In the aftermath of the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, which saw the murder of nineteen children and two teachers, we have plenty of evidence that the whole approach to such threats to life in America today is way off target. Not only is it difficult for local law enforcement to prepare … More Waiting for Nothing: After-Action is Too Late
Once again, America exercises its ritual mourning and utters its words of sorrow over the preventable massacre of nineteen children and two adults in a classroom, this time in Uvalde, Texas. The societal resignation that treats such insanity as now ‘normal’ matches the sadness that such ‘incidents’ provokes. But nothing could possibly be normal about … More The Predatory Society: Death, Guns, and Oil
As industrial civilization unravels, the illusion of abundance is taking a hit. With destabilized agriculture, climate, and ecosystems, all sorts of supply chains will experience growing unpredictability at levels we have yet to imagine. Then we must choose what we consume far more carefully than we do now. The idea that the global industrial consumer … More Quality vs. Quantity in a World Out of Balance
Yesterday, I watched a video clip of Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow speaking to here colleagues about the hate speech directed at her and the moral high ground upon which she stands. It was so moving that I must post it here, because only by standing up to hatred can we thwart persecution and violence … More Moral Clarity in the Fight Against Hate
Sustainability is a complicated matter. It is also a very popular idea among those who want to contribute to a stable future for humanity. The first question that always comes to my mind is, “Sustain what?” People toss the term around as if everyone knows what it means. Well, for most it means to make … More The Sustainability Trap: Shifting Targets, No Goal
I was a teenager in Southern California in the late 1950s at the height of the California Car Culture. I distinctly remember the fact that all the important trends in automotive styles and technology originated with the people I knew or knew about, mostly in the Los Angeles area. Detroit slowly tried to catch up, … More Confessions of a Reformed Technophile
Did you not know that you are a Ukrainian? Yes, of course you are. Did you not know that you are an Afghan too? Yes, of course you are. Did you not look into the eyes of that little Ukrainian girl fleeing the bombs hitting her school? Of course you did. Did you not look … More You are a Ukrainian and an Afghan Too.
Yes, Vladimir Putin is universally despised as a ruthless war criminal, too well trained by the KGB, a narcissistic sociopath far more skilled than Trump in the dark arts of genocide and general destruction. Yet, there is so much more to the story. During his reign over the ‘new’ Russia, the West’s strategy of containment … More The War on Ukraine is a War on Planet Earth
It would seem that autocrats are all the same. Just like Trump, Vladimir Putin the barbarian autocrat of Moscow, telegraphs his moves as if they were obviously okay, although he incorporates all sorts of deception trying to justify his aggression. At the same time, the solidarity of the Ukrainians in the face of overwhelming military … More Vladimir the Terrible and Two Kinds of Tyranny
This past Sunday, a post on the Australian site, Crikey Sunday Read reported on a protest called the “Canberra Convoy.” I had not been aware that the Canadian Truckers’ blockade had been replicated ‘down under.’ The thing is, reactionary, racist, and neo-fascist sentiments have become globally contagious. Clearly, social media has ‘enabled’ the contagion of … More Illusions of Freedom and the Contagion of Hate
Robert MacNeil Christie, Author 