NOTES: This index is in reverse chronological order, i.e. the newest posts are at the top.
2016 // 2015 // 2014 // 2013 // 2012 // 2011
2013
SPECIAL There's No Place Like Dome! (July 3) Those Who Speak for God New Year, New Daily Inspiration Create-Your-Own-Discipline Plenitude: The Emerging New Economy - Vision of Juliet Schor Paul Cienfuegos: End Corporate Rule Gar Alperovitz: Beyond Capitalism Rebuilding the Foodshed ENERGY: Overdevelopment and the Delusion of Endless Growth Supply Shock - Brian Czech's case Ready for Pentecost? The Climate Cliff: Bill McKibben Resisting Structural Evil: Love as Ecological-Economic Vocation How about a "war on terrarism"? Chris Hedges: Corporate Coup d'Etat Sandra Steingraber: Fracking and Public Health World Food Prize goes to 3 biotech scientists Yes, There is a Senator Who Fights Climate Change! David Suzuki: A bit of environmental hope Getting Freer from the Economic Clutches of More "Simply Enough" Re-issued! Is Sustainability Still Possible? Thomas Linzey: Corporations, Communities & the Environment Consuming Kids Derrick Jensen: Against Forgetting Arundhati Roy: Reimagining the World New Non-Commercial TV Channel Laura Flanders on GRITtv: Green Worker CO-OP Academy Affluenza: Anti-Over-Consumption Classic Socially Aware Media Robert Jensen: A Call to Action Global Happiness Initiative Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway? What's the Economy for, Anyway? The Geography of Bliss Empowering Women Positive Climate Crisis Tool The Crash of 2016 Participatory Economics on Escape Velocity Radio Good Dirt Radio--Good News for a Change! WHOSE Birthday? '13 Features Jubilee Economics Writers Little Insurrections GERALD IVERSEN MONDAY, JANUARY 14
2013
Those Who Speak for God
Those Who Speak for God: Household Studies on the Minor Prophets
Neither esoteric soothsayers nor quaint eccentrics from the past are the Old Testament "Minor Prophets," but voices whose searing words about integrity between faith professed and faith lived, between doing justice and faithfulness, are as timely-and irritating-in the twentieth century as they were in ancient Israel. Households willing to invest a little time and effort can enable children and other family members to discover that these voices have meaning for today.
New Year, New Daily Inspiration
GERALD IVERSEN MONDAY, JANUARY 14Recently I've updated a thought-for-the-day resource -- an every year calendar.
It's free on-line. Choose as a Favorite and check back each day. Or print it out (on recycled paper, please).
Here's brief daily focus for heart and mind to counter the advertising that takes us away from our best intentions.
- Jan. 26-Let's say what overconsumption often represents - addiction. As any addiction, it is powerful. It takes great will power, faith, and the right tools to beat an addiction. The addiction of overconsumption is reinforced by our culture. It is encouraged, fed, promoted by peer pressure and by advertising. We are told it is patriotic to buy, that our economy depends on it, that we are "worth it." We are worth much more than our stuff!
- Feb. 9-Celebrations belong to people. They are not natural resources to be strip-mined by businesses each year for the sake of profit.
- Mar. 15-Simplicity is not romanticizing poverty, monks, the Amish or people who struggled through the Great Depression. We only diminish those people's devotion or struggle, and we tend to try to make the journey of discipleship look silly or "for others," unrelated to us, untouchable. Poverty is NOT fun. Two thirds of the world population live in poverty involuntarily. We have a choice for simplicity instead.
- April 7 - Take only the number of showers you really need. Try one fewer this week. Need a shower to wake up? Wash your face instead. Install low flow shower heads. A regular shower uses 25 gallons; tub bath, 36. But a wet-down, soap-up, rinse-off shower uses only about four gallons! Turn off the water while soaping.
- April 18 - Reduce the use of make-up by at least 10%. Let your natural beauty shine! Be aware of the pressure on us to conform to "Madison Avenue's" standard of appearance. Read labels. If you must use make-up, only use brands not tested on animals.
- April 21 - The first R is the most important... and hardest for Americans... REDUCE. That's what Simple Living is about. As important as recycling is, it is not an excuse for waste. It's more important to REDUCE consumption and waste.
- May - 8 - We hope that our children will not succumb to the pressures of overconsumption that most call success. There are two ways to have the money we need. We can earn more, or we can spend less. Voluntary Simplicity says we'll have more time and energy for what really counts - for God and for the people in our lives - if we choose to spend less on things we really don't need.
How to Use This Calendar
Start Any Day... Start TODAY! Time and seasons are cyclical, continuous. Time does not begin with January and end with December. Jump in ANYWHERE. This calendar can be used any year. It includes no days of the week.
Read each day's thought by yourself, with others, at home, at the office; as church bulletin blurbs, as newsletter fillers, etc. For brief excerpts, you don't need permission. Write down and share your ideas and resolutions.
We can change our wasteful habits into Caring for God's Creation. We can start by living the "Environmental Tithe" - by reducing our consumption by at least 10%.
- Updated for 2013
- Click on highlighted words to go to the mentioned free resource.
- Select this page as one of your Favorites. Read the entry for the day each morning when you check the weather. It will take less than a minute!
- Thought-provoking and humorous art
- Each month has a theme and related topics; ideas to contemplate, reflect, meditate or pray; to Self-evaluate and discover; to Investigate and educate ourselves and others; and to Act, agitate and advocate.
Create-Your-Own-Discipline
GERALD IVERSEN MONDAY, FEBRUARY 4Getting Ready for Lent
Coming quickly on the heels of Christmas and New Years, when we blatantly experience the Economics of Empire, is Lent, the season of self- and cultural-evaluation. I've found the traditional disciplines helpful – fasting, alms-giving, etc. Lent also gives us room for our own disciplines, something outside what churches normally encourage.
Here are a couple worth considering:
- A 40-day guide, a calendar that gives a challenging thought-for-the-day in the spirit of Lent.
- Lee and I commented on "10 Tips for a Simpler, More Meaningful Christmas" on The Common Good Podcast throughout the episodes of the past fall. I've written ten tips for Lenten/Easter season too. I especially resonate personally to #9.
If you need to buy gifts and clothing, buy those from developing countries at alternative gift markets, not from commercial importers, so that the artisans receive a fair price for their work. Avoid mass produced knickknacks, novelties and toys. Fancy, expensive clothes are signs of status, not respect for God. In church they show an inappropriate blend of culture and faith. Decline to compliment people for their finery. Avoid the "ritual display of plenty" characteristic of Easter parades.
These and several other ideas all appear in window #6 at SimpleLivingWorks.org. Create your own discipline for Lent this year, starting with Ash Wednesday, Feb. 13. I hope it will have lasting economic and spiritual significance for you.
I find the following quote from Treasury of Celebrations: Lent especially thought-provoking living in the Multi-Earth Empire.
When Christianity became the state religion of the Roman empire in the fourth century, the church was endangered by throngs of new untutored members. To counter the paganism of these new converts, the Lenten fast and practices of self-renunciation became requirements of all Christians. Fasting and self-renunciation were symbolic ways to identify with the suffering of Jesus. Lent became a time of recommitment; a time to ward off the threat of assimilation into the popular culture.
Quite a trick to avoid the popular culture AND the Empire!
Plenitude: The Emerging New Economy - Vision of Juliet Schor
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13
At a moment of ecological and financial crisis, bestselling author and economist Juliet B. Schor presents a revolutionary strategy for transitioning toward a richer, more balanced life.
She offers a groundbreaking intellectual statement about the economics and sociology of ecological decline, suggesting a radical change in how we think about consumer goods, value, and ways to live.Juliet Schor's book Plenitude: The Emerging New Economy was published in 2010*. And now Alternative Radio has issued a podcast of her making her case in front of a live audience. I highly recommend the 57 minute program, dated 1/3/13. You can subscribe to the free AlternativeRadio.org podcast series also at iTunes (and elsewhere).
Here's a taste. Ecological decline is staring us in the face. With ever finite resources and an ever voracious appetite for them, the stress on this “pale blue dot” as Carl Sagan called Earth is simply too much. Something has to give. The business as usual model is a prescription for widespread misery and destruction. The U.S., with much of its population pursuing what is called the good life of endless consumption, is the biggest culprit, but some other countries are not that far behind. To begin with, the attitude toward nature must radically change. The pattern of plundering and extraction is a dead end. Humankind should be in partnership with nature not in an adversarial relationship. People are figuring this out. There are many initiatives to turn things around and create a new economy rooted in common sense and environmental sustainability.
Humans are degrading the planet far faster than they are regenerating it. As we travel along this shutdown path, food, energy, transport, and consumer goods are becoming increasingly expensive. The economic downturn that has accompanied the ecological crisis has led to another type of scarcity: incomes, jobs, and credit are also in short supply. Our usual way back through a debt-financed consumer boom is no longer an option our households, or planet, can afford.
Responding to our current moment, Plenitude puts sustainability at its core, but it is not a paradigm of sacrifice. Instead, it's an argument that through a major shift to new sources of wealth, green technologies, and different ways of living, individuals and the country as a whole can actually be better off and more economically secure. And as Schor observes, Plenitude is already emerging. In pockets around the country and the world, people are busy creating lifestyles that offer a way out of the work and spend cycle. These pioneers' lives are scarce in conventional consumer goods and rich in the newly abundant resources of time, information, creativity, and community. Urban farmers, do-it-yourself renovators, Craigslist users -- all are spreading their risk and establishing novel sources of income and outlets for procuring consumer goods. Taken together, these trends represent a movement away from the conventional market and offer a way toward an efficient, rewarding life in an era of high prices and traditional resource scarcity.
