The Cross of the Moment
This feature-length documentary is a powerful source of information based on interviews done with some of the top academics, scientists and public intellectuals. The list includes thinkers such as Bill McKibben, Gary Snyder, Derrick Jensen, Peter D. Ward, Jill Stein, Bill Patzert, and Guy McPherson.
All the topics discussed stem from the touchy issue known as Fermi’s Paradox. Enrico Fermi, an accomplished physicist, wanted to know that if it’s really true that we’re being visited regularly by extraterrestrial being, where are they? And are they better stewards of their resources than we are?
This leads easily into the next topic, which deals with the impact human beings have had and continue to have on nature.
A lot has been said about global warming, to the point that most people are basically fed up of hearing about it. Yet it continues to be a big issue because it is producing changes in our climate. This, in turn, is responsible for a lot of the worldwide environmental crises that we’re currently experiencing. Global warming seems to be having a greater impact on the economy than WWI, WWII, and the Great Depression combined did.
One of the biggest issues that exacerbates global warming and its effects is overpopulation and the need for affluence. (Think cellphones and other gadgets that depend on fossil fuels for their manufacture). However there seems to be no politically correct way to talk about this. Some believe that it’s up to the educational system to start the conversation.
Most people seem to be oblivious to the fact that we will eventually run out of fossil fuel. When this happens the economy will have to go back to be powered by wind, sun, and water.
The problems our planet faces are mostly structural and systemic. This means that the solutions are also mostly structural and systemic. People have transferred their allegiance from nature and its resources over to the Capitalist system because they believe their food comes from the grocery store and their water comes from the tap. What most fail to understand is that Capitalism is based on profit and inequality. This inequality means domination; those who have the money and have the most lobbyists call the shots. This has turned Capitalism into kind of a religious force, which makes it very hard for people to imagine its end.
And the whole conversation started with Fermi’s Paradox. Watch this film now.
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