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Rolla Peace News April 2, 2019 |
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Dear Friends: http://tomsager.org/Peaceletters/peaceletter040219.html In this newsletter is: 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 2019 2. CITIZENS CLIMATE LOBBY: THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 6:30PM 3. THE MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) A Riddle b) Two Out of Three c) Separation v. Togetherness 1. NOON VIGIL FOR PEACE: THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 2019 We vigil for peace in front of the Rolla Post Office, THIS THURSDAY, APRIL 4, FROM NOON TO 1:00 PM (and most subsequent Thursdays until peace is established). Please try to join us. The temperature is predicted in the 50s. If you do not feel comfortable standing with us in front of the Post Office, please consider driving by and showing your support for our message by honking your horn and flashing a peace sign. 2. CITIZENS CLIMATE LOBBY: THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 6:30PM Newly formed Rolla chapter of the Citizens Climate Lobby will meet in the meeting room of the Rolla children's library at 6:30pm, Thursday, April 18. Everyone is welcome. 3. MISFIT MATHEMATICIAN (Tom's column, http://tomsager.org) a) A Riddle b) Two Out of Three c) Separation v. Togetherness A RIDDLE Ok: Here's the riddle. What do all these locations have in common: Iowa, Iran, Australia, South Dakota, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Zambia, Nebraska, Mozambique, New Zealand, Pakistan, Missouri, (and likely other locations as well)?“And all the rain falls down — Amen, If you answered devastating floods in March, 2019, then give yourself a pat on the back. Have we ever witnessed so many devastating floods in so many different parts of the world, all within one short month? I doubt it. But if you have a counter example, I would love to hear about it. The only one I am aware of happened many thousands of years ago when: Perhaps last month's floods have as much to do with global warming and all the carbon we've put in the atmosphere. Warm air holds more water vapor than cooler air. You don't have to be a biblical scholar or a climate scientist to know that. But isn't the violence we do to the Earth, the proximate cause of global warming, exactly the kind of evil which the Bible warns about in Genesis 6?“it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. ... And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die.” (Genesis 6:6-17, KJV) So as the climate warms, such devastating floods become more and more likely. And how many more years of widespread extreme weather events will it take before what we refer to as our global “civilization” collapses, and “the works of last-year's man” are utterly destroyed? I don't have an answer for you; but my guess is, not many. TWO OUT OF THREE Australia has just experienced the warmest January and March on record along with devastating heat, fires and floods. February was not far behind. Think of this: An entire continent collapsing before our eyes under the bombardment of extreme weather events, with the Americas, Eurasia and Africa perhaps not so very far behind. How much time do we have left? I don't have an answer for you; but my guess is, not much. SEPARATION v. TOGETHERNESS “Should we save the planet or kill the enemy?", Robert Koehler begins his short essay, Our Wounded Planet. Nobody brings out the connection between Violence and Climate Change the way Koehler does. He quotes Rebecca Solnit saying, “Behind the urgency of climate action is the understanding that everything is connected.” Yes, all living beings and the planet we live on are connected. And again, quoting Solnit, “To kill someone you have to feel separate from them.” Koehler continues with this thought: If we are to address climate change effectively, we must also address the issues of War, Violence and Separateness. Indeed, in a world where we are all aware of how connected we are to everything else, it would be impossible to do such violence to the Earth.“This is our social infrastructure, our status quo: a consensus utterly unquestioned by most politicians and the mainstream media. Indeed, the U.S. may well be the leader of the global ideology of separation, which means a world of standing armies, unconscionable military budgets and endless war; a world of wealth and poverty, where profit is officially valued over the common good; a world of punishment-based justice, a growing prison-industrial complex and indifference to healing; a world of guns and racism; a world of borders and immigrant scapegoating; a world of nuclear weapons. If you read nothing else this week, read Robert Koehler's Our Wounded Planet. Rolla Peace News is distributed by email once a week on Tuesday evenings (except on rare occasions) and is posted on the web at http://tomsager.org (click on Grassroots Rolla: at the top of rightmost column). If you don't wish to get notices of peace events in the Rolla area, let me know and I'll take you off this list. If you want to be added to this list, let me know. Wage peace, Helen helenm (at) fidnet.com |