Too Much to Fix

Fracking, carbon emissions, water pollution, non-degradable plastic, NUCLEAR WASTE.....  the list goes on and on and on.  Too much for us to remember. Too much for us to do to be eco-responsible human beings. Too much!

It's overwhelming!  What should we do?

A New Way of Thinking

Maybe we just need a whole new mindset, a new zeitgeist. One that is less aggressive, more compassionate.  Stephen Hawking believes that human aggression will be then end of humanity  So, rather than try to keep track of each individual action we need to perform to maintain a safe, healthy world ("world" being the whole of the human race), how about we adopt a more compassionate, less competitive zeitgeist; not only in the esoteric aspect of thinking as the planet as a living creature, but toward each other.  What if each of us was less competitive more compassionate toward person we know, we meet in our daily excursions.   What if we were mindful of  acting in benevolent way with each person we met, or knew.   The task of acting in benevolent to the world would be much simpler.

Mindfulness

"Mindfulness" is a word that is used often these days that is quickly becoming a buzz word (trendy). It is actually a shortened version of the ancient Buddhist concept of "Right Mindedness" or "Right Mindfulness" and the 7th part of the Buddha Gautama's Eightfold Path that is 2500 years old.  Buddhist hold that being mindful is being in the present being aware of everything around one.  Sounds so ambiguous and esoteric.

However it is simple.  It may take practice, but it is simple.  For every action you take, be mindful of what the impact might be on someone else, someone you know or someone you never met. Before you consume anything, ask yourself will this create a problem for someone else.   Doing this will require practice in thinking in a more compassionate, less aggressive manner toward everyone.  Perhaps you may even be convinced that you are part of a whole organism like James Lovelocke's Gaia Theory that stipulates that we are all a part of a single self-regulating organism.

It will take a while, but soon you may find yourself acting in such a way that is more beneficial to all of the world, in small increments.  Be mindful of even the simplest acts,  If you live in Chicago, for instance, and leave that light on tonight, will you be adding to the nuclear waste building up in Morris Illinois, from the Dresden Nuclear Power plant that generates nearly half the electric power for Chicago?

What did you just do?  What impact will it have on others?

Yes. The Planet Does NOT Need Saving

The Human Race Does.

I know this is feeding into quibbling between proponents of the anthropogenic aspect of climate change and deniers.  Also, I am aware that  I am once again, preaching to the choir.  Those who believe that the whole plethora of potential and sometimes currently realized danger to the human race grouped under the umbrella of Global Warming will nod their heads in agreement, while Climate Change Deniers will sputter at this in mock.  Nobody's opinion will be changed.

What brings me here to post after a long hiatus from posting¹ (Tired of trying to teach pigs to sing) was several discussions in which I participated where people rather flippantly indicated that "the planet" has been taking care of itself for more than 4.5 billion years without needing saving by humans.  One person in such a discussion quoted comedian George Carlin² as a source, missing the double entendre of his joke.  If you have read any of my previous posts, you would realize that by this point in a post, I would have already quoted statistics like scripture, but have since learned that facts are ineffectual to  changing opinions.  I need to find a muscle-bound man and bikini clad woman in yoga poses to convey my message,  So, here's my rant³...er appeal to sensibilities:

Does this really need explaining?

Evidently, people don't get that "saving the planet" used in the vernacular is a colloquialism for keeping Earth habitable for humans; "saving the planet" means saving the human race.  Even when I titled my book "The Council to Save The Planet"  it had a bit of a tongue-in-cheek double meaning.  The tagline for the book read: "Take care of the Earth before the Earth takes care of you"

The Fatalistic Solipsism of Deniers.

The flippancy of the logic that Earth is on it's own agenda is the first indication of the solipsistic avoidance of personal inconvenience required to reduce carbon footprints, waste that won't decompose, conservational use of water and other resources, etc...  The harsh reality of selfishness of epidemic proportions practiced by climate change deniers come from the projections from the International Panel on Climate Control⁴ (IPCC) which show that real problems with the current carbon acceleration⁵ won't become cataclysmic until 2100.  It's not our problem, it won't happen until we are gone.

I don't know about you, I find this lack of compassion for future generations to be appalling selfish to the point of being pathological.  I would have used the term sociopathic, but I'm sure someone would argue that we can't be in society with future generations.  However, we can be compassionate and empathetical to those who will pay the price for our actions. Worse is the fact that those who will be the first to be harmed the most are poor from Third World countries. Now the term sociopath can be invoked to individuals who defer care about those less fortunate than privileged U.S. citizens⁶.

