Friday, January 05, 2007

The Seventh Generation

The Iriquoi people believed that with action you must consider it's impact on the next Seven Generations. Every major decision should be made that way. Hell, even the minor ones should be made with the future in mind. Things as small as the kind of laundry and dishwashing detergent you use have huge impacts on the environment immediately around you as well as on the world as a whole. Even if you don't believe in Global Warming (though if you don't, you're insane), you have to know that the oil from your car and the chlorine you put into your pool make it back into the water supply. UPDATE: Tonight on the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams the Global Warming claim was put to rest "once and for all" with a statement from the meterologist that we are just in an "El Ninno" weather pattern and it will be getting cold soon. He forgot to mention that even when it does "get cold" temperatures will still be at record highs, the ice shelf will still be melting and polar bears will still be drowning.

Let's think about the impact this war will have on our next seven generations. Our children are watching us. They see how we respond to minor threats, and how we refuse to response to major ones. Are we teaching them anything useful by continuing to fight? What about what we're teaching them by dismissing corruption in our government with the phrase, "Everyone's doing it." Would we accept that kind of excuse from our children? Our mission in 2007 is to ensure that at the end of it our children are better off than they were at the start of it. What are YOU going to do?

If you are an American Soldier and you want to register as a Conscientious Objector, visit Peace-Out before you end up like one of these people:

3,004 US Soldiers killed in Iraq - How has the loss of their lives helped our country?
22,565 US Soldiers wounded - How will the cost of their care effect our children?

32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yeah, and to make things even scarier, there's Bush's latest "interpretation" / directive that is telling us that the US mail is no longer protected. Come over and read my blog today about it. Additionally, Ed Abbey wrote a good piece concerning it as well.

And...a belated (Happy?) New Year!

United We Lay said...

I saw that on the news last night. I never thought the mail was protected in the first place, so it wasn't a surprise to me. The New Year was a little better than Christmas. I think my problem this year was that I focused on my problems this year rather than putting the focus on helping others. I won't make that mistake again!

Anonymous said...

UL, what was the mistake? Putting yourself first for a while? That's OK - you needed to. You were a mommy this year, and that has to come first. Right now you and your little family needs to be your primary focus. If you take care of yourself, you can take care of others. ;o)

Anonymous said...

Well I hope this year is a good one for you. I think the hope was that the next 7 generations of Iraq would be free and they would have a good standing in the world as well. I think that was the plan anyway. The global warming thing is a good cause my question is if people believe it as adamantly as they proclaim why to they have vehicles, fly in planes, ride in limo's? I mean thats like the people that are against cutting trees here there or whereever why do they write books on paper? There are things that I am against and I stay away from them, its hard for me to understand why those people who are so much against something to act the way they do.
js

United We Lay said...

Jsull,
Give me a break. No one in our government gave the next generation of Iraqis anythought at all. America is the ultimate "me" culture.

The people who believe in Global warming do not do those things. They drive hybrids, electric cars, or cars that run on biofuel and natural gas. They power their homes with solar power (and if you ask what happens when the sun goes down, I may have to come down there and smack you), they use proiducts without chemicals in them, eat organic foods, less meat, wear cotton or wool, etc... It's the rest of the world that needs to be brought over to our side. Even if you don't believe in Global Warming, you have to admit tha everything mentioned above is better for the environment.

Saur and Jsull,
My new year is already getting better than the old one. Breaking old habits is hard, but possible.

Anonymous said...

hehe
easy on the smacking!!
Ok if the folks do that then more power to them, I am definately with them then, not their cause but their approach.
Ok don't smack me but why does eating less meat do the environment good (i'm being serious?)

I was unclear or you mistook my thought at the top, i know for sure there are zero politicions that give a shit about me, you, saur or the iraqs, I meant the folks here, the regular people. Surely the iraqs will be better off if and when they decide to be represented by the people and not by Saddam. I was saying regular people think they will be better in the long run.

My main point about the GW (lol can't use that it has many meanings!) Global Warming people was manily the politicions, the reason they would give you if they told you what they really thought was the reason they take up the global W cause then get in their plane and fly to the next place to do the same thing is because we, all the common folks know that they are so important they cant be hindered in their causes by adhearing to things could help. Thats all.

glad to hear things are looking up.
js

Anonymous said...

Happy new year UWL, I'm sure your blog will be infested by jsull and UL pretending everything is OK...

Laura said...

We saw a hummer SUV the other day - those things infuriate me to no end. They get like 5 miles to the gallon. It's the most selfish thing you can drive (or hire) imho. We try to 'act global' but it's sometimes very hard. Especially when Chicago has a sucky recycling program. I guess it just takes time - more and mmore people are driving hybrids and more and more car companies are making them... what we really need to do is simply drive less. Unfortunately, suburban sprawl is built around the individual automobile - so until suburbia is complete re-engineered, I see no real decrease in our use of fossil fuels in the near future.

