"The world is not going to survive for very much longer as humanity's captive.
I think that there are many among you who would be glad to release the world from captivity. What prevents you from doing this?"
"I don't know."
"This is what prevents them: They're unable to find the bars of the cage."

"Once when I was in college," I told him at last, "I wrote a paper for a philosophy class...Here's what I said in the paper, roughly: Guess what? The Nazis didn't lose the war after all. They won and flourished. They took over the world and wiped out every last Jew, every last Gypsy, black, East Indian....and the Japanese-all the peoples of Asia. This took a long, long time, but when it was all over, everyone in the world was one hundred percent Aryan, and they were all very, very happy.
"Naturally the textbooks used in the schools no longer mentioned any race but the Aryan or any language but German or any religion but Hitlerism or any political system but National Socialism. There would have been no point. After a few generations of that, no one could have put anything different into the textbooks even if they'd wanted to, because they didn't know any different.
"But one day two young students were conversing at the University of New Heidelberg in Tokyo. Both were handsome in the usual Aryan way, but one of them looked vaguely worried and unhappy. That was Kurt. His friend said, "What's wrong, Kurt? Why are you always moping around like this? Kurt said, "I'll tell you, Hans. There is something that's troubling me--and troubling me deeply.' His friend asked what it was. 'It's this,' Kurt said. 'I can't shake the crazy feeling that there is some small thing that we're being lied to about.' "And that's how the paper ended."
Ishmael nodded thoughtfully. "And what did your teacher think of that?"
"He wanted to know if I had the same crazy feeling as Kurt."
When I said I did, he wanted to know what I thought we were being lied to about. I said, 'How could I know" I'm no better off than Kurt...'
"And do you still wonder if you've been lied to?"
"Yes, but not as desperately as I did then."
"Not as desperately? Why is that?"
"Because I've found out that, as a practical matter, it doesn't make any difference. Whether we're being lied to or not, we still have to get up and [live our lives]
"Unless, of course, you all began to suspect you were being lied to--and all found out what the lie was."
excerpt from 'My Ishmael' by Daniel Quinn

Most of you have no idea what the past few years have been like for me. It would be impossible for any of you to understand. Just as it would be impossible for a suburbanite to understand what it's like to haul a washing machine with a bicycle. It’s very rare for a person to survive into adulthood having virtually no courage, no social skills, no memory, and no ability to support myself. A person needs a normal amount of at least one of these to survive. Our modern society is an exception to the past 200,000 years of human development. For most of our history, a person would either have been killed or abandoned if they lacked these minimal survival skills. However our current social framework (fueled by religious ferver) encourages the support of people even when they have the kind of ineptitude that I deal with.

"you don't choose the things you believe in, they choose you"

Thinkers aren't limited by what they know, because they can always increase what they know. Rather they're limited by what puzzles them, because there's no way to become curious about something that doesn't puzzle you. If a thing falls outside the range of people's curiosity, then they simply cannot make inquiries about it. It constitutes a blind spot — a spot of blindness that you can't even know is there until someone draws your attention to it."
Daniel Quinn

Hippopotami were depicted on Egyptian walls and revered as gods. So why did the Egyptians hunt them to extinction?

Now fast forward a few billion years. The earliest human civilizations developed in the near east. This was where humans advanced the fastest because it was the place on earth where food could be grown most efficiently. That place is modern day Israel, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan which was once known as the fertile crescent. These countries are now primarily desert. The lions, hippos, and other large animals depicted on ancient walls are gone (link). The theory is that artificial irrigation (unlike the natural irrigation in Egypt) concentrated salt in the upper crust and salinated the soil while deforestation caused the loss of soil nutrients. This happened throughout the world and resulted in major changes in human development.

Similarly lions once spanned the ancient world from Greece to India. But by the end of the Greek empire, they had been exterminated.

You can find more information here, here, and here

When you follow the progression of tree loss, it matches the progression of empires in the ancient world. The Middle East started out being the center of power until they destroyed their forests, then the power shifted to Crete, then to Greece, then to Rome. All of these cultures cut down their forests to build monuments (which are ironically gone now) and the land is dramatically less fertile than it once was (link).

