Metacentricities

Lately, I feel like I’m beginning to live in the science fiction I’ve been reading over my lifetime. First,  scientists have found large pockets of frozen water underneath the surface of Mars. If any of you read the excellent trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson, Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars, you’ll understand that lots of frozen water on Mars is necessary for terraforming it.

The next story is about global climate change. Some scientists have been measuring the ocean currents that keep Europe warmer than it would be otherwise, and have found a 30% drop in the amount of warm water in that current. A failure in this current, which, in fact, has been predicted, would send Europe into another ice age. How fun. In the Kim Stanely Robinson series, what propels people to terraform Mars is that they screw up the earth so much, that it’s kinda necessary.

And if any of you have read Mother of Storms, a book that was basically very good, although it had a completely unnecessary, and kinda disturbing subplot. Anyway, it feels like this year was taken right out of that book. The premise is that global climate change makes hurricanes so bad, that we get a huge, huge mega storm, that destroys quite a lot. Not that I think that we’ll really get there, but here’s an interesting little tidbit from the New York Times today:

"This hurricane season shattered records that have stood for decades-most named storms, most hurricanes and most Category 5 storms," the undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere, retired Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr., said in a statement issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Arguably, it was the most devastating hurricane season the country has experienced in modern times."

But NOAA, which operates the National Weather Service, also warned that the busy season was part of "a trend likely to continue for years to come," extending an active hurricane cycle that began in 1995. The increase in the number and intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes can span multiple decades, NOAA said, stimulated by low wind shear and warmer-than-average surface temperatures in the Atlantic Basin, among other factors.

Hold on to your hats. Or, if you are a science fiction reader, DON’T go back and read The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner (originally published back in the 70s). It will just completely depress you. Thankfully I gave away my copy.

I was about to write yet another scathing post about the intolerance and persecution complex of the religious right, when I came across this really good post on Street Prophets. It’s worth a read. It’s about Soulforce, Inc. which is a group working whose mission statement starts with "The purpose of Soulforce is freedom for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people from religious and political oppression through the practice of relentless nonviolent resistance."

What struck me was this, which is the Soulforce Credo:

1. I believe that my adversary is also a child of the Creator, that we are both members of the same human family, that we are sisters and brothers in need of reconciliation.

2. I believe that my adversary is not my enemy, but a victim of misinformation as I have been.

3. I believe that my only task is to bring my adversary truth in love (nonviolence) relentlessly.

4. I believe that my adversary’s motives are as pure as mine and of no relevance to our discussion.

5. I believe that even my worst adversary has an amazing potential for positive change.

6. I believe that my adversary may have an insight into truth that I do not have.

7. I believe that one day my adversary and I will understand each other and that if we conduct our search for truth guided by the principles of love, we will find a new position to satisfy us both.
   

Ouch. So much for scathing posts for today. I think thoughtfulness is going to win out.

As those of you that have been reading this blog know, it’s been a very changing few months for me. There are changes that have happened in ways, and into directions that have surprised me, and that I have least expected. I know that going to seminary is generally a life-changing sort of thing for people, it certainly has proved to be that for me.

A couple of weeks ago, a peice I’d written for Logos, which is our PSR student newsletter, was printed, about my journey back to Christianity. I decided it was time to post the longer version that piece came from. Comments are more than welcome.

I’ve been thinking about the issue of soldiers-for-hire, or "military contractors" or, just plain mercenaries, which is what they are, and what I will call them from now on. One of the things that has made the Iraq war unique has been the way the US has depended upon mercenaries to do a wide range of tasks in Iraq. From being bodyguards, to interrogation, to security details, these soldiers-for-hire are an essential part of the war, and, I imagine, it would be difficult for our military to pull off the war without them (there is a nice review of this at the website for the PBS show, Frontline, they did a episode called "Private Warriors")

You might have heard about the newest troubling news about mercenaries. There is a video making its way across the net, which seems to show some of them randomly shooting at Iraqi civilians as if they were doing target practice. (This video, although it is not in any way gory, since everything is at a distance, is nonetheless extremely disturbing, between what it portrays, and that someone actually felt it appropriate to release this video with an upbeat soundtrack.)