United We Lay said...

JS,
Things aren't looking up. I am. That has made at leas some difference, and I think it'll improve from there. Now, if I can just find a job...

Daniel,
Unfortunately they aren't the only ones. There are so many people who are just ignoring what's going on around them. Check out my next post for some really disturbing links.

Laura,
Those things make me incredibly angry. The idea that there are people who are so shallow and self-involved that they are willing to destroy the earth to boost their ego is really upsetting. It's never been difficult to get around by bicycle the neighborhoods we've lived in (PA, VA, FL). That's how muy husband has always done it. If buses would start coming out there, things would be easier, but they don't by design. The neighborhoods don't want city people (always a euphemism for blacks) coming out and taking all of the jobs. It's socio-economic segregation.

Cranky Yankee said...

UWL - That is exactly why MARTA (Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Auth) didn't come out to where I used to live in East Cobb County, Ga., even though we were a large chunk of "Metro" Atlanta. Racism pure and simple.

And the funny part is that people who would never considered themselves racist would defend the idea based on crime. How many criminals take the bus? It racism pure and simple. It is so embedded in our culture that people, who aren't the victims of it, don't even see it anymore.

Anonymous said...

I dont know if you forgot to answer or felt like smacking me and didn't answer but what does eating less meat have to do with global warming?

Note to DHG, anyone who would rather I didn't comment on their blog need only to ask and I will never comment again. I have no reason to attack people with positions different than mine (i am above that) nor do I feel the need to shout down anyone ever, a spirited debate I am for, should UWL decide whe doesn't want me to comment all she has to do is say it and I will refrain. It seems the party of tolerance is not tolerant of views other than their own. tyvfm

Good luck on the job hunt, what kind of job are you looking for?
js

Anonymous said...

Have they changed the tax law that makes the Hummer such a great deal?

At one time, the Hummer, at 6000 pounds was classed as a farm/ industrial use vehicle, and so given exemptions in order to help the economy. They were not expected to become so widespread that lawyers are driving these farm vehicles on the freeway.

Laura said...

JS: This post was about taking care of the earth in general, not just global warming. Eating less meat would help with environmental damage because with less demand giant agribusinesses (which provide all our meat because they're they only farms capable of keeping up with demand) would have to downsize. There's great environmental hazards in giant corporate farms. Huge pieces of land are over-utilized and over fertilized. South American countries that allow slash-and-burn techniques for cattle farmers would maybe be able to enforce more environmentally friendly farming if our hunger for meat wasn't so large. Not to mention that it's simply healthier to eat a balanced diet and far too many Americans (myself included) eat waaay too much meat and not enough vegetables. Eating less meat would cut down on heart disease, obesity, colon cancer, diabetes, and a slew of other health problems that our tax dollars are paying for.

Anonymous said...

The cows that become beef pass a lot of gas as well. The gas is methane, a greenhouse gas even more effective than CO2.

According to vegetarian lore, it takes 12 times as much land to make food through growing animals that are then made into food, than to simply grow plants and make them directly into food. So growing more crops would result in less machinery, less irrigation, less soil depletion involved.

I'm a little suspicious of that 12x number, since animals can graze on land that could not be easily farmed for crops. But I do think meat is a luxury food and should be treated as such. As a garnish, not a main course.

Anonymous said...

laura
i was with you until diabetes
my pa in law has it, his father had it and my bride when bred has it. The diabetic diet is meat rich.
the ionly question I continue to have i guess is what are we going to do with the cows? I mean at my house we either kill it catch it or raise it to eat as far as meat goes. I guess our diet is probably 60 or so percent deer, fish squirrels rabbits (60% of our meat) and then we raise 2 steer for slaughter each year. We eat hog also and most of it is wild that I have killed. Anyway I don't know if I am with y'all on the no meat deal, what would we do with all the animals?
js

Cranky Yankee said...

JS - Different type of diabetes. She is talking about Type 2 diabetes which is mainly due to obesity and has an onset that occurs in adulthood. The type that you are talking about is type 1, or juvenile onset and is not purported to be diet related in its onset.

Anonymous said...

Ok Cy
I believe you!
I absolutely know nothing about it and surely don't claim to. My bride had gestational tho and her diet was thick with meat.
anyway thanks for the info.
js

Cranky Yankee said...

Gestational Diabetes is actually another type. Like type 2 diabetes it can be managed to a certain extent with diet. The goal is to lower the intake of some carbohydrates, bread, pasta, etc, but if you replacing them with fatty meats you bringing in another set of complications.

If you are taking in 60 percent of your calories from meat your diet is very imbalanced and not healthy. In fact it is very unhealthy.

A total protein intake of over 20% of the daily calories is not recommended, unless you are a weight lifter. It should be around 10%. That includes all milk, eggs, fish, and meats. The human body does not need any meat and it should be a very small part of your diet.

Laura said...

