The Second Draft of the Declaration
Global warming is the crisis of our time.
As we prepare to celebrate our nation’s birthday, we renew our commitment to the qualities and values that have guided our nation for more than 200 years.
Today, we recognize that patriotism is not only about love of country. It is also about a shared commitment to the welfare of our planet.
Future generations will judge us based on our success or failure to be good stewards of the Earth. We owe our children and our children’s children nothing less than our very best effort.
We the undersigned, pledge to:
- Be mindful consumers, by minimizing our personal global warming “footprint;”
- Be active citizens, by pressing our elected officials to take urgent action now, and by pressing all candidates for office to commit to passing strong legislation to cut America's global warming pollution;
- Spread the word, by educating our friends, neighbors and loved ones and making sure they recognize that each of us has a role to play in meeting this all-important challenge.
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983 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 801 – 983 of 983People evolve. It is a fact, like it or not. They do it despite their governments. The U.S. government was set up in such a manner so as to be able to evolve with the majority of its peoples. It is, therefore, inexcusable that our government is lagging so very far behind the Superior Will of the People.
In order to form a more Perfect Union, we hereby inform the government that we know it is able to institute wide-range energy reform immediately, today, but are failing to do so in order to protect the interests of the Corporations who you have come to represent. There is no other reason.
In order to form a more Perfect Union, we hereby inform the government that we will not tolerate the waging of wars (war ALSO contributes to global warming) for the sole benefit of Business, Corporations and Industry to the exclusion of the health and happiness of the people and the planet.
In order to form a more Perfect Union, we demand that all corporations and industry must be made, for they cannot do it on their own volition, to behave like responsible individuals and immediately make reparations for the damages they have caused and continue to cause and to pay forthwith any amounts already determined by the courts to be owed by them for various accidents to those individuals and lands that they’ve harmed.
In order to form a more Perfect Union and to uphold our right to the pursuit of happiness, we hereby inform our government, in no uncertain terms, that we have had enough of their misguided idea of allowing Big Business to run every aspect of our lives and influence our every decision in terms of our domestic and global presence, policy and behavior.
While we recognize there are people in the government who legitimately care about the welfare of its citizens, we also recognize that our government, as a whole, and this administration in particular, has allowed Corporations to write our energy policies with their own interests of profit in mind to the exclusion of all other human interests, including our health and that of the planet, to degrade the way our food is processed, with profits being the highest standard and to the exclusion of all other human interests, including our own health, the health of the animals they sell to us as food and that of the planet, to genetically alter our food, for profit and against our health and that of the planet, and to force feed us cloned meat and milk products that we do not want, again siding with Business by allowing them to sell us these goods without our knowledge, all with their minds on profits to the complete exclusion of our own health, the health of the creatures and that of the planet. In this last, they give the okay to the food industry to use us as unknowing guinea pigs while we simultaneously pay for that questionable “privilege.” All of the above contributes to global warming.
Government officials have aided and abetted Big Business in their efforts every step of the way, often times personally profiting by doing so. In addition to the detrimental affects already mentioned, this destroys the concept even of Free Enterprise since the corporations that are already “at the top” are being allowed to define, and quash if they see fit, any competition. That is exactly what they are doing to the Green Energy Business now. The so-called Special Interests “are not ready to allow” another industry to come in and be it’s competition. They believe, and our government has justified their belief, that they will be the ones to say when a new energy business will be “allowed on the field.” And that will be after they have milked absolutely every red cent out of the business they have now and not one second before. To do otherwise would not be “profitable.” Far from enforcing fair rules and regulations to counter this attitude, the government instead is allowing existing corporations to behave as out-and-out monopolies and monopolies are supposed to be illegal.
Our Government continues to allow car manufacturers to push in their ads over-sized and unnecessary gas-guzzling vehicles. They continue to allow car manufacturers to produce cars that are not fuel-efficient, they, in cahoots with General Motors, continue to cover up the fact that there were already cars in California that were 100% electric and in high demand by the public there, but instead of meeting the demand, producing more, and instituting infrastructure changes to support electric and biofuel cars, they literally squashed them; that is General Motors destroyed their own vehicles because they in fact worked too well. They did this because they are in bed with the Oil Companies and that was the oil companies’ wish, once again putting their profits above all to the exclusion of our health and that of the planet (rent Who Killed the Electric Car on DVD). Another monopoly.
Also on behalf of Industry, our government has diluted the education of our children year after year, with the idea of getting education in line with the interests of Industry, Corporatism and Consumerism, to a literally stupefying degree. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why they would desire an uneducated public.
Make no mistake, we understand this is not The American Way. We understand this is not Democracy. We understand the criminal lengths to which these Entities will go and we understand that the government, in so aligning itself with their interests, also aligns itself with that criminal element.
These accumulative actions threaten our lives, our livelihoods and our ability to pursue even a modest standard of happiness. In fact they conspire to make slaves of any persons who are earning an income below $200,000/year and easy criminals of the hard-hearted and desperate.
U.S. president Harry S. Truman had a sign on his desk that said "The Buck Stops Here". In the face of today's global warming crisis each of us should take this simple philosophy to heart. We can no longer afford to "pass the buck" and expect others to solve the problem. Each individual must accept personal responsibility for taking positive action. Our collective future depends on it!
All the good ideas in the declaration, taken together, will be ineffectual, if we don't now start serious worldwide action to reduce--benignly, we hope--our present gross overpupulation.
Pleaes consider using some of the unworldly prose by Carl Sagan in Little Blue Dot, where he described back in the 70's our small planet and the importance of global concern for the environment we all have to live in. His ability to frame the subject in words that can bring tears to your eyes is more important than just statements of fact and goals - we need a "vision thing" to pull it all together.
In my opinion, we should have new leadership of the EPA because we have not seen much progress of reducing greenhouse emmisions being made as far as them analyzing what we know as climate change.
With temperatures reaching very high levels along with melting glaciers, global warming is happening faster than we anticipated.
Honestly, we really need major partnership with the EPA. But I believe that as a global team, we can and will do all it can take to reduce our "footprint of pollution."
Good luck to all!
Victor Torres
Cortland, NY
How long are we the American People going to wait before the earth is destroyed before we do something? Wake up! This problem is real and it's not going to go away.
Get rid of the illegal aliens. They create more pollution than all the industry. Tell the Chicoms to clean up all their polluting coal fired plants (fat chance). Stop all the hot air from Washington and follow the money.The earth has been warming for the last 18,000 years and it will cool agin without our help.Read and follow Claude Allegre's advice.Oh yes, and ride a mule to work and stay warm by rubbing two sticks together. hehehehehehe
For decades we've wondered what happened on Mars. Now we know. Unless we want to follow that path, we each need to make a pledge of personal responsibility. MY lightbulb, MY S.U.V., MY styrofoam container, MY garden pesticide are causing stronger hurricanes in the Indian Ocean and drowning polar bears in the Arctic. Then we need a massive outreach to every teacher, celebrity, religious organization, community and business leader until the American people force our politicians and regulatory agencies to end the use of harmful technologies. And then we need to reach out to the other industrial nations so that global warming can be halted by global solutions. It will take commitment from each of us and all of us.
Let's minimize the energy we expend keeping our city streets lit up for surgery! We can do with a whole lot less, and in process be able to enjoy our night skies!
Stop waste, stop buying stuff that isn't needed. Conserve by doing without, using up, wearing out.
We need a cultural shift that values frugality and care for the goods of this earth. We need a carbon tax now! This would help everyone think about our world in a new way.
I really like the last paragraph but the rest of the statement isn't strong enough. It lacks the forcefulness of the last paragraph. The statement as a whole is too broad to have real meaning.
For those of you who believe global warming is merely a natural cycle, or believe "we" have no part in the rapid change in climate that seems to be accelarating at an alarming rate. I ask you, wouldn't you rather err on the side of caution, just incase your views are wrong? Don't you think doing nothing seems a little too risky? Think about your kid's or your grand kids, if you choose not to think about their health and future, would you stop for a moment and think about what could possibily become of mine? Asthma, Allergies, Skin Cancer and please become aware of what Codex Alimentarius Trade Commission is planning for for you and me.
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, and they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". If the Founding Fathers could see what's become of the United States, I'm sure they would have specifically listed clean air, water and food as inalienable rights. You can take any good idea too far and it becomes a bad one. So it is with the inalienable right "pursuit of happiness". As Jacque Cousteau's son said in "Poisoning of America", we've been having a big orgy and the kids will pay for it. Corporations have also taken great "liberty" with the environment in their greedy pursuit of increased profits for decades. The Bush administration keeps telling us that terrorism is the biggest threat facing us. It's not. As Robert F. Kennedy Jr has said many times, it's corporate takeover of our democracy. That's is the major obstacle to solving the global warming crisis. It has been for decades, and continues to be. My grandparents used to say money was the root of all evil. They probably said that to comfort themselves about being poor, but there sure is plenty of evidence in the global warming crisis facing this planet.
We need to remember Al Gore. He's been a big help to Global Warming. We need to do our part as well. Remember the Native Americans if we would ave listened to them there is a good chance things wouldn't be so bad.
At current growth rates, estimates place the world population at 9 billion by mid-century. That's certainly far greater than Earth can feed under any circumstances.
In contrast to that, Gaia theorist and climate scientist James Lovelock - who is probably the most dire in his predictions of the effects of climate change - estimates that the planet will be able to support only about 20% of its current human population by the end of the century.
I tend to side with those who believe that we're past the tipping point of climate change and can, at best, slow its progress by rapidly and decisively reducing our carbon footprint. While we need to do that in any case, we also need to turn our focus to adapting to the eventuality that the planet will support only a small fraction of its current human population.
Our patriotism, then, must be directed to adapting global agriculture to feed and house ourselves and our progeny for the balance of this century in light of the climate shifts that will take place.
Our patriotism must be directed to somehow limiting conflicts that will inevitably arise as fewer and fewer acres will be suitable for human habitation. (We can start by directing the current fertile generation - and its progeny - to halve its respective parent population by having no more than one child per family.)
