Friday 31 July 2015
Letter #551
Dear President Obama,
The Zimbabwean author Chenjerai Hove died last week, silencing one of the world’s powerful voices for human rights.
In a 2007 essay he wrote:
“I try to write in order to fight the decay called silence.”
The image is powerful, telling us that acceptance and silence are a form of slow but toxic disease eating away at human society from the inside. Your silence on the Keystone XL Pipeline is DECAY. My silence in writing less often is DECAY. We can both do better. You may regard yourself as the American President who has fought hardest to reduce carbon emissions, but you have not done enough because you have not done everything you can.
We are in a global crisis that will damage the lives of millions forever. You cannot single-handedly pass laws in congress, but you can speak and act in your fullest capacity as President. Please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline today and please speak out every day about the carbon crisis and its devastating effect on the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Honoring Chenjerai Hove
Sat 1 August 2015
Letter #552
Dear President Obama,
A few days ago a really terrible program aired on PBS called “Humanity from Space.” I would love to know who paid for it and who wrote it. It is a glossy manipulative piece sending the happy message that the largest corporations will help us innovate out of all problems. I wrote to WGBH to complain that they showed such an irresponsible program and spent public funds on it. I enclose the letter I wrote to them. If humanity is to survive climate change, we must learn to use much less energy and we must help the world’s poorest mitigate the horrific impacts. Please act TODAY to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline. That is one small step away from fossil fuels. Use your power as President to move us quickly into a low-carbon future. It is the only way to sustain an hospitable CLIMATE on EARTH. And please stop PBS from spreading lies in the name of “fact.” Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Ashamed of PBS
Dear WGBH,
I write to protest your broadcasting the “Humanity from Space” 2-hour special that I saw last evening 24 July 2015. This is not science. It is glossy manipulative propaganda with pretty pictures from space that sends the happy message that humans will innovate our way out of all problems, led by the largest corporations. Who funded this program? Who wrote and directed it? They should be ashamed of themselves.
There is very little information on the Humanity from Space page of your website. You state the film is produced by Darlow Smithson Productions. Their website states they produce “factual documentaries” and does not even mention this program. They claim to “lead the field in factual television.”
The story-line of Humanity from Space is that small innovations have propelled civilization: the oil drill, the telegraph, and so on. About half the time is spent on coal, oil and cars and how they let cities expand. Civilization is conveyed with hundreds of photos and videos of busy highways, lit-up cities, a very US-centric view of civilization. The film also claims that the world is wonderfully connected, that Internet is everywhere and free, that people and goods travel everywhere freely, that commerce has allowed merchants to prosper (3 men on 3 camels). The beautiful images from space almost never show Africa because it has so much less infrastructure.
The second half mentions some problems facing humanity, and states that population, food, and water are the biggest ones. Climate change is mentioned in two sentences, as part of a general pollution problem, and social inequality is NEVER mentioned.
Happy Talk Food: The solution to world hunger is technology to grow food more efficiently. We grow enough food NOW to feed people, but not in the right places, and at the right cost. People, profit, corruption and greed are keeping people from food. Technology won’t solve that.
Happy Talk Energy: The film does say that we will need to turn to renewables for our energy, but uses the huge Ivanpah solar farm as the best solution. No mention is made that Ivanpah produces only half the electricity they claimed, requires a steady supply of water (from faraway), and burns a lot more natural gas than expected. Did NRG pay for this film?? They are a huge Texas energy company.
The film never mentions how much energy we waste through transmission lines. The real solution for world energy is millions of small distributed solar systems, wind systems, and so on.
And most chilling of all, this film shows none of the horrific impacts of climate disruptions, wars over water, millions of refugees, Rohinga, Syrian, who knows what.
This film is propaganda for the largest agri-business, energy, and technology corporations. It has no business being shown as “science” or “documentary” on a publically-funded TV station. I am ashamed of PBS and WGBH.
