Why People Do Crazy Things

Many people are so firm in their beliefs that they go through their entire life without questioning them. Even if you debate them and make excellent points, the thought that they could be "wrong" never enters their mind. This is frightening. Every thought, idea, and statement should be up for rational debate.

Now, let's take this to a second level: Many people are so conditioned by their authority figures that they will go through their entire life without questioning them. Thus, we get Jonestown, suicide bombers, and misogynists. Even in the United States, you see this happening on a more subtle level.

A preacher in Dallas, TX recently told his congregation to essentially "black list" any company whose employees did not say, "Merry Christmas." Suddenly, wishing someone a "Happy Holiday" has become offensive. This is just one of many examples.

And this is SOCIAL CONTROL by a religious authority figure.

The antidote to this form of mental abuse is education. Typically, the more you are educated, the more you tend to question. This is terrifying to religious organizations that are unable to withstand much scrutiny without quickly unraveling. The "danger" is that one question always leads to more questions, and before you know it, you have "questioned" yourself into a whole new world. And the beautiful thing is that "questioning" and skepticism will set you free.

When I did deep research into my childhood religion, what I found was shocking, and part of me wanted to hang on to that security blanket, but it was gone forever. But it didn't take me long to realize that "truth" and "reality" are always better than being led on an endless delusion by some preacher or priest. The clergy is NOT going to tell you the "truth" because their career and income depend on you being blinded with ignorance. And don't worry, our U.S. plutocracy relies on the same sort of control.

Just as I was dwelling on these points, and the hopelessness of the uneducated followers, I came across the latest video by my colleague, Laci Green. Laci is a former Morman and currently a teacher and college student. Her short video is eye-opening and dead on.

Note: This video contains some vulgar words. If you are easily offended, please don't watch. Laci is a rough kid.

Closure

If everything is going so right, why do I feel so empty? Who are these demons inside my body who continually torment me? Where do I get this sense of restlessness and uneasiness from?

Billions of little impulses bounce around in my mind as I try to make sense of it all. I have everything, yet I have nothing. I have joy, yet I have misery. Whenever there is sunlight, there is darkness that lurks underneath. Life is a stage, and I am but an actor. We all play our games, and many strive for wealth, but in the end, no one wins.

A 35-year-old thought that never leaves my head: Why would we try to containerize God with some man made religion? Doesn't that undermine his greatness? Why can't all the religious people in the world give up their fabricated religions so that we could all just worship God, in harmony?

Back On Track

After much soul searching for the past few months, I've decided that the best course I can take to save the world is to simply "stay the course." I am on the state board of a nonprofit environmental organization. I now see that my calling is to simply give this position my best. I also do other volunteer work and I have a demanding job, so, I'm really doing all that I can do.

Warned Out

I know what's going to happen to the Earth and our civilization. I've posted warnings on this blog and on Facebook, and few people take notice. What bothers me the most are the people who are so religiously indoctrinated that their minds are completely closed — they represent the sad part of humanity.

I realize that few people are going to listen to me, and I've noticed that most people are self-absorbed in their own "thing" and often only listen to others out of politeness. I mean, I find, the entire human interaction thing fascinating.

The religious and pro-business zealots will just keep doing their thing, and they'll get angry (thus, the Tea Party) and they'll get depressed (Prozac), and in the end, their fragile bodies will wither away just as easily as those of the liberals, and socialists, and commies. We will all arrive at the same place, and it won't be the Sheraton, and it won't be a golden mansion. It will simply be nothingness and peace, and in some crazy way, that is fine with me.

I know I should do more for the environmental cause, but I would be pushing myself to "stress out" levels again, and I'll just get burnt out and bitter again. So, I'm thinking that doing less but remaining steady is the answer.

I now see that I am addicted to "passion" because it gives me a sort of high, happiness, and fulfillment. Yet, passion is vain because you always want more, and you always want it more intense, and soon you find yourself lost in your own mythological world searching for more .... well, passion. I now wonder if passion is simply the "high" I obtain for pursuing and/or longing for things I can never have. If I can have it, secure it, own it, capture it ... then there is no longer passion.

End of Sermon

To those who flick their cigarette butts out the window, or walk around extremely obese, or pickle your liver with alcohol, I salute you. For you are the vanguard and representatives of a shallow, dysfunctional, and lost civilization. You represent the excesses of a defiled society, and for that I owe you a certain admiration. God bless America, and God bless God, and God bless the ancient Egyptians for defining him so well, and God bless the Hebrews for plagiarizing, and God bless that salvationist splinter group, which was adopted by a dying empire, to hold it together. God bless the pope, for he represents the Roman Emperors who could not give up, and simply found a more creative way to achieve immortality.

And, most importantly, God bless America, as well as its 500 overseas military installations, which keep the defense contractors rich and pour trillions into our economy, and the economies of other nations.

And God bless the corporations, who make us slaves, who cheat us from our retirement savings, and then kick us out on the streets. The people who built these organizations are hard-working Americans, who represent all that is good in our great country, and when they hit the top, they find that they can save money by paying children in Indonesia or Malaysia to do the same job that an adult once did in Indiana. And so goes the American dream, although the patriots are wrapped in their flag too tightly to breathe, much less think.

Pre Apocalyptic Ramblings

As we approach the end of the Industrial Age I think a lot about what I should do. Hording food is a waste of time, since organized raiding parties will quickly steal it, and you might even become food yourself.

The best chance for survival is to rough it on your own, in the deep wilderness. Heavily populated areas will be the worst place to be -- there will be vicious food wars and extreme violence, and eventually the warlords will take over. Life under a warlord may be better than the wilderness, but it will likely be short. Warlord clans will continually fight for domination, and the hierarchy within each group will be determined by "survival of the fittest." If you can't fight or provide an essential service, like making explosives or growing food, then there will be no need for you.

Any area that's heavily populated will experience massive "adjustment." The mass death, rape, pillaging, torture, and cannibalism won't be fun.

The safest place in the world will be the northern arctic regions like Siberia and northern Canada. These areas will hardly feel the global collapse. In fact, energy-rich Russia will get through it relatively intact.

The debt crises will be the first round, as Europe, the United States, and much of Asia sink into a global depression. Oil shortages will be the second round, and will make energy and food unaffordable. The third phase will be a series of short, intense wars, with a few nukes likely going off. These wars will be for resources, and will be fought with savagery, since people will literally be fighting for sheer survival.

Nature has stood quietly as mindless humans have exploded their population, fouled the air and water, and deforested the continents. Now, Mother Nature will spring the trap and get her revenge on billions of people.

Those who survive the carnage will be stronger and smarter. Hopefully, the new generation that spawns from our collapsed civilization will be more kind to the Earth, and will create a world that focuses on respect for life and nature rather than greed and short-term gain. The new world will be greener, quieter, and hopefully more compassionate.

As for me, I'm 50 years old, and I see no sense in going through a lot of trouble to save myself. I really dread starving or dying by violence. I might try living in the forest for a little while, just because I've always liked the woods. I doubt I'll have the skills to survive long. Perhaps I should check out a few library books before the collapse.

As for the guilt of bringing children into this world, I will do all I can to increase their chances of survival. I will do whatever I can to help and save them. But I need to let go of the guilt. I've spent years as an environmentalist and have tried to do what little I can, while still maintaining a job and raising a family. What I have done is light years more than the religious fanatics, who spend much of their money and time supporting a social organization that simply entertains them, makes them feel good, and perpetuates their delusions. And what I've done is tons more than the corporate warriors who dedicate their lives to the pursuit of making more money, so they can travel more, buy more crap, and basically become a bigger drag on the Earth.

So, in the next few years, I will have to go through all this survival crap, and, again, I'm totally dreading it. I think about the billions of poor people in Africa and Asia who will go quickly and painfully. I grieve for all the upcoming suffering.

As I regularly mention, all of this can be avoided because we have the knowledge and technology to live sustainability, but those people who are screaming warnings to the world are simply ignored and brushed off as liberal wackos. The typical human would rather adapt and self-delude his or her self rather than try to tackle the world's problems.

The rambling preachers and politicians have all had their say, and basically they have said nothing. Now, it is Mother Nature's turn.