Our patriotism must direct us to replace those trusted to lead us whose economic and political agendas are only self-serving with a band of leaders for whom the greater good is their sole agenda.
Hopefully human beings will realize that they are not the most important beings on this earth. We have no more right to this life than any other living creature. We are all in this life together and should try to take care of each other.
We must use another criteria for solutions to our problems other than the criteria of 'does it make money'?
There are other things more important than making a few wealthy at the expense of all other living beings on this planet.
Stop the torture of helpless animals.
Stop destroying our earth. In the beginning it was paradise.
We must recognize that not only do we need to find alternative, cleaner sources of energy, but that our very lifestyle must change so that we need considerably less of it. Our way of life since the middle of the nineteenth century had been based on an unlimited supply of fossil fuels, which we no longer have. It is likely that the ideal energy source will not produce the same amount of energy to which we are accustomed, and we must be prepared to adjust.
The most important non-C02greenhouse gas in methane and the number one source of methane worldwide is animal agriculture.
Methane is responsible for nearly as much global warming as all other non-C02 greenhouse gases put together. Methane is 21 times more powerful a greenhouse gas than C02. The number one source of methane is worldwide animal agriculture. Animal agriculture produces more than 100 million tons of methane a year. Global meat consumption has increased fivefold in the past 50 years. The conclusion is simple: the best way to reduce global warming in our lifetime is to reduce or elimate our consumption of animal products. Simply go vegetarian or vegan
Stop, think and ask ourselves: Should we care to reduce the process of Global Warming? If the answer is yes, then start to care. Individual caring and changing in attitudes will lead to community change and eventually to policy change…
I live in an affluent area and there are so many large Suv's and other vehicles with large fuel consumption. I see new ones all the time. It is a fashion statement here to drive a big and expensive vehicle. Since the regular media cannot convince change fast enough, and high gas prices or the costly vehicles themselves are not a deterrent I think that the consumer here should be taxed in some way. Perhaps at the time of purchase. This money could be used to promote awareness as well as the funds could be used for public relations and fashion media to make saving the planet Vogue.
I am so impressed with the comments here, but one in particular is very important. It is a plan we should all join and perhaps change the course we are on. It is the comment by MAI
Please look it up read it and pass on this message. I could be a "call to arms"
PLEASE READ IT. by "mai"
READ WHAT "mai" said!!
What will it take to make the American public realize that they are the problem? Wall Street, the auto industry and big oil will continue to stick it to the public as long as the present mind set prevails. The present administration is in the pocket of big oil and Wall Street, as long as we stay quiet about this problem, the more profits will be made. When the price of oil hits all time highs, profits reach new peaks and the public turn a blind eye to the real causes of our troubles, then we deserve what we are getting, a royal screwing. We need to start making a loud noise, the sooner the better.
"Do what is right, not what is convenient."
Locally or nationally organize electrical apprenticeship programs to make some of their training include providing free or reduced cost labor for the installation of solar panels on homes and commercial buildings. That would reduce at least part of the cost that discourages some people from investing in solar power.
Frank Rooney
Are you giving into bouts of hysteria about things you cannot control? Patiotism is about loyalty to ones country. Not a political a belief. Oxymoron? You decide. Until there is a debate that allows all sides to be heard your organization is more like a religiuos cult rather than enviormental defence organization.
I am a responsible enviornmentalist. I drive a fuel efficient vehicle. Global warming is a theory.There are other theories that need to be examined, so as informed citizens we can make educated choices. If you think I am wrong why didn't congress pass the C.A.F.E standards today? I tell you why, because the car companys and big oil own your Senators and Congressmen! Your Congress doesn't represent you, they represent the highest bidder. Until things change in Washington you are just spinning your wheels.
mai has offered the best solution or a start of a solution.
Please read it. I hope all will read it. I am ready to join such a movement. However I insist the animals must have the same rights as all living things. We are all in this together. We must take care of the children,animals and other helpless ones.
Read what mai said and add to it.
what is man trying to do....commit suicide by constantly poisoning the earth&water&air&spirit of the cosmos....hopi elder zay...the conqueror is conquered by his conquest...prophet zay.."man against nature...nature against man" very strang religion&philosophy...how will what we do affect the next 7 generations...then don't do it
My biggest concern is that private landowners need to be enabled to the point that individuals can bring civil causes of action (under CWA, for example) and, in the process, build WORKING coalitions to fight environmental destruction(s) ("wrecking" of free-flowing streams, for example).
My next biggest concern is the "environmental mafia(s)" have cut off grass-root landowner coalitions by seeming to hog the responsibility for environmental protection.
My next biggest concern is that as long as we pound on federal and state agencies no real progress toward building landowner-based grass-roots coalitions can begin. Remember, pounding on governmental agencies is the easiest thing to do (they are stationary targets and seldom fight back well) and yields the lowest return possible (because governmental responsibility is absolutely the lowest common denominator for results).
BOTTOM LINE: Do some good and establish a strategy/plan to turn on landowner-based ACTION COALITIONS to achieve environmental gains and absolutely no one will need/want to struggle against governmental bodies because the "governmental incompetents" can remain irrelevant. ONLY landowners' coalitions (can even) put their money (environmental concerns) where their mouths are (speaking).
We can, and WILL, defeat global warming... but only if we have the courage and perseverance to do so. We're all children of Mother Earth, and it's time to step up and show that we care for our planet... it's our only home.
It is the responsibility of every individual to act as a stewart for what nature has created,and to use the power of creativity to give back to Mother Earth for all she has given .
Get away from carbon fuels fast. Switch to wind it is carbon free and costs less than all electrical power generated by burning fossil fuels including uranium. New technolgy is not required but leadership is. It takes 366,000 5-megawatt wind turbines to replace all US motorfuel. Each turbine will have a profit of about $390,000 per year. There are 2 million square miles of windy region in the US.
US politics is stuck on coal and ethanol where the big campaign contributions come from. We need help; we need to help ourselves by contacting everyone who will contact congress.
We are each stewards of this one beautiful Earth. Stewardship means responsibility for taking good care of resources entrusted to us.
We are each stewards of this one beautiful Earth. Each single choice we make as nations and as individuals should first benefit our world, then our country, our community, our family, and finally, only then our selves.
We are each stewards of this one beautiful Earth. If we choose to think first of our world, our actions are tempered by what better place we can leave to our children. In each action we take, each law we pass, each purchase we make, our's is the choice of a good steward.
All these ideas are good, and for the most part I've heard them again and again.
What I have not heard a warning about is that the pro nuclear power forces are gathering, ready to pounce on the idea that it won't contribute to global warming.
This is just as insane an approach as the one we are on.
EVERY CALL FOR MEASURES TO REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING MUST ALSO BE SAYING NO TO NUCLEAR POWER.
Believe me, we haven't had to fight this fight for a while, and we have forgotten how much big power, and big business would like to go nuclear.
SAYING NO TO GLOBAL WARMING IS NOT SAYING YES TO NUCLEAR POWER.
It is so important that I really do think it should be in the main body of the declaration.
There could be more specifics in there in general.
It is far better to be inconvenienced now than to suffer later.
TO HARM THE EARTH IS TO HEAP CONTEMPT UPON ITS CREATOR. CONTINUE TO CONTAMINATE YOUR BED AND YOU WILL ONE NIGHT, SUFFOCATE IN YOUR OWN WASTE. CHIEF SEALTH.........THE MOST PROPHETIC STATEMENT EVER MADE ON THE ENVIRONMENT. KIM HELMLY
We live in a 'consumeracracy'. Cast your vote for sustainability by consuming less and doing your best to only purchase recyclable and/or sustainable goods. And before you purchase that next toy, gadget or luxury item...imagine it someday (most likely sooner than later) ending up in our 'backyard' dump for the next few hundred years. After all the entire Earth is our backyard.
We hold these TRUTHS to be Self Evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their CREATOR--that to secure these RIGHTS, Governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from CONSENT of the GOVERNED--that whenever any form of Government becomes DESTRUCTIVE of these ends, IT IS THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO ALTER OR TO ABOLISH IT. AND TO INSTITUTE A NEW GOVERNMENT. IT IS THEIR RIGHT, IT IS THEIR DUTY, TO THROW OFF SUCH GOVERNMENT--AND TO PROVIDE NEW GUARDS. WE THE PEOPLE BETTER TAKE THESE WORDS TO HEART, OUR VERY LIFE, OUR VERY PLANET, OUR VERY EXISTENCE DEPENDS ON IT....
I really do not know how we are going to step out of this road we have taken. How are we going to stop using cars, electricity, stop shopping, not turn on the TV, etc.? Has anybody calculated how many trees should we individually plant to compensate our CO2 emissions in the atmosphere? I think it’s not enough if we reduce our energy output, I think we need to compensate, to importantly reduce consumption and trash disposal, to choose environmental friendly products and goods, etc. Global warming is here and it’s getting worse. I do not think we can stop it by minimally reducing our output, we have to counteract it someway, may scientists tell us how.
Since when was government charged with the responsibility and power to tell the people of the earth how to be its stewards?
We are all responsible, we have no choice but to Act.
Start with something that troubles you . Make small changes and grow from there.
Speak out and often.Allways vote,if you dont like who's running run for election. Get involved ,get in Your government.It is your civic duty to do so.
That would be Patriotic
Why can't people see what is happening to the world around us? We are a selfish and spoiled society. Our government leaders are for big business not for the people.
Mother nature can only stand so much, she will take back what is hers with dire consequences for us all. What will we tell our children in the future when all is lost? That we knew, but choose to ignore? That is not good enough. We must act now!
This planet is our home. It's stewardship is our responsibility, not just for ourselves, but for our childrens generation, their childrens' generation and everyone who comes after them for all the time that this planet has left.
Make it manditory that all Federal, County and school district buildings be equipped with enough Solar panels to be self reliant. That would cut the use of fossil fuels. If everyone did one thing green to help the environment,recycle clothes, paper,glass,plastic,computers,building materials and junk cars what a difference this would make indeed. Come on Folks lets rock this planet!!
