EARTH MEANDERS: This I Know to Be Ecological Truth
Abrupt climate change and ecosystem collapse, caused by human industrial growth at expense of ecology, are poised to utterly destroy our one shared biosphere, and thus virtually all life including humanity."I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it is for or against. I'm a human being, first and foremost, and as such I'm for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole." – Malcolm X
By Dr. Glen Barry
Earth Meanders
Earth is an ancient organism, alive for 3.5 billion years. Only a few hundred years ago the disease of industrial capitalist growth arose, and is killing her by destroying her ecosystems. The current dominant economic paradigm mistakes ecosystem habitats – which are necessary for life – for disposable resources to be logged, mined, and burnt. Ancient, naturally evolved ecosystems are being stripped of life, largely for growth in throw-away consumer junk. As a result, water, soil, climate, and food systems are failing.
Human history can be summarized as the rich screwing the poor, stealing their work's surplus, while trashing ecosystems, at the point of a gun. For millennium, as human civilization developed, destroying ecosystems has been embraced as normal and desirable, particularly for agriculture. Over-population – going from 1.5 to 7 billion inequitable super-consumers in 125 years – has surpassed planetary ecological boundaries.
It has been routinely claimed that growth and liquidating natural habitat is progress and advancement, when in fact ecosystem loss is ecocide, and is killing us all. Ecosystem collapse is already here for one billion people globally without enough food, another billion lacking water, two billion living on less than $2 per day, and those subsisting on industrially over-developed and climate changed lands. Austerity in over-developed countries is in fact largely caused by ecosystem collapse, as jobs and easy growth from once-off harvesting of ecosystems ends. Without intact, healthy ecosystems, this is all our futures.
Earth without its ecosystems and biosphere is no longer habitable. Earth's naturally evolved ecosystems required for a livable and abundant life are being destroyed by exponential, unsustainable and inequitable growth in population, consumption and industry. This exploitative relationship towards Earth, other humans, and all life is now being perfected and fully implemented globally. The sum of this "free-market" growth machine's destructive impact upon climate and ecosystems is crashing our one shared biosphere. When the ecosystems are gone, you can't eat money, and everything dies.
The human family faces an unprecedented ecological and social emergency, of its own making, and for which it is woefully unprepared. Humanity is sleep walking towards global ecological collapse – utterly oblivious to abrupt climate change, food scarcity, failing ecosystems, other people and all life's suffering. Continued denial of the fundamentally ecological nature of being will ensure global ecosystem collapse, and a horrific and drawn out apocalyptic end to civilization, as perhaps all life is dragged down with us.
How much is enough? Earth really needs an answer, as planetary ecological boundaries in water, climate, and extinction have been exceeded, human habitat is crashing, and some have so much, while many have so little. We must abandon our current ecocidal way of "making a living" by destroying natural life for material "development" if the human family and kindred species are to survive, much less thrive.
Humanity was warned of over-population, environmental decline, climate change, and famine for centuries – now as our one shared biosphere begins its long-predicted collapse, a time of great dying threatens even rich nations. Shared survival depends upon learning to love, be happy, live long, and be well with less. And we must learn to live well within intact ecosystems without destroying them.
Earth can't stand further growth of industrial "development" at the expense of life-giving ecosystems. Jobs at the expense of ecosystem destruction are ecocide. Together the human family will wisely power down to a steady state economy, end fossil fuels, and protect and restore ecosystems; or face final horrific ecological, social, and economic collapse into nothingness.
America and the world are woefully unprepared for abrupt climate change and global ecosystem collapse, and resulting mayhem and mass death. We have largely dropped our quest for knowledge, wisdom and truth upon which real progress is based. We must not place our entire faith in gods, countries and markets – figments of the human imagination – but rather seek ecological and other fundamental and observable truths. Lack of rights, justice, equity and environment is not our natural condition – they are human choices. The only independent, observable, positive truths are ecology and love.
Ecology is the meaning of life. There can be no life without intact, healthy ecosystems. Ecology is the basis of life, and those undermining ecosystems are a disease destroying natural and human-being. They must be compelled to stop. There is nowhere to hide from abrupt climate change and global ecosystem collapse. Together we act now to reduce growth, ecocide, and inequitable consumption or being is over.
Corporatists are real eco-terrorists. All free-thinking lovers of life must come together now to end eco-terrorism. We have to stop known ecocidalists and greenwashers from destroying Earth. If we are to survive, there is no other option but to do so together. There is nothing sacrosanct about ecocidal industrial, agricultural, and consumption patterns – if your way of living is killing ecosystems, you have to stop now, or be compelled involuntarily to do so.
There has been a complete failure by government, business, media and society to recognize and urgently act upon abrupt climate change and ecosystem collapse. As US elections ignore urgent global (and thus national) ecological crises – even in the face of a climate change enhanced drought of biblical proportions that threatens global food supplies – it has become abundantly clear that real and sufficient solutions to climate change and ecosystem collapse will not come from the current political and economic system.
For any chance of global ecological survival, much less abundance, the human family must immediately power down, reject fossil fuels, demobilize armies, go back to the land, and embrace ecosystem protection and restoration. There are no other paths to global ecological sustainability and continued natural and human being that don't also include sharing so that basic human needs for all are met. Those that return to living within ecosystems may well inherit the Earth from those that don't.
We need an Earth Revolution. You could start by choosing a remnant old growth forest or other local natural ecosystem and ensure it remains standing, is restored, and is assisted to expand. Find the natural source of your drinking water from the tap and protect it, ensure it remains healthy, and even is replenished. And commit to dramatic simplification in your own and others' material consumption, and thus emissions.
There is no greater calling than serving Earth, truth and doing what is right matter, there is no greater truth than ecosystems, and loving nature, all life, and each other is the answer. It is time for good people to do what is ethically right – protect Earth, kids, workers, freedom, rights, duties – and speak up and act to make a better world, even if it is risky and difficult.
Earth desperately needs an ecological science-based, no bullshit, straight-talking, undiplomatic group of global ecosystem defenders to formulate and implement biocentric, fair and just policies sufficient to achieve global ecological sustainability. It's time for people everywhere to wake up and take personal responsibility for maintaining ecological habitability of their one shared planet. There can be no jobs, no economy, no love and happiness; there is nothing, without intact ecosystems.
The Internet possesses massive potential to achieve unprecedented revolutionary social change through coordinated action by global people power. But we have yet to imagine and make real global Internet-mediated movements to end war, achieve economic justice, and sustain global ecology. It's time.
Only united global people power can together end ecocide, sustain global ecology, and ensure all live decently and well. What if all around the world, together we Earth and truth lovers – that want to see life go on essentially forever – fought back to stop eco-terrorists from destroying the climate, ecosystems, old forests, wildlife and natural and human-being? It has begun, join us.
