Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash | Oil barons are poisoning our children’s Earth

Petroleum profiteers have known since the 1970s that their product would create an irreversible calamity — and stayed the course because they are criminally insane.

Who would KNOWINGLY dramatically and permanently increase suffering and death worldwide? Who would do this knowing that their own children and grandchildren would suffer and (properly) blame them for it?

Who would tout the importance of maximizing their own personal profit over human life — every time?

In the 1940s, a band of passionately cruel thugs used a substance called Zyklon B to poison and kill more than a million innocent people who they perceived as enemies. The thugs killed many, many more, but Zyklon B was used to kill roughly a million.

In the 21st century, a band of passionately greedy thugs are using a substance called petroleum to destroy the climate of a planet which will be inherited by all of the children on Earth. These thugs will kill many more than their 1940s predecessors.

We recognize the evil of the first band. The world united to end that threat. But excuses are made for the current thugs. In fact, these thugs fund politicians and the governments of the world protect them. Governments — serving their oil stained pals — do this even as the climate collapses in plain sight.

Our World War

Governments will not fight for the people of the world, for the parents who love their children, or for the young who will inherit our grievously damaged Earth. They fight against all of us.

So, this World War is for US to lead and for US to fight. We will do this in a monumental Gandhian action of nonviolence. Like the Indians who expelled the British, we will expel our foolish opponents.

Lies Exposed, “Leaders” Expelled

The fossil fuel profiteers knew the damage they were doing since at least the 1970s. (In all probability, the industry actually knew since the 1950s.) Their own scientists cited the threat.

In 1978, James Block, a senior scientist for Exxon told the company’s management: “In the first place, there is general scientific agreement that the most likely manner in which mankind is influencing the global climate is through carbon dioxide release from the burning of fossil fuels.” He warned them of the dire consequences of continued and increasing burning of fossil fuels. A few years later, he warned: “…man has a time window of five to 10 years before the need for hard decisions regarding changes in energy strategies might become critical.”

Exxon (now ExxonMobil) decided this was a PR problem and, in conjunction with the American Petroleum Institute, began a massive campaign of lies and deception. This campaign successfully spread lies that prevented any meaningful action on the climate crisis up to today. Even now, fossil fuel use is increasing.

Informed Citizens for the Environment, a front group for the fossil fuel industry, spread this particular lie in the early 1990s.

Stop the Poisoning. End Climate Abuse. Save Our Children. Stabilize the Climate.

Climate abusers must be stopped. This is OUR challenge. Our “leaders” in both government and business have failed catastrophically — by choice. Their endless stream of lies and excuses and fear-mongering and nonsense are just that — pernicious nonsense.

They delayed action for decades, making some of their threats a self-fulfilling prophecy. Now, much of the damage is permanent and we can stabilize the planet only through a speedy and painfully difficult transition from fossil fuels to clean energy. If we had called their bluff in the 1970s, we COULD have had a well-organized emergency program that would be phased in over the decades. Today, we are out of time. Measured steps would simply guarantee the apocalypse.

Our house is on fire. We must take control and listen to the scientists. We must put out the fire. Only WE can do it because the “decision-makers” are criminally insane and on course to complete their 21st century Zyklon B poisoning of our home planet. They are in the process of killing our children.

We can and must stop them. Please read and share A Climate Declaration. Stay tuned for the first Climate Vigils. Prepare to hold your own Climate Vigil and create an unstoppable planet-wide movement.

Thank you.