Bedlam

Photo by René DeAnda on Unsplash | Text added by author (me)

We, The Saners, are countering and replacing madness and evil with the best that humanity has to offer: OUR better selves.

If we simply watch the future unfold, we have every reason to fear it. But that would be foolish and dangerous. When there is a crisis, we must act!

Our planet is on fire. But the fire department is filled with arsonists. We know from observation and experience that they provide no relief whatsoever. We know not to call them. We understand that they are the source of the crisis.

The Earth is on fire. Authorities in government and business worldwide not only set the fire; they continue to throw oil on it.

Are YOU ready to rise to the challenge?

Bucket Brigade

We have a group, The Saners. Right now we are dispersed with a smattering of members in more than 20 countries and over 25 states in America. These early members are very, very helpful—even essential to our success.

But we need to grow and we need to build communities of Saners at the local level—everywhere.

What is our objective? To use the most powerful force in history to prevent climate collapse, and create a truly caring and sane society to replace the shitshow we have today.

Our new society will value PEOPLE and LIFE, not THINGS and MONEY. Our new society won’t divide people or ruin the planet and doom everyone’s children. Our group, The Saners, recognizes that the actions of our civilization worldwide—and not just one country or even one system—is destructive, cruel and foolish.

The people and systems that we have been living under believe that they can defy Nature. But you can’t keep pouring gigatons of CO2 into the atmosphere year after year, simply pretend that the climate isn’t collapsing, and keep going that way.

We could (stupidly) continue obeying and doing the work for such a civilization—but it would still collapse. In fact, these systems and leaders are astoundingly stupid and incompetent and out of touch with reality. They may think that their enemies are other people, possibly us.

But we aren’t their enemies. We are trying to save the planet so that everyone’s children and grandchildren, including those of the criminally insane leaders, can survive and even flourish.

No. The enemies, the deadly enemies of both the elites and the ordinary people are the elites themselves.

But we will stop them. We will stop the murder-suicide of the entire planet. We can do this. We know we can do this because we will follow the framework used by successful movements for centuries.

We will harness nonviolent noncooperation. We are the bucket brigade.

How Can Passive Resistance Accomplish Anything Against the Forces of World Leaders?

The Saners is in no way passive. Nonviolent noncooperation is a very active process, one that takes the lead and seizes control of events. It is passive ONLY in the sense that we begin to withdraw our obedience and cooperation from destructive acts. We start slow, taking small steps. And we accelerate our noncompliance, our refusal to carry out insane orders.

We grind the insanity to a halt simultaneously building an alternative.

Our approach will be to shut down Big Oil. And to make fascism impossible. Because ordinary people will, ultimately, stop extracting oil and refuse to burn coal. Because police and military people will put down their weapons and join their children, their own children who are fighting to have a future on a livable planet.

You think this won’t happen because other people won’t do it? What about YOU? Will YOU come to the rescue of your own children and their planet? Or will you let them burn?

And if YOU are ready to help, do you really believe that you are the only one? Do you believe that nobody else really loves their own children or cares that our Earth is being ruined?

Okay. I get it. You don’t know what to do. You feel powerless and helpless. The only tools at your disposal have failed: elections and protests. Nothing works. And you are busy. You work every day, have responsibilities. You are tired and distracted.

I get that. But once a genuine option becomes available, once you see that some people are working together and using an approach that, historically, has repeatedly and successfully overthrown dictators and humbled empires—what then?

What’s Possible?

We are not yet doomed. But we are speeding towards doom. Our planet is permanently degraded, but can continue to support human communities IF we stop abusing it. Yes, we hear from many doomers, people using words like “overshoot” and claiming that it’s game over.

But we aren’t hearing that—yet—from most climate scientists. Climate scientists are still clamoring, more than ever, for serious and immediate action to protect the climate. Even so-called pessimists like James Hansen have not thrown in the towel.

Giving up now would be betraying your children, and our entire species.

Ah, but how can we overcome governments and corporations, who have zillions of dollars and weapons and other resources at their disposal?

Well, they have a very weak spot, an Achilles heel. And that’s us. That’s people who quietly and obediently take their orders. WE extract oil. WE fight wars. WE produce their yachts and private jets for them, and cheap crap for ourselves. WE are the ones who—in obedience to them—are destroying the Earth.

They, in turn, do nothing.

When WE stop, and encourage others to stop, and show them alternatives by taking care of each other—and not just ourselves—THIS changes everything.

Sooner than you think, once we set this example and show the way, the entire culture worldwide can change. And literally billions of people can see that they don’t need money, they don’t need jobs.

They need a world in which people produce healthy food, and medicine and other necessities and SHARE. We can stop wasting our time producing yachts and jets and shiny commodified crap. We can free up our time to do good things, to do meaningful things, to actually LIVE.

We CAN shut down the oil industry. In fact, there is a precedent. During the movement to oust the Shah, the Iranian people shut down that country’s oil industry. They did it. So don’t say that it can’t happen. It can happen anywhere.

We CAN refuse to do the deadly, stupid, Earth-destroying work that government and business leaders demand. Because we can take care of each other instead of serving them.
We can grow food, and provide help and hospitality to our fellow humans as the insane civilization dies from our non-support. Because ordinary people have the ability to do everything and the leaders are only capable of giving order. They are dead weight. WE are the essential workers.

And we will do ONLY what is essential, and we will refuse to do what is deadly.

That’s the plan. Let’s get to it.