In outrage,
Susan J. Ringler
Monday 14 Sept 2015
Letter #553
Dear President Obama,
I haven’t written in a while because I am coming to doubt the power of grass roots movements to instigate change. But then, it is better to speak out than not to speak – as I wrote in letter #551. But it is so easy to be taken over by the “decay called silence.” So today I write to thank the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco for vacating the EPA rule that allowed Dow to sell SULFOXAFLOR, a dangerous neo-nicotinoid pesticide highly toxic to honeybees.
One win for the lowly honeybee who pollinates 25% of the food we eat!
Please see to it that the EPA makes better decisions so we don’t need to involve the courts! And please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline RIGHT NOW! You really need to take a stronger stance for the climate. You will be judged – as will we all – by your/our actions – not words. Europe banned neo-nicotinoids at least a year ago. What took us so long? Would that all the appeals courts in the US be as focused on good stewardship as the Ninth Circuit is. I thank them and I thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Hooray for the Ninth Circuit Court
Monday 14 Sept 2015
Letter #554
(2nd letter today)
Dear President Obama,
Thank you for going to Alaska and trying to galvanize action on climate change by highlighting receding glaciers and rising seas. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/01/us/us-makes-urgent-appeal-for-climate-change-action-at-alaska-conference.html
In your speech 1 Sept in Anchorage you urged nations to work together and do more to combat climate change.
But I really found your use of the phrase “We’ve got to walk the walk” as your closing message both ludicrous and disheartening. Walking the walk is matching actions to words. Speeches are only words and the actions the US is making to combat climate change are tiny wobbly baby steps compared to what Europe has achieved in the past 20 years. It is disheartening to have you call these feeble actions “walking the walk:” 3 times the amount of wind power, 20 times as much solar power as 6 years ago! These are miniscule numbers that I am deeply embarrassed by. The United States is NOT a leader in combating climate Change. You are NOT doing everything you can to protect the planet from the global climate disaster. So please, stop talking and start WALKING. Pick up that pen and say NO to the Keystone XL Pipeline. It may not make you popular, but it is an action that will go down in history. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, More Walk, Less Talk
Tuesday 15 Sept 2015
Letter #555
Dear President Obama,
Refugees have been pouring onto the Greek islands by the thousands a day for over a month. There is no end in sight.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/14/world/europe/greece-migrants-refugees-drown-in-agean.html
The Serbians and Hungarians now rush them on their way with free train tickets and the Germans are welcoming but overwhelmed.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/04/world/europe/hungary-train-station-migrant-crisis.html
They now expect to harbor 1 million refugees – mostly Syrian – this year. This crisis was caused not just by chaos and war in the Middle East, but also by UN money for refugees running out and by a severe 4 year drought in Syria before the war! Climate refugees incur huge costs and suffering. The better solution is to slow carbon emissions and slow climate change so people can stay home. It is far cheaper too! So please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline right NOW to show how urgent a problem climate change is already. America really needs to admit how much we have contributed to carbon emissions and take swift incisive action to keep fossil fuels in the ground.. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, The Refugee Crisis is a Climate Crisis
Tuesday 15 Sept 2015
Letter #556
(2nd letter today)
Dear President Obama,
The NY Times, on Saturday, ran 2 stories on page A10: Half a million Catalans marching for Catalan independence,
and a new science study showing that burning all the earth’s fossil fuels will melt all the ice – and will melt half of it in a thousand years – sending average temperatures up 20 F.
