There is an electrical election tomorrow, Saturday March 28th, and the ballot box is right in your home, and right at your fingertips.
1,429 cities and towns in over 80 countries will flip the switch this year, and cast their votes.
Stand tall along side some of the most recognizable monuments across the globe like the Sydney Opera House, The Golden Gate Bridge, New York's Empire State Building, and Toronto's CN Tower who will all be participating.
Earth Hour started in Sydney, Australia in 2007 when 2.2 million people agreed to turn off their lights for one hour.
Earth Hour apparently spread at the speed of light last year and went global with approximately 50 million people turning off their lights around the world.
Earth hour's goal this year is to see, by way of not seeing, 1 Billion people make their silent statements from the comfort of their intimately cosy homes.
For the first time in history, our silent personal action will be counted as a vote.
And the number of 'voters' (even if your not 18, here's your opportunity to vote, so flick those switches off)
will be presented to the UN Global Climate Change Conference being held in Copenhagen this December.
This very conference will determine official international government actions to address climate change and global warming
which will replace the Kyoto Protocol.
If you've ever wanted to "do" anything about that which you always felt was way beyond anything you could do to effect any change....don't tell me flicking every light switch off, that is in your house, is beyond your capacity.
If so, then the world really is in trouble, and so are you, should we call someone to help you? Contact us by morse code using your light switch....oh wait, I see the problem there...ah well...I guess it's lights out for you.
I think I would rather be left in the dark than learn how extensive our complacency really is.
But I will certainly wait to be enlightened about how many people stopped and thought, and cared enough to give a damn about this gorgeous, this singularly unique, this wondrously enchanting planet we have the privilege of living on.
Plus, we need to practise for when no one can afford fuel or energy, heat or light....we need to get over our fear of the dark, and let go of our electric security blanket, at least as long as a rinse cycle would take.
One hour, a year at a time.
We can do it.
We have to!
Evidently Governments around the world won't take active measures of doing anything vital UNTIL a lot of us make a silent and peaceful statement, so let's not let conveniently unconscionable forgetfulness and laziness be the death of democracy, along with every living species, and ourselves, and our children's-children's life, livelihood and future.
Cut and paste this and have a listen, and stop and think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd1BsNvEXqo
or hit www.earthhour.org
What is more important, than the earth that enables us to do it?
Friday, March 27, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Stop The Silence Canada
Canada's freedom of speech is currently hanging in the Harper-built-gallows as we speak....
so to speak.
ahhh....to be able to speak soto
...freely.
Dundee born, George Galloway, 5 time elected Liberal MP from Scotland, who was, yes yes yes, admittedly expelled from Parliament in 2003 for articulating his views on the illegal war that was about to be embarked upon by Bush and Blair as those two were hopping and skipping merrily, headlong, arm-and-arm together into an illegal and insane war and occupation of undeniable, blatant and ridiculous proportions.
George Galloway is anti-war. ....and not an angel, but this is about nothing other than
freedom of speech. (and the Scots have a thing about freedom)
But, being Scottish, and a wee bitty over the top, he takes staunch stands on silly little things like the insanity that was the war in Iraq and Afghanistan...and generally feels compelled to champion any underdogs causes, he speaks to & for those who are set up to lose their lives and livelihoods, he's for the humanity that tends to get caught in the unfair cross hairs of otherwise unbalanced powers, and renown International....
....bullies.
Harper is anti-freedom of speech.
But, being an eyelash fluttering admirer of George Bush....and being such a fuddy duddy wanna-be bully himself, Harper and his boy wonder, Jason Kenney Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, have been 'advised' by a very defensive Jewish Defence League, to not let George Galloway step foot in Canada because he has allegedly financially helped Arab under dogs who have been on the receiving end of Israeli offensives.
Why is no one questioning how such offensives are even afforded and funded?
It's like a kid with a shiny new knife crying because someone might have tossed his already beaten up, bleeding worrying victim a rock. Can't ever have a fight when both sides are actually armed now can we?
That is so not fair.
Thus, Harper and boy wonder are holding potential truths hostage, thereby sending Canada digressing so far back into the dark ages, we can't see our ground-scraping-knuckles in front of our half opened eyes, let alone say or type out a few words on the subject.
