The Democracy Crisis
Yesterday, we had a brunch at the West Campus house. We invited several good friends and some new friends to share some time and visit with Dave T. and P.H. who had come in from the Bay Area for the long weekend. Dave is hugely concerned about climate change and more importantly, deeply consternated over how we don't seem to be doing much about it. (watch)
At the brunch we had several doctors, a lawyer, an architect, an activist, several musicians, a potter, a utility guy, and a business person or two.
For a brief while, we actually focused on climate change....not the science of it, or the potential of it, but how most of us simply put it away in some cubicle in our minds.
Several in the group drive hybrids. A couple of us ride our bikes to work. Most of us give to the right causes. The doctors give their time and skills to the community, to young kids with tattoos, and older ones who have been confined.
Dave talked about his recent communications with Jim Hanson and how important Hanson's study stating that we must return to 350 parts per million of CO2 is. But why do we not act?
One suggested that issues like this are buried and compartmentalized as a defense mechanism.
Respect is the Hub reiterated his plea for Respect. Respect for Others, Self, Place.
Another talked about getting "outside of the Matrix", and understanding that all of our "good behavior" is still very much in the matrix of this culture of growth and plunder.
Another suggested that if corporations insist on being persons, we must begin to actually treat them as persons. That means that if corporations kill and hurt and steal, they like each of us, might be placed in prison, (charter revoked) or in some cases, they might lose their charter forever. (corporate capital punishment)
If corporations were truly responsible persons, many of the issues that we face today would significantly change. For we are, in fact, in a world of sociopathic corporations that roam the earth as giant transnational plunderers, responsible to no authority other than their own boards and the capital markets that reward them for such behavior.
This domination and the perversity of "profit over all "pervades every sector and stratum of our social fabric. This ever present need for profit and market share reared its ugly head last week as ABC in the name of "the People" McCarthyized both democrats, defending their pointed questions by asserting that they were just asking the questions that the "R"s would bring up in the general election.
It is a measure of how "out of whack" things are that they would consider fronting for the opposing party a legitimate purpose of the fifth estate.
A substantial part of the Climate Crisis,
both its genesis and its effective resolution,
is a Democracy Crisis.
And until we understand that,
Neither will be addressed.
And our lives and our consciousness,
will continue the compartmentalization
that allows us to deal with today,
as we divert tomorrow
to another time,
and another place.
At the brunch we had several doctors, a lawyer, an architect, an activist, several musicians, a potter, a utility guy, and a business person or two.
For a brief while, we actually focused on climate change....not the science of it, or the potential of it, but how most of us simply put it away in some cubicle in our minds.
Several in the group drive hybrids. A couple of us ride our bikes to work. Most of us give to the right causes. The doctors give their time and skills to the community, to young kids with tattoos, and older ones who have been confined.
Dave talked about his recent communications with Jim Hanson and how important Hanson's study stating that we must return to 350 parts per million of CO2 is. But why do we not act?
One suggested that issues like this are buried and compartmentalized as a defense mechanism.
Respect is the Hub reiterated his plea for Respect. Respect for Others, Self, Place.
Another talked about getting "outside of the Matrix", and understanding that all of our "good behavior" is still very much in the matrix of this culture of growth and plunder.
Another suggested that if corporations insist on being persons, we must begin to actually treat them as persons. That means that if corporations kill and hurt and steal, they like each of us, might be placed in prison, (charter revoked) or in some cases, they might lose their charter forever. (corporate capital punishment)
If corporations were truly responsible persons, many of the issues that we face today would significantly change. For we are, in fact, in a world of sociopathic corporations that roam the earth as giant transnational plunderers, responsible to no authority other than their own boards and the capital markets that reward them for such behavior.
This domination and the perversity of "profit over all "pervades every sector and stratum of our social fabric. This ever present need for profit and market share reared its ugly head last week as ABC in the name of "the People" McCarthyized both democrats, defending their pointed questions by asserting that they were just asking the questions that the "R"s would bring up in the general election.
It is a measure of how "out of whack" things are that they would consider fronting for the opposing party a legitimate purpose of the fifth estate.
A substantial part of the Climate Crisis,
both its genesis and its effective resolution,
is a Democracy Crisis.
And until we understand that,
Neither will be addressed.
And our lives and our consciousness,
will continue the compartmentalization
that allows us to deal with today,
as we divert tomorrow
to another time,
and another place.
.
.
.
.
Labels: climate change, culture
posted by oZ @ 8:19 AM
1 Comments:
Hey Oz:
Thanks for re-posting my signature post.
No matter how complex the issues facing us, ultimately we have got to keep our final goal simple and universal.
If enough of us ordinary human beings give to the respect, it will grow.
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