The most extant example of all though, involves a group of Scandanavians led by the viking Eric the Red who created two settlements on Greenland around the 9th century C.E. They created settlements based on the lifestyles which they had enjoyed back in Europe. These practices were completely unsustainable in the less benign environment near the arctic circle. First of all they developed hostile relations with the Inuit who had a great deal more experience in the frozen climate. Secondly they stripped the land of trees in order to provide food for their animals, which required more food than the land could support. And finally they held onto outmoded dietary beliefs and took little advantage of the seafood that the Inuit were enjoying. This along with the Little Ice Age that began in the 15th century spelled the end for this colony. [It's possible that the demise of the American colony in Virginia followed the same fate]

Most people believe that humanity reached the agricultural revolution with an empty treasury and began filling it with inventions ever since. However the opposite is really true. As soon as humanity transitioned to the agricultural revolution, we began emptying the treasury. From the tigers and hippos of the fertile crescent to the forests of Europe, to the great masses of sea life, and finally to the arctic. Very few of the inventions that humanity has developed has been able to improve on nature. The rare exceptions are the bicycle which requires fewer calories to move a person than walking. Also the block and tackle, treadle powered machines, and the wheel. Nearly all of the rest do the opposite by feeding off of nature. You can find more information here, here, here, and here.

“when the white man has chopped down the last tree and poisoned the last river, he will realize that he can not eat money.”

I'll breifly relate the reasons why I feel this way (you can read all of this in more depth here):

You can't exactly call this Michigan suburb a ghost town since people are there somewhere. I'd call it a 'zombie town.'

Automobiles cause an incredible amount of destruction to the land. The pavement that a car drives on is both toxic in it’s construction AND destructive to the soil beneath.

You can find more information here, here, and here.

Yes there I am left of center. Depave helped remove assfault on a former parking lot in North Portland

The video at left expresses this point very succinctly. Mobility itself is not seen as a right of the whole population, but only those who can afford and legally operate an automobile. What does that say about your neighborhood? It says that you’re not likely to get much exercise, or meet your neighbors, or even spend time outside at all. Even in Portland which is pushing the boundary more than any other American city, there is legal on-street parking on virtually every single residential thoroughfare.

"All creatures drink water. Our bodies are predominantly water; the layers that make us human are thin. We may need the air of heaven, the nourishment of the earth, but we also need the quenching power of water."
I Ching c. 3rd century BCE

So is BP alone? Of course not. We've all heard of the Exxon Valdez but that's simply because Exxon didn't cover it up quickly enough. Few people have heard of the Niger River delta and it's 20,000 sq. km. of wetlands which are being slowly destroyed by Shell Petroleum's operations in the area.(link)

“Shell [petroleum] operations still impossible unless ruthless military operations are undertaken for smooth economic activities to commence."
confidential note written by Nigerian military officer Paul Okuntimo to the Nigerian Government in 1998

You can find more information here, here, and here.

"Driving is optional, breathing is not."

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless and poisonous gas produced by incomplete burning of carbon in fuels. When CO enters the bloodstream, it reduces the delivery of oxygen to the body's organs and tissues.
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a brownish, highly reactive gas that is present in all urban atmospheres. NO2 can irritate the lungs, cause bronchitis and pneumonia, and lower resistance to respiratory infections.
Ozone is the prime ingredient of smog in our cities and other areas of the country....When inhaled, even at very low levels, ozone can: cause acute respiratory problems; aggravate asthma; cause significant temporary decreases in lung capacity of 15 to over 20 percent....Ground-level ozone interferes with the ability of plants to produce and store food, so that growth, reproduction and overall plant health are compromised. (link)

"When children living under polluted, hazy skies move away to communities with cleaner air, their lungs begin to grow more quickly, according to a study by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
Preventive medicine researchers followed more than 100 children through their teen years and compared those who stayed in the Los Angeles area to those who moved away to other communities in the West. The resulting changes in air pollution exposure, on average, affected annual rates of lung function growth, the team reported in the December issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.(link)

“I have heard the excuses, everybody uses
he's your kid, just do as you see fit”
Natalie Merchant

It’s been well documented that automobiles are the highest cause of death for children in America according to the AMA (actually for all age groups under 35). Automobiles (which everyone thinks are safe at least if they’re behind the wheel) account for 42,000 deaths every year and the number hasn’t changed significantly in my lifetime. Meanwhile guns (which are seen as dangerous) account for only 12,000 deaths per year.

This brings us to the origins of the 'road rage' phenomenon. There are many reasons that road rage develops in even mild-mannered people.

Communication - Sondra Wilson of Kent, WA wants to know, with all the talk about road rage lately, "how to make clear to another driver whom I may have inadvertently cut off on a lane change or some such infraction that I am sorry." She explains, " I'd like to motion somehow (perhaps out the window) without it looking like I'm 'giving the finger.' Something that communicates 'I goofed and I'm sorry.'"
when driving in a car, it's impossible to communicate because there's no way to have dialogue across 20 ft and with 2 panes of glass between you.

