It’s Time to Get Serious About Systemic Solutions to Systemic Problems
It’s getting harder and harder to be an optimist. A deep economic crisis has given way to a profoundly unequal recovery. Climate catastrophe is steadily unfolding across the globe. And the work of building a racially inclusive society appears to be stalled — indeed, in many areas, to be losing ground. All of this in an age of unprecedented technological progress, which has manifestly failed to keep its promises. If there is one saving grace, it is that the pain caused by these interconnected failures make it possible — for the first time in modern history — to pose the question of system change in a serious fashion, even in the United States, the faltering heart of global capitalism.
To pose the system question means first and foremost to point out that long, failing trends are anchored far more deeply in political-economic structures than conventional political debate suggests. It is to ask how the system is built, for whom, and how it operates to recurrently produce the decaying outcomes we are experiencing. There is, in fact, no shortage of people today to tell us that something is wrong, that things are built to work for the wealthy, for the white and for those far from the frontlines of climate and social calamity. Such diagnoses are increasingly commonplace and harder and harder to contest.
It is no major leap from such anguished complaints to recognition that the system itself –American corporate capitalism — is generating the outcomes we witness; that we do, indeed, face a systemic challenge, one manifestly not responsive to traditional political approaches and strategies.
But if defining the system question is easy, answering it remains much harder. For decades, the only options for many have seemed to be state socialism, on the one hand, or corporate capitalism, on the other. If we reject the authoritarian and bureaucratic centralism of the former, but find it increasingly difficult to believe that the latter will be able to nurture equality, liberty and democracy, or even able to keep our planet livable, is there any alternative besides cynical resignation and despair?
The traditional strategies that once seemed capable of winning equitable and sustainable social, economic, and ecological outcomes simply no longer work. Labor unions, the core of the traditional progressive power base, have been radically weakened, and could well continue to decline still further under political attack. Corporate power and concentrations of great wealth dominate the democratic process, widening massive gaps in wealth and income, and severely limiting the capacity of the occasional progressive administration to use taxation to meaningfully redistribute wealth or to seriously regulate corporations in many areas. Publicly listed, large-scale corporations, for their part, have little choice but to grow or die, putting more and more pressure on ecological limits.
Efforts to cobble together “solutions” to these challenges for the most part draw upon and reinforce the very same institutional arrangements that caused them in the first place. Virtually none challenge underlying institutional power structures. In short, we face a systemic crisis, not simply political and economic difficulties. Accordingly, we need to discuss, debate and mobilize to achieve systemic solutions.
It is time to begin a real conversation — locally, nationally and at all levels — about what a genuine alternative beyond corporate capitalism and state socialism would look like, and how we would build it. Not too long ago, it was easy to dismiss any talk about “changing the system” as frivolous or impractical, a luxury or a distraction. What we are seeing today is that increasing numbers of people understand that this task has become absolutely necessary. What’s become frivolous and distracting is continuing to assume that business as usual is still an option.
It’s rare that ideas matter in politics. Usually, what matters is simply the momentum of entrenched power. But every so often, history gives us an opening to something new. When the old stories no longer explain the world around us, when it is obvious to everyone that something is deeply wrong, new ideas can matter, and matter a great deal. Our present time in history appears to be one of those moments. Unless we can seize it, and come together to develop and implement a plausible alternative system, the current downward trajectory of pain and decay will only continue.
There are real alternatives. In precisely those places where the current system has reached a dead end, we see a steadily-building explosion of new proposals and new experiments, new ideas and new activism, and above all a new basis for hope. Worker-owned firms are being developed in many parts of the country. In Boulder, Colorado a powerful movement to take over and municipalize the private utility holds out the promise of actually dealing with local sources of global warming. In several cities variations on the inspiring Mondragón cooperative network approach are being developed.
Strikingly, the recent financial crisis brought de facto nationalization of General Motors, Chrysler and A.I.G, once the largest insurance company in the world. Although all were re-privatized after public bailouts saved them from collapse, what might happen in the next crisis — or the one beyond — is by no means a closed question. Our task is to bring together (and extend and expand upon) the growing number of experiments and new strategies, and then forge a coherent new systemic direction that can help guide us as we build what comes next.
