Mud City Press

Seeking Community

"For the first time in the history of mankind, we witness a man-made environmental crisis of world-wide proportion, evidenced in explosive growth of human populations, in the poor integration of a powerful and efficient technology with environmental requirements, in the deterioration of agricultural lands, in the unplanned extension of urban areas, in the decrease of available space and the growing danger of extinction of many forms of animals and plant life. It is becoming apparent that if the current trends continue, the future of life on earth could be endangered.' -Secretary-General's Report to the United Nations General Assembly, 1969.

Fast Food Chain
"Fast Food Chain" by Mark Henson. All rights, US and International, reserved by the artist.

Just about forty years ago concern for environmental management entered into the public awareness. It had gradually become apparent that petroleum reserves would not last forever; the chemistry of the atmosphere could be seriously altered with oxidized industrial by-products; Earth's waters could be dangerously polluted; human population might exceed geophysical limitations; and that there exists a time in the human future when all these factors will play out. Despite the fact that the world had long been a collection of individual nations with individual aspirations, there was clear need by the mid-1960s for the development of some kind of global steering committee, as exemplified by the Secretary-General's report to the United Nations in 1969 and the first FAO World Food Conference a few years afterward. Now, these forty or so years later, the question still begs an answer, who is really at the controls of Spaceship Earth? Is it the United Nations? The United States? The G7? The Council on Foreign Relations? The Trilateral Commission? The Bilderberg Group? The CIA? The Cosa Nosta? Aliens? Gravity? The impetus of capitalism? The Three Stooges? The happenstance mish-mash of all the above? No one? The answer is ourselves. The challenge is to come together as local communities and unify as a global village under a single premise, what's good for the planet is good for all.

Table of Contents

Overview:

THE NEXT LEVEL
The Faustian paradox stares back at us from the mirror. The collision course is us with ourselves. It's the clear reckoning of our material splendor with the balance of the community of life. It's time to move on to the next level.

Related Articles:

THE FUTURE IS NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE
Have you ever thought about what the White House might look like if it were used as a model of smart, forward thinking? What if it sported solar panels, organic gardens, and passive heating and cooling? What if the White House went green and it reflected the thinking within? Check it out. Visit the Green White House.
SOLUTIONS TO GLOBAL PROBLEMS START CLOSE TO HOME
Jan Spencer begins culture change right there in his backyard. Front yard too! This is a good one from a fellow Eugenian. See some great photos to go with the article at Jan's webiste.
THE REVOLUTION THAT IS ARISING FROM THE EARTH
William H. Kötke details how people at the base of society are amid a new and positive revolution. No, this is not about a revolt against the power elites; it's about communities listening to the earth and learning to empower themselves.
DESCENDING THE OIL PEAK
The City of Portland, Oregon has recently become one of the first large U.S. cities to seriously address peak oil and how it will effect their city. In March of 2007, the Portland City Council issued a report entitled Descending the Oil Peak. It lays out a comprehensive plan for preparing Portland or any city for rising energy costs.
POST CARBON CITIES
This is an abridged version of Daniel Lerch's book Post Carbon Cities.
LOVELOCK VILLAGE
Creating intentional communities is one way for humans to diminish their impact on the planet. Visit this website to explore the 5,000 person ecovillage that is being built in Amarillo, Texas.
THE PLAN
William H. Kötke provides us with a plan to save the life of the earth and the human species.
GIANT OCEAN GARBAGE DUMP
A "plastic soup" of waste floating in the Pacific Ocean is growing at an alarming rate and now covers an area twice the size of the continental United States.
DECARBONIZATION OF THE WORLD'S ECONOMY
Ed O'Rourke provides insight into challenge of cutting our dependence on fossil fuels.
FROM GOLDWATER CONSERVATIVE TO WAR ABOLITIONIST
Ed O'Rourke recounts his evolution from a young Catholic conservative to anti-war activist.
FIX THE PEACE MOVEMENT: DON'T ASK DON'T TELL DOESN'T WORK
Ed O'Rourke critiques the Peace Movement and tells us how to get more out of it.

Many of the essays, stories, and reviews at Mud City Press are formated as ADOBE PDF files. If you don't have ADOBE's Acrobat Reader on your computer, you may download their free software at the ADOBE website.