writeaboutwarming

March 28 – Where do the people of an irradiated nation go to get away from the radiation? Are they divided up between all nations? Can they be forced to leave their home? What if other countries are afraid of them, or feel they are unable to provide for them? Do only the obviously sick leave? How can a country that has scorned gaijin (foreigners) in the past be expected to send its citizens to live amongst them now? What will it do to all of us to simply stand by and watch them die? There’s no shortage of happier topics to write about, and I will write about them in future weeks, but I think this is a subject worthy of our attention. Oh – just so you know, I DID write the article about The Joy of Cooking , but it’s a bit longer than what I usually write for this blog, so I sent it to Transition Voice ( http://www.transitionvoice.com/ ). I hope it will appear there in the next few weeks. This question of “where do the Japanese people go to escape this developing plague” has been nagging...

March 22, 2011 – An article entitled “Green growth: Time to grasp the green future,” published yesterday in The London DailyTelegraph, a British newspaper, has me wondering whether to laugh or cry. Its approach is upbeat, and its source of information – Lord Stern, author of The Stern Review – would strike most as impeccable. Skeptic that I am not (believe me, I’m very easily swindled), the article strikes even me as pretty naïve. “For some of the biggest global companies, the debate about climate change is over.” Well, *&$^#@!, that only took 30 years!! “The world’s big insurers, retailers and miners are all taking seriously the threat that severe, man-made climate change will heat the atmosphere to catastrophic levels unless radical action is taken.” Notice who’s listed first? Big insurers. Munich Re, Germany’s largest insurance company, has been lobbying that government for decades, because of the endless payments they’ve had to make due to extreme weather. Amazing what being in...

March 14, 2011 – It’s impossible not to write about Japan, though the subject is so vast, it’s difficult to know how to grab hold of it. The miserable luck of a country that happens to straddle three tectonic plates? The insatiable appetite of tidal waves? The wreckage? The quiet courage of the Japanese people? The lack of looting? One of the inevitable consequences of this tragedy will be a shortage of food. In the near term, food aid is being provided to the Japanese people by a number of donor nations. We’ve all experienced anxiety on behalf of Japan as we look at telecasts of the mountains of refuse which aid workers will encounter. How will food get to where it’s needed? Once helicopters are no longer needed for search and rescue, they can be pressed into service. The shortage of gas that currently exists will play a role, as well. The fact that very large numbers of people have congregated in shelters ought to help. It will be up to the Japanese people to persist in...

March 9, 2011 – There are two main schools of thought when it comes to living in a post-collapse/post-carbon world: Transition and Survivalism. I’m still at the point of just having stuck my big toe in the Survivalism pond, so I’m not about to blind you with my expertise; I really don’t know a whole lot about it. Here’s what I’ve picked up so far: Survivalists appear to be primarily of the masculine persuasion. Gun ownership, along with enthusiastic discussions regarding makes, models and calibers, would appear to be woven into the fabric of this school of thought. (Those of us who trend more in the direction of caretaking and nurturing can only hope they aim at each other.) Separating from urban and suburban living (i.e., life far from the unprepared amongst us) is promoted as a necessity. Stocks of food for periods ranging from a year upward are thought to be essential. Christianity would also appear to be an important feature of some Survivalist thinking. Transitioners value communi...

March 7, 2011 – It’s time to call for a General Strike. That’s extremely hard to write, for so very many reasons. Every single chicken is on its way home to roost – peak oil, economic collapse, climate disruption – and the roost consists of a continent full of people with their heads stuck in the sand. When would have been a better time? Never. Is there ever a good time? Yes. The present. Right now. Why? Because so much is so wrong, and it’s up to us to try to make it right. It won’t happen the first day of the strike, or the second. In fact, things might get worse, for a while. The best place for the strike is Washington, D.C., so groups of people would need to charter buses to get there. The reason DC is the best place is because our representatives are so unaware of us. They think they’re far enough away from us that they can do whatever they want and not be found out. We need to get up close and personal, remind them of who is boss, impress upon them what needs to be...