climate change – Page 2 – Engaging Peace

Resistance is a many-splendored thing

Posted on December 7, 2018January 5, 2019 by kathiemm

By Kathie MM

During World War II, the military arm of fascist Germany was met with resistance throughout Europe. In France, Holland, Russia, Yugoslavia, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Greece, Albania, and within Germany itself, despite the struggle merely to survive, ordinary people—men, women, and children–resisted the take-over, the racism, the anti-Semitism. One of the largest resistance movements was in Poland; to immerse yourself in the drama of historical anti-Nazi resistance, read the wonderful portrayal of the Polish resistance movement in the engaging novel, A long, long, time ago and mostly true, by Brigid Pasulka.

The WWII resistance movement employed a number of tactics, often nonviolent, to resist the invaders, including strikes and demonstrations, alternative media (declared illegal by the invaders) to fight Nazi propaganda, their own anti-Nazi publications, and sabotage. It was highly risky work but it contributed to the ultimate defeat of Nazism. Those resistance tactics are in use today to fight a range of threats not just to democracy but to the survival of the earth and its inhabitants.

For example, in the United States today, there is growing concern with the way fascism seems increasingly entwined with the military industrial complex, promoting an agenda that cares nothing for human beings and their living environments except for the profits and power that can be ripped from them.

Although resistance to governmental policies that threaten democracy, social justice, and the environment is less risky in the US today than was fighting the Nazis in WWII, many people are wary of “sticking their necks out” in a country that seems increasingly fascist. Yet there are growing signs of resistance at every level of society that should give us hope for countering the threats on the horizon today.

Just a few recent examples of resistance to agendas that endanger us all:

Wisconsinites braving the freezing weather and turning out in force, crowding the inside of the capitol building, chanting “Respect our vote!” and fighting for a return to democracy

The Women’s March, opposing all forms of bigotry and white supremacy .

Children around the world demanding attention to climate change. See this , and this . and this

Engaging Peace will share more of the resistance efforts that counter the destructiveness of many government policies in weeks to come; we invite you to submit your favorite examples of these actions.

In honor of Mother’s Day, May 13, 2018

Posted on May 13, 2018 by kathiemm

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Day to Night. Author: Kathie Malley-Morrison

Poems by my grandmother, Ernestine Cobern Beyer, that my beloved Mom, Barbara Beyer Malley, and I both love:

The Measure

The strong warm hand, the broad and steady shoulder,

The face you love grown dearer, kinder, older,

The comrade-glance, the peace, the burden-sharing,

The well-loved voice, the touch, the tender caring . . .

O, you who have this, guard it well and treasure it,

For only when you’ve lost it can you measure it!

Stars

The stars maintain eternal espionage

Above the earth, light centuries away.

To them our globe seems but a brief mirage

Created in experimental play.

In cosmic calm, indifferent, they beam

On good and evil, tears and wars and scars;

Earth–are you but a transitory dream

Envisioned by the cool and timeless stars?

Note from KMM: Let’s all do what we can to ensure that life on earth is not transitory. Protect Mother Earth. Fight climate change. Conserve. Recycle. Follow the lead of California and go solar.

And for more poetry and prose from my grandmother, my mother, and me, find The Path.

It’s at: https://www.amazon.com/Path-Tears-Laughter-Through-Generations/dp/1986129969/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1525836609&sr=1-1&keywords=barbara+malley+the+path

New Year’s Resolution 1: Resist and Rise

Posted on December 26, 2017January 5, 2018 by kathiemm

By Kathie MM

New Year’s Resolution 1 comes from the long-time successful activist group Greenpeace International. They have resolved: Tomorrow we rise.

Here are their specific resolutions:

“Tomorrow we break the cycle of overconsumption.

Tomorrow we hold corporations accountable.

Tomorrow we try to decrease the terrible impact of the industrial livestock machine.

Tomorrow, we stand together so that people everywhere are treated a little more equally.

Tomorrow we shake power structures that only serve the few at the expense of the many.

Tomorrow we are positive about our future and will rebuild the planet the way it should be.

Because tomorrow, we resist and we rise.

We’ll see you there.”

Will Greenpeace and Engaging Peace see your signatures on petitions? Will we hear your voices at rallies on behalf on the environment and peace? Will you join us at the ballot box next November, supporting candidates who understand the threats to our environments, and our futures?

Will you rise and resist?

Will you send us your own resolutions to share with other readers?

Now is the hour: Use the holidays to pledge your commitment to peace and social justice.

And please support Engaging Peace. You can click here to donate.

Fossil fuel or life? Polar bears today. The world’s children tomorrow?

Posted on December 10, 2017January 5, 2018 by kathiemm

A video of an emaciated polar bear on Baffin Island was recently shared on social media. Warmer temperatures have led to longer ice-free periods throughout the year in the Arctic, increasing the risk of starvation for the animals. (Photo: @mitrasites2016/Twitter)

Today’s post features excerpts from a Common Dreams staff writer, Julia Conley, who describes an award-winning video of a polar bear starving to death. Global warming results in less ice, which means less availability of polar bears’ food.

Conley’s story and the video deserve attention because, frankly, the powerful oil industry magnates and the politicians in their pockets don’t give a damn about polar bears. They care only about profits and the power that money brings.

And face it, they also don’t give a damn about you or your children or your grandchildren, and certainly not the environment that sustains — or cannot sustain — life.

Julia Conley tells us:

“A video of a starving polar bear led to calls for climate change deniers to confront the real-world effects of global warming this week. Taken by a Canadian conservationist and photographer and posted to social media, the video offered a stark visual of the drastic impacts of climate change that have already begun taking root.

“‘When scientists say bears are going extinct, I want people to realize what it looks like. Bears are going to starve to death. This is what a starving bear looks like.’ (Paul Nicklen)

“On social media, viewers of Nicklen’s video called for political leaders like President Donald Trump, who has refused to take part in global efforts to minimize the warming of the earth by reducing carbon emissions, to reconsider their climate-wrecking actions.”

We can all take part in those efforts before the earth becomes unable to sustain life at all. Remember, the oil magnates and the banking system and the military-industrial complex has tons of money and power, but you have a voice and a vote. There are millions and millions more people like you, like us, than like them.

Conley’s article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.