It’s About Making Babies!

Sharon Astyk writes on Casaubon’s Book about her concerns that with the upcoming Copenhagen conference, governments are weakening on commitments and activism energy seems to have . . . peaked. So to speak.

Yesterday I wrote about why the activism might wane, why governments may have won free of climate change pressure – and doubts I have that current efforts are meaningful in light of historic deforestation in Brazil and underway in Asia and Africa.

Today I want to address comments about Sharon’s post. I did read it, really! You should, too. Sharon describe how learning to live with the kind of restrictions needed to address climate change is a radical, uncomfortable (for many) lifestyle change. What is needed is nothing less than a redefinition of affluence, from material possessions to community and family. And Sharon kindly points out a timely quote from Socrates, as posted by Risa at Stony Run Farm, on unlimited accumulation of wealth.

Where we are.

Any family in America should be aware, as school just started, that we are a material based society. We are often judged by the newness and style of our clothes, our shoes, our tattoos, our music player or cell phone/system. If we play computer games, we need the latest and greatest. If we follow a sport team it must be the greatest, have the best players. Our school must be the best, our car, our neighborhood. Our spouse.

TEOTWAWKI

The end of the world as we know it. Is it coming? Is the economy going to melt down, will gas prices soar again to devastate the world next time – or the time after that? You might think the economy has passed the tipping point, that ruinous debt has ended any hope of return to a stable economy before wrack and ruin overtake all. You might think the world demand for oil, once the economy begins to recover, will again spark an energy shortage and price jump that will stop the world’s economy. You might think another scenario is about to bring down the economy and shopping as we know it today.

You may be encouraged to know that there are people that believe some preparation is worth considering.

Localize

The first step is to assume you won’t be able to get anything – or much of anything – that isn’t produced locally, say within walking distance, about 10 miles, or horseback, about 30 miles, tops. Vehicles will likely stay close, as fuel supplies will likely dwindle to very little, and priced very preciously.

Your garden, or window box can provide vegetables, herbs, some medicinals, too. Beans and peas are simple to grow. Did you know you can start celery just as you do an avacado seed? Smells celery-y. Don’t ask.

Local farms likely do big agribusiness now. But some can be encouraged to produce for local consumption – and those local sources need your business to stay productive, and available of things come unglued. Locally made crafts and supplies, ditto.

The national electric grid is susceptible. Just ask your power company why they want California’s “Smart Meters” so they can be more gentlemanly about “rolling blackouts and brownouts” – that is, turn off your power when they run short. A good wood stove, today, is mostly imported from Europe. Now would be a good time to get used to one, to get used to fetching wood.

Sharon can tell you about adapting, about storing food long term, rotating your pantry, about adapting to an expected social upheaval. And all while enjoying a mostly improved life. Freedom Gardens is one source for seeds and things. Johny Seeds is another resource, including the infamous broad fork garden tool.

Sharon’s take on adapted life style

It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that radical lifestyle changes are coming, whether we like them or not – whether they come from adapting to a deeply damaged climate or from addressing the crisis, whether they come from adapting to depletion or from enduring it, our lifestyle will not be the same for very long. And the danger of telling people that they can have all the things they want – a future for their children and an affluent present now – is that when they realize (and they are realizing right now) that this is not true, that there’s not enough money, or time or alternative energy to provide it, people will be very, very angry indeed.

And

The math is really clear – there’s not enough climate leeway, not enough water, not enough food, not enough money, not enough oil, not enough gas, not enough dirt, not enough phosphorous, not enough rainforest…. not enough left in the world to avert disaster if we have rich people, who see themselves primarily as consumers in a consuming world, and who live as we do now.

And

. . . because there’s not much money in selling non-consumerism, radical simplicity and not buying stuff. It isn’t going to show up on HD-TV anytime soon, except, perhaps as a comedy show. And yet it is essential – the beauty and accessibility of an ordinary life, without the trappings of industrial consumerism has to be modeled, it has to be offered up, and it has to be available. It has to be because otherwise, we can never say to people “shut down the coal plants” without them noticing that they’ve been betrayed into iconoclasm without any truth to take the place of the false idols. But with a dream – with a sense of the beauty of simplicity, with a dream of an ordinary human life that is both good and humane and uses vastly fewer resources, you can say to people “we must shut down the coal plants” and the answer comes back “we weren’t using them anyway.”

Icons and heroes.

Sharon’s message is profound, about a change in direction for climate change activism. Instead of warning about the horrors likely, activists must to begin living and demonstrating the life that meets the guidelines they advocate. They must adapt, and revel in adapting. They must inspire transitions and economic descents not because the world went away and left one stranded, but because there is a better place to be.

Beverly Hillbillies

There were a series of TV shows, once upon a time in the 1960′s, that made comedy of rustic folk interacting with modern “city folk”. The Beverly Hillbillies transplanted a one-room-shack hills family to a Beverly Hills mansion. Green Acres took a New York socialite and back-to-the-earth gentleman farmer wannabe to a very rustic farm. Petticoat Junction had a parade of travelers visiting the Shady Rest Hotel, midway from Hooterville to Huxley, just off an isolated train line.

