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“Reducing the number of humans”? How, exactly, do we move toward that goal? (Eugenics? Genocide? Some new form of Malthusian and dog-eat-dog economics? Survival of the fittest?)
Unitarians have been in this territory before. We wasted a lot of time with eugenics programs from the early 1900s into the 1940s. A bad moment in our story.
“Scaling down the material wants of those who are here….” That may be very appropriate for rich folks. It’s not appropriate for the homeless and for people who are living close to starvation.
In the midst of climate change, it’s important for congregations to work for social justice. Our traditional involvement with anti-racism work, with economic justice concerns, with disability rights concerns, etc., will need a lot of emphasis, as
environmental problems develop.
Suggestion? Let others speak for “the glories of Creation.” The UUA can become the religious organization that, consistently, places its emphasis on working for environmental justice. A bit of humanism will do some good.
http://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/global-warming/
Climate issues involves everybody and everything. Personally, I can’t understand why we can say we should care so much about our loved ones( family and friends) and just ignore (consciously or unconsciously) our neighbors (humans and another living beings).
“The Immorality of the Institution of Animal Exploitation”
Animal exploitation, because it exploits animals as property, is chattel slavery. Animal exploiters completely own and control animals as property, resources, and commodities and any “restrictions” on the behavior of the property owner are solely for the efficient exploitation of animals as commodities. We don’t approve of human slavery no matter how “humanely” or “kindly” a slave owner treats his or her slaves. We reject the institution of slavery in all of its forms because the institution itself is immoral. The institution itself is immoral because it systemically and necessarily reduces its subjects to mere objects existing solely to satisfy the means of others’ ends; affords no protection to the exploited beyond what is deemed appropriate for efficient exploitation as a commodity; and necessarily reduces sentient beings with emotional lives, desires, and aversions to mere things – as if they were insentient broccoli, corn, rocks, or trees.
The institution of animal exploitation (i.e. slavery) is a moral blind spot in our culture exactly as human slavery was a moral blind spot 160 years ago in America. We need to examine and question our cultural prejudices just as 19th century Americans needed to examine their cultural prejudices.
If we are morally opposed to the institution of animal exploitation and the cruelty and gross injustice it necessarily entails, as any decent person who is aware of the facts included in this essay ought to be (not to mention the facts of other exploitation not included here), our moral baseline must be veganism." (Text partially extract from- http://uvearchives.wordpress.com/2008/09/09/what-is-wrong-with-vegetarianism/)
If we really would like to be effective on climate change we should start attacking the root and about that we have a lot of control in our hands.
Love and Peace for everyone…
There are two critical issues that we need to address to tackle climate change:
– human overpopulation (primarily the Western population that extracts far more than their fair share of resources)
– animal agriculture
Reducing the number of humans, scaling down the material wants of those who are here, and – most importantly – eliminating the use and abuse of non-human animals is the answer to climate change. I know this is an extremely unpopular position with every environmentally concerned group, including yours. People would prefer to blame everyone else for this problem – the government, big corporations, the fossil fuel industries, even third world countries who are just trying to survive by emulating our profligate ways.
We need to take a long hard look at ourselves, and fix our own behaviors. Until we are willing to assume this responsibility for our impact, we will never solve any of the worlds problems that we have created.
Thank you Sabrina Louise for your contribution.
Please try it at votesmart.org.
Rev. Jeff Liebmann will speak on “Spiritual Aspects of Climate Change.” Other speakers at this time include:
• Mariah McClean; Board President of SVSS – “Motivation and Conservation”
• Peter Sinclair; Climate Change Expert and Midland resident – “Dark Ice, The Melting of our Polar Cap and Consequences thereof”
• Maria Linsalata – SVSS Board Member – “The Wondrous Importance and Challenges Facing Bees and the World’s Food Table”
• Pat Race; SVSS Board Member – “Climate Stick: a Way to Explain Climate Change”
The Unitarian Universalist church in New London will have Sunday services on October 19th that will focus attention on environmental justice.
The new documentary, Cowspiracy, sheds light on the devastation caused by animal agriculture (the #1 cause of global warming, ocean dead zones, water depletion, species extinction, contaminated ground water, rivers and streams, deforestation) which is true according to the World Watch Report of 2009. “We believe that the life cycle and supply chain of domesticated animals raised for food have been vastly underestimated as a source of GHGs, and in fact account for at least half of all human-caused GHGs. If this argument is right, it implies that replacing livestock products with better alternatives would be the best strategy for reversing climate change.”
Learn more at: http://www.worldwatch.org/files/pdf/Livestock%20and%20Climate%20Change.pdf
http://cowspiracy.com
#BoundlessRegenerativeCulture
#LetTheDreamersWakeTheNation
#Permaculture
#ThinkLoveServe
#StandingOnTheSideOfLove
resources faster that the planet can regenerate them.
http://starhawksblog.org/?p=1014
1) We do a lot of “energy justice” work with low-income people. “Energy justice” work begins with the awareness that energy use is a human right. Some folks waste too much energy while others – the homeless, for example – need to consume more energy in order to survive. This is an environmental justice concern that needs more attention, in order to solve the climate change problem;
2) Because of the impact of climate change and other environmental problems,
congregations are becoming more involved with emergency preparedness and emergency response work. Special attention is given to vulnerable groups, including children and the elderly, people with disabilities, immigrants and migrant workers, etc.
“If you want environmental peace, work for environmental justice.”
The UUs in Pacific Northwest and Canada are joining forces with First Nations and environmental groups to oppose the myriad of energy development projects that are besieging our land, air and water. We have lots of stuff going on and more coming up in the future.
Would like to see support coming in from other UUs in other regions. Have some ideas, but would like to let you know we’re out there and if anyone’s interested in learning more to feel free to contact me.
Would really like Rev. Morales to come visit us and learn what we’re up against and where we could use UU and UUA help.