Anonymity - Just like an internet chat room, people feel completely fine with expressing hatred that they would never show to a person they met face to face on the street.

Innocence - What you did seems perfectly fine. But the other guy doesn't feel so hunky-dory about it. Psychologically, as human beings we tend to exaggerate the faults of others while glossing over our own. This led to a discovery I came upon in a study funded by Allstate Insurance.
According to this study, 90% of those questioned considered themselves good drivers. Yet, half of those same people admitted to being stopped by police at least once in the previous five years, 53% confessed that they occasionally resort to "racing other drivers" on public roads, 46% admitted to getting behind the wheel after consuming alcohol, and 31% had been involved in a car crash.
Expectation - most people expect to get from point A to point B with little to get in the way. After all, if you walk 5 blocks you generally don't have to wait more than a few minutes (unless you're crossing an arterial). But because of the huge volume of space that each car takes up, driving becomes a frustrating exercise (ironic term I know) as you must wait for each person to relinquish the 20,000 sq. ft. of road that they take up.
This is why despite what people think, driving is often the slowest way of getting across town. Commute challenges in various cities have shown that travel by bicycle is faster than walking, taking the bus, riding the subway, even travel by helicopter (no kidding).

I cannot condone such behavior. I used to try and talk sense into people, but after years and years of hearing nothing but excuses, it’s obvious that nothing will change until there is no other choice. So to summarize this whole paragraph, I’m burned out. I’m burned out from trying to have a dialogue with gasahaulics. I’m burned out from reading, week after week, about another cyclist struck, another pedestrian run over, another child yanked back to the curb as a car goes past. I’m past that point. So if you people want to continue to slaughter each other and deny responsibility, than do so without me.

The number of those severely affected by climate change is more than ten times greater than for instance those injured in traffic 'accidents' each year. And yet, there are still vast billions of dollars pledged by your friends at Exxon Mobil to ensure that the population continues to be confused about this issue. With politicians worrying more about lobbyists and their next election, and the lack of power among those few who really are willing to do something, I see no hope for your future.
So how does auto-addiction, climate change, and our current financial climate come together? Well here's an example.

In 2003 a summer heat wave killed nearly 15,000 people across France for example. It's not as if this catastrophe just popped up in the last 10 years. Scientists have been predicting the possibility of global climate change since the late 1950s. But for most Americans it’s easy to deny and avoid the reality (except for example in New York when the power goes out). Especially if you only get your information from mainstream media.

Learn more here, here, here, and here

To be truthful, these statements should all have an ‘ed’ at the end. ‘We’ (meaning you) needed to do something to stop global warming. ‘We’ needed to produce more fuel efficient cars. ‘We’ needed to fund mass transit. ‘We’ needed to reuse products instead of throwing them away. Etc etc. (link)
Unfortunately Americans have not rallied behind Al Gore in rolling up their shirtsleeves and getting down to business, instead Americans have rallied behind Dick Cheney who bluntly stated ‘The American way of life is not negotiable.” Of course for those who enjoy a comfortable lifestyle, they want to retain that life of luxury (and yes even middle class Americans enjoy a very luxurious life compared to those in the third world. This simply follows the same pattern as the upper classes throughout history. The wealthy will never give up their power voluntarily.
But the more important question is this: Do your material posessions make you happy? With the exception of yours truly (who's been f$*&d up for decades) most people who live a more natural lifestyle are indeed happy. They're more connected to the seasons, enjoy the open air, and eat more natural and thus more nutritious foods.

“Spain has become a leader in high-speed rail travel since inaugurating its first AVE line in 1992, from Madrid to Seville. The route has been a huge success, largely replacing road and air travel to the largest city in the southern Andalusia region.”(link)
The transportation secretary for the United States visited Spain to see what we could have accomplished.

"a new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it." (link)

“According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the number of driving fatalities has remained around 42,000 a year for most of the last decade, though it fell to 37,261 in 2008, when gas prices rose sharply and Americans drove less.”(link)

Of course it's simple deduction. Like the great dust bowl of the 30s, when you mess with natural practices that have worked for centuries and you find mysterious disasters occuring than the cause should be obvious. And it's not just the animals that suffer. Häagen Dazs warned earlier this year that it may have to cut back on the variety of flavors it offers because berry bushes aren't getting polinated by bees.

