Wanted: Alien Abduction

Finally! Abduction. Good-bye Earthlings.

When I read the news these days I find myself dreaming of being abducted by aliens. I would love it if a flying saucer would go all X-Files on me. 

I would be drawn up into their craft in a beam of light, then transported to a far away planet inhabited by a race of beings that lived lives that actually made sense. 

My new friends would be dedicated to reason, logic, and scientific inquiry. 

They would honour the planet they rely on for their sustenance, and treat her with full respect. The alien system would be non-hierarchical, and the accumulation of wealth by single individuals would be seen as the insanity that it is wherever it exists. 

Being intelligent beings, they would have a system based on the abundance of the Universe, as opposed to the scarcity that causes so much grief on our own dismal planet. 

There would be no money.

These aliens would be dedicated to the improvement of their species, and they would build on the knowledge that was hard gained by their ancestors to develop advancements for the good of all. 

No Dark Ages or neo-feudalism here.

All the alien beings would be equals, and they would not discount and denigrate the skills and abilities of 50% of their population based on what kind of genitals they possess.

Their newspapers would be full of news, not weaponized propaganda and outright lies.

Planet Alien would have clean air, land, and water, and anyone that fouled either one would be exiled to Earth where such activities are actively encouraged by eco-cidal maniacs.

They would be loving and compassionate, and they would cherish all little alien children enough to put aside individual greed and selfishness so as to ensure a livable planet in perpetuity.

So, I say to the aliens, wherever they may be, "Abduct me! Please. I won't try to run away, or hide under my bed. I am not afraid."

I would even allow some gentle probing, which would be an major upgrade from taking it up the rear from a bunch of billionaires and their bought and paid for politicians here on my birth planet.

Remember, The Truth is Out There. 

For Whom Does Your Government Work?

I don't know if I am right, but it seems to me that a country that has a government that works for the people (like they are suppose to in theory), would have a lower incidence of poverty. One would also think that rich nations would have less poverty.

This is not the case, so I wonder - for whom do these governments really work?

The chart above reveals the priorities of various governments in OECD countries, which are among the most "highly developed". If these countries can't eliminate poverty, in spite of being the richest on the planet, how can any other country get rid of this scourge?

How about less war, and more help for people? We have everything we need to provide every citizen with a dignified, satisfying simple life. Could it be that our governments are the problem and not the solution?

For whom does your government work?

We Are Destroying Earth

Sure is hard, difficult and uncomfortable to be paying attention these days. You can ignore all the bad news if you wish, but the only way to make it go away permanently is to pay attention, then do something about it.

Thankfully, there are many good people that ARE doing something about it, including many of the readers of this blog and blogs like it. But we need more people. Way more. A critical mass of people that are pissed off and that won't take this crap any more.

The following is from Annarky's Blog, a place I visit daily.

"It is now obvious that the corporate world, is destroying the planet. Ground water is contaminated, rivers are polluted, oceans and seas are poisoned, glaciers are melting, forests are stripped bare. Natural habitats disappear under a carpet of tarmac and industrial constructions, more and more species become extinct. All this is done for profit to benefit the few. If we continue as we are doing, it is only a matter of time before the species responsible for this insane destruction of our planet will join the ever growing list of extinct species. 

Where does the state stand in all this? Take a glance around and it becomes obvious. Where resistance to this killing of the planet grows and gets in the way of corporate profit, the state apparatus, as the corporate world's hit squad, moves in and attempts to crush that resistance to the corporate greed and insanity."

Read more at: http://radicalglasgowblog.blogspot.ca, and thank you for paying attention and taking action. While no one can do everything, everyone can do something.

Protecting The Environment - Protecting Ourselves

“There’s still time to come to terms with our predicament and change direction.
Human destiny is not set in stone.”

Out of control corporations aided by bought-and-paid-for governments are destroying the environment and murdering life as we know it on our planet. At what point can we claim self-defence? We have to protect ourselves.

Protecting the biosphere on which we depend is self-defence. Without a healthy environment the Earth will eventually become hostile to human life.

So when will we join together as a human family to take charge of things and create the sustainable planet that we know is necessary if life is to continue here?

If we fail to protect the environment, then how will we protect ourselves? Will we have to abandon the planet as Stephen Hawking pessimistically thinks? I wonder because we sure are living like we have another planet to go to in the near future once this one is finished.

Are we doomed? Is the earth spent?

“There’s still time to come to terms with our predicament and change direction. Human destiny is not set in stone,” futurist Richard Slaughter writes. He believes that what humanity needs to undertake is an immediate full-scale global downshift of consumption and growth.

“The only way forward that makes sense is to seek clarity on what we are facing and mobilize on a society-wide and global scale to deal with it. Anything less will consign our children to a diminished and unlivable world," he says.

We must begin to practice some serious self-defence now, together, everywhere. Protecting the environment is protecting ourselves.

