Last week, I told you about Dr. John McDougall's online climate change conference that was aired January 9.
Since it was completely booked (500 people) in the first half hour after it was advertised, Heather and John McDougall are now sharing the complete 5-hour conference for free to the international public.
To watch it, just click on the image below. Dr. Sailesh Rao is the first speaker, who was followed by Dr. McDougall and then yours truly. The other speakers in order of appearance are Keegan Kuhn, Dr. William Ripple & Dr. Gerard Bisshop.
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Brought to you by Dr. John McDougall
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As for the donkeys in the title of this SOS Memo, that refers to the pre-recorded talk (20 minutes) that I prepared for inclusion in the Mastermind Conference.
Later, you may wish to share my "donkeys" video with others. So I made it easy for you to do so. Just tell them to search for "donkeys and spaceships" on YouTube -- or just use their voice command to tell their smart TV to play:
"Donkeys and Spaceships on You Tube"
And mine will be the first one that pops up. Because, out of five billion videos that are watched on YouTube every single day, mine is the only one with the title, Donkeys & Spaceships. To watch it now, just click on this image:
As for the content of the above video, I make the case that the future of our species is in our hands. But that is only good news if we take it seriously and learn what we must do.
I am convinced that humanity has the wherewithal to figure out a completely new way to live on this planet -- a system of living that will influence Mother Nature to renew our lease indefinitely.
As for humanity having the wherewithal to figure out a whole new, sustainable "system" of living on this planet, I turn to E.O. Wilson, one of the "big picture" scientists who appears in Chapter 4 of Outcry.
Here are a few quotes from his 2013 book, The Meaning of Human Existence, where he sums up our dilemma:
Human beings are not wicked by nature. We have enough intelligence, goodwill, generosity and enterprise to turn Earth into a paradise both for ourselves and for the biosphere that gave us birth.
We can plausibly accomplish that goal, at least be well on the way, by the end of the present century. The problem holding everything up thus far is that Homo sapiens is an innately dysfunctional species.
We are hampered by the Paleolithic Curse: genetic adaptations that worked very well for millions of years of hunter-gatherer existence but are increasingly a hindrance in a globally urban and techno-scientific society.
We seem unable to stabilize either economic policies or the means of governance higher than the level of a village. Further, the great majority of people worldwide remain in the thrall of tribal organized religions, led by men who claim supernatural power in order to compete for the obedience and resources of the faithful.
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| I have this book on audio and have listened to Chapter 15 (Alone and Free in the Universe) at least fifteen times in my car. |
Dr. Wilson continues: Our leaders, religious, political and business, mostly accept supernatural explanations of the human existence. Even if privately skeptical, they have little interest in opposing religious leaders and unnecessarily stirring up the populace, from whom they draw power and privilege.
Scientists who might contribute to a more realistic worldview are especially disappointing. Largely yeomen, they are intellectual dwarves content to stay within the narrow specialties for which they were trained and are paid.
The Bottom Line. Dr. Wilson concludes that we have the wherewithal to save ourselves: enough intelligence, goodwill, generosity and enterprise to turn Earth into a paradise both for ourselves and for the biosphere that gave us birth.
His key conclusion, one that is covered above, is that we are an innately dysfunctional species.
Well I say that it's high time that we come together and do all that we can to become "functional." We must do it for the children who are alive today and for the one billion children who will be born during the next five years.
Outcry is totally-focused on how we can actually "do something" great for the billions of innocent children who will follow us on planet Earth.
The main problem as I see it is that hardly anyone is even talking about this crucial subject -- which, by definition is the most consequential dilemma in the history of humanity. Let me ask you a few questions.
- Are you fully aware of the dilemma in which we find ourselves and, if so, what are you doing about it?
- Are you talking about it? Are you sharing your feelings with others?
As I explain in
my 20-minute video from January 9 and, to a much greater extent, in our book,
Outcry -- things are not looking real good for our future right now. But I have reasons for optimism. I explain those reasons briefly in that video and, more extensively, in our book.
If you haven't done so yet, please take a look at
this free preview of Outcry. It features the table of contents, a complete copy of the impassioned
Foreword by Mother Nature and much more.
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The biosphere that gave us birth and keeps us alive
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How can we survive? For an in-depth version of our best thinking regarding our chances for surviving indefinitely as a species, I invite you to delve into an e-copy of Outcry sometime soon.
After you read it, please do your part to help jumpstart this crucial "conversation" -- by encouraging others to read it. After they read it, I'll be happy to conduct Zoom calls with your group as we explore opportunities and possibilities.
You can easily read Outcry in one afternoon; that is, if you don't take a look at the hundreds of hyperlinks to short, relevant videos and other source materials.
PS: Our book can easily be understood by the average 11th grade student.
My first Bite-Size-Blog on the crucial topic of reinventing our civilization was posted 9-21-18 and heads the list below. It was all about GRATOLA, an acronym that refers to a "green region" corridor running from Atlanta to Los Angeles.
Since then, I have posted almost 100 additional pieces on that topic, including this one on 9-4-19 in which I introduced the GBN (Great Big Northern) -- one 25-mile wide corridor along the USA's northernmost border that would theoretically be capable of sustainably housing ALL 300+ million Americans in an area the size of Oregon.