Back in 1992 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had determined that genetically engineered foods were in most cases “the same as or substantially similar to substances commonly found in food” and thus are not required to undergo specific safety tests prior to entering the market. The FDA’s policy was a dramatic shift away from the long-standing requirement that companies prove their products are safe. Says Rebecca Goldburg of the Environmental Defense Fund. “FDA’s policy strongly favors food manufacturers at the expense of consumer protection.”
Thankfully, Europeans are more concerned with individual health and there have been massive protests against GMO crops. They should educate people of incluence like Bill Gates (who notwithstanding his ignorance of good farming practices is a generous philanthropist) before the damage becomes too widespread.

.

• First of all everyone would need to eliminate their use of cars. Gasoline vehicles should only be in use for public transportation, maintanance of the infrastructure (electric lines, water and sewage lines, etc), or transporting the sick. If your old or out of shape, than by all means use the bus. If city beuracrats realize that there's a true demand for it, they could add more buses, more frequent service, and light rail lines. With more people using bicycles trains, or buses, there will be vast stretches of concrete and assfault which can be torn up and used for planting trees and gardens. After all, if I can carry 16ft lumber with a bicycle trailer, than surely you can bike to work or to the store (even if you're name isn't Shirley).
• Build a decent rail network. Sure buses are okay for the time being, but they still put wear on the roads and produce exhaust. Over the long term, this country needs a national rail network like the one we had at the dawn of the 20th century. America was once the envy of the world for it's immense train network. You need to rebuild that network and connect every city.
• And what about this public infrastructure? If people developed greywater systems, rain harvesting systems, and solar/wind/geothermal systems than there would be less need for city-maintained infrastructure. This would mean not only lower costs, but also greater control of the system. You would be able to choose how you heat your home or produce electricity. If you're willing to let your living space get down to 55 in the winter and 85 in the summer than you can put even less work into these systems. Every building should take advantage of passive solar energy. And if your building is blocked by another, than the buildings need to be oriented correctly (sorry that I can't find it, but there was a sketch made of how buildings can be situated close together without compromising solar access). Add light shelves and tall windows to houses. Imagine if your home was heated with waste heat from a nearby industry? It's been done successfully in New York.
• And if you don't have the skills to grow food, than seek out those who have learned the ancient methods of working with natural forces.
• Everyone in the country would have to become vegetarian or vegan (see factory farms). There is no reason that animals (especially large animals like cows) should have to be killed for food. I've heard arguments about people's 'need' for meat, but if you travel to 3rd-world countries there are millions of people who can't afford meat. Those people may not live comfortable lives, but they do stay alive. In extreme cases if some need is found to consume meat, then chickens can be raised for that.
• For this to continue to succeed, you would all have to produce only one child. Despite what extremists might say, humanity should definately reduce it's population. As cruel as China's one-child policy sounds, how much more cruel is it for a child to starve to death at age 6? Or for a child to contract mercury poisoning?
• Everyone can and should live in smaller houses. There is absolutely no excuse for consuming 3000 square feet of space for one or two people (Al Gore included). In the short term large houses (would need to be converted into triplexes or apartments). Then over time the spare housing could be dismantled (not demolished as Americans are want to do) and the materials used to construct smaller homes. This way people can choose to live in cohousing communities, apartments, or small 400 sq. ft. houses (which is still generous by some standards). Think about it, how many hours do you spend in each of the rooms in your house? Do you really use the living room, or the den?
  Instead of having individual rooms for entertainment, you could have more community buildings like the Friendly House on SE Stark St. Instead of individual garages or workshops, there could be a communal workshop and/or tool library. Hell, you could convert an empty suburban homes purely for use as a community garage for construction projects. Take off the sheetrock and teach classes in architecture and building. Fill one room with tools and lend them out to the community.
• Now with all of that extra space, more individual gardens or CSAs can develop. Look at what just two people have created on a single property with an average sized house? Imagine what could be done if the house were smaller? You say you have a sunny yard? Grow tomatoes, peppers, squash, basil, and sunflowers. You have a shady yard? Grow New Zealand spinach, dandelions, lettuce, mushrooms, rhutageghas, and garlic. You live in a dry climate? Grow Quinua and Agave cactus. People used to find millions of plants for every type of bioregion. That ability will have to be fostered again.
• And once you start down that path, you can learn how to preserve your own food. Grow a bunch of food in the summer and can it, dehydrate it, or pickle it. Now you need much less refrigeration (or perhaps no refrigerator at all).
• Learn about medicinal plants. For example dandelion root is especially good for the liver. Oregon Grape is excellent for the gums. There are plenty of people out there who know these things and are happy to share their knowledge.
• And if you don't have the skills to grow food, than seak out those who have learned the ancient methods of working with natural forces. Learn how to grow food in your own climate. If you live in an extreme environment like the Arizona desert or the Rocky Mountains than seak out those who have already been successful at growing food there. Learn from those who grow medicinal plants and create tinktures from them. Learn about bioswales, permaculture, natural building, DIY solar energy, human powered machines, and other natural living practices. There's no reason to rienvent the wheel, this has all been done for centuries.
• Along with eating more naturally, there's also removing toxic entertainment. Notably the television. There is an unequivical body of research stating that television is harmful to the mental development of children of all ages from infancy through the teenage years and hinders social connections in adults.

