Supercharging the Predicaments We Face
The predicaments we face have never been supercharged like they are right now. For those who don't subscribe to aggregate sites such as The Collapse Chronicles, Phys.org, Desdemonda Despair (James has since discontinued regular articles), and so many others (see Resource Links, Disease Outbreak Resources, and Files), the daily reminder of precisely where we are as a species can be somewhat overwhelming if one doesn't practice restraint. I used to read articles of new studies every day. Like so many other bloggers and individuals who keep track of these things, I eventually realized that my not checking them every single day would change nothing other than keep me more happy as a result. Knowing that these predicaments will continue accelerating and that I have extremely limited abilities to be able to do much of anything about it, limiting my time spent paying attention to them and focusing more on doing things that I have more agency to be able to accomplish makes better sense.
There has never been a time like today when opting out of the system to the extent possible has been a better idea than it is right now. Every wise person who has read my articles knows that there is no escape from the predicament of ecological overshoot and its symptom predicaments. There are those who believe in a "bottleneck" which can be navigated through, but this is an illusion created in minds which do not have the imagination or capacity to see how these predicaments intertwine and become threat multipliers and feedback loops to other predicaments, sometimes creating brand new predicaments few saw coming.
A new documentary from the PBS show American Experience details the story about what happened in Niagra Falls at a neighborhood known as the Love Canal. The history is interesting, if not sad as to what happened. Those of us in our 60s and up will remember stories about it on the news. Sadly, this is just one of literally thousands of sites like this around the country.
This article isn't going to contain a myriad of articles to prove my point, as I have already accomplished that over the last 4 years with more than 200 articles and pages here. More proof is coming - just wait. At the same time, however, there are more recent incidents that demonstrate how the levels of toxicity being released into the environment today are just as dangerous if not more so. The Moss Landing battery fire in California is just one of many. Many of the wildfires in the western United States likewise produce a huge amount of toxic ash and dust, not to mention spreading untold amounts of contaminants into the air and waterways. As I am writing this, three new wildfires broke out in Helene-devastated North Carolina.
So many people ask why we didn't do something sooner or why we aren't doing anything right now. In reality, WE™ are actually doing things, but they're all taking us in the wrong direction because most all those things depend upon industrial civilization, fossil fuel energy use, and resources of one type or another. In other words, once civilization has completed this most recent cycle of collapse, none of those things will continue to be possible. It's all unsustainable. Also, because all of those things actually increase overshoot rather than reduce it, all we are really doing is making all the symptom predicaments worse.
As for why we aren't doing the correct things, George Tsakraklides explains why in this article. Human psychology being what it is, denial of reality is a huge part of the issue, optimism bias provides a part of it, false beliefs contribute to it, and our own behavioral and cultural conditioning and indoctrination play a part as well. How many people have the wisdom to comprehend that it is our behavior of technology use and innovation that got us into this mess?
Much of this has to do with our lack of understanding relationships. How much and often do you consider nature? The Law of Reciprocity is actually real. Imagine if we were taught about relationships in school. Relationships really are one of the best life skills to develop, as they influence practically everything in our lives, yet relationship skills aren't taught. This is evident in the divorce rate, the number of lawsuits, and a whole host of other societal ills. Part of the issue is caused by folks who think they have some sort of control over others when in reality that is just another false belief. In order to facilitate change, one must start with himself or herself. Understanding that our behavior of technology use causes ecological overshoot and that in order to reduce the symptom predicaments, we must reduce overshoot. To do that, we must reduce technology use. However, very few are even the least bit interested in such a goal.
At the end of the day, we are a hugely successful species; too successful and clever for our own good. Ecological wisdom is important, but ecological facts are also necessary and many myths still pervade society. I often bring up my article about pollution loading because it contains so many good articles, studies, and a video that points to our reduced capacity for reproduction - slated to be nonexistent by 2060 and recently I read where an update reduced the length of time to 2045! PFAS (aka "forever chemicals") are most likely having an impact.
Basically, ecological collapse is happening in front of us. Bird populations around the world are falling dramatically for several reasons - HPAI H5N1 is one reason. Marine heatwaves are another. Climate change is "reshuffling the species cards." Not only are species being decimated by all of this, biodiversity is also crashing.
These are just a few of the stories I've read recently about the situation we find ourselves enmeshed within. So, going back to my initial points, spending time focusing on things I can actually accomplish rather than hoping for things that cannot be or continuing reading material that I already know enough about is precisely what Living Now is all about. The likelihood that other people will agree on what needs to be done to reduce overshoot is remote at best. Many folks will want to engage in reassuring lies rather than inconvenient truths. Comprehending the implications means that I realize that global unity isn't likely anytime soon (or ever, for that matter).
This means that acceptance is still the best way to help yourself and others reach the same conclusions. A person who hasn't accepted the reality means that he or she is still in denial or bargaining (or another one of the stages of grief) mode and will be unable to correctly assess or make any decisions that would actually help to reduce overshoot. The mass denial of reality happening currently in the U.S. means that a large portion of society will be unable to assist in making ecological wisdom a reality, thereby supercharging the predicaments we face.
On a note of optimism, today's Live Now moments come to us courtesy of Chief Logan State Park. May we keep his words and Indigenous principles in our minds and hearts.
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