Your Square of Dirt
My mom visited us this weekend, and as happens so often when we talk, our worlds collided a little. It wasn't nasty, or hostile in any way, but it is interesting in some ways.
In case you hadn't noticed, I'm a True Believer when it comes to the need for serious reforms to our social and political structures, our food chain, and our philosophy with regard to the natural world around us. I've long ago lost faith in my government to guide us responsibly; instead what I see is a large collection of sell-outs, surrounded by corporations and ideologues with very deep pockets...where there's no room for me or mine.
My mom, on the other hand, grew up in the 50's, and seems to have a tendency to believe that the brainier members of our species will eventually percolate to the top of the power pyramid, just in time to keep us from facing another Dark Age. I do admire her faith in humanity, but I have a major problem with this approach to things: it erases personal responsibility from the equation. If the environment's answer to Stephen Hawking will someday take power and Make It All Right Again (tm), then we can just go on about our business without a worry.
The trouble is, the people in and around our government make tidy livings from the status quo. What's their motivation to usher in these broad, sweeping changes and save the world? To go all the way to the cynical side, why should they care about polar bears in 2050? They'll all be dead by then.
We have large problems now, and they're changing things most of us can't even imagine. We cannot afford to wait for government - which, traditionally is a trailing indicator of a movement, not a leading one - to blaze this trail. Sure, they have a large role to play, but they won't make a move until we show them we won't fire them for supporting reform. No, if we want to keep our children from living out short, brutish lives spent cursing us for our choices and greed, then we each need to understand our role in the cure, and take action immediately. We also need to understand that it may be too late to preserve a nice world like the one we have now for our children...but we have to do the best we can.
At this level, it's not about moving the entire fleet of vehicles in the US to hydrogen; it's about driving your own car less, and thinking about fuel efficiency when you go to buy a new one. At this level, it's not about switching the US food chain over to a new, comprehensively-researched agriculture practice with the same yield but half the known chemical damage; it's about planting your own garden, and buying the rest of your food as locally as you can. It's not about the wholesale re-socialization of the nation; it's about meeting your neighbors, finding out what your own community can provide to satisfy your needs. It's not about putting one really smart person in power, and letting him do his thing; it's about educating yourself, and doing as much as you can to apply what you learn.
In short, it's not about saving every square mile on the planet; it's about what you're doing to protect your own square of dirt.
Nobody has all the answers. We need everyone, with all of their ideas and creativity and then some. We cannot wait any longer.
So, go get started.