Category: Materialism

American?

What is an American? That is a question we don’t ask ourselves, is it? Do you know your roots, how you came to be here rather than somewhere else?

Michael Gillen, my German great-grandfather, came during the high period of German immigration, the 1870’s. My immediate German ancestors are John – Sebastian – Michael.

On my Durand (maternal) side Jean Durand came from France around 1660 and married Catherine Annennontak. They begot Louis who begot Louis who begot Pierre who begot Joseph who begot Francois who begot Felix who begot Azarie who begot Florence who begot me.

Louis Durand probably first came from Canada into what is now the United States as early as 1680. Those ancestors didn’t pay any attention to borders. “What border?” would have been their question. Louis’ mother was Catherine Annennontak, an important ancestor in the Metis (mixed First Nation and European ancestry) families of Canada. Azarie Durand, my grandfather, settled permanently in Faribault, Minnesota around 1900.

The relocations, dislocations that those first ancestors endured must have been difficult if not traumatic. Catherine’s mother traveled hundreds of miles to safety with her infant following massacre of her father by the Iroquois. How fragile is our ancestry.

I’m proud of my ancestral heritage, though none were ‘documented’ in the modern sense of that term.

Where is this entry going? We attended a talk by Jose Antonio Vargas, an undocumented citizen of the Unites States. He is of Pilipino descent. Briefly, he was sent to live with his grandparents who were here as documented citizens. He only discovered his papers were fake when he applied for a driver’s license. By then his education, his friends, his life were here.

Jose is a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist, an intelligent, articulate (and humorous) advocate for an intelligent assessment of our complicated laws and system for treating immigrants. I urge you to read his book, “Dear America, Notes of an Undocumented Citizen”. There is a ton of misinformation out there, much propounded by this current administration. Facts are:

–   Undocumented persons live shadow lives, afraid of ICE

–   They are unable to vote

–   They are unable to use welfare or other government benefits

–   To the contrary, they and their employers pay their taxes and social security (our government is more than willing to take their money even though they do not use  the system)

–   The Congressional Budget Office estimates 50 to 75% of undocumented pay federal, state and local taxes. It estimates about $7 BILLION paid annually into Social Security.

–   Most undocumented people are NOT Hispanic; they are Asian. [I guess Trump will next want to build a wall across the Pacific!]

–   Most people do not want to be dislocated, to leave their friends and family, their culture, their language

I think that last point is most important. The world does not want to come to the United States, as many Americans seem to think. They would prefer to live where they are, assuming they could live in reasonable safety. 

And further, though an American of long ancestry, I seriously think of emigrating to another country, but hesitate for the same reasons that other citizens of the world hesitate to leave and come here (family, friends, language, the familiar). I consider it because to me America is not the home of the brave, the land of the free, welcomer of those in need. It has become the home of the cowardly, the land of the oppressors, a country of the greedy guardians of their hoards of wealth without consideration for needs of others. Even many of its churches preach a theology of prosperity, a perversion of the Gospel if there ever was one. . .

September 2018

Feedback Wanted! An old friend from my rowing days told me she has read and enjoyed my blogs. I do not monitor traffic and therefore do not know who may read them. I appreciate any feedback, either posted comments, or emails to me at mjgillen100@hotmail.com. 

                       

My interest this summer has been on native plants and wildflowers of our beautiful Appalachian mountains. Wildflowers represent the ephemeral beauty of our world, often only discovered through macro photography. My eye is only able to see nature’s complexity when enlarged on my computer screen. This a world of individual flowers or small colonies visible only when one takes time to slow down and see.

  

In June I attended the Cullowhee Native Plant Conference at Western Carolina University, a gathering of knowledgeable plant specialists. They use the Latin terms, intimidating to me, a novice. They are a wonderful group of welcoming people who make all feel welcome. Among these knowledgeable folks climate change is indisputable fact. It is demonstrated by the ability to grow plants at the university that would not have survived 15 years ago and demonstrated by nurseries that have modified their plant catalogues to accommodate the changes. We are seeing more potent strains of poison ivy and more invasive plant activity as a result of longer growing seasons.

