13 things you can do to make your world a better place

[Artemis Bunyon]

13. Pause and take stock. Assess your life on all fronts; physical, mental, spiritual, social, political and financial. Take notes. With a critical and dispassionate eye, inspect yourself. If you don't like what you see, do something about it. Be personally proactive.

12. Choose a subject you're interested in, and learn everything you can about it. This subject doesn't have to be political, even though all knowledge is political, especially technical expertise. Remember that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but that not all opinions are created equal. Become an expert, not just a know-it-all.

11. Help spread information and stamp out disinformation. Never tolerate a lie. If someone forwards you a piece of propaganda you know to be untrue, send debunking information to the original sender, along with everyone to whom the sender has mailed these lies. You may not change every mind, but you don't have to.

10. Never accept anything unquestioningly. Never take anything at face value. Allow yourself to be paranoid, but don't let paranoia be the sole guide to your actions. Discerning intuitive patterns in chaos is a skill that the human race is evolving to deal with our increasingly chaotic world, but rushed reasoning can be just as dangerous as blind faith.

9. Understand that you are living in an incredibly complex network of interlocking systems, from biology to politics to the economy to astrophysics. Submit these systems to a disciplined observation. Pay particularly close attention to how they interact with each other. Attend school board meetings and church services. By observing how individuals and institutions at different power levels interact with systems in the social sphere, you can begin to discern their goals. Once you understand, you can make an educated decision about whether or not to support them.

8. Be prepared to exist in a system that doesn't live up to your ideals, but do so in a way that honors your ideals. Join organizations that provide social infrastructures based on your ideals, and work to promote them in larger systems.

7. Whenever possible, don't allow your money to fall into the hands of those who work and game the system in a way that runs contrary to your ideals. If you're pro-choice, don't buy Dominos Pizza. If you are against prison camp labor in authoritarian regimes, don't shop at Wal*Mart. If you must consume, engage in conscious consumption, and encourage others to do the same.

6. Get to know your neighbors. The Powers That Be have invested a lot of time and money to make us hyper-individuated, atomistic monads of loneliness. "Fellowship" is a powerful social tool that shouldn't be abandoned to the churches. If you live in a condo, attend association meetings. If you live in an appartment, make yourself available. Volunteer. Take a couple days a month to deliver food to the elderly, or read comic books to blind people. If you live in the suburbs, same deal. Get involved, but be smart about it.

5. Invest wisely in your social network. If you're not a social person by nature, allow yourself to observe and learn from other people. If you're an outgoing, vital person, allow yourself to recognize the potential in people you might otherwise write off too quickly. It is also vital that you learn to recognize and avoid psychic vampires and social predators.

4. If you haven't already, start a family. Procreate. Have a minimum of two children. Three is optimal. Anything above that is gravy. Forget all that nihilistic crap people spew about how they'd "never want to bring a child into this miserable world." If you can't or really don't want to have a family, either adopt or help other people with their families in whatever way seems right to you. Do not retreat from the future.

3. Aim for total self-sufficiency. You should be able to feed yourself without supermarkets, keep warm without gas, oil or electricity, take care of yourself without money, and defend yourself without recourse to the law for a short stretch, at least.

2. Pursuant to the above: buy a gun. Seriously. The way the economy is going, you might not be able to afford one (or otherwise might not be able to get one) when you'll need it most. So the time is now. Get a gun and learn how to use it. If handguns make your nervous (like they do me) then stick to long arms. Practice serious safety. Your firearms deserve as much respect as you have for your very own life, because that's what hangs in the balance.

1. Allow yourself to see the humor in any situation. Once you get past the ominous implications of their policies and rhetoric, some of the principle actors in the current episode of America's national drama are more entertaining than anything ever dreamt up by writers of fiction.

Love,
ArtBun

[MsAnthropy]

1. Art, you had me until #2

There is no way I will ever own or use a gun, I don't care if we have a Mad Max society.

[Artemis Bunyon]

2. I respect your decision, but...

...disagree somewhat.

[MsAnthropy]

3. I loved your other suggestions, though

They seem much less selfish than that "removing myself from society" thread a while ago, which just irritated the hell out of me.

[Artemis Bunyon]

4. LOL! There's a lot of that going around these days, isn't there?

I understand it, personally, and have had to fight it internally.

[Walt Starr]

5. #2 is perhaps the most important

Ugly times are coming and those who do not follow #2 will probably not survive.

[MsAnthropy]

6. That's OK, I don't want to live in a society like that anyway.

[canuckforpeace]

7. Get real

3. Aim for total self-sufficiency. You should be able to feed yourself without supermarkets, keep warm without gas, oil or electricity, take care of yourself without money, and defend yourself without recourse to the law for a short stretch, at least.

This is impossible for probably 99.9% of the population. Do you seriously believe everyone can move into a cabin with a woodstove in the middle of nowhere and grow or hunt for everything they need? Especially if they follow your advice to start a family if they haven't already done so?

