If the amount of money going into the war economy were invested in landscape restoration, we would be in a far more positive position. It may get a little dire before we pull together, but I think when the prosperous nations, and in particular the U.S., realize they're wrecking their own kids' lives, there will be a mass change in value.
Interpretation
Investing in environmental restoration is more beneficial than spending on war, and a realization of this can lead to significant societal change.
This quote emphasizes the potential for a positive transformation in society if resources currently allocated to warfare are redirected towards ecological recovery. It suggests that as nations, particularly the U.S., begin to understand the detrimental impact of their decisions on future generations, there could be a collective shift in values that prioritizes sustainability over conflict.
In practice
In a TED Talk about environmental awareness, one could use this quote to highlight the importance of prioritizing environmental restoration over military spending.
Economics was like psychology, a pseudoscience trying to hide that fact with intense theoretical hyperelaboration. And gross domestic product was one of those unfortunate measurement concepts, like inches or the British thermal unit, that ought to have been retired long before.
That's one of the ironies of our time: Right when we're on the edge of serious improvements in health care, we're also cooking the planet.
With post offices and postal workers already on the ground, USPS could partner with banks to make a critical difference for millions of Americans who don't have basic banking services because there are almost no banks or bank branches in their neighborhoods.
Since 9/11, there has been a huge leap in people wanting to get personally involved in public service and international affairs.
The battle for women's rights has been largely won.
Through protest - especially in the 1950s and '60s - we, as a people, touched greatness. Protest, not immigration, was our way into the American Dream. Freedom in this country had always been relative to race, and it was black protest that made freedom an absolute.
One of the immutable patterns of history is the rise and fall of great powers. Those that survive are the ones that adapt as the world changes.
My theory is this: Rather than having commentaries from the cheap seats, get involved and see what you can do. What can you do around your own community, within your own family, to try to improve race relations in our country? I think this is a responsibility that we all have as citizens.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.