We the people of this small blue ball in space have abused this planet for far to many generations.
We must step forward and accept our responsibility to be stewards of our planet or future generations will forever remember that we as humans failed to protect the only home we have.
It takes political action. Leadership that gives tax breaks for doing what is right and significant financial penalties for doing what is wrong will allow big business as well as the individual to change their personal habits. Alternative fuels and conservation must be brought to the forefront. We cannot afford to wait any longer; global warming must be addressed on all fronts, now.
Run for a position in your local government. You might be surprised at the power you have to get things done. An outdoor lighting ordinance can cut power consumption, improve nieghbor relations and give you a better view of the night sky. You can propose an ordinance to mandate light colored roofing, improved traffic controls and so on. Check out www.koshkonongwi.com to view our lighting ordinance.
I propose the following ending line: If we fail this challenge, none of earth's citizens, not even the richest and most powerful, will find a safe, supportive haven.
This declaration doesn't go far enough. We have the technological means to solve this problem and simply lack the political will.
People need to make changes in their lives, yes, but they need not suffer any inconvenience for doing so, and presenting the problem otherwise is detrimental to your cause.
What we need to do is show our neighbors how to make changes that do not sacrifice convenience, by, for example installing compact fluorescent lightbulbs everywhere!
I would add something about by-passing the government if necessary; states like Massachusetts have already taken action, since waiting for the feds amounts to suicide at this point.
People who work or have expertise in relevant industries need to dedicate their lives to solving this problem. We need to educate and inspire our children to focus their creative and intellectual energies on solving this problem, as they would suffer far more than we.
And we need to face up to and grow up to the fact that the only long term solution is for humanity to take control over our climate and eco system and to begin actively regulating atmospheric levels of greenhouse gasses and other substances.
This includes actively sequestering carbon, in order to maintain a liveable planet. We cannot expect to sustain a population of (soon!) 10 billion humans without actively controlling the climate, just as we could not possibly feed that many people without having invented agriculture and improved it to the point of producing all the food we need, instead of relying simply on what "mother nature" produces.
We need to wake up and recognize that our earthly habitat has shrunk to the point where it can no longer sustain us and that the only sane option is for us to sustain it. The Earth itself will no doubt survive us, so the right motto is "safe the species," not "safe the Earth."
http://www.projectlightbulb.org/
President John Kennedy on peace; Too many of us think it is unreal.But that is a dangerous defeatist belief.
There is undoubtedly great enthusiasm for electric or PHEV cars if they were made available at a reasonable price. We should encourage the government and corporations to help us all to be more green.
On January 20, 1961, newly elected president John F. Kennedy stated in his inaugural speech:
"Can we forge against these enemies [tyranny, poverty, disease, and war] a grand and global alliance, North and South, East and West, that can assure a more fruitful life for all mankind? Will you join in that historic effort?"
As one blogger who believes JFK was the greatest president of the 20th Century; I feel that we need to reflect on those words spoken over 46 years ago.
The enemies of mankind, JFK spoke about, are still with us. And if he were president today I believe he would talk about the climate crisis in terms of the historic opportunity it presents to unite mankind. He would say that we are dependent on each other for our own survival as a species. And once we realize our interconnectedness, we have taken a major step towards solving this crisis.
To all corners of the world (he would say), join me as we enter the new age of sustainable living and world harmony.
He may no longer be with us but his spirit is eternal.
Ingrained habits need to be changed at many levels to deal effectively with the challenge of reversing the growth of atmospheric Co2 levels. We need to unlearn most of the patterns of consumption that drive our economic prosperity, and the forces that will oppose us are many and well funded. We need to force the focus to issues of ultimate human values and away from the usual short term economic calculus that has driven us to the present crisis. Everyone who sees and understands the magnitude of the situation should strive to become an effective advocate for change. This means studying the details and speaking calmly and from a strong base of knowledge at every opportunity. It's taken 300 years for industrialism to create this mess and we should not expect the battle to reverse the damage will be short or easy. With perseverance we will ultimately prevail, but we need to re-educate our society and ourselves in the process.
The only way we'll make a healthy difference in our environment is for all of us to treat our earth and all of its inhabitants with reverence. That means being mindful in our driving habits, our heating/cooling, our disposal/recycling habits and so forth. We also need the government and big business to take seriously the peril we are currently experiencing and make the expensive decisions, both financially and politically, that will help begin to turn things around.
We have been given the responsibility of caring for this planet. We were born here, grown here, and we will die here. We need to look deep into the choices that we make to care for our Earth. What will we leave our children? Our time is running out, we must act now to make the changes needed to fulfill our responsibility. Vote carefully,give of yourself to better this cause, and believe in the importance to heal our Earth.
Sometimes I think we all need to Just Stop a take a Good Hard Look at what’s really going on and realize how small our individual lives are in this complex universe. Massive rocks and planets orbit giant Suns all over the many Galaxies and here we are worrying about issues counterproductive to sustaining life on Earth. We're not living today only for our selves but for hundreds of generations to come. What we leave for them today (or lack there of) will determine how difficult it will be for our children and their children to continue to live sustainable. People should learn to care because it’s the right thing to do not because it will make them a profit or because it’s the new "IN" thing.
I recently became an Uncle again and as I looked at him I couldn't help but worry what kind of world will be left by the time he has kids or grandkids.
Bottom line, Patriotism in this new era, to me means stand true to your morals and values and to respect people and their differences and all of life.
Boy, I can go on forever; well I agree with lots of the other blogs,
GET BUSH OUT OF OFFICE, NOW!!!
Cause that man is not patriotic.
Take care of Mother Earth!
Buy CFL's for your home lighting.
OH and,
GET BUSH OUT OF OFFICE, NOW!!!
We the people of the United States of America declare war on Peak Oil and Global warming.
Article One: By the year 2015 all buildings in the USA must have Photovoltaic and Thermal solar systems.
Article Two: Multiple the funding for mass transit by a factor of One hundred immediately.
Article Three: Decommission all coal fire plants by 2020.
Article Four: Increase CAFE requirements 1 mile per gallon per year for the next 90 years.
Article Five: Allow Nuclear power plants to be built, with the first plant to be built on the site of the Three Mile Island meltdown and then all future plants to be built on existing Nuclear Sites.
Article Six: Increase transportation fuel tax by $1.00 to pay for the above.
Article Seven: Stop all suburban sprawl. Infill only.
Let's talk about this!
After reading many of the comments and looking up the word patriotism (which comes from roots meaning lineage and father), I think the second sentence needs work. Perhaps something like,
"Today we recognize that we rely on a global ecosystem that humanity increasingly impacts. The processes of this ecosystem operate without regard to national boundaries, so patriotism -- love of country -- is insufficient to secure and assure our safety and prosperity. "Planetism", a broader value that recognizes the interdependence of peoples and the need for transnational cooperation to minimize deleterious impacts on the global ecosystem, must supplant patriotism."
I know the above is wordy and inelegant compared to the two-line second sentence currently in the declaration. Maybe someone can capture the gist of my contribution in a simpler, shorter way.
Finally, I agree with one of the contributors, Ms. Hueckeroth, about replacing "...the Earth." with "...the Earth and all its creatures." in one of the later sentences in the declaration.
I think a lot of people worry about global warming as a world issue hence, they see the issue as being huge and don't know what they can do. What we as indivuduals need to focus on is making the small changes we know how to do in our everday lives. If we all made these changes, a huge difference could be made.
AGAINST GLOBAL NEGLECT:
We need much more care for our planet, before we can help change the repercussions of our previous neglect already. Any of you have children? - Maybe that was selfish too then.
Otherwise, let's act now & begin turning this whole matter around.
Please consider the greater good in this matter for us. Please do not allow this terrible & shameful destruction of a beauty that has been perfectly woven for our benefit.
To support freedom is to support ourselves - a good life. Remember, it is also imperative to the survival of us all.
May the Angels be at our aid in this. Good Luck Everyone.
From Angela C. (UK)
Writing from the perspective of a youth who will inevitably spend her adult life dealing with the consequences of Global Warming, I beseech you, Congress, the President, and my fellow American people to do all in our power to lessen these conseuqences.
It is only with the help of the government of the United States and united governments of the world that they may make possible the arduous task of solving such a feet. With this support, it may be my generation, and generations to come, may achieve what no other group of human beings have ever had to encounter throughout our civilized history: that is, to band together and unite as one for the sake of not only our lives, but the lives of all humanity and living beings on this Earth.
I think the insane "bottom line" mentality has taken its toll on this earth and it's time to think sustainable.
"Déclaration Universelle des Devoirs de l'Etre
Humain" dans : www.sites-fondamentaux.net
Pierre dit : Depuis 1984 j'habite dans une maison solaire :
http://www.outilssolaires.com/visites/leny.htm
Avec ma voiture consommant 5 l. aux 100km, je ne fais que quelques 5 ou 6000 km/an
J'utilise principalement le velo, ou le bus, pour me deplacer. Et ça c'est tres e...
I suggest a bill that proposes all cars companies meet the goal of 50 miles to the gallon by 2015.
Maybe we could get one of our billionaires to propose a contest!
Lisa
Be aware that EVERYTHING is connected. You can't say that you care about wildlife, for example, and then drive around in a Hummer with a clear conscience. Own up to the fact that the luxury goods you own/use will have had some environmental impact during their manufacture and use. Get that warm fuzzy feeling by making a personal stand. Stopping (or slowing) climate change begins at home.
Global warming stems from serious overpopulation. Stop having babies! The world does not need more people. Less people means more habitat. More habitat means the world can function as it was made to! It is no longer cute to have a large family, it is a disaster! Promote sterilization over welfare for more kids.
People of the world have to take responsibility of what happens to our world. Do not complain about animal, enviromental and human rights unless you are willing to live what you preach. This goes for our governments and the corporations. Don't feed us propaganda. But people take everything you hear with a grain of salt. Look inside of yourself first, make a difference on how you live then you can act in others behalf.
