In July, 1987, John Mohawk spoke to the first National Green Gathering in Amherst, Massachusetts. In his keynote, he warned that industrial societies were threatening the very biology of the planet: climate change, species lost, acid rain, tears in the ozone layer, and biochemical disruptions (including reproductive) from toxic pollutants. Climate change has come [...]
Posts under ‘Politics’
Some Minerals Should Stay in the Ground: Protect the Waters
(A report on the Indigenous Earth Issues Summit,
April 5, 2010, Northern Michigan University)
I journeyed north to the Indigenous Earth Issues Summit at Northern Michigan University (April 5, 2010) with Ben Yahola (Muscogee) and Dona Yahola (Bad River Ojibwe and Oneida) of the Sacred Sites Run. The Indigenous Earth Summit featured remarkable organizers from Indian [...]
Hands Across the Sand: Protest Off-Shore Drilling
“Hands Across the Sand,” Saturday, June 26, 2010: Stop Off-Shore Drilling
On Tuesday afternoon, June 22, 2010, a Louisiana judge overruled President Obama’s suspension of offshore drilling. This decision leaves Big Oil free to resume operations off the Louisiana coast, despite the obvious risks.
It’s clearer than ever before: offshore drilling will continue to expand unless [...]
Just Remember One Word: Plastics
I’m Rick Whaley. I’m a plastics enabler. No matter how hard I try, the collection of plastic bags under my sink just keeps growing like mold on the food scrapes I save in the same spot for red worm composting. It’s not so much that I rarely get those free cloth bags I [...]
How About A Traditional St. Patrick’s Day
How About a Traditional St. Patrick’s Day?
March, 2010
St. Patrick didn’t drink. In fact, one of the things the Celtic chieftains admired in him was that he could get a good night’s sleep without the drink. Sausage and salted pork are traditional Irish meats; corn beef is American. Cromwell’s armies brought cabbage to [...]
Is Nuclear Power Suddenly Safe and Clean?
Is Nuclear Power Suddenly Clean and Safe?
Feb. 3, 2010
When did nuclear power suddenly and miraculously become “safe and clean,” as President Obama said in his recent State of the Union address? Or has it merely become miraculously “spun,” as the nuclear industry once again takes taxpayers, citizens, and government regulators for a ride. [...]
Help Haiti, But Remember History
“Kreyol pale, kreyol komprann.”
Speak plainly, don’t try to deceive.
On January 12, 2010, the shifting tectonic plates beneath the Haitian peninsula snapped from centuries of built up tension, bringing earthquakes, pain and misery to this already impoverished island. The fault lines of poverty, starting with the already-a-mess health care system, followed by urban building construction practices, [...]
Restoring Mayberry: Living in Rural Ireland, Watching the Global Transformation from a Distance (The Moment of Darkness, Dec. 23, 2008)
The following article by Brian Kaller appeared last year on the winter solstice on the wonderful site restoringmayberry.blog.spot.com. It is a beautifully written look at raising a child on an imperiled planet. It is a message of hope against the backdrop of global realities. The Restoring Mayberry blog provides excellent coverage of Ireland/ecology news and [...]
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man Review, Part 2
While I found some parts of John Perkins’ book Confessions of an Economic Hit Man slightly lurid and others pompous, my critique focuses on his admittedly vague suggestions for resolving current crises such as world hunger. This critique may apply to other techno-modern optimisms too.
But first a warning not to use my argument, or [...]
The Madeline Island Anishinabe Gathering
Traditional Values: Mooningwanekaaning-minis Anishinaabeg Maawanji’iding—Madeline Island Anishinaabeg Gathering
The Madeline Island Anishinabe Gathering on Friday, September 25, 2009, was a remarkable weekend of reunions and networking, serious talks, festive meals and a ceremonial dance on Friday night. The island’s first name was Moningwanekaaning-Minis, the place of the golden-shafted flicker, and was the place the Lake [...]