Welcome, my family of the world.
If you like what you read, share this blog on social media. My hope is we can create a snowball effect in educating the public on the need for urgent action.
If you want change, join 350.org, and theclimatemobilization.org
These twelve solutions below are required if we are to ensure peace on earth in the next few decades. There can be no peace with climate change, and we're unlikely to solve climate change without peace.
1: Solve rising temperature and stabilize the Arctic ice sheet. This can be achieved by geoengineering and rapidly lowering emissions. We will need a plant based diet in addition to other measures. The land needed for meat and dairy production is equivalent in size to North and South America, while providing only 18% of our calories. This land can be reforested to draw down carbon dioxide. A plant based diet uses 1/6th acre of land to feed a person, a meat diet uses 3 acres, 18 times as much.
We should not be eating animals just because we are smarter than them. Animals are intelligent and have emotions. They feel fear and pain. Pigs are smarter than dogs. Cows cry at the slaughterhouse. Chickens have remarkable intelligence. We need to restrict the sale of animal flesh. Let us not face extinction simply because we like the feeling of animal flesh on our tongues. Meat is tasty. But we must make sacrifices.
Mankind faces a catastrophic warming of 4 Celsius by 2055-2060. See here.
2: Solve the methane crisis. This can be achieved by a plant based diet and by geoengineering/lowering emissions. Many poor people rely on fish for their primary protein. This is okay.
3: Solve runaway military spending. Ideally, stop military spending all together. These are unnecessary emissions and killing is immoral.
4: Solve the prison-industrial complex. Non-violent prisoners should be released, violent prisoners should be housed in a humane psyche-ward style prison.
5: Solve all forms of pollution. This can be achieved by not using single-use plastics and stopping burning of fossil fuels. Half of the plastic in the ocean is fishing nets and gear. These are deadly for wildlife. We must end industrial fishing.
6: Solve deforestation. We will always need to use lumber, but it should be harvested sustainably. Old growth forest, the Amazon, the Congo Basin, and other rain forest should be saved. Feed for livestock farming is the leading cause of Amazon deforestation.
7: Solve soil erosion. Civilizations have waxed and waned on the backs of their soil fertility. Permaculture farms should become a dominant way of food production, and soil fertility should be increased by manuring/composting. We must stop the insect and bee die-off. It is estimated we have less than 60 years of soil left.
8: Solve poverty. The world's poorest can never hope to have the lifestyle of rich westerners, however the rich need to live more sustainably. Green technology that improves lives of the world's poor should be encouraged.
9: Solve segregation. All people come from the same earth and from the same mother. We are all brothers and sisters, black, white or asian. It doesn't matter what your religion is, if your intention is to worship God, you're worshipping God.
10: Solve violence. It's time to move past violence and into an age of peace. Much of the world is hurting from decades even centuries of violence. We must find forgiveness. Let love be your guiding force.
11: Solve drug addiction. Drug addicts are not criminals. No drug addict should go to jail. Rather, they should be lifted out of poverty and given health care. All drugs should be legalized and administered by health care assistants.
12: Solve rising population. In Jesus' time the population was about 200-300 million. The world can support ten billion people if we were all vegan. However, we shouldn't balance at the edge of starvation. We should be globally stockpiling food for the bad harvest years. Population is one of the easiest problems to solve - free education.
How will we accomplish all this? With a new United Nations, a democratic one where no one has veto power. The UN is supposed to stop wars and bring peace and prosperity. It is failing us in that it is not preventing the coming climate wars, nor feeding the 800 million hungry people. Building a new, effective, democratic UN should be on top of the agenda for every human on earth, especially every intellectual.
To all my family in the world, all 8.1 billion of you.
I love you.
And i'm scared.
