The Children Shall Lead

"The future is not something we enter.

The future is something we create." 

Leonard Sweet

The Children Shall Lead

by C.A. Matthews

It's the time of year where children take the lead on social activities. There are holiday parties, Christmas pageants, end-of-the-year award ceremonies, and of course, lots and lots of gift shopping. We as a society don't have any problems with putting the needs, wants, and desires of our children first during this particular season. 

This begs the question then: How come we don't put our children first the remainder of the year?

When people say, "Our children are our future," do they really mean it? If you state you prioritize your offsprings' health and happiness, then why protest when someone reveals how you aren't actually doing anything to protect the environment and curb greenhouse gases? Why does your twisted desire to make profits through ravishing Mother Nature--and possibly annihilating the human species--come first over your kids' very survival?

And when a child (that is, a young person) stands up to this hypocrisy, why do you act surprised and insulted? Surely you realize the consequences of your harsh actions against the environment, so there's no use in pretending to be astonished when Greta Thunberg lays out the scientific evidence demonstrating the foolhardiness of your activities. The Trumps of the world have nobody to blame for feeling uncomfortable about their poor choices except themselves.

Choosing Greta as Time magazine's "Person of the Year" really was a no-brainer. It is not kings or princes or presidents or popes or bishops who have taken the point on this all-encompassing issue of the Climate Emergency. It is a child, a commoner, a person without status or title. What better way to usurp the power pyramid and instigate the necessary worldwide revolution to save Planet Earth than by subverting it starting at the bottom? 

It is We of the 99% who will suffer--and currently are suffering--the cataclysmic destruction of our environment through wildfire, windstorms, and flooding. The revolution to stop this travesty must begin with those who have firsthand knowledge of it. It must start with us and not our so-called political leaders. 

Greta intuitively understands this and acts upon it. After all, it is her generation with the most to lose. Therefore, she is the perfect leader to rally the troops to fight the battle to save our precious home.

In this season where many pause to reflect upon the birth of a low-born child and the revolution of brotherly love he began among the ranks of the poor and oppressed, let us consider how fortunate we are to have such a child as Greta to lead her generation--indeed all of us--into a better and brighter future.

The children shall lead us. It's up to us old-timers to put aside our petty differences for the sake of humanity and follow.

The wolf shall live with the lamb,
    the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
    and a little child shall lead them.

Isaiah 11:6 (NRSV)

https://youtu.be/Ml3f0KeZnsY

Time Magazine said this about Greta:

That Thunberg is the youngest individual ever named TIME’s Person of the Year says as much about the moment as it does about her. The 92-year-old franchise is rooted in the so-called Great Man theory of history, the notion that powerful individuals shape the world. Historically that has meant people who worked their way up the ladders of major organizations and were at home in the corridors of power. But in this moment when so many traditional institutions seem to be failing us, amid staggering inequality and social upheaval and political paralysis, we are seeing new kinds of influence take hold. It is wielded by people like Thunberg, leaders with a cause and a phone who don’t fit the old rubrics but who connect with us in ways that institutions can’t and perhaps never could.

Related articles:

Dear Youth, Keep Challenging the Systems of Power – No Matter Who Tells You to "Chill".  https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2019/12/dear-youth-keep-challenging-systems-power-no-matter-tells-chill/

Don't Mock Greta Thunberg. Listen to Her (She's Right About the Science)
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-12-12/greta-thunberg-deserves-time-s-person-of-the-year-honor

Greta Thunberg Time Person of the Year https://www.businessinsider.com/greta-thunberg-time-person-of-the-year-environmental-activism-2019-12

Scientists Want to Make Harming the Environment a War Crime
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/harming-environment-war-crime

Greta Thunberg: Climate Crisis "Not Just About Environment," But Also "Colonial, Racist and Patriarchal Systems of Oppression"
https://disrn.com/news/greta-thunberg-climate-crisis-not-just-about-environment-but-also-colonial-racist-patriarchal-systems-of-oppression

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Photo credit: Patrick McElhenney

BREAKING: Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officials in paramilitary gear ARRESTED doctors attempting to offer flu vaccines to jailed children in San Diego. Tell CBP: stop denying medical care to jailed children.

