tagged w/ Easter Island
-
Adam Yamaguchi is executive producer and a correspondent for Vanguard.
I’m huffing and puffing, hunched over on a rusty old mountain bike as I struggle to eke out one more crank of the pedal. My bike is equally exhausted as I inch toward the peak of the hilltop of Easter Island, a tiny speck of land suspended in the middle of the Earth.
For the uninitiated, Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, was put on the map by the iconic, massive, head statues (moai) that dot the landscape.
If you look at an actual map, look close. Easter is a miniscule island that was swallowed up by the vast Pacific, nearly 3,000 miles off the coast of Chile, to which it belongs.
How’d I end up here? Over the years, I’ve circumnavigated the globe reporting on just about everything—covering two wars, lots of drugs, robots, even the impact of human shit. The Vanguard team has investivated how we’re rapidly gnawing away at the planet, from ecstasy factories deep inside Asia’s rainforests, to Nigerian rebels taking control of the nation’s oil pipelines, to how global warming is rewriting the economy and political situation in Greenland. We've even taken a look at how people are putting human waste to good use.
But everywhere I’ve gone, I’ve seen the same thing: all of our actions take a toll on the environment—yes, including my flying. Easter Island seemed like it could provide a few lessons.
Theory is, a few hundred years ago, Easter Island was inhabited by a couple thousand people of Polynesian descent, whose idol worshipping culture compelled every able-bodied man, woman, and child to get involved in the creation, and movement, of these colossal moai. The people, consumed by the need to carve these 10-14 ton busts from the island’s quarry, exhausted Easter’s resources in order to keep producing, and then transporting these statues across the small island.
As I reach the top of the peak, the results of their effort become clear. A wasteland lies sprawls out beneath my feet, like a forest flattened by a nuke. It’s a beautifully haunting sight to see, and worth the 30 hours of travel it took to get me here.
This once tropical paradise, virtually covered in jungle, was devoured inside out. The population grew beyond the number that the land and its natural resources could sustain, and the people ended up cutting down every single tree to transport the statues. The people basically killed and destroyed every life-giving resource—until they turned on and killed each other.
From atop the hill, my traveling companions and I gasp in awe as we approach the towering moai. These mysterious, magical figures staring back at us look worn and tired. Look in their eyes and you can see why. They were witness to the collapse of civilization.
It’s hard not to look at these monoliths and ask, “What the fuck were they thinking?” In fact, throughout my trip, I blurt this out uncontrollably. I mean, the people must have known what they were doing, and that it was stupid, right?
Well, it’s easy to look back and point out the obvious. But at the time, perhaps it seemed like a worthy use of their time and energy.
Today, we’re faced with the same quandary, albeit on a different scale. With a population approaching seven billion, a fast-accelerating depletion of resources, record-setting species loss, and ultimately unsustainable lifestyles, we’d be stupid not to be asking the same question I think Easter Islanders were asking. Or are we?
See more of Adam's photos after the jump...
Adam Yamaguchi is executive producer and a correspondent for Vanguard.
I’m... more
-
-
These days, with all the pundits preaching doom and the impending collapse of society into some kind of Mad Max style wasteland, it's easy for us to imagine that the economy is as unhealthy as it's ever been. But any historian would give you a hard backhanded smack for even saying that out loud. History is full of economic idiocy, and here are five economic collapses that make 2010 feel like the Renaissance. http://www.makeahistory.com/index.php/bizzareweird/206-5-ridiculous-economic-collapses-These days, with all the pundits preaching doom and the impending collapse of society... more
-
-
worrg
-
added this
-
1 year ago
- |
-
Her non-lying hips made it onto the cover of 'Rolling Stone,' and that means they made it into 'We've Got You Covered,' Conor Knighton's weekly roundup of what's in the glossies. Also includes President Obama, Andre Agassi's meth use, Zac Efron, travel destinations, Real Housewives of Atlanta, Nancy Regan, celebrities who are likely to die, Joe Jonas's costume preferences, Frankenstein, and fit Christians.
We've Got You Covered is a recurring segment on Current TV's weekly television show, infoMania. In each episode of We've Got You Covered, Conor Knighton catches you up on everything you need to know about what's in this week's magazines. For more We've Got You Covered visit: http://current.com/groups/weve-got-you-covered/
and Current TV.
infoMania is a half-hour satirical news show that airs on Current TV. The show puts a comedic spin on the 24-hour chaos and information overload brought about by the constant bombardment of the media. Hosted by Conor Knighton and co-starring Brett Erlich, Sarah Haskins, Ben Hoffman, Bryan Safi and Sergio Cilli, the show airs on Thursdays at 10 pm Eastern and Pacific Times and can be found online at http://current.com/infomania/ or on Current TV. And make sure to check out our facebook profile for special features at http://infomaniafacebook.com.Her non-lying hips made it onto the cover of 'Rolling Stone,' and that means... more
-
-
A 'moai', one of the giant head-shaped statues on Easter Island, is to travel to Paris in 2010 to "challenge the materialistic conscience of the world". According to the island government, the statue had "made its wish for travel known to them and wants to be placed in the Tuileries gardens, between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde." Once there, it is going to "spread spiritual energy which will change the conscience of humanity" and "transform the materialistic conscience of the world into something more humane." Incidentally, the travel costs will be paid by French luxury goods company Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy.
I guess even the ancients are not immune.A 'moai', one of the giant head-shaped statues on Easter Island, is to... more
-
-
This is a link to her prolific collection of Mr T dolls, from around the world. Epic. She also really does photograph rock stars, because she is cooler than you.This is a link to her prolific collection of Mr T dolls, from around the world. Epic.... more
-
