We were recently asked why, if this is a blog about LGBTQ rights, do we write about seemingly unrelated issues?The answer is simple: we believe that we are all interconnected and that there is no way to separate out what is vital to us as lesbians from what is vital to us as Americans, as people.
If there is no Republic of America -- or if there is no sustainable planet Earth - then there will be no legal rights for us to fight for -- no Constitution upon which we can base our arguments. Thus we do care about and write about geopolitical, economic and environmental issues.
And there is no way to ignore the truth: that we are living in a time of empire, of extreme economic imbalance, global warming, extreme climate shifts, human overpopulation and mass extinction of species.
Corporatism and greed created the Industrial Revolution which has in turn created the highly technological and modern world we live in today.
Throughout the Industrial Revolution, in general, Americans and other "Westernized" peoples have benefited greatly from a post industrial economic and technological boom.
Unfortunately, all of this was accomplished at the expense of those living in areas that were raped of their natural resources so as to fuel the boom.
The land and the people, plants and animals in areas once rich with natural resources have become barren and impoverished.
The planet -- and all of its inhabitants -- can no longer sustain this level of abuse. It must -- and it will -- come to an end.
It was fun while it lasted but now it is time to pay the piper.
The question remains, what will you do?
When will you be ready to rethink the way you live your life -- your own consumption -- the size of your own carbon footprint?
Are you aware that there is NO WAY we, the majority of beings living on the planet Earth, can continue to sustain this lifestyle?
Are you aware that the choice is no longer yours to make? That the planet is already doing what it naturally must do to rid itself of the cancer that we have become?
How will you react when only the very wealthy will have the ability to drive, to vacation, to purchase clean water and untainted food?
Will you panic, loot and riot -- giving justification for the mass slaughter and clampdown that is already being planned for?
Despite the dire warnings in this post, there is something hopeful to consider: recently we watched an interview of Joanna Gabriel who believes that this crisis offers an opportunity to create a more just world of sustainability. In other words, a global disaster could simply be a cleansing that forces us to "create the kind of world we wanted all the time anyway."
The message is one of hope and optimism. We hope you will watch the interview, below, and pass this link on to all of your friends and family members.
If we can't stop the destruction of life as we know it, then at least we can control the way we deal with it!
