I looked to the right I could see the river debouch into the Caribbean Sea. Palm trees all around. For me this particular vibe was on a whole nother level. Ever since my friend and I had arrived in the Central Americas, my family did everything in their power to transcend our young minds into the sublime state of Nirvana. The absolute authenticity and depth of our experiences preceded any imaginative scenario we could ever hope for. Perfection's definition was never the same..
After about 20 minutes on the boat, we arrived at a traditional fish restaurant. We were early, so our transportation made us wait among the farm animals. I remember how my cousin challenged the happy goose with a stick. The Dorada Ice beers tasted perfect. Our creative spirits merged with the reality of our situation. GoPro and the animals resulted in our interpretation of
Eventually the pick-up arrived. My uncle and aunt in the front, while we were seated like Mexican hitchhikers. The nature all around was nothing short of a miracle. When I think back of this fabulous place, I often mistake it for Avatar's Pandora. The saturation of the green grass absorbed our minds. Monkeys in the distance. Our destination would be this secret waterfall. A place that still wasn't overcrowded, and turned into an Instagram hot spot. Its secluded location sure made it hard to reach. There were some others, but, I mean, having a truly magical place like this almost entirely for oneself shouldn't be acknowledged as just an ''okay'' occurrence. Blueish water splashing onto the ancient rocks. The little bay in the middle of nowhere seemed as it could've been the inspiration for Lion King's – Can You Feel The Love scene.
We jumped. We played. After a while we got acquainted with the Hot Springs on top. The warm water freely floated between my finger tops. Sitting down, taking a deep breath, and all my anxiety faded instantly.
The next few hours we entertained ourselves around the waterfall. Which wasn't that hard. After all, my aunt had brought her cooling bag filled with beers. We were literally in the middle of the jungle. Various animals and insects communicated their presence to us. We came here in peace, but, we were not to forget that we were the guests..
Btw, a fun (actually not so fun) fact, my friend recently looked up the waterfall online. The place has turned into a well known tourist-hot-spot, and many people visit it daily to capture the perfect Insta shot;) I'm not saying that tourism is all bad, but it has to be managed properly. Unfortunately, most economies that are depended on tourism (not insinuating that Guatemala is depended on tourism) prove themselves to be impotent, when it comes to preservation of the Wonders of their soils ..
Coil Subscribers have access to some of the pictures taken that day;)
Disrupting Correspondent Banking
[Source header.](https://amp.businessinsider.com/images/5d1ddbdda17d6c1dc8710c23-1334-667.png)
According to Daron Acemoglu & James A. Robinson, the origin of prosperity within a nation can be explained by its institutions.
It's the institutions that lay the necessary foundation for communities to thrive, or crumble. The writers of ''Why Nations Fail'' provide us with many real world examples, that support their simplistic hypothesis. Basically, they argue that there are inclusive and extractive institutions that govern economics and politics. The prosperous nation is characterized by both its inclusive political, and inclusive economic institutions. In other words: ''a level playing field''. When you find yourself in a democratic society, that has an open labor market, good chances are that you live in a prosperous nation.
Now, my intention is not to do a summary of the book. I've not even finished it yet. But I would like to highlight the analogous power of this theory, and apply it to the cross-border payment industry.
As many of you that are interested in Ripple and XRP probably already know, a handful of large correspondent banks play a vital role in today's cross-border payment industry. These large institutions provide liquidity on behalf of other financial institutions.
''A correspondent account is an account established by a banking institution to receive deposits from, make payments on behalf of, or handle other financial transactions for another financial institution.''
The problem with this system is that it's highly extractive! Let me explain why this is according to the writers of ''Why Nations Fail''..
First of all, the system is centralized. A few giants process the majority of transactions (on behalf of other financial institutions). Players that require these services simply don't have the freedom of choice. This gives the correspondent banks a lot of power.
Secondly, there's hardly any innovation or creative destruction. Applying this could potentially cost them market share, and profits.