To Save Or Not Save the World

Lately I have been living with great guilt for bringing children into this world. I know what is just around the corner, and I know what they'll be facing. My natural reaction is to try and do something about it, but what? There are dozens of organizations who are addressing the world's problems from many different angles. My goal is to find a volunteer movement that will have the most effective results for my limited volunteer time. But what?

When I first got back into environmentalism in 1997 I decided that the most important issue was global overpopulation, and I STILL think it's a top issue. I spent hundreds of hours creating a local population group, marching in parades, tabling at events, organizing forums, and giving presentations. Ultimately, I think I accomplished a little, but not much.

My fellow activists said I should "Think Global, But Act Local," so I got involved in a wide range of issues ranging from urban sprawl to stream buffer protection. I also worked in the campaigns of green politicians and organized against the bad politicians. On the county level, I did enjoy fair success knocking out developer puppets on county commissions and replacing them with greenies. But, eventually, those green politicians either moved on or were corrupted.

By 2003 I realized that overpopulation and global warming were simply symptoms of some global inner struggle. Our technology seems to have advanced faster than our maturity as a species.

The Logical Song

At age 50, my main conclusion is that humans in general are simply far less intelligent than I ever imagined. People are simply dumb, especially those who smoke. Humans are also petty, self-centered, disconnected, and most are incapable of critical thinking.

Being the hopelessly logical person that I am, I thought we could just say, "Here's a problem, now let's all work together to fix it." In fact, when I was working on overpopulation I felt that I could present a sensible argument and that people would say, "Yeah, you're right, let's fix that."

But the push back I see with any new idea or progressive proposal is simply incredible. For instance, with global warming, much of the general public simply doesn't care or is too stupid to know better, and then the handful of smarter ones simply deny it. Working behind the scenes are powerful special interest groups, with tons of money, who strongly influence the media, and would prefer that things remain "as is."

Cycles

I am now thinking that civilization simply operates in cycles, and there is NOTHING I can do to prevent our impending economic and ecological collapse. Great civilizations have died before, and we've certainly experienced the Dark Ages before. Thus, history is repeating itself and we are about to go through it all again. Who am I to resist?

The human dieoff part will be the worst. The abundance of cheap petroleum is supporting an artificially large population. When fuel becomes scarce, the population will shrink back to sustainable levels. Nature will do the job that we "smart" humans are incapable of doing ourselves. Unfortunately, the "adjustment" will not be pleasant. On top of everything else, I'm sure we can expect to see some all-out desperate wars.

New Beginnings

Colleagues tell me that nature always recovers from the havoc caused by humans. Some of the richest ecological areas are places where humans are not allowed, such as the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea, or the land that's cordoned off around Chernobyl. I'm not sure of that at all -- it is completely possible for us to do irreparable harm to the planet.

But, you know, I'm now thinking that's okay. In the vastness of the Universe, with its trillions of stars, I'm betting that there is a handful of other Earth-like planets. My hope is that if some intelligent species ever evolves on them, that they will treat their planet better than we treated ours.

Capitalism Mythology

Yesterday after our Thanksgiving feast, I enjoyed a nice talk with my father-in-law about capitalism.

He was offended when I said that capitalism is unsustainable. He felt I was attacking free enterprise, and assumed I was advocating socialism instead. He said that there is nothing wrong with someone becoming wealthy through hard work. He said there is not a single country where socialism has succeeded, and that the incentive of profit is needed to motivate people.

I pointed out to him that with unfettered capitalism, the money simply rises to the top. I said that when 5% of the world's population control 40% of the world's wealth, there is a problem. And when you are rich, it's easier to accumulate more wealth. I also pointed out that the middle class are becoming the lower class, and can't afford to buy all the crap that made the rich people rich in the first place. Thus, we have the sinkhole in which capitalism collapses.

I finished the conversation by saying the solution is not socialism, but socially responsible capitalism. On the way home, I realized that this is a fallacy as well. Only government can control capitalism, and that means a larger and more intrusive government. Since the government seems to screw up nearly everything it does, I doubt that they could properly reign in capitalism, which tends to treat humans as a commodity rather than people.

So, I guess the only solution is that capitalists should self-regulate. They must adopt the attitude of not just focusing on the bottom line, but also being environmentally and socially responsible, and, most importantly, remembering that they should also try to provide some decent paying jobs for American citizens. Hey, there is an advantage to that. If you outsource ALL the jobs, there won't be anyone to buy your product.

I don't think most people are intentionally greedy, but the system we operate in IS inherently greedy. There is pressure at all levels of a corporation to turn a good quarterly profit, which increases stock value, and, in turn, means more bonuses and dividends.

I am not sure that sustainable capitalism will EVER work. But, anyway, I digress. Here is a quote from columnist and blogger Chris Hedges:

It is not accidental that the economic crisis will converge with the environmental crisis. In his book The Great Transformation (1944), Karl Polanyi laid out the devastating consequences the depressions, wars and totalitarianism that grow out of a so-called self-regulated free market. He grasped that "fascism, like socialism, was rooted in a market society that refused to function." He warned that a financial system always devolves, without heavy government control, into a Mafia capitalism and a Mafia political system which is a good description of our financial and political structure. "A self-regulating market", Polanyi wrote, "turns human beings and the natural environment into commodities, a situation that ensures the destruction of both society and the natural environment". The free market's assumption that nature and human beings are objects whose worth is determined by the market allows each to be exploited for profit until exhaustion or collapse. A society that no longer recognizes that nature and human life have a sacred dimension, an intrinsic value beyond monetary value, commits collective suicide. Such societies cannibalize themselves until they die. This is what we are undergoing.

Polanyi is insistent that "laissez-faire was planned; planning was not." He explicitly attacks market liberals who blamed a "collectivist conspiracy" for erecting protective barriers against the working of global markets. He argues, instead, that this creation of barriers was a spontaneous and unplanned response by all groups in society against the impossible pressures of a self-regulating market system. The protective countermovement had to happen to prevent the disaster of a disembedded economy. Polanyi suggests that movement toward a laissez-faire economy needs the countermovement to create stability. When, for example, the movement for laissez-faire is too powerful, as in the 1920s (or the 1990s) in the United States, speculative excesses and growing inequality destroy the foundations for continuing prosperity. And although Polanyi's sympathies are generally with the protective countermovement, he also recognizes that it can sometimes create a dangerous political-economic stalemate. His analysis of the rise of fascism in Europe acknowledges that when neither movement was able to impose its solution to the crisis, tensions increased until fascism gained the strength to seize power and break with both laissez-faire and democracy.

Industrial Collapse

Photo credit: KWAB

It is Thanksgiving morning, 2010. As I sit on my bed writing this entry I ponder over the collapse of the Industrial Age.

Two cats are keeping my feet warm at the foot of the bed. My wife is in the kitchen making a yummy side dish for our Thanksgiving feast. Life is good.

Garbage
Yes, count me in for some of that liberal guilt. I'll take a round, baby. A waste management engineer once told me that landfills are made in giant bowls, with some sort of lining. When they are full, they are vented, covered with dirt, and all that fast food plastic has a 1,000 years to decay. The waste from the Happy Meals I bought my children 15 years ago are now rotting in some landfill. Tons of methane is rising from the heated pile of crap. Some of this methane is piped and used for "green" energy, but most goes into the atmosphere, where it becomes the worst type of global warming gas.

So, think for a moment, if it takes 1,000 years for all the landfill crap to decay, just how many more landfills will we need in 1,000 years? If we continue at our current pace, there will be hundreds of capped landfills all over the place, emitting tons of methane gas. Is this sustainable?

Chemicals
The average person uses dozens of chemicals, all designed for one purpose -- to make us happy. Some chemicals make us feel better while others make us look better. Much of this crap either ends up in a septic tank or in a sewage system. Since the Industrial Age began, we've created several thousand chemicals, and we don't know exactly how they interact with one another, or how they affect our health and environment over the long-term. Most of the chemicals we buy have long names that we can't even pronounce, yet we have no problem pouring the shit down the drain.

