Art of Climbing Trees

Resistance to the UE

How does a tolerant society handle resistance?

The ‘great simplification’ can be imagined as re-centring priorities rather than a great loss, to cut out what David¹⁷² referred to as ‘The needle-hiss¹⁹⁷’ of the gramophone record, leaving only the sweet music. However, what is one person’s needle hiss may be another person’s music. 

The project will always aim to minimise chaos and social friction with dialogue and planning. However, we can still anticipate turbulence as we exit the current dream and land in the reality of our limitations. I also foresee abuses of new freedoms and testing of restrictions that were voted to live by. Some will rebel, and others will take pleasure in our new, shared responsibilities – or a bit of both.

It will be challenging and provocative for many, in denial of the collapsing ecosystem, to hear that their lifestyles don’t chime with our species’ survival. Many believe wholeheartedly in the trajectory of our current system, and others despise any form of organisation or limits to personal freedoms²⁷⁸, who may be willing to fight to the death to defend their particular needle-hiss/music. People’ have been ripped off, abused and lied to by the establishment for so long, that they don’t believe anything anymore, or will believe anything; even filling the vacuum with a flat Earth.

Might we see Pro-Property terrorists trying to bring down the (decentralised/distributed) government? Will the UE hold violent Neoliberalist political prisoners? How will religious zealots swallow it? Elements of this Greenprint will provoke a Red Scare in some; will likely be perceived as a deep state coup to complete the control project; the ultimate conspiracy. So, it’s vitally important to stress that limits to wealth and relative financial equality are not based on any ideology (such as Marxism) but arrived at using (my) logic and compassion to allow the maximum number of people (and other species) to not only survive but thrive. Proposed restrictions are not necessarily desired but necessary.

Fishing quotas are notorious for provoking the ire of fishermen who feel fishing is their birthright. When four million fishing vessels worldwide are told only a half or a tenth of their current quota is safely available – or not to fish at all for a while – how will they respond? How will entitled consumers react when limited to one fish per month for X number of years? 

How trust in the process is gained will then be the highest priority. Transparency will be key – in how resources and activities are categorised (by measurable science), ‘Grey’ or ‘Green’ and voted for via (difficult, or possibly impossible to corrupt) Citizens’ Assemblies (which will, of course, also include the participation of opponents to any particular proposal). One can also hope the ‘new deal’ that levels us all financially and democratically will soften much of the cynicism pervading society today. Additionally, for the vast majority of people, this Greenprint will offer an improved standard of living. 

We aim to homogenise only our agreements for how to live fairly within the limits of the planet; we build a system that liberates each other within those limits and allows unlimited microcultures to thrive indefinitely.

The deal is a social guarantee of security and dignity through equal pay, equal access to housing and amenities, improved (less poisonous and dangerous) working conditions, and a short working week or no work in a week. (Who doesn’t want more time for the things they love to do? Surely more time is the easiest selling point?²⁶⁸) We receive this in exchange for reducing our consumption, limiting our every whim, and changing our expectations. (And we save the world by doing so). Delivering the bad news: the existential threat we created for ourselves, alongside the good news – the Gospel if you like, will be crucial. So, the deal needs to be clear: What do we get, and what do we give up? 

The good news is that most people just want to do good, get on with life, and ensure their children’s future. 

Please try using the (efficient) ‘Six Thinking Hats’ method of parallel thinking for sharing your ideas.
It helps us to organise our thoughts and feelings. Wear the Black Hat for critisism/doubts; the Green hat for creative suggestions; the Yellow for positive responses, Red for gut feelings; White for information. I am wearing the Blue Hat now, when I say we are here to design Eutopia.

Simply write ‘Black’, ‘Yellow’, ‘Green’, etc, before your given response. Then, start a new paragraph for ideas of a different coloured hat.