The industry is depending on them to disrupt, or not. And, as the correspondent bank's only interest is to make a profit, he'll not be interested in doing anything that could endanger his monopoly position.
One of the things that the writers of ''Why Nations Fail'' conclude, is that extractive institutions can experience short cycles of growth, but the growth is never sustainable (Soviet-Union).. Right now, technological innovation in the form of Decentralized Currencies, promises a significant contender to the stagnant correspondent banks. Not only does this new technology offer us a way to do the same things more efficient, and at a lower cost. But it could also potentially disrupt the whole ''political'' landscape of the cross-border payment industry. No more monopoly for the giant few.
...
Writing True Romance
***''Amid the chaos of that day, when all I could hear was the thunder of gunshots, and all I could smell was the violence in the air, I look back and am amazed that my thoughts were so clear and true, that three words went through my mind endlessly, repeating themselves like a broken record: you’re so cool, you’re so cool, you’re so cool. And sometimes Clarence asks me what I would have done if he had died, if that bullet had been two inches more to the left. To this, I always smile, as if I’m not going to satisfy him with a response. But I always do. I tell him of how I would want to die, but that the anguish and the want of death would fade like the stars at dawn, and that things would be much as they are now. Perhaps. Except maybe I wouldn’t have named our son Elvis.''***
The writing from this particular picture has the ability to intrigue me time after time. Characters, all with their own original flavors, speaking words that spark excitement like biblical passages did when I was just some kid in primary school. It might be hilarious of me to open this article with the above quote, as it’s one of the few bits that isn't written by Quentin Tarantino himself. No – his ending didn’t approve of so much optimism, naturally;)
Actually, let’s continue with a look at the opening scene. One that Tarantino wrote to open the play, and director Tony Scott implemented to start off his cinematic experience as well. Clarence Worley sits at a bar, while he’s talking to a girl with much passion. The words flowing out of his mouth are like the wholesome combination of a vault safe. We, as the audience, don’t know what we’re watching, however, our minds are pulled to the screen like a magnetic force. Is it because we can immediately identify with Clarence? After all, he seems like a regular guy that’s trying to seduce a girl he’d just met. Or is it because he’s truly passionate about the subject of his dialogue? This certainly is one technique often used by Tarantino. The ability to give the character a certain extend of charisma from minute one. It’s not the character that’s adapting to the story, but the story that’s adapting to the character in question. He’s the true master in creating a screen filled without indifference.
Source [image.](https://lwlies.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/true-romance-patricia-arquette-1108x0-c-default.jpg)
Tarantino has said himself that True Romance is his most autobiographical piece. He is obsessed with Elvis. Before his first directing job: My Best Friend’s Birthday, and when he was still working at the local Video Store, he tried to start off his acting career. One of the few acting jobs he conquered in this unsuccessful pursuit was that of Elvis Presley in a small TV-show. This wasn’t coincidence, as Clarence puts it in the opening scene of True Romance: ‘’I'd watch that hillbilly and I'd want to be him so bad.’’
The opening scene has written TARANTINO all over it. Not only in the way that his dialogue affects the rhythm of our heartbeat, but also the topic of words – the babbling that turns his characters in personalities of the eternity. Clarence is an Elvis fan boy that works in a comic book store, sounds familiar? Along the road the lady seems to lose interest in the oblivious Clarence, while he blindly continues, he states: ‘’I always said if I ever had to fuck a guy... I mean had too cause my life depended on it... I'd fuck Elvis’’
What a way to open a movie!:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB73Ko12yiQ&t=7s
Imagine a movie opening with this brilliance and not being mesmerized immediately.. Exactly like the previous ten times I’ve seen True Romance, from this moment on (the very first scene of the movie) I was like:
Other than the ending, and the structure of the picture, Tony Scott used every single bit of the genius writer. However, the original intention of the story was to work in three separate acts..