Borrowing a line from a favorite Star Trek movie (The Wrath of Khan) in which Spock states that his sacrifice was "logical" because"the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few"
This is the mindset we all should have in regard to changing the way we live. Little things make a big difference. We can REDUCE the amount of waste we produce and energy we use in the first place; REUSE an item or find someone who can use it; RECYCLE the product so that our valuable natural resources are used again and again.
Holly D
It's a shame when corporate greed and government relaxed efforts to limit air pollution cause so many Americans to suffer the consequences. Asthma/Emphasema, heart-conditions, and cancer cases are reaching record numbers year after year. Why, because more stacks are being erected, and more caustic air pollution is being expelled into our atmosphere. We need to stop companies who grow in size while donating little to their emission reduction effort. Medical insurance is higher, due to the rise in air pollution; yet companies who cause this problem-feel no obligation. No one owns the sky above them, it is the responsibility of the our Government to regulate the amount of pollution that "we the people" must endure. Any air pollution is too much pollution. If companies fail to make an effort to eliminate their by-product from our skies, then they should pay an impact fee for the rising cost in health benifits, and should be fined for allowing this to happen.
Several decades before "man" ventured into space and looked back at the Earth against the vastness of the universe, R. Buckminster Fuller invisioned it as "Spaceship Earth". Bucky's thinking brought him to the realization that our planet is, indeed, a "spaceship" that contains all the "life support" that we will have for the forseable future.
Once we accept that truth, it becomes clear that the first order of business, before we squable over who gets which room, or how many rooms, is to ensure the integrity of the ship. If we fail in that, what does the rest matter?
There is only one Earth. Within our knowledge,there is only this one small, fragile place in the vast cosmos perfectly suited for our lifeforms, because we all evolved with and on this planet. OUR ONLY HOME. EVER. How could anyone not love and respect her as their own mother, for she is the mother to every living thing.
To manage a system such as our biosphere we must incorporate the realities of a finite planet and respect for future generations into our economic (management of the home) model ; the current economic model ignores these criteria for the short term benefit of those raping the planet and hence it is imperative that we change our economic model to reflect the values of sustainability.
It is increasingly clear that Climate Change will affect the poorest of the poor. It will displace entire communities and destroy cultures. Climate Change will take innocent lives. Climate change protection must be viewed as a Pro-Life/respect life mandate.
The first law of sustainability: For an activity to be sustainable the time to Produce (refurbish, clean) the natural resource(s) must be less than or equal to the time in which the resource is Used (destroyed, burnt, poluted). I.e. the Produce Use Sustainability Index (PUSI).
Slogan: PUSI: You know it must be satisfied.
Global warming is but a symptom of a wider malaise we must address the cause!
Our new economic model in complying with this principle would cause non-sustainable activities such as using fossil fuels (& uranium) and the non-recycling of our limited resources to be un-economic.
Fighting the global warming is an every day battle. If every one of us makes a little effort it would make a huge difference.
"little streams make big river"
We have to vote with our money and every action we do. - Every time we buy something, we have to thing about how much the cost was to the environment, production wise, transportation wise, the energy it consumes, content of toxicity.... Every time we do something - let our car idle, vote, let the water run while doing the dishes.....
There will be no other way except for all of us to become more aware.
Let's be good stewards of the world that was created for us so our future generations can continue to live a good life.
As patriotic Americans, we pledge to invest a minimum of half a day per week for redefining what community, economy, and well-being actually mean in today's transformed world. We recognize the inevitability of massive social change and seek to direct it in ways that enhance the possibility of the survival of meaningful human civilization into the 22nd century.
This will necessarily mean that we will act upon these redefinitions as soon as humanely possible - again committing a minimum of half a day per week for every man, woman, and child who is able - to accomplish the following: the abolition of individually owned carbon-emitting vehicles, massive investment in alternate energy at every level, the physical restructuring of housing and community development such as public health care, roads and sewage treatment to reflect fulfillment of basic needs and not more, creating local economies not largely dependent on international or on inter-regional trade, an unequivocal commitment to learning and acting upon peaceful non-violent conflict resolution at every level of interaction from one-on-one to international, finding and implementing effective and safe means to reverse the damages caused to date by fossil fuel use, and encouraging other nations to follow our lead because what we do actually works to sustain life in all forms on the planet.
We must recognize the need for the preservation of biodiversity and the right for all species to continue to live in their native habitats. We need to protect the lands that are currently undeveloped and prevent further species loss.
Be Peace...heal yourself.
Teach your children well... be there for them.
Live lightly upon the earth...
grow organic.
(Listen to those of us who forewarned us of these times forty years ago.)
Our output of climate-altering pollutants = per capita output x number of people. Both variables must be cosidered if we are to succeed.
The longer you wait the more harm worldwide.
Declaration of Energy Independence and Global Interdependence
The reality of the world has changed dramatically since our Founding Fathers had the audacity to declare us politically independent. We find ourselves at once the most powerful nation in the world and yet simultaneously subject to worldly forces seemingly beyond our control.
In this new reality, our nation faces multiple profound threats: We find ourselves mired in a global war on terror; We find ourselves facing a looming global climate crisis; We find ourselves fearing the outsourcing of our jobs and our very economic preeminence in a globally competitive world.
While each of these threats has its own unique genesis, they may share at least one solution strategy in common. To see that potential solution, we must both recognize our global interdependence and the enduring virtue of independence.
We must see the economic reality of globalization, of the "flattening" of the world, and the promise and threat it holds for us. We must respond to the ratcheting of expectations on productivity and the centrality of a superbly educated workforce to keep our lead over the population powerhouses of China and India.
We must also acknowledge the global interdependence that brought us the tragedy of 9/11. The ability of loosely organized cells of radicals to inflict such pain on the most powerful nation on earth speaks volumes to how connected we are to the conditions of the rest of the world.
Finally, we must recognize the fundamental global interconnection of the biosphere on which we depend for life. We must accept responsibility for the role we play in anthropogenic global warming and the costly and disruptive consequences likely if we continue emitting greenhouse gases.
Once we recognize our interdependence, we must acknowledge one final dependence that draws them all together: Our over-dependence on oil. Foreign oil powers our economy, but it also enmeshes us in the volatile politics of the Middle East, creating enemies there of our presence, position, and power. Further, oil money enriches those who may fund terrorism against us. Of course, the burning of oil and its products is a primary contributor to greenhouse gas pollution, a major underlying cause of global warming and our impending climate crisis.
For both national security and environmental defense, then, we must find a way to wean ourselves of our oil addiction. To that end, I believe we must make a Declaration of Energy Independence.
As Thomas Friedman has suggested, we must promulgate a national program to eliminate, among other sources, foreign oil from our energy portfolio, slashing our greenhouse gas emissions, and draining the pockets of those who would fund our enemies, or at the very least, grow rich while their countrymen live in poverty.
Such a program would of necessity be long-term, promoting massive research into nonpolluting energy sources, research that would spark desperately needed educational incentives and job creation in science and engineering to maintain our global competitive advantage in the same way that Sputnik and the space race sparked a similar investment and consequent return two generations ago.
Let us not be content with a "green" public sentiment or with consumer adoption of compact fluorescent bulbs and hybrid cars or even with a national CO2 tax or strong emissions cap-and-trade system that moves our market to nonpolluting energy sources. Let us do those things and have the audacity that our Founding Fathers had: The audacity to declare ourselves independent, to take our fate into our own hands, to recognize our global interdependence, but to create for ourselves a future that is more more secure--politically, economically, and environmentally--than the one we see before us today. Let us establish for ourselves and for our children a clean and prosperous energy independent future. That is a vision of New Patriotism I can believe in and a Declaration I can sign.
We all must do our best to save this earth and it's beautiful creatures who have no voice. Our grandchildren deserve a better fuuture. Barbara
I think the tagline is too weak. Climate change/global warming is MUCH more than the crisis of our time; it is the defining crisis of human history. In fact, it may be humanity's last chance at crisis management. If it isn't successfully managed, whatever humanity survives will be too physically fragmented to act jointly and too challenged by survival needs to think beyond themselves. Unmanaged, global warming will make the Black Death look like a walk in the park.
There is no point going for further industrialization without considering the associated environmental issues involved. If things continue as they stand now, there wouldn't be any left to enjoy the so called gains of development !
Being a patriot is standing firmly in your conviction about one's country. No country would exist if the Earth of which it is made was no longer there, or not able to sustain the lives of it's patriots. We are all citizens of a country, whatever country that may be, which makes us citizens of the Earth. As patriots to such, it is not only our right, but our duty to make it each of our personal responsibilities to make changes in our own lives that positively impact our Earth, and hence, our countries. If you don't know what changes you could be making, visit Environmental Defense's website, which is filled with suggestions that can help to make us all better patriots to the Earth!
The preponderance of the adjacent comments pre-suppose man is the culprit in Global Warming. That's a shame because numerous scientific studies show that the sun is actually the culprit. It has been becoming more active over the last few decades, and in fact the polar caps on Mars have been shrinking and distant Pluto has increased in temperature by three degrees since the 1970s. The entire solar system is warming up! Seriously folks, can greenhouse gases on earth have such effects?
Sorry to bust your bubble but we have to recognize the truth while we have some credibility left. Man is screwing up the planet but he's not responsible for global warming.
Perhaps we should look to ways to block some of the sun's radiation with a space shield or something.
DGWbqXSfW
Designate a single doable action that all can take on the day of the declaration that will make a measurable difference. Could this help us know personally that all individuals actions do make a difference in the the huge issue of global climate??
There is now a broad scientific consensus that the cause(s) of global warming include a significant component attributable to human activity. We have limited ability to foresee the effects that global warming will have on our environment but what is certain is that such effects will occur and that they will be difficult to reverse even if we begin corrective action immediately. In the words of one climate scientist, "The climate is an angry beast and we are poking it with sticks." We must take strong & immediate action to restrain this "beast" and constrain its meanderings within limits that do not threaten human life as well as all other life on the planet.