Based on recent developments in economic theory, social analysis, and ecological design as well as evidence from the cutting-edge people and places putting these ideas into practice, Plenitude is a road map for the next two decades. In encouraging us to value our gifts -- nature, community, intelligence, and time -- Schor offers the opportunity to participate in creating a world of wealth and well-being.I've admired Juliet Schor's earlier books too -- The Overspent American (1999) and The Overworked American (1993).
* Just to see if we're paying attention, the hardback, audio CD, MP3 and Audible versions are called Plenitude. The Kindle and paperback editions (2011), however, are entitled True Wealth: How and Why Millions of Americans Are Creating a Time-Rich, Ecologically Light, Small-Scale, High-Satisfaction Economy.
Photo Credit: Gary Gilbert
Paul Cienfuegos: End Corporate Rule
GERALD IVERSEN THURSDAY, MARCH 7
Paul Cienfuegos: We The People
Paul Cienfuegos is a regional leader in the Community Rights movement which works to dismantle corporate constitutional so-called "rights" and enshrine We The People's right to self-governance. He lectures and leads workshops on this topic.
Alternative Radio has issued a podcast of him making his case in front of a live audience. I highly recommend the 57 minute program, dated 12/27/12. Podcasts are more persuasive for me than words on the page. They seem more personal. The speaker is right in my head, whether s/he's scripted or impromptu. And Paul brings urgency to an urgent topic!
You can subscribe to the David Barsamian's free AlternativeRadio.org podcast series also at iTunes (and elsewhere). Or you can buy the program on CD at the AR site.
Modern corporations trace their origins to the trading companies of imperial Europe more than three centuries ago. Their rise in power and influence has been a steady trajectory to the point where today they are the dominant institution in society. Governments have freed corporations from legal constraints through deregulation, and granted them even greater power through privatization. The Supreme Court has declared corporations are people and money is free speech. The latter has turned Congress into, as one commentator put it, Many citizens feel that pleading to corporations is insufficient and that it is time to examine the nature of this artificial institution. Endless single-issue crisis-based activism, one grievance at a time does not address the core problem, which is the corporation itself. Is ending corporate rule an obtainable goal? How would it happen?
Paul cites examples of communities that have passed resolutions banning environmentally destructive practices, such as "fracking," in the face of federal and even state disregard. He recommends revoking the charters of corporations that violate The Commons and disregard the needs and rights of the community.
But don't take my word for it. Listen to the podcast to catch Paul's enthusiasm and dedication to the cause!
Gar Alperovitz: Beyond Capitalism
GERALD IVERSEN FRIDAY, MARCH 15
Gar Alperovitz professes that discontent with the corporate-run economy is mounting in the wake of the Great Recession. For too many these are dark times suffused by anger, hopelessness, and despair. There is a long-term structural crisis of capitalism. The problems are systemic. The top 400 people own more wealth than the bottom 185 million Americans. How to reverse the ominous spiral of income and wealth inequality? There is an emerging new economy of practical bottom-up efforts underway in many cities and towns that seek to democratize wealth and empower citizens and communities, not corporations. There is a range of initiatives such as worker-owned businesses, cooperatives, community land trusts, credit unions, and social enterprises. These structures suggest a roadmap for laying the foundation to support the values of equality and meaningful democracy and creating a sustainable economy that can satisfy human needs.
Alternative Radio has issued a podcast of Gar making his case in front of a live audience, the third of three speakers on economics. I highly recommend the 57 minute program, dated 1/31/13. Podcasts are more persuasive for me than words on the page. They seem more personal. The speaker is right in my head, whether s/he's scripted or impromptu. And Gar brings urgency to an urgent topic!
You can subscribe to the David Barsamian's free AlternativeRadio.org podcast series also at iTunes (and elsewhere). Or you can buy the program on CD at the AR site.
Gar Alperovitz is Professor of Political Economy at the University of Maryland and co-founder of the Democracy Collaborative. He is the author of numerous books, including 'Making a Place For Community,' and 'America Beyond Capitalism.'
Also of interest:
One Earth Project
JEM blog: Losing Faith in "Free Market" Capitalism?
Rebuilding the Foodshed
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27
Droves of people have turned to local food as a way to retreat from our broken industrial food system. From rural outposts to city streets, they are sowing, growing, selling, and eating food produced close to home, and they are crying out for agricultural reform. All this has made "local food" into everything from a movement buzzword to the newest darling of food trendsters.
But now it's time to take the conversation to the next level. That's exactly what Philip Ackerman-Leist does in Rebuilding the Foodshed, in which he refocuses the local-food lens on the broad issue of rebuilding regional food systems that can replace the destructive aspects of industrial agriculture, meet food demands affordably and sustainably, and be resilient enough to endure potentially rough times ahead.
Changing our foodscapes raises a host of questions. How far away is local? How do you decide the size and geography of a regional foodshed? How do you tackle tough issues that plague food systems large and small issues like inefficient transportation, high energy demands, and rampant food waste? How do you grow what you need with minimum environmental impact? And how do you create a foodshed that's resilient enough if fuel grows scarce, weather gets more severe, and traditional supply chains are hampered?Showcasing some of the most promising, replicable models for growing, processing, and distributing sustainably grown food, this book points the reader toward the next stages of the food revolution. It also covers the full landscape of the burgeoning local-food movement, from rural to suburban to urban, and from backyard gardens to large-scale food enterprises.
Rebuilding the Foodshed by Philip Ackerman-Leist (released February 2013) is recommended by the Post-Carbon Institute. Good enough for me!
More JEM Blogs on Food and Water
ENERGY: Overdevelopment and the Delusion of Endless Growth
GERALD IVERSEN TUESDAY, APRIL 2
ENERGY takes an unflinching look at the environmental devastation created by our thirst for energy -- including supposedly 'clean' renewable sources. From oil spills, nuclear accidents, and mountaintop-removal coal mining to oversized wind farms and desert-destroying solar power plants, virtually every region of the globe is now experiencing the consequences of out-of-control energy development. Essentially no place is sacred, no landscape safe from the relentless search for energy resources to continue powering a culture based on perpetual growth. Precious wildlands, fragile ecosystems, even our own communities and children's health are at risk.
In a large-format, photo-driven narrative (including over 150 color photos), ENERGY features the writings of more than thirty leading thinkers on energy, society, and ecology. Collectively, they lift the veil on the harsh realities of our pursuit of energy at any price, revealing the true costs, benefits, and limitations of all our energy options. Ultimately, the book offers not only a deep critique of the current system that is toxic to nature and people but a hopeful vision for a future energy economy in which resilience, health, beauty, biodiversity, and durability, not incessant growth, are the organizing principles.
Post Carbon Institute issued Energy: Overdevelopment and the Delusion of Endless Growth last fall. Edited by Tom Butler and George Wuerthner with an Introduction by Richard Heinberg, it contains contributions by Daniel Lerch, Bill McKibben, David Fridley, David Hughes, Gloria Flora, Wes Jackson and others.
Supply Shock - Brian Czech's case
GERALD IVERSEN TUESDAY, APRIL 23
PREVIEW Supply Shock: Economic Growth at the Crossroads and the Steady State Solution
by Brian Czech
foreword by Herman Daly
(May 14, 2013 - paperback)Politicians, economists, and Wall Street would have us believe that limitless economic expansion is the Holy Grail, and that there is no conflict between growing the economy and protecting the environment. Supply Shock debunks these widely accepted myths and demonstrates that we are in fact navigating the end of the era of economic growth, and that the only sustainable alternative is the development of a steady state economy.
Starting with a refreshingly accessible, comprehensive critique of economic growth, the author engages readers in an enormous topic that affects everyone in every country.Publisher's Weekly favorably compared Czech to Carl Sagan for popularizing their difficult subjects; Supply Shock shows why.
Czech presents a compelling alternative to growth based on keen scientific, economic, and political insights including:
- The "trophic theory of money"
- The overlooked source of technological progress that prevents us from reconciling growth and environmental protection
- Bold yet practical policies for establishing a steady state economy.
Supply Shock leaves no doubt that the biggest idea of the 20th century - economic growth - has become the biggest problem of the 21st. Required reading for anyone concerned about the world our children and grandchildren will inherit, this landmark work lays a solid foundation for a new economic model, perhaps in time for preventing global catastrophes; certainly in time for lessening the damages.
Read more JEM blogs about alternative economics: Limits to Growth | Indigenous Economics | Economic Trends | One Earth | Capitalism
Ready for Pentecost?
GERALD IVERSEN MONDAY, MAY 6
Doesn't have quite the same ring as "Ready for Christmas?" Or even "ready for Easter?" Yet Pentecost is traditionally the third big festival of the Christian liturgical year.
As you plan for Pentecost for personal or group study and inspiration, visit Other Seasons. Access the new index from Window #6 at SLW! Home. So much of the Pentecost season falls in the less-active summer time and then gets labeled "Ordinary Time." See what you can find to make it less. . . ordinary.
So what does Pentecost have to do with Jubilee Economics. . . or simple living for that matter? Pentecost is the festival of the Holy Spirit. The spirit has several characteristics, duties, one of which is an agent of change, Metanoia as the Jubilee newsletter editor is fond of saying.