A tall order? Certainly. But history reminds us that easy pessimism is both dis-empowering and often wrong. The Civil Rights Movement, the feminist movement and the movement for marriage equality all began at moments when very little seemed possible. Nor was the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union, or the apartheid regime in South Africa, expected or predicted by conventional views of what was possible at the time.
Many progressives today also forget how marginal today’s right-wing ideas were in the decades before 1980. Indeed, the ideas and beliefs currently dominating American politics were once regarded as ridiculous by the mainstream press, politicians and most serious scholars. Serious conservatives, however, saw their opening, and worked self-consciously to develop and propagate their ideas over the long haul. If we can roll up our sleeves and get organized and serious about really tackling the system question, about building a new system of political economy, there are grounds for optimism that deep and far-reaching change is possible.
Recent surveys of public opinion indicate a radical openness to something new just below the surface of conventional media reporting. People between the ages of 18 and 29 slightly favor the word “socialism” over the word “capitalism” (49 percent to 46 percent). In 2012 Merriam Webster, publisher of the widely used online dictionary, noted that the two most looked-up words that year were “socialism” and “capitalism.”
Today’s young people, of all races and national origins, increasingly recognize that if nothing changes they will likely be worse off than their parents were. Even as the elderly and the middle-aged begin to stir, there’s no stronger ally imaginable than a generation realizing that without a next system, they may not have a future.
24 Comments on "It’s Time to Get Serious About Systemic Solutions to Systemic Problems"
Rodster on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:35 am
“to pose the question of system change in a serious fashion, even in the United States, the faltering heart of global CAPITALISM.”
First lets get this out of the way. There is no such thing as capitalism anymore. The World is being run by BANK-ISM. The central banks are running the Governments of the world. Capitalism has LONG left the building.
Banks operate on the premise of wealth, profit, greed, power and control.
If you don’t change the way money works, nothing will get fixed. All the way back to Napoleon, he bitched about the control banks had on governments. It worse today. Money, profit, greed, power and control are what’s driving us off the side of the mountain.
ghung on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:39 am
“The Civil Rights Movement, the feminist movement and the movement for marriage equality all began at moments when very little seemed possible.”
Funny that. Women are still paid less than men for the same work, a number of States are passing laws clearly designed to be deleterious to LGBT rights, and racial divides seem to be on the increase as the US moves farther right into Tea Party neo-con neverland. Meanwhile, those who have the power to change, to foment change, have little incentive to do so. They like things pretty much the way they are.
We’ll see systemic change for sure, but it won’t be by design,, and it won’t be the sort of change many are going to enjoy much. Societal reset is usually not much fun for anybody, and a fundamental scramble for resources won’t be equitable.
So keep showing us a list of wealthy, mostly successful celebs with pipe dreams (who refuse to admit we’re largely fucked), for all the good it’ll do. They clearly don’t understand the implications of massive societal/global overshoot.
paulo1 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:50 am
All the points made are true, but a few were left out. Recent surveys of Americans indicate that wealth redistribution (taxes) from the rich are not the way to go. Why? They feel that they could one day also be rich and would not like to see their wealth confiscated. Unions have declined under the onslaught from the right for many reasons, but chief among them is tapping into the idea that people like to feel they do not need a Union…they are too good for union membership and they will be recognized as such. Climate change? Life is everyday and folks don’t see it as an ‘everyday threat’. Perhaps climate migration from the southwest states might start a real dialogue, or if a weather event destroyed a vulnerable city.
re statement: “there’s no stronger ally imaginable than a generation realizing that without a next system, they may not have a future.” What is the old truism, not making a decision or choice is a choice, itself? Coupled with a childhood spent on electronic devices, delayed adulthood, and blue-ribbon award mentality for just ‘showing up’, I am not optimistic about leaders rising up with forceful and new ideas.
My own opinion is that change will be driven by individuals and not by groups. The beast can be starved. Don’t let them take your guns, either. It’s about the only thing you have left.
lawfish1964 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 9:40 am
Paulo: “If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.” Rush
Once again, the limousine liberals present the problems, but offer no solutions. Probably because there aren’t any. Certainly not any top-down ones, anyway. As Ghung says, change will happen, but most folks won’t enjoy it. Prepare, people. Prepare.