• Stop buying bottled drinks. With the exception of alchohol which I've never disagreed with as long as it's not abused, it behooves all of you to stop getting you're drinks out of disposable bottles. The only liquid your body needs is water. Anything else can be unnecessary at best and downright toxic at worst.
• Stop buying new items. At this point in America, there is absolutely no need to produce any new items (except food). There is such a glut of stuff in this country that if everyone went into business repairing things, there would be no end to the amount of available employment. Remember the order that the old adage goes in. First reduce, Then reuse, and only when those have been exhausted do you recycle. By not seeking out new things not only do you eliminate the energy needed to produce the item itself, but you also eliminate all that packaging. When I was a child, one of my favorate toys was a box full of wooden blocks that my Dad had chopped and carefully sanded for me (that was before legos). People have an amazing ability to innovate when they need to. Put that skill to use developing new ideas for existing things. For example you could take those flimsy plastic clamshell boxes and use them as mini-greenhouses to sprout seads.
• Another project that would benefit you is to stop by a carpentry store or wood shop and grab some leftovers (or cut down 2x4s if you're skilled). You can then build you're own clothes drying rack. This works great outside when it's sunny or inside if it's not.
• If your city has skyscrapers or high-rise buildings they need to be made more efficient. Study the work of Ken Yeang and add wind turbines to the roofs, solar panels to the facades, and integrate vegetation within. Cut out floors and build an atrium to let oxygen flow naturally to all of the floors. Or if society has evolved to the point where the building isn't needed, than develop it as an farm tower (I'm not sure how successful that could be, but it's a worthy experiment).
• If you're retired or not working, than plant trees. As I said at the beginning of this document, the loss of forests has been the most consistant cause of environmental devastation. You should be planting trees wherever you can. Depave the roads and parking lots for conversion to forests. Learn about bio- restoration from those who are masters in the field.
• And how would all this be paid for? Well that would require everyone to take back their money from they aristocracy. The top 1% of the country has researched thousands of tax loopholes which allow them to keep their money from being used by the federal government. If all tax loopholes were eliminated and the super-wealthy were forced to pay a 25% tax, than there would be plenty of money for these projects.
• And for gods sake get rid of the damned oil companies. Every single person involved in fossil fuel production and refinement should be gotten rid of. They have been the most blatent example of unfettered selfishness this country has ever seen.

You can find more information here, here, here, here, and here

The longer your collective awareness of this is postponed, the more severe the crash is going to be. And that's why despite how much I've learned of this situation, I have no idea when the collapse is going to happen, because it all depends on when you admit that this way of life has to end. The longer you wait, the more severe and painful the transformation will be.

"No snowflake claims responsibility for the avalanche."

Sure there is a majority of activists who believe that we should be 'diplomatic.' This is definitely my preferred choice (after all my middle initial isn't 'W'). I spent most of my time in Portland working to kindly encourage intelligent lifestyles. However in that time, while there have been very impressive gains within the Portland bubble, the world beyond inner north/southeast Portland continues to walk no farther than the distance to the driveway. This is because with the great decline in the quality of life throughout the country, Portland has retained much of it's beauty due to a strong ecological focus (which predates the current interest). However the effort has been greatly diluted by the thousands of 'okies' (I use that term comparing the present situation to the thousands who migrated to Oregon and California after they'd ravaged their own farmland in the 30s) who've moved to Portland in the past decade. Some, like myself, moved here in order to participate in the ecological revolution. However many others want to have the ecological beauty without actually making a lifestyle change.

