Little Fox (by IRON78)
Make change happen
(via loveyourchaos)
[video]
Yesterday I posted a cluster of posts on the Obama administration allowing wolves to hunted, as well as wolves connection to climate change. A lot of people are aghast, and the below comment sums up the majority sentiment:What the fuck? They shouldn’t take them off the endangered species list if this shit is going to happen.We allowed this to happen, not “they.” Recall that only 80% of the 18-29yo demographic did not vote in the 2010 mid-terms. My demographic didn’t fare so well either. If we don’t participate in our democracy, then our elected officials are free to respond to the people who do participate.
People, just like you and me, lobbied to take wolves off the ES list and open up hunting. They participated in democracy, we did not. It’s us, not them. We need to take responsibility for our inactions, stop blaming others, and participate. See my posts HERE, HERE, and HERE on what I believe we can do. You are a very powerful force, but if you sit and do nothing you will continue to lose.
“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” — Albert Einstein (via quote-stuff)
It has to start with us.
If you’re going to committ to a social justice, that means accepting instances where you kinda still are the problem, no matter how well intentioned or well educated you believe yourself to be.
(via somechattybroad)
We bloggers have gotten awfully good at identifying problems. We’ve made a hobby of spotting the deficiencies in other people’s actions, words, and thoughts. We’re less good at solving those problems. This sometimes makes the internet an unpleasant place. (I’m certainly guilty of this unpleasantness at times.)
To some extent, we’re limited by the medium. You can write things on the internet, but direct action is impossible. In light of this limitation, I would offer two things we all (myself included) could attempt to do to make the intenet is a more useful thing. First, we can couple criticism and problem identification with tangible actions that might be taken to constructively address a problem. Second, we ought to live out our own suggestions.
I sometimes feel that the internet is a perpetually boiling tea kettle. Perhaps all that energy could be harnessed to do something powerful.
Vision: Chin Up Progressives, Things are Happening! 5 Ways To Jump in and Get Involved -
Even though sometimes it feels dire out there, it’s always good to remember that progressives across the world are working, fighting and protesting creatively to uphold justice and the basic tenets of democracy. Right now, more than ever, these happenings seem to be converging, and we can be heartened by domestic and international movements — such as US and UK Uncut — that push back at conservatives and confront corporate abuse. Here are great ways to join in and motivate for a more equal society
(Source: sarahlee310)
“Thousands marched against war in New York City on April 9. Two thousand protested the Koch brothers in Washington, D.C. Neither event was covered by major media. A sparsely attended Tea Party rally just a few days earlier, though, was big news. We call on news media to explain the journalistic principle that makes thousands of progressive activists far less newsworthy than dozens of Tea Party protesters.” —
Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting: “Stop Blacking Out Progressive Protests” (via ryking)
this is something we ought to be able to change