The Playful Revolution

Enough work - time to play

Since these are revolutionary times, why not recommend a revolution of spontaneous and undirected playfulness, or a ludic revolution? That is what Bob Black suggests we think about in his essay The Abolition of Work, which starts with, "No one should ever work".

He pretty much had me right there.

Think about it. What would you rather do? Play? Or engage in "compulsory productive activity enforced by economic or political means" (the definition of work)?

Black thinks the only way for us to be truly free is to reclaim our time from jobs and employment, and  turn necessary subsistence tasks into free play done voluntarily. It is a radical turn from conventional thinking, as we usually think of play as childish, or unproductive.

But productive play is possible. To set the stage for this bold shift of mindset we have to free ourselves by establishing full unemployment. The things that need to be done will still get done, but in Black's view, they will be done with purpose, engagement, and joy. And they would be done of our own volition.

Take a look at "one of the seminal underground documents of the 1980s". You can read it in its entirety here. It is pretty thought-provoking stuff that is heavy in some places, and chuckle-inducing in others. Either way, it makes you think about how work affects all our lives.

Enjoy. And remember to play today.

The Occupy Movement: Making Peaceful Revolution Possible

Last week an Occupy San Francisco encampment was shut down by police. Occupy Denver will be shut down tonight, and in New York it appears that Mayor Bloomberg, after saying protesters could stay as long as they wanted, wants the peaceful occupiers out. The excuse he is using is that the park needs to be "cleaned", but cleaned of what?

Corporations make their wishes known through 'lobbying'. Big Money sends out lobbyists with suitcases full of cash to shower on our politicians when votes go the right way. The lobbyists are welcomed by our 'leaders', who then go on to influence policy that affects the corporate world's greedy plans for market domination.

In stark contrast is when the people make their wishes known. Then it is called "protesting". Citizens become "protesters", or "hippies", or "anarchists". A group of such citizens are a "mob", and they are dangerous regardless of how peaceful they may appear. The police, agents of the state, move in.

"Bad protester - Go Home!"

Lobbyists are given a seat at the table, while citizens exercising their free speech rights are harassed, arrested, jailed, then told to go home and wait for the next election.

In a democracy we have a responsibility to be engaged in our political system at all times. When we see injustice it is our responsibility to speak out and demand change from the individuals we vote to represent us.

If we are not allowed to do this peacefully, then do we really live in a democracy any more?

Corporate media will tell you that the Occupy Movement does not have a coherent message. For those that are actually listening, and are not threatened by the truths within, the message can be heard loud and clear:

"Over the last 30 years, the 1% have created a global economic system - neoliberalism - that attacks our human rights and destroys our environment. Neoliberalism is worldwide - it is the reason you no longer have a job, it is the reason you cannot afford healthcare, education, food, your mortgage. Neoliberalism is your future stolen. 

Neoliberalism is everywhere, gutting labor standards, living wages, social contracts, and environmental protections. It is "a great vampire squid wrapped around the face of humanity, relentlessly jamming its blood funnel into anything that smells like money." It is a system that ravages the global south and creates global financial crisis - crisis in Spain, in Greece, in the United States. It is a system built on greed and thrives on destablizing shocks. It allows the 1% to enrich themselves by impoverishing humanity. 

This has to stop!
We must usher in an era of democratic and economic justice.
We must change, we must evolve. 

On October 15th the world will rise up as one and say, "We have had enough! We are a new beginning, a global fight on on all fronts that will usher in an era of shared prosperity, respect, mutual aid, and dignity."

- From occupywallst.org

Let's make peaceful revolution possible. On October 15th let your elected officials know how you feel about the present state of the world. Do something to express your freedom of speech and celebrate our democratic rights.

• write a letter
• send an email
• make up a sign with a catchy slogan, and picket City Hall, or a bank, or a country club.
• vow to spend as little money as possible on corporate crap
• support local small businesses in your community
• Work hard, have fun, and change the world - it is your right, and your responsibility

No Rules Monday

Keep off the grass

Our carefree enjoyment of life is being suffocated under a big, soft pillow of rules, bylaws, ordinances, and signs. They are telling us, "Do this, don't do that - can't you read the sign?" Sometimes we need to question authority, obey rules selectively, and channel a bit of creative, harmless anarchy.

The problem is that when you create rules you create rule breakers. Saul Alinsky said, "I never thought of walking on the grass until I saw a sign saying 'Keep off the grass.' Then I would stomp all over it." 

We can regain our freedom - obey rules selectively today. Many rules are unjust, excessive, and/or unnecessary. These can, and should, be broken indiscriminately. As long as no one gets hurt.

I wouldn't recommend stomping the grass, but I would definitely encourage anyone to lay on it and take a short nap.

A Punk State Of Mind

"Beethoven broke all the rules, and turned out pieces of breath-taking rightness."

- Leonard Bernstein From: deviantART

I am not a card carrying punk, although I do appreciate listening to a good, thrashing, high energy tune or two before going out and battling greed and denial for the day.

