PlanetThoughts

From the page: Let's expose the structure of violence that keeps the world economy running.

With an entire planet being slaughtered before our eyes, it's terrifying to watch the very culture responsible for this - the culture of industrial civilization, fueled by a finite source of fossil fuels, primarily a dwindling supply of oil - thrust forward wantonly to fuel its insatiable appetite for "growth."

Deluded by myths of progress and suffering from the psychosis of technomania complicated by addiction to depleting oil reserves, industrial society leaves a crescendo of atrocities in its wake.

Peak Oil - The Clear And Present Danger

From the page: "Global oil production (crude oil plus condensate) has been on a plateau / in decline for 7 years, resulting in high energy prices that are feeding inflation, eroding family budgets and crippling the World economy. It is time for the international political community to awaken to the risks posed by Peak Oil. A British Government report published last week under a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request makes clear that civil servants working at the UK department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) seem very aware of the risks posed by peak oil, and yet the British Government seems happy to continue to ignore warnings....

In recent weeks we have been taking a detailed look at discrepancies between oil production data reported by various agencies. Whilst doing this is important, there is the risk that we lose sight of the big picture shown in the chart above. Despite continued high price, it has not been possible to raise global oil production since 2004, indicating that supply has become inelastic. Data sources and methods are described in the box at the end of this post".... Read the whole post

One path to wisdom is removing the disturbed ideas which can make us harmful to ourselves and others. After observing daily life for many years, I have decided that it would be useful and enlivening to list some popular maxims that are essentially a pile of garbage (to avoid stronger language). And without further ado, here they are!

1) When the student is ready, the teacher appears

Many, many devoted students strive to understand the principals of life, or to excel in their field of music or art or science, and they may never in their lifetimes find the teacher who can help them reach their full potential. It is a stroke of great fortune, and perhaps karma when a student is lucky enough to find a compassionate and wise mentor, skilled, available, ready to help. The conclusion is, if a student is ready, he or she should go out of his way to seek a good teacher, and if necessary, to travel to new places until that goal of finding the right teacher is met. Although much can be accomplished through one's own efforts, most of us require a teacher to exponentially increase our accomplishments.

2) When your number's up, your number's up

I have heard this over the years mostly from cigarette smokers, sometimes from eaters of junk food, and from others who primarily play fast and loose with their health or survival. They may have young children dependent on them, or other important obligations, but they will gladly smoke, fail to wear a seatbelt in a car, or take other unnecessary foolish action or inaction, under the guidance of this confused principal which allocates the wisdom of assigning "numbers" to some invisible, unnamed force that presumably controls the outcomes of our lives more than we can.

... Read all five maxims

Is Fukushima Now Ten Chernobyls Into The Sea?

This highly revealing, and frightening article (especially if one lives near any reactor), is a must-read if one wishes to go beyond the bland non-coverage of the nuclear disaster still developing in Japan.

From the page: "New readings show levels of radioisotopes found up to 30 kilometers offshore from the on-going crisis at Fukushima are ten times higher than those measured in the Baltic and Black Seas during Chernobyl.

"When it comes to the oceans, says Ken Buesseler, a chemical oceonographer at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, "the impact of Fukushima exceeds Chernobyl."

The news comes amidst a tsunami of devastating revelations about the Fukushima disaster and the crumbling future of atomic power, along with a critical Senate funding vote today:

Fukushima's owner, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, has confirmed that fuel at Unit One melted BEFORE the arrival of the March 11 tsunami.".... Read more

From the page: Caution: It is vitally important not to make connections. When you see pictures of rubble like this week's shots from Joplin, Missouri, you should not ask yourself: I wonder if this is somehow related to the huge tornado outbreak three weeks ago in Tuscaloosa, or the enormous outbreak a couple of weeks before that; together they comprised the most active April for tornadoes in our history. But that doesn't mean a thing.

It is far better to think of these as isolated, unpredictable, discrete events. It is not advised to try and connect them in your mind with, say, the fires now burning across Texas-- fires that have burned more of America by this date than any year in our history. Texas, and adjoining parts of Oklahoma and New Mexico, are drier than they've ever been -- the drought is worse than the Dust Bowl. But do not wonder if it's somehow connected... Read the full article

A frog in water
Doesn't feel it boil in time.
Dude, we are that frog.

-grist.org haiku winner

The summer's grass!
all that's left
of ancient warriors' dreams.

We have probably already heard about the death of Osama bin Laden. Rather than celebrate the death of any human, no matter how crazed he was (and indeed, he was), I would rather present this haiku today as a reflection on his violent passing, and a wasted life. This poem is a humble reminder that our deluded ambitions are fleeting. As it is said, the pen is mightier than the sword. Today, Basho's writing is deeply appreciated by millions who are familiar with his work. A calm, happy mind respects nature, and other people, and is the basis for a better, greener planet.

Franklin Roosevelt, one of the most popular presidents in US history, was a true leader. One particular speech that stands out confronted money-dominated government and challenged it head-on. It is interesting to compare style and substance between two US presidents who came in with a mandate to effect change during times of economic and societal challenges.

From the page: "Because it relates to the failed efforts so far to change environmental policy, as well as to implement true economic reform and healthcare policy reform, It is time to state the obvious:

Barack Obama is a fine gentleman, and has excellent self-control, but is lacking as a leader.

This lack of leadership has had the effect of allowing defeats, with only very slight improvements, in the three major policy areas that his administration has approached. And the lack of leadership has now enabled a reactionary mob to regain a foothold in the United States federal government."... Read more