Daniel on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 10:07 am
@ Lawfish…how do you prepare for the largest catastrophe to hit mankind ever! Plant a garden?! Most of the comments on here about “prepare” come from rich former liberal baby boomers! Who have made their money on the very system that they condem! I hear comments where people say I am going to help my family first!…f-you!!!! The locust will descend on your little farms faster than you can imagine…that goes for you little riches in New Zealand…this mentality really pisses me off…
MSN Fanboy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 11:19 am
I happen to enjoy my racially segregated society 😛 And Daniel, you prepare by buying a weapon lol stupid.
Nony on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 11:59 am
emoting deep leftist silliness. You people should realize how silly this stuff looks to middle America. Oh…and what is with the weird emaciated look of all the spokespeople? Look some sort of Heaven’s Gate weirdos.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:16 pm
Six Myths About Climate Change that Liberals Rarely Question
Nony: “You people should realize how silly this stuff looks to middle America.”
Nony should realize how absurd it is for him to suggest what I should or should not realise, but his ego won’t allow it, nor will his insufferable hubris. Even his skills at insulting other folks are sub-par; ‘middle America’ personified regularly at PO.com.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:25 pm
Ah yes, the limousine liberals and their quest to save the planet…..by getting YOU to do all the sacrificing. Very much the same strategy the corporations use – the system is not the problem…you are.
…………………………….
Everyone sees the predicament. It is you, you and all the other people who are using all my resources. There must be a solution, so I will stand here and whine about it until you fix everything the way I want it. Sounds like what I hear from .gov all day long.
lawfish1964 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:44 pm
Well, Daniel, doing something is better than doing nothing. As for my preparations, I have lots of food stored and guns and ammo. Otherwise, I’m doing what I can. I’ve learned how to grow my own food and catch fish on a large scale. I have 30 lbs. of lead, 600 hooks, lead weight and jig molds and an 83 foot long seine net that I know how to use. I have a place on a beach south of here and I know my neighbors. It’s a very defensible peninsula with a single choke point that can be readily defended by the 300 or so homeowners who also have homes on that peninsula.
Financially, I’m shedding debt as fast as I can. I make good money and I’m a baby-boomer by 15 days, but I drive a 14 year old car with 183,000 miles on it that was paid for the day I bought it (used). Everyone in my family knows how to shoot our weapons, catch fish and grow and preserve food.
If my prepping isn’t good enough, so be it, but I’m not going to just throw in the towel and assume when the SHTF that I’ll just die like so many others.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:51 pm
As far as I see it, there are very few real Liberals anymore or real Conservatives for that matter – everyone was either crushed or sold out long ago. Mammon rules most of this world.
Davy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 1:14 pm
Danny Boy, You have no friggen idea what, when, where, how, and what degree this catastrophe will be. That means you are generalizing by pulling stuff out of your butt that in this case stinks. Yea, and you plant a friggen garden with or without a catastrophe. That is just common sense that normal people that like good food do but I imagine you like cheese doodles so gardens are despised by your type.
I am a former 1%er just barely doomer boomer. So friggen what. Who are you? Asshole millennial or X-generation fruit cake? You guys never learned how to tie your shoes so of course you are going to get really pissed off at us older folks that can tie our shoes and can do allot of other things including making money back in the good old days.
Let the locust people come. They will be coming regardless if I prepped or not. If I have something to bribe them with all the better. Maybe I can hire them as soldiers to protect my doomstead. You whiners about prepping are either too dumb to realize how important any kind of prep is or you are to friggen lazy and cheap to make the effort. Go play with yourself in the basement of your mom’s boomer house you are complaining about..
Northwest Resident on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 1:54 pm
Nony!! Welcome back to peakoil dot com. Home to and favorite hangout of trolls, industry shills, obnoxious insulters and loony nuts. Just exactly the place to be for you — no wonder you failed to keep your new year’s resolution to stop posting your absurd crap on this forum — this forum draws you like stink draws a fly.
The fact that there happens to be a lot of really cool, decent and intelligent posters whose comments are interspersed between all the trollish garbage is the ONLY saving grace of this piece of shit website, and the only reason I return here. But I’ve grown to really detest whoever owns/operates this website — I know they’re just looking for 2-penny banner clicks and traffic count from me (and you too) so they can sell advertising.