It's Not Someone Else's Problem

If you think about things blamed for green house emissions (cars, power plants, and manufacturing) there is no way to point the finger at someone else.  These are things that us ordinary individuals (AKA "consumers") leverage for our convenient lifestyles.    We are in control.  We can reduce our use of cars, reducing gas consumption. We can reduce our power consumption⁸.  We can reduce how much and what we purchase, reducing more power consumption and our output of non-degradable pollution,  We can conserve water⁹.  Sounds small scale, but multiply what you can do by 300 million and you have massive impact.  Most know how to do this, Global Warming ethicists and activists have pounded this at you for decades.  If not Google each, or look below where I have done it for you.

Rather than demanding that manufacturers give us more sustainable products and technology and that the government regulate those manufacturers to ensure sustainable products, we can change our habits to drive these changes. That is the one beautiful thing about Capitalism. It's really driven from the bottom up. It just means getting past The Cult of Convenience.

A New Zeitgeist

I have discovered that railing about specific practices needed to ensure a sustainable planet for our descendants is not productive.  We all know what we can do.  What's really required is a whole new way of thinking; one that is more mindful of others, alive or yet to be born.  This is tough for most U.S. citizens indoctrinated in the paradigm of rugged individualism (selfishness) .  The Cult of Convenience is rife with entitlement and status by gain, but lacking in empathy

Try this:  As often as you can, before you do something, buy something, throw something away, ask yourself how will this impact others, now or in the future?  A good time might be while you are in yoga class trying to ignore the pain of the Upside Down Flying Dog position.  Trust me, an overall new paradigm of concern for others will do a world of good


Footnotes
(Not only required to make this post look official, but informational also)

1. Actually I opted for action, by giving money to the strongest pro-ecology lobby in the US The Nature Conservancy
2. Carlin's opinion as a comedian of course outweighs the opinion of the 800 scientists of the International Panel on Climate Change and NASA
3. Rant's play better nowadays.
4. For those of you who are capable of reading more that short paragraphs Click here for the IPCC projections
5. "Carbon acceleration" refers to the fact that the rate of emissions gases released into the atmosphere is greater than the rate the Earth can turn it back into Oxygen and that rate is accelerating
6. The US has 3% of the planet's population, yet contributes to 25% of the green house emissions. Only China is higher, but that is only because they have so many more people.  On a person by person basis the Carbon Footprint⁷ of each Chinese person is 1/4th of each U.S. citizen contributes
7. Carbon footprint describes all green house emissions released by a particular entity (person, vehicle, factory, power plant) being assessed.  
8. Reducing your power / electric consumption <--Click
9. Conserving water <--- Click

You are responsible for the future.  

What's "On" At Your House?

Gorillas in the air:

Many of you are probably someplace other than your home as you read this. (No one ever messes around online during their own time). So, you'll have to think. What electrical "thingamadobobs" might still be sucking juice threw the ol' 'lectric meter?

Keep in mind that a single 100-watt bulb left on all night will require 500 lbs of coal be burned to keep it lit. That means a single 100-watt bulb left on all night will release 800 pounds of CO2 released into the air; roughtly the equivalent of having 2 gorillas floating above your head. If one third of the people in the U.S. left a light on nightthat would be 800,000,000 lbs of CO2 , or 1 million gorillas floating over your head.

Did you leave your computer on?

If you have a regular CRT monitor, at 240-watts, that would mean 1,200 pounds of coal, releasing 1,920 pounds of CO2, or the equivalent of four adult gorillas and one adolescent floating over you. The computer itself would require 2,460 pounds of CO2, about the equivalent of 7 gorillas.

If half the population of the U.S. were to leave their computers on all day with a regular monitor, that would mean 288 trillion pounds of CO2 in the air, or the equivalent of 720 million gorillas.

So, what's on?

A 25 watt nightlight that's always on in the bathroom would be the equivalent of five flying chimpanzees of CO2.

The stereo? Another five flying chimps. The DVD player? Another five flying chimps.

How about those nice 15 watt accent lights around the building or garden or along the walk. Nine of them would be the equivelant of ten adult gorillas and a teen gorilla.

So what's "on" at your house? Some sort of Flying Primate Circus?

Earth Rising: Lashing Back.....

....with volcanoes, earthquakes and tornadoes.

Earthquakes? Really?

Yup. As far back as 2007 scientists have considered the possibility of Earthquakes being tied to global warming More recently several papers including The Montreal Gazette spawned by the Japanese earthquake, tied the recent plethora of earthquakes to global warming.

How can this be?

Well, global warming not only impacts the atmosphere, but it impacts the Earth's crust, according to a report in Reuters (2009). In the simplest of explanations, it's due to a lot (billions of tons) of weight being lifted off of the tectonic plates, to huge sections of the Earth's crust that shift during what we call an earthquake. As the weight lifts, the plates will start shifting. This lifting of tremendous weight is caused by the melting of glaciers and the polar ice caps. Andrew Hynes, tectonics expert (plates expert) at McGill, indicates that Vancouver Island (part of Greenland) is "bowed", sticking up and if enough weight is released could cause a major quake.

