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LIFE LESSONS FROM 2024


Here is what I learned in the first 10+ months of 2024, in no particular order of importance.

 

NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARE A DETERRENT TO PEACE

Contrary to Cold War thinking, nuclear weapons are not a deterrent to war.  Just ask Vladimir Putin.

 

THE UNITED NATIONS IS FOR THE MOST PART A JOKE

A toothless UN is a useless UN, and a Security Council that requires unanimity among adversaries begs the question, “What’s the point?”

 

LAWS ARE POLITICAL

Laws are written by lobbyists, enacted by donor-dependent legislators, and interpreted by judges who are--for all intents and purposes--political appointees.  The law will not save us.

 

U.S. ELECTIONS ARE BIG BUSINESS

As of five days before the 2024 U.S. elections, over $16 billion had been spent on federal races nationwide.    

 

JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED

And forum shopping is an effective legal tactic.

 

AI, BLOCK CHAIN, AND CRYPTO WILL BREAK THE ENERGY BANK

The tech bros are in the driver’s seat on Wall Street and at the White House.  Their energy-pig technologies are the final nail in the climate coffin.  “Drill, baby, drill!”

 

THOSE IN A POSITION TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT HAVE GIVEN UP ON CLIMATE MITIGATION

Governments, industries, financial institutions, and tech billionaires must believe the Earth will soon be uninhabitable, because they are not investing in global warming mitigation.  Their solutions?  Escape:  sea steading (Peter Thiel), bunker building (Mark Zuckerberg), and colonizing Mars (Elon Musk).  Their message to the rest of us:  We can party like it’s 1999, because we won’t be here in 2099.

 

INFORMATION CONTROL

2024 is 1984 redux.  He who controls the information has the power to control you.


But ending on a positive note…

 


THERE IS A MIDDLE GROUND BETWEEN SURRENDER AND THE BARRICADES

A friend suggested the defensive position of the “wise watcher.” The image I conjured from that is the cultural anthropologist, an informed observer who doesn’t get emotionally involved.  That’s my goal for 2025.

I wish myself luck.

Keep it real!

Marilyn

 

 

Comments

  1. AnonymousNovember 10, 2024 at 2:10 PM

    Good post, Marilyn. Learning is so important! On "breaking the energy bank", my latest post discusses our recent alterations to our solar system to incorporate a battery back-up that stores daytime collections for possible grid-failures — as long as the sun continues to shine. ~eric. (MeridaGOround dot com).

    ReplyDelete

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