The collective epiphany

Today it is the Epiphany, where something supposedly happened once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away. I am in no way religious and find the traditions surrounding them quite nonsensical, although sometimes fun, but I always like a long weekend.

This photo was actually taken on the Epiphany a few years ago, about a month after finding out my wife and I were expecting our child. As you can see, we were walking on the lake and it was very cold - the strange lights in the sky are called Sun dogs. This year, the lake isn't even close to frozen and while there is recent snow on the ground, it has barely been below freezing so far this winter.

I read that Australia was 1.5°C above average temperatures this year with maximum records being set, and while that doesn't sound like much, the impacts it can create through changing conditions can be large. Remember, average temperatures do not mean that on a daily basis it is a little hotter, it can mean there are bands of extremes that can change circumstances quickly. Most of the world have seen images of the bushfires, and although common in the Australian summers, they do appear worse this year. A little more dry leaf litter can make a difference, as can a little more warm air and wind.

Whether climate change is man-made or a natural cycle doesn't really matter and is only worth the conversation in regards to finding some kind of solution. The problem that faces us is that humans have evolved to survive a narrow band of conditions of temperature, air and water quality and nutritional needs, and upset the apple cart too much and the environment no longer supports us.

Perhaps we don't deserve the support, but since we are likely the only "advanced" sentient beings on earth, we probably should look at taking responsibility for ourselves and ensuring our survival. I do not think that most of what we are doing is in this vein, instead it is there for appearances and profits. But, gotta try something.

People say we are destroying nature, but this isn't true at all as nature exists around us and doesn't care either way, as the weather on Earth is no more or less relevant to it than the weather on Mars, or one of the moons of Saturn. What we are destroying is our home, essentially shitting in the bed we have to sleep in - except instead of just getting dirty, we die.

It would be an interesting simulation (if possible) to run a scenario of all that we have today by way of knowledge, medicine and hygiene except we live in an unpolluted by human environment. You know, if we had an identical earth that we could move to and start again, except start with what we have today. Do you think we would be healthier of the air and water didn't contain toxins and microplastics?

Alas (a word not used often enough), there is no identical world and even if we could move to populate Mars, that is only going to be viable for a very small group and could take generations before it could support many more. This means, this is the bed we are stuck with, so we better get our sheets washed.

They say that it is better to err on the side of caution, yet due to the cost to most current industries, there is very little incentive to play it safe for the future. Instead and like most industry and government driven solutions, they will come too late. I feel that the only way that anything seriously can happen toward change is if we as the consuming public not only demand different, but create different.

I feel that blockchain and crypto is a step toward this realization as it has the ability to decouple our wealth from the centralized systems while still holding value that can be used as we see fit. While a lot f people might want to buy Lambos, some others are going to build cleaner and leaner systems and discover new ways to do what we need to do.

Whether it come in time or be too late is a question, but one that the only way to really have an answer for is to honestly attempt it and see what happens. It is impossible to know how successful we can be as individuals or a group unless we actually put in the effort toward the outcomes we desire. It isn't easy and it is rarely convenient, but it is the only way to know for sure.

I feel crypto and blockchain are in the same boat when it comes to adoption as even those who are here now and who understand the potential, are rarely all-in on the participation. All-in is difficult of course, but there are many that are mostly out and the in they hold is only for extraction purposes in order to bu a better fiat-fuelled life - not a better life.

But hey, better is relative and what motivates and is seen as worthwhile by us, is different for each person. We probably all feel we are doing the best we can and perhaps that is actually what the case is, but once each of us knows a little more, we have to adjust what we do to include what we have learned. Maybe one day inspiration strikes us all simultaneously and we wake up to the fact that like it or not, we are all in this shitty bed together and if we want to survive we have to work with each other, not against - a group epiphany.

Now, that'd be a miracle.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]