“The Earth does not belong to man; Man belongs to the Earth. This we know. All things are connected like the blood which unites one family. Whatever befalls the Earth befalls the sons of the Earth. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.”—Chief Seattle
You haven’t heard from me on this blog for a while, because I have been consumed with the tragic Oil Gusher in the Gulf and the damage it’s doing. Millions upon millions of animals and birds, 20 wildlife refuges, and many species already endangered are dying before our eyes. Other than donating what we can to environmental groups who are frantically working there even now, I would guess that most of us want to do more.
By now everybody knows that the tragic catastrophe we have warned about for so many years is upon us. There are an average of 200 oil “spills” per year. But this time, the devastation is so terrible and frightening that perhaps even the “drill baby drill” crowd is rethinking their folly.
Here in the US, we have missed many opportunities for positive change. Jimmy Carter put solar panels on the White House and corporatist Ronnie Reagan tore them down. We refused to move into the 21st Century and continued our addiction to oil, and our money and treasure continues to flow to multinational corporations and the few wealthy CEOs who currently rule the world.
We can do better. We can be more. We are an innovative species. But the unconsciousness and laziness that clouds our judgment is challenging to throw off. And sadly, there are many regressives among us who fear change and fight with all their might against evolution. You can hear them chanting “drill baby drill” while our world collapses around us. Tragic.
Meanwhile my heart is broken. I have contacted a few groups to volunteer to help in whatever way I can. I’ve offered our music to fundraisers here in the Lane County area that we will play to raise cash for the various environmental groups that are doing the great work right now (and probably throughout our lifetimes) in the Gulf, cleaning one bird at a time. If you are organizing something like this, contract us via Psychanaut . And of course, we’ll keep mixing our visionary rock and posting it song by song.
I’ve kept this blog somewhat politically neutral, because politics without consciousness is just more ego in the wind. Superficial political “change” is not enough; we must know ourselves and lose the amnesia that has plagued our species for too long. Empathy is a higher brain function – it can’t be legislated or forced. The same with Love.
And it strikes me that the most recent song we’ve completed, “Gravity Well”, also applies to this. IT’s about unconsciousness and the behaviors/addictions that own us when we’re not AWAKE. The continued use of deadly and filthy oil is exactly that. Much of humanity continues to be asleep and uncreative – accepting the status quo.
You ask me what we can do?
1. I’d say this: inner awareness always comes first. Practice Love, Compassion & Self Awareness.
Part of the practice of Love, Compassion & Self Awareness is to be present, and let yourself feel the love of our Mother Planet. Imagine you had to leave this planet for space unknown, and memorize what you would miss the most about our beautiful, fragile home. Become Love. take a moment to cherish the wildlife that share this planet with us. Feel their pain, feel their joy. Don’t take them for granted; more than a third of our birds are endangered due to humankind’s behavior. Make your yard or neighborhood a better habitat for our fellow creatures – every creature, every bird and squirrel is precious, and our beautiful Blue Pearl is fragile. Plant trees, fruits, and create habitat for the species that share your space.
Often people say to me that they don’t think one person can change anything, but that’s an illusion of disempowerment. Nothing is more powerful. Small changes grow into larger changes, both in your inner growth and altering our outer reality.
2. Second: Make personal changes ; Starve The Beast. Shopping is political and you vote every time you spend a dollar.
Most of you know this already, but I keep meeting people that simply haven’t thought about this before. Just last week I spoke with some people who were amazed at the idea of petroleum products in cosmetics. For those of us who’ve been practicing careful purchasing, this might seem unreal – but if you’re not reading labels, how would you know? It’s not like the ads scream at you “made with inferior and toxic oil/coal based ingredients!”
But most of you have heard it all before so I won’t go into a long list of things you can do…just a couple of them. 🙂 Avoid buying products made with petroleum. If you’ve never looked at the ingredients in the stuff you buy, you’ll be shocked that petro chemicals are in many commercial items – it’s there because its a cheap byproduct of the oil industry, not because it’s the best option. Choose to support companies who make better quality items, and your own health will benefit as well. And drive less – the less the better. Each little change makes a difference.
Avoid plastic whenever you can. What we’re trying to do is Starve The Beast – one dollar at a time. Don’t beat yourself up about the plastic stuff you already have, and don’t throw it away. Keep it and use it until it literally falls apart. But from today forward, choose other options.
3. Take action. Volunteer and/or donate to groups that are working to clean the wildlife, rebuild the marshes, and remove the oil. Work for alternative clean energy. Learn everything you can about clean energy, what other nations are doing, and what is possible NOW. Find out why we are so far behind and speak out. Get active – it’s easy to get involved via the web: sign petitions, write your “representatives” (even though many of them are corporatists, write anyway). Pass around videos that move you. Motivate others. Have meetings. Comment on news stories to get the word out that there are better options. Remember, stay conscious in LOVE. Actions alone, or actions from a place of anger just feed the negativity of the corporate monster. But these little actions combined with love and personal changes WILL WORK. To volunteer or donate, here are a couple of pages with groups listed:http://www.tonic.com/article/how-you-can-volunteer-to-clean-up-the-gulf-coast-oil-spill/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wendy-diamond/gulf-of-mexico-oil-crisis_b_604357.html
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OK. Back to the music. Our music is meant to bring joy and raise consciousness, its for wherever you are on your personal journey. The lyrics can be taken on a variety of levels, and that’s by intention.
If you know of any fundraising efforts that need music, or if you are a musician or artist that would like to use your skills to help, I’d love to hear from you! Please be sure to Contract us via Psychanaut.com