Sunday, June 27, 2010
I’M MAD AS HELL, AND I’M NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE !!!
I want to introduce myself and an idea that you might find interesting.
First, I have been an environmental activist and educator for the past 30 years . While I have always believed that I have fought “the good fight,” I must admit that I have reached the point where I am at my wits end. I can not take the rampant self-serving denial that permeates our society’s direction. My last resort is to attack it head on, with no apology, in-your-face commentary.
I would like to introduce;
The Universal Curmudgeon — A Voice of Outrage.
by Don Kyhote (the pen name I used in the US)
“Society is like a stew, if you don’t keep it stirred up, you get a lot of scum on top.” —Edward Abbey
…”and you get burnt at the bottom.” —Universal Curmudgeon
As The Universal Curmudgeon, I am exercising the right to disagree, while it is still legal. This will not be the standard liberal, polite, consensus-building pap that presently serves as the loyal opposition to today’s full bore assault of “free-market fundamentalism” in public discourse. Where are Mark Twain, H.L. Mencken, and I. F. Stone when we need them.
We have just lost a very courageous voice of ecological reason with the passing of Donella Meadows, who wrote the syndicated column, The Global Citizen. I could always count on her to publicly represent what I knew and felt. We have shared ideas and students for over thirty years. Her incisive probing was always right to the point, but to me she always, for the better part of diplomacy, stopped short of where I would have gone. While we shared the disappointment and outrage, she would point with a velvet glove where I wanted to hammer the last nail in the coffin of this or that death-dealing practice.
To me the time for pussy-footing around is gone. It is time to tell it like it is whether anyone likes hearing it or not. We need to wake up from the collective dream we are living. If it takes the ravings of a curmudgeon, So be it !
That’s THE UNIVERSAL CURMUDGEON, combining the incisive edge of Okham’s razor, so effectively used by Dana Meadows, with hard-hitting no- nonsense ridicule of our collective insanity.
The Right has its outrageous ideological diatribes (If I need to identify them for you, you are verifying the need I will be addressing). The Left deserves the same. Mass media seems to easily include these uninformed windbags along with the slanted commentary of the network pundits, yet there seems to be no room for any one to challenge. When was the last time you heard Noam Chomsky’s opinion on any situation as opposed to Henry Kissinger’s ??
There is an eerie silence pervading the halls of opposition in the nation’s Capitol. Lost in the polite discourse of reconciliation is any adamant disagreement with the lunacy passing as government in Washington. The Universal Curmudgeon, will be a hard hitting, in-your-face confrontation of deceit and manipulation, a no-holds-barred alternative voice that isn’t being heard.
I’ll be speaking the truth as I see it, take it or leave it, no attempt to convince any body of anything, I have given up on “educating.” After 30 years of “teaching” I’ve lost faith in education American-style. I have come to believe that it is education that has brought us from a pre-literate time where people had great respect and humility for the gifts of Nature that supports life and us all to a time of arrogance and profound disrespect of these gifts and the self-absorbed belief that we are now in control and have the right to own everything. This is a sick, distorted, greedy, arrogantly ignorant view of the world and I will have none of it.
The Curmudgeon will comment, you can listen or not, its your choice.
Initial installments of THE UNIVERSAL CURMUDGEON will be:
“Free-Market Fundamentalism:” the most pervasive cult in the history of humankind spreads its belief system to detriment of all but the money changers of the temple. (UC # 1.1)
“The Heeling Opposition”–After the most problematic National election in American History, bi-partisan cries for healing have resulted in the virtual disappearance of any loyal opposition in Washington.
“Now that you’ve heard from Bill Moyers”– Will the expose of one of the few credible journalists left wake people up to the ever increasing corporate control over all aspects of our lives ???
“California’s Energy Crisis: It’s all about the Money, Stupid !” — It is not about lack of supply or increase in demand, it’s an example of “free-market fundamentalism run amok.
“California as Third World” — where energy corporations and their federal government are mirroring multinational corporations, the World Bank and IMF by subverting political and civic will to force “structural adjustment” for explicit corporate benefit.
“Message, Means, Motivation”– Twenty years later, Amory Lovins triumphantly returns to Stanford to work his magic on an adoring, instead of hostile audience–What’s so different ?? (UC# 1.4)
“Let’s Talk About Conflict of Interest” — After having a book review about my dead Professor’s book declined because of “my conflict of interest,” I would like to consider real conflict of interest. (UC#1.2)
“Vested Interests in Quebec City” — What was happening behind the barricaded walls during “The Summit of the Americas ?” What are all those
protesters outside so upset about ? You wouldn’t know from the press reports. (UC#1.3)
“The Globalization of Dissent” — From Seatle, Davos, Quebec City, to Prague, Gottenburg, New Delhi and deadly Genoa thousands of voices are being raised in opposition to “globalization.” The out cries are in different languages but the message is the same: “We do not want our lives controlled by corporations.” Why does public awareness among the American public lag far behind most of the rest of the world?
“Energy and Society: A Systems View”– Growth, stability or decline, in both natural and social systems, is determined by the interdependent relationship between energy and structure.” (UC#1.5)
“Efficiency: A Matter of Perspective” — Different definitions of efficiency represent very different vested interests that greatly impact the development of energy policy. (UC#1.6)
“Nucs: Born-Again Stillborn”– After a trillion-dollar taxpayer investment, nuclear power delivers little more US energy than wood. While representing “the greatest collapse in industrial history,” the administration wants to resuscitate an industry that has never been more than a lifeless and deadly fiasco.
“Spin, Word Magic and the Civility Ploy”– The cultivation of image over substance, the seductive and deceptive use of language and the shallow civility of the powerful over the powerless has become the currency of the realm.
“People Do !” Do people intimidate, maim and displace indigenous people from their land to gain access to their resources? People do, when they aren’t out there “saving” the eagles. A look at the insulting, manipulative public image efforts of multinational corporations.
“Genetic Engineering, the next High-tech Ponzi Scheme”– Hubris and greed line up to create the next big pyramid scheme where hyped expectation will bring great riches to the early players before the mass delusion evaporates in the face of reality.
“Genes for Sale”– NOBODY should own a gene pool. PERIOD !!
“Better Life through Biochemistry” — These biotech. industries don’t understand biology and they don’t want you to either.
“The Arrogance of Power” — The degree of arrogance displayed by our country’s “appointed” leaders towards the entire civilized world comes from their belief that they are in absolute control. We need to show them otherwise.
“Culture and Song” — Our changing culture is reflected in song through the move from active participation of community sing-a-longs to passive reception of high-production value canned MTV and the purposefully anti-social, individualistic rap.
“Behind Prozac and Pot” — What’s behind the promotion and prohibition of
drugs in America?
“Money Changers in the Temple” — The body is the temple of the spirit and a government-sponsored corporate eugenics industry is poised to take control of our very being for profit.
“Science, Scientism and Science for Sale” — From a way of knowing , to the only way of knowing, to blatant know-nothing commercialism.
“Regulating the Commons” — “Society can not exist unless a controlling power upon will and appetite be placed somewhere, and the less of it there is within, the more there must be without.”