Air/Water Pollution
From cigarette smokers to nasty factories, we are belching tons of crap into our oceans, rivers, lakes, and air. Again, we don't know how all of the waste products interact with one another, and we don't know exactly what are are doing to our long-term health. Again, all this crap is emitted for a single purpose -- to make us happy, and to make our lives more comfortable.

So....
Excuse me, but am I the only one missing the insanity of our situation? We are poisoning the Planet and jeopardizing our health, and the health of all living creatures, just so that WE CAN HAVE SHORT TERM COMFORT. Is that absolutely stupid or what?

The Way We Am
Admittedly, not much has changed since the 1950s. If you look around, you just see people doing what they've ALWAYS done, and what their parents did. No one gives a second thought about jumping into their massive SUV, idling 10 minutes in a McDonald's drive-thru, and then rotting their insides out with a McNasty burger. Why? Because everyone is doing it, and it's ALWAYS been done that way.

Conservative Backlash
Right now we have the Tea Party and other conservative groups rabidly screaming that they DON'T WANT CHANGE. They say they want to get back to the "old ways," and then they start rambling about value concepts, like family, God, and country. They want to be comforted with their illusions as they cuddle by the fireplace with Sarah Palin's latest book. Their delusional values give them comfort, while their Prozac infested poop is flushed into the water system and absorbed by some innocent fish. And, it's for the better because now the fish is no longer depressed about the fouling of its water. And meanwhile, church people hold hands around a bond fire, sing songs, and discuss how Glenn Beck is still their leader, even though he's a Mormon.

Selfish Gene
I half think that people AREN'T inherently selfish. It's just that we have to be selfish because everyone else is selfish. We all have to fight for our own survival. This creates a vicious circle where everyone has to be more selfish to out-compete other selfish people. In the end, our health, environment, sanity, and the well-being of other wildlife are forgotten. But the important thing is that we have tons of chemicals in our bathroom cabinet to make us smell better, look better, and, ultimately, feel better. And, meanwhile, our society collapses under the weight of our own indifference.

Spitting Out the Kool-Aid

I feel different and isolated from most people in the world. I feel like a loner. When I'm with my mother and siblings, it always feels awkward. Long ago I threw out the mythological dogma that enslaved me, and they don't understand why.

My mother, especially, is a ravenous defender of the status quo. She is the greatest prisoner I know to her own indoctrination. She feels that society should return to the 1950s, which was the perfect, idyllic time for her. Any kind of reasoning with her is dismissed. If it's not the Devil behind our global problems, then it's "worldly" and "immoral" people in general who are causing our downfall.

Moving On

If humanity continues its current course, we will soon destroy ourselves both environmentally and economically. There are many debates on the true source of this problem, and some people point to "greed" and "selfishness." Others point out the lack of "critical thinking" in our society, and still others say we need to "mature" more as a species. Well, I think all the above are correct.

Solving the Problem

What can I do as just one of nearly 7 billion humans? The biggest problem is my inability to crack the walls that people have built around themselves. They have all drank the red Kool-Aid of consumerism, God, guns, and country, and they have mixed all of this together to create a bizarre set of values that have nothing to do with our need to survive.

Environmentalists are branded "extreme" and "radical," which certainly is easier than dealing with any problem. If someone starts talking about our environmental ills, they are simply considered "liberals," and the masses of sheep move on with their meaningless, empty, and self-destructive lives.

I can't awaken them, nor can I get them to see that their minds are filled with lies, propagated by those who benefit from the status quo. The myth that the United States is always "good," that there is some deity in the sky that micro-manages our lives, and that buying things helps the economy are all LIES that are drilled into our heads. Yet, people rarely challenge them.

How Do I React?

Am I depressed? Hell yeah, I'm depressed. There are times when I don't want to do anything except sleep. The stupidity of the last election was depressing, Fox News is depressing, the Tea Party is depressing. Americans appear to have sunk to a new low in their insanity, which I guess is a coping mechanism. And as the world gets more screwed up, by their own ignorant indifference, then the masses of sheep will become even more disconnected, disoriented, and generally crazy. Will there be violence? Yes, eventually.

Positive Notes

There are a couple of signs that are positive:

• More women in politics. I was thrilled to see so many female candidates in the mid-term elections. This gives me hope. Total equality for women is, in my opinion, crucial for sustainability. As more women enter the political arena, I can't help but believe they will insert more reason and concern for the environment into our government. They are the mothers who are bringing children into this screwed up world, so I really think that they will insert a sensitivity that few males would ever have.
  
  
• Church membership in decline. Now, here is the really exciting news -- when you Google "declining membership" you will see a long list of articles on how most Christian denominations are losing members by the droves. This is a good thing because Christianity is completely disconnected from the environment and our need to survive (they only teach you illusions). Now, Christianity teaches many good things, like the Golden Rule, but as soon as the sheep leave the church and pack out the restaurants, all the good things are promptly ignored. So, really, I see little use for organized religion. Worse yet, religion is the antithesis for critical thinking. Church is a place where asking tough questions makes you "sacrilegious" or a "heretic." The idea is that if you ask a tough question about the Holy Bible you are "questioning God," which, apparently, pisses him off. Or, more likely, people can't stand the idea that the mythology they've invested their lives into is an illusion. There is a LOT of emotionalism involved. People get defensive not because you are questioning God, but because you are questioning THEIR BELIEF.

In Conclusion

Okay, while I stay depressed a lot because of our species suicide, these past few years have also been the best years of my life, mainly due to some special people I've become friends with. These individuals have opened my eyes and given me more pieces to the puzzle of life. For the past few years, I've felt that the puzzle is almost complete, and I'm wondering if I've hit the last wall, or if there are more doors to open. I feel like I have a grasp on our current challenge, so I guess the next step is to take action. But I haven't figured out how yet. The best I can do is to put little cracks into people's sacred belief systems. When they see my thinking does not conform to their rigid worldview, they do try to ostracize me. I had one high school classmate who recently "defriended" me on Facebook, and my mother uses the tactic of making me feel like a "bad person" for not conforming to the institutional status quo. But, all in all, the best form of punishment for my nonconformism is to simply isolate me, and that's one area where "the world" has done a pretty good job. For the most part, I am all alone. Even my own wife and children have drank the societal Kool-Aid and have savored every last drop.

And what's really odd is that people who are indoctrinated call ME indoctrinated. So, maybe I am indoctrinated by the liberal elite, and I just don't know it. But the difference between me and the sheep is that I question EVERYTHING and don't accept any kind of pre-packaged dogma. So, maybe I'm just indoctrinated at a different level. Maybe, but I doubt it.

Trapped In A Box

I try to explain to people all the time how we are "trapped in a box." It's hard for me to verbalize it. Even some of my seasoned environmentalist colleagues don't understand. The best way to understand is to read the book Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, which is the best book I ever read.

I've also become a big fan of movie producer Peter Joseph, who has become my new hero. I don't agree with everything he says, but the dude definitely "gets it."

Here is a fascinating quote that he gave during an interview:

Anyone who chooses to challenge establishment orthodoxy; traditional world views, not to mention the system we live in, sets themselves up for venomous attacks. I am well aware of this.

If you look back at the history of anyone who has chosen to challenge the establishment it’s a very dark history. There are a great number of people out there that know something is wrong. But, they do not understand the source of that wrongness because they are “in the box” of indoctrination.

Socrates never speculated on the slavery that was existing during his time; that was normality to him. This goes with every type of political philosopher that’s ever existed, whether it is Karl Marx, whether it’s Plato; they’re all locked into an established paradigm and their thought processes can only go so far; and this probably includes myself.

People are locked into a box. They see the box around them; they see the leaks, the holes, and the cracks. And they go up to the cracks and try to fix them; they try to patch the holes. But they don’t stop to think that maybe there’s something wrong with the box itself. Maybe the integrity of the box that they exist, live in, is inherently invalid, it’s inherently void.

The economic system that we live in is a parasitic paradigm that is only going to lead to self destruction, but people don’t see that. So, if you attack the economic system for what it actually is, everyone’s feathers go up.