Christians - Trinitarians, anyway - put a lot of stock in the presence of the Holy Spirit to help things happen now, not in the sweet by-and-by. Pentecost season is a time to focus on change, transformation.
I've created an index by Themes or Seasons so that our hundreds of resources can now be accessed by Advent/Christmas, Lent/Easter, Other Seasons (such as Pentecost), and Anytme/Non-seasonal (such as Rites of Passage)
Take a test drive of my Shiny New Index.
The Climate Cliff: Bill McKibben
GERALD IVERSEN TUESDAY, MAY 14
I viewed 350.org's 'Do the Math' video the day before Earth Day in one of 800+ sites. I had sent out invitations to the showing through my Social Justice eNews. One person replied that she wasn't coming because she wasn't very good at math. Believe me, you don't need to be good at math to understand the three numbers in Bill's climate crisis equation. He also talks about the fossil fuel bubble that will surely burst, just as the IT and housing bubbles did. That's a strong argument for individuals and institutions to divest from fossil fuel stocks.
Guru McKibben said much the same in The Climate Cliff podcast from Alternative Radio. The most dangerous cliff we are facing is not a financial one but rather the climate one. The warming of the Earth's temperature and what it portends is not just for penguins and polar bears but will have serious consequences for everyone. A new report commissioned by the World Bank says failure to respond aggressively to climate change will put unprecedented stresses on human systems and will render parts of the Earth uninhabitable. If steps are not taken now, the planet's temperature will rise by 4 degrees Celsius, that's more than 7 degrees Fahrenheit, by the end of the century. Both the scale and the pace of the peril have increased substantially. Yet, fossil fuel corporations continue to place profits before human life and the eco system. We now seem to be nearing tipping points past which cataclysmic damage would be inevitable.
Bill McKibben was one of the first to sound the alarm on climate change with his bestselling book "The End of Nature." A scholar-in-residence at Middlebury College, he is a leading activist, journalist and author on the environment. His other books include "The Age of Missing Information" and "Hope, Human and Wild," "Deep Economy," and "Eaarth." He is co-founder of 350.org.
The Climate Cliff (Program #MCKB006) was recorded in Boulder, CO, on Dec. 2, 2012. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the free podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Read more JEM blogs about the environment.
Resisting Structural Evil: Love as Ecological-Economic Vocation
GERALD IVERSEN SATURDAY, MAY 25Cynthia D. Moe-Lobeda
The increasingly pressing and depressing situation of Planet Earth poses urgent ethical questions for Christians. But, as Cynthia Moe-Lobeda argues, the future of the Earth is not simply a matter of protecting species and habitats but of rethinking the very meaning of Christian ethics. The Earth crisis cannot be understood apart from the larger human crisis -- economic equity, social values, and human purpose are bound up with the planet's survival. In a sense, she says, the whole Earth is a moral community.
Reorienting Christian ethics from its usual anthropocentrism to an ecocentrism entails a new framework that Moe-Lobeda lays out in her first chapters, culminating in a creative rethinking of how it is that we understand morally. With this "moral epistemology" in place, she unfolds her notion of "moral vision" and applies it to the present situation in a full-fledged Earth-honoring, justice-seeking Christian ethical stance.
Read samples and endorsements by
* Cornel West, Union Theological Seminary
* Sallie McFague, Vancouver School of Theology
* Rabbi Michael Lerner, Editor, Tikkun Magazine; Chair, The Network of Spiritual Progressives
* Herman Daly, Former senior economist, Environmental Department, World Bank
University of Maryland, School of Public Policy
* Bill McKibben, Leading American environmentalist, author, and journalist
Schumann Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence at Middlebury College
* John de Graaf, producer and co-author, Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic
Augsburg Fortress (Mar 1, 2013)
How about a "war on terrarism"?
GERALD IVERSEN SATURDAY, JUNE 1It's time to talk bluntly about the terrarists of our world.
"To destroy our planet with malice aforethought, with only the most immediate profits on the brain, with only your own comfort and well- being (and those of your shareholders) in mind: Isn't that the ultimate crime?" -By Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.
Terracide and the Terrarists: Destroying the Planet for Record Profits
Would that the U.S. government was honestly concerned about protecting its citizens and natural resources from terrarists!
After reading about terrarists, visit The OneEarth Project.
An example of "counter-terrarists" is DGR or Deep Green Resistance, co-founded by Derrick Jensen. DGR site.
Chris Hedges: Corporate Coup d'Etat
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12
Corporations constitute the most powerful force in society. Their influence has seeped into our classrooms, our newsrooms, our entertainment systems, our consciousness and crucially into our politics. Big money buys access to lawmakers.
For sheer arrogance perhaps Goldman Sachs, the Wall Street investment giant, takes the cake. Its CEO Lloyd Blankfein, blithely advises citizens they will have to 'lower' their 'expectations' when it comes to Social Security which he calls an 'entitlement.' Goldman Sachs, made $5.6 billion in profits last year yet it secured tax breaks for its fancy new HQs in New York as well as tax-free bonuses for its top executives.
Update: Blankfein's compensation last year was $26M. No banker took home more according to Bloomberg Markets Magazine.Corporations reign supreme while most people are simply caught in the rain and are getting soaked. Because of the fiscal cliff deal the average worker this year will take home about a thousand dollars less.
That's a Coup d'Etat -- 'a bloodless take-over. (It's only "bloodless" 'actually and figuratively' for the wealthiest 1%.)
Chris Hedges is an award-winning journalist who has covered wars in the Balkans, the Middle East and Central America. He writes a weekly column for Truthdig.org and is a senior fellow at The Nation Institute. He is the author of numerous compelling books, most recently with Joe Sacco, 'Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt.'
Corporate Coup d'Etat (Program #HEDC007) was recorded in Seattle, WA, on July 17, 2012. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the free podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Read more JEM blogs about capitalism.
Sandra Steingraber: Fracking and Public Health
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19
Fracking doesn't sound like something the Earth, or any community, or any language would wish upon itself. What is it exactly? Fracking is a technique that involves the injection of enormous volumes of water and chemicals underground at very high pressure in order to create fractures in underlying shale rock formations in order to extract the natural gas below the surface. Fracking is rapidly expanding all across the U.S. and Canada. It is touted by big corporations as a practical solution to energy needs. Citizen groups oppose fracking because of its huge water use, its high carbon emissions, its impacts on human health, the disruption it causes to wildlife, and the peril it poses to groundwater and local drinking water. They are insisting that people's health and the environment are non-negotiable. And, that this widespread and dangerous practice of fracking be stopped.
Sandra Steingraber is a biologist, writer and environmental health expert. She is from a distinguished line of women ecologists such as Rachel Carson and Lois Gibbs, who have alerted lawmakers and the public to the real cost of toxic trespassing. She is the author of Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment. She is a leading voice opposing fracking.
This podcast is so touching because she begins with her personal story and three life-changing incidents -- diagnosed with cancer at age 20, her pledge to defend forests and the invasion of frackers into her own community.
A big part of the fracking problem -- shale oil or gas -- that's rarely heard, is that fracking wells are short-lived. New wells must be constantly drilled, not just to increase the supply but to maintain it. The future of the fracking industry is uncertain. It could well be a classic example of "boom-bust." Over-reliance on its profit potential could be a part of the impending bursting of the energy bubble.
Despite the disastrous "Cheney exception" which allows frackers to pump whatever they want into the ground without oversight by the EPA, some cities, counties and states are taking action to prevent or regulate fracking. Steingraber's message bolsters those efforts. In some areas protesters in the streets are forcing their authorities to act. Personally this issue is important because Calif. is struggling with the fracking right now.
Public health costs, in effect, become subsidies to the industry. This is a classic case of "externalities," passing costs of doing business on to the public.
Sandra Steingraber: Fracking and Public Health 57:00 (Program #STES001) was recorded in Univ. Minn Duluth on March 04, 2013. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the free podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
BONUS: Pro-Fracking Greens Called Out in Sandra Steingraber's New Manifesto
A new salvo has been fired in the national battle against fracking.
World Food Prize goes to 3 biotech scientists
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26
"In 1970 Norman E. Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for a lifetime of work to feed a hungry world. Although a scientist with outstanding contributions, perhaps Dr. Borlaug's greatest achievement has been his unending struggle to integrate the various streams of agricultural research into viable technologies and to convince political leaders to bring these advances to fruition." (from his bio)
While his efforts are credited for savings millions of lives, they also led to the wide use of inappropriate technologies, such as heavy equipment and toxic chemicals.
The 2013 award drew immediate condemnation from opponents of corporate farming. "We could not ask for a better poster child for what's wrong with the prize than the recipients of this year's World Food Prize," said Frank Cordaro, who organized an Occupy World Food Prize protest last year. "It's all part of the very same system of the corporate elite. The problem is not with the recipients, the problem is with the system that gives the 1 percent all the power and corporate agriculture is built on that system."
Some organic farmers warn that widespread planting of genetically modified crops could contaminate organic and traditional crops, destroying their value. Others are concerned about the uncharted long-term impact for those who eat products such as milk and beef from animals raised on genetically modified plants. "GMO crops have led to the loss of food security worldwide and for small farmers, they have led to the development of factory farms and have destroyed biodiversity in food we do produce and consume," said David Goodner, a community organizer for Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, an environmental and human rights activist group that opposes corporate farming. "The World Food Prize by selecting these people to honor shows that it cares more about corporate profits than it cares about truly feeding the world with healthy food.
