Prelude to a Disaster

Every day the news gets worse. Millions of people are displaced by record-breaking heatwaves and droughts, violent mega-storms and flash floods. Unprecedented wildfires burn out of control, scorching massive tracts of forest and brush, and plunging nearby urban metropolises into surreal scenes of mid-afternoon darkness. Meanwhile, scientists solemnly inform us that marine life could be wiped out by mid-century, as the oceans continue to be gradually transformed from vibrant areas of rich biodiversity into the plastic-filled graveyards of industrial civilization. Try as we might… the consequences of our consequence-free lifestyles are becoming harder and harder to ignore.

It’s become widely accepted that ‘global warming’ exists, and that our societies’ current rates of carbon emission are imperiling future generations. Millions of people agree that we are robbing our unborn descendants of their right to an inhabitable planet – something that their ancestors foolishly took for granted. This increasing awareness is translating into a growing consensus that our so-called ‘leaders’ need to intervene in order to fix this problem and correct this historic injustice. Unfortunately, most environmental activists continue to be hampered by a false understanding of how power operates in society, the scale of the problem that we face… and what would actually be required to fix it. In Trouble 23, subMedia takes a closer look at these dynamics, arguing for the importance of taking bold action to defend local bioregions, even as we work towards the total overthrow and replacement of the global capitalist economy.