The word “culture” does not suffice when experiencing the eye-opening revelations of days lived amongst aware people. I am fortunate to be doing this now in Bolivia.

Who is in charge of this mad policy of ecocide? We all are, but we did elect a president named Barack Obama.

Most people paying attention to the world at large know that millions of gallons of crude oil have been loosed, still gushing uncontrollably, threatening not only the Gulf of Mexico but beyond. Our report suggests more than clean-up and better oversite: the Committee Against Oil Exploration.

The global struggle to save the climate and ensure our common survival takes various forms. The movement is not limited to just a few well known approaches, such as "politically realistic" legislation, conferences, or boosting renewable energy. As an example of a new force post-Copenhagen, there is momentum from last month's Bolivia gathering, particularly since the title of it included the Rights of Mother Earth.

To complete this trip to Bolivia and follow it up properly, successful fundraising is key. We were almost alone at the Cochabamba climate conference when it comes to our issues or our slant on others' main issues.

After a recent talk on racism and other illegitimate hierarchies at a diversity conference in Dallas, I received a letter from one of the people who had attended that asked "why you feel it necessary to perpetuate and even exacerbate the divisiveness of language when addressing a group of people assembled to learn how to live better together and be more accepting of differences?" He suggested that by being so sharply critical, I was part of the problem not the solution

Editor's note:
A testimony to the failure of the environmental movement to offer an alternative to ecocide is the continued, widespread support of the automobile industry for "clean cars." This pseudo-environmental stance is almost identical to the Obama administration's myopia about continuing industrial pollution at full tilt for the sake of "jobs" and stability for its friends on Wall Street. However, the state of affairs -- driving off the ecological cliff for maximum petrocollapse -- is also the failure of grassroots activism and the pro-bicycle/pro walking movements.

For many thousands of years, any tribe knew not to overfish the local brook. For if the people did so, fish would not be forthcoming from distant places. There was always some trade, but not of staples (nor paperclips!).