The owners/operators of this forum don’t give a rat’s ass about the very serious subject matter that this forum focuses on. If they did, then they would put the brakes on all the trolls, shills and bug-eyed America haters that daily turn this forum in one big stupid argument and use it as a vehicle for their subversive causes.
So make yourself at home again, Nony. Keep those lies, distortions, insults and goofy quips coming. You can scare a lot of people away from searching for the truth. You can fool some newbie truth-seekers into thinking all is well. You can continue to shill for the MSM and oil industry line of propaganda. That’s what you’re here for. Just do it. Good job!
@ Lawfish….the only reason you are able to due what you have is because you were born at the right place at the right time…it is not because you have developed some sort of special skill that you have been rewarded and “deserve” what you have…enough to kill for it (possibly women and children) Telling the rest of us to go out and do what you have done when we are just swimming hard against the current… bull shit…..we don’t have your $$$ the only reason you were able to stay out of debt is because you come from $$..So don’t tell the rest of us if we are hungry to go eat cake…We can’t leave the city and buy 40 acres or what ever…you don’t get it…..but then again you probably never have…It is ironic for the baby boober generation to call the other generations self-serving!!!
Davy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 3:13 pm
Danny Boy, quit being a pussy and quit blaming everyone else for your own laziness and stupidity. Start now asking yourself why am I unable to tie my shoes then maybe buy a book on tying shoes to learn how to tie shoes. Nothing worse then a resentful screw up. You want to focus your resentment of your own incompetence on someone else.
John Kintree on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 4:56 pm
I like the idea of ratifying the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Earth Charter through a global referendum. We might still be up shit creek if we did that, but at least we would be holding the paddle.
Makati1 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 6:47 pm
“It’s Time to Get Serious About Systemic Solutions to Systemic Problems”
Get serious? Hahahahahahahahahahaha…
Not on this planet of greedy fools.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 9:17 pm
The Collapse of Civilisation Is Already a Reality for the Children of Ambovombe, Madagascar
Not any mention of (over)population ?
Is this article for stupid people ?
Lawfish1964 on Sat, 4th Apr 2015 7:30 am
Danny, it won’t matter in the least why you’re unprepared. The bottleneck will cull a lot of people. Those who emerge are likely to be those with a sense of personal responsibilty and a work ethic.
Apneaman on Sat, 4th Apr 2015 8:15 pm
Overdevelopment, Overpopulation, Overshoot
Overdevelopment, Overpopulation, Overshoot (OVER) is an impressive piece of art crystallizing the ecological and social tragedies of humanity’s ballooning numbers and consumption in stunning photography.
Rodster on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:35 am
“to pose the question of system change in a serious fashion, even in the United States, the faltering heart of global CAPITALISM.”
First lets get this out of the way. There is no such thing as capitalism anymore. The World is being run by BANK-ISM. The central banks are running the Governments of the world. Capitalism has LONG left the building.
Banks operate on the premise of wealth, profit, greed, power and control.
If you don’t change the way money works, nothing will get fixed. All the way back to Napoleon, he bitched about the control banks had on governments. It worse today. Money, profit, greed, power and control are what’s driving us off the side of the mountain.
ghung on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:39 am
“The Civil Rights Movement, the feminist movement and the movement for marriage equality all began at moments when very little seemed possible.”
Funny that. Women are still paid less than men for the same work, a number of States are passing laws clearly designed to be deleterious to LGBT rights, and racial divides seem to be on the increase as the US moves farther right into Tea Party neo-con neverland. Meanwhile, those who have the power to change, to foment change, have little incentive to do so. They like things pretty much the way they are.
We’ll see systemic change for sure, but it won’t be by design,, and it won’t be the sort of change many are going to enjoy much. Societal reset is usually not much fun for anybody, and a fundamental scramble for resources won’t be equitable.
So keep showing us a list of wealthy, mostly successful celebs with pipe dreams (who refuse to admit we’re largely fucked), for all the good it’ll do. They clearly don’t understand the implications of massive societal/global overshoot.
paulo1 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 8:50 am
All the points made are true, but a few were left out. Recent surveys of Americans indicate that wealth redistribution (taxes) from the rich are not the way to go. Why? They feel that they could one day also be rich and would not like to see their wealth confiscated. Unions have declined under the onslaught from the right for many reasons, but chief among them is tapping into the idea that people like to feel they do not need a Union…they are too good for union membership and they will be recognized as such. Climate change? Life is everyday and folks don’t see it as an ‘everyday threat’. Perhaps climate migration from the southwest states might start a real dialogue, or if a weather event destroyed a vulnerable city.
re statement: “there’s no stronger ally imaginable than a generation realizing that without a next system, they may not have a future.” What is the old truism, not making a decision or choice is a choice, itself? Coupled with a childhood spent on electronic devices, delayed adulthood, and blue-ribbon award mentality for just ‘showing up’, I am not optimistic about leaders rising up with forceful and new ideas.