Indeed, there have been problems between the US military and mercenaries for a while in Iraq. Although it’s not altogether clear what the problems are. It even seems that one military officer might have taken his own life, in part because ethics issues with mercenaries.

The major problem of free market capitalism from my perspective is that the markets, when dealing with life and death issues, really don’t do the job well, and in a way that is of positive benefit to people. This is because, in the end, the most important thing is money, not people. So when push comes to shove, whether it be in who gets hired, or what happens, the bottom line is the bottom line, not things like ethics, or the greater good for humans or the planet.

The Iraq war from the get go was unjust and unethical. But if you leave that aside for a moment, it is my argument that even in a just war (I’m not sure that one of those exists, but that’s a subject for another post,) the use of mercenaries will always be unethical, because their goal is simply to turn a profit. Ethics will always lose an argument with the bottom line, and that is something, whether it be in war, health care, or agriculture, is a big problem.

OK, we have a new meme running now, a list of Science Fiction books by women. Yay!

Bold the ones you read and liked, strike out the ones you didn’t like, and italicize the ones you haven’t read yet but want to.

1. Parable of the Sower/Parable of the Talents — Octavia Butler
2. Lathe of Heaven — Ursula K. LeGuin
3. The Visitor — Sherri Tepper
4. Vorkosigan Series — Lois McMaster Bujold
5. Cyteen — C.J. Cherryh
6. Pilgrimage: The Book of the People — Zenna Henderson
7. Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang — Kate Wilhelm
8. The Left Hand of Darkness — Ursula K. Leguin
9. The Snow Queen — Joan Vinge
10. Extra(ordinary) People — Joanna Russ
11. Doomsday Book — Connie Willis
12. Downbelow Station — C.J. Cherryh
13. Freedom’s Landing — Anne McCaffrey
14. Forerunner Foray – Andre Norton
15. Don’t Bite The Sun — Tanith Lee
16. Up The Walls of The World — James Tiptree, Jr.
17. Star Songs – James Tiptree, Jr./Raccoona Sheldon
18. Fire Watch — Connie Willis
19. Holding Wonder — Zenna Henderson
20. Dreamsnake — Vonda McIntyre

After having read some blog entries, my father made a comment about how radical I was. It kinda made me think a little, about my political and social views, and whether or how they have changed over my life. It is certainly partially because of my parents that I started with a baseline understanding of social justice. And I’ve been an environmentalist since I read "Silent Spring" in junior high school.

As some of you know, I spent 4 years as a fundamentalist way back when (1976-1980 - luckily before the real rise of the religious right.) Because of the ways in which Christian churches are both percieved and operate in the world now, and that background, I have generally thought of Christianity (at least organized Christianity) as being to the right of where I am (sometimes, to the far right.) So in my journey back toward Christianity, as I’ve been thinking a lot about my spiritual beliefs and points of view, I’ve been thinking some about my political and social views as well, and I’ve realized that I’ve been paying attention to the points of view of those around me.

Living at "Progressive Christian Central," as I am now nicknaming PSR (somehow, I don’t think they’ll mind,) I’m pretty well ensconced among people who think a fair bit (or a lot) like me, at the same time as I am around a lot of Christians. That’s been pretty interesting.

One of the things I’ve realized is that if anything, my spiritual development over the past year, and my continuing and increasing exploration of who this Jesus guy was, is making me more politically and socially radical. More adamant about nonviolence and justice for all people, more focused in stopping and really thinking about the life I am leading, and the lifestyle of America.

I had a wonderful conversation with a friend of mine while we were walking on the beach yesterday. It was about living a life of "being" more than "doing." Of being more present with the world, and each other, and less interested in what we can accomplish, or what we can get done, or what our status is in the world. In doing good work because we want to, and love it, not because of what we can get paid for it. In being positive change in the world, by doing what we love, and what seems to need doing (in my case, it’s working with people, in hers, animals,) without much of a care to the "normal" ways we are supposed to live in the world (material goods, status, etc.)

So what does this have to do with changing the world?

