50 signatures reached
To: The United States House of Representatives, The United States Senate, and President of the United States
ADAPT MILITARY TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE
>> Climate Change has become such a serious threat to our entire civilization that We the People need to heed our Founding Fathers when they warned us clearly that it is more than our Right; it is our “Duty to provide new Guards for (our) future security” and begin immediately to transform our Consumer Culture to one of creative ADAPTATION AND REUSE that conserves the “embodied energy” in things we already have, and a transformation for which our existing Defense Department already has the best resources.
>> Therefore, We the People hereby call upon our Congress and our President to REDEFINE the Mission of our Department of Defense so that one half of our Defense Industrial Base will continue defending our Nation and the other half will immediately begin the ADAPTATION and repurposing of half of all existing Defense resources to defend our Planet and not just the Nation, as follows:
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE - - - Mission: Oversee the creation of two Sub-Departments:
-------- A. SUB-DEPARTMENT FOR DEFENDING THE PLANET >>>> Mission: Address Climate Change issues by adapting one half of all Defense Industry resources: Our planes can fight forest fires, Our ships can clean the oceans, Our heavy equipment can shape shorelines against rising oceans, and Our strategic planners and designers can intelligently design and coordinate the ADAPTATIONS needed.
-------- B. SUB-DEPARTMENT FOR DEFENDING THE NATION >>>> Mission: continue maintaining military readiness.
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>> Our huge Defense Budget is a major “engine” for our entire economy and exceeds those of the next seven or eight nations combined. It feeds trillions of our precious tax dollars to millions of dedicated, talented, and capable workers, their families, and their communities throughout our wide Defense Industrial Base – people who are already uniquely prepared to refocus their experience and knowledge for defending our PLANET against Climate Change through ADAPTATION. None of them must fear an loss of income security as a result of this transformation – even those whose jobs have a heavy “fossil footprint” and may experience less demand as we learn to reduce our use of fossil fuel. It should be inspiring for our Children and Students see us Adults admit our mistakes and ask they to study hard so they can help us in our efforts before it is too late.
>> Therefore, We the People hereby call upon our Congress and our President to REDEFINE the Mission of our Department of Defense so that one half of our Defense Industrial Base will continue defending our Nation and the other half will immediately begin the ADAPTATION and repurposing of half of all existing Defense resources to defend our Planet and not just the Nation, as follows:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE - - - Mission: Oversee the creation of two Sub-Departments:
-------- A. SUB-DEPARTMENT FOR DEFENDING THE PLANET >>>> Mission: Address Climate Change issues by adapting one half of all Defense Industry resources: Our planes can fight forest fires, Our ships can clean the oceans, Our heavy equipment can shape shorelines against rising oceans, and Our strategic planners and designers can intelligently design and coordinate the ADAPTATIONS needed.
-------- B. SUB-DEPARTMENT FOR DEFENDING THE NATION >>>> Mission: continue maintaining military readiness.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
>> Our huge Defense Budget is a major “engine” for our entire economy and exceeds those of the next seven or eight nations combined. It feeds trillions of our precious tax dollars to millions of dedicated, talented, and capable workers, their families, and their communities throughout our wide Defense Industrial Base – people who are already uniquely prepared to refocus their experience and knowledge for defending our PLANET against Climate Change through ADAPTATION. None of them must fear an loss of income security as a result of this transformation – even those whose jobs have a heavy “fossil footprint” and may experience less demand as we learn to reduce our use of fossil fuel. It should be inspiring for our Children and Students see us Adults admit our mistakes and ask they to study hard so they can help us in our efforts before it is too late.
Why is this important?
This MoveOn.org petition is dedicated to David Brower, Founder of the Earth Island Institute (1969) and Friends of the Earth (1982) - Early pioneer in promoting awareness of the dangers of looming Climate Change.
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>> Our complex democratic society is full of people of integrity and intelligence who can and must quickly and deliberately help us all transform our Consumer Culture into a culture of Adaptation and Reuse that rejuvenates and extends the life and usefulness of the “embodied energy” in all things we have previously created with fossil fuel – a transformation that will stimulate new jobs, give new meaning and purpose to existing “tools”, and foster new attitudes about inviting other Nations to join with us in this vital endeavor.
>> It should be exciting and inspirational for our Children and Students to see us Adults: 1): admit that we have inadvertently allowed or overlooked many of the environmental mistakes we have made: 2): act decisively to initiate and undertake this transformation on their behalf, and 3): ask them to study hard and learn well so that they can help us address those mistakes before it is too late and before our knowledge and experience is lost to posterity.
