King Donald worries constantly about "others" coming. The King's friends had brought "others" into his kingdom to do jobs no one else wanted to do. The "others" brought their families and friends and soon the "others" out numbered the locals. This made the locals anxious and fearful of these people who were a different color and spoke a strange language. The King had assured the locals he would build a GREAT WALL to keep the "OTHERS" out, but the knights of the square table could not agree on anything, so no money was made available. The King became enraged and had his stooges declare a ban on the "others" coming into the kingdom, but the keepers of the LAW stood in the way.
Desperate. the King ordered his chief stooge, the round-faced grinning Howdy Dew to solve the "others" problem. Howdy did not like the "others" either, so he gleefully grabbed these "other people" and sent them out of the kingdom at a rapid rate.
UPDATE: The King's temper tantrum over the WALL continues and he now is defying the Knights of the Square Table by having his underlings steal money from other parts of the government to pay for his ego trip on the Texas border. Most people know the WALL is just for show---so the King can install a large mirror to use for admiration of himself.
Saturday, March 16, 2019
Friday, March 15, 2019
REPUBLICAN/WHITE NATIONALIST PARTY
For more than 30 years conservative Catholic and Protestant voters have been supporting the Republican Party. They have supported candidates who identify with their world view and support efforts to make the United States more of a "Christian nation". According to media reports 81% of Evangelical Christians voted for Donald Trump in the last election. They continue to support him despite his immoral and unethical behavior; and apparently believe his "Only I can take care of you" refrain. They believe his Supreme Court nominees will over turn Roe vs Wade and make abortion illegal in the U.S. Most support the president's border wall with Mexico as a way of keeping the "other" out of the country. Also they are very supportive of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, because they believe she will move tax dollars from public schools into private and religious schools which they support.
These same people try to deny minorities their constitution rights by supporting "religious freedom" bills. Evangelical and fundamental Christians teach that being gay is a sin, so they do not accept the position that LGBT citizens should enjoy civil rights such as the right to marry, or that gay couples should be able to adopt children or have they same legal status as heterosexual couples enjoy. In areas of the US controlled by the Republicans, there has been a concerted effort to undermine any move toward a more liberal/progressive position on social issues. The leadership of this movement believes the only way to stop the move toward a more progressive society is to elect public officials who agreed with them---thus we get a President Trump. It appears a lot of conservative Christians support Trump, because they think he is their best hope to move the nation toward a more "Christian society".
What about Trump's love affair with Russia? The conservative Christians have no problem with his cozy relationship with Putin because he supports the Russian Orthodox Church and as far as they are concerned he is the leader of a predominately "white" Christian country in the same battle with Islam as the US. They see no problem with Trump's defending Putin and believe he will be able to improve relations with the Russians and to them that would be a good thing.
White conservative Christians have been trying to limit the rights of minorities for a long time. They used their interpretation of the Bible to justify slavery, segregation and the separation of peoples of different colors ever since the nation was founded. It is not an accident that the Christian church is the most segregated institution in America. Some of it is cultural, but conservative white Christians especially in the South still hang on to the prejudices that they have carried with them for generations.
Republican/Conservative Christians oppose any efforts to solve the problems associated with human caused climate change. People who join a church by "accepting Jesus as their savior" believe they are saved and going to heaven. Thus they do not worry about what happens on Earth because they believe they are destined for paradise when they pass from the scene. They just do not care about anyone but themselves.
Speaking as a Progressive, I believe it is our duty as human beings to continue to point out the activities of others who are working to diminish the lives of our fellow citizens and expose the inequities that exist.
These same people try to deny minorities their constitution rights by supporting "religious freedom" bills. Evangelical and fundamental Christians teach that being gay is a sin, so they do not accept the position that LGBT citizens should enjoy civil rights such as the right to marry, or that gay couples should be able to adopt children or have they same legal status as heterosexual couples enjoy. In areas of the US controlled by the Republicans, there has been a concerted effort to undermine any move toward a more liberal/progressive position on social issues. The leadership of this movement believes the only way to stop the move toward a more progressive society is to elect public officials who agreed with them---thus we get a President Trump. It appears a lot of conservative Christians support Trump, because they think he is their best hope to move the nation toward a more "Christian society".