By not letting George Galloway the anti-war MP (who currently serves on dissertation committees at the University of Toronto and the University of Ottawa) into our once, strong-and-free-country, to honour his scheduled four-city Canadian tour of speaking engagements that were to begin in Toronto March 30, March 31 in Mississauga,
April 1 in Montreal, and in Ottawa on April 2, freedom of speech, and the expression of ideas and the prevention of open discussion is more of an affront than what the guy might actually say. But now we'll never know that will we?
Tell you what...what's say we let the guy speak and hear first-knuckle-scraping-hand what he has to say, and see if and how and where he offends, and then address the matter, openly, diplomatically, and publicly.
Let the man commit a mistake first (if he's even going to) it's what we let our criminals do everyday, why should he get special treatment?
This freedom of thought prevention thing has a bit of a serious connotation to it don't you think?
No oh wait...you're not supposed to be doing that. Thinking is dangerous, and evidently liable!
But if you're feeling particularly dangerous ask yourself this....
Since when is anti war something to be smothered, suffocated and silenced in Canada?
Since when does the views and opinions of one group, outweigh all other opinion from even being heard?
And just when exactly did Canada get the brain by-pass surgery?!?!
What happened to critical thinking and open debates? Freedom? hellooo...it's in the dictionary, must freedom only exist there?
How on earrrrrrth is this suffocating blanket of silence GOOD for anyone, or any country anywhere, I ask you?
How insecure must a person / un-primed minister / group BE to be so a-feared of anyone saying anything
they don't wanna hear? Are they so flimsy and cannot survive without pulverizing that which they cannot win in an intelligent debate?
...or are these questions not allowed to be debated or discussed publicly lest a blanket gets thrown over our heads and we get whisked away never to be heard or seen again?
Hoodwinking. How archaic can you get?!
Dark ages indeed.
It's times like these, the argument for evolution really has a hard time standing upright doesn't it?
so to speak.
ahhh....to be able to speak soto
...freely.
Dundee born, George Galloway, 5 time elected Liberal MP from Scotland, who was, yes yes yes, admittedly expelled from Parliament in 2003 for articulating his views on the illegal war that was about to be embarked upon by Bush and Blair as those two were hopping and skipping merrily, headlong, arm-and-arm together into an illegal and insane war and occupation of undeniable, blatant and ridiculous proportions.
George Galloway is anti-war. ....and not an angel, but this is about nothing other than
freedom of speech. (and the Scots have a thing about freedom)
But, being Scottish, and a wee bitty over the top, he takes staunch stands on silly little things like the insanity that was the war in Iraq and Afghanistan...and generally feels compelled to champion any underdogs causes, he speaks to & for those who are set up to lose their lives and livelihoods, he's for the humanity that tends to get caught in the unfair cross hairs of otherwise unbalanced powers, and renown International....
....bullies.
Harper is anti-freedom of speech.
But, being an eyelash fluttering admirer of George Bush....and being such a fuddy duddy wanna-be bully himself, Harper and his boy wonder, Jason Kenney Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, have been 'advised' by a very defensive Jewish Defence League, to not let George Galloway step foot in Canada because he has allegedly financially helped Arab under dogs who have been on the receiving end of Israeli offensives.
Why is no one questioning how such offensives are even afforded and funded?
It's like a kid with a shiny new knife crying because someone might have tossed his already beaten up, bleeding worrying victim a rock. Can't ever have a fight when both sides are actually armed now can we?
That is so not fair.
Thus, Harper and boy wonder are holding potential truths hostage, thereby sending Canada digressing so far back into the dark ages, we can't see our ground-scraping-knuckles in front of our half opened eyes, let alone say or type out a few words on the subject.
By not letting George Galloway the anti-war MP (who currently serves on dissertation committees at the University of Toronto and the University of Ottawa) into our once, strong-and-free-country, to honour his scheduled four-city Canadian tour of speaking engagements that were to begin in Toronto March 30, March 31 in Mississauga,
April 1 in Montreal, and in Ottawa on April 2, freedom of speech, and the expression of ideas and the prevention of open discussion is more of an affront than what the guy might actually say. But now we'll never know that will we?
Tell you what...what's say we let the guy speak and hear first-knuckle-scraping-hand what he has to say, and see if and how and where he offends, and then address the matter, openly, diplomatically, and publicly.
Let the man commit a mistake first (if he's even going to) it's what we let our criminals do everyday, why should he get special treatment?
This freedom of thought prevention thing has a bit of a serious connotation to it don't you think?