He also talks about the more complicated aspect of this weight shifting is the pressure changes within the crust. As the weight changes so does the change of fluid (molten rock and water) within the crust. This is like having huge wedges inserted and released into the rocks, causing cracking and collapse. He cites the possibility of volcanoes.

Volcanoes? Oh, no.

Yeah. Afraid so, but since volcanoes haven't recently caused mass death, lets stick to the issue and take that up on another day. It's all related. Course. Gaia - Earth, a single self-regulating organism. However, note that as volcanoes erupt, more carbon emissions will be released into the air and the more the Greenhouse Effect could contribute to global warming; and so on and so on.

Can it get worse?

Probably. In 2003 NASA Reported that the melting of Polar Caps would have "great impact on ocean processes." And I couldn't say it better than they have: "Less ice means more open water. More open water means greater absorption of solar energy. More absorption of solar energy means increased rates of warming in the ocean, which naturally tends to yield faster rates of ice loss."

Worse, yet?

In 2006, Time Magazine portrayed polar cap melting as "the tipping point". Not only will the Earth warm as the oceans increase in volume by absorbing more heat, as the ice melts, exposing the permafrost, the newly exposed soil will decompose releasing methane, a carbon emission, and adding to global warming.

And so it goes and so it goes, eh?

"Nature, it seems has had a bellyful of us" (Kluger, Time, 2006). Whether or not you believe that global warming is caused by us (humans) may be a moot issue. Whether one finds it inconvenient or not The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which includes over 500 independent scientists as well as NASA have reported for over twenty years the impact that humans have had on global warming. Seems the only dissent comes from politicians who pander to the economics of those who might contribute to global warming. The Norwegians are taking this very seriously. They have been packing away every kind of seed known in the advent of global catastrophe and everyone is forced to live in the Arctic. You know, just in case civilization has to start over. So?

You wanna take a chance?

That this is either a bunch of hooey, or that it's too late? Hmmm? Or do you want to do something -- just to be safe. You don't have to become an activist, just simply do what you can to reduce your personal carbon footprint. After all, there are 300 million of us here in the U.S. Here are simple things you can do yourself

Another "Earth Day" And....

What?

Where have we come since the first Earth Day? Is care for the planet more grassroots; or more forgotten?

Back in 1970, Earth Day drew huge gatherings all across the country, the kind of gatherings that now happen every weekend -- at the mall.

Oh yeah, there were rallies for Earth Day 2010, sporadic and much smaller in size. The biggest "event" to take place was the explosion of the oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico that nearly destroyed the Gulf. Today in Fukushima, Japan, citizens will be celebrating Earth Day with a visit limited to 2 hours to gather personal things in the after math of the nuclear power plant explosion over a month ago.

Three years ago, I went to "The Green Festival" here in Chicago and was astounded at the appalling show of carbon emissions-generating consumerism. Booth after booth of organic products (cause everyone know "organic" is green), shipped in from hundreds of miles away in plastic containers hawked their greenness.

Next weekend, I will go to a local park to "revitalize the park" (pick up trash). The event is sponsored by an organization that is fronted by a local store which sells green products. However, when you look at their web site you will see that their specialty is "fair trade" products which they "purchase from over "60 other countries" Other countries means "shipments, means transportation that contributes greatly to the carbon foot print. Still, I feel, having written a novel to save the planet over 16 years ago before "Global Warming Became a buzz word, that I should do something and this is close and convenient and I really don't know what else to do. After all, doing what what can to mitigate carbon emissions and global warming is reliant on daily practices.

So, I will go to mitigate my guilt.

And I will hang out with others who will pontificate about awareness to others who are already aware. And when those who are younger than I (the informed hipsters) will gather at some local caravansary and possibly go off to "hook up" and revel in their "greenness", I will go home and make sure the lights are off and the computer isn't running and the heat is as far down as it should go and not feel a sense of hopelessness.

Awareness is good, but....

What is the point of awareness if it doesn't create change? Where have we come since the first Earth Day? Well, ironically, 1970 is when carbon emissions started to really take off, despite an Oil Crisis and Embargo; according to NASA. This is counter intuitive to what should result from awareness. Also, noted by NASA is that given Earth's 100,000 year cycle we should be entering a cooling phase. Maybe we're not so aware as we think.

Maybe not so ironically, consumer spending increased dramatically until 2008 and tied to this is the increase of disposable plastic packaging creating a huge increase in green house emissions. Personal use of automobiles has increased. I won't make the obvious observation of the impact for that. More homes have air conditioning, which creates a demand on electrical energy production. Again, no obvious observation needed here.

So what is our awareness? Do we not know that our personal lifestyles directly or indirectly attribute to the problems of global warming? Or do we know and just don't care for the inconveniences it may mean?

Will the last person on the planet, please shut off the lights.