are we losing the fight?

hey, something that's constantly bothering me is the thought that we are losing the fight for mother earth. It always seems that the negative impact of humans overshadows the positive things we are doing. Even the things that we are doing to improve the earth seem so small compared the things that are going wrong. Sadly i feel that one day we're going to exhaust the earths natural resources and it really pisses me off at the thought or people thinking 'oh if only we hadn't done that or had done this'.
i'm 18 and about to finish school and i know what i want to do with my life!!!
peace brothers and sisters
love our earth

 

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It is sad that we are trying to save earth from PEOPLE.
It's like an undeclared war. People trying to save the earth versus people who just don't care.

 

I think the people that DO care and DO want to make a difference should, instead of feeling like it's US against THOSE WHO DON'T care, see it as a partnership.

They don't care, well, get them excited...get so in their face (in a positive way) by being excited and FUN...they WANT to be there and they WANT to make a difference too.

Be the change you want to see in the world. Get excited. Stop making things negative. Don't see it as a fight...but, instead, a journey.

I"m an environmental studies major and I used to think of it as a fight...I saw it got me nowhere...I'm doing my part and in the process teaching others and showing others the way. Make them excited...

 

i agree, we all have to accept that its all of humanity who have to work together if we really want to save human life on earth, at this current time i think mother nature will win, we cannot beat her, but i don't want to think that we had a chance to change that right now and not do anything about it, so do what you can, don't shout and aggressively force others, your positivity should encourage others, other then that i personally think we should pray that it makes a difference
peace and love michael x

 

Taking the long view, we haven't hurt the earth too bad. We are making it uglier and less hospitable to ourselves, but that doesn't mean much in the long run. This planet has weathered far worse (asteroids, global methane fires, ice ages, etc).

Still, I think we really need to rethink our way of life if we humans wish to remain in the community of life. We need a more ecological perspective, so that it isn't humans and...everything else. The frogs, trees, and prairie dogs have just as much a right (and desire) to live as we do.

Sustainability is the key. The problem is, it's gonna be damn hard to be sustainable with so many people. That is to say, we are really above a healthy population size. 6.2 billion is just too many. But I believe that if we really tried, we could come up with some good solutions for our problems. We are pretty resourceful beings. For example, we could stop developing land in the desert, which may very well soon become unlivable with peak oil. We can stop building in wetlands and delecate costal areas. We could let rivers run their course rather than strangle them with levees and dams. We can stop building sprawling cities and focus our efforts on the central cities, saving energy and vital farmland.

It's a tall order, and it may take a monumental crisis (global war, peak oil, etc) to have it happen. Sad that it might have to go that far before we learn...

 

if you go to europe or any place like over there you see that the streets there are CLEAN ... in america, the streets are covered with broken beer bottles, trash, people are getting lazy... not caring to recycle because they dont want to walk outside and put a couple of cans in the bin..... I dont know if all of europe is clean like that... but its a whole lot cleaner than america. the only thing we can do to stop it is to do our part in each of our cities...neighborhoods...and the ones we can convence.... it wasnt hard for other countries to do it, so it shouldnt be that hard to do it here....

 

good post, drumminmama. my sentiments exactly.

 

hmmm, a lot of good theories here. I think that if we want to keep living on this earth then we have to learn how to take proper care of it!!! I've heard that there's no way that we can completely stop our efects on the earth but if we start to act now then we can slow the effects and stop anything else from happening.

peace brothers and sisters

 

So what can we do to help? I've considered it, but anything I've thought of seems so insignificant in the long run, and I begin to lose hope...

 

I just bought this book today, called "Restoring The Earth" by John J. Berger. It's old, published in 1985...20 years old. But there are some very amazing stories in there, of people getting involved, often on their own time at their own expense, working to restore a river or whatever. I'm only about halfway through with the book, so maybe there'll be some good ideas in there, but the main thing I'm gaining from it so far is this:

If you want to save the environment, you have to do it yourself. No one is going to do it for you.

This book is already inspiring me. I'm going to start checking out these sites online to see if they are still doing ok, if more work has been done (often the chapters in the book end saying, basically, "good so far, but more work is needed in such and such details").

