Andrew KimmelVerified account

“I bet protesters have phones/go on holiday/wear leather shoes.” In other words, we won’t listen to anyone who is not living naked in a barrel, subsisting only on murky water. Of course, if you are living naked in a barrel we will dismiss you too, because you’re a hippie weirdo.”

“The political class/is chaotic, unwilling &, in isolation, strategically incapable of addressing even short-term crises, let alone a vast existential predicament. Yet a widespread/naivety prevails: the belief that voting is the only political action required to change a system.”

“The media, w/ a few exceptions, is actively hostile. Even when broadcasters cover these issues, they carefully avoid any mention of power, talking about envr. collapse as if it is driven by mysterious, passive forces, & proposing microscopic fixes for vast structural problems.”

“Those who govern the nation and shape public discourse cannot be trusted with the preservation of life on Earth. There is no benign authority preserving us from harm. No one is coming to save us. None of us can justifiably avoid the call to come together to save ourselves.”

“...we disguise & distance <calamities>, converting concrete choices into indecipherable dread...Catastrophe afflicts people now and, unlike those in the rich world who can still afford to wallow in despair, they are forced to respond in practical ways.”

Syria/Libya/Yemen: climate chaos contributing to civil war Guatemala/Honduras/El Salvador: crop failure/drought/collapse of fisheries drives people from their homes Inaction has forced them into action, as they respond to/circumstances caused/by the rich world’s consumption.

“Our system/characterised by perpetual economic growth on a planet that is not growing/will inevitably implode. The only ? is whether the transformation is planned or unplanned. Our task is to ensure it is planned, & fast.”

“We need to conceive and build a new system based on the principle that every generation, everywhere has an equal right to enjoy natural wealth. As/historical research reveals, for a peaceful mass movement to succeed, a maximum of 3.5% of the population needs to mobilise.”

“Humans are ultra-social mammals, constantly/aware of shifting social currents. Once we perceive that the status quo has changed, we flip suddenly from support for one state of being to support for another.”