We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Friday, June 4, 2010

It’s Up To You: Civil Resistance Needed to Combat Climate Change

from Toward Freedom. This is a book review of James Hansen's book,  "Storms of My Grandchildren: The Truth About the Coming Climate Catastrophe and Our Last Chance to Save Humanity".
Politicians serve the interests of richly-funded special interest groups, rather than the long-term welfare of citizens. That leaves civil resistance as the only tool available to stop the slide toward global warming, and it explains why Hansen has used this tool. ”It is up to you,” he says repeatedly to those more concerned about the future of their grandchildren than political influence.

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