Abidjan--Random Thought

So today, I think I solved some of CI's problems. With the dismantlement of the Ivoirian army and the rebel forces, there are many ex-combatants that will need jobs. The rehabilitation and reinsertion commission has done a great job of that. BUT, I have figured out a great civil service job that will help of CI. Garbage men and the construction of dumpsters. That's right. You heard it here first. I want to have the ex-combatants construct dumpsters for CI and then serve as garbage men.

Why? First of all, there is trash and litter everywhere. I mean everywhere. When you walk down the side of the road, you have to dodge all kinds of weird trash. In the abject poverty parts of town, there are hillsides that are covered in trash. It's like Trash Mountain or open landfills. Horrifying. Even our hotel manager, who I think of as being fairly enlightened, threw trash out the window as we were driving down the street. I get anxious when I "litter" fruit peels and I only do so after I rationalize to myself that it's actually better for the Earth if I do that. *sigh* I'm such an American.

Second, I was appalled when I walked past several mounds of festering organs this afternoon. Yep, right next to the stall where they were grilling a quarter of a goat (that the vendor was hoping to sell), there was a mound of boxes and random internal organs. I thought to myself, "Hmm. This walk would be almost pleasant if I didn't have to see a mound of intestines right in front of me. What would solve this problem? Dumpsters!" However, simply having dumpsters wouldn't solve the problem, as seen at the market yesterday. You need people to empty the dumpsters. Who's available to empty dumpsters? Ex-combatants! It's the perfect marriage.

All over the U.S. we have people doing community service cleaning up the sides of roads. CI could very easily employ their ex-combatants. Plus, by working to make their country beautiful, that helps build a sense of pride in their country. Crim kids know that building pride in your community is an important way to stop crime before it starts. Plus, many of the people we have talked to have mentioned the sanitation and potable water situation as a serious concern. By employing ex-combatants to be garbage men you kill two birds with one stone--employ the ex-combatants and get a more sanitary society. I think it's genius, but who knows what will happen?