Everyone says, “Well, wait a minute. This is the world we all live. We live in a profit based, labor for income world, cyclical consumption; this is what we’re used to. We understand we have division of classes.” They throw in human nature, they throw in everything that will try and make it seem like it’s a part of the natural order of reality, when in fact it is not.

Wow! I have regularly advertised his Zeitgeist movies, and I strongly recommend that them to everyone. Below is an excerpt from Zeitgeist: Addendum, which discusses religious thinking. It has really been on my mind today.

Feeding Lemmings

This morning I had an epiphany! The economy didn't crash because of poor regulation. Rather, it crashed because bankers were running out of people to loan their cheap money to. After a while, they got less picky and started giving mortgage loans to virtually anyone.

But it wasn't their fault! This was necessary to keep the economic engine alive. The banks had to find a place to funnel all that Federal Reserve money, and property was the ideal investment. And with all those dollars chasing property, real estate went up, meaning more equity for home owners, less riskier investments for banks, and more tax revenue for state and local governments. What a grant deal it was for EVERYONE.

Until it all collapsed ...

And it simply collapsed because the banks ran out of credit-worthy people to give cheap loans to.

The Sham

The Federal Reserve is a criminal organization that generates quick wealth and then passes on the debt to our children. This wealth is created by buying securities from big banks and giving them cash to loan.

In a carefully planned racket, the banks then loan out the money to consumers and companies, which results in short-term business expansion and job creation.

But who is paying for this cheap money? YOU ARE!!! That's because every time the Fed dumps money into the economy, there is inflation. If you are a responsible person who saves money, the value of your savings shrinks due to intentional inflation. In effect, inflation is a tax that is imposed upon you. And in effect, you are subsidizing cheap mortgages and business loans. Do you think a bank could really afford to give a 3% loan without subsidization? HA! Your children and grandchildren will be paying the loan's true worth in the form of NATIONAL DEBT!

Debt is Evil

The Federal Reserve is a Ponzi scheme that can only work by accumulating more DEBT. As our government takes on more debt, that means more money is spent paying interest (usually to overseas investors) instead of going back into the economy.

If we had a balanced budget, I wouldn't mind paying taxes because every one dollar I gave to Uncle Sam would go back out into the economy. But right now, many of my dollars are going to CHINA!

Now, Uncle Sam is in a bad predicament, because he is one of the biggest customers in the economy, and if he is spending all his money on foreign interest payments instead of providing goods and services to the people, two bad things happen: 1) Social upheaval, and 2) Uncle Sam must borrow EVEN MORE money to keep the economy alive. As you can see, this creates a vicious downward circle.

Tea Party Wrath

Tea Party folks are pissed off, and I don't blame them. They know something bad is going on, but haven't figured out exactly what. Certainly, our last two presidents and Congress should be held accountable for the serious financial crimes they committed -- the bailouts and stimulus plan. But don't get so mad at them because they were under intense pressure from the banks to take action. This is really bad because instead of punishing Wall Street we rewarded them. The public was told that the bailouts were necessary to avoid a depression, which is just another of the many lies we are fed daily. The truth is that the bailouts ensured that the rich and powerful stayed, well, rich and powerful. And that is the entire point of the Federal Reserve System.

Environmentalists, Wake Up!

Environmentalists are a noble lot, but they are always chasing symptoms instead of addressing root causes. It is the Federal Reserve that has gunned the throttle and caused our economy to grow at an artificially rapid pace. All the cheap money for loan allowed developers to have a feeding frenzy on green space. The rapid growth polluted our air and water, and masses of human laborers were needed to work in the economy, and thus, mass immigration. As an environmentalist, the best thing you can do is work to dismantle the Federal Reserve.

Life Without the Fed

Without the Federal Reserve, life would be slower, but more sustainable. Loans would be hard to get and expensive (since they won't be subsidized by your children). This will force people and companies to live within their means. This means that individuals and businesses will actually have to save up for something before they buy it. Holy crap, this is the way people USED TO LIVE!

Alongside all this cheap loan money, we've created a culture of consumption. Everyone has to have everything, and they want it now. Cheap and plentiful credit is the cocaine that keeps everyone high and happy. But trust me, you really don't need all your crap. You really don't need to put Christmas shopping on your credit card. You really don't.

Inner Destruction

The Fed has done more than just destroy our economy -- they've also destroyed our souls. So many people now grab on to materialism to provide their "high" and short-term happiness. Few people save, and, hell, it doesn't make sense to save anyway since the Fed-induced inflation will eat it away. So, people live for the present, and on credit.

Summary

The two best things we can do for the economy is to balance the national budget and dump the Fed. This is only fair, since passing our debt to a future generation is both immoral and unethical. I'm surprised since parents will sacrifice greatly for their children to give them a comfortable life and education, but the crushing national debt is not on their radar screen.

Wake up, America!

The Trashcan Novel

All my life I've dreamed of becoming a writer. I wrote my first short story in the third grade. By age 11 I was writing regularly. I loved satire, and found it amusing when I got in trouble with my sixth grade teacher, Ms. Roache, who pulled me aside and lectured me about my "attitude." She was concerned about my suggestion of bombing China (it was SATIRE). Of course, it was hard to take serious someone who was named after a dirty insect.

Things got better in my junior high years, and I had teachers who took an interest in my writing and were extremely supportive. In those days they had a cool program called independent studies, which allowed you to create your own elective, provided that you had a sponsoring teacher. You would work in the teacher's classroom or in the library during their planning periods. I chose a creative writing program, and for two years I did nothing but write for an hour each day.

In the eighth grade I started my first novel, titled "War Without A Cause." The theme of the book is that this secret army was going to invade the world and make everything better. They were going to put an end to crime, hunger, corruption, and everything bad in the world. They eventually grew in numbers, invaded the Soviet Union, and, finally, the United States.

During my adolescent years, my writing slowed down because of my interest in girls. But I did take a creative writing class during my senior year of high school. Once again, the teacher took my satire literally and gave me a "C" in the course -- one of only a couple of C's I received all year. I didn't mind because I appreciated the fact that my teacher didn't "get it."

In college, I began writing furiously during the summers and Christmas breaks. I started a few more books, including my first attempt at sci-fi. I found that when I was depressed I did the most writing, and I went through a lot of emotional ups and downs during my college years.

I got married in 1983, and said, "now that I'm settling down, I can really focus on my writing." My wife allowed me to get a fancy, IBM Selectric typewriter, and in the evenings after work, I would go into our spare room and write. More books were started, but never finished. These included "The Battlefield Life" and "The Trashcan Novel."

"The Trashcan Novel" is one of my favorite works. It was inspired by a fellow staffer on my college newspaper. He was in love with another writer on the staff. When she gave him the "let's be friends" line he was crushed. One day he came into the newspaper office looking like a wreck. He said, "I spent the entire night writing a 50-page poem, and then I threw it in the trash." That struck me as being beautifully profound, and he became the main character in my book.

In the following years, I had two children and became involved in other things, like computer user groups. I didn't do much writing.

In 1993 I had some scary health problems and ended up in the hospital. I really thought that I was going to die. When I got out, I went into the attic and threw a large portion of my writings away. I felt that much of my work was depressing, and I never wanted my daughters to see them. Throwing these manuscripts away is something I deeply regret to this day.

In the 1990s, I continued my writing in the newsletters of groups I was involved with — my computer user group, church, and, later, my local Sierra Club newsletter. I particularly enjoyed writing and debating on environmental discussion lists. I regularly received compliments on my writing, and people appeared to particularly enjoy my rants.

I used my writing talents for the environmental cause, and got one op-ed and a handful of letters published in the local press. I also started creating websites and placing my essays online. In 2004, I started blogging.

Now, it's 2010 and I'm 50 years old. I still haven't written a single, completed book, although I have many ideas in my head. My dream and hope is that one day, before my life is over, I'll get to actually finish a book. Even if it's not published, it will be a great personal accomplishment that I will be very proud of. Maybe, just maybe, if I can ever find the time ....

The Goose

The New World

In the new world I envision there will be peace. Capitalism will live, but people will have a sense of working for the greater good.

Logic will prevail, and people will be rational. Religion will be put in its proper place, next to Santa Claus and Zeus.