[Walt Starr]

8. IT's about survival

and you're correct, about 99.9% of the people will die under those conditions. I have no doubt about it.

I am also certain those conditions will occur within my lifetime.

[canuckforpeace]

10. I totally agree with people learning to be more self-sufficient

and becoming less consumptive. This is realistic and helpful. Heck, I'm heating my house with wood and have a freezer full of moose meat.

But, to advocate that people quit their jobs, have lots of children and "go bush" (no pun intended) is just plain silly.

[Artemis Bunyon]

11. I never suggested people "quit their jobs" or "move to a cabin."

Some people are reading more into what I wrote than what I wrote, I think.

[canuckforpeace]

14. Then please explain

How one is supposed to get their food without a supermarket,live without money, and heat their homes without oil, gas or electricity? I would like to know.

[Walt Starr]

16. Garden, heat with wood or use solar solutions

there are ways to become disconnected from the grid.

[Heddi]

17. Isn't that a HUGE financial investment, though

at least initially?

My grandparents were going to go solar about 10 years ago, and the cost for the panels and re-wiring their house (or whatever they had to do...I wasn't too involved in the details at the time) was going to cost them around $7k upfront.....they had high electric bills but just didn't have that amount of cash available to go that route.

Same with heating with wood---wouldn't you have to somehow make a vent in your house so the smoke can get out? How do you heat multiple rooms or a multiple-story home?

I'm not trying to be argumentative---right now, I rent a house, but will probably buy a house in the next 4 years when we get out of school and am interested in being as independent as possible.......

[canuckforpeace]

18. Wood heat

There are various methods. When I lived on the coast (warm, moist climate) we had wood stoves. But we also had electric baseboard heaters, because it's not always feasible to keep a fire going 24/7. Also, it is difficult to heat multiple rooms as you mentioned. If I were to do it again and had the $$ I would get radiant floor heating as backup.

Where I live now the climate is much colder. Tonight it's supposed to go to -18 Celsius. We have a wood furnace/electric furnace combo. The heat is circulated throughout the house via ducts just like a regular furnace.

Heating with wood is not feasible for people that live in urban areas. Many places do not allow it due to air quality issues. Plus, you would not have a firewood supply close by.

[Heddi]

21. When we lived in SEattle we had a fireplace

and a Central Heat unit thingie.

I was always torn over which was best/worst to use

With the wood, you're not dependent on electric heat, but you're also using wood....and logging up in Washington State is kind of out of hand depending on the area you live in. Plus Weyerhouser, the huge paper company, supplied alot of the wood to the stores, so by burning wood, I was supporting Weyerhaueser which is a kind of bad company. Also, when I burn wood, I put pollutants into the air. Seattle has hellasmog and it's awful in the winter (rainy season) when the rain comes down brown because of all the soot in the atmosphere.

But electrical power companies are just as harmful to the environment and are particularly harsh to salmon habitats up here (by building dams for hydroelectric power in the middle of salmon runs, etc).

Also, for the earlier part of the winter, there's usually a ban on using fireplaces because the air pollution levels are so high, even if it's really cold, you can't use your FP when/if you need it.

We live in Yakima now, which is about 3 hours southeast of Seattle. It gets ALOT colder in the winter (we just got snow today), so we have a gas furnace. WE don't have an AC out here, but we're probably going to either need one or do without one because it gets majorly hot in the summer. At least SEattle was an even 60 degrees pretty much throughout the year (not really, but you know what I mean)

[canuckforpeace]

26. Yes, I guess it comes down to what you said in an earlier post

people use resources. Some methods are better than others but all have a consequence. At the risk of asking for a flame, I sometimes wonder if vegetarians think the red peppers and salads they eat in the middle of winter don't have an environmental consequence? I mentioned to a vegetarian once that everything we eat is a product of fossil fuel use. I could literally see the realization dawn on his face.

[Artemis Bunyon]

28. Consumer alienation from food production is a big problem.

Two aspects of Soviet-style authoritarian communism most feared by the "free world" used to be the collectivization of agriculture and the hyper-centralized control of mass media.

Look at us now.

[canuckforpeace]

22. I agree with all of that

However the original post said You should be able to feed yourself without supermarkets, keep warm without gas, oil or electricity, take care of yourself without money, which is impossible for the majority of people, as you agreed earlier.

This is my last post on this topic, unless something new gets put on the table.

[Artemis Bunyon]

24. "...for a short stretch at least."

x

[Artemis Bunyon]

19. You left out the last part of my sentence!

You know, the part about "for a short stretch, at least"?

What do you think I meant by a short stretch? Certainly not forever!

[canuckforpeace]

25. O.K. maybe I missed the point

You mean if someone were to fall upon hard times, ie. lose their job?