In each case, the main characters depicted the same social message. The rope belt for the faded jeans, the worn coat, the homespun clothes of the Beverly Hillbillies – and these people were happy in their values. Mostly the modern conveniences were rejected as being not as good as the wood stove, the simple things they started with. Those that they encountered that took them for too stupid to persist found that good intelligence and good will go a long ways, combating greed and corruption. The other shows took similar pot shots at modern consumerism vs. traditional – traditional at the time – values.

I do note that there are more people that have attended Star Trek themed events in the last year than Beverly Hillbilly events.

I watched John Wayne’s “In Harm’s Way” again last week. Notice, next time you watch this war epic, the scene where Patricia Neal prepares a steak dinner with biscuits on a leaky gas stove in a small apartment – and comfortable, happy smile. Much happier than others with luxurious surroundings.

Amish

The Amish provide a centuries old, working example of living off the national grid. They permit no permanent attachment to electricity, phone, TV, etc. There are work arounds – using a neighbor’s phone, or a phone mounted in the pasture, to call for assistance or for business. They will often accept rides, from suitable acquaintances, to make business trips.

The old Harrison Ford movie is generous, in how it depicts one “plain” household, in the movie “Witness”. Don’t let the handgun scene imply the Amish aren’t good shooters with rifles and shotguns – they hunt for food quite readily, many of them.

Green consumerism

One issue that Sharon identifies is how buying green products is an incremental improvement – if that! – rather than the radical change that is needed to be effective. I recall when the EPA began labeling cars with estimated mileage. I would like to see that labeling increased to apply to electric vehicles, too.

I was taught that a horsepower is about 745 watts. Every time you plug electricity into a vehicle, you place an additional demand on the national electric grid. Since the object seems to be to decrease dependence on coal and oil fired plants, I would express the “carbon footprint” of the energy used by that vehicle in carbon emitted from a coal-fired plant. Perhaps an estimate of the electricity, in kilowatt hours, of powering a vehicle for 100 miles, could be related to the amount of carbon it takes an average coal fired plant to produce that number of kilowatt hours. For hybrid vehicles that take a plug-in recharge, list both numbers.

Utility bills could list for each month, the pounds of carbon generated in producing that month’s electricity.

In my software development career, I learned that you have to measure what you want to improve. Ask WeightWatchers about checking the scale. If you want to reduce carbon footprint, and get the coal-fired plants closed, we have to express electricity in terms of the environmental carbon each kilowatt hour represents.

Icons

Sharon laments telling people “less is better”. In social studies I recall the story of Johnny Appleseed. I forget the whole story – but our John was so enamored of the apple, he traveled alone about the frontier – sowing appleseeds. We aren’t told of his luxurious life, in fact all depictions and mention have him traveling most of his adult life – alone and afoot.

Sharon shines, as a place to think and plan about adapting. Working within your neighborhood to assure coverage of needed skills, learning skills that will likely be needed After The Stuff Hits The Fan, and are mere hobbies and crafts today. Sharon, at Casaubon’s book holds classes on garden planning, on adapting, and other related topics. Her articles cover global warming activism as well as adapting, gardening, preserving food and adapting to a low carbon footprint life, and living locally. Read up, study – understand the strategy of living well, past the collapse of the national electric grid.

Adult examples

One has to escape advertising, to escape the burdens and mindset of commercialism. The idea that the American Dream is a single family dwelling was a commercial creation. The idea that that home has to have furnishings – better than the neighbors! – is product promotion.

The best tool, the best table or chair, is the one that you have on hand, that works. Very few of us will ever have our homes on TV – so we can show respect to visitors – and stay healthy – by keeping it clean and in good repair. But scars, mars, fades – these might be mended if they impair function, but signs of having been used do not make a tool or furniture less useful.

If you are going to events that make you self conscious about wearing a garment more than once – I would be questioning the kind of events you are attending, and ask – does this make a better baby? Is this event going to improve my quality of life? Do I respect and honor everyone there for their character and honesty?

For the most part, there is a lot we buy but don’t need. Very little is shown on TV or the Internet that affects our lives, and all impair our ability to reason, be disciplined in our habits, or be patient and productive – because they have ads that intrude into our thinking, intentionally disrupt the story we were trying to follow.

Looking for something to do? Try meditation or prayer. Try learning a music instrument. Try knitting or crocheting or sewing or leathercraft or find an honored companion and chat for a few minutes. Look for mending or building tasks that are yet undone. Ask a craftsperson if they could use some help for a time. (Then help them for a time. Duh!) Need to learn something about parenting or keeping house? Ask if you can help your parents, or other parents in the area. That is, be a resource for your network (community) when you have uncommitted time.

I have to say, Socrates pointed out the choice.

We choose to use what we need, or let the want of things set our life.