Maybe you heard about the deadliest day in Everest history. Most
people understand that climbing is very risky no matter what, but a
recent trend has been shifting the danger from the high-paying Western
customers ($50-90K per person) to the staff of sherpas that climbing
org's employ to "set the table" for the customers. These sherpas
(lowercase "s" for the profession, uppercase "S" for the ethnic group
that represent the vast majority of sherpas) are paid $2-8K per
expedition, with a death insurance of $10.5K to their families. So you
can see where the majority of the profits go.
It's not just financials, but the climbing experience too.
Sherpas have to traverse the more hazardous portions of Everest dozens
of times (maybe even 30) for every one pass from a paying customer. They
haul gear back and forth, set up acclimation camps, and lay down ropes
and ladders. The most dangerous stuff that is usually core to climbing.
Now the paying customers just pack water and a camera, literally. Not
surprisingly, western death rates on the mountain have plummeted in the
last 20 years, but guess who is picking up the slack? Some of this is
due to better use of canned oxygen and dexamethasone (a drug that makes
edema less likely). But O2 is heavy - guess who hauls the cans up and
down for the customers? And most sherpas do not have modern medical
care, so they don't get dex in their villages and their employers don't
seem to want to buy it for them.
Understandably, the sherpas have threatened to strike unless
climbing org's and the Nepalese gov't give them better safety protection
and family benefits. This is coming from a traditionally stoic people.
It would be like if the Hulk tells Capt. America that he is worried
about the next mission - you better freaking pay attention.
The "outsourcing" of risk and concentration of profits stink
of the negative side of globalization. Of course the top climbing org's
are exclusively foreign-owned. Yes the sherpas are paid better than
their next best available employment alternative, but it is not worth a
job that is many times more dangerous than being a soldier in Iraq,
statistically. And remember, Blackwater contractors got six-fig salaries
and hazard bonuses at the expense of the US taxpayer, just to cook or
drive a truck.
I thought the whole point of climbing a mountain was to prove
your mettle? It is you and the rock, not you + an army of support staff
because you can afford it. Of course for such a challenge as Everest, it
is a team effort, but this is not right IMO. Is this just another way
for big shot 1%ers to have a story to tell and show how badass they are?
But in reality, they are only doing about 1% of the work needed to
climb and survive Everest - at the expense of many local deaths. Hey, no
one wants to die - I get that. But then don't climb freaking Everest;
play a round at Pebble. They want their cake and eat it too, like most
everything else in their amazing lives. And it doesn't matter about the
consequences to others. They get what they want because they earned it
and deserve it, just like Romney said.
I hope the sherpa strike works out, and they get at least 75%
of the available profits from expeditions. Because they are the key
resource (like the student athletes vs. the NCAA). Any schmuck can
manage the front desk, assuming zero risk. And maybe the sherpas will
let Joe Wall St. haul his own damn tent and tanks next time, if he is
such a Master of the Universe.
No comments:
Post a Comment