The Earth Pope

Glimmer of Sanity

Finally, a glimmer of sanity in the world of continuous insanity.  I don't know if you caught this one but a Spanish judge recently revoked the parental rights of a father, one Luis Miguel Gomez, for taking his 10--year old son to run with the bulls in Pamplona. This isn't like taking your kid to the water park or the amusement park where they have thrill rides and you don't watch them closely enough.  This year alone 11 people where injured in this strange ritual to find your own testosterone.

What got me in addition to the brazen stupidity of Luis is his total disregard for the rules.  According to city regulations no one under 18 years of age can run with the bulls.  As with most people Luis obviously thought that those rules were intended for other people and that he and his 10-year old son were somehow exempt from such childish limitations on deadly Spanish fun and frivolity.

I believe this judge has established precedent for taking away parental rights for parents that abdicate their role in raising their children to protect them from things that can hurt or kill them.  We see it all of the time and it is becoming

Recently I went to see an R-rated movie where a young couple had brought their two very small children.  One couldn't have been 4-years old and the other one was still small enough to require holding.  The movie obviously scared the children enough to make them cry and when I complained to the theater manager he said there was nothing he could do about it.  Well now there is!

Take a look around your everyday experience and let me know if you see anything that places children in harms way.  We all know about the hundreds of toxic compounds that our young people are continuously exposed to and while that is inexcusable it is much harder for a parent to control and protect their children from. 

Glimmers of Change

Just before the New Year I was given a glimpse of the change that is occurring all around us and how powerful that change can be.  This experience brought a glimmer of encouragement to me as I struggled with the exhaustion I had accumulated from an entire year working to bring awareness to Americans afflicted with the debilitating dynamic of entitlement addiction and bliss suppression.

Here's what happened.  I was walking across a parking lot when I was summoned to conversation by my cheery insurance man.  I have been doing business with Chris for over a decade and he often engages me in friendly banter when we chance encounter on the street.  But this time Chris seemed especially exuberant.  I thought it must just be the season.

I must tell you that Chris has always been the kind of businessman who wanted you to know he was successful.  He always wore very expensive clothes and drove a nice Mercedes Benz.  To his credit his cars were used and he always stressed the good deals he got on them.  But this time something was very different about Chris and what he was talking about.

Instead of regaling me with highlights of his recent trip to Hawaii or recognition as insurance man of the month, Chris was discussing the benefits of his new car.  As he patted the roof I realized that the car he was standing next to, the Prius, was actually his!  Chris launched into how he got 50 miles to the gallon and how when he pulled away from the stop sign he wasn't using any gas at all, only electricity.  By his mannerisms I knew he was genuinely excited.

I was stunned!  Chris had awakened to the fact that the need to choose between economic security and environmental protection was an artificial conflict manufactured by closed-minded economists and neoconservative fearmongers.  He had discovered that in fact taking the environment into account by buying a Prius was a very wise investment, not only in terms of money but in terms of his children's future.

Then Chris paused and placed his hand on my shoulder.  "You know what has been the most amazing part of buying a Prius?" he asked. 

"No, what" I replied, as I thought about him telling me he now owns a Toyota dealership.

"People come up to me and say 'Thank You' and at first I didn't understand why.  I asked a friend of mine who has a Prius and he said it was people thanking me for protecting the environment and driving a Prius.  I was blown away!"

So was I.  Here was a glimmer of the change that is happening all across the country as more and more people wake up to the fact that we all need to take action now to protect the planet. And they are making changes that also make them more happy and content in life.  What a deal!

Thank you Chris.

Green God is Coming

Happy Solstice!  May the spirits watch over and bless each and every one of us.  And we will truly need the assistance of these extra allies as we move into the coming New Year because there is a Green Scare fermenting here in this country. 

It has been a wild and crazed year where young men and women, fearful of the accelerating collapse of the earth's life support systems, vent their frustration by vandalizing a few SUVs and end up serving over a decade behind bars while Union Carbide's CEO of Death Warren Anderson, a true terrorist of the environment if there ever was one remains free here in America after killing thousands in India.  At the same time the Bush Abomination coddles corporate criminals their handmaidens at the Environmental Protection Agency rollback existing laws while polishing their resumes for transition to corporate suites and fat paychecks when their government shift ends.