I've read a wonderful sentiment about the quality of our humanity being measured by the care and nurturing we give to the most vulerable, helpless creatures among and around us. Surely, despite its great size, our living planet is as vulnerable as any creature in our creation. And just as surely, there can be no higher measure of our humanity than to dedicate ourselves to nurturing and healing our Mother Earth.
Everyone and everything living on this planet are connected.
What I do effects everyone. What you do effects me.
I believe the crisis of global warming needs to be recognized by every living soul.
Together we can accomplish anything.
We are one.
As one who works in corporate America, I am well aware of the bottom line. Profits are the ruling forces of Wall Street, which often forces companies to take the cheaper and less environmentally friendly course of action. I suggest we urge corporations and the policy makers who help shape environmental standards to consider the long term benefits of environmentally friendly solutions. In addition to improving this earth for us and our offspring, "green" decisions can improve the bottome line in the coming years. It may be more expensive now, but the solutions will pay for themselves as energy prices (etc.) increase.
I also encourage those developing businesses in the emerging markets to consider green construction and manufacturing methods while "starting from scratch" with their developments. No need to move backwards in creating infrastructure that is out of date just because it is cheaper at the moment.
Everyone and everything living on this planet are connected.
What I do effects everyone, what you do effects me.
I believe the crisis of global warming needs to be recognized by every living soul.
Together we can accomplish anything.
Ensure the presidency of Dennis Kucinich.
END FACTORY FARMING! IT'S ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS ADDING TO GLOBAL WARMING. IT'S HURTING THE EARTH, ANIMALS, PEOPLE, NATURE, AND ETC.
EVORYBODY, PLEASE RESEARCH FACTORY FARMING MORE!
Hand in hand with a New Patriotism we need a New “Defense” Initiative based on promoting time, money and information in this country and abroad to projects that lessen conflict, provide self-sufficiency, sustainability, and protection of the environment: Guaranteed low cost access to water for all; a renewable energy based economy, not an oil, coal, and nuclear based economy; self sustainable decentralized organic food production; and environmental protection and living wages as the basis for all trade agreements as International Law.
Is that a already one year, what try enforce thought new generation cars, mentioned on www.level22.info, but evidently be on bad side, in Europe.
The free market is a wonderful thing but free does not mean free to harm others. What we need is something analogous to the Hippocratic Oath for industrial ethics. Do no harm! And if harm is discovered it must be stopped and, if possible, reversed. PERIOD.
We need to unite as a World to save this late great planet Earth. Lets all get educated.
It is no longer sufficient to merely reduce one's "carbon footprint". The time has come for all people of conscience to act daily to restore the health and natural functions of our shared ecosystem.
The care and conservation of the blue planet are responsibility of all; society, companies, governments and house one of us, we must become aware from it and protect to our planet if we want to survive the environmental disasters that are approached.
The diversity of ideas here is impressive and inspiring. It's such a great thing to share our ideas and to see how many facets of our lives have an impact on the environment, and to share our ideas on cutting global warming and pollution in general.
I am going to approach it from the food angle. DID YOU KNOW that methane gas from animal waste is a very significant source of greenhouse gas? Going vegetarian means ending support of the livestock industry, which puts many tons of hazardous gases into our atmosphere with animal waste; usurps our publicly owned lands for subsidized grazing; and produces far less protein, acre for acre, than cultivation of soybeans and legumes. That's on top of the cruelty that the animals are subject to from birth until death, living in cramped, often filthy conditions, receiving little if any exercise or sunlight, being mutilated (debeaking, removal of pig tails, etc.) to keep them from hurting themselves as they become increasingly stressed and miserable from isolation and crowding, and so on.
Also, while we tend to be pretty busy, please think carefully next time you reach for pre-sliced fruits and vegetables in the produce aisle. Pre-sliced products save us a little time, but they come in plastic wrap or containers that waste petrochemicals and often are not recyclable, adding to the excessive trash problem. If packaging is made of #5 or #6 plastic, most communities won't recycle it. Choosing loose or bulk fruits and vegetables and slicing them yourself doesn't have to take long, especially if you get others to help. Even the little produce baggies at the grocery store can be re-used. Also, when you choose the fruits and veggies yourself, you can make sure that you are getting the pieces you really want. Sometimes you open pre-packaged produce and find that the pretty side was showing, but the hidden side is rotten or damaged.
Using locally grown foods saves fuel over faraway imports that are transported thousands of miles by plane, train or truck. It also supports agriculture in your own state or region, and the produce is not as old when you use it, which means better flavor and nutrition for you. If you just love certain fruits and vegetables that have short seasons where you live, there are ways to can, preserve or freeze them that enable you to enjoy them when they are no longer at your farmer's market. I know this tactic doesn't work as well if you love bananas or avocados but you live in New England, but there are other foods, such as tomatoes, apples and pears that can be found at farmers' markets around the country, and with those items, you can choose local over faraway sources.
I hope these ideas help all of you to eat well and fight the good fight against global warming.
Stop being lazy.. government and people, alike.
The big picture here is: that we all are living here on this earth, not one country, not out in space, but here on earth, where we are ruining the organic existence that we live on: called earth. When will we wake-up and realize that we are the destroyers of our enviornment and we must do stop abusing and raping this poor old earth. Stop spending billions of dollars for space projects and learn how to fix our problems here on earth.
we are selfish to the end. open your eyes, everyone is everything, it's all just a matter of perspective.
"Man did not weave the web of life - he is merely a strand in it.
Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself."
Chief Seattle, 1854.
We need to remember the thoughts and lessons of this great chief.
Terry and Jeff Black
The reason doesn't matter it's the response that counts!
Don't be quick to make laws that result in poor unproven economics and are based on "lobby logic", bad science, photo opps and lack of foresight. Bush was true to form with his million dollar hand outs to wealthy undeserved corporations with the stupid premise that corn can function as a sustainable alternative fuel it can not . ( I want my money back!).
Oil companies must be banned from tax breaks or government hand outs for development of "new technologies" as they have proven themselves to be mass murder inc. all around the globe. Exon has never paid anyone but attorneys for the Valdez and just tell me why should the American people give money to the trillion dollar Oil super powers? If they want to compete let them compete with their own 100s of billions of dollars. We should be protected from the government giving people with a bad track record on the environment and human rights in favor of those who have not been proven to be putting one over on us all!
The truth is fluorescent lights remove vitamins d from the eyes while at the same time promote hyper tension (Ott) . People should be encouraged to make changes, not legislated into submission or servitude by feeble minded politicians and self serving lobbyist's.
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I favor helping only small farms that do not grow dangerous and untested gmo products. That use little or no chemical fertilizers as they must be produced with oil based technology and are therefore NOT acceptable under the basic understanding and will of the informed majority of the American people. Please support small community farms that sell mostly locally and encourage others to break up the strangle hold of mega farms that should by their very nature be self providing yet are the largest government teat suckers and most wasteful farms in terms of energy misuse and abuse in the farming industry.
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O.K. so you heat your home with wood that makes you feel good , but because at least a third of my neighbors don't' know how to take care of their wood it produces ten times the smoke it should some of the wood is no doubt left over construction wood which gives off toxic smoke and should not be burned at all and some is just not cured the right way and while they air feeling good about themselves I am forced to turn on my electric air cleaner because of their stupidity..I might add that even if it turns out that global warming is a lot of hu ha please tell me (after setting aside for one gut wrenching moment your overwhelming short sighted personal greed.) just what is wrong with making products that are intended to last for decades are more efficient and less toxic to all life on earth and sea?
Another bullet item, somehow, should address recognition that we Americans are not the only ones contributing to global warming. The NRDC is very much concerned about China, in particular. So our activism should include sharing knowledge and technology with other countries to help them reduce global warming emissions also.
"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit." -Nelson Henderson
"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike." -John Muir, 1912
As someone who is working toward a career in environmental sustainability and public health, I acutely feel the need for this to be a published and recognized...we as a human race need to realize that we depend acutely on the health of those around us: altruism and the concept that by bettering the world as well as the lives of those people living around us will exponentially improve our own lives.
We need to plan a future that takes care of children's welfare around the world. If the world is healthy for children, the environment will fall into place. If we save the children, we will save our world and our future.
Encourage our government to reward corporations such as Oil, Auto and other sources for playing such a big part in reducing dangerous global warming. These rewards can be through tax breaks or other incentives that help these big businesses operate in environmentaly safe ways.
Production of cars that produce little or no carbon is a good example of this. Encouraging new businesses that prosper off environmental consciousness is very good.
Global warming is real, and if we don't do something to end our dependence on fossil fuels, and other fuels that pollute the atmosphere, we are doomed. Well maybe not me, I'm 54, but a generation somewhere down the line will not have a habitable planet on which to live. Some legacy we would be leaving. The extinction of human kind, and many other species, if not all, of animals. We are a dumb species compared to all others!
and you tell me that you need me now and you want to be my friend
and you wonder where we're going, where's the rhyme and where's the reason
and it's you cannot accept it is here we must begin
to seek the wisdom of the children
and the graceful way of flowers in the wind.
For the children and the flowers for my sisters and my brothers,
their laughter and their loveliness would clear a cloudy day.
Like the music of the mountains and the colors of the rainbow
they're a promise of the future and the blessing for today.
Though the city starts to crumble and the towers fail around us
the sun is slowly fading and it's colder than the sea
it is written: From the desert to the mountains they shall lead us
by the hand and by the heart and they will comfort you and me.
In their innocence and trusting, they will teach us to be free.
For the children and the flowers for my sisters and my brothers,
their laughter and their loveliness would clear a cloudy day.
And the song that I am singing is a prayer for nonbelievers
come and stand beside us we can find a better way. ~ Rhyme and Reason~ John Denver~
No truer words have ever been written. Its time that we took up what he started. Our time here is limited and this is not our planet..we are at best temporary residents. The earth is our Mother...treat her with respect. Lets get this right this time. We aren't just saving our home...its ourselves and the futures of our children and their children...yes its a world and generations we are doing this for.
