Living As If Mother Earth Matters...She Does.
Liberal vs. conservative, right vs. left, business vs. labor, rich vs. poor, us vs. them. I think the old dichotomies that we have used in the past to frame political discourse are quickly becoming obsolete in modern politics.

The reason? The monumental challenges we as a society, as a civilization face: peak oil, global climate change, economic depression, the increasing rate of species extinction. They all scream out for a redefining of how we think about our world and our place in it. In my view, this is a good thing…and long overdue. For about as long as I have followed politics, I have felt we need to redefine how we frame this raucous conflict we call politics. Old paradigms must fall by the wayside if civilization is to maintain any foothold on this planet as it attempts to adapt to a crashing system based on the ridiculous assumption of unlimited growth and an abuse of nature as if it were a bottomless toilet.

The more we really see that our economy is built on top of a fragile, living planet, the more we see that we are not masters of a dead sphere of rock with a thin coating of life. We are not even stewards of this self-regulating planet, often called “Gaia” by scientists in a new field of study called, "geophysiology," but rather humble participants; partners, if you will. As such, we are responsible for doing our part to obey the laws of mutuality that govern all life on our sacred, life-sustaining sphere.

If that sounds about right to you…if you have this nameless, gnawing feeling in your gut that something is very wrong with what we call civilization, I assure you: you are not alone. My assertion is that it is time to develop new paradigms based on a respect for our true, more humble, place in the system of life on Gaia. Let’s start by working together, using scientific reason, to determine what is right for the planet. Then put our discoveries at the center of all decision-making. Revolutionary? You bet! But such a re-assessment can only bring a lasting harmony and help us to rediscover humanity’s true connection with our living planet. And that would be well worth the price of admission.

Happy Winter Solstice and kind blessings for a New Year...
John