It's time...

Absorbed by the self perceived urgency of our daily routines we rarely take the time to reflect on the bigger picture.  When I talk about the bigger picture I'm not alluding to a macro vision of each of our individual lives but I'm talking about our collective lives. Our collective lives on this planet at this very moment in time.  Many will argue why we are here but the fact remains that we are and that this time in history is unique.

I'm the furthest thing from a talking head or a charismatic politician stroking your emotional chords to sway your vote.  I am a global citizen.  I am concerned.  I am worried.  Not only worried for all of us that are living now but for those that will come after us.  

This moment is unique because there remains no doubt, no contest, our climate is changing and we are collectively accomplices to the most devastating crime against our planet earth in its history.  The earth in its lifespan has experienced dramatic climate change but these periods of transformation have always been as a result of natural causes.  The next great change in our ecosystem will not be natural but rather forced by our way of life since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.  A way of life that has gone unchecked, unchallenged and has brought us to an inevitable tipping point.

The unrelenting volumes of CO2 and other greenhouse gases that choke our planet are a direct result of our global mode of capital production, transportation, and living.  As parts per million of CO2 increase the air we breath becomes polluted, glaciers begin to melt, our oceans heat up and slowly become more and more acidic, droughts smother crops and set forests ablaze, rainfall intensifies, hurricanes gain in strength, coastlines are ravaged, species are uprooted or forced into extinction, vectors of disease run rampant and access to food and water becomes increasingly constrained.

We have the power to make a difference.  We have the ability to live more sustainable lives.  We have the know-how to use renewable energy and clean technologies to greatly reduce our dependence on the fossil fuels that create CO2.  We have the inherit self-interest to preserve.  Below the thick facade of a global growth economy, wherein resources have been believed to be limitless and capitalism preached as the answer to prosperity, is locked away the human instinct of preservation. 

Let that preservation emerge.  Let it emerge for you and your loved ones and for future generations who without our wake-up call to action will find an earth very different from the one we have today and will be robbed of their unique time in history.

Keeping it real...economy!

"Times are tough!"

We are all hearing that practically everywhere we go.  Our country's economic woes have seeped into every crack and crevice of our daily lives.  Talk of shedding jobs, low growth, mortgage defaults, and water tight credit fill our conversations whether at home with family or out on the streets amongst friends.  The new administration is touting its Stimulus Package which in their words is aimed at jump starting the economy and creating jobs by injecting massive government spending and feather weight tax cuts.  As the package makes its way through the motions of Congress the real economy waits....

There's something perverse about a nation in which nearly 3/4 of our wealth is measured in our volume of consumption.  How did we get here?  How did we prioritize the acquisition of goods and services as the locomotive of our economy?  How did we allow a country's coffers to run dry only to live off of massive debt in the hands of another?  How did we continue to do this over decades and decades and expect this way of living to be sustainable?  Did my father's generation or his father's not think that this party might one day run dry?  What about the new generation of Americans who, if a new system is not created, will only read about Social Security in the history books?

Don't get me wrong, the fundamental ideas behind capitalism and market forces are powerful and capable of producing positive results for our society if harnessed and adapted the right way.  However, the utterly gut wrenching and sickening greed pervasive up and down Wall Street must come to an end.  How does it feel as a tax payer to have these out of touch, fat cat, selfish group of egotistical low life "gamblers" stuff their pockets with exorbitant bonuses on your dime as Washington continues to proclaim that their survival is paramount for the prosperity and stability of our economy?!

Surely there must be a more sustainable way to create innovation, prosperity, increases in social welfare and quality of life!

As income distribution continues to widen, our infrastructure crumbles under the weight of neglect and education becomes a luxury I put stock in the new administration to do the right thing.  "Change," "Hope," and "Yes we can" were catchy and inspiring slogans but the tires need to meet the road and no clever campaign slogan can replace visible action and progress!  I am willing and able to do my part to build a more balanced life for myself, my loved ones, and future generations of Americans....are you?!

 

The End...

Do you ever wonder when it all will end?  Ever find yourself nervously imagining that your time might be at hand?  The mix of emotions is mind numbingly incomprehensible. 

I find myself stuck between belief of something after, a fear of nothingness, curiosity, denial of the moment, and acceptance of fate.

For me it's the unknown that I struggle to wrap my mind around, the possibility of nothing more, the end of existence, and my inability to stop it.

If it does end and I cease to exist, cease to know that I existed, and will never again exist, I am no longer, and my existence no longer has meaning or value to me.  The value that remains is what I was to others.

Le point de depart...

A friend told me to do this.  I'm usually not good at taking direction but this time I didn't hesitate in following her lead.  A part of me is curious where this will take me.  This could be a release I never dared and one that just might unlock it all....

I invite you to follow along and take a free ride on my thoughts...