On Our World: Will we have the courage?

The question of the survival of our plan and the struggle between consumption and long-term sustainability is before us.   I have begun to seriously reflect upon this as I have begun a Stanford MOOC course on Sustainability.

One things is clear:  "Space Ship Earth" is our home.   It must be nurtured, sustained and maintained.     The first lecture of the Course on the "Story of Stuff" was compelling, tough to listen to but crucial to understand and embrace.   Our host reminded us that "the Linear System on a Finite Planet" cannot be sustained.   It was a hard reality that must be recognized:



Here is the link just in case the "embed" does not work:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=gLBE5QAYXp8

The compelling opening thoughts uttered by our host goes to the heart of the challenge we face as we have embarked upon this path to educate ourselves.  The worst of the worst is the United States.    With only 3% of the World's Population, it is consuming over 30% of the World's Resources.

What is critical to recognize is that It is a reality that must be shared by recognizing the entire "linear system" and understanding the process is destroying the only home we all know.   The biggest culprit is just one country:  The United States.    I view it as a call to action to think less of the here and now and to think about the kind of planet we must have for the sake of generations to come.   It reminded me of this reminder from the Environmental Defense Fund:

The implicit ultimate message here is this, though: Do we all have the courage?

Around the World This Week

It has been a very busy August around our World.

As I write this, the so-called "West" is coming to grips after what has been a embarrasment for David Cameron. David Cameron lost a vote in the House of Commons as the World was clamouring for a response after the chemical attack that cost at least 350 lives--based on the data reported by Doctors without Borders.   The Syrians were on a P/R blitz as they geared up for an eventual attack.  I saw scenes of Syrians escaping into the Countryside.   Israeli citizens were clamouring for gas masks and reservists were called up.  Turkey beefed up its' defenses and assessed how to be ready just in case Syrians decide to retaliate.    The BBC intereviewed the Syrian Information Ministry Offical who vehemently denied this.    US Media is reporting that the decision has been made as Barack Obama is getting ready for the G20 in Russia.    I have to wonder whether the Policymakers in Washington actually ask what happens the "day after" such a strike.   In the meantime, the war continues.   I had a very hard time listening to a BBC report after an attack by Government Forces on a school in Aleppo.  

As I listened to the debate and the parade of officials on the US Media talk shows, I remembered Iraq.   Some of the more "brave" outlets took the time to remind the World how the Bush Adminstration unleashed a cycle of violence and destruction that is yet to run its' course.   Iraq has become a near lawless state where an average of 40 people die every day in bombings and Al Qaeda has clearly established a strong and vibrant presence that is contributing to a sense of lawlessness engulfing Iraq right now..

Beyond Syria, there is Egypt--the largest in the Arab World.   The military has crushed the Muslim Brotherhood.    As I have assessed the discourse in Egypt, I find it so interesting that the interim President has just not been there.     I also question why the Chief Justice even accepted the "offer" from General Sisi.    The repression is widening as the very definition of who is an Islamist.  The defintion has become broader and the represession even more brutal.

One other very intersting development has been how the BRICS block has begun to stumble.    The BRICS block was a term coined by a Senior Goldman Sachs partner to signfy the up and comngs around the World.   Three of the BRICS have profound challenges.  India (The I) continues to suffer  a massive drop in the value of its' currency, The Rupee, as politicans fight amongst themselves.   South Afirca (The S) has been besieged by strikes that threatnes a very fragile economic recovery and as the opposition is trying to lay the ground work for a concerted effort to challenge the ANC for the election.      Brazil (The B) has been trying to fight a weak currency and inflation fears have been raised again as it has also continued to deal with Social unrest that began a number of months ago.

Beyond the BRICS, there is one country that continues to fascinate me: Australia.   It has been in the midst of a very heated election that appears to send labor back to the opposition benches and see to it that Tony Abbott becomes Prime Minister.    The only consesus, it seems, is that the next Australian Government will have a tough terrain to navigate through due to the end of the Chinsee Materials Boom.