But before atrophy from the gloom and doom of fisheries collapsing and ice caps melting totally immobilizes us from taking action, we need to take solace from the miracles that have recently occurred.  In one of the biggest yet, the Cretin of Christ himself,  Pat Robertson announced that he is a "Convert on global warming" and called for action on fossil fuels. The couch Christians across the country turned to their spouses and said, "what the hell is wrong with Pat" as they spilled their Cokes on the floor.  These same couch parishioners decided that enough was enough, got up off of their couches and drove their Ford Expeditions to the local Evangelical church.  Once there they encountered other Christians who feel the very same way Pat does.  In fact, 70% of the Evangelicals now see global warming as a threat.  These foot soldiers of the Lord, who oppose abortion and gay marriage are now marching to protect the planet. 

Best of all they are now debating among themselves, not about evolution but if God is in fact Green.  In a world where religion and beliefs fuel wars, divide families and drive national policy this debate is cause for celebration by tree huggers everywhere.  These Christians are the very people we need to join the eco-freaks and animal rights activists to move protection of the earth and all sentient beings to the top of the political agenda.

What a world 2007 will reveal when the Department of Homeland Security finds itself profiling several million Christians who have signed petitions, donated to environmental organizations and marched to protest inaction against global warming.  The very same Christians who help launch the Republican takeover now listed as "eco-terrorists" on watch lists at all airports and border crossings. 

May 2007 find the Bush Abomination afraid of the coming Green God!

Mirror Mirror

What is up with these research scientists anyway? 

You may have heard that they are stunned, stunned I tell you, by the fact that elephants have shown signs of self awareness.  This leads to the conclusion that elephants can now join the exclusive group of humans, great apes and bottle-nosed dolphins.  While this doesn't prevent humans from putting elephants, great apes and dolphins in zoos we seem to be fascinated that these creatures have the ability to form complex social bonds and may even have feelings.

At the same time that we continue to experiment on captive animals to scientifically determine if they think, feel, bond, have emotions and form complex social relationships we have other doctors and scientists promoting trophy hunting of elephants as a way to protect them.  This is justified by the fact, as Dr. Peter Lindsey stated, "Realistically, for conservation to succeed, wildlife has to pay for itself in Africa."  Yes indeed, those animals who have lived on the land for millennia must begin paying to live there, just like every body else, and paying with their lives.

There you have it.  Animals, regardless of their intelligence or level of self awareness, have no right to live on this planet unless they provide economic value to humans in the global market.  The only animals worth protecting are the ones that can demonstrate market potential even if that potential is realized only in death.

It would be a much better use of time and money to have the research scientists take their mirrors to the Dr. Lindseys, the factory farmers and vivisectionists of the world and have them take a real good look at themselves.  We could even videotape each session to see if there were signs of self awareness and the ability to form complex social relationships.

But even if these profiteers could look at their own reflection we could not claim to be exhibiting behaviors of “higher life forms” that inhabit the planet.  Until we stop clear-cutting the forests, vacuuming the oceans and poisoning the bodies of all living beings I say we still have a long, long way to go before we can join that club.

 

Lunar Litter

If ever there was a mistaken acronym it is the so called SMART-1.  What is so smart about a bunch of engineers sending a $140 million spacecraft into orbit around the moon and then having it crash onto the surface?  I realize that this is the European Space Agency's first lunar mission and the new propulsion system has demonstrated its effectiveness but if they can't get the craft to return to Earth, just how successful can it really be?

Like a bunch of galactic NASCAR junkies, astronomers around the planet trained their telescopes on the moon's surface hoping for a chance to glimpse the crash.  Newspapers hyped the spectacle to the point that everyone was suffering from "space crash" envy, hoping to get to the local planetarium to see the deliberate destruction on the big screen.  They can dress it up as much as they want with the cleaver label "impact science" but in the end it is still just littering the moon.

