In this dawning age of mindfulness, how often we hear 'be present in the moment'. In my own practice, on the cushion and off (when I remember), that's my aim too. But do I pine over happy days gone by? Yes, sometimes. Do I yearn for better days ahead? Yes, often.
Looking back over the mayhem of our civilization's troubled adolescence and how far we've come, it's hard not to dream about the future our grandchildren might have if we would only embrace our evolution rather than run away from it.
 |
| Albedo Yacht pumping sea water into the atmosphere |
Over the past few years research into cloud reflectivity modification has received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It involves seeding clouds with the most benign substance around - seawater - to make them more reflective to infra-red while allowing visible light through.
Around 1,900 floating machines would be enough to stop the rise in temperature. The cost? $7.5 billion, barely one percent of the USA's annual military budget.
The spending of mind-boggling amounts of hard-earned tax
dollars on a killing machine will eventually come to an end. However, the downside of dismantling the armed
forces would be roughly two million
military and civilian personnel losing their jobs. Assuming bulldozers are
cheaper than stealth bombers and hospital ships cheaper than aircraft carriers,
re-tooling the military for disaster relief and humanitarian aid looks like a
viable workaround.
As Isaiah
prophesied an awfully long time ago:
They
will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war
anymore.
Here's a little glimmer of light from Al Gore's website:
The
U.S. Department of Defense plans to open up 16 million acres of its land for
renewable energy development, which it hopes will create a boom of solar, wind
and geothermal projects and provide clean power to military bases, the
department announced Monday.
Defense
Secretary Leon Panetta and the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar signed a
memorandum of understanding to work together on promoting renewable energy
generation projects on public land that has historically been restricted for
military uses. About 13 million of those 16 million acres are located in
western U.S., where a lot of solar, wind and geothermal power development
already has been taking place on private and other types of public land.
People Won't Come Out Any More
Because there is nowhere to come out from. Faded into the
mists of history is the almost irresistible compulsion, when describing
someone, to include facts that are almost always irrelevant: gender, racial
origin, sexual orientation, first language, apparent wealth, height, weight,
apparent age, taste in clothing, religion, and on and on.
Much more heart to
heart exchange. Much less hiding from each other.
Emancipation
Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream has gone viral. Mahalia
Jackson shouted out, "Tell them about your dream, Martin!" And he
did. The powerful don't take advantage of the weak. The remnants of male
chauvinism are found only in museums. And yes, the animals are finally free.
The sky's the limit to the hurts that can be healed. Perhaps, once in a while, we need to let go of
the present moment, follow John Lennon, and just imagine.
No More Country & Western Music
Unless it's played backwards - then you reconcile with your
estranged spouse, get your job back, and your dog comes back to life.
KIDDING! I'm sorry. That was a terrible, cruel joke. I actually love country. A
lot. Honest!
Here's Pete Seeger's rendition of the song I used for the post title.
