First of all, I know my blog name sounds really lame, but it is in reference to a Twitter battle between JoeMyGod (gay liberal blogger) and some dude from GayPatriot (homocon blogger) about James Jay Lee, the guy who held some people hostage at the Discovery Channel headquarters. GayPatriot was calling Lee "environut" even though his demands had nothing to do with the environment. I guess that doesn't really explain the name, but hey, I'm not really that creative.
Anyways.
So apparently there are a lot of different philosophies on the topic of environmentalism. I had no idea there were so many schools of thought about the relationship between Man and Mother Earth. I think it'd be really difficult to choose one specific philosophy because, at least in my opinion, its really just a difference of semantics between the closely related groups. Unfortunately, for the purpose of this assignment I have to depart from my indecisive nature and declare which train of thought with which I most closely relate.
In the broadest sense, I most closely identify with the conservationists. I believe that of all sentient creatures on this planet Man is the greatest. Therefore, he has the right to exercise his dominion over the resources of this planet in order to ensure the prosperity of current and future generations. Because of Man's sentience, he has a heavy moral obligation to protect the less cognizant creatures of the earth. Man should have a synergistic relationship with the planet in order that the quality of both improve. Man also has an obligation to not only protect, but also to respect the earth and all life on it. I believe there is an inherent beauty in natural landscapes and ecosystems. Man ought to respect them by just staying away.
I am more of an urbanist (that is the best word for it I can come up with, although I'm sure there is something more precise out there) than anything else. The autocentric and suburban society Americans have created is not sustainable. If America is to be a world leader in the 21st century, it must abandon this lifestyle. Cities should reward and promote pedestrian and public transportation and discourage automobile ridership. Developments in cities should be geared toward creating long term solutions and diverse, dynamic communities instead of auto-dependent, segregated neighborhoods.
I used to be a conservative Christian. I have a distinct memory of arguing with a fellow 8th grader on the bus about how George Bush was a great president and John Kerry was too liberal for America. I wish I could travel back in time and tell my past self how I would grow and change. I would love to see the look on my face.
The data says that I should mostly align with the ideology of my parents. I come from a very conservative family. We live in a very conservative suburb called Greenwood. Greenwood is located in the conservative state of Indiana. I'm not really sure why my ideologies developed the way they have. Maybe The National Review was just disgusting enough that it pushed me away from conservative dogma. Maybe it's because I know what its like to be different. Who knows? I think as I get older and I enter the workforce my views will probably gravitate towards the center, but I've been on both sides of the coin and I really do prefer the left.
I am now a gay, liberal (socialist, Marxist, communist, evil, blaaah blaah blaaah), college student who likes to buy organic and local food. I have a positive world view and I tend to expect the best of people. I believe the human race is capable of a great many things, and through the use of logic and reason we can make the world a better place and improve the quality of life for everyone. Governments should be fierce advocates for their citizens; they are obligated to ensure that every citizen is treated with equal due process. I believe every person has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, which includes the right to health care, an education, and clean air and water.
I don't really have any economic ideologies other that my belief in equality. I think that raw capitalism and the "American Dream" are inherently evil because they sell a lie of economic prosperity (spend spend spend!) and the only people who truly walk away with economic security are the CEOs and presidents of the Fortune 500 companies. Look at the "Great Recession" as an example. Millions of average people just trying to follow the "American Dream" ended up jobless and without long term financial security while the select few at the top of the pyramid ran off with huge golden parachutes.
I think capitalism and suburbanism are wrong because they promote waste and mass exploitation of natural resources, so I s'pose my economic views concord with my environmental views, but
I'm not really sure how my social ideology would conflict or concord with my environmental ideology.
I apologize for the crappy writing. I haven't written anything all summer, and I certainly didn't do anything mentally engaging. It's tough transitioning from grunting when I want something to extrapolating on my philosophy of life.
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