D&F 8/30/21
D&F 8/30/21
Well, the smoke is here in the bay this weekend which may ruin any outdoor plans I had. It’s disappointing, but I also keep hoping climate change effects like this will lead to actual change. Meanwhile the United States continues to demand cheap oil, so. Hm.
Now would be a useful time to learn to think beyond ourselves and appreciate that the human story is not the whole story. Not even close.
If you’re freaked-out and scared about the climate and the future of our planet and the millions of species that call it home, I recommend listening to indigenous leaders and avoiding the ideology of human supremacy.
The two quotes this week come from this article on The Long Now, and how to develop a worldview that looks beyond our own and our children’s generations.
Humanity’s hubris and oversimplified world view has fostered an epidemic of short-term thinking resulting in catastrophic consequences time and again.
But how should we live? That’s a big question, and I’m not sure, but the ideas of degrowth and reducing production and consumption seem like good ways to start. These sorts of solutions are often thought to be personal responsibility and individual choices, but that’s a trap. Instead, we need to support and fight for policies, laws, and regulations that imagine a world with less waste, and more life.
Or, maybe just lay down and stop working. Either way, I can recommend going outside, even if you need an N95 mask to breathe.
If you ever wonder why people respond to any criticism of negative opinion about a media property with, “let people enjoy things,” this article covers it. It’s ok to not like things. It’s ok to have personal opinions and taste. In my opinion, fandom and fan culture has led to a pretty gross media lens. Not everyone has to enjoy Disney properties. In many cases, fans of a series or creator become obsessed of mistaken about their control over or relationship to said creator in a parasocial relationship. I mean, who doesn’t feel like an honorary McElroy during this pandemic?
If you find yourself engaged in the long-range murder of thousands of innocent people, maybe the best plan is to leak that information. Like, yea, you’re going to jail, which sucks, but at least that information might be used to hold imperialist nations to account for our wholesale international murders. I think the average American either doesn’t think much about military drones, or imagines them as universally precise and positive—the reality is an actual nightmare.
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Closing
Sorry if this week’s newsletter was a bit of a downer! The smoke definitely takes me to a dark place, where I start to think “oh yea, this is the coldest and most chill weather I’m likely to see for the rest of my life.” It’s a hard pill to swallow, but I also believe if we fight and care for each other we can turn policy and global failures into a story of recovery. It might take longer than our lifetimes, but it’s vital. In the meantime, keep your loved ones close when you can, and appreciate every tree, random animal, and breath you take. Keep hoping, and keep resisting, space cowgirls~