No oh wait...you're not supposed to be doing that. Thinking is dangerous, and evidently liable!
But if you're feeling particularly dangerous ask yourself this....
Since when is anti war something to be smothered, suffocated and silenced in Canada?
Since when does the views and opinions of one group, outweigh all other opinion from even being heard?
And just when exactly did Canada get the brain by-pass surgery?!?!
What happened to critical thinking and open debates? Freedom? hellooo...it's in the dictionary, must freedom only exist there?
How on earrrrrrth is this suffocating blanket of silence GOOD for anyone, or any country anywhere, I ask you?
How insecure must a person / un-primed minister / group BE to be so a-feared of anyone saying anything
they don't wanna hear? Are they so flimsy and cannot survive without pulverizing that which they cannot win in an intelligent debate?
...or are these questions not allowed to be debated or discussed publicly lest a blanket gets thrown over our heads and we get whisked away never to be heard or seen again?
Hoodwinking. How archaic can you get?!
Dark ages indeed.
It's times like these, the argument for evolution really has a hard time standing upright doesn't it?
Friday, March 20, 2009
Equality Twice A Year
March 20th 11:44 am is the precise moment,
the earth's equinox occurs.
Where day and night are equal to one another...
and there is equality whether people want it or not.
When Spring arrives and we crash to our knees
for having survived yet another winter
...or is it just me who feels this way?
Some facts
* World Storytelling Day is a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling,
celebrated every year on the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere,
the first day of autumn equinox in the southern.
* World Citizen Day occurs on the March equinox.
* Earth Day was initially celebrated on March 21, 1970,
on the equinox day. But was likely thought to be too pagan.
So it is now celebrated in various countries on April 22.
People in the Americas and Asia are accustomed to expecting the equinoxes to occur on March 21,
which did, in fact, occur quite frequently in the 20th century and will occur occasionally in the 21st century,
but due to some high precision clock that tracks these things (which is at least four hours in advance of any clock
in the Americas and as much as twelve hours behind Asian clocks), there will be no spring equinox later than March 20 in the Americas in the 21st century.
sproing!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Read All About It !
That sequence of silence this month was performance art on my part....
My silence was a representation of the-quiet-silencing-that-is-slowly-creeping-over-the-world-like-a-thick-fog.
As newspapers run their last editions, and as television media companies cauterize their costs which, more often than not, are found in the way of eliminating employees and shedding their assets like a snake skin....leaving husks, reducing reporters and leaving what few journalists left, with less forums in which to articulate the silent strep throat scream that is spreading faster than-said-virus in every city, country and industry around the world.
The poetic injustice of only being able to print and report THAT they are having to shut down their century old institutions, but nothing of the aftermath, the human fallout, the implications, ramifications, result or consequences closing and boarding up physical and proverbial doors have, IS the ignorance and darkness we'll be left sitting in as more cities lose their local news papers, radio and tv stations, until there are fewer windows to let in the light of day and clarity of integral reporting and information, which the eyes, ears and minds of millions will forever need (if they are sentient). That being, objective, insightful, independent, well researched, intelligent critical thinking and information they can trust and rely on.
not stuff like you find in blogs like this for gawds sake...but the real McCoy.
Imagine what life would be like if we didn't have independent, unembedded information that miraculously made its way to our eyes, ears and mind?
We'd be dumber than a stump by twelve noon.
But we'd never know it.
It's that not-knowing how much we were never-informed-of that will be the death of us.
That's like not knowing our history....the worlds history....or science....biology....physics.....
the environment...evolution....cosmology....philosophy....ethics and morality....
Don't ask me HOW it's like these things, only THAT it is as fundamentally essential as all of these things....
...such knowledge is vital to our well rounded personal comprehension and collective growth.
Last month, Colorado's Rocky Mountain News published their final issue, 55 days before it could turn 150 years old leaving the city with one last remaining paper, The Denver Post.
In other news - In 1863 The Settle Post Intelligencer printed it's first newspaper issue, and on March 16th 2009 printed its last newsprint edition.
It now only exists online existentially.
France, despite that French penchant for striking every 2 minutes, have suavely stepped up to the print industry's current situation, by saying the government has a duty, a responsibility to ensure there is future in the print industry in a speech to industry leaders, President Nicolas Sarkozy said it was legitimate for the state to consider the print media's economic situation."It is indeed its responsibility ... to make sure an independent, free and pluralistic press exists,"he said.