JS: Cranky beat me to it, yep, Type II I should have specified. You're right that diabetes is also hereditery (so is heart disease, some cancers, and a number of other ailments). But an appropriate diet is one way to lower your risk of onset.

I'm certainly not a proponent of vegetarianism for all. There is, however, a way to eat meat in a healthy, environmentally friendly (and a way that treats the animals with respect as well). But to do that, we have to reduce our consumption. Do we need meat with every meal?? I don't think so. People eat way too much meat (mass produced, low quality, high fat, meat pumped full of chemicals and artificial hormones to boot). Ideally, everyone would be able to do what you do - but then there'd be no animals left to hunt. I don't know what the solution is, but I know reducing the size of agribusiness would help.

Anonymous said...

thanks for the schooling folks.
LAura the reason we raise the cows is because of the chemicals/steroids the mass producers put in them.

ok i think I got it!
js

Laura said...

JS- not sure I'm following you there?

United We Lay said...

I've cut meat mostly out of my diet. I feel it's better for the environment overall, better for my body, and the more I think about what meat is, the more difficult it is for me to eat it.

Anonymous said...

the steroids and such come from the feed lots, the way the cow biz works is the people with brood cows have calves, raise them to 300+/- pounds, wean them cut the bulls and sell them. Most are purchased by buyers that ship the cows to a feed lot. The feed lot is where the folks feed them out. from there they go to slaughter then to the store. the feed lot guys are the ones that benefit the most from the cows being as big as fast as they can, thats where the cows get the hormones and steroids to fill them out faster.
what i do is buy the calf from the breeder prior to them being full of hormones.
maybe thats understandable
js

just a thought, if everyone today swore meat off 100% other than them looking unhealthy (my opinion) what would we do with the cows, hogs chickens etc??

Cranky Yankee said...

JS - We don't need meat. We need some protein, about 10 percent of our caloric intake. Some people chose to get that protein from meat, nothing wrong with that. Most people eat way too much meat. Like I said before, if 60 percent of your diet is meat, you are eating a very unhealthy diet. You are doing it on purpose and ignoring your health. You might as well be smoking cigarettes. I think you said once in another thread that you are overweight. Do you see a trend here? As a result I think you should have to pay more for health care/insurance then those of us who choose to eat a healthy diet.

Your question about the animals doesn't make sense.

Anonymous said...

Well sure it does CY, what will we do with the cows?
I mean do we turn them out in the wild? There would be no reason for people to farm them, or own them.

I am over weight i dont deny that but i also have low bp and you are right if i am unhealthy then I should pay more, which of course I pay mine and my families, I actually do pay more for life insurance but that is on account of nicotine my weight and all hurts me very little, I'm not obese mind you just heavier than I was when I was playing ball.

study on what will happen to the cows and hogs.
js

Anonymous said...

Realistically, the demand for animal food products would decline over time, and the animal populations would follow.

What is also unhealthy is the teenagers, usually girls, who get into "vegan chic". If they eat a standard diet minus the meat, it is not very healthy. Fries are vegan, if cooked in vegetable oil, but still are loaded with salt and not a lot of vitamin/minerals. Side dishes intended to go with meat based meals don't really cut it.

In cultures where they don't eat much meat, there are plenty of foods that do result in a balanced diet.

Laura said...

Gotcha JS, Sorry but the little sentence you posted previously didn't make sense to me.

Exactly. Factory farming (and the need to meet human demand, therefore growing animals quickly and cheaply) is why companies pump all sorts of shit into the animals. If we ate less meat, there'd be less demand. or conversely, if there were a ban on such practices, the cost of meat would increase and thus, people would eat less of it.

As for what to do with the animals we already have... Ban the farming practices that allow meat to be processed so quickly, and then eat them down to reasonable numbers where small farmers can handle a few herds each? That would make meat too expensive to eat as much of it as we do... solving the problems of obesity and factory farming and the treatment of animals on factory farms. But alas, we don't live in NeverNeverland...

Anonymous said...

well i appreciate the knowledge on the meat thing. I surely wont give it up and probably wont cut it back but the thought experiment is good. Laura I understand that most folks can't take the measures I do but the meat I eat is fairly pure and hell i just friggin like it. Beer aint good for me either and neither are strange women, speeding, chewing and about 33 other things i do everyday. If meat kills me well then it was gonna happen anyway.
js

Laura said...

Hey, JS I agree with you on that one. I'm an "everything in moderation" type person and there's really nothing like a good steak or cheeseburger.

Anonymous said...

If you'kk ill but!!!!!! Ill buy the "adult beverage of choise too!
hell invite CY,saur and UWl too
im all for sharing the wealth when it involves drink and good grub!!
hehe
js

BarbaraFromCalifornia said...

I think sending more troops to Iraq is a terrible idea for the American people.

PC, you and I have been against this war from day one...Our blog histories speak for themselves.

United We Lay said...

I think the impact on the environment in the Middle East will take a thousand years or more to recover from.