Impostors posing as ExxonMobil and National Petroleum Council (NPC) representatives delivered an outrageous keynote speech to 300 oilmen at GO-EXPO, Canada's largest oil conference, held at Stampede Park in Calgary, Alberta, today.
In the actual speech, the "NPC rep" announced that current U.S. and Canadian energy policies (notably the massive, carbon-intensive exploitation of Alberta's oil sands, and the development of liquid coal) are increasing the chances of huge global calamities. But he reassured the audience that in the worst case scenario, the oil industry could "keep fuel flowing" by transforming the billions of people who die into oil.
"We need something like whales, but infinitely more abundant," said "NPC rep" "Shepard Wolff" (actually Andy Bichlbaum of the Yes Men), before describing the technology used to render human flesh into a new Exxon oil product called Vivoleum. 3-D animations of the process brought it to life.

I used to love to hear stories like this one:

“I myself moved to Portland, and started riding my bike because of my participation in [pedalpalooza] 3 years ago. It took me around 9 months to get in shape enough to not be worn out after riding, and another 6 months after that before I finished losing the 70 pounds I have lost since I started riding. I've also made hundreds of friends. I think Shift may have literally saved my life. I went from being on a track to die young, and depressed, to healthy, and happy, or even cheerful most of the time. I volunteer for Shift to try to give other people some of the gifts that shift has already given me, by getting me started on a bicycle, and endless opportunities to encourage me to ride more.”

• Keeping a pot in the sink which collects dishwater, I then pour that outside over the plants (don't do this if you use non-organically based soaps).
• Walking up stairs rather than taking elevators/escalators
• carrying even large construction materials with a bike trailer
• getting vegetables either from a local farmer or from my own garden
• prioritizing stores which are within 2-3 miles from my house
• Not owning a television
• Using my computer for all functions reducing the need for more stuff (like a CD player)
• buying used rather than new items whenever possible (which also reduces plastic packaging)
• printing pdf files rather than paper documents
• bringing my own bags to the store
• waiting for something I need until I find it laying on someone's curb (I've found things ranging from a ceiling fan, to garden hose, to a wooden dresser

For you gasahaulics who feel loss at my death, you can see this in the same context as those Nigerians who were killed by Shell Petroleum, or the Iraqis killed by Halliburton, or the Ecuadorians killed by Chevron. I am no different from those victims. The vast numbers of those killed in the name of oil extraction, energy ‘conflicts,’ pollution, as well as those directly killed in car ‘accidents’ is simply astronomical.

The bicycle has been proven time and time again to be the most energy efficient means of travel known to humanity. Even the most speedy and well-evolved animals cannot match the caloric performance of a human on a bicycle. Measurements of the heat lost to friction for a bicycle hover around 3-5% which means that a bicycle is 95% efficient. Compare that to a car which is the opposite, converting 10% of the energy produced into forward motion for it’s operator.

For all of you who complain about cyclists breaking the law (while of course you are a ‘good driver’) I welcome you to read these comments by people who are pretty damned tired of being threatened. If you're not willing to ride a mile in another [wo]man's shoes, than at least pay attention to what people have to say;

“I made an animation trying to get the Idaho Stop law passed, and I wanted to include a bit about the comparative danger posed by cars. Seemed pretty relevant, but I got some specific feedback requesting that I *not* include that, because it would seem like an anti-car, car-bashing sentiment. That's right, it's actually politically incorrect - within the context of the state legislature - to point out how dangerous cars are. Amazing.”
-Spencer

“Highway 6 and 26 (Tillamook and Seaside / Mt. Hood) are definitely the worst for those types of interactions - yesterday while leaving Cape Lookout, a giant RV tried to pass Emily and I on a blind uphill with 3 oncoming cars - they passed me with about a foot to spare, and cut Emily off while avoiding the oncoming cars.”
-Matt

“I was riding just barely in the lane because the shoulder for a stretch was full of gravel and broken glass, and a passing car honked at me. I was so startled that I wobbled my handlebars—truly frightening, as I was going downhill and fairly fast. I really wish that people who honk would realize they might startle a cyclist bad enough for them to lose control....”
-April

I remember a woman who told me she didn’t have time to talk to me and I should call her on the cellphone while she drove home. Most of you haven’t read the statistics around driving and cellphones (cellphone companies have spent lots of $$ to downplay this) causing the Federal Transportation Administration to hide it, but I certainly never spoke to her again. A great deal of research has shown that driving while talking on the phone (with or without holding using the hands) causes dangerous distractions.

“Verizon Wireless, for instance, posts instructions on its Web sites not to talk while driving — with or without a headset. But neither Verizon nor any other cell phone company supports legislation that bans drivers from talking on the phone.” (link)

“I’m on the phone from when I leave the Capitol to when I get home, and that’s a two-hour drive,” said Tad Jones, the majority floor leader in the Oklahoma House, who helped block the legislation.