There is the part about doing work that needs doing that is positive in the world. By not buying (figuratively and literally) into the ways in which we’re "supposed" to live our lives, we can begin to heal the planet, and to perhaps create a reality where everyone can get what they need, instead of some getting what they want, and others having less than they need. And we need to remember our limited, and unlimited power in the world. We have limited power as individuals in the extent to which we can change the ways things are. But, I have unlimited power every decision I make, and in how I interact with every single person I come into contact with, each moment of the day.

I think it’s this unlimited power of decisions and interactions that we tend to pay the least attention to. But, it might be the most important power. More important than the power of our single votes, the power of our donations, more than the hours we spend working for change. Because, after all, the world is made up of an infinite number of connections and decisions, and each one has unexpected effect.

I have a friend who had a housemate, who I’d met a few times briefly. One day this summer, I ran into this housemate in the laundromat, and she told me that she was leaving Western Mass, and moving to Bellingham, WA. I asked why she was moving. She said that she’d always wanted to move to Washington, and decided that it was finally time to go and follow her dream of living there. I said something like following dreams are a good idea, and she explained that it was learning about my decision to go to seminary that had inspired her to follow her heart to Washington. I was completely stunned. I’d hardly spent 10 minutes total talking with her, so it wasn’t knowing about the details of what I’d decided to do - it was just that I’d made a decision to follow my heart that helped her to do the same. And who knows who’ll she’ll touch and connect with in WA that she wouldn’t have otherwise. And I know that my decision to go to seminary wasn’t just out of thin air, it was my accumulated experience and connection with others and others’ life decisions.

So can we make the world a better place by living a life of being, rather than doing, connecting in positive authentic ways with each person we meet, and making decisions from our hearts? I think maybe we can.

Today is Buy Nothing Day. It was started years ago, by Adbusters Magazine, to challenge us about rampant consumerism, which is a good part of the problem in the post about global warming I just made.

Some folks have started the idea of a Buy Nothing Christmas. It was started by Canadian Mennonites. Here is part of the statement about the why of Buy Nothing Christmas:

My
longer answer involves thoughts on faithfulness, authenticity, empowerment,
and experimentation. In terms of faithfulness, I have this profound
sense that somehow everyone is connected. This is what my intuition tells me. I also hear it from people talking about globalization. The new physicists, and weather watchers talk about it too. In my studies of Buddhism I learned the fundamental principle of inter-dependent co-origination. In my Christian development, I have come to see God everywhere and in all things. So, when it comes to Christmas consumer spending, my faith in God compels me to think of all
my brothers and sisters all over the globe, although I’m quick to get caught up in my immediate cares and tend to forget about this. Or, I get overwhelmed and do the bare minimum. So, my participation in Buy Nothing Christmas, directs me to a larger, spiritual perspective on the season.

Read the rest. It’s good. Makes lots of sense to me. You don’t have to go all the way, and buy absolutely nothing. But you can start small:

Can I be a part of Buy Nothing Christmas even if I buy a few things? Definitely. We are all going to have to buy some things. When you do buy things, we encourage you to remember principles like buying locally, fairly-traded, environmentally friendly packaging, recycling or re-using, buying things that last, and so on. The main aim of this campaign is not to save money (although that can be a side benefit), it’s not to slow down the pace of Christmas (although that can be a side benefit), it is to challenge our over-consumptive lifestyle and how it affects global disparities and the earth. So, even though you might buy a few things at Christmas, it’s important to think in these global economic terms.

Since I’ve posted anything on the environment, so now seems like a good time.

Three pieces of interesting and alarming news in the past week:

Scientists studying ice cores in Antartica have found that there is more Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere than at any time in the last 650,000 years. "The levels of carbon dioxide have climbed from 280 parts per million two centuries ago to 380 p.p.m. today." That is a 36% rise in just 200 years.

Today’s still rising level of carbon dioxide already is 27% higher than its peak during all those millennia, said lead researcher Thomas Stocker of the University of Bern in Switzerland."We are out of that natural range today," he said.
Moreover, that rise is occurring at a speed that "is over a factor of a hundred faster than anything we are seeing in the natural cycles," Stocker added. "It puts the present changes in context."
The team found similar results for methane, another greenhouse gas.

