In recent weeks I’ve really taken to reading The Dissident Voice. I’m nearly caught up, speaking from when I first subscribed to their feed, ’til now — with special thanks, in large part, to Mac OS Xs Voice Over Utility. And given what I’m writing about today, it’s somewhat ironic that technology is so beneficial.
Yesterday, on the aforementioned website, I came across a particularly compelling article, labelled Earthbound. Which ended;
“As the oil age recedes in the mind’s rear view mirror, science fiction will become a genre about the past. Pondering those who needed machines to do just about everything, from brushing their teeth, to writing, to self pleasure, future readers will be amused, disgusted and only seldom envious. Imagine a world where music was a nuisance because it had become repetitive and could not be silenced! Imagine people who could barely walk, yet flew!”
Which got me thinking. About many things, but the current state of the economy and our environment, in particular…
Not that this is a new thought of mine, it is however becoming increasingly valid, each and everyday. Rather than fight what is sure to come, being the “Mother of all Depressions,” we need to embrace and prepare for the inevitable. That is, of course, if we’d wish to continue to exist in any meaningful manner. I don’t know about you, but I would.
And, yes, I know, all too well, what that means for an individual such as myself. I need a certain amount of technology in order to live my life. Period! No-one recognizes that fact better than myself. And nothing scares me more than not having it. I need a wheelchair for mobility. An electric wheelchair, in fact. A chair that needs to be re-charged nearly everyday. And without a relatively constant supply of resources, not just electricity, but essential equipment and services (seating and repair) my world drastically shrinks from — assuming I have full access to everything I could ever want, which I don’t, but for the sake of argument, let’s say I do – “limitless possibilities,” to whatever I can reach and grab with my right arm and hand, lying flat on my back. So saying I have rather keen interests in seeing, no needing, a lot of our modern world to continue to function precisely as it does, is an understatement.
But I recognize my way of life cannot be sustained. I see the writing on the wall. We can’t just deal with this as it comes, it’s already here, and it’s time to adapt. Do you really think we will do better facing the coming catastrophes having not prepared? Everything we love, work toward, and rely on is interconnected. One, most certainly, has to do with the other. And it’s all coming down.
Out of the two possible outcomes we will likely succumb to, call me foolish, one where life is drastically cut back — where survival, not comfort, is the driving force — is much preferable to annihilation. From where I sit I don’t see we have any other option. Change the status quo. Or die. It’s too late for negotiation. We’ve shit our pants and we can no longer avoid not sitting in it.
So rather than try to fight off something we, as a species and a planet, can no longer avoid, it would be wise to acknowledge our impending destruction and prepare to lessen its effect. We haven’t much longer. It’s going to get us one way or another. And this may be way late, but it’s better late than never, I hope.
We need change. Real change. Now! It’s obvious change won’t “trickle down” from the top. It’s a ludicrous myth it ever has. We all need to change our ways. From the bottom up. It’s time to act. Otherwise we, the arrogant assholes living as the world owes us, have no-one to blame but ourselves…