Written and Narrated by Robert Jennings.

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Editor's Note: This article is a major revision of the previous release with much additional info and videos.

We live in a era ripe with political polarization, disagreement and anger towards each other. It is no accident we are here in this moment in time. We are continuously inundated by the distractions of fallacy. Be it social media or main street news, we are being lulled away from the greatest tragedy, or greatest opportunity for rebirth, in the history of humanity.

All we lack is the will of the people. And that will is purposely being taken away from many of us, by those wishing power for power's sake and who have little empathy for others.

Deception, Distraction, and Disruption Is Their Game

I firmly believe that most of what we are seeing in society today is merely a diversion by those FDR referred to as economic royalists. It has been ramped up to serve as a distraction away from their goal of bribing the political class. 

In modern times in the US, Lewis Powell started this off with the passing of a couple of Supreme Court rulings in the 70s and it was consummated by the Robert's court with Citizens United in 2010 when bribery was legalized. It was disguised as free speech, not for people, but for corporations, both domestic and foreign. Unfortunately, if bribery remains the law of the land little will change substantially. And substantially it must change.

We are intentionally being distracted with abortion, mask wearing, vaccination, gay rights, marriage equality, black lives matter, wokeness, race, invasion of immigrants, antisemitism, and on and on and on. Are these important? Well of course.. And that is why those 'powers that be' are so successful in distracting us from their goal of controlling the political system and the limitation of rule by and for the people.

While this sounds rather conspiratorial, it is and then again it isn't. We must keep in mind that there is no one actually driving the bus. There are merely the like-minded intent on unnecessarily plundering and extracting from others for profit and sport.

True, the "arc of history" has shown the tremendous progress we have made in the human condition with a two steps forward and one step back approach. But we have entered a new era where time really is of the essence and all steps must be forward if our civil society is to survive.

Why Time Is of the Essence

First is the forced migration due to climate change and the social consequences. It has been estimated that hundreds of millions of people will be forced to leave their homes due to climate change. This number is greatly underestimated with some predicting it closer to a billion people if one takes into account that many will be moving internally within countries.  I think that the number is more likely billions instead. Either they move, or many will prematurely die in place. We must deal with it intelligently and productively or we shall be overrun by the chaos of poor preparation. 

It is very likely, as the world warms, that nearly every coastal city in the world will have to be relocated in the next 80 years, just as Jakarta the capital of Indonesia is now being moved. This may be occurring slowly now, but is forecast by some to drastically increase as conditions deteriorate. Much of the world's coastal cities will have to move inland. Others will have to move north in latitude to escape the increased droughts, wildfires, flooding, and killing heat waves that are the future of a warming climate..

Second is the declining birth rate and the economic and unintended consequences of this huge demographic shift already underway. Many countries are aging rapidly and the birth rate is dropping below their ability to sustain a stable population. I am not at all suggesting that reducing the earth's population is not desirable. It is desirable. What I am suggesting is that our declining workforce must be dealt with as a great opportunity.

So many people will be seeking to immigrate to the industrialized world, and this can be a great opportunity as we will need additional manpower to relocate and rebuild as the climate forces our hand. Even today we are seeing the results of a labor shortage in the industrialized world that is hampering us. Without purposeful intervention, we will be left without the manpower needed to facilitate the coming change. Our opportunity resides with those that will leave their homes and migrate peacefully. 

There Is An Easy Answer

Contrary to what some may fear, most people will not leave their homes and countries, even in the face of extreme danger. Those that do leave have the personal courage and fortitude necessary to help rebuild a successful society.

History is littered with the remnants of civilizations past. Most have climate and food scarcity as the common cause of their demise. Most who survived did so by moving to a more bountiful and hospitable land. In modern times, these people are not free to move. Today, their movements are blocked by the  geopolitical borders of nation states.

We must open our hearts and communities to those fleeing poverty, starvation and/or death. We can help them adapt so they can succeed and help us help ourselves and our children and their children.

The First Step We Must Take

In the past, we were willing to accept two steps forward and one step back. But we no longer can. Circumstances make that process unacceptable any longer. This is our one and only moment in time. And it is short. Very short.

For better or worse, it is still America that leads the world with our great wealth, political connections, and our military might. If we don't lead, the world will fail. But right now, we are politically stuck. We did make substantial progress these last two years under the Biden administration. However, the 2022 election's changes in the House of Representatives mostly guarantees little progress will be made. Why? Because the balance has shifted back to climate deniers and anti-immigration attitudes.

And the outlook for future control of the US Senate is not near as favorable as this last election. What we must have is either a Democratic-controlled, filibuster-proof government, or a Republican Party change of heart in the next two years. And neither is at all likely without the people's intervention at the ballot box.

It must be 'all hands on deck' to end the political quagmire, bribery and voter suppression that is our current political situation. We first must correct this,  in the 2024 US election, by only electing officials dedicated to an orderly transition. This very well may be our last hope for an organized and safe withdrawal from a climate disaster. But most of all, we could be standing on the cusp of the greatest economic boom in the history of man if we will be bold enough to grasp it. We have the opportunity to rebuild a stable and sustainable future. But we will fail if we continue to be distracted and fight amongst ourselves.

We must not be diverted and our energy diminished by those distractions purposely put before us to divide and conquer us. - Robert Jennings

James Hansen warned the US Congress in 1988 and warned us multiple times since about the dangers we faced. In the video below he again warns the world of potential catastrophic sea level rise. And since the video's release, scientists are predicting that Greenland and Antarctica are undergoing changes that could supersede even Hansen's stark warnings.

I have been a resident of central Florida for many years. This part of Florida was home to one the world's most famous beaches in the world, Daytona Beach. It was characterized by its wide width and hard packed sand that allowed cars to routinely drive on the beach. I was stunned this year to see that this beach no longer exists. All this as sea level rose a mere 8 inches in the last 50 years. Hard to imagine the damage of 10 or more feet and the greatest salvage and recycling operation to come.

No one is quite certain what the next 80 years will bring. But what I am certain of now is that most current forecasts are too conservative and each revision brings us closer to catastrophe. We would have had an easier task if we had made the transition 50 years ago when we knew we had a problem. But we didn't.

Can we cut emissions enough to turn this around? Not likely. Now we obviously can't solve the over-use of fossil fuels in the short run. We need fossil fuel energy in the short run to transition as we adapt. And adapt we will -- in order or disorder. - Robert Jennings

Ice Melt, Sea Level Rise and Superstorms Video Abstract

This introductory film on energy, environment, and our future describes the backdrop for The Great Simplification - an economic/cultural transition beginning in the not-too-distant future.

About the Author

Robert Jennings is co-publisher of InnerSelf.com with his wife Marie T Russell. He attended the University of Florida, Southern Technical Institute, and the University of Central Florida with studies in real estate, urban development, finance, architectural engineering, and elementary education. He was a member of the US Marine Corps and The US Army having commanded a field artillery battery in Germany. He worked in real estate finance, construction and development for 25 years before starting InnerSelf.com in 1996.

InnerSelf is dedicated to sharing information that allows people to make educated and insightful choices in their personal life, for the good of the commons, and for the well-being of the planet. InnerSelf Magazine is in its 30+year of publication in either print (1984-1995) or online as InnerSelf.com. Please support our work.

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