The “Golden Mean” is not now a common expression. However, adherence to it has grave implications for our current and forthcoming problems regarding climate change. Colleague and friend, Prof. Jack Nelson-Pallmeyer, contends that this decade is the most important decade in human history. Some citizens remain unconvinced that such can be the case. The rest of us, hopefully an increasing majority, accept the data and predictions of most scientists in diverse fields regarding climate change. We need to be a creative and committed population to react to the forthcoming crises with effectiveness and a sense of urgency.
Why is a “Golden Mean” very inadequate, even fatal in results? The term refers to a “happy medium”, a “safe, comfortable position”, overall a compromise result, but not fully satisfying to any of those involved. Paul Wellstone, colleague and former Minnesota Senator, recognized, as do I, that perfection is not of this world. Yet compromises to get some legislation passed, fail to deal adequately with issues. However, Wellstone contended that if one gets a part of their goal, without violating their values or ethics, then the small gain remains “progress.”
However, our history has many examples of long-term indecision about basic problems. Our staunch American women who organized in the 1800’s to secure their right to vote, the “suffrage movement”, experienced arrests, jail terms, beatings, and opprobrium from the majority. After a century of struggle, they gained the right to vote in 1920 (the 19th Amendment, Constitution). Yet our women still have not full legal equality with men. [Uruguay passed their Equal Rights legislation in 1948. Their sky hasn’t fallen!]
A similar, but much longer example pertains to our African American constituency, beginning with the Constitution about 1789, to eliminate slavery in this country. The 15th Amendment (1870) granted the right, but was ignored. Not until President Johnson did “Blacks” gain a firm right to vote, secured and implemented in 1965. The Native Americans were granted the right to vote in 1924! These classic movements finally achieved their goals after decades of penalties for the activists and long deprivation of the rights of these citizens that could have been, should have been instituted initially. The “Golden Mean” of compromise, delay, and argument withheld rights due them. These equal civil rights were delayed by the dominant power of the whites and males who catered to a “majority view”. The Congresspersons, judges, and executives held the power. The standard was maintaining a “Golden Mean” but it had a lot of lead in it!
A recent, current example has been the struggle for provision of full health care for our populace. However, the final legislation included something for virtually everyone, but did not implement legislation that gave the best, most economic, full population coverage, with single-payer health service. A very complicated legislation result makes the provisions difficult for even very literate citizens to comprehend. The influential pharmaceutical companies, private health care agencies, and others that sought financial profit, “won the day.” [A wag once said that a camel was a horse put together by a committee!]
Now, to attend to the current paramount challenge that faces all humanity; men and women and children of every race, religion, nationality, ethnicity, rich and poor. Together we face the challenges of great climate change and its consequences. The climate clocks are “ticking”. “Tipping points” are occurring. Productive lands can become deserts. Island nations or shoreline cities can be flooded, creating millions of refugees. Glaciers are melting as are the Arctic/Antarctic ice shelves. Many plants and animal species may become extinct. And so on. Yet, many of our corporate economic and other interests prefer to put the “Gold” first and “fiddle while Rome burns.” Many of the climate changes may be irreversible. Friend and colleague, Senator Wellstone, believed that without a strong sense of urgency and coordinated planning around the world, the best result possible for our children of the future will be less worse for them (and all other living creatures) than it would have been if we had not acted during these available years. Actions planned for 2050 generally are too late!
Former Czech Republic President, Vaclav Havel, provides us a humbling perspective about our place in the universe:”…we must see this issue as a challenge to behave responsibly and not as a harbinger for the end of the world….We need not fear for our planet. It was here before us and most likely will be here after us.” Thus, wholesale “genocide” can be the product of our delayed and insufficient action.
During World War II, the USA marshaled much of its spirit and resources so that “success” was possible. Lester Brown, in his Chapter 10, “Can We Mobilize Fast Enough?” indicated:
The choice is ours, yours and mine. We can stay with business as usual, and preside over an economy that continues to destroy the natural resources until it destroys itself, or we can adopt Plan B and be the generation that changes direction, moving the world into a path of sustained progress. The choice will be made by our generation, but it will affect life on earth for all generations to come. (p. 268). **
Scientists have provided us with Knowledge beyond the symptoms and what needs to be done, the WHY we need to act. The denial by some citizens must not be permitted to jeopardize us all.
In his 1/6/1942 address to the American public, President Roosevelt announced goals of producing 45,000 tanks, 60,000 planes, 20,000 anti-aircraft guns, and several thousand ships. Sale of new cars was banned for almost three years. Highway construction was halted. Tires, gasoline, fuel oil, and sugar were all rationed, beginning that year. As a result, 229,600 aircraft were produced; more than 5,000 ships were added to the merchant fleet, and the other goals were greatly exceeded. A sense of urgency existed and the people met the challenge. [Summary from Brown, Chapter 10 “Can We Mobilize Fast Enough?” (page 260-261]**
As with healthcare legislation, we can anticipate that agribusiness, coal, oil, and other economic forces will exert all their influence to prevent Congress from taking actions that will be necessary to address the climate change issues. Also, with half of our Congressional discretionary budget, acted upon each session, now assigned to “war-related endeavor, we are not in Roosevelt’s situation. Thus, to deal adequately with climate change we must end warfare as a policy for dealing with international problems. War must be seen as obsolete. The “military-industrial complex” will also block how we must use our resources. Humanity will then lose to warfare. If we organize ourselves for warfare why can we not take actions necessary for peace? We need to advance the techniques of nonviolent ways to resolve our international challenges.
Nonviolence must become a way of life. We are well able to create our own Armageddon! The major world religions—Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, as well as Humanists and surviving indigenous cultures, all have bases for peace. The sooner we change our orientations, the less likely conflict will occur.
We need to create a civilization based on different assumptions and practices! Population size needs to be reduced. We need to create “transitional communities”, closer to the earth, respecting it, decentralize our major cities, recycle all products possible, grow and rely on foods grown locally, change our principal sources of energy, protect our natural resources and the wildlife therein, broaden mass transit, educate from childhood up, the essentials of nonviolent conflict resolution, create a civilization that does not rely on violence internally and abroad. We have much learning to surmount. Can we look into the wonderful, eager, caring faces of our children and grandchildren,--and subsequent generations,--and at least be able to say WE TRIED to keep a world friendly to you!
To return to the initial theme: a half-hearted, compromised, piece-meal, endeavor will NOT bring peace or save all the wonders of diverse cultures and people. Are we able and ready for this “long haul”, taking roads not previously traveled? Will young couples decide to have children, and if so, how many, when the world their children and their grandchildren’s children soon will probably be in a very different and difficult world, greatly altered from the one we are now experiencing? We who are now living can provide the answer.
**Lester R. Brown, Plan B 4.0: Mobilization to Save Civilization. New York: Earth Policy Institute and W.W. Norton & Company, 2009. [President of the Institute.] pp. 260-261, 268.