Six days ago, a 6-month-old baby boy named Sun Hudson died when Texas Children's Hospital disconnected his life support, against the wishes of his mother, because they decided that further treatment was "futile" and Wanda Hudson, the boy's mother, had no medical insurance. The Houston Chronicle reported:

“Sun's death marks the first time a hospital has been allowed by a U.S. judge to discontinue an infant's life-sustaining care against a parent's wishes, according to bioethical experts. [...] Texas law allows hospitals can discontinue life sustaining care, even if patient family members disagree.”

So where's the Republican outrage in the Sun Hudson case? Where's the maudlin, wall-to-wall "Save Terri" type of media coverage? There's no interest in the Sun Hudson case because there's no political advantage to be gained there. And the Hudsons aren't the Republicans' — or the media's — kind of folks. They're poor, and they're Black.

It’s only when you start learning about the world that you can have a balanced opinion. If you merely absorb the screened clips that American media and their advertisers support, than you become just a pawn for them. So is that the only reason that I’m depressed? Of course not. In addition to the horrible effects of the United States’ auto use, there’s the massive amount of other fossil fuels which are burnt throughout the U.S. and the world. (link)

"You must laugh at man to avoid crying for him."

• An upstate New York woman was charged with drunk driving when she arrived at the police barracks to pick up a friend who was being released after having been arrested on DUI charges. -AP (link)
• 9 Lives per Gallon - A man in the Bronx found a cat who survived riding several miles in the engine compartment of his SUV. -AP (link)
  [this gives new meaning to the novel 'Lives Per Gallon']
• On rainy nights, uncounted thousands of amphibians try to get across the road throughout the Northeast. Now local conservation groups are working to help small animals get across the road safely. Human escorts scoop them to safety or direct traffic around them (link)
• An afluent New York lawyer living in Scarsdale finally got fed up with her kids bickering in the back of her car and dumped them on the side of the road. (link)
  [I wonder if moms who use bakfieten have this problem?]
• Eight year old Emma Hicks possibly saved her own and her grandmothers' lives when she steared their car to a 'safe' crash after her grandmother had a seizure while driving the child home. (link) And she's not the only one. Six year old Philip Mains did the same thing when his diabetic father blacked out from low blood sugar.
• It's not just people with diseases who can black out behind the wheel. A truck driver in Australia blacked out when he was stung by a bee and crashed into two backyards before coming to rest. At which point he regained consciousness.
• In 2006 the administrator of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission resigned just five days after being arrested and charged with drunken and reckless driving.
• A Portland driver struck and injured a pedicab driver who was wearing a six-foot tall orange bunny suit. Kate was driving the pedicab through downtown Portland last Easter when she was struck by a mercedes. (link

While working on the house addition I came upon the crux of what has caused me to lose jobs, and generally do poorly at any task I attempt. The crux of the issue is that I swing in a seemingly random pendulum between intelligence and incompetence. This has caused me to be very careful about doing anything that requires thought. When I have to make a decision or develop a solution I can follow one of two paths. Either I attempt to come up with a solution by myself, in which case the vast majority of the time the solution is wrong. Or I ask someone for advice/help, and people become tired of this when it gets excessive. So I’ve caused most people who are smarter than me and work with me on a professional level to become frustrated to the point where they don't want to employ me. Even Steven who has the patience of Pope John Paul has gotten frustrated with my amazing ability to screw up. I see the same pattern over and over. So if certain other people find it frustrating to have me as an employee/volunteer/assistant, imagine how I feel given that I’m the one trapped inside this brain 24/7.

There are indeed many types of people who have similar problems to mine. There are people who are socially inept, there are people who don’t have the mental skill to keep a decent job. There are people who are cowardly. There are people who are aware and troubled by the upcoming ‘perfect storm' of climate change, political instability, and energy scarcity. There are people who don’t know how to create relationships. There are many people who have beliefs which run counter to the standard American lifestyle. But unfortunately there are few people who have all of these qualities. For example I could be a radical environmentalist or bike advocate and with some social skills and an ability to hold a job I could still be happy. I could be socially inept but capable of holding a job and be somewhat happy like most of the business executives in America. I could be concerned about climate change and peak oil but still be socially connected like Mark. But having the radical set of beliefs and also being mentally and socially ‘slow’ makes it impossible to have any success in the world. For example I would be less committed to leave this world if I couild have some favorable impact that sustains me like this person:

He recalled an exchange he had with a client who wanted to cut down trees to open up a view; “Those trees have been there longer than you have,” he countered.
“It’s my business,” Mr. Armster recalled her saying.
“No, it’s not, it’s about what’s right,” he answered her.
“How do you know what’s right?” was her frustrated reply.
“She called me a name,” he said, “but she didn’t cut down the trees.”