16-year-old Carlos Gregorio Hernandez Vasquez had a fever of 103. Rather than send him to the hospital -- the CBP locked him into an isolation cell.
With proper care, the flu can be treatable. 

But Carlos was denied medical care and left to die alone in a detention center in Texas, laying in a pool of his own vomit on a cold concrete slab next to a toilet.
Immigration authorities did NOTHING as their security camera recorded Carlos's last moments. 

SIGN THE MOVEON PETITION: No child should die from the flu.
 
On Monday, Families Belong Together marched with Doctors for Camp Closure to the Chula Vista border station in San Ysidro, California, with 120 flu vaccines in hand. The doctors -- including the physician in charge of the California Medical Association -- volunteered their time and were ready to treat the children -- but the Trump Administration's Department of Homeland Security barred them from entering. 

For six hours, we stood in the driveway of the camp with the vaccines, but the metal gates remained closed. The CBP sent four police cars and five armed officers to keep watch on us as we peacefully stood vigil for the children who died. 

So, on Tuesday, we headed to the CBP headquarters in San Diego to demand they let the doctors in -- only for armed officers in full paramilitary gear to arrest six of us.

Photo credit: Patrick McElhenney

Children in detention are nine times more likely to die from the flu than the general pediatric population. But as flu season ramps up, the Trump administration has ignored demands from medical professionals and the Centers for Disease Control to vaccinate children in their immigration jails. 

Carlos was the third child to die of flu-related illnesses in immigration detention in the last year. His death was preventable.
 
Tell the Trump Administration: Withholding medical care from children and families in custody is appalling and inhumane.
 
We've got to stop throwing children in jails, we've got to undo the damage of the Trump administration's cruel immigration policies. But right now, we've also just got to give these kids urgent medical care.
 
We're keeping up on the pressure on the Trump administration and are doing everything we can to prevent more deaths in custody. 
 
Add your name: Demand flu vaccines for children and families in detention.
 
Thanks for all you do,
Paola Luisi
Families Belong Together Communications Director 

***

We're excited to announce the publication of World BEYOND War's new 3-part series of fact sheets on the impact of sanctions in Iraq, Cuba, and North Korea. You can view and download the fact sheets for free from our website.

The fact sheets are designed as printable handouts that can be used for tabling events, lobby meetings, and much more. Each reference is meticulously footnoted, so you can cross-check every fact and go to the original source for more details.


Simply put, sanctions can kill. Time and again, sanctions are utilized as a brutal tool of war and repression, destroying innocent communities. Some eye-opening statistics stand out from our research:

• According to UNICEF, sanctions on Iraq killed half a million children under the age of 5, due to restricted access to adequate food and clean water, which caused widespread malnutrition and disease. Likewise, 60,000 malnourished children are facing starvation in North Korea due to sanctions.
• The embargo on Cuba has cost the country over $130 billion in losses.
• A ban on employing North Korean construction workers in Russia, China, and other countries has eliminated tens of thousands of jobs.

The fact sheets document these statistics and much more, illustrating the widespread negative impacts of sanctions in Iraq, Cuba, and North Korea. View and download the full fact sheet series from our website.

A shout-out to volunteers Ben, Gayle, Gar, Joanne, Emily, Eleanor, and Alice for their assistance with detailed research, writing, editing, and graphic design for this fact sheet series!

Please utilize these fact sheets as an educational tool in your community and share them far & wide!

For questions or more information about our peace education programs and volunteer opportunities, email Greta at greta@worldbeyondwar.org.

For a world beyond war,

Greta Zarro
Organizing Director
World BEYOND War
greta@worldbeyondwar.org

***
From Friends of the Earth:

Bees are dying! You know it. I know it. And supermarket giant Kroger knows it. But Kroger is still selling food grown with bee-killing pesticides. And rather than addressing its role in bee declines, it’s rolling out a new slogan: “Fresh for Everyone!”

The truth is, Kroger’s policy is more like “pesticides for everyone.” Kroger’s new ad campaign is pure “bee-washing” -- featuring happy bees and happy families. Meanwhile, our 2018 research found toxic pesticides like glyphosate -- the key ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup® -- and bee-killing neonics in Kroger store brand foods.