>> It will continue to benefit our entire economy if personnel having Defense-related jobs with a heavy “fossil footprint” - which may logically may need to be reduced or eliminated over time - if such workers were to continue receiving their paycheck from the Defense Budget, allowing them to stay home more, spend their paycheck locally in their own communities, attend to their families, and even use their old commuting time and fuel money for family vacations or for even pursuing their own ideas for new Adaptations and Reuse ideas that will conserve “embodied energy” and help address Climate Change by greatly reducing new consumption of fossil fuel for new materials.
>> A fundamental shift like this is likely to unleash rewarding creativity from individual inventors that may restore the kind of “Progress” of which our Founders were so proud after our Constitution initially established “exclusive Rights” for the vulnerable work of individual inventors – constitutional rights badly in need today of immediate restoration.
>> Finally, it should be satisfying for all of us to know that one half of our “Defense Dollars” are being used to directly benefit our descendants by defending our Planet against the causes and effects of Climate Change.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF THIS PETITION:
..... In the 1970’s, the author of this petition became an environmentalist after witnessing beautiful jungle habitat in Malaysia being burned to make way for huge oil palm plantations prompted by the machinations of the World Bank. As a registered Architect and Master Planner, it has been his pleasure and privilege to work with top designers on major projects, during which he came to realize the tremendous “fossil footprint” that results from creating all buildings and products. He became an early advocate in the 1970's of adapting old buildings instead of tearing them down and replacing them, which would have destroyed their “embodied energy” and other unique features. As an Individual Inventor, the author has personally witnessed how presently-unconstitutional U.S. Patent Law has suppressed a practical Climate Change inventions for 25 years by “legally” equating large organizations and powerful individuals with vulnerable Individual Inventors and small business - thus robbing our entire culture of the “Progress” our Founders originally sought to ensure – a fault that should be corrected as soon as possible. As an Educator, he witnesses young minds open to many things and hungry for inspiration and guidance, which we Adults can and must provide with courage and optimism for their “future security”. As a husband, he is most grateful for the love and support of his wife, who sacrificed much to encourage and support their dreams of making meaningful change for our Youth. They thank you for your help with this petition.
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>> Our complex democratic society is full of people of integrity and intelligence who can and must quickly and deliberately help us all transform our Consumer Culture into a culture of Adaptation and Reuse that rejuvenates and extends the life and usefulness of the “embodied energy” in all things we have previously created with fossil fuel – a transformation that will stimulate new jobs, give new meaning and purpose to existing “tools”, and foster new attitudes about inviting other Nations to join with us in this vital endeavor.
>> It should be exciting and inspirational for our Children and Students to see us Adults: 1): admit that we have inadvertently allowed or overlooked many of the environmental mistakes we have made: 2): act decisively to initiate and undertake this transformation on their behalf, and 3): ask them to study hard and learn well so that they can help us address those mistakes before it is too late and before our knowledge and experience is lost to posterity.
>> It will continue to benefit our entire economy if personnel having Defense-related jobs with a heavy “fossil footprint” - which may logically may need to be reduced or eliminated over time - if such workers were to continue receiving their paycheck from the Defense Budget, allowing them to stay home more, spend their paycheck locally in their own communities, attend to their families, and even use their old commuting time and fuel money for family vacations or for even pursuing their own ideas for new Adaptations and Reuse ideas that will conserve “embodied energy” and help address Climate Change by greatly reducing new consumption of fossil fuel for new materials.
>> A fundamental shift like this is likely to unleash rewarding creativity from individual inventors that may restore the kind of “Progress” of which our Founders were so proud after our Constitution initially established “exclusive Rights” for the vulnerable work of individual inventors – constitutional rights badly in need today of immediate restoration.
>> Finally, it should be satisfying for all of us to know that one half of our “Defense Dollars” are being used to directly benefit our descendants by defending our Planet against the causes and effects of Climate Change.
.....................
ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF THIS PETITION:
..... In the 1970’s, the author of this petition became an environmentalist after witnessing beautiful jungle habitat in Malaysia being burned to make way for huge oil palm plantations prompted by the machinations of the World Bank. As a registered Architect and Master Planner, it has been his pleasure and privilege to work with top designers on major projects, during which he came to realize the tremendous “fossil footprint” that results from creating all buildings and products. He became an early advocate in the 1970's of adapting old buildings instead of tearing them down and replacing them, which would have destroyed their “embodied energy” and other unique features. As an Individual Inventor, the author has personally witnessed how presently-unconstitutional U.S. Patent Law has suppressed a practical Climate Change inventions for 25 years by “legally” equating large organizations and powerful individuals with vulnerable Individual Inventors and small business - thus robbing our entire culture of the “Progress” our Founders originally sought to ensure – a fault that should be corrected as soon as possible. As an Educator, he witnesses young minds open to many things and hungry for inspiration and guidance, which we Adults can and must provide with courage and optimism for their “future security”. As a husband, he is most grateful for the love and support of his wife, who sacrificed much to encourage and support their dreams of making meaningful change for our Youth. They thank you for your help with this petition.
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