#Occupy Climate Change
In the grand scheme of things, capitalism is a blip. A flicker on
the historical radar and a rather dangerous planetary-scale experiment
whose results are easy to guess and hard to ignore. When you have a
giant machine pushing for infinite and perpetual growth in a world with
finite resources, you know it's not going to end well. Yet right now,
for the average citizen of the West, a world without the hallmarks of
capitalism – without Wall Street, the rat race, shopping malls, economic
growth, debt and competitive consumerism – is almost impossible to
imagine. The very thought of a consumer-free world opens up such a void,
such a unknowingness that it scares the bejesus out of us.
Throughout history, however, there have been people willing to place
themselves in that white void and be petrified, even liberated by
change. The Arab Spring, which has seen ordinary citizens revolt against
mighty dictatorships, is the most recent example of that human ability.
And for that reason, the Arab Spring gives us hope. Hope that the world
will be able to save itself from the system that has pushed the earth
and its resources to the brink. That an alternative will not only be
imagined but embraced in the name of new possibilities and freedoms.
The Arab Spring also shows that although we can't imagine how
it will happen or where the political and personal courage will come
from, it will surprise us all the more. Despite what you may have heard
by now, no one saw the Arab Spring coming. Not the political
commentators, not the average person on the street and definitely not
the Arab 'leaders' and 'presidents.' It came completely out of the blue,
after years of complacency and apathy. Even those who first took to the
streets could not have realized the significance of their actions. But
once they were there, together, on Tahrir Square and at Benghazi, they
didn't go home – they wanted change now and more desperately than ever.
Gaddafi, who had ruled Libya for 40 years – almost as long as we have
known what we need to do to stop climate change – was forced into
hiding by rebels who decided that 40years was 40 years too many. For
many Libyans before the revolt, the prospect of a Gadaffi-free Libya was
unimaginable. Yet Gadaffi is gone now and we are given another hint
that one day – when Capitalism is least expecting it – people will say
that the destruction of the planet in exchange for constant economic
growth is a price too high to pay. It gives us a glimmer that one day
capitalism will be gone too, replaced by a new world system that places
the value of our existence and the world's existence before a quick
buck.
Some say that capitalism is too big to fail, that there are too many
people invested in its survival. But as we discover that the survival of
capitalism means the destruction of the planet, we grow hopeful of our
ability to stop, look around and step into the void.
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