Nice poem! Michael Pollan should have used it to open Omnivore's Dilemma.
Anger just doesn't seem to get us anywhere, does it?
I tend to see anger and other negative emotions as warning signs. They tell us that something is terribly wrong, but they don't tell us what to do about it. If you examine our anger and determine what you are willing and able to do about the problem, and then do it, then it has served a useful purpose. If you don't do anything about it and let it fester, then it eats you from the inside out.
I think the problem with issues like this (or Iraq) is that they make people angry but we have no idea what to do about that anger. We can write and call our legislators and be politely ignored. We can drive hybrids and eat grass-fed meats but if no one else makes that choice it feels like we're sacrificing for nothing. I have a friend who is pretty much devoting his life to radical politics because he's so fed up with the political situation here. I applaud him for acting on his ideals (even if I don't share all his views) but he's also a single young male with no children. I am not willing to cast aside my current life to devote myself to fighting the world's injustices, and yet sometimes it feels that nothing short of that will make a difference. And maybe not even that, anyway.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2007-08-04 07:05 pm (UTC)Anger just doesn't seem to get us anywhere, does it?
I tend to see anger and other negative emotions as warning signs. They tell us that something is terribly wrong, but they don't tell us what to do about it. If you examine our anger and determine what you are willing and able to do about the problem, and then do it, then it has served a useful purpose. If you don't do anything about it and let it fester, then it eats you from the inside out.
I think the problem with issues like this (or Iraq) is that they make people angry but we have no idea what to do about that anger. We can write and call our legislators and be politely ignored. We can drive hybrids and eat grass-fed meats but if no one else makes that choice it feels like we're sacrificing for nothing. I have a friend who is pretty much devoting his life to radical politics because he's so fed up with the political situation here. I applaud him for acting on his ideals (even if I don't share all his views) but he's also a single young male with no children. I am not willing to cast aside my current life to devote myself to fighting the world's injustices, and yet sometimes it feels that nothing short of that will make a difference. And maybe not even that, anyway.