Susan wrote in [E3222] on the energy list: > The loss of classical music would be tragic. That is one of the things > that keeps us believing in basic goodness
I agree with Susan that it is essential to keep "believing" in basic goodness at a time when humans vandalize the planet and destroy the basis of their own survival. I would even go beyond Susan's formulation. For me, basic goodness is not a belief, i.e., not a principle which should guide our actions, but it is a fact. Yes there are criminals and psychopaths, but they are the exceptions. I am firmly convinced that humans do not want to degrade their home planet. Why are they doing it? Not because they are weak or evil, but because they are embedded in a defective social formation which is on autopilot (the market) directing our material production system to the wrong target. If people were in control of their society, this society would do what is necessary to properly deal with the climate problem and would, even at this late time, still be able to avert climate disaster. I just used the metaphor that our capitalist society is on "autopilot". Here is another metaphor. If a building is on fire, you are advised not to use the elevator because of the possibility that the electric system is receiving the wrong signals from the fire. The elevator may take you to the fire instead of away from the fire. There is a fire, the planet is burning because the economy has grown too big, but the economy is unable to stop growing because it is set up in such a way that it must grow in order to stay afloat. Therefore if you wonder who is to blame for our inability to correct course and de-carbonize the economy after we have discovered that fossil fuels, which seemed so beneficial and cheap, are prohibitively expensive, the short answer is: it is the capitalist system. I.e., it is not individuals. The capitalist system is not driven by the greed of the capitalists but by the one-dimensionality of the organization of our production, by the fact that everything is measured in money. Todd's ventings in [E3204] and [E3227] are a mistaken and counterproductive reaction to the raw facts which Todd is more willing to see than many others. Todd has a history of sending interesting and relevant links to the energy list spiced with invectives. Todd's outrage is understandable but unproductive. The challenge before us is to clearly see and acknowledge a highly undesirable reality and at the same time to stay calm and loving so that we, together, can react in the most rational way possible. If we blame other individuals, we are perpetuating the capitalist system of isolation and competition instead of undermining it. We do not have enough time to frontally overcome it, but we can build the beginnings of a new, richer social ecosystem underneath the monoculture of money which is about to collapse. Hans G Ehrbar _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