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light
_________________________
Our civilization is like an aircraft in flight. There are multiple systems failures. The pilots are doing everything they can. In addition, a fire has just broke out. That fire is global warming. That is the worst possible situation of all. A fire on an aircraft could kill everyone. Global warming could kill everyone. The pilots must use the fire suppression systems fast, before smoke and flame engulf the aircraft and everyone aboard perishes. Geoengineering is our earth fire-suppression system. The pilots can't handle the situation themselves. Luckily, there are engineers in the passenger compartments. These are our scientists. They can help the pilot handle the situation, and safely land the plane. Should the pilots fail to extinguish the fire - global warming - the plane will crash and everyone aboard will die. Should the pilots land in the ocean, a large percentage will die. In a worst case ocean-landing scenario, there may be lone survivors. We must solve global warming and our multiple crises, or everyone could die. The fire is burning now. We are already in the air. We must take action now.
1: Why We Must End Weapons
There is no reason for any human to have weapons anymore. There is no reason for militaries. There is no reason to kill each other. We must make peace. We must recognize that we are all one family. We are all brothers and sisters of the human race. All weapons manufacturers must be outlawed. All militaries must be banned. All guns and weapons sold must be issued a recall. We sold them, we can recall them. The vast majority of people now live without weapons. Why not all? Canada, Iran, and many European countries do not have guns. How many school shootings happen there? Answer: none. We must decommission all nuclear weapons. No aliens are coming to kill us. We do not need nuclear weapons. The only thing nuclear weapons can do now is create a holocaust and extinction of the human species. Today, the threat of nuclear annihilation is higher than ever. Nuclear weapons will be used, unless we ban the proliferation and possession of nuclear weapons now. Many countries already live without nuclear weapons. We can too.
2: Peace In The Middle East
Some people are just misguided, or suffer trauma and seek revenge.The Jewish people have had a hard time. They suffered the holocaust. They have repeatedly suffered persection through history. It is no wonder they have militarized, and protect themselves from the surrounding populations. Jews and Muslims, and even Christians, must make peace. We must live together as one, and share the land. The Middle East is going to become increasingly uninhabitable from climate change. The Jews, Muslims, and Christians in that area should migrate to the Americas.
3: Native Populations
Beginning in the early 1500's, European Colonizers invaded the Americas, including Australia. Up to 90% of the native population were killed through transmissible diseases. Many more were violently killed and their culture subsumed. We now live together. The European settlers must recognize what our ancestors did. We must recognize the natives rights to the land and their culture. But, the Natives must also recognize that we now live here too and we must share the lands. We are family. The only difference is the slightly different skin tone. There is no reason to hate one another. Many natives still suffer from the effects of colonization. Many are alcoholic, drug addicted, suicidal, or jailed. We must end this. We must make peace.
4: Drugs
It is not possible to ban drugs. The war on drugs has shown us this. Banning drugs creates a black market, crime, and drug cartels. This dramatically drives up the price of drugs that cost pennies to manufacture. In addition, drugs are often contaminated with filler material and impurities. The most well known is the addition of fentanyl into common heroin, cocaine, or crack. This kills tens of thousands of people. At least half a million people die each year from drug abuse. All drugs should be made legal and dispensed by health care aides. This will allow supervision of drug users and vulnerable populations by health care professionals. If a drug addict receives free high quality pure drug, that person will not lose all his or her money, will not become homeless, will not resort to a life of crime, stealing or killing for drug money. Talk therapy may also be useful, especially for people on the cusp of recovery.
5: The Issue With Various Power Supplies
Nuclear power requires vast amounts of concrete, fossil fuel inputs, water, and energy to construct and maintain. The technology is extremely costly and complex. This specialization to maintain such structure may not be available as we enter the second half of the age of fossil fuels. We must remember that we have now used up half the fossil fuels on earth, and the second half is more expensive, dirtier, harder to extract, and has less net energy (energy return vs energy invested). Additionally, 50% of all fossil fuels ever burned have been burned in the last 30 years. And let's not forget that the vast majority of this remaining fossil fuel must remain in the ground if we are to maintain a stable climate. It would require 26 000 one Gigawatt nuclear power plants to replace fossil fuels. The world now has about 500 plants, many of which are aging and reaching the end of their lifespan. The problem of nuclear waste is still not solved, and disasters can be deadly and costly, with long term consequences - see Fukushima. SMRs (Small Modular Reactors) are still in the research and development phase, and still pose the problem of radioactive waste.
