Sunday, November 10, 2013

To Die For


Many parents work hard to assure their children’s future.  Many if asked would give their lives for their children and grandchildren. If a culture/society is at threat from outside forces, starvation or environmental stress, this support for the next generations falls by the wayside.  However, in general, mothers, fathers and grandparents will protect the future of their offspring.

We are surrounded by a litany of threats to the future - fracking, deep ocean drilling, tar sands; pollution from mountain top removal, destruction of natural resources, dying oceans, climate disasters of epic proportions, dangers of genetic engineering; corporate control, and population overshoot to name a few of the less subtle. Some would have more technology to combat these problems or at best forestall them.
“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
Albert Einstein

For citizens of developed nations, this is about lifestyle – energy and other resource consumption – will we change our lifestyle for the children and grandchildren’s future?  NO.

And now for a rousing chorus of – Yes, but .  .  .




There is one legitimate “Yes, but .  .  . 
You can't get there (wherever there is) from here!

4 comments:

  1. Hi John,
    I am waiting for your yes, but...
    I don't know where you are going with this but it has occurred to me that it is within our individual power to stop the tank from grinding us into the ground. Each of us would have to reverse our ingrained propensity for maximum consumption. If, as individuals, we decided that it was really correct and proper to minimize our consumption of resources, and strove to do so, the entire machine would have to go along or die. I don't know how you reset a cultural given like that but it would probably be our only chance.

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  2. Bill - I agree - it is global, it is natural to do as we do, the inertia carries us both socially and environmentally. (I made a typo) We can't get there from here.

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  3. John,
    I picked up your reply on my stagnant, for now, Petrophy blog. Yes, I think we are on the same page philosophically but it appears you have acted on your concerns (by living off of the grid) while I have only recently came to this conclusion and haven't yet acted in any significant way. I got to your blog from a comment you made on one of the Yahoo energy lists. My email there is the_pamur if you would like to continue the conversation.

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    1. Bill - I don't understand how to use "the_pamur". Mine is dragnfly(at)arvig.net.
      Notice there is no O in dragnfly.

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