π Business As Usual will lead to our demise. π
Sooner or later, perhaps within years, certainly within a decade or two, the fragile and tenuous structure of our complex modern industrial society will break down. It wonβt take much β overlapping natural disasters, collapse of the marine food web, an even worse pandemic, serious supply chain disruption, a major crop failure β some of these, or maybe all at once, and everything falls apart.
Thatβs not an outcome we should welcome. It can only lead to widespread suffering and starvation, with millions and possibly billions of human deaths.
If we are to have any hope of avoiding such a catastrophic societal collapse, we must rapidly reduce the extraction and burning of fossil fuels. But that will never happen as long as capitalism remains in charge.
So capitalism must go. The system must be changed.
Those at the top, however, will not give up easily. They will have to be forced to surrender, to step down and relinquish their power. The only way I can see that happening, short of violent revolution, is through a critical mass of people agreeing that itβs time for ACTION, then joining together for coordinated civil disobedience at a level never seen before.
The primary tactic is a prolonged general strike.
But it must be carefully thought out, every step meticulously organized. This would start with activists and neighborhood leaders meeting up and developing practical plans, locating resources, evaluating areas of strength and also of weakness.
Community groups could then begin stockpiling food and basic supplies and organizing voluntary systems of local/regional assistance, whether with transportation, health care, or finances, in preparation for the strike.
And when it begins:
β¦Ώ No one goes to work
β¨ β¦Ώ No one buys anything
β¨ β¦Ώ No one pays any bills
If a wide-scale action like this could last at least a month, or even better two or three months, then I think we *might* have a chance of getting our demands met.
Weβre at an inflection point, a moment of decision: either stay with capitalism and face disaster, or do whatever is necessary to bring about degrowth.
#Capitalism #BusinessAsUsual #Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateAction
Bread and Circuses
in reply to Bread and Circuses • • •The most important place by far for a general strike is the USA. That's the epicenter of the capitalist power structure which controls the world and determines our future.
The good news is studies have suggested you don't need anything close to majority participation for a general strike to be effective. If 15% could be persuaded to join, and be supported communally for the duration, I think it would work. The bad news is 15% is still a very high bar.