 19 September 19 We Are The People Who are Not Greedy
It’s interesting how this progressive news site is not receiving adequate funding from the people who come here and read its articles. Supposedly, we are the people who are not the greedy, self-centered ones who care more for their own interests than supporting the collective well-being. There’s some disconnect here. Maybe time for some self-examination, eh?
Wally, RSN Reader-Supporter
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19 September 19
FOCUS: Bill McKibben | Why You Should Join the Global Climate Strike This Friday
Bill McKibben, Guardian UK
Excerpt: "There are countless reasons to strike this week. Here are just a few."
Bill McKibben, Guardian UK
Excerpt: "There are countless reasons to strike this week. Here are just a few."
Strike because the people who did the least to cause this crisis suffer first and worst – the people losing their farms to desert and watching their islands sink beneath the waves aren’t the ones who burned the coal and gas and oil.
Strike because coral reefs are so gloriously beautiful and complex – and so vulnerable.
Strike because sun and wind are now the cheapest way to generate power around the world – if we could match the political power of the fossil fuel industry we could make fast progress.
Strike because we’ve already lost half the animals on the planet since 1970 – the earth is a lonelier place.
Strike because our governments move with such painful slowness, treating climate change as, at worst, one problem on a long list.
Strike because this could be the great opportunity – and maybe the last opportunity – to transform our society towards justice and towards joy. Green New Deals have been proposed around the world; they are a way forward.
Strike because forests now seem like fires waiting to happen.
Strike because young people have asked us to. In a well-ordered society, when kids make a reasonable request their elders should say yes – in this case with real pride and hope that the next generations are standing up for what matters.
Strike because every generation faces some great crisis, and this is ours.
Strike because half the children in New Delhi have irreversible lung damage simply from breathing the air.
Strike because Exxon and the rest knew all about global warming in the 1980s, and then lied so they could keep cashing in.
Strike because what we do this decade will matter for hundreds of thousands a year.
Strike because the temperature has hit 129F (54C) in big cities in recent summers. The human body can survive that, but only for a few hours.
Strike because do we want to be the first generations to leave the planet in worse shape?
Strike because batteries are ever cheaper – we can now store sunshine at night, and wind for a calm day.
Strike because the UN estimates unchecked climate change could create a billion refugees this century.
Strike because the big banks continue to lend hundreds of billions to the fossil fuel industry – people are literally trying to get rich off the destruction of the planet.
Strike because what animal fouls its own nest?
Strike because indigenous people around the world are trying to protect their rightful land from the coal and oil companies – and in the process protect all of us.
Strike because every time they cut down a patch of rainforest to grow some more cows, the climate math gets harder.
Strike because science is real, because physics exists, because chemistry matters.
Strike so you can look your grandkid – or anyone else’s – in the eye.
Strike because the world we were given is still so sweet.
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