A ridiculous situation because I could write essay after essay on why western modern life is not sustainable (and how sadly for you folks and me that means IT MUST END), how far removed families have become from providing for themselves (food, skills, care etc), why Peak Oil theory is way more scary than climate change (and that’s pretty scary in itself), how thrilled I am to have the opportunity to help lead some brand new local food initiatives when we move to Cornwall, how inspired I’ve been by Sharon Astyk, George Monbiot, Richard Heinberg, Rob Hopkins, Barbara Kingsolver to name just a few of the writers I’ve been chomping up.

BUT

I almost feel I’ve got too much to write, too many different types of people to cater for (am I writing for people like my dear dad who is one of the few remaining climate change and peak oil nay-sayers left and trying to convince them that denial is a route which they may live to regret? am I writing for dear chums who have a similar view on what the future may hold for our cherished children but are wondering what they may be able to do to prepare themselves, their families, their neighbourhoods? Am I writing for people who like us have found themselves exploring an interesting new path leading them towards self-sufficiency? or am I writing for people who are intrigued by our opting to live in a newly established eco-village – or is it a commune with virtual strangers who are most likely to become the people closest to us in every sense as we live, work, celebrate and commiserate lifes’ events alongside one another?) and so am finding myself writing very little at all but with loads whirling round my head every hour of every day.

Perhaps just by ranting out tonight I have stumbled upon the answer (in permaculture we are told that ‘The problem IS the solution’). Maybe I just need to write whatever I fancy and then at the end will categorise it or tag it to be for one of the four groups above unless it is just random bimblings which may not be of interest to anyone apart from those just vaguely wondering how we are getting along.

Mike Ellis wrote a blog post yesterday entitled Too Cheap which relates to western society’s mass consumption orgy that is largely driven by goods being produced at a cost that is much lower than their real cost, in terms both of exploitation of the human resources as well as earth’s diminishing resources.

It’s a view that we plainly agree with here so I felt compelled to comment upon the post.

Part of my comment has grown upon me so I decided to reproduce it, slightly edited for grammar, here:

The Elephant in the room is there. Look it in the eye. It’s going nowhere and the longer it’s left there alone the pile of shit it’s leaving is getting bigger.

Wake up people.

I came across this Mahatma Gandhi quote for the first time in the last ever printed edition of The Ecologist magazine yesterday. I like it a lot as it helps to quell the sense of  helplessness and ‘this problem is too big and too complex for little old me to do anything about’.

Even the smallest things get noticed and have an impact in their own way so by my buying eggs from the local lady with hens and our drastically reducing consumption of meat (and never eating cheap meat produced in hellish animal factories) and our decision to not fly and to drive only when necessary and to spend our money on food which has not had petrochemical fertilisers and pesticides used on them and by turning away from all household chemicals which are not derived from natural plant sources ARE actually all having an impact.

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