How smart can we be sending a message out to the universe that humans are linear thinking creatures that only know how to leave their junk in space, without any consideration for other species?  Any observation of our planet will reveal our insensitivity, not only to other species that we share the planet with, but even other humans.  We truly are morons with thumbs.

Our own home is littered with space junk.  More than 9,000 pieces surround the earth like a trash halo giving warning to all other inhabitants of the heavens that we have yet to develop any kind of galactic ethic, or for that matter an earth ethic.  By leaving junk, trash and space litter on the moon and around our own home we are demonstrating we are not the SMART-1 but in fact the DUMB-1.

Commodity Sin

In my previous post Valuing the Earth I pointed out that we needed to begin valuing the Earth and her various inhabitants as being worth more then private property.  But I hadn't taken all of the possible iterations of this thinking into account on my journey to edge of Western insanity.

I recently discovered that the global corporations have come to the realization that, (sit down for this one), they need to pay closer attention to the natural systems they rely on to operate their businesses.  The report, Environmental Markets: Opportunities and Risks for Business, asks the important question--How much are healthy, well-functioning environmental systems worth to your company's bottom line?  This question is based on the fact that global corporations, and corporations in general, view the environment through the lens of "ecosystem services" that can be provided to them in order to increase profits.

This requirement that corporations view everything as either an asset or risk to making money creates a "black and white" market-based viewpoint where species of value become resources to manage and others with no defined value to business are seen as expendable.  People are thrown into this with the categorization of "human resources."

What about spiritual value?  What about the value of mental health that comes from interacting with nature?  What about the value of inspiration that comes from being in a natural setting?  Corporations can not and will not account for these and other true values on the bottom line of life.  There is much more to the "ecosystem services" than the assistance they provide companies to make increased profits.

How long before we see commodity trading in clean water futures?  Will an investment person get front page status on Fortune magazine because he saw the coming shortage in clean air?  Will the National Park Service expand bioprospecting to include organisms in addition to microorganisms?

Until we confront this shallow and calloused view of the earth and all of her beings as "services and resources" every living and non-living item on the earth will be just commodities that companies can exploit. 

Valuing the Earth

More and more it appears that American culture has things exactly backwards.  This is true with the fines and penalties imposed for illegally harming the environment, or using nature to make a profit against the minimal laws in place to protect species we share the Earth with.

Take for example the case of Ryan Zeman, who was recently convicted of criminal copyright infringement for illegally copying 14 movie titles and distributing them for profit. Ryan received a sentence of three years probation, four months home confinement and four months community confinement.  He has also been required to make restitution in the amount of $120,000.

Contrast this with the plunder and pilfering that is going on along the North coast of California where the last vestiges of abalone are found.  While most sportsmen and sportswomen adhere to the rules and regulations regarding abalone harvesting, some people decide to use illegal scuba gear and harvest as many as they can.  With abalone going for $50 per pound on the black market the potential to make significant cash overshadows the penalty if caught.  The maximum is $40,000 in fines, loss of gear and substantial jail time.

What will happen when a renegade geneticist begins to illegally copy abalones and sell them on the black market?  What laws will this crime fall under?  Illegal copyright of natural organisms or illegal taking of a living species?  Will it even be a crime?

I say we immediately switch the fines and penalties for crimes against private property and crimes against the public commons.  Litterers should receive immediate jail time and heavy fines.  Take a nature walk on private property without permission and receive a warning. Shoot a hawk and go directly to jail.  Shoplift food to feed your children, receive a warning and food stamps.

Vino Terroirists

Holy sacrament!  Is nothing sacred anymore?  It appears that wine purists in France are attempting to halt the importation of wine into the country by attempting to destroy supermarkets and the offices of wine authorities.  Two groups of "militant producers" are suspected of being at the center of these attacks and have now been fingered in the recent destruction of a wine warehouse.

