How impossible things can happen “Everything possible has been tried and failed. Now it is time to try the impossible.” Sun Ra Scrolling through newsfeeds, I often feel anguish, anger, and despair. All these problems and suffering with no apparent solutions! …

Sanctions shatter supply chains while millions starve The great famine has begun. People are starving in Asia and Africa and going hungry in the Americas. This famine, and the looming Super-Depression of which it is part, are not naturally caused. Yes, there are droughts and floods, but people have found…

Technology can’t save us. Nature can, if we help it. As heat waves kill animals and plants, and wildfires burn whole regions, how can we stop global warming and heal the planet? …

American dystopia goes far beyond guns and mental illness After 18 year old Salvador Ramos massacred 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, and another young man, Payton Gendron, shot to death 10 Black shoppers in Buffalo, New York, the usual arguments began. Liberals blamed the easy availability of…

Planting and protecting forests can save us from climate collapse — Nature has tremendous healing power, and if we work with Her, we could still survive climate chaos and perhaps create a more beautiful world. Nature heals through the life force, which takes 1000 forms, but three of them stand out for climate: soil, trees, and water. I wrote about soil…

San Francisco recall is about power, not crime — In the days of royalty, kings and nobles exploited their subjects by promising to protect them. They built huge castles where peasants could hide if attacked. They hired armored knights with sharp swords to keep enemies away. In return, the lords owned the people (called “serfs” or “villeins.”) Serfs had…

They can’t admit mistakes or stop expanding; they’d rather we died. — When powerful people are used to being right all the time, they may find it almost impossible to admit they are wrong. In his excellent book Black Box Thinking, Matthew Syed gives examples of how unwillingness to admit failure has led to plane crashes, wrongfully convicted innocents, patients dying from…

Working with Nature heals; exploiting it brings profitable death All life and all wealth come from Earth. Everything we eat and drink, our bodies, the places we live, the clothes we wear all originate in Nature. If we want Earth to keep giving, we can’t keep raping and taking from…

A society based on punishment makes us all less safe — Progressive District Attorneys such as San Francisco’s Chesa Boudin are being attacked with the insult: “soft on crime.” Boudin faces a recall election largely funded by wealthy donors who demand more people be jailed and more police be hired to “keep us safe.” …