Kroger can’t hide behind its fancy new branding. It must stop selling food grown with toxic pesticides. But we need your help pushing the supermarket giant to act. Can we count on your support?

Help save the bees: Tell Kroger to stop selling food grown with bee-killing pesticides NOW!

Beekeepers lost nearly half their hives this past year. 40 percent of wild pollinators are at risk of extinction. 75% of songbird species are in decline. And driving this crisis are toxic pesticides like bee-killing neonics, butterfly-harming Roundup®, and chlorpyrifos -- the second-most toxic pesticide to bees.

But these pesticides aren’t just hurting birds and insects, they’re also harming our health and putting kids at risk. Right now, Bayer-Monsanto is facing lawsuits from more than 40,000 people because they believe their exposure to RoundUp® caused their cancer.

But, thanks in part to Kroger, this pesticide is still ending up on our plates. Recent independent lab testing found that Kroger’s store-brand foods including apple sauce, spinach, cereal and beans contain toxic pesticides like neonicotinoids, glyphosate and organophosphates.

Even in trace amounts, these pesticides have been linked to reduced IQ, attention deficit disorders, autism, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and cancer. They have no place in the food on Kroger’s shelves.

Protect our children’s health and our environment: Tell Kroger to stop selling food grown with cancer-causing RoundUp®!

Scientists are warning that we’re in the middle of an “insect apocalypse.” Pesticides and habitat loss are hurting everything from bees and butterflies to the birds and other wildlife that rely on insects for food. We must get toxic pesticides like neonics and RoundUp® out of our environment and our food system.

Food retailers play a key role in turning this crisis around. Building on policies released by Costco and Aldi, Rite Aid just released the strongest retailer pollinator policy yet, encouraging its suppliers to phase out the use of glyphosate, neonicotinoids and organophosphates, including chlorpyrifos and expanding offerings of bee-friendly organic food. But while other companies are leading the way, Kroger is spending money on new ad campaigns with “happy bees” while real bees are suffering.

As the largest traditional grocery store in the U.S., Kroger has the power to change our toxic food system. It must go beyond a new branding campaign if it wants to make a difference for bees and kids. It must lead the way and phase out bee-killing pesticides. Otherwise, “Fresh for Everyone” will only mean toxic pesticides for everyone.

Help send 30,000 signatures: Demand Kroger make a firm commitment to stop selling food grown with toxic pesticides!

Standing with you,
Jason Davidson,
Food and agriculture campaigner,
Friends of the Earth

No Such Thing As A Quick Fix

No Such Thing As A Quick Fix

by Redd Phlagg

It's amazing how quickly people forget that Rome wasn't built in a day. It's astonishing how little patience some have when faced with the reality that difficult, complicated problems aren't solvable by simply wishing them so. It's awful how downright lazy folks can act when told the Revolution won't happen without their blood, sweat and tears.

Everybody wants a quick fix to our lack of democracy and our dying planet. I'm here to tell you the bad news: There ain't no such thing as a quick fix. Why would anyone assume there was since this mess took some time to come together in the first place?

But you wouldn't believe the naysayers and the bellyachers!  They're playing right into the trolls' hands.  They're saying things like "any blue will  do" like it's a mystical incantation that will somehow make everything all right. Why would installing yet another corporate tool to high office magically fix income inequality?  They're just as liable to give tax breaks to the rich and screw us peons over just as the orange baboon in the White House does.

 Already I'm receiving emails telling me that I must plead with Democratic presidential candidates to accept Medicare For All and to vote for impeachment. We must beg them not to support the Atlantic Pipeline and to not repeat "Republican talking points" during their debates. Okay, you tell me how are these "any blue" people different from the ones in power you're currently railing against? How is putting wolves in sheep's clothing going to make them go "baa-baa"?

 Wake up and smell the sheep dip! They're one and the same. We can't expect them to be our saviors. They're only in it for their saving accounts. It's time we became our own heroes and start cleaning up their mess. 