What about Trump's love affair with Russia? The conservative Christians have no problem with his cozy relationship with Putin because he supports the Russian Orthodox Church and as far as they are concerned he is the leader of a predominately "white" Christian country in the same battle with Islam as the US. They see no problem with Trump's defending Putin and believe he will be able to improve relations with the Russians and to them that would be a good thing.
White conservative Christians have been trying to limit the rights of minorities for a long time. They used their interpretation of the Bible to justify slavery, segregation and the separation of peoples of different colors ever since the nation was founded. It is not an accident that the Christian church is the most segregated institution in America. Some of it is cultural, but conservative white Christians especially in the South still hang on to the prejudices that they have carried with them for generations.
Republican/Conservative Christians oppose any efforts to solve the problems associated with human caused climate change. People who join a church by "accepting Jesus as their savior" believe they are saved and going to heaven. Thus they do not worry about what happens on Earth because they believe they are destined for paradise when they pass from the scene. They just do not care about anyone but themselves.
Speaking as a Progressive, I believe it is our duty as human beings to continue to point out the activities of others who are working to diminish the lives of our fellow citizens and expose the inequities that exist.
Saturday, March 9, 2019
CAN THE HUMAN SPECIES SURVIVE?
The BIOSPHERE encompasses all live forms on planet Earth. From the extremely tiny viruses to the giant Redwoods of California, every living thing is part of the BIOSPHERE. It is the life force created more than 3.8 billion years and passed on to us over millions of years. Its creation is a mystery to us and I believe we have received this life force as a sacred trust, to be understood, preserved and passed on to future generations.
As hunters and gathers 20,000 years ago we lived within the resources available to us and our impact on the BIOSPHERE was
very limited. The plants and animals used for food at the time sustained their populations despite human predation. The ecosystems remained in balance.
Since ancient times we humans have long used our large brains to make tools to improve success in finding and acquiring food, providing shelter and protecting our families. The same devices used to kill animals for food became weapons to threaten and eventually kill other humans. In the twenty-first century this has evolved into ballistic missiles and nuclear bombs.
Currently humans are exploiting Earth's resources at rates that are not sustainable; leading to severe changes in the BIOSPHERE. Fossil fuels have made modern civilization possible, but at a high cost in air, water and land pollution. The exploitation of animals, forests, the waters of lakes, rivers and oceans and the rich soils of the Earth have provided us with an existence our forefathers could never have imagined.
Yes, this same brain has also given us smart phones and electric cars; and this ingenuity has given us a fantastic array of "stuff" that make our lives more comfortable and worthwhile. We marvel at drones, robots, computers, digital cameras, etc. that now seem commonplace
The human population on planet Earth is about 7.7 billion persons. Each of these individuals needs food, water, clothing, shelter and health care. Can the resources of this planet be stretched to meet the needs of future billions of people?
The ANSWER is NO.
WHY?
The resources of this planet are limited.
Over the last 10,000 years humans have moved from small villages of a couple hundred people to huge cities of millions; from stone tools to Electric cars and smart phones; from small family farms of a few sheep and cows to huge industrial agriculture with thousands of animals on a single farm; from bows and arrows to missiles and nuclear bombs. This is what we like to call PROGRESS.
During this time the number of humans has increased from about 1 Million people in 8000 BC to 7.7 Billion today; a seven thousand six hundred per cent increase in 10,000 years. Safety in cities; control of disease vectors; cleaner water and air; and modern medicine have all contributed to this dramatic increase. People are just not dying any more. Humans who in the past would have died because of birth defects, accidents, war or disease continue to live. We are using modern medicine to keep everybody alive, leading to this dramatic increase in the number of human inhabitants of the planet.
This is NOT SUSTAINABLE.
Religions and cultures the world over have worked to make people's lives better, but these same entities have used their power to prevent the use of birth control, abortion and other family planning activities to control human population growth. No one wants to see their children die, but the lack of political will to recognize the need to limit the the number babies born is the basic cause of the increase.
I believe the Earth's BIOSPHERE will react to human destruction of the environment, by treating the human species as a disease; as a cancer on the life force of the planet; as an organism whose behavior is destroying the living space for all other life forms. The immune system of the BIOSPHERE will respond and we humans will not appreciate the result.