If nothing else, read this:
http://hipforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=49173

 

the world's going to be fine. just look at all the people in this thread who have gathered and understand each other and feel the same passion, and just imagine the thousands and thousands of others who do, even though it doesnt seem like they exist. somewhere, people are acting, and people care. just look at the exploding vegetarian movement for example, and the widespread sustainability trends that are beginning to spread. the earth is taking care of herself, and i guess i can share this little story with you to maybe help support this idea.

one day this summer, when i was just really beginning to wake up to the destructiveness and ignorance of man, and just truely waking up to the realities around me and how selfish and how little people care about each other or this world, i found myself on my computer trying to sweep all that negativity under the bed someplace. then i got on here and found myself looking at some thread about global warming anyway, and just read some stuff, and then i just started bawling at all the stuff i was realizing. i just let so many tears fly, and just totally felt like i had lost faith in this world and myself, and had so many models of thought just crumble to the ground. it was good though, it cleared the way for new and better models to grow there. but anyway, so after a decent time of crying, i finally go downstairs and start watching some king of the hill. and then this chick knocks on my door, petitioning and lobbying and looking for donations to fight against bushs energy plan to drill the artic(the last truly wild place on earth) for a years supply of oil that we cannot use for 10 years. so i asked her if she was a vegetarian cuz i just got that feeling, and she said vegan, and i said me too of course and we got to talking and really hitting it off. just sharing lots of ideas with each other and teaching each other a lot.

but what was really funny about this whole situation, is that this chick was all the way from DC, in the middle of fucking norfolk, virginia of all places. and not only did they happen to make it to norfolk, but the one girl in the group visiting my little city, who was a vegetarian, was pulled to MY street, of all the streets in norfolk. what are the fuckin' odds? so after we got to talkin, i gave her my email cuz she seemed like a really chillin person to know who could teach me a lot. and my email before i lost aol recently was mornindewhead, named after a grateful dead song... and then she tells me her name means morning dew in israel, so i was like wow thats really cool.. and i dont know if any deadheads are reading this, but if you listen to the song morning dew(or read the lyrics), it REALLY aligns with all the other so called coincedences and experiences of the day.

it was really cool stuff, if you can believe it. what i took it all to mean amongst other things and signs i've been looking out for in my life, is that something(or more likely somethings) unpercievable to us(in this state of mind) is very alive and very much here and looking out after us all, the earth included. it loves us all, meat eaters and pacific lumber corporations alike. because it sees that meat eaters and so called "evil-doers" are not evil by nature, but theyve been sucked into it and dont even realize just HOW ugly the reality of meat eating is, and they are suffering for others greed. it sees them for the beautiful angelic beings they all are, the way we should all try to, even the dreaded president bush, for he too is harmless inside and cannot do real harm to mother earth even if he WANTED to.

so were in good hands you know, try not to worry too much about things. this isnt to say you shouldnt try to HELP the world and plant your trees and do your earth friendly deeds and spread the love that is in these deeds, and break the cycle of greed and try to fix the collective karmic drama unfolding on earth. you should just do it with a light heart, not a heavy one, for in a light heart, love resides, and love is what ultimatley is going to change and heal the world, if the world is meant to be healed and evolve... which i think it is.

i mean, look at bio diesel, how big of a blessing is that??? cars are perhaps responsible for more murder than cancer and war alike, and yet there is a possible way to run cars without fuckin' the our only environment and home up. sure were still not even mentioning bio diesel and were giving hybrids a lot of attention with the gas crisis, and we might have to experience a lot of shit before humanity as a whole wakes up to this, but its THERE you know. solutions exist, and who knows what other technology will appear as the earth and humanity find themselves in tough situations in the future? perhaps the tough situations are what will bring us closer to the earth, and to ourselves finally, and be a good thing after all.

 

That's pretty cool, man. I agree strongly with this, and I like how you put it:

 

Glad to see that so many of you younger folks are concerned. There are lots of you out there. You are not alone.