There will be no borders, and people will move freely about the planet. Poverty will be eliminated because every nation will disband their military, and there will be more resources to assist all.

We will mature as a species, and learn tolerance and open-mindedness. We will learn to LISTEN to one another. We will learn sensitivity and compassion.

There won't be smokers, and people won't fling their cigarette butts and trash out their windows.

People will work together to keep our planet clean and green. We will respect the Earth and our fellow animal species.

We will learn to love one another, instead of being divisive. We will understand that we can accomplish more as a collective team rather than individually.

There will be one world government, but it will be run by the people instead of corporations and special interest groups. Each nation will become a state. The government will be a democracy, and people will understand that for democracy to work, we must each participate.

Government will serve the people, and not control them. Corporations will be a place where we work to earn a living, not living entities that manipulate global policy.

Are you dreaming, Goose?

Yeah, I'm dreaming, sure. But I see hopeful signs each day. I see real progress in ending the War Against Gays, and that's encouraging. I see more people and companies becoming environmentally aware.

But, on the downside, I see a new generation of young people who are apathetic and politically detached. Most of them just wander through life, obsessed with instant gratification and comfort, and totally confused as to why their quality of life isn't as good as their parents'. This is the Nothingness Generation, and I don't think they will be the ones to pull us through. Well, maybe the following generation will get us through.

And, most likely, we'll need a complete economic and civil crash before we wake up and learn that "it's not all about us." We need to learn that it's also about other humans and other creatures.

Maybe, just maybe, one day humans will "get it."

Tea Party Goosonomics

We are in the worst recession since the 1930s and many people are suffering. The thing is, most people don't really understand WHY the economy has fallen apart.

I, the Goose, wish to make a few rambling statements on our current screwed up state of affairs:

Debt
I don't mind paying state taxes because Georgia must balance its budget by law. That means the tax money I give to Uncle Sonny immediately goes back into the economy.

On the other hand, I HATE giving tax money to Uncle Sam because much of this money is NOT going back into the economy. Rather, it is being used to pay interest on debt. The sad thing is that most of this debt is owned by foreigners (can you say "China?"), so the money is being DRAINED from the economy. As our country sinks deeper into debt, less money is going back to benefit Americans. So, our horrible Congress spends more, and the downward spiral continues.

The solution is for the U.S. Congress to immediately pass a balanced budget act, and FAST.

Now, the Tea Partiers want taxes cut, but they never mention what services they want cut in return. If you corner them, they will mumble something like, "cut government waste." Now, that is possibly code words for "reduce services to the poor." But, okay, giving them the benefit of the doubt, let's say we cut government waste. HOWEVER, the problem is that most of our taxes go to transfer payments, that is Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid (40%). For 2009, 4 percent went to TARP, which makes me too foaming mad to talk about, so I won't elaborate on that. And then 23% goes to defense spending, which allows us to engage in endless wars and kill Muslims from drones. Funny that conservative folks tell me that President Obama is a secret Muslim because he sure has killed a lot of them.

But I digress ... the point is that Tea Partiers don't want to cut THEIR OWN benefits, nor do they want to cut their beloved military (after all, they are called Tea Party PATRIOTS), yet these are the areas where most of the money is going.

Immigration
Sorry to keep picking on Tea Partiers today, but Tea Partiers have no problem picking on poor illegal immigrants. They keep screaming something about the illegals "stealing our jobs." Hell, do you really want to pick lettuce all day? The funny thing is that I don't hear conservatives screaming about the millions of our jobs exported overseas. That is another big cash drain on our economy. At least the illegal aliens are putting money BACK into the economy through rent, sales tax, and the purchase of consumables.

Also, I would like to point out that illegal immigration has gone way down since the recession started. So, like most Tea Party issues, this issue is a crock of poop.

I realize that my own theory to the job drain is controversial, but I link it to global overpopulation. Our jobs our going to countries that are overpopulated, which dilutes the labor wage. So, to the Chinese and Indians, hey, I have a plan -- let's all have less babies. This will create a labor shortage, forcing companies to pay us more. It's basic economics, man. And you Indian and Chinese friends will not only get a better wage, but we Americans will get a break, because it will be less profitable for U.S. firms to export our jobs. I'm just sayin' ... you know, just an idea.

Medical Sector
The medical sector of our economy is doing quite well. Regretfully, it is a major drag on our economy. Nearly every American pays a sizable chunk of cash so that they can feel better and live longer. New technologies allow us to live longer, but they are extremely expensive. Plus, as we live longer we are a drain on insurance companies, Medicare, and Medicaid. Thus, once again, we have a horrible, downward spiral. The hard truth is that the longer we live, the more we place a drag on the economy. Oh sure, we're pumping billions into the medical sector, but the young people aren't putting enough money back into the system.

The current U.S. medical system is really designed for revenue and not for health. Face it, the medical institutions do not have a vested interest to get you well and quickly, since sick people bring in major money. The clinics and hospitals can squeeze the insurance companies, and the insurance companies can simply raise premiums.

I really like the Kaiser Permanente model, which is more like a health subscription service rather than insurance. If we have many subscription health programs competing in the open market, they would have a financial interest in keeping you well, so that they could keep their subscriptions low, to make them more efficient.

While I applaud the Democrats for passing the health care bill, which is more than the GOP could have ever done, I regret to say that the legislation is a huge, muddled mess. I believe that an advanced society should provide universal health care for its citizens — we just haven't arrived there yet.

Also, for those who call me a liberal, please sit down because what I am about to say will shock you: I don't think companies should be obligated to provide health care. That is simply a benefit they may offer to attract the best workers. If we had more subscription based health plans, there would be more emphasis on wellness and more affordable care for all. But right now, the health care system is only a step away from organized crime, and they are raking in billions, so any meaningful change to the current system will be difficult.

So, I'm bringing this up, and please forgive me, but the videos I saw of the Tea Partiers in Washington, DC showed that most of them were obese. So, really guys, if you want to help the economy go to the gym.

Energy
Now, here is an economic sector that swims in money. But many experts say that we reached Peak Oil and that supplies will only go down. I can assure you that when our economy cranks up again, we will be hit in the face with a huge increase in energy costs, which will take much steam out of the recovery. We can beat this bullet by taking a few billion from the American war machine and diverting it to green energy research. This will do more for peace than building a few more stealth bombers. We HAVE the technology right now for a green economy, and we just need a little more research to make it viable. Once it is viable, we can start investing in green infrastructure. And at the same time we can create a wonderful green energy industry, and we can export our technology to China so they can start giving America some money, instead of us giving them all of ours. There is a real opportunity in this area, but our incompetent, disoriented, and totally dysfunctional federal government has made little progress in this area.

I know you Tea Partiers don't believe in Global Climate Change, and you probably don't believe in Peak Oil either. But I do know you don't like our reliance on foreign energy sources, and I know that you understand how dysfunctional this makes our foreign relations. I think we can all agree on that. And, shoot, relying on other countries for our energy ain't patriotic (oh right, we'll just drill more).

Social Security
The Tea Partiers love to scream the word "socialism," however all of us our socialists. Let's look at the facts. I can say that myself, and all my friends, are pretty stable people and we could probably create retirement accounts without the government's help. But, I know that many people do not have stable lives, and that's often no fault of their own. Due to a variety of reasons, people may simply not be able to save for retirement their entire lives. So, I don't mind being a socialist a little bit to create a government retirement pool, to ensure that others have social security, even though they've had some trips and falls in life. And I may have a fall tomorrow, so I think Social Security is a smart idea. Should we let people opt out of the system? I'm inclined to say "no" because even the luckiest person in the world can have a complete turnaround tomorrow. Social Security reminds us that we are all in this together.

But, as we pay the billions in medical care to live longer, we are draining the Social Security system. So, folks, I'm afraid we are going to have to work longer and retire later.

Summary
Okay, Tea Partiers, sorry to pick on you today. But your constant hypocrisy sort of keeps me pissed. The point is, all of us are in this ride together, and if we want to survive this mess we have to stop being divisive and delusional, and start working together.