This is a much larger change in a thousand years than we expected. But humans are motivated by immediate goals – those Catalan believe that their lives can be much better next year – so they march in the streets. The scientists hope their stark conclusions will spark large-scale policy changes around the globe – but they can’t do it alone! They need your help. People count on leaders to act for the long-term good – to step back, reflect, and set an appropriate course. You are our LEADER. Show leadership by more decisive actions to counter climate change Please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline NOW. Do it before the December talks in Paris so you can go there with your head held high! Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Need Decisive Action
Wednesday 16 Sept 2015
Letter #557
Dear President Obama,
The California snow pack is at its lowest level in 500 years.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/15/science/california-snow-report.html
We know this from tree ring data from blue oaks. And researchers expect these “snow droughts” to become much more frequent because of global warming. We are lucky to have 500 years of tree ring data to analyze. Scientists measuring arctic winter sea ice only have 40 years of data –
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/20/science/coverage-of-arctic-sea-ice-shrinks-to-a-winter-low.html
no trees and tree rings to help them out! 500 years is a long time and we should use this alarming new data point to galvanize us into ACTION! We cannot afford to let 500-year and 1000-year weather events to become the NORM! Please please act decisively to curb carbon emissions. Please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline Right NOW to show you are really serious about saving California and the US economy. It’s OK to shrug off a few 50-year or 100-year events. But a 1000-year event!! It is sheer folly to ignore the future such an event warns us about. Please use your leadership to make people understand the enormity of the climate change problem. We are standing on the brink. You need to do more. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Alarmed at Tiny California Snowpack
Thursday 17 Sept 2015
Letter #558
Dear President Obama,
Cars are selling at about the same rate as last year. August sales numbers tell us that 17.8 million vehicles sold this year versus 17.3 million last year.
But the big news is that light trucks and SUVs are WAY more popular than cars. Car sales are down 10 % to 690,000 and truck/SUV sales are up 9% to 890,000. Less than HALF the passenger vehicles sold are now cars! SUVs and trucks are marketed heavily because they are more profitable for auto makers. We are told endlessly that they are convenient, comfortable and COOL! Nobody mentions that they get less gas mileage. Hey, the price of gas is down, so who cares? I care and you should care. Americans need to connect the dots between our driving habits and global warming! You need to insist on much tougher mileage standards much sooner. And we need a carbon tax! But if you can’t do these right away, you CAN stop the Keystone XL Pipeline! So DO IT NOW! No one is going to take you seriously in Paris – not unless you do something DRAMATIC. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Too Many SUVs
Sat 19 Sept 2015
Letter #559
Anti-Kurd Rally in Turkey
Dear President Obama,
In July Pres. Erdogan of Turkey finally agreed to let the US use the Incirlik air base for attacking ISIS, But they quickly started attacking Kurdish targets along the Syrian border.
Erdogan is a fanatic who sees no difference between ISIS and the Kurds. His attempt to wipe out the Kurds along his border will ultimately lead to more chaos and destruction in the area. The US is not chastising Turkey for attacking Kurds. We will live to regret this, as many will see it as backing yet another extremist in the vain hope of quickly toppling a worse one!
Turning a blind eye to Turkish excessive force in exchange for using their air bases is both morally repugnant and strategically STUPID!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/27/opinion/americas-dangerous-bargain-with-turkey.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/31/opinion/turkeys-war-of-distraction-on-kurds.html
So as we prolong the chaos in the Middle East, the planet continues to warm! Climate change waits for NO ONE! But you can slow down carbon emissions – start right NOW! Please stop the Keystone XL Pipeline today. It is a crucial first step. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Kurds Deserve Better
Sunday 20 Sept 2015
Letter #560
Dear President Obama,
I went to an art exhibit yesterday at a small local artist collective. One wall held 100 4” square sketches of people gazing at their cell phones. I send you 8 here, but imagine the impact of 100! The artist, Lydia Eccles, sees alienation, isolation, denial all around her and attributes this fragmentation to the stresses of living in our time of “impending climate catastrophe.” She may be right, but my response to her 100 images is to want to do something – no matter how small.. And so I write to you! And YOU can also do something small and that is to stop the Keystone XL Pipeline. Please do it NOW!. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the climate crisis and ineffectual, but it feels better to do something rather than nothing! I’m sure you will agree. So thank you for what you DO and please DO a bit more. You can stop that pipeline. Just pick up your PEN. Thank you.
Susan J. Ringler, Motivated by Lydia Eccles