This was also a month that was the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington in the United States.    Three of America's living President spoke.   Surprsingly, there were no Republicans present due to apparent commitments.    George W. Bush issued an eloquent statement through his office--as he is recovering from a by-pass surgery.     But, it was unfortunate that none of the Republican Leadership elected to join the celebration.   I could not help but continue to wonder that dream that Dr. King so eloquently reflected upon continues to be realized today in America.     There are storms on the horizon.

Congress is going back to work after the long labor day Week-End in the United States.    The key Republican House Leaders have been making the fundraising rounds and have been telling the "base" about how they will use the upcoming debt ceiling negotations to force more cuts.    Although it appears that attempts by the "Tea Party" in Congress to defund Obamacare will not get anywhere, the rhetoric will continue to be heated which may cause shocks to the World Economic System that no one can afford.

It is not "easy" to be hopeful as one sees the suffering in Syria, the continued bombings and killings in Afghanistan and the economic calamity around the World.    But the need to be optimstic and think of the possible should be a driving force.    One could only take comfort in these "thoughts":  

Count your blessings - not your troubles.

- Dale Carnegie

Keep a grateful journal. Every night,

list five things you are grateful for.

- Oprah Winfrey 

Humor can help you cope with the unbearable so that

you can stay on the bright side of things until the

bright side actually comes along.

- Allen Klein 

Onward......

Also released to http://www.outsiderviews.com, 08/30/2013

The Street Sweeper | RedState

I enjoy reading Eric Erickson's Writings--I don't agree with many of his views.  But I think his selection of this speech from Dr. King as America remembered the 50th Annivesary of the March on Washington is a very good one as well.    One can be a student (as I have become) of Dr. King and spend a lifetime understanding a man that did so much in so little a time he had on this earth.    What a legacy: The Street Sweeper | RedState

On the 50th Anniversary of "I Have a Dream": ":Brief Thoughts" For the Day

The 50th Anniversary of the speech for the ages is here.    Google (part of my "Virtual Home on the Web), has honored it with this:

I was also quite gratified to see a posting by the Washington Post's Ezra Klein when he posted the full text of Dr. King's Speech here.   President Clinton, President Carter and President Obama and then bells will ring throughout Washington and the World.    Here is the link for all:

 http://www.archives.gov/press/exhibits/dream-speech.pdf 

May we continue to live up to that dream. 

A "Thought 4 the Week" : How Timely!! :-)

As i have been working away, I ran across this that I saw to be so appropriate and timely as America gears up to remember Dr. King and his "speech for the ages".     Dr. King and those who stood with him (John Lewis, Jesse Jackson, Paul Newman, and all others) saw it and conforted it.   America and the World is better for it because of what they did 50 years ago.  The question is will the World have the courage to deal with the current challenges of extreme weather to truly "think different"?

Sometimes we think that to develop an open heart, to be truly loving and compassionate, means that we need to be passive, to allow others to abuse us, to smile and let anyone do what they want with us. Yet this is not what is meant by compassion. Quite the contrary. Compassion is not at all weak. It is the strength that arises out of seeing the true nature of suffering in the world. Compassion allows us to bear witness to that suffering, whether it is in ourselves or others, without fear; it allows us to name injustice without hesitation, and to act strongly, with all the skill at our disposal. To develop this mind state of compassion...is to learn to live, as the Buddha put it, with sympathy for all living beings, without exception.