Yes things are bad right now. Mother earth is systematically being torn apart and we are losing at the moment. The good news is that the earth can be put back into balance. It is possible. There is a strong and growing tracker movement which is sort of underground right now but they are some of the most effective activists I have ever seen. There approach is genuinely new. As with most new approaches you may have to unlearn or maybe reunderstand some of your current viewpoints. But speaking from experience it is worth the trouble. There methods are amazingly effective.

If you want to get tapped in you might want to check out Tom Brown's books. He is the worlds greatest tracker. And his school in NJ is having a major benificial effect, sending out powerful ripple effects everywhere.

You might also want to check out Wilderness Awareness School in Duvall, WA. They have a really good website and their links can put you in touch with some like minded people in your region. Their Kamana home study program is awesome and they have a really good college program.

You might also want to check out natureskills.com. It is their nature skills website. Lots of good info.

Another good starting place is learningherbs.com. It is a great and easy introduction to herbal medicine.

Good luck to all. Maybe I'll see you in nature.

 

cant improve perfection!!!

 

ohh sorry peace brother i know were your coming from !

 

Junco, I have one of Tom Brown's books (wilderness survival) and he seems like a knowledgable guy, but I don't see how learning to be a tracker is going to save the environment. Maybe you could explain a bit more?

 

Excellent question TrippingBTM. It is a little hard to explain in a few paragraphs. Its one of those things that has to be lived to be believed. But here goes. Tracking is much more than simply learning how to read animal tracks. It is about expanding your awareness so that you understand how all of the elements of nature are connected, and particularly how movement in one place sets off a ripple effect that causes movement and consequenses elsewhere.

Many people can recite the new age bromide that we are all connected but it is the tracker who knows that when he sees one event he can know what happened many steps before and what will likely happen several steps into the future. A tracker can then take this knowlege and know where to make a small gentle intervention that will produce significant benefits in the future. A trackers power is really the power to very softly steer or nudge the world in a good direction.

The most direct way to understand this is in the area of forest grooming. Tom discusses this in one of his later books. I think it is "Grandfather". He tells the story of how Stalking Wolf as a young man was taken on a walk by his grandfather, Coyote Thunder. They walked up along a stream. As they were walking, Stalking Wolf noticed that on one side of the stream, the forest was healthy and full of plants and game. On the other side of the stream the forest was sick, full of diseased plants and with sparse game. Stalking Wolf was puzzled as to how these forests could be adjacent and so different. The answer was that Coyote Thunder had groomed the healthy forest and over a remarkably short period of years, restored the good forest to a state of health and balance. Tom teaches these techniques in his caretaker course and many of his students are quietly grooming patches of land all over the world.

Another benefit of tracking is that it literally grows your brain. Because we have been raised in buildings and cities, most of our senses and much of our brains and nervous systems have atrophied. Tracking requires you to go into nature and stretch and stimulate your physical senses. Doing this literally grows your neurons and your entire nervous system. Among the benefits ...1)It improves your physical health as everything physically circulates and your body starts getting rid of all sorts of toxic stuff. 2) AS you connect with nature your concern for the environment stops being intellectual and becomes personal. When your favorite spot, a spot you have grown to love gets bulldozed you take it personally. The animals and plants of that land have become friends of yours. When that land gets bulldozed, it hits you right in the heart. That feeling alone is often enough to lift you from your complacency and make you do something tangible and effective. 3) As you connect with nature your respect for the power of nature expands by several orders of magnitude and with that your hope returns and most of those who push through and really learn the stuff become incredibly dynamic individuals. This has to be seen to be believed. I have been fortunate enough to see a number of people transformed from nice but unremarkable people into strikingly forceful folk who are actually moving the world. It really does change their hearts. But again this has to be seen to be believed.

It takes some time and committment to really see what it can do. Not a lot but some. You have to stick with it for a bit before you see results. But they will come and they are profound.

If you want to pursue it further you can try Tom Browns school or Wilderness Awareness School. Tom's courses are great but they are very intense. Some people do better with Jon Young's Kamana/mentoring approach used at Wilderness Awareness School.

I hope this makes things a little clearer. Best of luck with whatever direction you decide to go.
junco

 

Thanks for the info, sounds interesting...I'll have to look into it a bit