Solar and wind now contribute about 10% of the world electricity supply. Since electricity use is only 20% of our total energy use (the rest being mainly fossil fuel), this means that solar and wind only contribute 2% to our total energy demand. This after decades of deployment. In addition, solar and wind require vast amount of resources, such as concrete and minerals, and high temperature smelting kilns now powered by fossil fuels. Their production creates enormous amounts of pollution, and disposal, e-wastes. Many only have a lifespan of about three decades. Building enough wind turbines to shut a 1 Giga Watt gas plant requires 500 000 tons of concrete, 175 000 tons of iron, 22 500 tons of plastic, and there is no power when the wind doesn't blow. Solar and wind can only ever contribute a small amount of energy, perhaps to power essential smart phone devices, medical services, electric bicycles, ultra lightweight vehicles, and the internet. In the not-too-far future, even this may not be possible.
Hydro power requires enormous amount of concrete, minerals, and fossil fuel in their construction. Concrete uses enormous amounts of fossil fuels to produce. Dams disrupts the flow of water, degrades water quality, and blocks the transport of vital nutrients.
Batteries are no solution to our energy crisis. An entire year of Tesla's giga factory production could only store three minutes of annual energy use. This is because of the immense scale of fossil fuel useage, and the incredible energy density of fossil fuels. Manufacturing a quantity of batteries that could store 2 years of US electricity demand would require 1000 years of Giga factory production. Battery production is extremely fossil fuel heavy in that it requires mining and refining of rare earth metals, and produces large quanitities of toxic waste. Batteries could only ever work in extremely small applications, like cell phones, electric bicycles, electric motorcycles, and perhaps ultra lightweight electric cars. It would be impossible to convert the worlds 1.4 billion vehicles to battery power, and remember that each electric car requires 350 gallons of oil to produce.
Hydrogen uses more energy to make than it supplies. Most hydrogen comes from natural gas. Hydrogen is extremely hard to transport, and because of its small atomic size, leaks out of most pressure tanks. Hydrogen tank crashes can be explosive. Hydrogen is not useful in any timescale. Algae uses more energy to make than it produces, and can be ruined by an attack of protozoa, this after decades of research. Biofuels (ethanol) take more energy to produce in growing the crop, than is given in the ethanol. As well, it would take the entire American farmland to produce just a fraction of currently used oil supplies. Concentrated Solar Power has a natural gas turbine to supplement the inefficiencies of the system. Biogas or syngas has at least 5 major disadvantages, if not outright roadblocks. See link below for more detail. Geothermal has limited use. Google invested $10 million into cold fusion research. Result: no cold fusion. Nuclear fusion is "50 years away". Direct air capture of CO2, can capture at best less than one-tenth of 1% of CO2 now emitted.
When the age of fossil fuel ends, we must return to a way of life similar to that which existed before fossil fuels were present. This could be in as little as three decades away. Should we splurge all our remaining fossil fuels and minerals away constructing elaborate techno fixes? There may be small amounts of advanced technology present in the future world. Much of the population would be agrarian. Many people in the world already live in such an agrarian manner. We must too. We would be more connected to the land, live longer, and be healthier. It could restore our shattered sense of well being. If we manage our energy descent right, we may even have health care. People could easily live into their 100s. We would see the stars again, and the milky way. Do we really have to return to an agrarian way of life? Why is this the case? Please see Professor William Rees' seminal work on why. https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/15/4508
6: On Professional Climate Deniers, Corrupt Politicians, and Fossil Fuel Executives
Professional climate deniers, corrupt politicians, and fossil fuel executives that have funded denialism to maintain profits should not be jailed. We should forgive them. We should let them go. If the younger generation wants to punish them for putting us in this extremely precarious position, strip them of their accumulated wealth and let them live as common men. Forgive them. Let them go.
7: The Sale of Tobacco
We must ban the sale of tobacco. Ask any smoker if they wish to smoke, and they will say no. It cost them money, and their health. And tobacco companies have them hooked. They are making money off of death, using the most addictive substance known to man. If people must smoke, they should use an e-cigarette. Unlike tobacco smoke which contains thousands of different harmful chemicals of combustion, e-cigarrete has only glycerin, propylene glycol, and flavoring. Even smoking e-cigarette is not healthy, but it is 99% better than smoking tobacco. Should people wish to grow their own tobacco, that is fine.