My own opinion is that change will be driven by individuals and not by groups. The beast can be starved. Don’t let them take your guns, either. It’s about the only thing you have left.
lawfish1964 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 9:40 am
Paulo: “If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.” Rush
Once again, the limousine liberals present the problems, but offer no solutions. Probably because there aren’t any. Certainly not any top-down ones, anyway. As Ghung says, change will happen, but most folks won’t enjoy it. Prepare, people. Prepare.
Daniel on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 10:07 am
@ Lawfish…how do you prepare for the largest catastrophe to hit mankind ever! Plant a garden?! Most of the comments on here about “prepare” come from rich former liberal baby boomers! Who have made their money on the very system that they condem! I hear comments where people say I am going to help my family first!…f-you!!!! The locust will descend on your little farms faster than you can imagine…that goes for you little riches in New Zealand…this mentality really pisses me off…
MSN Fanboy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 11:19 am
I happen to enjoy my racially segregated society 😛 And Daniel, you prepare by buying a weapon lol stupid.
Nony on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 11:59 am
emoting deep leftist silliness. You people should realize how silly this stuff looks to middle America. Oh…and what is with the weird emaciated look of all the spokespeople? Look some sort of Heaven’s Gate weirdos.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:16 pm
Six Myths About Climate Change that Liberals Rarely Question
http://transitionmilwaukee.org/profiles/blogs/six-myths-about-climate-change-that-liberals-rarely-question
ghung on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:20 pm
Nony: “You people should realize how silly this stuff looks to middle America.”
Nony should realize how absurd it is for him to suggest what I should or should not realise, but his ego won’t allow it, nor will his insufferable hubris. Even his skills at insulting other folks are sub-par; ‘middle America’ personified regularly at PO.com.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:25 pm
Ah yes, the limousine liberals and their quest to save the planet…..by getting YOU to do all the sacrificing. Very much the same strategy the corporations use – the system is not the problem…you are.
…………………………….
The Endocene
http://witsendnj.blogspot.ca/2014/10/the-endocene.html
penury on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:31 pm
Everyone sees the predicament. It is you, you and all the other people who are using all my resources. There must be a solution, so I will stand here and whine about it until you fix everything the way I want it. Sounds like what I hear from .gov all day long.
lawfish1964 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:44 pm
Well, Daniel, doing something is better than doing nothing. As for my preparations, I have lots of food stored and guns and ammo. Otherwise, I’m doing what I can. I’ve learned how to grow my own food and catch fish on a large scale. I have 30 lbs. of lead, 600 hooks, lead weight and jig molds and an 83 foot long seine net that I know how to use. I have a place on a beach south of here and I know my neighbors. It’s a very defensible peninsula with a single choke point that can be readily defended by the 300 or so homeowners who also have homes on that peninsula.
Financially, I’m shedding debt as fast as I can. I make good money and I’m a baby-boomer by 15 days, but I drive a 14 year old car with 183,000 miles on it that was paid for the day I bought it (used). Everyone in my family knows how to shoot our weapons, catch fish and grow and preserve food.
If my prepping isn’t good enough, so be it, but I’m not going to just throw in the towel and assume when the SHTF that I’ll just die like so many others.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 12:51 pm
As far as I see it, there are very few real Liberals anymore or real Conservatives for that matter – everyone was either crushed or sold out long ago. Mammon rules most of this world.
Davy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 1:14 pm
Danny Boy, You have no friggen idea what, when, where, how, and what degree this catastrophe will be. That means you are generalizing by pulling stuff out of your butt that in this case stinks. Yea, and you plant a friggen garden with or without a catastrophe. That is just common sense that normal people that like good food do but I imagine you like cheese doodles so gardens are despised by your type.