Whole story: "World Food Prize goes to 3 biotech scientists" by David Pitt, A.P., June 19
Jim Hightower will speak at Occupy the World Food Prize 2013! October 16. Occupy WFP in Des Moines, IA, will help take a "bite out of Corporate Agi" and its bought, owned and scripted World Food Prize.
Occupy the World Food Prize campaign
Phil Berrigan CW House
Des Moines Catholic Worker
Yes, There is a Senator Who Fights Climate Change!
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5
That I heard a senator speak on climate change is huge! So many elected officials deny climate change or are lackluster in their advocacy around it. So, by golly, we're blogging about one who is different!
Having heard and lunched with Senator Hogg speak in Sioux City recently, I recommend his brand new book with few reservations. As soon as I said "steady-state economics," he said Herman Daly. This guy knows his stuff!
America's Climate Century: What Climate Change Means for America in the 21st Century and What Americans Can Do About It calls on Americans to make the fight against climate change our new national purpose. Climate change is the defining historical issue of the 21st Century. After the heat and drought of 2012, Hurricane Sandy, and all of the other recent climate disasters, it is time for America to take climate action.
Having represented Cedar Rapids, Iowa, during an unprecedented flood that caused billions in damage in 2008, State Senator Rob Hogg brings a dose of reality to the issue of climate change. What happens this century -- ever-worsening climate disasters or effective action to fight climate change -- depends on the knowledge and action of every American.
With a fresh, personal, accessible and straight-talking approach, this one book explains why the 21st Century is America's climate century. In 120 pages, it succinctly explains the science, the consequences, and the solutions of climate change, and helps Americans understand why we need to lead the world in the effort to safeguard our people, our property and our future from the dangers of climate change.In his second term in the Iowa Senate, Rob Hogg is serving as Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, after two terms in the Iowa House. He and his wife, Kate, live in Cedar Rapids with their three children. He is active with IowaClimateAdvocates.org.
The book is only $10 from local, independent bookstores or Amazon (paper or Kindle).
We featured Senator Hogg on The Common Good Podcast.
David Suzuki: A bit of environmental hope
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JULY 3
A Radical Environmental Paradigm
2012 was a year of extreme weather, from the melting of the Arctic to Superstorm Sandy. It was also the hottest year on record in the U.S., with massive droughts and many wildfires. And it was probably a taste of things to come. Climate change is real. Carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere is now higher than at any time in the last 15 million years. It's largely caused by humans burning fossil fuels.
The response to unambiguous evidence that the Earth is warming? Kick the problem down the road and hold another farcical international conference like the one in Qatar where the climate destroyers gather and sip Chardonnay and issue press releases about how green they are.
What is required to arrest and reverse the clear threats to the Earth is a radical shift in not just thinking but in action.
And what is the bit of environmental hope? Suzuki does not tolerate the skeptics who would give up hope.
David Suzuki, Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, is a leading environmentalist and science educator. He is a Companion of the Order of Canada and recipient of the Right Livelihood Award and UNESCO's Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science. He is the host of the long-running CBC-TV program 'The Nature of Things.' He is the author of more than 50 books, including "The Sacred Balance' and 'Everything Under the Sun.'
Program #SUZD003, recorded in Santa Fe, NM, November 07, 2012. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the FREE podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Getting Freer from the Economic Clutches of More
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JULY 10
I just finished my Money Autobiography. It's about time! I've been meaning to do it for quite awhile. No, I'm not going to make you read it. Though it was not a big aha moment, it gave me a chance to put together a lot of my thoughts about money in one place. I used guidelines from FaithAndMoneyNetwork.org (formerly Ministry of Money).
Rita and I are both retired now and our family has started a serious discussion about money. Rita's concerned that I want to 'rule from the grave,' but I feel responsibility for the funds that we've been entrusted by God and by our parents. First, I'm asking the six adults in our immediate family to write a personal mission statement so we can write a family mission statement, based on the audio book 'Family Wealth' by James E. Hughes. Rita's pledged to listen to it and give a summary to daughter Elysha and son Pete. Now I've sent the Money Autobiography guidelines and encouragement to our family members.
My friend Craig gives his friends books that he thinks they will benefit from. But he doesn't buy books. He has a subscription to Audible.com, a huge source of books for listening. He buys 15 mini-iPods -- called Nanos -- a year. He downloads a half dozen books to each one and loans them to his friends. He loaned me one. 'Family Wealth' by James E. Hughes is really helpful. It's about a family's many assets, including money.
Thanks to Mike Little at Faith &Money Network for posting the Money Autobiography guidelines for all to use. Download the guidelines as a pdf. Read the Money Autobiography intro page.
A next step may be to use the Faith and Money study guide at home or at church. I've offered it to my pastor.
A few months ago colleague Lee Van Ham, director of Jubilee-Economics.org, blogged, 'If you've never written a money autobiography, you're missing a strong experience of better self-understanding. I've written several over the years. Each helped me look at my relationship with money and its deity powers over our world. Me included. Reading aloud my autobiography to a small group and inviting conversation (not critique) adds even more value. It's part of getting freer from the economic clutches of More.
To hear my take on The Future and why we started the Iversen Family Fund, listen to The Common Good Podcast #29: Countering Advertising.
Other JEM blogs and podcasts about Faith and Money Network.
[Use the Search function near the top-right of any page to find the one(s) of your choice.]Secrecy, Nudity and Our Money
A Money Autobiography -- Have You Written Yours?
Faith and Money Network
Simple Living Works! #7--Fair Trade
Episode 23 :: Challenges in Socially Responsible Investing with Jan Schalkwijk
Metanoia Newsletter, March, 2012
Seven Partnerships for a One Earth Economy
Episode 24 :: Jubilee Economics for the Uninitiated
Defending the System on the Christian Airwaves
Simple Living Works! #1--What's Happened to Simple Living?
"Simply Enough" Re-issued!
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JULY 17
What an honor that my video 'Simply Enough: Straight Talk from Tony Campolo and Shane Claiborne on Simply, Just Living' lives on as 'Choose Justice: A Daily Lifestyle. Produced and distributed by World Vision Canada, version 2.0 is indeed a beautiful package and engaging educational tool.
The approach has been changed from a visual dialog with a straightforward Study/Action Guide, to an extensive Conversation Guide with supportive video clips. The vibrant colors and bald list of questions of the original guide, have been replaced with a more extensive, literate guide with more subdued colors. The original music, carefully chosen for each of the six segments, has been replaced with generic music throughout. (From a practical standpoint, this is completely understandable. The new version does not require permissions from the original musicians.)
The Bible verses for each segment have been changed and more contemporary quotations added. My straightforward narration has been removed. Each segment takes five pages in the 40 page guide instead of one page in the 12 page original. The 71 minutes of the original have been reduced to 55 minutes and the 38 minutes of Bonus segments have been dropped.
The beautiful heart of 'Simply Enough' remains in 'Choose Justice,' the personal, touching stories of Tony and Shane, and the focus on Christian lifestyle, especially as we relate to the poor of the world. The helpful, engaging guide can be copied for group use.
Although the hundreds of left-over copies of 'Simply Enough' were sold in bulk when Alternatives was dissolved in 2011, they are not easy to find. Shane's The Simple Way (thesimpleway.org) has a few copies left in their store for $20.
Copies of 'Choose Justice' are available at Amazon.ca (for $30 Canadian) and at TheSimpleWay.org/store for $10US.
Though there are no references in the new version to the original producers (my son and I), the adventure of making the video is still online at SimplyLivingWorks.org. There you can find the text of original study/action guide, photos of the crew at the filming, graphics of the original support materials, a link to most of the dropped Bonus Segments, etc.
Thank you, World Vision Canada, for keeping this inspiring educational tool alive!
Recent video interview of Tony and Shane about Choose Justice(15:00+/-)
Peace, Gerald
[Re-posted from Simple Living Works!]
Is Sustainability Still Possible?
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JULY 24
Every day, we are presented with a range of 'sustainable' products and activities from 'green' cleaning supplies to carbon offsets but with so much labeled as 'sustainable,'the term has become essentially sustainababble, at best indicating a practice or product slightly less damaging than the conventional alternative. Is it time to abandon the concept altogether, or can we find an accurate way to measure sustainability? If so, how can we achieve it? And if not, how can we best prepare for the coming ecological decline?
In the latest edition of Worldwatch Institute's State of the World series, scientists, policy experts, and thought leaders tackle these questions, attempting to restore meaning to sustainability as more than just a marketing tool. In State of the World 2013: Is Sustainability Still Possible?, experts define clear sustainability metrics and examine various policies and perspectives, including geoengineering, corporate transformation, and changes in agricultural policy, that could put us on the path to prosperity without diminishing the well-being of future generations. If these approaches fall short, the final chapters explore ways to prepare for drastic environmental change and resource depletion, such as strengthening democracy and societal resilience, protecting cultural heritage, and dealing with increased conflict and migration flows.
State of the World 2013 cuts through the rhetoric surrounding sustainability, offering a broad and realistic look at how close we are to fulfilling it today and which practices and policies will steer us in the right direction. This book will be especially useful for policymakers, environmental nonprofits, and students of environmental studies, sustainability, or economics.
State of the World, Worldwatch's flagship annual report remains the most authoritative "go-to" resource for those who understand the importance of nurturing a safe, just, and healthy global environment through policy and action. First published in 1984 as a compendium of issues, State of the World now covers selected sustainability topics annually, including urban development, climate change, global security, consumerism, and agricultural innovation.
