books – Page 77 – Michael Seidel, writer

The Nation featured a strong article about climate change and civilization collapse. The article, “We Are Witnessing the First Stage’s of Civilization’s Collapse”, is written by Michael T. Klare. They base their analysis and insights on Jared Diamond’s 2005 bestseller, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. Many, many people around the world, including US citizens, have firsthand experienced with a weather disaster or two in 2023. The article’s greater point is how so many leaders are willfully ignoring what’s happening, continuing with traditional methodology of energy and human activities as though all of this will go away. Mr. Klare points out that it’s not going away; it’s getting worse. The Canadian wildfires are a blazing example:

“The fires in Canada: As of August 2, months after they first erupted into flame, there were still 225 major uncontrolled wildfires and another 430 under some degree of control but still burning across the country. At one point, the figure was more than 1,000 fires! To date, they have burned some 32.4 million acres of Canadian woodland, or 50,625 square miles—an area the size of the state of Alabama. Such staggering fires, largely attributed to the effects of climate change, have destroyed hundreds of homes and other structures, while sending particle-laden smoke across Canadian and American cities—at one point turning New York’s skies orange. In the process, record amounts of carbon dioxide were dispatched into the atmosphere, only increasing the pace of global warming and its destructive impacts.”

Mr. Klare goes on to with information about the megadrought coating the United States, citing stats that show 99% of that region suffers drought, and it’s growing. Michael Klare cites flooding in China in 2023 and its resulting damages. The article was probably prepared for publication before Hawaii’s recent fiery mega-disaster and the first tropical storm in over eighty years to strike California.

This is an article worth reading for a problem that needs serious action. Unfortunately, political divisiveness and fervent capitalism will probably undermine any united, focused action to cope with these changes. We as a civilization are choosing to fail. Imagine that; imagine being a business who decides they don’t want to grow or make money, or a sports team who decides that losing is best. For that’s what we are, people and nations who are choosing to accept disaster and fail. The status quo will continue until we fade away, like the people of Bonita Pueblo, the Mayans, and the Viking settlements of Greenland.

I enjoy people watching, especially at the coffee shop. Everyone has a story. It’s not always clear, so I’ll make one up for them, if they’re interesting enough.

Well, Austin is interesting enough. About six foot one, pale skin, moderate build, neat strawberry blond hair, he’s dressed for the outdoors and carries a full pack, a serious hiking and camping pack, white ear pods inserted. First time I saw him in April, I figured that he was another off the Pacific Crest Trail. It runs through this area and many hiking it will pop into Ashland. See the movie Wild or read the book by the same name, and you’ll see my town featured. That’s our plaza in the link I posted.

(Side note to all that: the city posted where they’d be filming the movie so we could avoid the area because of road closures and delays, and all that. You know what that did, right? Also, to have the right season depicted, the leaves had already departed the trees, so they made leaves, attached them to the naked branches, and then removed them after filming.)

Well, Austin remains here months later. I’ve wondered why. He comes into the coffee shop several times a day while I’m there. He’d usually just drink cold water. Sometimes hot tea. Rarely buys more. I’ve seen people offer him money, and he always turns it down. He only speaks to the baristas, which is how I know his name. He’s told me thank you as I was leaving and he was entering and I held the door. Thrice. That’s it.

I sense he wants to be alone, so I leave him alone. Also, I’m there to write, so I don’t want to strike up conversations. I initially thought he was just recharging his batteries. Then, waiting for something to arrive in the mail. Now I think he’s on the run, and hiding out in Ashlandia. The question is, why? Who is after him? What will happen when they find him?

Whatever, he’ll probably show up in a story sometime. That’s just how it goes when you cross a writer’s path.