I am a former 1%er just barely doomer boomer. So friggen what. Who are you? Asshole millennial or X-generation fruit cake? You guys never learned how to tie your shoes so of course you are going to get really pissed off at us older folks that can tie our shoes and can do allot of other things including making money back in the good old days.
Let the locust people come. They will be coming regardless if I prepped or not. If I have something to bribe them with all the better. Maybe I can hire them as soldiers to protect my doomstead. You whiners about prepping are either too dumb to realize how important any kind of prep is or you are to friggen lazy and cheap to make the effort. Go play with yourself in the basement of your mom’s boomer house you are complaining about..
Northwest Resident on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 1:54 pm
Nony!! Welcome back to peakoil dot com. Home to and favorite hangout of trolls, industry shills, obnoxious insulters and loony nuts. Just exactly the place to be for you — no wonder you failed to keep your new year’s resolution to stop posting your absurd crap on this forum — this forum draws you like stink draws a fly.
The fact that there happens to be a lot of really cool, decent and intelligent posters whose comments are interspersed between all the trollish garbage is the ONLY saving grace of this piece of shit website, and the only reason I return here. But I’ve grown to really detest whoever owns/operates this website — I know they’re just looking for 2-penny banner clicks and traffic count from me (and you too) so they can sell advertising.
The owners/operators of this forum don’t give a rat’s ass about the very serious subject matter that this forum focuses on. If they did, then they would put the brakes on all the trolls, shills and bug-eyed America haters that daily turn this forum in one big stupid argument and use it as a vehicle for their subversive causes.
So make yourself at home again, Nony. Keep those lies, distortions, insults and goofy quips coming. You can scare a lot of people away from searching for the truth. You can fool some newbie truth-seekers into thinking all is well. You can continue to shill for the MSM and oil industry line of propaganda. That’s what you’re here for. Just do it. Good job!
Nony on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 2:31 pm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWC6W1ctkMY
Daniel on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 2:33 pm
@ Lawfish….the only reason you are able to due what you have is because you were born at the right place at the right time…it is not because you have developed some sort of special skill that you have been rewarded and “deserve” what you have…enough to kill for it (possibly women and children) Telling the rest of us to go out and do what you have done when we are just swimming hard against the current… bull shit…..we don’t have your $$$ the only reason you were able to stay out of debt is because you come from $$..So don’t tell the rest of us if we are hungry to go eat cake…We can’t leave the city and buy 40 acres or what ever…you don’t get it…..but then again you probably never have…It is ironic for the baby boober generation to call the other generations self-serving!!!
Davy on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 3:13 pm
Danny Boy, quit being a pussy and quit blaming everyone else for your own laziness and stupidity. Start now asking yourself why am I unable to tie my shoes then maybe buy a book on tying shoes to learn how to tie shoes. Nothing worse then a resentful screw up. You want to focus your resentment of your own incompetence on someone else.
John Kintree on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 4:56 pm
I like the idea of ratifying the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Earth Charter through a global referendum. We might still be up shit creek if we did that, but at least we would be holding the paddle.
Makati1 on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 6:47 pm
“It’s Time to Get Serious About Systemic Solutions to Systemic Problems”
Get serious? Hahahahahahahahahahaha…
Not on this planet of greedy fools.
Apneaman on Fri, 3rd Apr 2015 9:17 pm
The Collapse of Civilisation Is Already a Reality for the Children of Ambovombe, Madagascar
http://globalvoicesonline.org/2015/03/24/the-collapse-of-civilisation-is-already-a-reality-for-the-children-of-ambovombe-madagascar/
yoananda on Sat, 4th Apr 2015 4:57 am
Not any mention of (over)population ?
Is this article for stupid people ?
Lawfish1964 on Sat, 4th Apr 2015 7:30 am
Danny, it won’t matter in the least why you’re unprepared. The bottleneck will cull a lot of people. Those who emerge are likely to be those with a sense of personal responsibilty and a work ethic.
Apneaman on Sat, 4th Apr 2015 8:15 pm
Overdevelopment, Overpopulation, Overshoot
Overdevelopment, Overpopulation, Overshoot (OVER) is an impressive piece of art crystallizing the ecological and social tragedies of humanity’s ballooning numbers and consumption in stunning photography.
http://issuu.com/globalpopulationspeakout/docs/final_over_book