Thomas Linzey: Corporations, Communities & the Environment
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, JULY 31Communities across the country, trying to stop a wide range of threats and unwanted projects such as gas drilling and fracking, mining, pipelines, factory farming, sewage sludging, landfills, coal shipments and GMOs, all run into the same problem: they don't have the legal authority to say "no" to them. With their high priced lawyers and huge political influence, corporadoes shape the law. That may be changing. A recent court ruling in Pennsylvania says that corporations are not "persons." They cannot elevate their "private rights" above the rights of people. Others can't wait for the legal system to catch up. Sandra Steingraber, noted biologist and scholar, shortly after appearing on Bill Moyers and on Alternative Radio, has gone to jail. In an act of civil disobedience, Steingraber and others blocked the entrance to a natural gas storage facility in the pristine Seneca Lakes region of upstate New York.
Thomas Linzey is an attorney and co-founder and executive director of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund and serves as its chief legal counsel. He is the author of Be the Change: How to Get What You Want in Your Community. His work has been featured in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Mother Jones, and the Nation.
Program #LINT001, recorded in Eugene, OR, March 02, 2013. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the FREE podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Aug. 7Consuming Kids
Consuming Kids throws desperately needed light on the practices of a relentless multi-billion dollar marketing machine that now sells kids and their parents everything from junk food and violent video games to bogus educational products and the family car.
Drawing on the insights of health care professionals, children's advocates, and industry insiders, the film focuses on the explosive growth of child marketing in the wake of deregulation, showing how youth marketers have used the latest advances in psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience to transform American children into one of the most powerful and profitable consumer demographics in the world.
Consuming Kids pushes back against the wholesale commercialization of childhood, raising urgent questions about the ethics of children's marketing and its impact on the health and well-being of kids.
Watch Consuming Kids free and complete at Top Documentary Films.
Aug. 14Derrick Jensen: Against Forgetting
I've been deeply influenced by Derrick Jensen. He writes for Orion, one of America's premier environmental journals. He founded Deep Green Resistance.
He's sidelined by some mainstream environmental organizations because he would allow folks at the table who do not avow non-violence.
Author of "Endgame," his latest are "The Knitting Circle Rapist Annihilation Squad" and "Earth at Risk: Building a Resistance Movement to Save the Planet" (book and DVD).
Read Against Forgetting.
Aug. 21Arundhati Roy: Reimagining the World
The news item was brief and buried in the back pages: India: Maoists Ambush Patrol, Killing 7 Soldiers. The attack occurred in a rebel stronghold in Jharkhand State. Thousands of people have been killed in the past decade in violence involving Maoists, who claim they represent India's dispossessed, particularly indigenous tribal groups.
You may wonder, What's going on? Isn't India a democracy? In India, the U.S. and other countries, the actual functioning of democracy has largely been hollowed out. Yes, there are elections and people vote but the nexus of decision-making power lies elsewhere. Corporations dominate the political process. With their fistful of dollars they are able to exact outcomes that benefit them. As environmental destruction continues unabated we must reimagine a different world. One in which people and the planet are more important than profits.
Arundhati Roy is neither a Maoist nor a Gandhian pacifist. She is a world-renowned writer and global justice activist. The New York Times calls her, "India's most impassioned critic of globalization and American influence."
She presents no silver bullet in this speech. She encourages us to continue the resistance to the power brokers. Her message is well worth more than the 60 seconds it may take to read this blog.
A fascinating documentary entitled We features her words.
She is the recipient of the Lannan Award for Cultural Freedom. She is the author of many books including The God of Small Things, The Checkbook & the Cruise Missile, Field Notes on Democracy: Listening to Grasshoppers, and Walking with the Comrades.
Program #ROYA018, recorded in Chicago, IL on March 18, 2013. There is an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the FREE podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Aug. 28New Non-Commercial TV Channel
AlJazeera English has been around for years, even briefly on Iowa Public Television. It's gotten commendations from some highly placed Americans and plenty of criticism from Tea Party-types.
Now AlJazeera America has launched as an independent, non-commercial channel available on satellite services and over-the-air in major markets. It claims to offer "unbiased, fact-based, in-depth stories of U.S. and international news, including sports, business, lifestyle and investigative journalism."
I am suspicious of commercial television news with its need to please advertisers. And PBS has become quite bland, for fear of losing its federal funding, I suppose. I appreciate independent, viewer-supported channels likes Free Speech TV and LINK TV: Your Connection to the World, and the new "The Real News: Our Future Depends on Knowing" (with its powerful multi-part interview of Chris Hedges on "Reality Asserts Itself").
Of course, AlJaz America is not viewer-funded. It's home is Quatar in the Middle East, though now it has numerous offices in America to support the new channel.
I've seen numerous AlJaz series over the years on Free Speech and Link, such as "The Stream" and "Fault Lines," which have been removed since they're now on AlJaz America.
AlJaz bought Current, which was a progressive channel on DISH satellite, and holds its spot at channel 215. The problem with Current/AlJaz America is that it requires a premium subscription to DISH. It's not part of the basic package. Bummer.
We can view many videos on the AlJaz America site, as well as live streaming of the shows. It has lots of news stories, focused on the in-depth, without the star sightings.
It's best known shows are "America Tonight," "Real Money," "The Stream," "Fault Lines," "Consider This" and "TechKnow."
I also watch RT - DISH channel 280, an independent, non-commercial channel broadcasts "The Big Picture with Thom Hartmann" and lots of news with attractive female anchors. It IS part of the basic package. RT stands for Russia Today, headquartered in Moscow.
Ironic that we're getting some of our best news coverage in the US from outside the US.
Why do I care? I have been a communicator even before my professional life. I earned a Masters in journalism. I give away a lot of money to media and organizations that are striving to keep our democracy alive, out of the control of corporations and the wealthy. Careful, I don't want to start a rant on the violence of American TV.
Give independent, non-commercial television a try. More worthwhile options continue to emerge.
Sept. 4Laura Flanders on GRITtv: Green Worker CO-OP Academy
For the New Economy series, The Laura Flanders Show at GRITtv is highlighting solutions to our economically precarious times. COOPERATIVES have demonstrated the great power in working together, such as the Green Worker Cooperative Academy. To combat environmental hazards in the South Bronx brought on by industries such as waste facilities, sewage sludge processing, and distribution centers, Omar Freilla decided to start the Green Worker Cooperative Academy in 2003. "I became very frustrated with the premise of most cities, and it happens in New York with economic development, that whatever the dirty polluters are, those are the ones that wind end up getting sited in the communities with the least ability to say no." Operating on the promise of bringing jobs to the community, what these industries do not say, is that often, these jobs are low-paying, dangerous and pose great health risks.
The academy boasts an intense how-to program on creating and maintaining a sustainable, democratic and environmentally friendly cooperative business.
Some graduates of the Green Worker Cooperative Academy have gone on to become successful businesses: a translation company Caracol Interpreters Cooperative, and B-Blossom Catering Cooperative. Other, more recent alumni, include Ginger Moon, a food-doula service that helps provide nourishing meals and support for new mothers; a student credit union; and POP, a women's health and culture magazine.
For more details on the academy, watch this eight minute video.
What a powerful "two-fer" -- creating co-ops AND caring for the Earth! This is what Jubilee Economics looks like. It makes my spirit soar.
GRITtv video podcast: Another Co-op Story: Milk Not Jails
Sept. 11Affluenza: Anti-Over-Consumption Classic
John De Graaf works as an independent film producer at Public Television in Seattle. As his friend, I am also inspired by his internet social activism.
He produced the films Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic and Escape from Affluenza and coauthored the Affluenza book. The 3rd edition of the book is scheduled for release Dec., 2013.
He is a founding member of the Simplicity Forum and serves as national coordinator of the forum's Take-Back-Your-Time Day initiative since 2003. Read John's series of Lenten sermons on that subject.Hear the first of my two-part interview with John on The Common Good Podcast, episode 39. (Part two comes in Oct.)
He has been an independent producer of television documentaries for 35 years and is the recipient of more than 100 regional, national, and international awards in film-making. The de Graaf Environmental Filmmaking Award, named in his honor, is presented annually at the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival in Nevada City, California.
He is a frequent speaker on issues of overwork and overconsumption in America. He produced Silent Killer: The Unfinished Campaign Against Hunger. In 2005 John was the World Food Day George McGovern lecturer at the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome.
His current interest is in a campaign to measure happiness in American communities and colleges. (That's coming in episode 40.)
Sept. 18Socially Aware Media
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I talk to some folks who don't want to know about our problems -- climate crisis, political corruption, etc. It makes them sad, they say.
Here are some media that I find eye-opening and, therefore, positive. What makes me sad is lack to transparency, for example, secrets of corporate malfeasance.
Earth Focus is an environmental news magazine that puts a human face on pressing global issues. This essential series features under-publicized stories on how changes to the Earth's resources and climate are affecting everyday people all over the world.
One Earth Communications produces public service announcements for TV. You can watch them on the internet or see them occasionally on FreeSpeechTV and other socially-aware media.
Celebrating its 40th year of publication in 2013, the New Internationalist is renowned for its radical, campaigning stance on a range of world issues, from the cynical marketing of babymilk in the Majority World to human rights in Burma.
The New Internationalist magazine is published ten times a year and has won several awards, including an Amnesty Media Award in 2012 and an Utne Reader Award in 2013. The magazine sets out to explain and inform, giving readers the essentials of a subject in a concise, easy-to-read full-color format with excellent photos and graphics. Share a subscription with friends or buy it for your local public/college library.