[Artemis Bunyon]

27. Something like that. Or if the power goes out for a couple weeks.

Or if civil anarchy arises (hopefully temporary). Or a natural disaster. Or a terrorist attack. Or a severe and swift economic collapse (in which case a short stretch could turn into a couple months before public pressure forces the Powers That Be to institute reforms).

[canuckforpeace]

29. In those situations

Heating without fossil fuels would be impossible for people in urban areas. If you've stocked up on enough non-perishable food you could live without money or a supermarket for awhile. Those that live in an apartment without much storage space would be in for a rough ride.

Thanks for clarifying what you meant.

[Heddi]

9. SCROO number 4

4. If you haven't already, start a family. Procreate. Have a minimum of two children. Three is optimal. Anything above that is gravy. Forget all that nihilistic crap people spew about how they'd "never want to bring a child into this miserable world." If you can't or really don't want to have a family, either adopt or help other people with their families in whatever way seems right to you. Do not retreat from the future.

Uh yeah. Forget about the fact that millions of people CAN'T have children, and forget about the fact that millions of people DON'T WANT to have children, and forget about the fact that millions of people should NEVER have children.

Screw that. My husband and I are both full time students. Neither of us work and thank the lord every day that whe had the ability to save for 2 years so that we could both be in school. Yeah, why not have a kid 1/2 way through my competitive nursing program...I guess by your estimation, it's more important to have even MORE overpopulation in this world than to have a skilled and dedicated force of medical professionals to take care of our citizens.

And do tell WHERE are we (as in, people without kids) supposed to get the extra cash to have kids? We don't have health insurance..but that's okay! We must REPRODUCE!!! THe more the merrier, right?

Fuck that shit. You go have 092398293847239847 kids if you want. Stay the fuck out of my uterus and my finances.

[Artemis Bunyon]

12. I guess you missed the part where I wrote:

"If you can't or really don't want to have a family..."

[Heddi]

15. But you still put in the caveat

to adopt if you can't or don't want a family. I do agree that we should help out other families as much as possible, though, and hubby and I do by donating stuff to needy children around Christmastime and things like that.

I apologize if I came off harsh in my first posting. I have to say that as a woman of childbearing years, I get quite tired of DU'ers (not you!) telling me that I should be willing to give up my reproductive rights to win elections. I'm tired of family members looking with hope at my belly every time they see me. I'm tired of friends and family members telling me and my husband that we would be happier, more fulfilled, more responsible, etc etc if we'd just have a baby----as if our life choices right now even ALLOW for a baby. Shit---we just got 2 mice and debated whether or not we could handle the responsiblity for over an hour before we got them.

I'm sorry if I was harsh. I don't mean to be. It seems that Uteruses of the world are up for grabs and everyone has an idea what I should and shouldn't be doing with mine for the betterment of society

:hugs:

[Artemis Bunyon]

20. No hard feelings!

Hugs back atcha!

[Heddi]

13. And as an addendum

You realize (I hope) that the more children people have, the more resources they're required to use.

The two of us (hubby and I) can live in a studio apartment. Add a kid, and you have to upgrade to a 2 bedroom apt or even a house. That's extra resources and finances.

Add in extra heating costs, extra food costs, extra clothing costs, medical care, school supplies, transportation, added monetary expenses....

It seems to me that if you were interested in making the world a better place, you'd advocate for people to have NO children, or no more than one child.

And having numerous children (in your words, anything above three is gravy), how is one supposed to do all the other things that you propose. THe financial burden in and of itself to clothe and feed and provide medical treatment for growing children really makes you MORE likely to have to shop at (supposedly) low cost places like Walmart. It makes you LESS likely to be able to, as a family, have the financial ability to grow your own veggies and make your own clothes and shear your own sheep.

Come on---having more children isn't going to save our country or allow us to live better lives. If anything, it will force MORE people to become even MORE enslaved to their jobs and a certain lifestyle.

It's easy for me & Mr. Heddi to go without heat. I can bundle up and sit under a blanket. But an infant can't live in those conditions and be "health". Equally, I can do without the AC in the summertime, but a 5-year old can't. They can't get their nutritional value from a box of pop-tarts and some ramen noodles. They have needs above and beoynd adults, and they require care above and beyond what adults could do without. I can deal with a cold and only go to the Dr. if it gets bad enough. You can't...or you SHOULDN'T force a child to be as 'resillient' as a 30 year old.

I agree with most of what you had written above, but I think you're way off base about having kids, and having multiple kids, and making that a qualifier to living a better life. That's just not the case, and if anything, I think the opposite could be even truer.

[amazona]

23. number 4 is a deal breaker

If everyone has 2 kids, then we kill this planet. Pass the soylent green. The U.S. is over-populated as it is, and we have zero pop. growth through birth rate -- our horrible population explosion is coming through immigration. We're killing our outdoors and our frontier culture, everything that makes us special, by our refusal to limit population.

[Artemis Bunyon]

30. Kick for the late-night crew.

CIC!