What is it going to take?

I am not optimistic at the progress being made ahead of the crucial conference on climate in Copenhagen later this year. Indications are that everyone is in there looking out for their own agenda, with the US and EU leading the shameful lot, not willing to agree to anything binding, looking for loopholes left and right, trying to exempt entire sectors known to pollute excessively, etc...

I have many questions. One is where are our leaders? What do they think their job really is? Is getting re-elected so important that they will make sure not to piss off their sugar daddies, aka lobbyists and corporate backers, even if that means going against the will and best interest of humanity?

The other question is: What will it take? Because let's be clear. This is not an if, it's a when. These guys will try to punt to the next guy until one day it's truly too late and we have to face up to it. This will be true for Social Security reform. It will especially be true for global warming.

So what will it take? What will be the tipping point? Will a hurricane 5 times as strong as as Katrina need to kill 100,000 people? Or wipe out Florida? Or when some US states have to do rotating water outages, similar to what California did when Enron was toying with the grid, because they can't meet demand?

What about if the rest of the world decides to challenge the sovereignty of our decision not to act? With less than 5% of the world population we generate almost 30% of the world pollution. If any other country in the world did that, we would deem that a threat to our national security and would likely commit them by force to change their ways. The US is strong, but what if all of Asia, Africa and Europe decide to unite against us to finally make us act? Would we nuke them all (I'm sure someone has already suggested that nuclear winter would be one way to stop global warming)? What if the entire world goes on a coordinated boycott of American products? What if China and Korea and others stop buying our currency and treasury securities, and instead threaten to dump their trillions of dollars of holdings, a move sure to collapse our economy?

I sincerely hope none of these things happen. My point is that this is like a tooth cavity, it will never get better on its own. The longer you wait to go to the dentist the worse the decay will get. But you know it's coming, it's just a matter of time.

Our leaders need to hear from us that we will hold them accountable for their inaction. And they need to hear we accept that this isn't just about making the hard political decisions, it's about following through with some real changes in our lifestyles, consumption habits, etc... From all of us. Starting now.

I recently read the book 'No Impact Man', in which the author says he never thought he was someone who could make a difference, and what he learned is that he is someone who is sure willing to try. That applies to all of us.

Write your elected representatives. Join a cause in your area that is going beyond talk and taking the message more directly to those in power. If you're not sure where to start, click on one of the badges on the right of the page to learn more about the Seal the Deal campaign, Tck Tck Tck or 350.org, among others. But do something.

A Gift to Humanity

'It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit'. Harry Truman.

One of the key barriers to rapid adoption of something new, no matter how beneficial to mankind, is who holds the rights to it. These days, everyone wants to patent their thing. We have strong remedies to treat AIDS patients. We have innovative technologies to reduce energy consumption or generate more in a sustainable way. And so on. But the patent owners are there, lined up, lobbying and marketing, waiting for their big pay day. Or worse, sometimes patents are acquired for defensive reasons because they threaten established, typically noxious industries, only to slow progress or adoption.

For anyone who's watched Food, Inc. you know companies like Monsanto have built huge lucrative monopolies on the back of patented seeds that farmers are pretty much obligated to use. The corn you buy in the supermarket will likely soon come with a trademark on it.

What if I stumble onto a cure for cancer tomorrow? Or discover a way to harness the power of the sun at a hundredth of the cost of methods known today? Or devise a way to provide food and clean water to the whole world in an environmentally sustainable and cost effective way? Should I be allowed to profit from that? To somehow restrict access to my invention only to those who are able to pay for it? At what point does an invention become of such public utility that it should belong to all of humanity? I'm all for rewarding innovation and hard work, but there are limits. Especially when lives are at stake. This is where Eminent Domain should come in. Rather than spend hundreds of billions of dollars bailing out moribund financial instutions, let's use public funds to acquire the rights to key medical, technological and environmental inventions. And then turn them over freely to the entire world. I bet the ROI on this investment would be off the charts!!

Talk about a different war on terror. Imagine the headlines in Gaza or Kabul or Islamabad if the USA made such a gift to the world. If our message was that we would use our might and our money not to send bombs and soldiers across borders, but doctors and architects and engineers with unrestricted access to the inventions needed to improve the lives of populations everywhere.

As John Lennon so rightly said: You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one. I hope someday you'll join us, and the world will be as one.

Peace...

Another Inconvenient Truth

I saw Michael Moore's new movie this weekend, 'Capitalism: A love story'. It could have well been titled 'Another Inconvenient Truth'...!

I'll start out by admitting I have long been a fierce believer in the efficiency, power and inherent fairness of free market forces. Allowing supply and demand to inter-operate freely, whether it be for goods, labor, etc... I continue to believe that. But I have also come to the conclusion that our economy is far from a free market economy, and is in fact manipulated and distorted by powerful forces.

The other inconvenient truth, following Al Gore's assertions on what human activity is doing to our planetary environment and climate, is that the economic system we have long held up as the model to promote fairness and opportunity for all is in fact not doing that at all.