If the political climate continues as it exists today with little or no support for controlling population for religious and cultural reasons, the result will be catastrophic for the human species. Modern civilization has created conditions for its own demise.
Diseases have always been part of the biosphere and they affect all living organisms. They are what we call limiting factors in an ecosystem. Their effect on a particular species is to control its population by eliminating those who are not fit to continue its existence.
Crowded cities with millions of people, modern worldwide travel, millions of poor people with limited health care; and unsanitary conditions in many underdeveloped countries; will likely contribute to a worldwide pandemic in the future. A deadly virus spread by casual contact could easily travel across the planet and put all humans in peril. Is this our destiny? Can we act in time to prevent such a thing from happening?
The BIOSPHERE may very well discard the human species as just another creature bound for extinction and that would be a damn shame.
Do you care? Then do something.
As hunters and gathers 20,000 years ago we lived within the resources available to us and our impact on the BIOSPHERE was
very limited. The plants and animals used for food at the time sustained their populations despite human predation. The ecosystems remained in balance.
Since ancient times we humans have long used our large brains to make tools to improve success in finding and acquiring food, providing shelter and protecting our families. The same devices used to kill animals for food became weapons to threaten and eventually kill other humans. In the twenty-first century this has evolved into ballistic missiles and nuclear bombs.
Currently humans are exploiting Earth's resources at rates that are not sustainable; leading to severe changes in the BIOSPHERE. Fossil fuels have made modern civilization possible, but at a high cost in air, water and land pollution. The exploitation of animals, forests, the waters of lakes, rivers and oceans and the rich soils of the Earth have provided us with an existence our forefathers could never have imagined.
The human population on planet Earth is about 7.7 billion persons. Each of these individuals needs food, water, clothing, shelter and health care. Can the resources of this planet be stretched to meet the needs of future billions of people?
The ANSWER is NO.
WHY?
The resources of this planet are limited.
Over the last 10,000 years humans have moved from small villages of a couple hundred people to huge cities of millions; from stone tools to Electric cars and smart phones; from small family farms of a few sheep and cows to huge industrial agriculture with thousands of animals on a single farm; from bows and arrows to missiles and nuclear bombs. This is what we like to call PROGRESS.
During this time the number of humans has increased from about 1 Million people in 8000 BC to 7.7 Billion today; a seven thousand six hundred per cent increase in 10,000 years. Safety in cities; control of disease vectors; cleaner water and air; and modern medicine have all contributed to this dramatic increase. People are just not dying any more. Humans who in the past would have died because of birth defects, accidents, war or disease continue to live. We are using modern medicine to keep everybody alive, leading to this dramatic increase in the number of human inhabitants of the planet.
This is NOT SUSTAINABLE.
Religions and cultures the world over have worked to make people's lives better, but these same entities have used their power to prevent the use of birth control, abortion and other family planning activities to control human population growth. No one wants to see their children die, but the lack of political will to recognize the need to limit the the number babies born is the basic cause of the increase.
I believe the Earth's BIOSPHERE will react to human destruction of the environment, by treating the human species as a disease; as a cancer on the life force of the planet; as an organism whose behavior is destroying the living space for all other life forms. The immune system of the BIOSPHERE will respond and we humans will not appreciate the result.
If the political climate continues as it exists today with little or no support for controlling population for religious and cultural reasons, the result will be catastrophic for the human species. Modern civilization has created conditions for its own demise.
Diseases have always been part of the biosphere and they affect all living organisms. They are what we call limiting factors in an ecosystem. Their effect on a particular species is to control its population by eliminating those who are not fit to continue its existence.
Crowded cities with millions of people, modern worldwide travel, millions of poor people with limited health care; and unsanitary conditions in many underdeveloped countries; will likely contribute to a worldwide pandemic in the future. A deadly virus spread by casual contact could easily travel across the planet and put all humans in peril. Is this our destiny? Can we act in time to prevent such a thing from happening?
The BIOSPHERE may very well discard the human species as just another creature bound for extinction and that would be a damn shame.
Do you care? Then do something.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)