For those young women in the bike community, I will attempt to explain my situation to you in the best way I can with the least chance of offending anyone. This is difficult to avoid, so please be charitable. I used to seek out friends who were women because I always felt that women communicated better and were more comfortable with affection (they also make better leaders and social activists). But despite feeling more comfortable with women as friends, I remained an anathema to women in relationships. This was difficult, but not impossible to deal with. Even when I finally realized that I would be celibate for the rest of my life, I could still console myself with only friendly affection. But when I talked to enough people and looked carefully at how most women reacted to me, that I realized how uncomfortable I make people feel.

The women that I've met generally fall into four types: Those who are out of my league, those who see me as creepy (often the same as the first type), those who are needy for companionship, and those who are gasahaulic. I wont give any examples because I'm trying hard to relay this to you without hurting anyone's feelings or making anyone more uncomfortable.

In realizing (at least vaguely) what was causing women to feel uncomfortable around me, I realized that I would have to keep my distance from all younger women. That realization of a life without the possibility of being affectionate towards women was the last and most difficult blow to me. This not only made social events difficult, but I couldn’t participate in many community activities that I once loved like People’s Coop, and Shift.

When I was younger I always thought that I would make a great partner for someone given how much empathy I’ve had for women and gender equality. However somehow, I’ve actually become the opposite. Either due to cowardice, social ineptitude, or something else, I’ve become the complete opposite of what women want to be around.

It’s not possible for any of you to understand what it’s like to live in my world any more than you could understand the perspective of blowhards like Lars Larson. I’ll try an analogy; There are some psychological theories that the television's influence on our culture is causing widespread damage. One area where this is occurring is that images of romance both from people’s appearance to the perspective of love itself are overly dramatized. This ‘image of perfection’ causes many people to be unable to form relationships because expectations are too high. But imagine if the real world was equally filled with people who had the same high degree of perfection. Since compared to me, virtually every person does.

I don’t feel comfortable going up to every woman and saying that I have to keep a distance for their own emotional safety. After all, nobody (even Steve K) would believe me, because all of you have some degree of mental stability and intelligence which makes it hard to empathize. Could you imagine what it's like to be an amputee, or a deaf person? Somehow we can only appreciate these miracles fully when you don't have them.

This may sound vague, but that’s necessary. I’ve caused so many women a world of hurt, sometimes by showing romantic interest, sometimes by showing disinterest, and sometimes just by trying to be friends. Therefore I can never reveal what’s actually going on. Just know that all of the women in the bike community are special to me and I appreciate you immensely.

The only women I can be friends with now are people who can best be described as ‘psychologically rugged,’ which might sound vague, but that’s necessary. People like Steph and Kyrstin seem to be capable of being around psychologically f*cked up people without becoming more and more distant as most women have done to me.

I apologize to any women who have felt that I give them the cold shoulder. But I have two choices. Either I can do what I’ve done in the past and both hurt them and be subjected to the looks of discomfort and disgust. Or I can keep my distance and risk appearing cold. Both options make me feel bad, but the later option is less hurtful to both me and the other person. So that’s my solution.

The combination of having to avoid most women and having no stomach any more for the excuses and ignorance of the gasahaulics I realized that I was forever outside of society. I knew that for the latter group awareness would come if for no other reason than they wont be able to afford their addiction soon. But that wont happen before it’s too late for us all (because it already is).

I believe that life is precious and if a person is reasonably healthy and especially if they have the willingness to do good in the world than every reasonable effort should be made to give them the option to do so. However we have this strange culture in our society to preserve life even when it's so painful that the continuity of life is more torture than gift. (link) Depite my youth, I am in that category and have been for many years. It's obvious that I cannot make a positive contribution to the world and I don't have the stomach to try and convince people to be less destructive and so I would appreciate if you let me go gently into that good night and explore what awaits in that undiscovered country. Is this 'too much information' to share? Perhaps, but there are people who have tried being friends with me and with whom I wish I could have shared a warm friendship. I would like these people to know that I do care, and do mourn the seperation. I miss all of you in the bike community and wish for you the best of times for the future. May you have some success and keep yourselves healthy and happy. For the rest of the population which either does nothing to improve the world and/or actively contributes to it's destruction, I simply don't care what you think. I leave you to do what you will to the Earth, as long as I don't have to be around to watch the catastrophe.