NI also produces a range of books, calendars and diaries (and occasional podcasts) that bring us the clearest, most accessible reference sources about our complex world. NI's mail order catalogue and online shop sell a wide range of books, clothes, food, and other fair trade and organic gifts.
June 2013 saw the launch of an iPad app, New Internationalist for iPad, which was developed by the NI design and tech teams.
Publications from the New Internationalist are produced by an independent trust working as a not-for-profit cooperative. Because the New Internationalist operates as a not-for-profit, income from sales of publications and gifts goes into the production of our titles and to spread our aims and ideals, not into a rich media tycoon's pocket!
These surely beat commercial-driven media!
Sept. 25Robert Jensen: A Call to Action
Robert Jensen calls for an apocalypse!
Apocalyse (Greek) and Revelation (Latin) mean the same thing - "lifting the veil." He tells us why we must act -- the conspiracy against the Earth and 99% of its inhabitants. And how to raise the veil. . . to reveal what is ending and to reveal what is beginning.
In times of universal deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act, said Orwell. There are a lot of truth tellers in these times: Bill McKibben, David Suzuki, Sandra Steingraber, Noam Chomsky and Maude Barlow. (Jubilee Economics' site is populated with like-minded truthtellers.) Of course their views are marginalized or omitted altogether from the dominant media. Warning signal after warning signal goes unheeded.
Buried in the back pages of the newspaper is a report: Glacial ice in the Peruvian Andes that took at least 1,600 years to form has melted in just 25 years, the latest indication that the recent spike in global temperatures has thrown the natural world out of balance. These are more like apocalyptic times than revolutionary ones. It is not just about cuddly animals at risk. Humankind is in danger. The magnitude of the environmental crises demands not more talk but action. Decisive action.
Jensen is calling for academics and others who wish to make accurate assessments of what's happening to use the GENRE of apocalypse, to reclaim it from the end of the world preachers and some extreme sci-fi writers.
A Call to Action, Alternative Radio Program #JENR004, recorded in Austin, TX, February 24, 2013. Hear an audio sample at AlternativeRadio.org, but no link to this specific complete podcast. You may either buy the CD ($14) or MP3 ($4) of this speech there or subscribe to the FREE podcast series (on iTunes, for example).
Robert Jensen is professor of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin and board member of Third Coast Activist Resource Center in Austin. He is the author of Citizens of the Empire, The Heart of Whiteness, All My Bones Shake: Seeking a Progressive Path to the Prophetic Voice, and Arguing for Our Lives.
Oct. 2Global Happiness Initiative
John de Graaf is a co-founder and senior partner of The Happiness Initiative. He was a member of the International Group advising the country of Bhutan on its Happiness report to the United Nations. The Domestic Happiness Index focuses on people and the planet, instead of profits (in contrast to the Gross National Product).Hear part two of my two-part interview with John on The Common Good Podcast, episode 40. Part one dealt with the films and book Affluenza on episode 39.
He has been an independent producer of television documentaries for 35 years and is the recipient of more than 100 regional, national, and international awards in film-making. The de Graaf Environmental Filmmaking Award, named in his honor, is presented annually at the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival in Nevada City, California.His current interest is in a campaign to measure and promote happiness in American communities and colleges. John spoke at Eastern Washington University, February 14, 2013, as part of Pursuit of Happiness Week, part of the growing Happiness Initiative.
Take the Happiness Counts survey based on the Domestic Happiness Index.
He is a frequent speaker on issues of overwork and overconsumption in America. He produced Silent Killer: The Unfinished Campaign Against Hunger. In 2005 John was the World Food Day George McGovern lecturer at the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome.
John De Graaf works as an independent film producer at Public Television, KCET, Seattle. He produced the Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic and Escape from Affluenza films and coauthored the Affluenza book. The 3rd edition of the book is scheduled for release Dec., 2013. He is a founding member of the Simplicity Forum and serves as national coordinator of the forum's Take-Back-Your-Time-Day initiative since 2003. Read John's series of Lenten sermons on that subject.
Read a recent review of Dave Batker's and John's recent book WHAT'S THE ECONOMY FOR, ANYWAY? Why It's Time to Stop Chasing Growth and Start Pursuing Happiness.
BONUS: "Happy" documentary [trailer]
Oct. 9Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?
In addition to blogging weekly here on JublieeEconomics.org and co-hosting and producing The Common Good Podcast once a month, I also blog three times a week and produce the Simple living Works! podcast twice a month for a colleague organization of Jubilee Economics. I appreciate having my site linked to Jubilee's through the Simple Living button on the far right of the menu at the top of each page.
If you'd like to hear the reasons that Jubilee Economics and Simple Living Works! collaborate, listen to The Common Good Podcast episodes 27 | 28. In brief, Jubilee focuses more on macro-economics, the global and national; SLW! on the micro, the personal and congregational. I'm grateful to talk about Simple Living stuff in this blog from-time-to-time.
That's an overly-long introduction to invite you to listen to Simple Living Works! podcast, which is in its infancy, as well as The Common Good Podcast, which is well established.
Simple Living Works! extends the mission and resources of a long-established prophetic group called Alternatives, primarily through social media. For some background, click here.
Alternatives' best known resource is the annual Advent/Christmas booklet "Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?" Although no longer published on paper, it thrives online for free. You'll read and hear a lot about the tension between faith and culture and many do-able tips and ideas about coping with that tension.
"Whose Birthday?" has also been produced in an audio version for radio, which included many of Alternatives' audio shorts. That series of six 30-minute programs is being revived on SLW! Podcast. The first episode is now available. A previous mini-series "Beyond a Consumer Lifestyle" is already available (episodes 4-5).
You can access all the SLW! podcast audio and the show notes either at SimpleLiving.startlogic.com/SLW-PODCAST or at SimpleLivingWorks.org (then click window #3).
Or access individual episodes:
#4: Beyond a Consumer Lifestyle-1
#5: Beyond a Consumer Lifestyle-2
#6: Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?-1
Why start so early? It's a six-part series, twice a month, Oct.-Dec.
Just like The Common Good Podcast, you can subscribe now through iTunes, Stitcher.com or your favorite podcast service.
If you're not yet comfortable including podcasts in your life, try my blog, The Joy of Podcasts.
Like Jubilee, Alternatives is covered by the Creative Commons license, so people can use and share Alternatives' many resources without fee or permission.
What's the Economy for, Anyway?
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Read reviews of John de Graaf and Dave Batker's recent book WHAT'S THE ECONOMY FOR, ANYWAY? Why It's Time to Stop Chasing Growth and Start Pursuing Happiness.
John de Graaf is a co-founder and senior partner of The Happiness Initiative. He was a member of the International Group advising the country of Bhutan on its Happiness report to the United Nations. The Domestic Happiness Index focuses on people and the planet, instead of profits (in contrast to the Gross National Product).Hear part two of my two-part interview with John on The Common Good Podcast, episode 40. Part one dealt with his films and book Affluenza on episode 39.
In his new book and in the interview he speaks passionately for a steady-state economy that promotes the common good. He is a strong advocate of jubilee!
His current interest is in a campaign to measure and promote happiness in American communities and colleges. John spoke at Eastern Washington University, February 14, 2013, as part of Pursuit of Happiness Week, part of the growing Happiness Initiative.
Take the Happiness Counts survey based on the Domestic Happiness Index.
He has been an independent producer of television documentaries for 35 years and is the recipient of more than 100 regional, national, and international awards in film-making. The de Graaf Environmental Filmmaking Award, named in his honor, is presented annually at the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival in Nevada City, California.
He is a frequent speaker on issues of overwork and overconsumption in America. He produced Silent Killer: The Unfinished Campaign Against Hunger. In 2005 John was the World Food Day George McGovern lecturer at the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome.
John De Graaf works as an independent film producer at Public Television, KCET, Seattle. He produced the Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic and Escape from Affluenza films and coauthored the Affluenza book. The 3rd edition of the book is scheduled for release this December.
The Geography of Bliss
GERALD IVERSEN FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25
Rita's book group recently read Eric Weiner's The Geography of Bliss: One Grump's Search for the Happiest Places in the World. They all recommend it. That's rare.
Besides, we're Danish, the happiest people in the world.
So, as a conclusion to a month-long focus on Happiness, inspired by John De Graaf's book and the Global Happiness Initiative, here's a bit about Weiner's book and then the trailer for Tom Shadyac's documentary, Happy, that daughter Elysha highly recommended.
Part foreign affairs discourse, part humor, and part twisted self-help guide, The Geography of Bliss takes the reader from America to Iceland to India in search of happiness, or, in the crabby author's case, moments of "un-unhappiness." The book uses a beguiling mixture of travel, psychology, science and humor to investigate not what happiness is, but where it is. Are people in Switzerland happier because it is the most democratic country in the world? Do citizens of Qatar, awash in petrodollars, find joy in all that cash? Is the King of Bhutan a visionary for his initiative to calculate Gross National Happiness? Why is Asheville, North Carolina so damn happy? With engaging wit and surprising insights, Eric Weiner answers those questions and many others, offering travelers of all moods some interesting new ideas for sunnier destinations and dispositions.
Happy
A Documentary TrailerWhat makes you happy?
From the filmmakers who brought you Long Night's Journey Into Day, Beyond the Call, and the Oscar nominated Genghis Blues, comes a global journey across countries and continents in a search for humanity's most elusive emotion.
