480 pray for peace

So I kinda finished writing the text of that new book, "The Future In Front of Our Face." But now I don't exactly know what to do with it. I guess publish it, but my experience is more people would read it if I posted it here free. But I wrote it all already, and it kinda feels old news to put here. 

Maybe it's time to investigate Substack. ;)

One of the claims I make in the book is that urban streets are going to be reclaimed from the car, in favor of housing and commerce. The pictures above, and parklets, and tents everywhere? As crazy as it sounds, it's already happening.

Anyway, watch here to figure out how to read the whole thing, once I've figured out how to present it.

The big topic this week isn't coronavirus, it's Ukraine. Another topic I'm not an expert at.

This is pretty old, but it gets to the point. Whenever there's nefarious shit going down, follow the money.

Do not take this as an apology for what Russia is doing. I do not support any violence. I'm also very pro-democracy.

I'm also also fully aware that whatever story we're being fed by the US media is propaganda. It's our oligarchs' version of what they want us to think.

Right now, they want us to think "bad guy doing bad things to nice people." Probably true, but not exactly the truth.

In 2003, the same media really didn't want us to think the US invading Iraq -- an unprovoked attack on a sovereign nation complete with "shock and awe" -- they didn't want you to think that was about oil or daddy issues. 

As a single person far away, I don't know what to do as I watch misery unfold. Bloviating doesn't seem up to the challenge. Snarkiness, either. 

Love might help. Rays of light. Miracles. Human connection over our shared experience during this one precious life on this one incredible planet.

Speaking of Coronavirus. The spike is over, and we've settled at... Way more cases per day than we locked down over. But apparently they're not going to the ICU, so the all clear is being sounded.

It strikes me as pretty heinous that the wealthy (people on a micro scale, countries on a macro scale) were able to sit this one out and wait for a vaccine while the poor became a petri-dish for coming up with new (weaker) strains.

Also, did you hear about "red covid?"

This is the idea that more people in "red" voting areas died. It was slightly true before the vaccine became available. (Chart above.)

And very evident after people started expressing their political preferences by being anti-vax. (Below.)

We hear plenty about CO2 and climate change. But what exactly is happening?

That means...

And is it your responsibility?

Yes and no. The ball is already in motion. We're born into this system. If you're very turned on, you might make some personal life choices that will amount to a drop in a bucket... Not much. 

Systemic change does need all of our help, but also, uh, some coordination. And an upgraded system. Like, for instance, our way of managing water.

We hear a bit about dams and fish. But do we ever hear about dams and drought?

Sometimes, apparently, the best solutions have to do with "less."

But they're also the hardest solutions to see.

I like nice showers and clean drinking water, too. But I'm willing to talk about filtering and reclamation... And restoring wetlands and rivers to their natural flow.

Be safe and pray for peace.