Of course, some won't even acknowledge a problem and others will argue endlessly about what the REAL problem is, and Congress will deadlock as usual. But if we have a higher vision and a sense of unity, maybe we can get over the usual bickering.

Goose here, signing out...

We Can Do Better

Even though I work from home and try to minimize driving, I still feel guilty every time I drive my car. Rather than being part of the solution, I know I'm part of the problem.

I WISH I owned an electric car that was charged nightly with renewable energy. The thing is, we have the technology to do that, and we are close to making it economically feasible. If we could throw just a few billion into research, I'm certain we could make it work. And a few billion dollars is a lot? Well, I understand we spend $1 billion a day in Afghanistan. And, honestly, I think we are making new enemies there as fast as we can kill them.

I WISH we could end the violence in this world. I know that we have the maturity to do it. I find all the violence repulsive -- it just says that we are better dressed cavemen. We've probably come a long way from the Middle Ages, but we have a long ways to go.

I try to have compassion for my fellow humans, the wildlife, and my world, but it's never enough. I try to help others, but I never feel like I'm doing enough. So, the guilt never goes away. I am tormented because I always feel like I should be doing MORE.

As a child I remember watching with fascination the elevator on Star Trek. It started out slow, and soon it was going at full speed, with the lights from each floor whizzing by a little window. That's how I feel my life is going. The trips around the Sun are getting faster and faster. I want to put the life I've been given to good use, and I feel like I'm running out of time.

My employer has downsized and my workload has doubled, so I feel that I'm always living with a pile of bricks on me. Gone are those 37.5 hour work weeks, which I enjoyed for so long, and which allowed me to give a massive amount of energy and time to volunteer work. Now, I'm always drained. I help out when and where I can, but for the most part the life and vitality has been sucked out of me. Every day I go to work I must fight for sheer survival. The recession has been brutal to my employer. I still don't know if we will survive or not. So, everyday I'm hoping for signs of an economic upturn to get the pressure off ME, even though a robust economy will again put the pressure on the environment. As the economy improves, the bulldozers will begin flattening forests again, sending little animals fleeing, with no place to go.

And thus, this is the great irony of my life. When the economy is bad, the environment is given a rest, but there is more pressure on all of us to survive. So, maybe, in effect, this is the one time when I'm really helping the environment. Because I am taking the pain. I am working harder than I've ever worked in my life, and 60-hour work weeks are now the norm. But, it's grinding me down, and I simply don't have the energy to do my share in the fight.

Right now, my activist friends are trying to stop two new proposed coal plants in Georgia. This is a just cause, and I wish I could do more. The Old Guard is used to doing business the way they've always done it, and are resisting hard. The old mode of thinking is that we run our dishwasher, enjoy our curling irons, and heating pads, while coal smoke billows into the air, warms our planet, and alters our entire ecosystem. And each day, hundreds of species are unable to adapt to the rapid change, and become extinct. We kill so that we can be comfortable. It makes no sense.

So, I believe we can do better. We have to end this stupid political partisanship, and we have to find politicians who respond to reason, and we have to team up to find solutions. China, with their one-party system, is getting way ahead of us. Wake up, Americans. WAKE UP!!!

Idealism

I sometimes wonder where I got all this idealism. I wonder why I always like to defend the underdog.

I support gays because the war against them is simply pointless. These good people have been put through hell and treated like second class citizens for no reason at all. The Holy Bible says adulterers should be stoned, but these little finks are the real rats because they betray the trust of their life mate, yet they hardly get a wrist slap. The hypocrisy of the War Against Gays just makes me sick. And don't tell me "hate the sin, love the person." That is simply a thin veil for hating the person. And hate is not a family value.

As for the illegal immigrants, I have ten times more respect for them than any Tea Partier. They came to this country, often at great risk and expense, to get a crappy job. Because, in the United States, at least they wouldn't starve. Many were lured by that American Dream, where, you know, anyone can get rich if they work hard and get lucky. And the corporations welcomed them on because they worked cheap, and you didn't have to pay them health care or vacations. And all the while, the government just went "wink, wink." And then, suddenly, the Tea Party Patriots say ENOUGH! DEPORT THEM! THEY ARE BREAKING THE LAW! Too sad.

Most importantly of all, I stand up for nature and wildlife because animals can't defend themselves hardly at all. We have a vice presidential candidate gunning down wolves from a helicopter. Now, how fair a fight is that? We also have millions of Americans who love to pack out restaurants on Sundays after church, but don't really care about the thousands of species that are going extinct every day. Someone has to defend these poor critters. And yes, I know I'm in the minority when I say this, but a opossum has just as much right to be here as some chain smoking, hard drinking, littering, obnoxious human. Just because we have big brains we are ruthlessly arrogant, and for the most part, we are indifferent to our fellow animals.

I know my idealism is vain, but my blood boils when Tea Party creeps scream, "We have to save our country," when, in effect, these right-wing reactionaries are what we need to save the country from. I'll take socialism over fascism any day. And as these folks scream "less government" and throw me in jail for masturbation, all I can say is ORWELLIAN.

By now, cynicism should have smothered out my last fiber of idealism, but I can't stop caring, and I won't stop fighting.

Todd

Who Will Help Me Save the World?

The most difficult part of being an activist is getting people to change their minds. When I first returned to environmentalism in 1997 I had this crazy idea that people would respond to logic and common sense. I also thought people would work together for a common cause.

Boy was I wrong.

I know look at the Tea Party movement with great fascination. This is a group of people totally incapable of seeing their hypocrisy. They debunk global warming and routinely bash immigrants, gays, and Muslims. They want less government, but still want their Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. They want less taxes but also want to lower the deficit, but they really prefer less taxes (and let the next generation pay down the federal debt).

From an article about Tea Party hypocrisy:

They are only concerned with fighting government spending that benefits other people and are desperately seeking to save their own precious benefits. They think the costs are well worth it and they have no intention of shouldering the burden themselves. These costs will be incurred by future generations whose taxes will be higher and whose benefits will be lower or nonexistent.

Point being, I can't expect a Tea Party member to help save the environment. Oh, unless it personally benefits them. The Tea Party Patriots are like the NIMBYs that I regularly deal with (Not In My Backyard). These are the people who don't give a rat's ass about the environment until a developer is clearing the woods behind their home. Then they call the local Sierra Club group and want US to do something about it.

What we need are people willing to work for the common good, but people in general are selfish and do not want THEIR TAX DOLLARS helping a less fortunate person. They rail on about evil abortions, but they have no interest in adopting or helping to support all the welfare babies that an anti-abortion law would create. And they certainly would not support a tax increase to feed the unwanted children that they forced desperate mothers to have.

So, getting back to my point, how can I expect Tea Partiers or all the other selfish, irrational people to work on a common challenge like global warming? Even if there's 1,000 scientists saying that global warming is human-made, all it takes is one community college professor, funded by an ExxonMobile grant, to challenge global warming, and suddenly it's a "debate."

And, the entire idea of being a conservative is resisting change, so it's just better for the frog to die in the slowly boiling water than to jump out. And in fact, an underlying theme of the Tea Party movement is to "make things like they were." So, it's simply easier to deny something than to make a few lifestyle changes.

As I look at the political landscape I see a divided America, and as a result of the division, little is getting done. How can we address the great problems of the world, like depleting oil supplies, global warming, and overpopulation? If I took a survey, I'd say that the majority of Americans will simply deny all three problems. Whether from ignorance of selfishness, it's hard to gauge a person's true motives, but one thing is for sure, and that is they won't be helping the environment.

I mean, my gosh, most people don't even recycle, and that is mind-boggling to me. And there is another large group of people who spend their days sucking smoke into their lungs and flicking their nasty cigarette butts on the ground. I don't expect these people to be on board either. I've met a few environmentalists who smoke, but these folks are in the minority.

So, who will work with me to save the environment? Those liberal professors and teachers? Yes. The Unitarian Universalists, Episcopalians, and Reformed Jews? Yes. The cyclists, hikers, and kayakers? Yes? Overall, the group of people who are passionate about the environment is small. And against us is a massive coalition of people who are ignorant, ambivalent, selfish, indifferent, and apathetic. It is an uphill battle, for sure.