"It's a big club--and you ain't in it," said the great philosopher and comic George Carlin. Yep, you sure ain't going to be invited to hang out with a former president and war criminal unless you're a well-to-do neoliberal who made lots of money during his administration. Right, Ellen?
https://youtu.be/yGNebWt9_zI 

While the elites all scratch each others' backsides and take an even larger part of the workers' pie, the forests burn, the oceans churn, and thousands of cities suffer from tainted drinking water.  And yet I still see solo working class slobs in gas-guzzling SUVs idling in drive-thru lines while buying feedlot produced cheeseburgers wrapped in paper that depletes our forests and plastic that poisons our whales, dolphins and other aquatic creatures. 

What--you actually thought you were going to keep your wannabe one-percent lifestyle and still enjoy a healthy environment? Hate to break it to you, but there ain't no Tooth Fairy neither. We're going to have to give up the plastic straws and the fossil fuel frenzied Ford Explorers. We're going to have to follow folks like Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion and take it to the streets to overturn the oligarchs that are bent on destroying our world in order to line their pockets.

Watch what the environmental protesters have been up to recently. (You won't see this footage on mainstream TV without a negative commentary attached.)
 
https://youtu.be/h4pJSlLA_r0  

Does this look easy to you? Does this look like going to the polls and blindly voting for "any blue" in hopes he/she/it will make everything better overnight? Does throwing criminals like Trump in jail actually sequester carbon from the atmosphere and solve our growing climate crisis? Raise our wages? Provide universal health care for all Americans?

If you didn't say "no" to all of those questions, there's no hope for you. You're brain dead. For the rest, remember: There's no such thing as a quick fix! (Your instructions on how to proceed are in the memes below.)

BIO: Redd Phlagg resents the fact that so many Americans in particular act like they don't give a sh*t about the rest of the world--or even their own backyard. It's time those folks stand aside and let those who do care rescue our planet before it's too late. You can thank us later (if you're still breathing, that is). Power to ALL the people!

 ***

Not many have heard of this very unique independent candidate running for the presidency. Watch Mark's announcement video to see where he stands on many issues. Happy Indigenous Peoples' Day!
https://youtu.be/_livxZNCQeU 

Find out whose land you're living on here:  https://native-land.ca/ 

 ***

From Friends of the Earth:

Polar Bears and Porcupine Caribou need your help! Trump’s Bureau of Land Management wants to open the entire 20 million acres of the Arctic Wildlife Refuge for Big Oil to drill.

This plan is bad for climate, bad for Arctic wildlife, and bad for local communities. It would push endangered species closer to extinction, including the Porcupine Caribou Herd, which the Gwich’in people have relied on for millennia.

The good news: The proposal isn’t finalized. If we flood the BLM with public comments opposing the agency’s plan to open the refuge for drilling, we can convince it to change course. But we need you with us, C.A.!

Save endangered polar bears: Tell the BLM to protect the Arctic Refuge from Big Oil!

As one of the last pristine ecosystems in the country, the Arctic Refuge should be protected, not opened for Big Oil development. But Trump’s BLM doesn’t care. It only cares about bending to the will of Big Oil companies like Chevron -- the main corporation pushing to drill in the Arctic.

It seems the goal of the BLM is to be as cozy with Big Oil and Gas as possible. This summer the agency announced plans to close its office in Washington D.C. and relocate to an office building also occupied by Chevron. The BLM can’t get in bed with Big Oil, so it’s moving right next door. Now, the agency meant to protect us and stand up for our public lands will be rubbing elbows and making coffee with dirty fuel corporations and their cronies.  

The Trump Administration isn’t even trying to hide its corrupt connections to the oil industry. So it’s up to us to hold the BLM accountable for protecting our public lands and wild places. To stop Trump’s destructive agenda, the BLM needs to feel the outcry of opposition to drilling in the Arctic.

Help send 35,000 comments: Tell the Bureau of Land Management to stop oil companies from destroying the Arctic!

We know how drilling in this region would end. It would cause irreversible damage to this fragile and pristine ecosystem as well as the communities that inhabit it.

The land that’s under threat is the calving and post-calving ground for the Porcupine Caribou Herd, and the Gwich’in consider it to be “the sacred place where life begins.”