8: On Marijuana
We must outlaw the growth of indoor cannabis. Cannabis must only be grown outdoors. Cannabis grown outdoors is lower quality, so what you do is turn it to oil. Cannabis oil is carbon particle free, tar free, and does not have any of the thousands of different harmful chemicals of combustion that smoking cannabis flower does. Smoking cannabis flower is just as bad for your health as smoking tobacco. This is true. Nobody should be smoking cannabis flower. Oil is not harmless, but is 95% improvement over flower. Cannabis oil can be smoked from a pen vaporizer, and produced for under a dollar a gram.
9: The Outlaw of Gambling
Gambling is addictive and can lead to financial ruin. Gambling is as addictive as drugs, and can often have repercussions on personal welfare and on family members. Winners are advertised to make people think they can win lots of money. In reality, it is exceedingly unlikely that you will win. Gambling is stealing money from susceptible and vulnerable people. Gambling is known to cause criminal activities and political corruption. Should people want to gamble underground, that is fine.
10: As We Wait For The United Nations, What Personal Actions Can We Take?
I will gladly give up these minimal amenities of fossil fuel civilization I use if need be. People say its hypocritical to condemn climate change while participating in emission activities. Well, it takes emissions to organize and end emissions. Here are simple things you can do to lower your emissions while we wait for the UN to do its job.
-Have only one or no children. This is the single biggest thing you can do to stop global warming.
-Stop eating meat, fish, dairy, and eggs. There are countless meat, dairy, and egg alternatives available now.
-Stop driving. Walk, cycle, or take public transit. You can buy an electric bicycle or scooter, or even an electric motorcycle.
-Stop flying. The only thing more destructive than flying is starting a forest fire.
-Stop using toilet paper. Rather, clean yourself with a jug of water or hand held bidet. Dry yourself with a hand towel.
-Stop buying stuff. Ask yourself, do you really need it? Will it make you happier? Stop the Christmas tree, extravagant presents, wrapping, and outdoor lights. No more birthday balloons.
-Grow food, plant trees. End the lawn. Grow potatoes - the most efficient crop! Pick up litter!
-Don't flush when you go number 1. Take a 5 minute shower every second day - use warm not hot water. Don't use deoderant or hair product.
-Reuse the plastic bags you buy fruits and vegetables with.
-Get a reusable mug for your coffee, or a metal straw if needed.
-Eat a simple diet primarily of vegan foods like rice, lentils, peanut butter, fresh fruit (avoid avocado and non-local), peas, beans and potatoes. Avoid processed foods. Drink water or tea. Savor an occasional coconut water. Avoid coffee. Avoid juice and pop. Use sweetener instead of sugar.
-Stop shaving. Trim using an electric trimmer or scissors instead.
-Avoid using toasters. When possible, instead of cooking with a stove or oven, cook with a small microwave. Replace your stove with a single-pot induction cook top.
-Adjust your computer power settings to sleep your monitor after 1 minute, and sleep your computer after 5 minutes or as desired. Choose efficiency options. Turn off the LEDs on your computer case.
-If you must get a pet, get a micro-dog. Cats can't be vegan. They also kill billions of birds and small animals.
-Wash your clothes with cold water, rapid cycle, half the detergent (if it's not very dirty, no detergent), and dry on a line indoors or outdoors. You can use simple hangars on a line, and drape your socks over a basket, if weather allows.
-Brush your teeth with baking soda or miswak. Reuse floss.
-Don't run on the treadmill. Don't buy exercise machines. Walk outside and work the land.
-Unplug your phone chargers. Insulate your homes. Turn off the lights. Unplug your excess light bulbs. Instead of air conditioner, use a small fan. Open your car windows. Wear a sweater indoors in winter. Instead of outfitting your home with a huge stove, buy a single induction cook-top. If you must buy computer and tv, buy as small as possible. Buy a micro-house. Always think, smaller is better when you buy anything.
