Global Climate Change

On February 18^th, we discussed global climate change. All in attendance seemed to agree that global climate change was real, that it would have negative consequences (at least in some parts of the world), and that human activity was a major contributor to this problem. Most felt that relying on individuals to spontaneously make changes in their daily lives would not be adequate to address the problem, and that collective action would be necessary. One member expressed fears that this would mean giving up some of our freedoms, but others argued that laws addressing global climate change would be no different from laws preventing us from, say, murdering or defrauding one another, and that such laws can even grant greater freedom, in that they allow us to pursue our lives with a necessary degree of security.

Potential methods of addressing the problem varied. Some felt that we would have to simplify our lives and learn to consume less energy, but one member felt that technological advances might make this unnecessary. Methods of transit were central to the discussion - potential options mentioned included buses, light rail, making cities bicycle-friendly, and even a system of moving sidewalks. One present expressed great hope for the potential of nuclear fusion as a means of providing energy, but others had not yet been convinced that any method of harnessing nuclear energy could ever be truly safe, effective, and efficient.

As we discussed the promise (or lack of promise) of various technologies; where previous technological developments seemed to have gotten us; and whether massive, cultural change was necessary or possible, some began to wonder whether our traditional notion of "progress" was distorted. Join us next time as we delve further into this topic and attempt to answer the questions: What is progress? Are there alternatives to the traditional formulation, progress = growth?

The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

The February 4^th meeting involved seven people at our new meeting place, the Karma Café, where we discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Some noted the local activism within Louisville and their work to undermine US aid to Israel and the perpetuation of injustice towards Palestinians by the Israeli government. Others pointed towards the role of Arab countries in making Palestinians second class citizens throughout the Middle East and fostering tremendous amounts of anti-semitism. Some brought up the work of Jimmy Carter and his recent book that focuses on the impetus and impediments to peace; conflicts over territories that Israel occupied and attained through war that were not greatly important to most of the Israeli population; and the brutal conditions within Gaza and the West Bank, which remain under military lock down, not allowing the movement of people for jobs, the import or movement of goods, or the proper diet (thus creating malnutrition).

Others saw how checkpoints lead to violence, especially when a Palestinian children's theater group came to Louisville and acted out their everyday existence theatrically. Some acknowledged the holocaust and its role in creating Jewish refugees that wanted desperately to have a homeland. Some pointed out that the older they got, the more pro-Israeli they became, as Israel is a highly literate population, fifth in medical researchers in the world, and that the Palestinians have some of the highest birth rates in the world, which was causing problems within Israel and fueling terrorist fires (while others pointed out that the birth rate is actually on the decline for Palestinians). Others pointed out how the 85 billion in US aid to Israel thus far has increased nuclear proliferation in the Middle East by allowing Israel to develop nuclear and other weapon systems on the cheap, forcing other countries to catch up. Some acknowledged how this aid served as welfare for defense contractors, that Israelis basically gave the money back to the US through private US corporations that sold the Israelis the weapons. Others wondered about the role of prominent Palestinians and their contribution to culture; others saw Palestinians as a diaspora people, spreading their influence wherever they went.

Everyone contemplated solutions, one of the most well known being the Geneva Accords that would create two states - one Jewish, one Palestinian - with a shared Jerusalem capital, which a majority of Israeli and Palestinians support. Another solution was a single state where Jewish, Muslim, and Christian people enjoyed equal rights, though ethnic tensions make this solution difficult.