We're all in this together

My motivation for starting this blog was to try and organize my thoughts on issues currently confronting society that I feel we are collectively unprepared for. If we ever consider it, we all know and on some level understand that our society as we know it will not last forever. However even the small percentage of people that entertain such thoughts would quickly file away such doom and gloom thinking and carry on with their daily lives. Our culture frowns on pessimism or anything that can be construed as pessimism. Pessimist can sometimes be labeled as Chicken Little's who are forever waiting for the end of the world as we know it. Pessimism, in my experience, doesn't move one towards better actions or decisions but almost always towards poorer actions or decisions or even inaction or indecision. However optimism isn't any less dangerous in my opinion. Optimism almost always leads to more action vs. less action but not always better action. While there is definitely more to be gained by being optimistic, there is also more to be lost because optimism encourages one to risk more. If we are talking about our love lives or career choices then being a little risky might be well worth it, even if we loose out in the short term. However if we are talking about gambling our pay cheques at the roulette table then unguarded optimism might seems a little more out of place.

I would not characterize myself as optimistic or pessimistic. I am a realist. When presented with a problem or situation, I don't stop to consider if it's fair that I've been presented with such a problem. I also don't immediatly consider all the ramifications that this problem will have on me. I usually just deal with it. I don't spend much time or energy on deciding whether the problem or issue will lead to a good outcome or a bad one. I just do what I can to deal with it as best I can. I always strive for a good outcome and never look at a problem as being hopeless or impossible.

When I first started reading about global warming and all it's implications, I didn't worry. I wasn't pessimistic about my own future or that of my friends and family. I wasn't even worried about the fate of mankind. I just started questioning how what I was doing was impacting the issue of global warming. There didn't seem much more one person could do. The problem was and still remains somewhat controversial. The reading I was doing on global warming led me to the related yet distinct issue of peak oil. Since delving into that subject, I have read almost everything I could lay my hands on. My education on peak oil is ongoing as I have become fascinated with the issue. Peak Oil and Global warming have much in common as some of the actions we can take to mitigate one issue could also mitigate the other issue. Of course there are also some mitigating actions for peak oil that would make global warming worse.

Over the years I've seen many references to the 5 stages of grief. I've been very fortunate in my life to have never lost someone close to me. However this good fortune means I haven't developed any coping mechanism to deal with personal tragedy. I've been laid-off and dumped (more than once) and had to deal with some grief. However, I'm sure anyone who has lost a loved one could view my personal tragedies as you might compare a little indigestion to the pain of childbirth. I googled "stages of grief" and was instantly rewarded with the wiki on the Kübler-Ross model for dealing with grief. According to Kubler-Ross, the five stages are:

Denial: The initial stage: "It can't be happening."
Anger: "Why ME? It's not fair!" (either referring to God, oneself, or anybody perceived, rightly or wrongly, as "responsible")
Bargaining: "Just let me live to see my child(ren) graduate."
Depression: "I'm so sad, why bother with anything?"
Acceptance: "It's going to be OK."

I believe most individuals and society as a whole will have to deal with the grief of global warming and peak oil according to the Kubler-Ross model. I know I've been through all these stages. Starting this blog is part of my acceptance. I suspect most people and hence society as a whole are still in first stage denial. The reality of Peak Oil and Global Warming may mean that many are forced through each of the stages much more rapidly than I have been able to go through them.

I might disagree with Kubler-Ross. Acceptance of a personal tradegy might lead you to believe that "It's going to be OK". With Peak Oil and Global warming, it's not going to be OK. Or perhaps more accurately, It's going to get a lot worse before it gets better. I would also want to add a sixth stage to the model. Action! Once you have accepted that these issues are real and will impact everyone on this planet to some degree, it's time to get off you arse and do something about it.

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