So Many Thoughts…No Where To Go.

I feel like I’ve been out of the news circuit – both politically and environmentally – for so long. In actuality, only a few months. After Ron Paul left the race, after I had fought long and hard and dedicated so much time and energy and money, I needed to duck out for awhile. I’ve heard from lots of other delegates and campaigners who are still recovering; people who did 10x more than I managed. Man, those were some good months, full of new friends and so much energy. I can’t remembered ever feeling so energized. But now I feel I’m missing out and I’m slowly sticking my head back in.

I was listening to NPR the other day and heard a news story on recycling. It seems as Peak Oil gains recognition and folks start to think about their consumption and subsequent waste and are actually breaking out those recycling bins, the recycling market has plummeted. As in a nose dive off a high cliff to splatter on sharp rocks below. Not a pretty picture. People are buying less, which is a good thing. But manufacturers now need less material. So recycling facilities around the country have no one to sell to. One facility in California actually rented warehouse space to store material until the market rises back up and they can unload it then. That’s…that’s…crazy.

This wasn’t something I saw coming. I thought as peak oil made new resources harder to come by more people would be seeking junk. I have this dark, Soylent Green vision of the world in my head; which includes people digging up old landfills to find crushed cans or plastic bottles to sell like pawned goods. Copper becoming the new gold. And maybe that still will happen. But in the meantime, there is no market for recyclables and they’re all still scurrying around for new materials while they’re cheap and we can find them.

I guess this means our emphasis should be on the Reduce and Reuse. Or as my category says “Reduce, Reuse, PREcycle”. Think before we buy. Buy quality. Picture yourself using it for the next 40 years. Then actually use it for the next 40 years. Make do, mend it, or do without. Ultimately, I think this is what will happen. Recycled plastics will be manufactured for hospitals; things that must be disposable. And our home trash cans and recycling bins will sit empty most of the year.

It’s strange when I live in my little world of sustainability; with friends who garden, with ‘green’ blogs to read. I tend to think the world is turning around in huge leaps. And maybe it is. But then I step outside my little world and see someones faucet running while they walk away, or see people who struggle to make ends meet buying disposable everything. I see people who think what I’m doing is insane or extreme. Who believe growing food in Las Vegas is impossible; who can’t imagine not going out to eat on your birthday. People who think a 9 year old boy can’t possibly learn anything without coercion but wonder why ingenuity has fizzled out and how we’ll survive the future without it.

Who accept the world they’ve been given and neither wish for change nor even believe it’s inevitable.

I look at our life now and try to envision where we’ll be in the future – something I’ve never been good at doing. But at least we’re preparing – planting, learning, working, saving for whatever may come. And I worry. Here we are ahead of the game and still challenged by the task. And how many aren’t even aware? What is going to happen when the whistle blows to start the real game and leave so many people bewildered and floundering? People in fear. Fear does crazy shit to crowds. One person on their own is an intelligent thinker. En masse tends to lower IQs and drain all rationale. Will we be more concerned over the safety of our food in our front yard or for ourselves?

And then in my news haitus, I somehow missed the reintroduction of the ban on semi-automatic rifles. This frustrates me. Why don’t more people see that only LAW-ABIDING CITIZENS follow the LAW in regards to gun bans and that all this will do is disarm VICTIMS?! Criminals will continue getting guns they shouldn’t have, while regular folks lose the right to protect themselves. It won’t stop the crime. It won’t decrease accidents either – only safety education does that. So what exactly is the point to it?

:sigh:

Half the country is worried that Obama will screw us up further. Many think he’s our Savior in disguise or at least the best thing since sliced bread. I think neither yet. I think he has a great potential to do either task well and I’m just waitin’ for the results. I like the fact that he has some thought toward sustainability. I wish more people saw the potential of inflating their damn tires. And maybe someone will be able to convince him to plant a victory garden in the front lawn of the White House. There is a potential there to set a great precedent, to change our image in the eyes of the rest of the world, to become leaders again, to inspire thousands of people to do something other than go shopping. There is also the potential to bankrupt us, to steal our freedoms or make suspicious decisions in favor of “public safety”…something we’ve seen for awhile, something we saw during Katrina, something we see going on now in food co-ops, and with food irradiation, and again and again and again with our rights.

Aaah, I don’t mean to sound so negative. I guess this is what I get when I’m too cold to do much more than surf the ‘net and formulate thoughts. There are some happy thoughts in here too, though. Like how Ron Paul might win in 2012 – if only that dream would come true. Like how many awesome people are adopting urban chickens or reading articles on “anti-economies“. And then there is all the IRL positives – our garden coming along, our onions and carrots doing well, finally seeing the leaves change color, the great people I’ve met in my photography meetup. And a real plus is how the negative news doesn’t seem to paralyze me like it used to. It’s become empowering, and a way to explain my craziness to others. It’s confirmed my path and believe it or not, it’s made me damn excited for what lies ahead.

I mean really, aren’t we always saying how we wish we could sloooow dooooown? How we wish it were about connecting and finding purpose? That’s what this has done for me. I hope it does the same for others.