Rich Marks, of EnVironmental Transportation Solutions, has hit upon perhaps the most important part of the solution to our environmental problems: TAXATION. Although a market economy can provide the most efficient allocation of available resources, it will emphatically NOT take into account any costs that businesses and individuals can legally avoid paying. Damage to our environment represents a cost that, in our current system, is usually not paid by those creating the damage. Our legal framework MUST be changed to include the cost of such damage in the price of the goods and services responsible for that damage. Taxation is the most market-friendly way to do this.
Early in the presidency of Bill Clinton, he attempted to get the two houses of Congress to increase the tax on gasoline. His own party shot him down. I hope that we as a people are now more ready to pay the full price for that gasoline, which includes, in addition to the cost of extraction, refining, etc., the cost of "manufacture" (over billions of years) and the cost of undoing the pollution caused by its combustion.
If we have to pay that full cost, you can be sure we will quickly use much less gasoline, and will also find alternative energy sources.
The market works. You just have to set the rules. And yes, it will hurt if you drive a Hummer. But then, it should!!
If each of us does all we can to change, to help inform our neighbors, and to work together, it can be a joyous celebration of life, for ourselves and for the generations to come, like raising a house! Let go of those who cannot see, or refuse to change. Enough of us can tip the scale, we really can!
THE STATE OF THE UNION
Jan. 7, 2007 When Does It end?
When does The Government of These United States of America cease to be a Constitutional Body of Elected Leaders “Of the People”, “By the People”, and “For the People”? Did the Government ask The American People if War with Iraq was an appropriate action forrr,for what exactly? I'm still trying to Pull up the exact Reason. Now I remember ; We Were Lied To ! And finally, were we told The Truth , as to why War was Neccesary Immediately ? No is the answer and if you knew that give yourself an atta boy !
"Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them."
George Orwell
When does it end? How does it end! I Know here; Reminds me of "1984", Written by George Orwell , One of the Worlds notable Intellectual , Academic and Author ; who still lives on with his spirit of Intellectual Freedom, Free Thinking , and the ability to forecast into the future. The Prophetic Novel was one of the ingredients for a Grassroots , coast to coast Awareness that spawned a Peace movement during "The Vietnam War" Era. "The Police State that followed became the Dark Guardians of 100s’of Peaceful demonstrations in major Cities and College Campuses all over these [United States of America]; our America. The National Guard at Kent State were Called In to Control The Crowds of students and Peaceful Demonstraters. Four Students were Shot Dead When The same National guard open fired on a retreating crowd! That’s A Terrifying Prospect for any American Born or State” Naturalized Citizen joining a peaceful demonstration to "Exercise Our Right To Protest" ! Do you think William Penn said, “Those who are not governed by GOD will be ruled by Tyrants”, without considerable deliberation? In addition, why would Our Four Fathers Believe adamantly regarding “The Protection of Individuals Inalienable Rights and Liberties" ?
Why did our Four Fathers commit to all of The Debates, Discussions and Arguments? Hours on end, Their Voices Rang Out with Passion and Conviction.The results of which would Determine The Completion of Our Constitution, Bill of Rights and A United Voice both Adamant and Just.That Single Voice that Spoke for All, would Tell our Oppressors and deliver to them Our Declaration of Independence and would be Absolutely Imperative “In Order to Form a More Perfect Union " !
"Our Patriots will not be spied on.” Let us not mince words. What this Government is doing breeds Mistrust by it's Own People in their Leadership. This then becomes a passionate collective feeling of The Americans Public. Spying by definition is, “The surveillance of people and/or person/s in such a manner as not to be detected. Several Intelligence Agencies of the Federal Government have been Spying on American individuals without showing “Probable Cause” and are actively doing their patriotic duty. That is not to say that there are not Americans who may be tied to another person/s who have ties to “A Terrorist Threat”! This type of intelligence gathering has wide parameters enabling “Good Old Fashion Spying “on random or targeted innocent Americans. That one act breaks a number of federal laws that protects Americans’ rights as stated so clearly and detailed in “ Our Constitution “ This is just another example of the Erosion of Civil Liberties.
Only Our Lord and Father in Heaven Are Almighty in this area. I do not think, “The One Whose Name Cannot Be Spoken or Known “would like anyone interfering in this Domain. However, that is my belief; in other words you can be an Atheist or Agnostic and still be made to feel the betrayal that most “True Patriots or American Citizens Feel”!
I Wish You All Well, Neo
I think that until we all decide to go green with our electrical, use our cars less and let our shopping promote our environmental choices we will never get control on Global Warming.
Puget Sound Energy offers wind power as another energy source. It costs more per KWH, but I signed up for 100% wind power. It costs a little more but it is one thing I can do even on a fixed income.
El calentamiento global actualmente nos afecta a todos y por igual. No solo los países industrializados son los que lo sufren, aunque hayan sido ellos principalmente quienes lo han generado. Es urgentemente necesario terminar con las emisiones de los gases de efecto invernadero (GEI), CO2 y clorofluocarbonos, ya! Las alternativas que existen para reeemplazar a los combustibles fósiles son una realidad factible que todos podemos desarrollar y utilizar. Tengo esperanza que la humanidad se dará cuenta a tiempo que estamos destruyendo nuestro planeta, nuestro único hogar. Tengo esperanza en que lo salvaremos.
Fundamental changes must be made in the way enviromental laws are enforced. Agencies at the state and federal level must be given the authority to stop harmful practices before irreversable harm is done,not simply issue fines after the fact. In south Texas one foreign owned irresponsible uranium mining corporation threatens the groundwater in several counties, has violated agreements and regulations and does not possess the financial resources or ability to fix what it pollutes and yet is still digging. Why is this allowed?
Do as ye will and HARM NONE. That includes your Mother Earth and Father Sky.
This is not just for our children we must do this but for all the other Earthlings on this planet. Animal agriculture as it is now must end. If you love this planet and really want to help stop global warming, stop eating animals!!
Only we humans, among all of life, have been given the capacity to care about existance as a whole, and to purposely affect positive changes in actions and attitudes. If we do not use this capability in an overt, thoughtful, and consistantly positive manner, we are being the problem. I can now see, after years of struggle by the environmentalists of the world against selfishness and ignorance, a critical mass growing that will soon be the positive norm. I hope I live long enough to see it, and now feel better about my children and grandchildren's ability to correct the mistakes of my and earlier generations. Bob Bates
Human beings have lived as unyielding consumers; our ancestors have laid a path of destruction and exploitation of our natural world. Our quest to grow successful and chase some sort of intangible goal of control has left us with a world that can take no more abuse. We act as if we do not have to adhere to the rules that bond us to our planet. But if we are realistic with ourselves, it is easy to see we have never had any control in the first place, we rely on the natural world that surrounds us, and all of our technological advances and scientific studies still fall short of explaining the many mysteries of life that maintain a natural balance. When we mess up and fail, we blame it on being human, and we can admit we are imperfect. Yet we justify our irresponsibility by saying that we are supreme beings and that we can rule over all life, from the skies to the depths of the ocean. But we lack one of the greatest tools that have been given to us, self-control. We have the gift to make connections and stop ourselves from making poor decisions, but in order to ensure the sustainability of the planet we have to exhibit self-control and make the necessary sacrifices. No one said it would be easy or comfortable, but we are threatening to stop a natural cycle that has gone undisturbed for billions of years, all in the name of growth of one arrogant species that refused to listen.
Doing "right" for the environment is not always easy, especially in today's political climate. It may be difficult, costly, and require some sacrifice and great perseverance. But it is essential. As in all struggles, we must listen to our hearts and rely on our core values. That is being an American.
The Inescapable Issue Ignored, by government, environmental organizations, and most individuals today is that of population increase. At the current exponential rate, despite AIDS, war, and such disasters as Darfur and Rwande, the world would, soon after the beginning of the next millennium, sport one person per square fot of (current) land-mass, from Everest to Los Angeles to New York, London and Cairo. Impossible, of course, as is the further projection that within a few bhundred more years humanity would be reproducing itself at the speed of light.
Responsible environmentalism requires immediate reversal of the global (Mexico City) ban on U.S. aid in contraceptive methods of stabilizing a sustainable population. The current adm inistration should emulate Pres. Eisenhower's example-- having failed to help India during his term of office, he later sought to rectify that mistake by accepting the leadership of Planned Parenthood.
If we do not face this issue, the result will be not only Global Warming, but painful Global Swarming.
I would add another bullet point:
*support each other as we got through this stuggle and make the necessary changes in our lives, out of love for each other, our precious planet, and the generations to come. Look for the joy!
In this time that we are living. We as a nation and the world have the power to reverse that damages created by our own hand. We should however look into the future and see that out children's, children's, children have a prosperous future.
Science fiction paints a grim out look of things to come and I don't believe that its to far off the mark.
Stop population growth. It is the main cause of global warming and other environmental problems. Reduce US and other countries' populations to levels that are sustainable by low-tech low-energy farming and manufacturing. For the USA, stop most immigration - especially that from countries with high-birthrate cultures. We have 2-4 times the number of people -now- that the US environment can sustainably support.
New Patriotism is more than a feeling or emotion. New Patriotism in today's USA calls for ACTION. What fuels action (which is a personal choice) is informed AWARENESS and the COURAGE to do the right thing ... not what is convenient. The courage to do whatever YOU can to stop global warming, even one small step at a time. The courage to spend your dollars wisely rather than getting what cost less now ... but more in the future. Remember folks, we VOTE EVERY DAY with every dollar we spend !! What message are we sending to those big corporations?? New Patriotism today also calls for the courage to take action in SUPPORTING the elected officials who really represent the will of the people on environmental, economic, domestic and international issues. Let all the others know that you are aware and watching. Speak out, speak up and take the time to CLICK on those petitions that come your way !! It only takes a minute. Let us emulate the patriotism and courage of the men AND women who, against all odds, fought for the freedoms we hold so dearly today. Or do we really hold them dearly … for they are slipping away. What appears to be taking their place is momentary comfort and convenience. Courage is often not convenient, but it is the driving force of a patriot … and oh so rewarding!!
