Street roots., November 07, 2014, Page 10, Image 10

Street roots
Nov. 7,2014
S u n s h in e o n th e
H o r iz o n
By Steven R. Miller
Where is life heading? Where
am I going? I haven’t a clue. I
don’t always know what to do. But
what not is usually clear.
I shed a tear from time to time
for friends not here, but always on
my mind.
Memories are like coats. Warm
in a storm. Words wrote, never
forgotten.
What does my road hold next?
So far it’s not what I expected.
But what the heck, it won’t be the
first time, life selected the
unexpected.
I have a job that does include
Rob I, II, III. I never thought I’d
see that.
Paying taxes, getting faxes,
emails & texting... Hell I might
even consider sexting, politicians
do.
Speaking of... I’ve even
registered to vote.
My morning’s no longer end
when the sun begins. Nor do
servers send me into a panic.
I shop in stores, no longer do I
buy from shoplifters and boosters.
So much has changed I
sometimes have to do a double
take to make sure it’s still me
inside.
This ride so far has left
permanent scars, on flesh and
heart I guess a part of who I am.
My morals and values are pretty
much the same, even though I’m
out of the game.
Bop takes the credit; they’ve
said it will be a long stretch in the
pen if I commit a crime again. A
deterrent it’s not. I’m just tired of
the same ole rot.
So I begin each day like I ended
the last, in awe and wonder at the
present and past.
R E U T E R S /D A V ID G R A Y
Traditionally dressed representatives from South Pacific nations paddle their canoe towards a ship as they participate in a protest o f ships
leaving the Newcastle coal port, located north o f Sydney, Australia.
‘Climate w arriors’ take on shipping vessels
BY SUGANTHI SINGARAYAR
C O N T R IB U T IN G W R ITE R
Newscastle, Australia —
n October blockade of ships entering the world’s largest
coal port in Newcastle, Australia, has ignited widespread
online attention to the negative impacts of the fossil fuel
industry on global climate patterns.
Thirty “climate warriors” from 12 Pacific Island nations
paddled traditional canoes into the sea, joined by scores of ,
supporters in kayaks and on surfboards, to prevent the passage,
of eight of some 12 ships scheduled to move through the
Newcastle port that day.
The blockade lasted nine hours, with photos and videos of the
bold action going viral online.
The-warriors hailed from a range of small island states
including Fiji, Papua New Guinea (PNG), the Solomon Islands
and Samoa — countries where the results of a hotter climate are
painfully evident on a daily basis.
•
Coastline erosion, sea level rise, floods, storms, relocation of
coastal communities, contamination of freshwater sources and
S
"BRIM LINDSTROM'S AUEN BOV PACKS A HORRIFYING PUNCH:
INTIMATE, TERRIBLE, & TRUE."
-SH A W N LEVY, THE OREGONIAN
"ALIEN BOY IS A TRIUMPH - AND AN EMOTIONAL BULLDOZER.”
-JO H N CHANDLER, PORTLAND MONTHLY
destruction of crops and agricultural lands are only the tip of the
iceberg of hardships facing some 10 million Pacific Islanders,
more than 50 percent of whom reside within 1.5 km of the
coastline. ■■■
For these populations, the fossil fuel industry poses one of the
gravest threats to their Existence. ’
'
Coal production alone is responsible for 44 percent of global
CO2 emissions worldwide, according to the Centre for Climate
and Energy Solutions. However, none of the small island nations
is responsible for this dirty industry. That responsibility lies with
Australia, the fifth-largest coal pro,during country in the world
after China, the United States, India and Indonesia.
ArianneKassman, a climate warrior from PNG, said, “The
expansion of the fossil fuel industry means the destruction of the
whole of the Pacific.”
“The impact of climate change is something that we see every
day back home. While people read about it and hear about it and
watch videos we see how much the sea level has risen,” Kassman
added.
'
www.street-papers.org/lnter Press Service