-Buy eco-friendly, green, fair trade products. Use as little of anything as possible. Don't waste. Recyle everything.
-Use your brain! Global warming is the accumulated result of billions of decisions. Anything you can do, do it!
11: A Cap on Wealth
There should be a cap on wealth. It is extremely unfair for some people to use so much more of the earth's limited resources than other people. What should this cap on wealth be? I don't know. It is estimated that world millionaires will use up 70% of our carbon budget alone, if we are to remain under 1.5 C of warming. The world top 10% richest account for 50% of emissions, while the top 1% account for 15%. The bottom 50% emit just 12%.
12: What is Geo-engineering?
Geoengineering is the modification of earth's atmosphere for the benefit of humankind. The most likely method of geoengineering is using airplanes to spray particles into the high atmosphere to block the sun. In a way, mankind has been unintentionally (negatively) geoengineering since we began burning fossil fuels, by releasing both cooling particles and warming gasses into the atmosphere. In the early 1950s the effect of cooling particles outweighed the warming effect. As of the 1970's, warming gases have outweighed the effect of cooling particles. This phenomenon of cooling particles is called 'Global Dimming'. Warming gases last for thousands of years, while cooling particles fall out in a matter of weeks. This means temperatures will abruptly spike if we stop polluting, so we need geo-engineering.
13: On Climate Conferences
A system should be set up to allow 400 teleconferencers to attend each meeting. There are approximately 200 countries in the world. This allows two representatives from each nation. Ideally, this would be a man and a woman. Even better, it could be two women. Women are naturally more nurturing, caring, and have more foresight than men. Women are also more intelligent than men. Women rarely start wars. The representatives of each nation should be connected to the call through a common smart phone. Anyone should be able to view the conference through a smart phone. If it is possible to give everyone in the world a smart phone, there should be a text based voting system for democratic resolutions.
14: On Voting Age
People under 18 will live longer into the future than someone older than that, and thus has more stake in securing a habitable future. The voting age of 18 is too high. It should be reduced to, say, 8-10 years old.
15: On Sex and Procreation
Should two forms of contraceptive not simultaneously be available, engage in alternative forms of sex. Use methods of sex that are non-reproductive. Think hand bum mouth.
16: Fasting and Ramadan
Fasting dramatically increases your risk of developing kidney stones. In a world of decreasing medical technology, and increasing heat, it is unwise not to drink water during Ramadan. You do not want a kidney stone. It is the worst pain you will ever experience in your life. There is also the risk of dehydration in the intense heat. Don't eat food, but drink water. God will forgive. In addition, walk or cycle to mosque. If you must drive, pray at home. Forget about travelling for Haj. Abandon animal sacrifice.
17: Basic Minimum Income
One should be able to sleep under a roof, eat vegan food, clothe oneself, cover medical bills, and cover basic transport. This dollar figure could amount to about $2000 a month in Canada, perhaps higher or lower as determined, and vary by country. Globally, school, including higher education, and health care, must become free. There must be debt forgiveness, and a return to the farmland. Public transit must be free.
18: But some scientists say global warming isn't real.
Humans are driving 1.4 billion cars, 87000 ships, 39 000 planes, 25 000 trains, and 280 million trucks, all emitting fire-combustion products on a planet with a thin shell of an atmosphere. There are also 2400 coal plants and 1000s of gas plants. Isn't it possible that this may have an effect? That this could cause a problem? Is there a reason we can't find other habitable planets in space? Is there a reason we haven't found other life in space? Is it something special, something unique about the chemistry of our planet that's kept it habitable? We are drastically changing the atmosphere, the oceans, the soil (land) and forests of our planet. Could these changes, perhaps, just perhaps, cause a habitability crisis on earth? Or do crises never happen?
19: Hemp
Hemp is useful for making paper, textiles, clothing, shoes, bioplastics, building materials, and biofuel. It has numerous medical uses, grows fast on marginal land, and the seeds provide a healthy high protein food source. Hemp growth must be completely legalized.
