What if we’re the people we’ve been waiting for?
The book entitled The Household and the Planet (forthcoming) details the mess that Western Civilisation has planted on the Planet. The roots of the problems are not to be found in some distant faraway desert island. They lie right here, inside our very doorsteps. For decades, the same refrain has been repeated over and over again. Each and every one of us is responsible for those choices we make as citizens in the political sphere, as workers and spenders in the economic sphere, and as artists in the cultural sphere. To spell it out simply:
1. in the political sphere, it is not enough to cast a vote when elections are called, only to sit back and leave them to it, so that blame them when things go wrong. On the contrary, as responsible citizens we have the duty to support our elected representatives when they are working for us on the right lines, and to blow the whistle loud and clear when things are going wrong. How? Well, that's the duty of the citizen to find out, by attending council meetings at local, regional and national levels, asking questions, writing to the press and mass media and studying with others what is to be done about noise, air and light pollution, food banks and the other plights facing the same problems as in the Ken Loach film "I Daniel Blake".
2. as economic agents, it is our duty to consider very seriously our ecological and ethical footprint. Where and how do our consumer life choices and the kind of paid work we do, impact upon the life choices of other households, and upon the planet as a whole/? If we are happy about it, fine. If not, who is going to do anything about it? Who can effect change?
3. As cultural agents we have a duty to educate ourselves in arts, crafts, farming, and other practical skills, not just as a hobby to pas the time, but as worthwhile practical skills that produce food, clothing and the other necessities of life. Included in these skills is the ability to interact with others in music and dance to read, discuss and write and record thoughts.
These questions are not novel in any way. They have been asked persistently throughout the twentieth century by groups of individuals with the common good at heart. Their questioning has been poopooed by the devotees of progress and materialism - you can't put the clock-back, that's what the Luddites tried to do. etc etc. Nevertheless, a substantial bank of sound thinking is to be found if you look for it. As a start, you might investigate the Douglas Social Credit website https://www.douglassocialcredit.com/ .
Start with the HOME PAGE. The column on the right of the page, and the drop down menus, introduce worldwide bodies of alternative thought, debate and discussion. Copies of The Social Artist contain informative articles, views and reviews from well-established groups, networks and key figures from mainstream media, academia and the various non-governmental 'voluntary' bodies. Your attention is drawn to the Autumn 2019 edition of TSA (bottom left on your screen). There you will find and article by Helga Moss that amplifies upon the above mentioned comments on the role of the individual household. And, on page 36 Peter Maurin of The Catholic Worker, explains anarchism.
A guided tour of the rest of the website is to follow in due course of time. In the meantime, there is nothing to stop you investigating for yourself.
To access this Blog try https://understandinglifeanddebt.blogspot.com/