I respect any group that rejects mainstream bullshit, and makes a point of destroying corrosive concepts such as high society, luxury, and privilege.

That is how I found myself reading "Portrait of a Thousand Punks: Hard Core Logo" by Canadian artist Nick Craine. It is a brilliant graphic novel that, through the telling of Hard Core Logo's story, tells the brief, flaming story of the punk movement.

Some would say that punk is dead. Thousands of punks, and the punk deep inside each one of us would disagree, for the energy of punk is the energy that we will need to radically change the world. But what is punk?

In the Introduction to Portrait of a Thousand Punks, Michael Timmins (Cowboy Junkies) provides his answer. I share an excerpt from his introduction here.

What is punk?

"Punk is: Buddy Bolden high-stepping through the French quarter, blowing maniacally; Robert Johnson returning from the crossroads; Hank Williams with his voice and pen spilling tears and blood; Charlie Parker cutting all comers on 58th Street; Elvis Presley launching into "That's All Right"; John Lennon shredding his vocal cords on "Twist and Shout"; Ornette Coleman weaving his plastic alto through smaller and smaller concentric circles; and Patti Smith firing her opening salvo with the line "Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine."

Punk is standing up and declaring "Fuck this and Fuck that... I'll do it my way."

It is taking on convention and
deliberately
forcefully
and most importantly
gleefully
tearing convention down.

It is action and commitment.
It is not hair colour, clothing, accents, age, record sales,
recording contracts, press clippings, poses, T-shirts, badges,
body fluids, videos, or tattoos.

It is energy.
An energy complex and mysterious enough to destroy and create at the same time.
Not possible to harness.
Not possible to bottle.
Not possible to recreate once dissipated.
Of the eight punks listed earlier six died
prematurely.

An energy that burns too hot to be contained by mere skin.
It is a form of expression that hits you
so hard    and
so deep   and
so meaningfully            it
grabs you by the stomach
picks you up out of your chair
drags you across the floor
and knocks you so silly that by the time it's through with you
you are seeing the world
your life
in a completely new light."

Yes, that is exactly what we need - to see the world, and our lives, in a completely new light. In the light of simplicity, a slow pace, equality, and fairness. In the light of freedom to be who you are, and to follow your passions while being supported by your community. In the light of living lightly on the land.

Let's question the damaging ways of civilization and capitalism. When we find things we don't like, let's have enough attitude and bravery to say, "Fuck this and Fuck that - I'll do it my way."

Let's break all the rules and create a world of 'breathtaking rightness'.

Time For A Consumer Counter-Revolution

"I want to talk to the fucking person that did this to me."

In an interview The Sex Pistols Sid Vicious said, "In the end I was the only one that had any anarchy left in him". More than likely, everyone else wandered off to go shopping, leaving Mr. Vicious a lone banner waver in the middle of an empty square. And now he ends up as an 'ultra-detailed', plastic imprisoned action figure mass marketed by unscrupulous opportunists for which nothing is sacred.

How could anyone do this to the rebellious soul that famously said, "Undermine their pompous authority, reject their moral standards, make anarchy and disorder your trademarks. Cause as much chaos and disruption as possible but don`t let them take you ALIVE"? He must be spitting in his grave.

Rampant commercialization aside, Vicious would be happy with other developments in the world today. Citizens are rising up to throw off the shackles of repressive conditions, and are expressing their yearning to be free. They have got the mean and greedy on the run, and are exerting the will of the people in a way that will not be ignored.

Sid would support us in taking our lives back from those that would exploit us for their own gain. He would be into doing away with debt slavery, and the concomitant wage slavery that the majority now see as "normal life".

For a long time we didn't know better - we were ignorant of the big picture. Or at least that used to be the case before the information age began. Now we do know better.

Now we know our flawed system funnels 24% of the wealth to the top 1%. We know that 20% of the population consumes 80% of the resources. We know that thousands of poor die every day from the lack of basic necessities. We know we are killing our planet.

Now that we know, how can this awareness not lead to change in how we live our lives? How can we continue to support this economic regime knowing that those above us are oppressing us as we oppress those below? Why aren't we "undermining their pompous authority and rejecting their moral standards" now that we know better? Whose side, exactly, are we on?

As the Sid-approved developments in the Middle East are showing us, it is time to shake up any system that preys on the many for the benefit of the few. This can be done peacefully by exerting our power, and living the lives and dreams we want to live. Not some scripted life as presented by the media, and as brought to you by faceless corporate entities.

Imagine the chaos and disruption that would happen if we all decided to live simple, satisfying lives that were cooperative in nature and did not entirely depend on the capitalist agenda of selfishness, greed, and infinite growth and desire. Collectively, our individual actions will change the world.

"Simplicity, clarity, singleness: these are the attributes that give our lives power and vividness and joy."

- Richard Halloway