Climate Talk — Undo the Taboo

From “let’s not go there” to “let’s keep this on the front burner.”

It’s too depressing and may involve politics so we don’t talk about it. We are more wary of unnecessary friction than unnecessary devastation. We don’t talk about the climate. It’s the new taboo.

Don’t look up…or around…or in front of your face.

We need to change our attitudes and behavior. Today. Now. Forever. When I bring up the climate — even in passing — someone inevitably laughs uncomfortably and says “let’s not go there.”

I understand the sentiment, but we need to resist that instinct. I should take every opportunity talk about Saners — our budding grassroots movement — and our hopes to awaken, energize and activate a billion plus caring people to force the changes we need to save Nature and our children’s future.

Even I don’t do it instinctively…yet. I’m working on it.

Here’s the thing: when talking with deniers or delayers or people who simply don’t want anything done about the climate collapse, I should let it slide. Those people aren’t latent members of our movement.

But the people who change the subject because they believe there’s nothing they can do, well THEY ARE OUR TARGETS! These are the people who care, who are despairing but simply want to enjoy whatever time we have left.

They’ve given up, but if they knew that a movement WAS brewing and there’s SOMETHING they can try doing…well, that’s an opportunity I can open up for them.

Why should I deny people hope simply to be polite and make everyone comfortable — or at least OUTWARDLY comfortable? We’ve all been following the path of least resistance — waiting for someone else to do something — for years.

I know I’m guilty of that. But that’s over. Part of my job is to set an example. I intend to do that regularly and make it a habit. It will be my no-pressure recruitment method. Or at least a part of it.

We want you!

From No Worries to Fatalism

Culturally, we went from “no worries” to “fatalism” with astounding speed. We completely skipped over the “let’s do something and stop accepting excuses” phase. This is convenient for the fossil fuel profiteers who hold all of the positions of power and authority and control the wealth. This is exactly what billionaires and most politicians and big media want.

This is surrender. And I won’t be a part of it. We outnumber our opponents and we are in the right.

It’s our moral obligation to act, to grab the microphone, to impede business as usual and to openly ridicule all of the ridiculous authorities and their paid mouthpieces.

It’s our obligation to assert the truth, which is this:

The authorities EVERYWHERE have failed catastrophically to stop climate collapse in part because they FAVOR this destruction, because they profit from it. Because all of us, including these nominally “victorious” fossil fuel profiteers, are facing doom due to their monumental stupidity (and our acquiescence), WE must stop cooperating, speak out, sabotage the status quo and actively save Nature and our children. That’s the bottom line.

To do so, we must act individually and in groups. We must establish an identity (“Saners”) and recruit people who care and are ready to act, but who have been held back by despair…until now.

The Saner’s key point is this:

We demand an immediate worldwide emergency program, led by climate scientists, to end fossil fuels, end climate and abuse and repair our planet.