But instead of fully considering the destructive impacts of the proposed plan, the Trump Administration is barreling ahead. This administration will try anything to give Big Oil a handout.

Therefore, protecting the Arctic Refuge is up to engaged environmentalists like you and me. With your help, we can pressure the BLM to change course and protect these lands rather than selling them off. But we must act fast!

Help protect endangered wildlife: Tell Trump’s Bureau of Land Management to keep dirty oil companies out of the Arctic Wildlife Refuge!

Standing with you,
Nicole Ghio,
Senior fossil fuel program manager,
Friends of the Earth

***

Check out the Scorecard!

With Halloween just around the corner, you’ll want to celebrate with chocolate that’s not tainted with child labor. We have updated our Chocolate Scorecard with new companies that support farmers and their kids, and an exciting addition – we are now including company’s efforts to combat deforestation. On top of a child labor problem, the cocoa industry has had a huge negative impact on forests. In the Ivory Coast and Ghana, 90% of their forests have been lost and the cocoa industry is a big driver of that deforestation. Even after nearly two decades of company commitments, there are still an estimated 2 million children involved in child labor in the cocoa industry. That means 2 million children are helping to make our Halloween candy, rather than enjoying their childhoods. These are not children helping on the family farm part-time. These are children who are working full time, day after day, in the fields. Some of them are doing dangerous work, and some are trafficked from other countries and are forced to work for little or no money. Take a look at our updated scorecard to see which companies are taking action to end child labor and which are falling short. Unfortunately, there are no surprises in this year’s scorecard. The big brands are still falling short. Again, Godiva was at the very bottom of the list: Join us in telling Godiva to step up their commitments to ending child labor! While ending child labor in the cocoa industry will take time, you can help by avoiding brands like Godiva, and purchase chocolate from some of the A-rated brands. Find out where you can buy chocolate from brands like Divine and Equal Exchange, so that your chocolate is both delicious and good for cocoa farmers! Thank you for your continued support,

Charlotte Tate Labor Justice Campaigns Manager Green America  *** From Friends of the Earth Action: School meals are the primary source of nutrition for many children from coast to coast. And our kids deserve food that’s both healthy and environmentally friendly.  But many families struggle to afford lunch. And when they can’t, children are sometimes shamed via wristbands, hand stamps or having to return their meals. The good news: Rep. Ilhan Omar and Sen. Tina Smith have introduced a bill that would help ensure every child is treated with dignity at school lunch. Ensuring every child eats is a nonpartisan issue, but your legislators will only act if they feel pressure from constituents like you! Every child deserves to eat: Tell Congress to help end school food debt! Student lunch debt may seem minor, but the problem is widespread. More than 75% of school districts nationwide reported children with lunch debt in the previous school year -- and this issue can drastically burden working-class families. In a Pennsylvania school district, several parents were sent letters threatening to take away their children if the parents did not pay off their kids’ lunch debts. In a New Hampshire school cafeteria, a worker was fired for providing food to a student who had $8 in lunch debt. And in several troubling cases across the country, lunch debt prevented high school seniors from graduating. The question of whether a child has access to healthy food at school should never depend on a family's income. And no student should be stigmatized because they can’t pay for lunch.  Sign your name: Tell your legislators to support the No Shame at School Act! From Washington D.C. to California, we’ve been fighting to ensure every child has access to healthy, climate-friendly school meals in their cafeterias. But we can’t stop until every child -- and their family -- can enjoy that food without worrying about being shamed over their financial situation. Even if the cafeteria provides healthy, climate-friendly food, there are millions of children who won’t eat because they can’t afford to do so.  The No Shame at School Act takes important steps to protect primarily low-income families from school lunch debt shaming. This is a key step toward a healthier and more just food system. No family wants their child to go hungry or feel shame about being in school food debt. Now is the time for our lawmakers to support their constituents and get this important legislation passed. But Congress will only act if it feels pressure from constituents like you, C.A.! Help send 40,000 signatures: Tell Congress to end school lunch shaming! Standing with you, Chloe Waterman, Climate-friendly food program manager, Friends of the Earth Action