I am going through some major angst about all this, because I have worked
in NGOs (non-governmental organizations, ie citizen groups) for a long
time, and am saddened by our inability to create lasting change. Where IS
that paradigm shift I kept hearing about? As I wrote someone else
recently, I feel like I am swimming like crazy just to keep from being
swept away; and even then it looks like triage. I am out of that kind of
work for a while, being back in school and all, but even so I can't seem
to just ignore it when we very possibly might lose our salmon, and some
yahoo at a meeting in Lewiston talks openly about shooting goshawks. That
hurts.
I don't think, when I get out of school, that I will go back to NGOs for
work. We aren;t smart, we don't seem to have learned much. I got into
that because I wnted to make a difference, and I still do; and maybe they
are not the most effective places to be -- not too savvy politically, not
terribly interested in the science or even in how science works; what;s
the point? WE keep losing elections, and that means that eventually we
lose the things I want to live here for -- wildlife, clean water, space
-- because the bad guys are FOCUSSED, they want to win elections, they of
course have more money, and we piss away what goodwill, people-power, and
funds we have talking to ourselves.
I am discouraged. Vision 20/20 seems like a force for good; I'd like to
think we can figure out ways to keep our place, keep our sanity, and have
time to sit around and play music (John!) and whatnot. It gets tiring,
always playing defense (oh shit, a sports metaphor; I ws going toavoid
all sprots and war metaphors; I think they are bad for us, make us think
in bad ways. This is my last one, left in just as a bad example).
Some attorneys at a meeting several months ago were kicking around the
idea that what we need in the Rockies is a spotted owl. NO! I howled,
when I heard it. That's the last thing we need; everyone got so UGLY over
on the coast, things were just really bad in spirit.
I think the most important thing for everyone is to keep your spirit
intact. Sometimes that means getting involved; sometimes that means
kicking back. We like our community because it is a community, and that's
what we should focus on, even when we are hopping mad.
Long diatribe.
Cheers,
Lisa