Peter H. Bauer June 5, 2013 ©
To relax for a few moments, a visit to the shore of Lake Champlain was an excellent idea. The setting sun was a gorgeous red/orange. The water was as smooth as glass, reflecting the magnificent sunset. The picturesque Adirondack mountains in New York state were a marvellous backdrop. Children were having fun on the playground. A woman was sitting on a bench, quietly facing the sunset.
After a deep calming breath, it seemed that the world was at peace … such a comforting place to be.
On the way home, driving north on Interstate 89, the western sky turned to light blue, and yellow, and a hint of light green. Driving east, along the Canadian border, there was a peaceful mist almost everywhere. It was obvious that spring was beginning. Soon, the meadows and the pastures would be their annual dark green, seeming to burst out of the ground, looking like a blanket of dark green velvet.
…
Arriving at home, at elevation 1,500 feet in the valley of the Cold Hollow Mountains, at the last place on the left, where the snow plow turns around in the winter, relaxation took over, knowing that the trip had been safe, and that a routine could begin again.
Looking out through the kitchen windows, memories of chestnut-sided warblers, yellow-shafted flickers, arctic three-toed woodpeckers, red-eyed vireos, yellow-throated warblers, and many other spring birds, especially the 2-year visit of a mourning warbler {song – “chirry-chirry, chorry-chorry”} were now just that … memories.
Among other reminders, this was local evidence that the climate of our planet was changing in serious major ways.
Thoughts gradually shifted to wondering what life, if any, would be like, for children, now about 40 years old, and their children.
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Global reminders have been … storms much more extreme than ever … extinction of many of our species … major losses of our coral reefs … acidification of our oceans … massive planet-wide disappearance of our glaciers and islands … massive melting of our snow and ice in the Arctic and in Antarctica … all accompanied by the immoral intentional uncaring unrepentant outrageous raping of our environment by many major companies, especially the huge fossil-fuel companies. All this has resulted in major obliteration of huge portions of rainforests, of crucial importance to our planet … and many other precious portions of our land and ocean environment.
To “Save Our Planet Now” … might be too late … but the effort must be made now. Intentions to make changes as late as 2020 or 2050, are completely ludicrous.
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It seemed obvious, even though late, to write, and to propose, the following … to very strongly make the point that … major changes must take place now … next month.
Nothing Else Matters …
About gun violence in general, and especially about the shootings in Newtown, CT … In his Feb. 12, 2013 State of the Union Address, President Obama said … “Of course, what I’ve said tonight matters little if we don’t come together to protect our most precious resource, our children.”.
My reaction … Yes, and that applies also to “Save Our Planet Now”.
My statement … Unless we “Save Our Planet Now” … Nothing else we do … No matter how wonderful … matters.
Unless we “Save Our Planet Now” … all of us will die with our planet …
from the wealthiest people … to the poorest.
from the most powerful countries … to the weakest.
All the countries, companies, and people … from the most greedy, most wealthy, most environmentally uncaring … to the most environmentally conscious {whether they care about wealth, or not}.
Our “World Leaders” have done practically nothing … to “Save Our Planet Now”.
We are very close to the “Tipping Point” … or past it already. {The “Tipping Point” is that point in the gradual wrecking of our planet … past which, nothing we do, can “Save Our Planet”.}
Therefore, major decisions and major actions … must happen within several weeks from now.
All companies, especially fossil-fuel companies, have dual-personalities …
They are our “friends”, because they supply things which we need or want.
They are our “enemies”, because in the process of trying to earn profits {which all businesses need, in order to function, and to grow} … they have become extremely greedy, and extremely uncaring about wrecking our planet. They have manipulated our political campaigns, our government, our police forces, and the media. They perpetrate all this wreckage, as if they will not die with our planet, as a natural result of their uncaring methods.
Obviously, the Managers of these fossil-fuel companies … are our “enemies” also.
The Stockholders of these fossil-fuel companies … are complicit, knowingly, or unwittingly, in these disasters.