Moore does a good job of reminding us that the cut-throat, profit-at-all-cost model our capitalistic economy is based on is not somehow defined in our constitution, or somehow ideologically inherited from the founders of this country. Further, he clearly demonstrates that the greed and ruthlessness that the system promotes clearly go against established religious beliefs of looking out for one another etc... Moore then tries to give socialism a good name, and there I think he fails. Socialism, communism and even capitalism have their merits on paper, in theory. Where Moore loses credibility is that socialism has proven to be just a corrupt as any other model. The Soviet model was 'you will all be equal in poverty and oppression'. The European socialist model was for the most part 'we will tax ourselves into an economic coma and the ruling class will squander the money'. Mind you, at least they have long vacations and universal healthcare and typically a much higher quality of life, so it's not all bad. But it's not all good either.

So where does that leave us? Well, for one it's high time to dramatically reduce the power the corporations and their lobbies have in our government. For this, real campaign finance reform is needed. We all watch - outraged but idle - as lawmakers who are taking millions from health insurance lobbies try to convince us that universal health care in un-American. Or as we continue wasting tens of billions of tax payer dollars on unjust wars instead of using that money to build renewable energy and cleaning up our planet.

Moore reminds us that when GM auto workers were being bullied by corrupt local police and industry thugs, Roosevelt sent in the National Guard to protect the workers. I wonder if President Obama should call in the National Guard to prevent all lobbyists from approaching within 1000 feet of the Capitol while urging Congress into an extraordinary session to get some real work done. None of this 'starting to phase in by 2017' crap...

Drastic regulatory measures with real teeth are needed. But first, enough politicians with real integrity are needed to support these measures. Do we have enough of these?

Can we regulate fairness? Are we measuring success in this country in ways that push us to these cut-throat systems? By most measures other than GDP, the US falls very far down the list when it comes to social equality, quality of life, etc... Is that the American dream? I say it's not.

My main fight is to combat climate change and the destructive human activities causing it. Yet it is clear that blind capitalism is the very cause of planetary abuse, pushing for consumption for its own sake, making long term sacrifices for the sake of short-term returns, etc...

Enough. Moore has a fantastic quote at the end of the movie: 'I refuse to live in a country like this, and I'm not going anywhere'. Change is needed. Real change. And it won't happen on its own. The American people deserve so much better, the world deserves so much better. Throughout history, oppressed populations have risen up against tyrants, have stood up for what was right once they could no longer stand by and tolerate the egregious behavior of those who were oppressing them.

Given the outrage of having been lied to in order to get this country into unjust wars, or to bail out financial institutions that did not deserve to survive (and whose leaders should be made to give back all the money they took while raping the system and should be sent to jail), or watching in real time as the health care lobby buys its way into even more lucrative outcomes, I'd say the tipping point is not far off. Politicians in Washington today will soon need to decide if they want to be part of the solution, or continue being part of the problem.

The Age of Stupid

If you haven't seen the Age of Stupid, go see it. Not because it's a cinematographic achievement or because you're likely to learn something new. But because you'll be taking action in voting with your feet and giving credibility to the important message this movie conveys.

I was in Las Vegas attending a conference and found a theater that carried the live premiere. There might have been 20-25 people in the theater. A group of UNLV students kindly asked me to join them so I wouldn't have to watch by myself. I wondered how 20-year olds look at this, the pathetic inaction of most of our leaders, the corrupt and criminal stalling and misinformation tactics of many corporations, and still have any faith that regular political processes will yield anything positive and meaningul.

In short: Are we, as a species, stupid enough not to take the necessary action to ensure our own survival, and in the process cause billion of fellow human beings to suffer climate-inflicted hardships and catastrophes.

There are several important subtext messages in this movie, including:
- This movement is still too much on the fringe, not yet mainstream enough. More people need to realize the urgency of the problem and exert pressure on themselves and their government to do something about it.
- Too many people agree with the IDEA of doing something to save the planet, as long as it doesn't inconvenience their day to day, obstruct their view, impact their property values, etc... The world has no time to wrestle with NIMBY mentalities or 'someone will come up with a solution that doesn't require any sacrifice'.
- Trying to do the right thing and get others to wake up still is considered radical, or criminal. Just ask the Yes Men (you guys rock!!! Brilliant New York stunt!), or Greenpeace activists, or anyone trying to go beyond words to make a statement.

To the so-called Greatest Generation, the one that stepped up in a big way to win WWII: Can we make you proud and do you one better? London parents sent their kids off to the countryside to live with strangers during the Battle of Britain. The entire US industrial machine turned on a dime and supported the war effort. Women entered the work force by record numbers - while keeping all the work they were already doing at home. And so on...

This type of mass scale mobilization is what we need now. None of this 'let's maybe think of reducing our impact somewhat by 2020 and see what happens' crap. Let's be bold. Let's do it with purpose and pride. Let's be the generation history books in 500 years look back to and teach kids about the way we stepped up and ensured the well being of all future generations.

