Story of stuff essay

The concept of power is addressed in the video in an indirect format. The reality is that the power is used in the life-cycle of stuff. Firstly, in the extraction process, power is used to cut down, mine and get all resources needed in the production. The amount of power needed in this process is immense as it deals with the use of explosions to get the minerals even in the highest mountains. Power is useful in making machines move and perform as expected. In the production process, power has to be incorporated to ensure that the manufacture proceeds as planned. Here too, the amount of power needed is great. The production of goods and services has to be by machines or people and they both require power for efficiency. In the shopping process, lighting uses power and is very crucial for vision and preservation. Do we need power at our homes? The answer is yes. Power is also used in homes. It aids in lighting and running machines that we obtain after we go shopping. Since the technology has led to the automation of many appliances in our homes, power is critical in our households. Moreover, power is sometimes used to burn down the trash when being disposed.
The concept of life chances is also addressed in the video, both directly and indirectly. Directly, the video asserts that if the current trend of shopping and consumption persists, the chances of life will be diminished. Moreover, the video addresses the life chances of the new-borns, who are breastfed by their respective mothers. The video argues that these new-born kids may not live long as the rate of consumption of toxics by their mother makes the milk from their mothers toxic. Mothers collect toxins from various areas. One, the women that are involved in the manufacturing process is exposed to toxins. The toxins are emitted by the substances that they interact with and produce. These toxins affect the lives of the women and make them have a change in the chemical composition of breast milk. The breast milk is therefore harmful to the new born babies and this diminishes their life span. Life chances for the people are also threatened when people inhale the poisonous gases that are emitted by the industries and when burning the trash. The video gives an example of dioxin, a poisonous toxin that is emitted after burning of the trash. This is the most poisonous toxin that scientists have discovered, and it poses a life threat to the individuals.
There are several explanations that are proposed for environmental inequality. What is environmental inequality? Environmental inequality can be defined as the uneven social distribution of hazards and risks that relate to the environment and the access to environmental services and goods. In the video, environmental inequality explanations proposed include the air pollution and safety. Air pollution from industries that emit toxic gases is an inequality. This is a clear inequality in the video. Even after some of the corporations are transferred to other countries, the pollution still comes back to haunt the United States in the form of air pollution. This environmental inequality results in the change in climate and rainfall patterns and this is prevalent mostly in the countries with huge rates of pollution. The safety of some individuals is compromised when they are involved in the manufacturing process when exposed to risky conditions. Safety is an environmental inequality as it only exposes those who are involved in the production process while leaving out those who enjoy the finished products. These are some environmental inequalities proposed in the video.