HAPPY seeks to share the wisdom of traditional cultures and the cutting edge science that is now, for the first time, exploring human happiness. Through powerful interviews, explore what makes people happy across the world.
Directed by - Roko Belic | Executive Producer - Tom Shadyac | Produced by - Eiji Shimizu, Frances Reid, Roko BelicTom Shadyac's previous documentary I Am explores his personal journey, "the nature of humanity" and "world's ever-growing addiction to materialism." In 2013 he published a book entitled "Life's Operating Manual." In I Am, Shadyac interviews scientists, religious leaders, environmentalists and philosophers, including Desmond Tutu, Noam Chomsky, Lynne McTaggart, Elisabet Sahtouris, Howard Zinn and Thom Hartmann. The film asks two central questions: What's Wrong with the World? and What Can We Do About It? It is about "human connectedness, happiness, and the human spirit."
P.S. I've heard a couple of pretty convincing interviews with Tom Shadyac about his most recent little masterpiece. Yes, in his former life he collaborated on a bunch of comedies.
Empowering Women
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6
Episode 41 of The Common Good Podcast makes the connection between empowering women amidst the Climate Crisis and a concrete example of micro-loans in the Dominican Republic.
Our interview with Juli-Ann Gasper connects with the recent report of the IPCC -- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The IPCC report lays climate change, i.e. crisis, squarely in the lap of humans, not some other mystical force.
Juli-Ann Gasper taught at Creighton University in Omaha for 30 years. She led several student expeditions to the Dominican Republic to see how Microfinance works on the ground. [Also see Microcredit and Micropayments.]
Climate Crisis Articles/Sites
2 degrees C or Not 2 degrees C: Insights from the Latest IPCC Climate Report Our Planet Is Like 'Overweight Smoker with a Heart Condition': An IPCC Report Q&A Landmark 2013 IPCC Report: 95% chance most of global warming is human-caused 'Debate on Science is Over, Time to Act Is Now': World Reacts to IPCC Report Report only confirms what steady stream of science for decades has been saying; Time for action is now, declare climate leaders 'Unequivocal' says IPCC: Planet Is Burning, Humans Are Causing It Global scientific consensus says planet is changing in ways unseen in thousands of years and if something 'substantial' not done, and soon, the results will be unthinkable A Radical Approach to the Climate Crisis By Christian Parenti The Last Hours of Humanity documentary Vision of the Future How to divest from fossil fuels, no matter the size of your piggy bank Go Fossil Free: divestment by colleges, cities, religious organizations, individuals More News
Ross and Gloria Kinsler blog archives Updates on Lee's new book Blinded by Progress and The OneEarth Project It's SO NICE when strong affirmation for Jubilee comes this direction. Just gotta share with you what this corporate attorney in Omaha, NE, says! Thank you, Steve! And, we're making it easy to join him as a donor too. Just one click.
*Read Steve's Appeal!*
Positive Climate Crisis Tool
GERALD IVERSEN WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 13
We've been talking this past month about the dreary Climate Crisis report from the IPCC, so here's a bit of positive news.
Ecoliterate: How Educators Are Cultivating Emotional, Social, and Ecological Intelligence by Daniel Goleman, Lisa Bennett and Zenobia Barlow (Aug 14, 2012) from Center for EcoLiteracy: Education for Sustainable Living.
I heard about it on SierraClubRadio.com
Here's a new integration of Goleman's emotional, social, and ecological intelligence.
Hopeful, eloquent, and bold, Ecoliterate offers inspiring stories, practical guidance, and an exciting new model of education that builds - in vitally important ways - on the success of social and emotional learning by addressing today's most important ecological issues.
This book shares stories of pioneering educators, students, and activists engaged in issues related to food, water, oil, and coal in communities from the mountains of Appalachia to a small village in the Arctic; the deserts of New Mexico to the coast of New Orleans; and the streets of Oakland, California to the hills of South Carolina.
Ecoliterate marks a rich collaboration between Daniel Goleman and the Center for Ecoliteracy, an organization best known for its pioneering work with school gardens, school lunches, and integrating ecological principles and sustainability into school curricula. For nearly twenty years the Center has worked with schools and organizations in more than 400 communities across the United States and numerous other countries.
This book reveals how educators can advance academic achievement; protect the natural world on which we depend; and foster strength, hope, and resiliency.
Ecoliterate also presents five core practices of emotionally and socially engaged ecoliteracy and a professional development guide.
If there is one book on education that needs to be read by every teacher on the planet, Ecoliterate is that book. --Laurie Lane-Zucker, cofounder and former executive director, The Orion Society, founder and CEO of Hotfrog
"Powerful and persuasive." -- Sir Ken Robinson, creativity expert and author of The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything
"Gutsy, eloquent, moving." -- Frances Moore Lapp', author of EcoMind: Changing the Way We Think, to Create the World We Want
"This book is a treasure. Crucial for educators, a gift to the next generation, a realistic ray of hope for us all. -- Susan Griffin, author of Woman and Nature: The Roaring Inside Her
"Beautifully written, accessible, and urgently important." -- Michael Ableman, farmer and author of From the Good Earth, On Good Land, and Fields of Plenty
"The worlds of thought and action have been fundamentally changed by the delineation of emotional, social, and ecological intelligences. In this pioneering book, Dan Goleman and his collaborators demonstrate in vivid and compelling fashion how education can be transformed through a synthesis of these intelligences." -- Howard Gardner, Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education
THE AUTHORS
Daniel Goleman is an internationally known psychologist, former New York Times science reporter, and author of the classic Emotional Intelligence (with 5 million copies in print worldwide). He's also written Social Intelligence, Primal Leadership, Vital Lies, and his latest book: Ecological Intelligence: How Knowing the Hidden Impacts of What We Buy Can Change Everything.Lisa Bennett is the communications director for the Center for Ecoliteracy and longtime writer about the environment, education, and equality. Her writing has appeared in The Christian Science Monitor, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and The New York Times and books including The Compassionate Instinct: The Science of Human Goodness; Smart by Nature: Schooling for Sustainability; and A Place at the Table: The Struggle for Equality in America. She blogs at the Huffington Post.
Zenobia Barlow is the executive director and cofounder of the Center for Ecoliteracy and coeditor of Ecological Literacy: Educating Our Children for a Sustainable World. Barlow has led the Center's grant making, educational, and publishing initiatives, including Rethinking School Lunch, since its inception. She serves on the board of directors of the David Brower Center and is a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute.
The Crash of 2016
GERALD IVERSEN FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22
Thom Hartmann is my favorite talk show host. His latest of many books summarizes much of what he has been saying lately. Besides his three-hour program each weekday, he also has a one-hour evening program, "The Big Picture." I hear him on Free Speech TV (on DISH or Direct satellite networks or at FreeSpeech.org) or on the RT channel, also on satellite TV and internet.
Although the book doesn't promote a jubilee or steady-state economy specifically, it makes it clear why we need a One Earth Economy. I've ordered a copy through my local public library, so I get to read it before it's added to their permanent collection.
The Book
The United States is more vulnerable today than ever before--including during the Great Depression and the Civil War--because the pillars of democracy that once supported a booming middle class have been corrupted, and without them, America teeters on the verge of the next Great Crash.
The United States is in the midst of an economic implosion that could make the Great Depression look like child's play. In THE CRASH OF 2016, Thom Hartmann argues that the facade of our once-great United States will soon disintegrate to reveal the rotting core where corporate and billionaire power and greed have replaced democratic infrastructure and governance. Our once-enlightened political and economic systems have been manipulated to ensure the success of only a fraction of the population at the expense of the rest of us.
The result is a "for the rich, by the rich" scheme leading to policies that only benefit the highest bidders. Hartmann outlines the destructive forces--planted by Lewis Powell in 1971 and come to fruition with the "Reagan Revolution"--that have looted our nation over the past decade, and how their actions fit into a cycle of American history that lets such forces rise to power every four generations.
However, a backlash is now palpable against the "economic royalists"--a term coined by FDR to describe those hoarding power and wealth--including the banksters, oligarchs, and politicians who have plunged our nation into economic chaos and social instability.
Although we are in the midst of what could become the most catastrophic economic crash in American History, a way forward is emerging, just as it did in the previous great crashes of the 1760s, 1856, and 1929. The choices we make now will redefine American culture. Before us stands a genuine opportunity to embrace the moral motive over the profit motive-and to rebuild the American economic model that once yielded great success.
Thoroughly researched and passionately argued, THE CRASH OF 2016 is not just a roadmap to redemption in post-Crash America, but a critical wake-up call, challenging us to act. Only if the right reforms are enacted and the moral choices are made, can we avert disaster and make our nation whole again.
Reviews
"Never one to shy away from the truth . . . inspiring, wise, and compelling. His work lights the way to a better America."~Van Jones, cofounder of RebuildTheDream.com and author of The Green Collar Economy
"Thom Hartmann seeks out interesting subjects from such disparate outposts of curiosity that you have to wonder whether or not he uncovered them or they selected him."
~Leonardo DiCaprio, actor, producer, and environmental activist
"Thom Hartmann channels the best of the American Founders with voice and pen. His deep attachment to a democratic civil society is just the medicine America needs. "
~Tom Hayden, author of The Long Sixties and director, Peace and Justice Resource Center
"Thom Hartmann is a literary descendent of Ben Franklin and Tom Paine. His unflinching observations and deep passion inspire us to explore contemporary culture, politics, and economics; challenge us to face the facts of the societies we are creating; and empower us to demand a better world for our children and grandchildren."