But I do regularly meet people with inquisitive minds who WANT TO KNOW and WANT TO LEARN what this environmental stuff is all about. These are people that I have a special respect for, and these are the individuals who give me hope.

Death, Part II

Even as a young child I heard this same ol' line in church: "If you were to die right now, are you sure you are going to heaven?"

I mean, crap, I was just a little kid and some preacher, Sunday after Sunday, was rambling on about death. When this continued into my 30s, I realized that church was a death cult.

The great irony is that church leaders WANT you to be scared because fear motivates people to comply. And even though you are promised with a wonderful afterlife in Heaven they keep you frightened week after week.

So, there I was, just a confused little kid, thinking, "Well, I think I'm saved. I'm sure I'm saved, but maybe I should ask Jesus to save me again, just in case. You know, insurance."

Afterlife

The cavemen had a lot of time to think at night, after all there was no reality TV. The afterlife sounded like a cool idea. For thousands of years the idea kept evolving until people actually believed it.

No one knows if there's an afterlife or not, but probably not. It defies logic, physics, and technology. When we're dead, we're dead. We will all be a cooked goose.

Coming Out

The saying "there's no atheist in a foxhole" keeps popping up in the news lately, and more and more soldiers are "coming out" and saying they are nonbelievers.

As for me, I'm only capable of believing the best available evidence. That's all the faith I have, sorry. So, I really don't know what happens after death, and I really don't care. After being indoctrinated all my life on Heaven and Hell, it took several years to adjust to the idea of "nothingness." But, now I like the idea, I really do.

Freedom

So, when your spiritual leaders intimidate you with the death scare, just stick your thumb on your nose and wiggle your fingers, and say, "Poo poo." For, one day all of us will become space dust, floating peacefully in space. And in the billions of planets and billions of years of the cosmos, this little place called Earth will be forgotten. You won't have to listen to crappy harp music for a trillion years — thank God. And you won't have to swim for billions of years in a fire lake with Ted Bundy. Sorry, cavemen, I'm not falling for your story.

I am alive here and now, and that's all that matters. It is this little, very, sacred moment that I'm alive and have a consciousness. I'm part of an absolutely incredible cosmic miracle, which only goes to prove that when you mix all the right gases at all the right temperatures, well, you create people who have gas. And here we are, little, amazing, freaking carbon-based, fragile people.

And then we die, and eventually we all die, and eventually the Earth dies, the Sun dies, and the Universe dies. And there's no one to even care. And that, my friend, is life.

So, to the preachers who make their living from scaring the shit out of people, I say that you can have your death religion. For, tonight, at least, and for this day, I have life.

The 6,000 Year Lie

As another record hot summer ends I've decided to, well, to no longer be pissed at climate change deniers.

See, a lot of climate change deniers are the same Christian fundamentalists who believe the Earth is 6,000 years old. They calculate this figure based on a series of scripture in the Old Testament.

Now, this figure is totally insane to me. At 6,000 years, the Earth wasn't even a ball of gas yet, it was just a cloud.

But if someone is going to believe the Earth is 6,000 years old I'm not surprised at all that they'd easily ignore 1,000 scientists and say that global warming is a hoax.

And this is the greatest danger of religion — it makes people downright delusional.

When Christians, Mormons, or Jehovah's Witnesses try to save my decrepit and condemned soul, I will no longer argue with them. And when some Scientologist tells me about little freaking aliens, I'm not going to care. I've realized that millions of people are totally brain fried, and cannot discern reality from ancient campfire stories.

What's really bad is a lot of stuff in the Bible was MEANT to be allegorical, but someone in the recent past decided it all has to be taken LITERAL. After all, if you decide one part of the Bible is an allegory, oh, my gosh, the whole damn thing could be, ahhh, a freakin' fable! So, it's just better to accept it all verbatim. And while were at it, let's agree that the King James translation is the only REAL translation endorsed by God. It makes things easier.

So, as we cook, and as the Polynesians slowly drown, and as we continue to pack the planet with humanity, let's not worry. We humans may be fantastic at making tools and gadgets, but parts of our brains are still primitive. Right now our technology has outrun our rational brain development. Will we mature in time to keep us from nuking ourselves in some religious war? Well, if you study the story of Easter Island, you will see that we are screwed.

And Hey, You.....

Stop gloating, oil companies. Your religious minions have served you well. They have and will continue to sink any global warming legislation. In all their gay bashing and gun toting, and other Christian activities, I wonder if they ever thanked God for putting all the oil in the ground. After all, it made you oil barons filthy, rotten rich. And that's the way our Holy Father wanted it, I'm sure.

Change, Baby, Change

As I now enter my 13th year as an activist, I remain perplexed at how to get humanity to avoid self-destruction.

In the old days I was pathetically idealistic. If there was a problem, I thought we could just all work together to solve it, and if there were differences we could work out compromises.

But even in my 20s I found this impossible because first, one side dislikes the other side so much they won't even TALK to them. As this dislike festers, the two sides create myths about one another. As each side gets angrier, the chance for meaningful communication lessens.

For instance, in my mind I feel that half of this country is so indoctrinated by Rush Limbaugh and company that there is no hope for them. These are people who enjoy being bitter reactionaries, and secretly they are angry at people of color who are munching away at the government trough.

As an environmentalist, there is no hope that these people will listen to me because it's been drilled in their minds that I'm an eco-terrorist. They are likely to believe that I've been swimming around the gulf blowing up oil platforms. So, if I suggest that they recycle their Coke cans or only flush their toilet once a day, they are going to be suspicious.

The partisan rancor in this land keeps everyone divided and angry. While all of us Americans want the same basic things, there is vast disagreement on how to reach our common goals. For instance, one side wants to keep handouts from babies (you know, the ones they said you shouldn't abort), while the other side wants to stop giving the military blank checks. But at least both sides want to lower the deficit.

Bigger Picture

There was a time, during the Clinton years, when this country WAS focused on doing good things, but then came 9/11 and now the Second Great Depression, and everyone is now more focused on their safety and survival. The Tea Party reactionaries, under the leadership of Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin, are on the march, but where they are heading is unknown. Beck and Palin don't really bring anything new to the table — they just know how to make money by making the angry white mobs angrier.

Common Sense

So, how about if I say, "Let's all sit down and address global warming." The first problem is that about half of the public denies it. Even though over 1,000 climate researchers support that climate change is human-caused, many people will STILL deny it. These are typically the same people who say that the Gospels are 100% factual, even though only ONE historian, Josephus, corroborates it in a short passage. And the authenticity of this passage is in dispute, yet the Gospels are completely real, and global climate change is a hoax (another victory for the PR staff at ExxonMobil).

At the Fork

Now, I'm at the fork in the road. I really don't know the next step. Over the years I've given many PowerPoint presentations for the Sierra Club on sprawl and population. These presentations always have a "call to action," which is usually to contact a representative or senator about some bill. Maybe a few will do it. If the senator or rep is GOP, they will promptly ignore it because issues like international family planning are perceived as being aligned with ABORTION, and gosh, the "A" word terrifies every Republican.

When I give my population programs, I'm typically just speaking to the choir. My audiences are usually past reproductive age or they are young urban professional women, who have an extremely low fertility rate. And even if I do persuade a young woman to have fewer children, the reduced impact will be offset by the millions of legal and illegal immigrants that flood the U.S.

So, really, I can't decide how I can address the world's serious problems, like overpopulation, overconsumption, global warming, and peak oil. As an individual, there is nothing that I can think of that will make a difference. I HAVE marched in parades for environmental issues. I HAVE organized forums, I HAVE tabled at events, I HAVE given presentations, I HAVE spoken at schools, I HAVE DONE IT ALL. Yet, I feel I've made only a minuscule impact on the serious problems facing our world.

If you tell me to just do nothing, that's fine with me. And while you're at it, please give me the "okay" to be jaded and cynical because it feels good in a weird sort of way. Let me know that it's okay to stay depressed, angry, and bitter. Let me know that it's okay to have my own brand of self-righteousness. Let me laugh to myself and say, "Haha, I'm right. All these dumb people will just have to learn the hard way."