  Sharon Salzberg, 

Lovingkindness: 

The Revolutionary Art of Happiness

 

A "TIP OF THE WEEK" : 7 Steps to Reduce Stroke Risk | Men's Health

7 Steps to Reduce Stroke Risk | Men's Health

On Obligations

As we begin a new week anew, Wednesday will be the 50th annivesary of the March on Washington.   I am looking forward to speeches by Rev. Bernice King and the President as this day is celebrated.    Halfway around the World, though, there are drumbeats of war yet again.    Echoing the build up to the Iraq war, there is talk of a US strike for the horrific chemical attack in Syria.    What is so tragic is how the same people who claim such moral outrage were silent when Iraq did the same.    Recently declassified CIA documents--as reported by Foreign Policy Magazine--underscores it.    Here is the original declassified document:

  Iran-Iraq Situation Report

There is of course the "official" word on the hand the CIA had in the 1953 Coup that brought the Shah of Iran back to power.    A recent report on the BBC Farsi Service quoted Kermit Roosevelt on how the CIA had budgeted 1 Million Dollars for Operations Ajax.   They spent 70 Thousand Dollars and were able to overthrow a Democratically Elected Government.     

When history rears its' ugly side, one can only hope that all will learn from it.   One Wonders whether that has in fact occurred as the drumbeat of war becomes ever more louder in US Media Circles.      The ordinary person on the street and especially the children seem to have been forgotten.   I was so moved by the story of volunteer teachers who had taken upon themselves to keep a school going in the heart of Damascus.     This is quite a story: http://electronicintifada.net/content/teachers-brave-violence-run-classes-palestinian-children-syria/12721.   Reading up on this reminded me of these admonitions that all must remember:

There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul

than the way in which it treats its children.

- Nelson Mandela

The ultimate test of a man's conscience

may be his willingness to sacrifice something today

for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard.

- Gaylord Nelson

Enough Said....

Also Released to http://www.outsiderviews.com, all rights reserved 2013

On Iran: Brief On-Going Thoughts

Iran continues to be amaze ever more.  I begin this retrospective by the BBC Persian Service opening on Iran.   I love it because it so captures the beauty of Iran and its' diversity.

As Iran continues to fashion a new outlook on  the World, the reports continues to be of concern.   The Economy continues to be dominating the headlines as the country is officially in recession.    There needs to be a concerted effort to fight inflation in a major way.  As I have assessed the economic calamity, I remembered the pre-Volcker years and how it took the courage of Paul Volcker to break the back of the evil of inflation that saw the United States begin its' growth prospects--although many have argued that the growth has been uneven.    How the new head of the Central Bank can somehow navigate through the economic minefields is quite a challenge.  

Beyond the Economy, there is the environment.     The beauty and diversity of Iran and the environmental challenges it represents was captured in this beautiful post in Facebook courtesy of the Alliance for Democracy in Iran:

[B]A natural forest logged and reduced to scrub or a productive wetland reclaimed to arable land is as much a loss of heritage as a listed building reduced to rubble. We not only draw aesthetic sustenance from our natural heritage, it is the basic element from which we derive our food, raw materials and the very oxygen we breathe.

Isolated by sanctions for almost 35 years, Iran’s deteriorating environment has gone largely unnoticed by the outside world. While the poorest nomads and farmers feel the immediate impact of land degradation, none of us can anticipate the ramifications should we lose forever the Asiatic Cheetah, Siberian Crane or the Hawksbill Sea Turtle, 3 of the 78 threatened species present in Iran. It is time to consider how we can better support the Iranian environmentalist community striving to reverse the loss of nature, habitat and vital agricultural land; to enable them to access learning and financial help from across the world and implement the best solutions for a sustainable future of Iran’s natural heritage.

Iran is almost entirely surrounded by mountain ranges framing a massive and largely arid central plateau, bordering the Caspian Sea there are significant forest areas with exceptional plant diversity. Iran’s diverse landscape boasts a rich fauna of vertebrate species: mammals, birds; reptiles; amphibians; and freshwater fish, many of which are listed as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Moreover, many plant species of commercial value, as well as medicinal and aromatic varieties originate from Iran. The country is home to about 1900 endemic plant species and forests cover 12.4 million hectares including 10,000 hectares of mangroves along the Persian Gulf.[/B]

The twin challenge of Economic Growth and Environmental Protection will determine whether the euphoria over Dr. Rohani's election will be recognized as Iran also is working on a reset of the relationship with the West.   Comments by Senior Officers on Syria is not really helpful.    I do wonder how the visit of Oman's Sultan Qabus will help to change things.

