Unhappy with the state of the world? What are we doing about it?
brianlux
Posts: 42,024
With the myriad tragic events going on in the news it's natural to want to talk about things and even a little useful to read up on what's going on, enter into discussion, vent, ponder and maybe even pontificate a bit if that helps. But talking is just the beginning. Doing, taking action, being proactive- that's what makes change happen. Write letters or make phone calls to people in higher position- these are much more effective than the 30 second on-line petitions we all sign (yes, I do sign then too). Form action groups in your community to address local issues. Vote (another very minor act, but if you vote by mail it costs you a stamp and a little reading time). Organize rallies. Attend rallies. Educate and be educated. Participate in county and and school board meetings (remember when most parents attended PTA meetings? Oh wait, that's right, I'm an old fucker, hahaha!) Sign petitions in pen, in person. Circulate and explain petitions. Tithe to environmental and political organizations that are action-oriented (like Sea Shepherds, for example). Reduce consumption of resources and energy even more that ever. Be kind and considerate. Compost and recycle. Grow something that feeds and promotes health. Share and give.
Get off the couch and the computer and get involved. And seriously, I'm not just spouting shit, I've done most of the above and more (and I only say that as a matter-of-fact, not for kudos). We have no right to complain about things and certainly no right to put others down if we are not actually doing something other than just talk, talk, talk.
Get off the couch and the computer and get involved. And seriously, I'm not just spouting shit, I've done most of the above and more (and I only say that as a matter-of-fact, not for kudos). We have no right to complain about things and certainly no right to put others down if we are not actually doing something other than just talk, talk, talk.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Variously credited to Mark Twain or Edward Abbey.
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Think I'll send those two letters to my European representative instead.
And i just sent them to five members of the House of Lords too.
...are those who've helped us.
Right 'round the corner could be bigger than ourselves.
Shame they don't exhibit the same level of interest and concern for the plight of the Palestinians.
One of the first letters I wrote was to CA Senator Alan Cranston. Senator Cranston wrote back to me a full two page letter with detailed, personal answers to my concerns. With our ever-growing numbers and the tangle of bureaucracy our representatives have to deal with (and create) we can't expect that kind of detailed response but surely we should expect something of more substance.
Phone calls are sometimes more effective unless all you get is an answering machine.
We also would do well to remember that we are also capable of doing things to make a difference, not just asking our representatives to act. For example, locally most people I've talked to are not in favor of having an historical monument torn down and replaced with a roundabout. If all these people showed up at a city hall meeting and said, "No, we don't want to spend our tax dollars on this unnecessary roundabout", the issue would be more likely to go away.
The sky's the limit as to what we can do. I wish I could say I'm brave enough to do something like Tank Man did on June 5, 1989 in Tiananmen Square, but there are many things each of us can do.
"Hear me, my chiefs!
I am tired; my heart is
sick and sad. From where
the sun stands I will fight
no more forever."
Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
:-bd
It's great if a connection/relationship is there to help open the doors of perception and honest feedback from those we've elected. Too bad most of us get a boilerplate response as mentioned by LastExit.
Not liberals
Not conservatives
Not republicans
Not democrats
The political class is now the oligarchy.
May I add one more suggestion? Courtesy of Joe Strummer (may he RIP). Vote your dollars. So many campaigns are won by the deepest pockets, and sometime (eg when you are a relative liberal living in Texas) it seems your vote doesn't count much. But every dollar you spend can reflect your values. Support companies who align with your values, whatever those are. Personally I support companies that are good to their employees, the environment, and to animals whenever I can.
I also spend a lot of time writing letters to my reps, a little time making phone calls, and some time signing petitions, fwiw. I also occasionally go to a protest
"OK, here's my new manifesto. I'm gonna pull out of my pocket one vote. (takes out a dollar). 'He's gotta dollar bill out of his pocket!' What I like to say to anyone who could care to listen to me is that this is our only vote. I'm saying that because we got democrat votes and we voted in this guy two years ago (Tony Blair) and he's become... what he was not supposed to be. We can't get rid of him. Maybe we got a fifteen year run with this guy. What can we do? Fold our tents on the field. We'll lose the battle but not the war.
So it occured to me that since my real vote is useless, null and void, therefore we ain't gonna start runnin' down the street burnin' and a-lootin' either 'cause our ass is gonna get canned. So that leaves the only vote anybody's got, this dollar bill. All I'm trying to say is, when I wanna buy a record, I'm gonna take my dollar bill and go to some corner guy with his weird, kooky little shop. I'm not giving this to Virgin Megastore. The same when I'm going to buy some clothes- I ain't gonna go to Gap no more. I wanna go to Ditsy Louie's Junk Clothing Box. I'm using my vote here, this dollar bill is my vote. I'm not gonna go to a fast food joint. I'm going to go to a place where people own it, where the owner is standing behind the bar, picking his teeth.
This is my new philosophy. Use your vote, your dollar bill is your vote. It's time we stopped giving it in the bucket-loads to these giants corporations. They're not to be trusted with that amount of money. They're only gonna bland us out, robot us out. They're gonna crush us and pulverize us. All they want is our money. They'd rather that we just sat on the pavement, saying nothing and giving them dollar bills. That's what they want to world to be while they have their cocaine and champagne. The dollar bill is your only vote. That's my new vibe"
Supporting your local business men and women is another way to reduce control by the big businesses, and I also try to support mine when we eat and shop
Print a photo or collage of photos of dead Palestinian children at the hands of Israel with US support/weapons, try to track down your Representative, you can call their office or go online to their website for their itinerary. IF you can find them, bring a sharpie, make small talk and then ask for their autograph with the picture turned upside down, hand them the sharpie then flip the picture over of the dead babies.... describe the photo and ask why they wont sign it?? ask why they will sign resolution condemning hamas but not sign the photo? Ask who has like more civilians hamas or Israel?
(And just in case you're wondering, we make less than the national average income. Good budgeting and wise spending make these things possible.)
Nice nod to the great Joe Strummer, by the way!
...are those who've helped us.
Right 'round the corner could be bigger than ourselves.
Sounds as though you practice conscious consumerism as much as is possible. It would be hard to do much more. I also try to buy things that last, rather than cheap stuff made in China, but some days it seems like almost everything is made in China. I've started tailoring rather than replacing clothes if I go up or down (yay) a size, buying used goods where possible, etc.
I gave up meat, fish, eggs and trying to avoid dairy as much as I can (only thing left is getting rid of coffee in the morning, working on it). I've been vegan before but somehow got back to eating meat. This time, I just came to this point when realized "I don't want to be a part of it".
So I cook more often, healthy veggie dishes, re-discovering my way in the kitchen, this time without cruelty
I also try to get rid of drinking sodas. works most of the time
I buy much less than I used to, I used to buy clothing and such way too often. Especially when I traveled abroad. And just woke up one day and decided I wanna get rid of things, so I sold some and donated the rest and it feels so much lighter. I learned to choose quality over quantity.
And the most important thing is that I started creating things, when I want something I first of all think "can I make it?" if so, I do it. I take sewing classes, I create my own clothes and I love it.
Small changes, I know it's not something big, I know I can do more. But it is a good start.
Here is a pic with 2 dresses I sewed and some crochet work.
The dairy thing,sugars,soda I'm with you on but lean proteins ,yum.
Vegan diet is the best for the world we live in and I've done it a few times and eat vegetarian much of the time. Not perfect, but fairly often.
In my previous workplace we used to do a "meatless monday".