Let conservative America believe they have a right to kill their children in endless wars and drive thousands of animal species into the grounds. See, there I go being a cynical rat again.

And, finally, to end my rant I'll say: Yeah, I did it. I swam out into the Gulf of Mexico and blew up those oil rigs. I'm trying to force our nation to adopt clean energy. It's how I roll...

Another Way To Die

I'm a big fan of the band Disturbed. The following is one of their great songs, titled, "Another Way To Die."

To me, the song is about how we are so distracted by everything else that we are not paying attention to the impending ecological disaster. It also takes a shot at religion, with the statement, "Can we repent in time?"

An excerpt:

There can be no other reason why
You know we should of seen it coming
Consequences we cannot deny will be
revealed in time
Glaciers melt as we pollute the sky
A sign of devastation coming
We don't need another way to die
Can we repent in time?

Meanderings

I spend my life in a flux between bored, burnt out, tired, languished, beaten. It's not that I don't have the energy -- I still go to the gym, run, play tennis, hike, and take long evening walks.

Today, my Labrador Nemo and I took a long walk in Powder Springs, GA. First we walked the beautiful passive park, which is usually under water. Then we walked Powder Springs City Park. Much to my surprise, there is a new road and parking lot that comes in behind the park, so we walked down that. The new road runs alongside the mayor's highway to nowhere.

It was dead quiet going down the road -- hardly any people or signs of life. I love taking walks in my flip flops, and I just flip flopped down the uncompleted road. The road has been cut through a once deep forest, and I walked down there. I saw some wetlands and I stopped, and listened to the crickets chirping and frogs croaking.

When my time comes, when I face my Waterloo, I won't create a lot of drama. I will just keep doing what I've always done, until I drop.

Games

Every thought of the supernatural is something we create in our heads and reflect upon the stars. It's the Jesus drug that helps us get through. The idea of some invisible person who is always with us, loving us, caring for us, etc. feels really darn good. It's much better to do the Jesus drug or any other drug than to face the empty reality known as life.

Our illusions and delusions become our best friends. Denial and our ability to lie to ourselves becomes our comforting force. We play our mind games, and they give us some comfort, and reality be damned.

My observation lately is that humans are far less intelligent than I had assumed. People really can't think out any "big picture" concept. We all have our little agendas, and that is what drives us. Unfortunately, all of our agendas conflict with everyone else's agendas, so everything is deadlocked and nothing really happens in the world.

It's all a vicious game.

Connally Nature Park

This video tells the story of an urban forest we saved in 1999-2000. Yesterday, 10 years later, we went back to the site and did a "commemorative" hike.

You know, when I watch this video, and knowing that I played a part in this, I suddenly don't feel like a shit. I actually feel like a decent person, for a brief moment, like I actually accomplished some good for the world.

I was unable to attend many of the day events because of my work schedule, but I did do a lot of behind-the-scenes organizing. The part I most remember is when I was doing a fax blitz to members of the school board, and a board member called and asked me to "cease fire."

One evening I programmed my computer fax to send faxes in the middle of the night -- I didn't realize that many of the fax machines were in board member's homes. Well, apparently I angered some folks by calling their homes in the middle of the night, but, you know, I really don't care. Perhaps it strengthened their resolve. After all, we were told by one opponent that they'd be sending us a box of toothpicks. But, I am proud of myself for at least doing SOMETHING when so many people in this world do NOTHING. All to often, I am made to feel like crap because I don't fit into someone's religious mold.

But, anyway, even though I was only a minor player in this campaign, I still consider it one of the accomplishments in life that I am most proud of.

Enjoy ...

The Triple Whammy

I urge everyone to educate themselves on the Triple Whammy - Peak Oil, Climate Change, and Overpopulation. In combination, these forces will greatly deteriorate both the Planet and the quality of life for our offspring. To survive the post-industrial age we will all need a new set of values and a new way of thinking. To continue on our present course will only be disaster. If we want a "soft landing" we all need to work together as a team and get our dysfunctional government working again.

The Triple Crises of Civilization

By the Rev. David Murphy and George Plumb

The evidence is overwhelming. We are facing triple crises. Global warming is already happening. We are at or close to being at peak oil (and some say as a result, peak money) production. We have exceeded our carrying capacity and are still adding three million people to the U.S. population and 80 million to the earth each year. Between the two of us we have read almost all of the books below and are deeply impressed that so many prominent environmentalists, scientists, spiritual leaders, and educators have written so many books about crisis and collapse in just the last few years.

We urge all who care about the future to read at least one book from each of the categories. In this time of greenwashing by corporations and politicians there is nothing more important that we can do than to be well informed about these issues. If you only have time or motivation to read only a couple of books, then James Hansen's book, The Storms of my Grandchildren, and Michael Rupert's Confronting Collapse are must reads. While there are many more books that have been written in each category, we have listed what we think are the best four in terms of information and ideas on how to deal with the crises. While the reading may at times be discouraging it will also likely motivate people to action as it has us.

All political, environmental, religious, and social justice leaders and followers need to come together to acknowledge each of these problems and either begin new movements, strengthen existing movements, or a combination of the two, to begin to fulfill our responsibility to the Earth and future generations.

Peak OIL

The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-First Century, James Howard Kunstler, Atlantic Monthly Press, 2005¹

Peak Everything: Waking Up to the Century of Declines, Richard Heinberg, New Society Publishers, 2007¹

Confronting Collapse: The Crisis of Energy and Money in a Post-Peak Oil World, Michael Rupert, Chelsea Green Press, 2009²

Transition Handbook, Rob Hopkins, Chelsea Green Press, 2009

Climate Change

Storms of my Grandchildren, James Hansen, Bloombury USA, 2009¹

Our Choice: A Plan to Solve the Climate Crisis, Al Gore, Rodale Press, 2009¹

Eaarth, Bill McKibben, Times Books, 2010¹

Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization, Lester Brown, W.W. Norton Co., 2009¹

Population Size and Growth

A Pivotal Moment: Population, Justice and the Environmental Challenge, Laurie Mazur, Island Press, 2010¹

Growing Pains: A Planet in Distress, Valorie M. Allen, IUniverse Press, 2010¹

The Population: Fix-Breaking America's Addiction to Population Growth, Edward Hartman, out of print but available through used sources at www.populationfix.com, 2006¹

More: Population, Nature and What Women Want, Robert Engelman, Island Press, 2008¹

Combined Crisis

The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment, and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability, Gus Speth, Yale University Press, 2008¹

Threshold: The Crisis of Western Civilization, Thom Hartmann, Viking Press, 2009¹

Endgame-the Problem of Civilization, Derrick Jensen, Seven Stories Press, 2006¹

The Vanishing Face of Gaia: The Final Warning: Enjoy it while you can, James Lovelock, Allen Lane, 2009¹

Religious Point of View

A Buddhist Response to the Climate Emergency, John Stanley, David R. Lay, and Gyurme Dorje, Wisdom Press, 2008

Love God, Heal Earth: The Ecological Crisis through the Lens of Faith, Rev. Canon Sally G. Bingham (founder of Interfaith Power and Light), SkyLight Paths Publishing, 2009

Claiming Earth as Common Ground, Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Kiener, St. Lynn's Press, 2009

A Climate Change: Global Warming Facts for Faith-Based Decisions, Katherine Hayhoe and Andrew Farley, Hachette Book Group, 2009

¹Books that stress population size and growth as a factor that must be dealt with.

²Rupert says that the population is going to crash because of peak oil.

About the authors

The Rev. David Murphy is a retired Methodist minister and now lives his life as sustainably as possible. He and his wife Judy operate Splendid Oak Farm in Montpelier, Vt., and they are in the process of installing a solar system that will generate most of their electricity. He and Judy are also the co-chairs of the Central Vermont Post Carbon Sustainability Network.

George Plumb is Executive Director of Vermonters for Sustainable Population and Chair of the New England Coalition for Sustainable Population. He is a long time environmental activist and has organized a couple of Central Vermont 350.org actions. He is an active Unitarian Universalist and practices Buddhism. gplumb@pshift.com

Reprinted with permission.