In measures that took effect last month, the state increased its annual support for newspaper and magazine deliveries to euro 70 million ($90 million) from euro 8 million last year, and spend euro 20 million more a year for its advertisements in print publications. The state will also defer some fees the publications face.
The initiative is designed to help the sector over three years "to modernize and invest in the print media sector in exchange for important structural reforms," he said. The measures he announced recently came from recommendations that were printed in a three-month study into the industry's health that was released in Jan. 2009. The study also recommends that newspapers restructure their finances and that journalists be better trained for multiple forms of media, including online.
"None of the proposed measures ... will be useful in the end if the profession doesn't meet its challenges," he said. "The industry has a future to reinvent...."
What-Fi-Sees is - every person, industry and country will find it is time to reinvent, re-envision & re-present themselves.
In a word: evolve
...that tricky little thing that has plagued people for eons heaped upon eons
but there it is, as has it always been, it's our only way forward...cause there ain't no goin back!
I look forward to reading about it when it happens.
My silence was a representation of the-quiet-silencing-that-is-slowly-creeping-over-the-world-like-a-thick-fog.
As newspapers run their last editions, and as television media companies cauterize their costs which, more often than not, are found in the way of eliminating employees and shedding their assets like a snake skin....leaving husks, reducing reporters and leaving what few journalists left, with less forums in which to articulate the silent strep throat scream that is spreading faster than-said-virus in every city, country and industry around the world.
The poetic injustice of only being able to print and report THAT they are having to shut down their century old institutions, but nothing of the aftermath, the human fallout, the implications, ramifications, result or consequences closing and boarding up physical and proverbial doors have, IS the ignorance and darkness we'll be left sitting in as more cities lose their local news papers, radio and tv stations, until there are fewer windows to let in the light of day and clarity of integral reporting and information, which the eyes, ears and minds of millions will forever need (if they are sentient). That being, objective, insightful, independent, well researched, intelligent critical thinking and information they can trust and rely on.
not stuff like you find in blogs like this for gawds sake...but the real McCoy.
Imagine what life would be like if we didn't have independent, unembedded information that miraculously made its way to our eyes, ears and mind?
We'd be dumber than a stump by twelve noon.
But we'd never know it.
It's that not-knowing how much we were never-informed-of that will be the death of us.
That's like not knowing our history....the worlds history....or science....biology....physics.....
the environment...evolution....cosmology....philosophy....ethics and morality....
Don't ask me HOW it's like these things, only THAT it is as fundamentally essential as all of these things....
...such knowledge is vital to our well rounded personal comprehension and collective growth.
Last month, Colorado's Rocky Mountain News published their final issue, 55 days before it could turn 150 years old leaving the city with one last remaining paper, The Denver Post.
In other news - In 1863 The Settle Post Intelligencer printed it's first newspaper issue, and on March 16th 2009 printed its last newsprint edition.
It now only exists online existentially.
France, despite that French penchant for striking every 2 minutes, have suavely stepped up to the print industry's current situation, by saying the government has a duty, a responsibility to ensure there is future in the print industry in a speech to industry leaders, President Nicolas Sarkozy said it was legitimate for the state to consider the print media's economic situation."It is indeed its responsibility ... to make sure an independent, free and pluralistic press exists,"he said.
In measures that took effect last month, the state increased its annual support for newspaper and magazine deliveries to euro 70 million ($90 million) from euro 8 million last year, and spend euro 20 million more a year for its advertisements in print publications. The state will also defer some fees the publications face.
The initiative is designed to help the sector over three years "to modernize and invest in the print media sector in exchange for important structural reforms," he said. The measures he announced recently came from recommendations that were printed in a three-month study into the industry's health that was released in Jan. 2009. The study also recommends that newspapers restructure their finances and that journalists be better trained for multiple forms of media, including online.
"None of the proposed measures ... will be useful in the end if the profession doesn't meet its challenges," he said. "The industry has a future to reinvent...."
What-Fi-Sees is - every person, industry and country will find it is time to reinvent, re-envision & re-present themselves.
In a word: evolve
...that tricky little thing that has plagued people for eons heaped upon eons
but there it is, as has it always been, it's our only way forward...cause there ain't no goin back!
I look forward to reading about it when it happens.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)