a dear friend of mine went along and had a new bit put into her hip.

all is going well and she will be riding her bicycle before you know it.

she goes to see the physio who tells her that she is not allowed to cross her legs during this healing process .

she says to the physio “ I wish I had known that before the op because then I would have had a really good go of it.”

you know like storing up as many leg crossings as you can.

the physio apparently looked at her and said ‘you really are an odd person.’

we laughed when she told me this and it gave me an idea.

 

just imagine that all these current threats of making boycotts illegal and stopping us from protesting actually gets passed into law.

just imagine we are not allowed to stand up – walk – wave a banner sing a song or conduct any sort of activism at all.

let us take a leaf from my friends oddity book and get out and have a really good go of it.

there isn’t anything to loose except… um what ?

oh that’s right we might make a difference.

 

ah well slim hope there most would say what with our current irreverent global bullies in power.

still …what else have you got to do today.??

it can be simple as where you shop or leaving your car at home

telling your self you don’t need whatever it is you think you do.

planting a seed a fruit tree in your garden or someone else s.

take on community /council land and wild plant a future.

go online – sign petitions- there is always heaps of campaigns that need your support.

practice random acts of kindness.

share something –  this very same friend said to me years ago’ how come every house has to have their very own lawnmower?’

good point  – worth thinking about that one.

talk to strangers  about the earth the beauty  and the horror -coal  fracking woodchipping –

let them know they are powerful and that they too can make a difference.

tell the children the real story – the one about respect and oneness

about how we are all on this voyage together

about how we have to take care of our soil and our clouds and our rivers.

 

make the divestment campaign mean something -divest now from your banks and superfunds and tell them why.

this campaign has been running world wide for 18 months – more and more towns universities investors large and small are signing up for a fossil free investment in our future.

in this country they are so uncomfortable with the campaign that our minerals council took to twitter with an australians love coal message.

oops that back fired on them.apparently we don’t all love coal. then they looked at ways of having boycotts made illegal.

the forestry industry has been hard at this proposal for a while now tired of mates like Sooty and friends  up a tripod – locked onto a coal loader or in a tree sit.

this present government is interested in making this proposal a reality.

if they do  at  least we can say we had a really good turn of it.

 

 

Unisuper a higher education superfund in charge of $40bn will no longer invest in fossil fuel.

Stanford University has agreed to divest $18.7 bn from over 100 coal companies and while they haven’t let go of oil and gas yet they cited climate change and the need for alternative energy sources as their reason. Stanford being the gold standard for our Australian National University places the pressure squarely  on  to commit likewise.

the Financial Times has noted that the global divestment campaign against fossil fuel has now entered the financial mainstream.

Blackrock the worlds biggest fund manager $4.32 trillion in assets and over 7000 portfolios alongwith global index provider FTSE of London have launched a fossil free index of stock for investors.

 

back in oz the scene at a protest of hundreds at Bentley on the NSW north coast erupted into celebratory hugs this morning with the news that petroleum company Metgasco’s license to drill for gas has been suspended.

From Bentley Ian Nicholson  a 61 year old retired botantist said ‘ my message is… always take part. you’ll never regret taking part.’

 

closer to home John and I whooped for delight to hear that South East Fibre Exports (the Eden chipmill )with forty years of forest destruction behind it will not renew its contract with Victoria State Forests who currently  supply over half of their hardwood intake.

the mill is in its death throes – has been for a few years citing a world wide  oversupply of woodchips  and failing to mention a  consistent and dedicated community barracking for its end.

 

the power of activism –  of creative peaceful protest has its day.

better use it more before we loose it.