Now, if such an attack had occurred on American soil, particularly great wine growing soil in California, and had involved the destruction of property through acts of violence the first accusations would have been against what we in America label eco-terrorists.  The recent burning of the Two Elk ski resort and restaurant in Colorado launched a massive manhunt and help motivate the government to deem environmental activists as the "number one domestic terrorism threat" in this country.

It is obvious that these wine militants portend a more insidious threat, not only to our economy but also to our national right to relax.  These are not just militants out to protect their local way of life but maniacs threatening the ability of people everywhere to enjoy the benefits of the global economy and the consumption of cheap wine.  These "militant producers" have demonstrated that they will use violence to achieve their goals and they also have access to liquids.  As we have recently seen in England, this is potentially a very deadly combination.

I say that this is a national security issue of the highest levels and our leaders are not paying any attention to it.  Let's call these crazies what they are so the American wine consumers can be motivated by their over abundance of fear and prepared to take necessary action.  These are "vino terroirists" we are dealing with and they must be stopped!

It is time to raise the vino terroirist warning level from rosé to pinot noir.  We must be aware of the threats and prepared to act accordingly if and when the warning level reaches Cabernet.

 

Converting the Faithful

Brothers and Sisters, it has finally happened!  There are signs from the Gods and Goddesses that massive positive change is coming, regardless of the  focus by the "main stream news" on the bleak and woeful, and this week one of the grandest signs was revealed for all to see. 

The Reverend Pat Robertson, the same Reverend who called for the assassination of President Hugo Chavez and with his religious brother Jerry Falwell insisted that gays and lesbians were to blame for September 11th has seen the light and now believes in global warming. 

This is critical because Reverend Robertson has a substantial number of followers with his 700 Club, hosted by the Christian Broadcasting Network, claiming access to 1.5 billion people around the world. With Reverend Robertson proclaiming that we need to do something about our contributions to the destruction of the Earth, I suggest that we join his prayer network and let his Prayer Counselors know that we are worried about global warming and we want the "Environment" included as a category in the Online Prayer Requests. 

This is a glimmer of hope that we need to act upon!  The Reverend Pat Robertson, regardless of his past comments, has show that he, too, can be converted by the power of the divine Mother Earth.  So, pick up the phone right now and call the Prayer Counselors at 1-800-759-0700 and say a prayer for the healing of the planet.

This is an issue that needs to be acted on right away!

Flagging Conviction

I support the amendment to ban flag burning that is being sponsored by Senator Orrin Hatch and that was recently backed by such stern Democrats as Senator Dianne Feinstein and Senate Minority Leader Henry Reid.  The fact that a recent Senate action failed by only one vote shows the importance of this constitutional amendment.   But it is not just the right of free speech that is at issue here. It is the right to expose innocent people to potential toxic substances when a flag is burned.

Just think about for a moment.  A crowd gathers in a public square in Hometown, USA where a demonstration is taking place against some mild atrocity that the US Government is imposing on yet another foreign country.  As the crowd pushes in closer to see the police and protesters challenging each other a small group of rabid dissidents unfurls the American flag and lights it on fire.  It has been generously soaked in an accelerant to increase the dramatic effect of the burning but it also unleashing toxic substances into the lungs of everyone within 100 yards.

While the flag burning amendment is a small step in the right direction for the wrong reasons it is still a step on the way to the bigger, broader ban that I want the senators to support.  I want the senators to propose an amendment to outlaw burning of any item deemed "waste".  Fire is one of the most effective elements in fooling humans into believing that something unwanted has been made to go "away".  By eliminating burning of all waste as an option we are forced to engage our innovation and creativity to find ways to reduce the waste we generate and reuse or recycle our resources.

So next time you are feeling the urge to burn the flag I want you to stop, put the matches down and instead pick up a pair of scissors.  Take the flag and cut out letters, symbols or images that you can use to make your statement.  Then, with the leftover flag material you can line the inside of a suit jacket.  That's right!  A new fashion statement for the senators and representatives who still wear those silly metal American flags on their lapels.   Image those men spreading their jackets open like a pair of true American wings.  What a statement that will make to their constiuents.

And maybe, just maybe they will all fly away to the same imaginary land where they believe the toxic waste goes to.