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I am not sure what is going to happen with my column in the future.
The Editor of the MH Times was laid off this week. However, he said
that we should submit he columns to his ID and also copy the Editor
of the Gilroy Dispatch. So, since my date is Friday, I submitted
the following. <br>
____<br>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">Charles
Dickens began his “Tale of Two Cities” by reflecting that “It
was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. He writes of
that past and offers only comparisons to his own time. Today, I
reflect on the current state of America and would paraphrase
Dickens. “These are the best of times, these are the worst of
times.” </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">I might
think that today is the best of times. At no other time in our
history have we been able to posess the things that we do now:
television, cell phones, ample food for most. Or to know what we
can know about the world we live in as cable news keeps us more
fully informed than any of our ancestors. I recently came across
the wedding photo of my grandparents. They were married in 1891.
It is hard to imagine what they would think of the world we now
live in and all that we can do. Even the idea that I could sit
at a desk in Morgan Hill and search the 1900 census records for
the first mention of my father would have seemed crazy. </font>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">For all
that we have accomplished, the world that we know is going to
change and how we deal with those changes will determine whether
or not these are the worst of times. </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">It should
be clear to all that our climate is changing, and it won't be
for the better. For those who believe it is just a matter of
natural cycles, the fact is that we are just now coming out of
an 11 year cooling cycle so that such “normal” cyclic variation
will only continue to warm the planet. Every study that comes
out provides increasing credence for the warming of our planet
and its root cause in our continued use of fossil fuels. </font>
</p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">The
question we all have to answer is no longer what is happening,
but rather what are we going to do about it. Doing nothing is no
longer an option. The ecological changes that are happening will
force changes in the way we are able to live. </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">Those who
see an unlimited technological future as the way forward need
only consider that our current path will have a world of 9
billion people by 2050. This surge in population will put
increasing pressure on the limited resources that we have.
Feeding an extra 2 billion people will be a major challenge. It
might be that our fossil fuels would be put to better use as
fuel for crops rather than fuel for transportation. Most of the
nitrogen used in commercial fertilizers comes from natural gas.
</font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">Even the
materials we are told that are required for the trappings of
daily life... televisions, tablets, cell phones.... are called
rare earths for a reason. If the future is to be held in lithum
batteries you can count the mining sources of lithium without
taking off your shoes. </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">The late
Steve Jobs challenged a graduating class at Stanford to “Create
the future you imagine.” I don't think that most of us would
want to future that we are now creating. It is time to imagine
something different. Some are already doing that. They
understand that unlimited growth is a Ponzi scheme where a few
get rich at the expense of the many. They understand also that
our politicians are not going to deliver a sustainable future as
long as the premise of government is that growth is necessary to
finance they way we live today. Listen to what they promise and
ask yourselves how that can be. </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">Those
every present television ads promise us a great future of energy
use, at lest another century. But what does that leave our
children and grandchildren? Only the problems that we were not
strong enough to solve today. I think that we are better than
that. At least I hope so. But if we are to avoid the worst
future, we need a new manner of organizing our society including
a new politics. </font> </p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><font face="Garamond, serif">Transition
California
offers a new premise for society, locally organized to
transition California to sustainable models, systems and
structures. The Green Party offers the companion political
solution, organized by grassroots action and with politicians
who will not be bought by corporate donations. You might
consider both as being unrealistic. I ask you what is realistic
about selling our future in pursuit of an American Dream that
can never be. </font> </p>
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