~John Perkins, author of the New York Times bestselling book Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
"Right through the worst of the Bush years and into the present, Thom Hartmann has been one of the very few voices constantly willing to tell the truth. Rank him up there with Jon Stewart, Bill Moyers, and Paul Krugman for having the sheer persistent courage of his convictions."
~Bill McKibben, author of Eaarth, 360.org
"With the ever-growing influence of corporate CEOs and their right-wing allies in all aspects of American life, Hartmann's work is more relevant than ever. Throughout his career, Hartmann has spoken compellingly about the value of people-centered democracy and the challenges that millions of ordinary Americans face today as a result of a dogma dedicated to putting profit above all else."
~Richard Trumka, President, AFL-CIO
"I've read all of Thom Hartmann's books and value them greatly for their fresh discovery of American corporate history and how corporatism came to dominate our culture and its political economy. Now comes a work steeped in eye-opening history, fact-based interpretation, and imagination about how the past, present, and future are connecting to drive Americans into the ground--unless they become part of a conscious society that commands its future as befits 'we the people.' The two final chapters 'Democratizing the Economy' and 'Epilogue: A Letter to My Great-Grandchildren' are sufficiently priceless."
~Ralph Nader
Participatory Economics on Escape Velocity Radio
GERALD IVERSEN FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 29
Escape Velocity Radio is an intriguing podcast I've recently discovered. However, it falls into the "explicit"category, so if you're offended by a few bad words, skip it. On the other hand, their Halloween show was informative and really funny.
Episode 14: Interview with Robin Hahnel on Participatory Economics
On October's terrifying episode, which may or may not have been recorded in an actual haunted house, spend the hour with activist and economist Robin Hahnel discussing his book Of the People, By the People: The Case for a Participatory Economy. Robin tells us about the bone-chilling failings of free market capitalism, the spine-tingling reasons why he feels viable alternative economic models need to be part of activist discourse, and the blood-curdling details of how his proposed alternative to capitalism called Participatory Economics works in practice. Join this mortifying discussion about how humans organize their economic affairs. . . if you dare!
Of the People, By the People: The Case for a Participatory Economy
Paperback by Robin HahnelUnless the economy is of the people and by the people it will never be for the people. This book is for people who want to know more about participatory economics and what a desirable alternative to capitalism might look like. It is for people who want more than rosy rhetoric and Pollyannaish descriptions of people working in harmony. It is for people who want to dig into what economic justice and economic democracy mean. It is a book for optimists who believe the human species must be capable of something better than succumbing to competition and greed or authoritarianism, and would like to know how we can do it. It is also a book for skeptics who demand to be shown, explicitly and concretely, how a modern economy can dispense with markets and authoritarian planning, and how hundreds of millions of people can manage their own division of labor efficiently and equitably in a participatory economy.
Escape Velocity Radio
This monthly podcast journeys into the depths of science, philosophy, history, ethics, the origins of consciousness, professional hockey and the very nature of reality itself. Each month hosts Derek Hogue and Chris Hannah will take us places we may wish we hadn't gone, via interviews with the greatest minds from the realms of music, activism and science, and their unscripted "wisdom." Dismissals of the prevailing order never sounded so good. Escape Velocity Radio -- the toilet brush of the mind -- is recorded, produced, and edited by its charming hosts, deep in the bowels of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
Chris Hannah is the "frontman" for the wildly-popular, world-famous secular rock band Propagandhi. He was voted worst Canadian alive by a Canadian history magazine, and has been immortalized in a song by the band NOFX. He is a father, vegan, astronomy enthusiast and 3rd-line grinder for Caress of Steel.
Derek Hogue is a militant hardcore vegan and wildly-successful graphic designer and web developer who lives on a super-yacht off the coast of St. Kitts. (And for "successful" read "lazy", for "super-yacht" read "bungalow", and for "St. Kitts" read "Winnipeg, Manitoba".) His past endeavours include the now-euthanized record label G7 Welcoming Committee Records, and playing drums with teenage hardcore sensations (who toured with a five-song repertoire) Silence Equals.
Good Dirt Radio -- Good News for a Change!
GERALD IVERSEN SUNDAY, DECEMBER 8
Really good things can come in really small packages. Good Dirt Radio is a five minute podcast once a month. It not just about gardening. Each episode is about a different environmental topic and really well produced. It's carried on 50+ radio stations. I subscribed recently and have downloaded all 80 episodes.
Good Dirt Radio reports inspiring, educational stories about people helping to solve environmental challenges affecting life on Earth -- positive, beneficial ideas and actions that individuals, families, businesses, and communities can embrace. It's motto is "Digging up Good News. . . for a Change." Believe it!
If you prefer long-form, Living on Earth is 60 minutes a week on public radio. I prefer the podcast version via iTunes. LoE also occasionally produces a single-story show called Living on Earth Now. It varies in length from five to 50 minutes and includes curious topics, such as "Were the Witch Trials a Result of Climate Change?"
A Sampling of Good Dirt Radio Stories
Green Office
Junk Food
Factory Fish
Fracked!
GMO Free
Party Green
School Food
Plastic Fast
GE Foods
Junk Mail
Why Organic?
Live Christmas Trees
Renters' Options
Kid Gardens
Meat Carbon
Food Waste
Edible Landscape
Phantom Power
Petro Fast
Ecovestment
Holistic Parenting
Eco Ed
Great Old Broads for Wilderness
Biodiesel From Algae
Green Cemeteries
Voting With Your Dollars
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
Green Business Roundtable
WHOSE Birthday? '13 Features Jubilee Economics Writers
GERALD IVERSEN TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10
Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?
An Advent and Christmas Resource for Families, Individuals and Churches, Whose Birthday? is for your personal inspiration, community education and sharing. Although this resource is not available in print, you may make all the copies you choose under the Creative Commons non-commercial attribution share-alike license.
Table of Contents
Reflections & Activities
My Advent Adventure I-Want-To-Go-Deeper Daily Guide Hand-made Gifts Are Best Advent Series #1: Unwrapping Christmas in a Different Paradigm (5 parts) by Lee Van Ham Advent Series #2: The Unholy Family of Christmas (6 parts) by Lee Van Ham Humorous Christmas Art 10 Tips to Escape the Stifling Comfort Zone by Gerald Iversen Whose Birthday? How-To Fear Not series of six GRAPHICS by Doyle Burbank-Williams from Worship Alternatives. Also see Be (Un)Afraid, Be Very (Un)Afraid! by Bob Sitze. This online-only edition for 2013 is a work-in-progress. You can still submit ART or an ARTICLE.
Want to Contribute? Submission Guidelines
More Resources
- BONUS: Alternative Advent Reflections by Walter Brueggemann, Joan Chittister, Bill McKibben and others.
- 10 Tips for Simpler, More Meaningful Celebrations
- Carols with Justice sing-along
- Christmas Anthologies to read alone or aloud | Christmas Campaign Kit | Seasonal/Thematic Index: Advent/Christmas/Epiphany
- Winter Festivals |New Year's Day |Emancipation Day (Jan. 1) | Epiphany (Jan. 6)
Simple Living Works! Podcast Alert
Access all SLW! podcast audio and the show notes either at SimpleLiving.startlogic.com/SLW-PODCAST or at SimpleLivingWorks.org (then click window #3). LISTEN through your computer, iPod, iPad, iPhone (or equivalent). SUBSCRIBE through iTunes, Stitcher.com or your favorite podcast service.Access individual episodes: #1-3: Getting Acquainted; #4-5: Beyond a Consumer Lifestyle; #6-11: Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?
Do your friends a favor. Share this blog and podcast.
Peace, Gerald "Jerry" Iversen, Chief SLW! Activist
Please LIKE SLW! on Facebook. Follow SLW! on Twitter. NEW - Follow SLW! on Pinterest.
Little Insurrections
GERALD IVERSEN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19
I'm an encouraged subscriber to WagingNonViolence.org -- People-Powered News and Analysis. In addition to current news, the site has a handful of columns that have engaging names, such as At the Crossroads, Living Revolution, and The Arts of Protest.
The title of one column -- Little Insurrections -- especially appeals to me both as a non-conformist and nonviolent person. The column that intrigues me the most of Frida Berrigan's latest Little Insurrections is her seasonal contribution "How Can We Reclaim the Holiday Season from the Corporations? She builds from a personal example to universal conclusion. Yes, she repeats the endearing story of how her son enjoys the box much more than the gift, and concludes:
Play. You can't wrap that and stick it under the tree, but it is more valuable and more enduring than even the most well-made, well-considered, well-intentioned toy on the market.
(Sidenote: I miss in her style the subheads that help guide the reader.)
I recommend the site to you as a group that has a lot in common with Jubilee Economics. I hope it will benefit you likewise.
GRAPHICs: Adbusters graffiti supporting Buy Nothing Day. (Flickr / resa & krister)
Simple Living Works! Christmas Campaign Kit
2012
This week free Simple Living videos begin appearing on YouTube, first the award-winning Break Forth Into Joy! Beyond a Consumer Lifestyle --the 15 minute MAIN presentation, plus three BONUS features: Possessions and Freedom, Family and Children, and Taking Action. Also, Study Guide and script.
Simplify Rites of Passage
10 Tips for Simpler, More Meaningful Celebrations helps simplify Rites of Passage, like weddings, birthdays and graduations.
Return to Table of Contents
Page updated 23 Nov. 2016