Bill McKibben wrote an article, in the August 2, 2012 issue of “Rolling Stone” magazine … “Global Warming’s Terrifying New Math”. Bill said, “So pure self-interest probably won’t spark a transformative challenge to fossil fuel. But moral outrage just might – and that’s the real meaning of this new math. It could, plausibly, give rise to a real movement.”.
Bill began a movement, about “Divesting” of fossil-fuel stocks. This means selling stocks of fossil-fuel companies, and not buying those stocks.
This method worked in South Africa in the 1980’s … except that it was about “Divesting” of any companies connected with the Apartheid regime. As a result of international pressure, this was one of the crowning accomplishments of the past century, according to Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
But … the above method took a long time, at least 10 years … and we do not have that much time to “Save Our Planet”.
Bill said, “The fossil-fuel industry is obviously a tougher opponent.”.
AND … So far, in spite of Bill McKibben’s herculean effort to “Divest” of fossil-fuel stocks, companies have been continuing to wreck our planet, in massive ways.
Bill McKibben wrote in an article, in the April 25, 2013 issue of “Rolling Stone” magazine … “The Fossil Fuel Resistance”. Bill said, “Right now, the fossil-fuel industry is mostly winning. In the past few years, they’ve proved “peak-oil” theorists wrong” … “Right now, we’re losing. But as the planet runs its spiking fever, the antibodies are starting to kick in. We know what the future holds unless we resist. And so resist we will.”.
Both Global Warming and Climate Change have been happening, with major consequences. Irreversible changes have happened already … and future irreversible changes are in progress.
Those people {and companies} who do not believe this now … will be supremely embarrassed and apologetic, moments before they die with our planet.
To complement Bill McKibben’s massive effort { 350.org } … and to complement Al Gore’s massive effort {“The Climate Reality Project http://climaterealityproject.org/about-us/ } …
There must be several extremely quick and powerful ways to force the fossil-fuel companies to keep about 95% of the carbon in the ground. {We might still need a minor amount of oil for lubrication, and for manufacturing some items.}
There is an extremely quick and powerful way to force the fossil-fuel companies to keep about 95% of the Carbon in the ground … to persuade and/or force World Leaders to make this happen … and to persuade and/or force World Leaders to take other major risks to make other major decisions … and then to implement major actions within several weeks from now, to … “Save Our Planet Now”.
Along with the major decisions to keep about 95% of the carbon in the ground … Everyone on our planet must very soon begin to have alternative sustainable energy sources functioning. As someone pointed out about 30 years ago, we must have the money, energy, and time to do this. We must begin now.
Also, along with the major decisions to keep about 95% of the Carbon in the ground … Everyone on the Planet must very soon begin to have sustainable methods of living … We must begin now.
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It is certainly a huge undertaking. The “unstoppable” villains this time are … the fossil-fuel industries … the lack of leadership of our “World-Leaders” … our not-yet “New Economy” … our enjoyment of the status quo … our definitely-not-sustainable planet-wide lifestyle … our plundering of our planet’s definitely finite resources … our inertia and lethargy … our proceeding with “blinders on” … our hoping that this nightmare will just go away on its own.
“Pogo” said long ago … “We have met the enemy … and it is US ! ”. If WE do not fix this nightmare, then who will?
It would serve us all extremely well, if we remember that we have been bold enough before, to mobilize our resources rather quickly … to stop Hitler, and to stop the Japanese, and to be able to set foot on the moon. Global Warming and Climate Change and Sustainable Living … also are certainly daunting issues.
Senator Bill Bradley wrote a book, We Can All Do Better. Charlie Rose interviewed him on May 8, 2012 http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/12348 , and Senator Bradley said that things will change when there is a movement of people who demand that they change … and that we must remember that the strength of the USA is in the people themselves. Of course, this applies to all the people on Our Planet.
As in the case of so many very successful people … Their parents said to them that … If you set your mind to it, you can do anything you want.
– The End –
… or, is it ?
Actions will happen very soon.
Peter H. Bauer is a Mechanical Engineer, and the Founder of “Solutions” {about Education, Violence, and Healing The Environment}. He lives in northern Vermont, USA
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