Jeanette V in VA
It really is simple. decide to do what is right for humanity and all nature, thereby saving earth and all it contains for future generations. RECYCLE! Cut unnecessary consumption, purchase hybrid vehicles, if you can't afford a new car, at least keep the car you have tuned up, cut down on travel, water only when necessary. There are many things to do to help, simple and easy.
Electric magnetic polarity pulsation has been used for years in factories and could be used to power our needs in the future using the fossil fuel motors we have today. Minor changes to the pistons. Removing the heads and placing electric magnets in, on top of the blocks for each cylinder w/super conducted piston heads. The distributor to the crank shaft and retard the timing. The 12 volt systems they have will supply plenty of electric charge to boost the electric magnet heads with power left over. Oh and no fossil fuel fumes or gases to mess with. Why do we pay top dollar for fossil fuel when we don't need it? Who wants us to keep spending our money on fossil fuels? Was it President Bush senior that discredited the cold fusion that was discovered? By the way the two men went to France and proved they were right and now France has the cold fusion and we have sky high fuel prices. I have been trying to get this out and for ten years have hit every wall in the fossil fuel world. You have a choice and I hope you make the right one by asking for the electric magnetic polarity pulsation motor that our government and the fossil fuel companies are fighting to hide.
Moving over to biodiesel and/or alochol based fuels would singnifinatly reduce Greenhouse Gasses quickly, easily and its cheaper than normal fuel
Heres a website to get you into biodiesel and ethanol... http://journeytoforever.org/
Im busy building my biodiesel plant at the moment....ITS EASY
America shoud lead the transition of business that contribute to pollution problems to businesses that solve pollution problems. The solution to pollution problems generally leads to new business opportunities. America currently leads most of the world in pollution solving businesses but can do much more to encourage such businesses.
We need to change our personal attitudes before we can change the state of the world. Instead of blaming untouchable governments and corporations, we need to take responsibility for our own actions. Chose to be informed about environmental and social issues and act accordingly. Educate others when the opportunity arises. Use our political voices, especially on the local level. And most importantly, live by example. If we are passionate about the earth and life, and if we are committed to living in a way that supports the wellbeing of all, we will inspire others to follow. Change starts within and is carried forth into the world by our collective energies and our compassion for one another.
I still think that the old Indian proverb needs to be included. I did not submit it but it is profound. We do not inherit this earth but borrow it from our children. I can't remember the exact wording but that is the essence.
After All We all are the citizen of this Earth to be treated in the name of Patriotism and Democracy.
What is being done to the environment with global warming is horrible. If things keep going as they are, there will be no polar bears, fish or animals of any kind left. The weather is more violent & unpredictable then ever. We are making this beautiful world a terrible place to live in. If there is a world left for them, our grandchildren will have nothing.
JadDeTear:
My thoughts on MotherEarth. Just think about your children and children of children to come. That alone should tell you to STOP AND THINK WHAT YOU ARE DOING HER.
You people who dont know what MotherEArth is about , You better starting caring . All this wheather changing , Just the beinging, SHE HAVE A HEART JUST LIKE YOU DO START CARING PLEASE
SHE IS HURTING ENOUGH , DONT BE BLIND INSIDE OF HEART, STARTING CARE AND HELP KEEP MOTHEREARTH ALIVE AND BREATHING, SHE IS OUR LIFE AND WE ARE HER . THANK YOU SO MUCH .
JADDETEAR.
Finally, after being so late in acknowledging it,our government may now be ready to hear the strong voices and see the actions of WE THE PEOPLE. We saw the light a long time ago and have been making sacrifices although they seem to be on a small scale compared to what needs to be accomplished globally. The time is NOW!
Besides being mindful consumers we can push for change where we work. Due to all the new findings on global warming the definition of good business practice and even fiduciary responsiblity to corporate stockholders needs to change. It should be allowed to do so under law. Picture sheep trying to tippy toe around while wolves run free and you can see why contract law needs addressing.
Lets focas our energy on healing the planet. It sounds so overwhelming but if we start in our own homes, yards, and the places we go we can make a big impact a little each day.
Here are some of the easy examples: your buy organic whenever possible. {Less toxins for you and your family too}
Use biodegradable soaps, detergents, non aeresol products. {find them at your local healthfood store, WIld Oats or Whole Foods}
If you dont LOVE eating meat, become a vegetarian. {do research on how animals are treated before they are slaughtered, what they are fed and how raising cattle contributes to deforestation}
Every time I go out for a walk with my daughter we pick up any garbage we see so it dosent end up in the bay killing fish, coral reefs, and mammals that live in the sea.
I love trees, so that's why I get involved in my community. Figure out what your passionate about and get involved in the cause of your choice! Get your kids involved too.
If your city dosent have emission laws, or fines for littering, write your city officials and start a movement.
Dont buy packageed food as much as possible, instead buy in bulk. Less garbage, less cost!
The list could go on and as I write this I get more ideas. Write your own list! Be grateful that we are taking part in a revolution and a shift in conciousness!
Solar power, grey water, bio fuels and non-genetically modified organisims.
If we do something and global warming theories are wrong, we loose nothing. If we do nothing and global warming theories are right, we loose everything!
Capitalism has outlived it's usefulness. To continue this system is insane! Whoever doesn't want to change the status quo, there is no hope for them. As for the majority of people, we know in our hearts that something TOTALLY NEW (such as a classless society) is needed now. No more RICH and no more POOR! It doesn't matter what the new system is called, as long as it is the NEW ECONOMIC,INDUSTRIAL DEMOCRACY that we've been longing for but didn't realize it. Labor creates all value, not capital. So people, let's UNITE! We have nothing to lose but our chains. We can have Heaven or Hell. We will decide everyday by which we do. So let's BOLDLY go where no man has gone before (HEAVEN ON EARTH)!
Many things need to be done but each person has ultimate control only over what he or she does! We can all do better, change ingrained habits, look for ways to conserve energy, write to politicians and demand change, stop selfishly driving gas-guzzlers and taking the easy way out. Lead by example -- it worked for Gandhi, King and many others faced with great challenges.
AJ Smith, Key Largo, FL
Impeach Bush.
Take care of the Earth as you take care of your home, after all, you will live it to your children.
We are not "chasing" a whimsical leprechaun here but a "Global GREEN Giant"!!!
Dear Environmental Defence,
Thanks to the Enviromentalists concern.I appreciate this opportunity to contribute to the Global Warming Declaration.
The industrial development policy should include protection of ecosystem. There ought to be protective legal statutes that promote life within industrial development if our planet will sustain life.
Each of us should maintain and practice the Environment Defence Act.
Global Warming is as deadly as any pademic but worse unless controlled.
Grace
GJK
Industrialists,
"Think life not capitalism."
"Think Planet protection not imperialism"
Grace
27/05/07
Emission that promotes Global Warming is equal to terrolism that ends life. Let us control all types of terrolism.
Grace.
I JUST HOPE THAT MORE LUGGAGE AND BAGS CAN BE LOOKED AT AT BUS TERMINALS EVEN IF SOMEONE HAS JUST SOME SNACKS TO SHOW.EITHER IN LUGGAGE OR BAGS.AND THAT OTHER THINGS CAN BE SCANNED THROUGHLY BETTER THROUGH AIRPORT SCANNERS LIKE STUFFED ANIMALS AND EVEN SOME OTHER THINGS,ELECTRONIC THINGS OR ANYTHING METAL!FOR EVERYONES SAFETY.
I believe a patriot is interested in making their country better, not by simply looking through a window and saying everything is great, but by seeking problems, understanding them, and saying "hey! We need to fix this problem." And usually, sacrifices have to be made in order to solve problems. We cannot be so arrogant to believe that our actions have no consequences. Too often we hear in the media that people are "unpatriotic" in pointing out our country's flaws. I think there's nothing more patriotic than being open to our flaws and our problems, in order to solve them. Those who are opposed to change are blinded by a false idea that ours is a wonderful society, the greatest nation, as if we were above serious problems and wrong action. That mentality does nothing but make our problems worse, because it is steeped in inaction and dangerous arrogance. It is unfortunately the mentality that has been driving us "full-steam ahead" for far too long into a terrible wasteland. When was the last time anyone enjoyed being around a person who believed they were a wonderful person, that everything they did was great and just, with no sense of their culpabilities or wrong-doings? Self-reflection is a good thing, knowing our own flaws and our own weaknesses is a sign of a healthy country! History proves that a society secure in their own grandeur is a society which quickly falls.
How can we be the land of the free and the brave when money rules the land and the brave politicians who want to make a real stand for all our rights including the environment, never get a say or a chance to make a big difference? I say get rid of the electoral college and make America a real democracy ruled for the people by the people. I also say that no politician like in the UK should be able to hold an office in big business. Truth to be told, I personally believe the senate and the house of representatives should run this nation, and that the president's job should be made obsolete. It is much more difficult for big business to bribe a large group of people than it is to bribe just one person. President George W Bush is a prime example of this. Only when all this happens will this nation once again be a shining example of democracy and hope, not just for us but for all peoples everywhere.
This movement isn't all about denial, rather it is about conscious choice. The richness of life for ourselves and our children is in jeopardy due to our collective lack of awareness and unquestioning expectation.
Unfortunately, we have seen some of those who advocated global warming concerns retreat recently because they have seen corporations attempt to exploit the green movement. We need to welcome this corporate involvement as a first of many needed steps. Without that corporate support, we will have few politicians who will really step up.
It is also not just about the three R's. Reuse, Reduce, Recycle. we must include global education and living as a global community. In many areas of the world they only subsist because they are living the three R's. Only through education, compassion and a sense of belonging to this planet can we as a global nation understand the effects we all have on this planet.
I know there are ways to get better gas mileage (see cars in Europe)
Why are the corporate interests being
looked at more than what is better for our planet?
Global warming is real, and we ALL need to do our part to reduce the carbon output. Why can't our government stop being soooo greedy that these known consecquenceses be looked at?
Take back your Motherland,people!-from book "Co-creation" Vladimir Megre.
A patriot is one who does not necessarily agree with your thoughts but will defend to the death your right to say them.