Act one: The characters know more than the audience. Tarantino taps into the pleasure we receive from not knowing. He wanted to evoke curiosity, and let us experience each scene in its own right. After watching True Romance you can easily conclude that every scene is like its own little movie, so to speak. The audience is entertained by the individual scenes, rather than being triggered to contemplate about the possible outcome of the summation of the scenes. I think this is a really interesting point of view to storytelling, as most often the first goal of a scene is to simply support the end product. While in Tarantino’s mind, each character, and each scene, is its own thing. Each frame has the power to potentially change the course of the story. By doing so he creates a certain unpredictability, and an almost Buddha like experience that pivots on the present moment, as the future comes soon enough;)
For the ones that have seen True Romance, you know that this isn’t the case for the movie. One of the few things that Tony Scott changed after buying the rights to Quentin’s screenplay, is the structure. We don’t know less than the characters, as we begin at the very beginning. Even though all the scenes are basically copied/pasted from the screenplay, you get a totally different experience. I won’t say that it would’ve been better in its original format, as we'll never know. And if it wasn't for Tony Scott, we wouldn't have the perfect piece of cinema that is True Romance!
Act two: The second part of the movie was supposed to be the catch-up phase. Clarence and Alabama arrive in Los Angeles and tell his friend about what happened to them. This is the moment when the audience gets to know more than all the individual characters. We're shown the whole story. It's quite cool how Tarantino meant it to be. He's dealing with extremes. During the first act we basically know nothing. And during the second act we know enough to feel like the Chinese government. Usually the narrative of movies deviates just a tiny bit from this equator: We Know a Bit More Than The Characters, or We Know a Bit less Than The Characters. How Tony Scott structured it is exactly according to the traditional narrative.. Dealing with extremes is obviously more common among independent art films, that's why I think it's very understandable that Tony structured it the way he did. Nevertheless, for some reason the movie was a total box-office disaster..
Act three: The final act of the movie is exactly how it was meant to be. Well, only one slight difference: in the original ending that Tarantino wrote, Clarence dies. Alabama escapes the motel while she conveys that she didn't care about Clarence to begin with. That she simply used him to break free from her (very odd) pimp: Drexl. I must say that I like the Tony Scott ending much better. The terrific monologue that I quoted at the top of this article is an example of why I think this is..
Meet *Drexl..* - [Incredible Artwork by our own Seth Stanley!](https://coil.com/p/SethStanley/Movie-Deaths-Volume-1-A-O/SEZz0r9ps)
Now I want to talk about this one scene during the first half of the movie. With its duration of 10 minutes it's quite the long scene. Clarence's father (played by legendary Dennis Hopper) is visited by the message boy of the drugs lord that Clarence (accidentally) stole from.
It's this brilliant piece of cinema that is the combination of many ingredients. For one, great acting! Dennis Hopper and Christopher Walken portray these characters with a mature edge.. However, the strength of the scene comes back to the writing. The dialogue to be more precise.
Source [image.](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/vUlTddxrPygqF5xmhDrBsFVhl9fwJR-j8IMLLLocNJKR4qI4QHNqDrTgWAiEpkkNeRHDr3nIkTJ9cxU7eeRAtiMmjs2d-KYtVuoNYqRRxhFq9P8dn_vGHx1QZJqt9fiDclgM5_2C8_rvkDkdc1QcECw-kwDf-h2l2EB29-U)
At a certain point Clifford Worley realizes that he's going to die..
*''Can I have one of those Chesterfields now?''* - The precise moment when this happens. I really love how Quentin uses these little marks to communicate with the audience. Tony Scott added the soundtrack as well, but this wasn't necessary in my opinion.
Clifford decides to tell the Sicilian mobsters a tale. A history lesson, so to speak. It's basically about how the Sicilian ancestors were dark skinned. I guess it's quite racist, but have to admit it's pretty entertaining;) And coming from Quentin's brain, I guess we can assume that its sole purpose is to entertain.. Nothing more. Well, to Dennis Hopper's character it's obviously with the intend to provoke the mobsters to kill him quickly. A well orchestrated scene..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3yon2GyoiM&t=103s