A week ago I attended a lecture by a noted meteorologist/climatologist. In her profession she gathered data and presented it. She did not advocate policy; that was left to decision makers. Her facts, though, made it clear that we have climate change and global warming, caused in large part by our carbon based energy production. We now spend more in the United States to cool homes than to warm them.Today the skies clear earlier at Asheville airport, the result of warmer nights that result in less cloud cover. 31 Alaskan native villages face relocation because of higher water levels and erosion. Engineers and architects are designing for higher ocean levels by building bridges higher. Design firms do not make such changes lightly, because the final costs are greater to their clients. These are only a few of the factual illustrations of climate change.

Yet, I continue to hear people deny climate change. They confuse weather which is local (e.g. a blizzard in late winter) with the broad impact of climate. Evidently, they listen more to the fake “news” of Fox, commentators such as Hannity, and paid spokespeople for big energy than to the reality. There is a tendency for all of us to deny what we don’t want to believe. I imagine the ancient Pompeians saying, “Non succendam!” as they looked toward Mt. Vesuvius.

Students of history are aware of societal collapses such as the Mayan civilization. Destruction of the rain forest and over-farming altered their environment. Rainfall declined. Crops failed. The people no longer believed their priests and leaders, and the political system collapsed.

There are immediate societal costs such as the cost of controlling invasive species, the health effects of respiratory illness and diseases such as malaria and fevers, and the impact on crop production, but we could face national and worldwide catastrophe.

We all bear responsibility. We are a consumer driven society, addicted to buying and using. I believe that awareness is at least a first step, one that could lead to positive changes. There is work on carbon recapture, but that is not economically viable (another myth of the climate deniers). What would be best is reduction or elimination of carbon energy consumption and a shift to renewable clean energy. Yet the United States remains a world leader in conspicuous consumption and planned obsolescence.

Is this a moral issue? Yes. The impact will fall first and foremost on the poor and disadvantaged. Do we as a society care? I’m afraid the answer is ‘no’. I think the wealthy and advantaged will simply use their resources to maintain their lifestyle. But as John Donne wrote: 

No man is an island; entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent.

Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

 

 

2017 – Holiday Reflections

We  traveled to Bhutan and Thailand in March, a trip of a lifetime. Fortunately, for me, my second trip to that part of the world. It was not yet monsoon season, late winter, so not as green in Bhutan in October when I previously visited. As compensation, though, the skies were clearer, so we saw Mount Everest and the high Himalayas as we flew. We took a long hike one beautiful day and watched a farm family preparing and planting its fields with potatoes. This was physically hard work, done only with a tiller and by hand labor, but harkening to a simpler, happier time. Bhutan, its emphasis on Gross National Happiness, is a lesson for America where Gross Domestic Product is everything. I heard at a retreat years ago, “What you value is your God.”

We retired, giving us time for travel to Brevard, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina. Lots of concert music and sights to see! It also gave us time to visit and spend more time with family. We enjoyed kayaking, Indian artifact hunting, and the total eclipse with granddaughters, Olivia and Mya.

We ended the year with one more trip – Costa Rica. I had visited there about 15 years ago, but was able to enjoy more of the country, including a side day trip to Nicaragua with its volcanos and colonial history, so beautifully on display in Grenada on the shores of Lake Nicaragua. We saw its dry and rain forests, each with its own flora and fauna. The wildlife included crocodiles, caimans, sloths, coatimundi, monkeys, and an incredible variety of birds.

Costa Ricans enjoy a much better life than many other Central Americans, but there is still a great deal of poverty compared to the rich life we enjoy. Nicaragua is even poorer. Many work in Costa Rica even though the lowest paying jobs. It was evidenced by the border traffic as people traveled home to spend Christmas with their loved ones. We saw several horse drawn carts filled with hay and one team of oxen pulling a cart laden with firewood. This was along the Pan American highway, a major roadway. Bicycle travel was common, dangerous with the proximity to traffic.

Nativity scenes and other Christmas decorations were everywhere. A highlight was Mass at Iglesia Catolica de Playas del Coco on December 17. The themes of my life have become focused on richer spirituality and trying to become less materialistic. Materialism is such a disease of modern America. It leads to selfishness and shallowness.  The rich family life of the Costa Ricans and Nicaraguans, despite there material poverty, is enviable. In many ways, they are richer and happier than we.