Fascinating Times....

Also released to http://www.outsiderviews.com--all rights reseved

On the March on Washington: A Call 2 Be Brave & Courageous

A call for courage and bravery may be too much ask in such a World that pushes a Presidential impeachment, reflects upon the petty and avoids the real problems that real people have. Yet, this is the reality today despite the admontion from Dr. King to forgive and not allow a sense of hate to bring us down so low. It is ever more so as Wednesday August 28 approaches--the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. Barack Obama is scheduled to speak and will be joined by Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. That dream continues to be ever so today--and Rev. Bernice King, Dr. King's daughter and one of the keepers of the King Legacy, reflected upon it on the Daily Beast.

This admonition from Dr. King is so timely as the pivotal day as hate seems to be the order of the day all around the Arab and Muslim World. The reports out of Iraq continues to be distubring. 47 people lost their lives within the past 36 hours due to bombings. However, the big story is Syria as an estimated 1,000 people have died as a result of chemical attacks that The United States and other NATO allies note has been perpetuated by Assad's Gangs. The plight of ordinary Syrians is the most underreported story in this machvellian drama that is playing itself out right now. Camp Zaatari in Jordan is one example of this tragedy. This account by Professor Dabashi on the predicament is chilling and tough reading.. Professor Dabashi reflects upon how the people are trying to imagine a new future. But, the question is at what cost?

Dr. King reminded us never to hate and never allow anyone to drag us down to that level. It may be an impossible task when families are torn apart as they have. But hate can be overcome. It has to be. I wonder what Dr. King would say now when he saw people who had nothing to eat, avoid healthcare because they cannot afford a Doctor and desparate to get an education? 

As America continues to struggle with its' own identity and continues to reflect its' strengths and weaknesses, there is a still lot America can celebrate. With an Afrian American President, African American Attorney General, an Asian American in the Department of Veterans Affairs and many others in key Government positions, America has come far. There is some semblance of a basic level of service given to the most needy. Others around the World are not as lucky, though. The challenge for America as it continues to celebrate the King Legacy is not to pay it lipservice--but to truly understand and live up to the admontions--including the most crucial speech of all that I believe is just as important as the "I Have a Dream Speech"--the Speech on Vietnam. . In my view, this is just as important to underscore his philosophy of love and non-violence as his epic struggle against modern slavery.

Will we have the courage to stand up and take notice or simply make a few speeches and then move on to the petty battles? There lies the challenge--and the opportunity. 

Also available on http://www.outsiderview.com 

The Peace of Heart Prayer

PEACE OF HEART PRAYER

Eternal, and Almighty Father, I come to you burdened with worries, fears, doubts, and troubles. Calm and quiet me with peace of mind. Empty me of the anxiety that disturbs me, of the concerns that weary my spirit, and weigh heavy on my heart. Loosen my grip on the disappointments and grievances I hold on to so tightly. Release me from the pain of past hurts, of present anger and tension, of future fears. Sometimes it's too much for me Lord, too many demands and problems, too much sadness, suffering, and stress. Renew me spiritually and emotionally. Give me new strength, hope, and confidence. Prepare me to meet the constant struggles of daily life with a deeper faith and trust in You. Let your love set me free, for peace, for joy, for grace, for life, for others, forever. 

Almighty and Eternal God, Give me, I beseech You, the great gift of inward peace.

Command the winds and storms of my unruly passions. Subdue, by Your grace, my proneness to love created things too much. Give me a love of suffering for Your sake.

make me forbearing and kind to others, that I may avoid quarrels and contentions. And teach me constantly to seek after and to acquire that perfect resignation to Your Holy Will which alone brings interior peace.

Amen.