20: On Human Behaviour
Humans are not naturally evil, greedy, warring, competitive, or uncaring. It is a result of the environment we live in. Even a criminal is a result of the environment he was raised, and lives in. The science of human behaviour obeys natural laws. We are shaped by our media, by our politicians, by our advertisements. We can change our environment, and in turn change humans into caring empathic beings for each other all over the world.
21: On Population
Why is it so important to limit population? The world can only provide so much resources sustainably and renewably. Naturally, the more people there are on the earth, the lower the average standard of living will be. The fewer people there are, the higher the average standard of living. With our current western diets, the world could support no more than 3 billion people. With a vegan diet, it's possible to sustain the current 8 billion provided we eat a simple diet, and with a little leeway for bad harvest years. It is important we reduce population to just a few billion by 2100, so that there is more space for biodiversity, nature, and natural areas. Every additional person born requires a piece of farmland, and we already use much of the earth's land surface. People should receive a payout for only having one or no children. For common overpopulation myths, see here.
22: Solar Flares
Solar flares are intense bursts of radiation from the sun. The last recorded strong solar flare was in 1859, known as the Carrington event, although there have been stronger solar flares in the past. There was so much electricity in the air, that telegraph systems operated without any battery power. The energy released by the solar flare was equivalent to 10 billion nuclear bombs. A solar flare of such intensity today would destroy our electric grid overnight and plunge the world into darkness. Our communication systems would be destroyed, and anything requiring electricity would not function. It is important that we switch to a mode of operation of civilization, that could function in the event of a solar flare.
To be, or not to burn, that is the question.
Our extinction will not be gentle.
If you have any love in your heart, take action, now.
What is the possible temperature rise for the next decade (2033?)
1.1 C from 1880 (1)
+ 0.2 C per decade and accelerating (1)
+ 0.6 C for a methane release by 2033 (2)
+ 0.4 C for falling away of cooling aerosols (3)
Total rise by 2033: 2.3 C, well over the safety buffer of 1.5 C pledged at the Paris accord. Beyond 1.5 C can lead to irreversible and severe changes in the climate system. What can we do? Mass protest is the only answer. Join 350.org and The Climate Mobilization.
1: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/world-of-change/global-temperatures
2: https://arctic-news.blogspot.com/p/extinction.html
3: https://climate.nasa.gov/explore/ask-nasa-climate/3271/aerosols-small-particles-with-big-climate-effects/
Thanks to:
Sam Carana
James Hansen
Igor Semiletov
Natalia Shakhova
Peter Wadhams
John Nissen
Paul Beckwith
Malcolm Light
Pope Francis
Hans Schellnhuber
Andrew Glickson
Vaclav Smil
Harold Hensel
David Keith
Nathan Currier
Veli Albert Kallio
Leonid Yurganov
Peter Carter
Greta Thunberg
Geethika Venkatesan
William Rees
Megan Seibert
Peter Ward
Clive Hamilton
Tim Flannery
Peter Kalmus
Tenney Naumer
Noam Chomsky
David Wasdell
Gail Tverberg
Jared Diamond
Stewart Brand
Joseph Tainter
Bill McKibben
Margaret Salamon
Michael Mann
Gwynne Dyer
David Spratt
Mark Lynas
Brian Fagan
Richard Heinberg
David Montgomery
Jennifer Francis
James Kunstler
Naomi Oreskes
Erik Conway
Ugo Bardi
Nassim Taleb
Vandana Shiva
Amory Lovins
Andrew Weaver
Cory Morningstar
Stephen Chu
Antonio Guterres
Iain Stewart
Martin Rees
Van Jones
Jeremy Rifkin
Michael Benton
Eckhart Tolle
David Attenborough
Leonardo DiCaprio
Christian Parenti
Chris Hedges
George Monbiot
Joe Romm
Brian Cox
Severn Suzuki
David Suzuki
John Michael Greer
Jane Goodall
Bill Nye
Guy McPherson
Al Gore
Bernie Sanders
Bill Gates
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Recently deceased:
James Lovelock
Stephen Hawking
Rajendra Pachauri
Jacque Fresco
Michael Ruppert
Pete Postlethwaite
Gail Zawacki
Wangari Maathai
Matt Simmons
Cormac McCarthy
And so many more...
Thank you!
