We have been consistently arguing about the urgent need of tackling the wanton destruction of our planet’s resources and ecosystem. Up until ten years ago, we thought some robust and thoughtful initiatives might finally come to the fore to address the dire situation. In all these years, the global status quo, including the states, fell to deliver even the minimum of what was required of them. In hindsight, we can say their approach was never sincere nor driven. By and large, all the global gatherings; summits, etc. were cynically intended to pacify the sheeple’s militancy that was and still is brewing all over the world!
The COP initiative of the UN is one such gimmick. COP (Conference of Parties) is a kind of shorthand for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) is its scientific arm. Even the IPCC, which is mainly composed of scientists, is/was never free to publish its scientific findings uncensored, i.e., without the heavy editorial hand of the politicos. IPCC is, in effect, under the direct diktat of the all-powerful ‘deep state’! Going back a decade, we surmise COP 15 in Copenhagen (2009) was the watershed for the global ‘climate change’ movement. At the time, the African Voice was considered to be the last critical weight that could potentially turn things around. Some even thought, given the gravity of the matter, COP 15 could finally deliver a clear binding agreement on climate change to the world system. Our late prime minister, Meles Zenawi, represented the united African voice. Unfortunately, the global power that be, hoodwinked the African leaders by promising plenty of money, pronto!
The figure that was thrown around was in the hundreds of billions. To this end, a fund was set up to immediately disburse the ‘pie in the sky’ money intended to alleviate and mitigate climate change, mostly in the poorer/southern regions of the world. Again, our Prime Minister was made a member of this high level commission. Many, including this column, argued that African leaders, particularly their spokesperson, Meles Zenawi, should boycott the COP 15 Summit, unless there was a consensus to come up with a solid binding agreement in the shortest possible time without any loophole to wiggle out of the agreed timeframe. We hollered from our seats; humanity had wasted plenty of time procrastinating and should now move to vigorous actions! We even suggested a song to Meles to hum and sing, as he walks away from the Summit to join the ‘people’s summit’ on the streets of Copenhagen. ‘Get up stand up, don’t give up the fight…’ (Bob Marley)!
Result of COP 15: No substantive money was offered by the power that be. Moreover, the relatively strong African coalition (of the states) was frustrated and soon fragmented. The disillusioned sheeple was systemically encouraged to lose interest on climate change, etc. Paid science, compliment of big oil, big chem, big pharma, big ag, big auto, etc. started to air so-called ‘alternative views’ to plant doubts and discourage actions by the majority of the global people, etc., etc. Since then/COP 15, our column has been sincerely and unflinchingly advocating for a global civil disobedience to fight the good fight. A decade later, our call finally seemed to have found receptive ears. We are now witnessing the emergence of a coordinated global civil society movement that is giving some hope to concerned humanity, particularly in the likes of ‘Extinction Rebellion’! In the process of this peaceful struggle we have been conducting via our scribbles, we have learned one simple but profoundly unsettling fact. That is; not all people are for life or prolife. There are a non-negligible number of people in the world who do not have an iota of concern about life and life support systems. These are people who live in their own universe of evil. Ponerology, the study of evil, which is now getting serious recognition, despite the protestation of evil worshippers and practitioners in academia, psychiatry, politics, business, banking, entertainment, sports, etc. has started to teach us a whole lot about the nature and manifestation of evil!
Civil society’s rebellion is what we call ‘civil disobedience’. Its core principle is peaceful struggle. Peaceful resistance, a la Gandhi, is what can galvanize the conscience of global humanity. After all, violence is the weapon of the state and affiliated institutions, which are, not surprisingly, at the forefront of resource exploitation and ecosystem destruction, hence climate change. Our message; Be vigilant and always very wary’; it helps not to succumb to the tricks of entrenched interests (remember COP 15)! The ‘deep state’ and its tentacles will use all weapons at their disposal to frustrate the ascending global movements, such as Extinction Rebellion. Laws are and continue to be promulgated to discourage citizens’ participations. Provocations, which are the bread and butter of the deep state, will be utilized in full. Surveillance, electronics and otherwise, will become more intense, etc. etc. At the same time, intellectual activists do not have much choice, but to deconstruct the various narratives of the status quo, which of course are the epitome of insanity! See the articles next column and on page 56. Extinction Rebellion is planning an ‘October Revolution’ of its own, to be held across the planet.
‘We are facing an unprecedented global emergency. Life on Earth is in crisis: scientists agree we have entered a period of abrupt climate breakdown, and we are in the midst of a mass extinction of our own making. The science is clear: It is understood that we are facing an unprecedented global emergency. We are in a life or death situation of our own making. We must act now.’ Extinction Rebellion. Good Day!