Talk about making an impact. Talk about redefining what it means to be human, no longer a destructive force in this world but a healing and building one. Wow, I want in...

Discover Hope Fund

We're going to a fundraiser tonight for a local non-profit, Discover Hope Fund. This is a micro-credit organization that takes the concept further by focusing their efforts not just on funding entrepreneurial efforts in developing communities, but applying educational and support resources along the way. Their values as stated on their Web site are amazing and am copying them below. Read and I hope you are as inspired by them as I am. This is the kind of world we should all live in.

Igniting Personal Power

We believe that everyone has a fundamental right to give their greatest strengths to the world. We know that when a person is inspired to light their internal and external power, the world changes. Stepping through the door of opportunity takes initiative and courage and commitment to continuous learning. We believe that out of this amazing work, self respect creates a backdrop for constant growth. In turn, future generations see this powerful way of being and integrate this strength into the fabric of their communities. We believe in being change.

Practicing Authenticity

We believe in the sanctuary of integrity and know that our actions resonate out into the world and constitute the type of world we want to help create. We practice authenticity by reflecting what is true for people through listening and actions that honor the foundation of people’s passions. We believe in being awake.

Promoting Abundance

We believe that once personal power is nurtured, the vitality of the entrepreneurial spirit is liberated. When the doors of opportunity are open, we can usher in a life of abundance. This core value is rooted in absolute love framed by compassion and generosity that expands to children, communities and the world. We believe in being hope.

Letter to the President

I received yet another solicitation from Organizing for America (OFA), President Obama's group to mobilize his electorate, to donate funds to support his position on health care. I sent the following reply to OFA and to the White House:

'As much as I believe health care for all to be important, the most critical issue our civilization is facing right now is that of the way our lifestyles and industrial processes are depleting the natural resources of our planet and forever polluting our environment.
I want to see President Obama make this the first, second and third priorities of his presidency. Anything less would be a dramatic failure in leadership and would have dramatic consequences for our environment, economy and health.
If the President makes this the centerpiece of his agenda, there will be no limit to the financial and political support I will be willing to give him.
Thank you.'

Yet another view on health care

There are many views being expressed in the health care debate currently alive in the US. It's hard to find someone who's not passionate about their viewpoint - and relatively entrenched in their positions.

I recently read Kyrsten Sinema's 'Unite & Conquer: How to Build Coalitions that Win and Last'. One of the key points she makes in the book is that in order to build support around an initiative, it is important to build agreement around what problem needs to be solved, and be flexible on how that problem can be solved.

This intuitive approach has clearly been missing from the debate. Everyone has strong views on 'single payer', 'public option', 'government-run', 'insurance company profits', and so on... These are mechanisms but in themselves solve nothing. Focusing the debate on these things makes for good political posturing but does little to address the real issues.

I watched Michael Moore's 'Sicko' yesterday. As always, well done, very moving, but also somewhat overdone. I felt he weakened his argument by painting such a rosy picture of the systems found in France or the UK for example. These systems are not nearly as perfect as he paints them (I've experienced both personally), although they are definitely better than what the US has today. And that's the point I think Moore should have pressed. For the money being spent on US health care today, we absolutely deserve a much better, fairer, more effective system.

Moore talks from the point of view of the people who need health care and who experience great hardships due to the way the system currently works. This is the story that should be at the core of the debate, not all these mechanisms and options and 'means to an end'. Health care is about real people, real suffering, real hardship.

President Obama - similar to Hillary Clinton 15+ years ago - I think was too quick to present a solution. His opportunity was to create alignment and momentum around the problem needing to be solved, then bringing together his strongest 'team of rivals' yet to come up with solutions that would 1) solve the problem and 2) have chance of becoming law.

I liked Moore's parallels to police and fire departments, schools, post offices, as public services we take completely for granted. But again they argue in favor of making the entire system public. The fact is that the US health care system is almost entirely private, and any lasting solution will need to build from that point. We can't put the entire health insurance industry out of business overnight for example, that wouldn't necessarily help and that is the type of talk that freaks out a big chunk of the population. Of course that doesn't mean we can't deem health care coverage of public utility and regulate it as such, with strong safeguards...

So let's try to refocus this debate. Let's agree on what really isn't working in the current system. Let's also agree on some fundamental principles, like everyone who needs health care has the right to receive it, regardless of ability to pay. Like the fact that having had health problems in the past is reason to be eligible for more help, not being denied coverage or service. Once we're aligned on what isn't working, and what success would look like in terms of end-user outcomes, it makes it easier to identify how to best solve for that.

That can include looking at what is already working in other parts of the world, but looking objectively. The French system is amazing and unrivaled from an end-user perspective, but it is a massive and quickly becoming unsustainable financial burden on the French economy.

In the end, US voters should demand no less than the best health care system in the world, as measured by its inclusive coverage, ease of access and affordability, best in class facilities and care, and ultimate success in improving the health and well being of all Americans, especially those who need it the most.