OUR NATURAL RESOURCES SHOULD OUR NATIONAL RESOURCES TO BE REGULATED AND USED FOR THE GOOD OF ALL.
Each human being who holds the planet dear and treats her with respect, has the potential to tip the balance.
- be mindful always
- you may be the hundreth monkey.
Barbara Cooper - Tallahassee, FL
Protecting life on the planet will require sacrifice. The pledge should include acknowledgement and willingness to make a sacrifice to preserve, protect and rehabilitate the planet.
Be the one-at home, at work-who sets the example by recycling, by turning off those uneeded lights. You are making a difference and spreading the message.
I would like to see the word powerful rather than forceful for our efforts to commit our nation and lead the world in recognising the unalienable rights of all living things.
We must all accept our responsibility to protect - and not harm -the earth. And it all starts locally with how we live in our own communities.
Look, we all know change is not easy, so start with something simple the whole family or all your friends can handle. Everyone drinks bottled water these days - save them and recycle. Then move up to planting more trees and plants, then think of one more thing and so on. Each member think of the next project. Everyone working together is part of the change too. Don't let yourself get overwhelmed by feeling you aren't doing enough. Do what you can, then grow to the next one. Namaste~Be joyful!
I think it should read:
We pledge to
1. Walk, bike or use public transit when at all possible.
2. Not buy anything new. Recycle and reuse only--we do not need any more new goods--just share the huge amount of stuff we all have.
Do no harm. Protect and respect the Earth Mother. Use renewable resources such as cotton clothing. Make things last as long as possible and repair instead of buying new. Buy used items. Recycle everything. Slow down and simplify your life. Commune with nature. To avoid war, avoid nationalistic fervor and organzied religion. Emphasize cooperation not competition. Rebalance your spiritual, natural, physical, and mental life. Grow a vegitable or flower garden using organic and heirloom varieties. Plant indigenous flowers to assist the recovery of bees and butterflies. Assist animals in times of stress such as cold and drought. Buy local foods to avoid excess transportation costs and assist with diabetes prevention. Eat fresh foods. For everything you take from the Earth Mother give something back each time. Cut your energy use in half. Respect all things. Respect life. Keep your thoughts respectful, caring, and positive. Seek your simple purpose in life and live it well.
In my opinion, the text of the pledge for Our New Patriotism should be expanded as follows. The first one should read:
Be mindful and responsible consumers, by minimizing our personal global warming “footprint” realizing that our current consumerism is an unsustainable bad habit and that it takes personal effort, initiative and conviction to reverse our lifestyle and redefine societal values for the benefit of and appreciation by our sons and daughters.
This implies the personal responsibility that our older generation has to provide lifestyle options and set examples to our successors for sustainable behavior, spanning from choices made for buying and using household goods, clothing, foods, office equipment and devices, to choices of daily commutes (bicycle, walk, public transportation), personal and business trip planning, to setting priorities when buying and moving to new homes (minimizing air conditioned space per occupant, maximizing occupancy in cars, homes, offices, minimizing the home-work commute distance and the home-food distance). Achieving measurable changes in global warming starts and ends with an effective parent-child relationship. Local, regional and national governments have to show leadership in support of this relationship; e.g. by providing affordable solutions to the poor and less fortunate majority of the US population. New environmentally friendly (green) technologies should be advanced by government incentives and financed through a balanced taxation system that punishes polluters in private, commercial and government sectors, such as e.g. users of gas guzzling vehicles, dirty manufacturing industries and electric power utilities, operators of large inefficient office buildings and administrative procedures, etc., leading to the second pledge:
Be active citizens, by pressing our elected officials to take urgent action now, and by pressing all candidates for office to commit to passing strong legislation to cut America's global warming pollution by setting economical incentives for the development and implementation of new green technologies in all private, commercial and government sectors, and by supporting innovative leaders for introducing and spreading these new technologies in the world’s market.
And in my opinion the third pledge should be expanded by an almost religious conviction and believe to read:
Spread the word, by educating our friends, neighbors and loved ones and making sure they recognize that each of us has a role to play in meeting this all-important challenge. Recognizing this responsibility before a rapidly growing population in the US and the rest of the planet, we pledge to play this role respecting the needs of all humans and their equal rights for access to our planet’s resources. However, with our new patriotism, leadership and global responsibility, we strongly believe that the US people can set the example for sustainable growth of all people, religions, and races, ensuring availability of resources and with it world peace for generations to come.
Every animal species has a purpose. We have no right to continue to contribute to their distruction and extintion. We have every obligation to save them and their environment.
Solution is most needed. Wide scale and pervasive individual attention and commitment to returning the planet to a physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual paradise or garden is an overwhelming AND individually possible solution.
Each one of us take responsibility for creating such a paradise in their space, in their mind, in their heart and in God’s heart, through his and her personal life circumstance, the governments will have nothing to do except say thank you. Yes, I am radical and also positive.
This is 'simple' but not easy. It would mean massive departure from most present conventions and yet it could happen gently and with understanding when seen as a way to halt global eco abuse and abandonment of social, economic and eco responsibility.
If we each could take just a moment and step outside the box we have built for ourselves and see/feel a planet whose conscious inhabitants are focused on paradise, willing nothing less into being, through every thought, word, action and deed, one would see and feel a clean earth, happy people, a sustainable future, and a renewable dream.
Thank you for this opportunity. May we all survive our choices.
American society's ignorance in this issue of pivotal importance, global warming, is no excuse for the consequences that will prevail from our carelessness. Now is the United States' time to shine, to begin a movement for change, capturing the attention of EVERY American, not just the "tree-huggers," not just the politically involved, but everyone.
Overwhelmed to heartbreak and sorrow? No. The Earth counts on us to stand fast in the front line to change bad American policies now. We can still turn the problems around. Force our government to regulate the toxins used in this country and have foresight in our energy usage.
Rachael Carson pointed out that the government policies regarding toxic chemicals such as DDT was just plain wrong. Americans can Address the wrong policies in our government. Let's really look at the lobbyist powers that keep destructive policies in place.
Gracie Taylor
I would like to see you borrow heavily from the original Declaration of Independence. The founding fathers have a lot of clout in American culture, after all. The first paragraph talks all about earth and nature. Then the part about self-evident truth and equality. There's another part farther down that lists King George's abuses and the ways that he disregarded the people. We could borrow alot of the wording from that section also. Yours could be the Declaration of Dependence, meaning on the Earth.
That phrase could possibly refer to our dependence on the rest of the people of the earth also, something that we tend to deny.
Erik T.
We should pledge to consider the fate of other animals as though it is our own, because it is. We must consider and work toward their well-being and survival with every decision we make and every action we take.
Twentieth century humans partied like never before – and consumed more of the Earth than all humanity before. But now we know the price – and the absolute need for a change in attitudes and actions.
In business we would say: "Take care of business before it takes care of you."
A traditional Indian, I am blessed would say: Mother Earth has to be taken care of or she will not be able to take care of us. Think about it.
Thousands of acres of prime farm ground or being sold each month to make room for larger, more expensive homes so two people and one animal can co-exist. To me food for my children, grandchildren, your children and grandchildren is much more important.
FINALLY, GOVERNMENT IS TO BE OUR SERVANT, NOT WE THERES. READ THE CONSTITUTION, TOP TO BOTTOM...TAXES ARE ILLEGAL, WE HAVE A RIGHT TO REDRESS CONGRESS........WE PATRIOTS, WHETHER NEAR OR FAR, NEED TO FIGHT FOR THE FREEDOMS THAT ARE GUARANTEED BY WHATEVER DOCUMENT WE LIVE UNDER.........MOST OF ALL, WE NEED TO CARE ABOUT OUR PLANET AND WE THAT INHABIT IT.
Is this only for Americans to sign then? Since it is just about America.
Also, the " needs to be the other side of the ; in "footprint;"
Yanno, I've been reading this for awhile now, and I have to say what an ignorant group of people there are on the left. This planet has been around for millions of years, and has survived everything thrown at it. You think Man can do anything along the level of Nature itself? Do any of you remember Mt. St. Helens? I do, I live in it's shadow, and it destroyed a cubic mile of the mountain, along with a huge area around the mountain, and guess what, IT GREW BACK! Is there global warming, yes, but it is not us, it is nature that is doing it. Get a life people. Oh, did you know that in the 70's the fear was global cooling, IT'S A New IceAge they screamed. Well, they got it wrong then, and they got it wrong now.
A patriot is someone who works to make the world a better place for future generations. For, that is what our founding fathers attempted to do for us. This is the impulse of life itself. To trust in this impulse, this spark, this deeper inclination and to translate its will into the world faithfully is what it means to be a patriot.
Though I may not be the most educated on environmental issues, I still see our elected officials linning their pockets with the oil companies money. It amazes me that some of the suposed "educated" people are denying the truths of global warming and pollution. I think that if there is going to any change it has got to start with the public. There is greed in the general thinking of the public. We look at this oil crisis as just a ploy to raise the prices of our gas, we don't see the damage that we are doing to the planet by draining all of its fossil fuels; it is not just about emisions. The only way that were are going to change as a whole is if we make an attempt to educate ourselves and force the hands of the wealthy and influential. Right now there is a man in Utah that has invented a machine that can drastically lower the emision pollution that comes from automobiles and factories. This is an extremely important breakthrough but every time someone approaches him in regards to it, they seem to back out at the last second. I don't know what is going on but I thought that if I got the word out maybe one of these scientists or wealthy backers would invest in it. So ask you to help get the word out even if you doubt the validity of this claim, isn't it worth a shot. To research this, go to Google and type in "US Pat. 5308385" or "Pollution abatement apparatus and method"; also, you can just cut and past this address to your address bar: http://www.google.com/patents?id=rcwlAAAAEBAJ&dq=Pollution+abatement+apparatus+and+method. Please, if there is going to be any change, we need to explore other options and get the attention of the people who can change this, thanks.
It is the crisis of our time. This is an enlightning article. Appriciate it. My nephew is actually looking for materials in that matter for his high school project.
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