Second piece of news is that the glaciers in Greenland are retreating faster and faster:

The latest surveys of large glaciers in Greenland have exposed an alarming step-up in melting that threatens to raise global sea levels far faster than the best climate models have predicted.

The third piece of news comes from the Himalayan region. Glaciers are melting rapidly, leading to floods, when the lakes fed by the glaciers over fill, and break through their banks. A study in Nature suggests that at first, there will be problems with floods and the like, as these lakes get filled with water. But then, as the glaciers melt, there will be a severe lack of water, leading to little water in the rivers fed by these lakes, and over all drought.

I think that’s enough for now. I need to find something positive to blog about soon…

Given my status as a long time science fiction fan, I couldn’t resist this. It’s a meme going around in the Linuxchix Live community. Bold what you’ve read, strike out what you don’t like, italicize what you’d like to read but haven’t yet…

1. The HitchHiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
2. Nineteen Eighty-Four — George Orwell
3. Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
4. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Philip K. Dick
5. Neuromancer — William Gibson
6. Dune — Frank Herbert
7. I, Robot — Isaac Asimov
8. Foundation — Isaac Asimov
9. The Colour of Magic — Terry Pratchett
10. Microserfs — Douglas Coupland — is this science fiction?
11. Snow Crash — Neal Stephenson
12. Watchmen — Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
13. Cryptonomicon — Neal Stephenson
14. Consider Phlebas — Iain M Banks
15. Stranger in a Strange Land — Robert Heinlein
16. The Man in the High Castle — Philip K Dick
17. American Gods — Neil Gaiman
18. The Diamond Age — Neal Stephenson
19. The Illuminatus! Trilogy — Robert Shea & Robert Anton Wilson
20. Trouble with Lichen - John Wyndham

There’s one big problem with this meme: the above list doesn’t have any books by women. So I’ve added some:

21. Parable of the Sower/Parable of the Talents — Octavia Butler
22. Lathe of Heaven – Ursala LeGuin
23. The Visitor — Sherri Tepper
24. Vorkosigan Series — Lois McMaster Bujold
25. Cyteen – C.J. Cherryh

I’ve been remiss in giving out this (the People Who Are Out of Their Minds) award - I think it’s been a couple of weeks. Partially, there are just so many candidates, I can’t keep track. But this week, thanks, as usual, to Jesus Politics, I have a wonderful award winner - Guy Adams.

Read his full screed, if you wish, although I think it’s a waste of your good time. I’ll give you some salient pieces. He takes on the role of "chastising the church" because he thinks the "choir is asleep."

… hate speech laws will eventually outlaw the church, bit by bit — long before the state might otherwise deem that it need be so. It’ll come — maybe next year, maybe this year, or maybe in ten years, but it will arrive.

I imagine this must be after the religious right packs the supreme court and federal courts with right wing appointments…

Mark my words: though we are called to love and forgive them, in their minds we are their mortal enemy. What they cannot obtain by vote, they seek to procure by federal judicial activism. Time is so short. To me, it’s as clear as anything I’ve ever seen. (emphasis in original)

The only reason for us to be enemies is this attitude of all or nothing. They either get to have a theocracy, which obligates everyone to follow their own idea of morality, behavior and daily life, or they are an oppressed and persecuted people, who we are trying hard to eliminate. I have a hard time getting my mind wrapped around this attitude.

I may be wrong, but I can’t help but think that somehow, to some degree, God is more or less still behind America.

Sounds a lot like Guy worships a god that condones the killing of innocent people for no good reason, torture, the death penalty, incredibly economic inequities and lying politicians. I often think that they do, in fact, worship a different god than I do.

One reader said that occasionally I sound angry — Yes, over these issues I am, but some of YOU are not angry enough! God is angry over these perverted deportations from His plan for America once enjoined, but now departing.

Hmmmm. What chapter and verse is "God’s plan for America?" I must have missed that one. For a group of people who think that God’s revelation stopped with the book of Revelations, they take all sorts of liberties, don’t they?