Author: jennynazak

1) You might need to get out in your community more. 2) And-or you might need to broaden your definition of like-minded.

I’m not being flippant here.

Some of the biggest blowups and betrayals are among communities of supposedly “like-minded” people. The whole concept of “like-minded” is very prone to turn into chasing something that doesn’t exist.

Meet your neighbors. I don’t have a dog, but a lot of people find like-minded people just by being out walking their dogs. I certainly find a lot of like-minded people by being out in my garden. When they see me out, they start talking. I could not have looked at them and been able to tell, “Oh, that’s a person who shares my views about gardening and community!”

Neighbors can be online neighbors as well.

Also, being an introvert is no excuse. I am an extreme introvert despite being a public speaker and teacher. Introvert can be quite good at finding people, because we’re not as able to do it by the more obvious channels.

The other point, regarding broadening your definition of like-minded. Everyone wants clean water, and everyone wants a good life for themselves and their family. If that’s too broad a definition for you, experiment with narrowing the definition.

And if you’re not finding your (close-enough) like-minded people, experiment with broadening the definition until you do. Not finding them is not an option. We can’t live without community.

What works for me is to define what constitutes like-minded (for me). A lot of times it’s situational as opposed to a constant.

Sometimes like-minded might just be everyone who’s concerned about a certain issue in the neighborhood. Could be overpolicing, could be local government spraying herbicides, or over-trimming trees, etc. And maybe we sit together and drink coffee, or maybe we get on our Facebook group, and talk about what to do next.

If you believe, as I and many others do, that we are in a state of biospheric collapse and planetary emergency, you are going to feel some cognitive dissonance watching the mainstream world go on around you.

People driving to Home Depot, shopping on Amazon, complaining about the price of gas, continuing to buy new furniture, buying so many new clothes even though our closets are jammed, accepting single-use plastic without question, flying, engaging in purely leisure travel, continuing to invest in 401ks/ Wall Street — the list is endless; these are just a few examples.

But if you truly believe we are in a state of emergency, yet you don’t act as if we are in a state of emergency, you’re going to be experiencing a whole nother level of dissonance.

Acting according to your beliefs even if it’s going against the mainstream can be really uncomfortable and you can be ostracized and all sorts of things. Even the milder versions of ostracism like the fake churchy side-eye smile get really exhausting and sad and lonely after a while.

So you have to stay focused on your core awareness if you want to stay the course. I feel it’s a good deal. There’s less cognitive dissonance if you go ahead and act on your beliefs, than if you let the world around you catch you up in the BAU flow of things. A certain peace of mind ensues; it’s priceless and will carry you through the tough times.

There are other prizes as well. Starting with your wallet. And newfound skills. And genuine community. Freedom from being panicky when consumer supply chains break down, electric power goes out, etc. Focus on what you’re gaining, not what you’re giving up.

Oh, and as more of start living deeply in accordance with our knowingness about the planetary state of emergency, We will be creating an ever larger and more visible stream. Which will make it easier for others to act in accordance with the state of planetary emergency.

I am an educator so it’s part of my work to keep plugging away. I have had people block me on Facebook, and there are a person here and there who I ended up having to block. But for the most part I’m just continuing my work which means being connected with lots of different people. Continuing to try to educate people on the connections between capitalist/colonizer society, the climate crisis, and why everybody is feeling so economically crunched.

Fortunately most all of my close real-life friends, and my immediate family, are mostly on same page politically.

(A question someone posted in one of my groups.)

I am not going to say I’m confident. But as a Boomer I’m working to keep a level head because the young people & more vulnerable people need me to. It may sound strange but it feels like I’ve been training for this my whole life, as a child I always read stories about people living under oppressive regime.

And before this, my whole life, as a person raised by her parents to love & protect ecosystems, I feel like I have always been in training for the climate crisis.

And really, it’s all connected. For example, every drop of gasoline we can conserve is one drop less that goes to feeding oppression. Same goes for other consumption, because energy goes into everything. Many experts have written about the connection between energy demand and wars, fascism etc.

I am sort of a prepper, but in a community way. And I share tips and info with people to help everyone get prepped for whatever.

In a “help wanted / seeking jobs” group that I follow in my local area, people commonly laugh-react posts from job-seekers who need accommodations. Whether from a disability, or childcare issues, or what have you.

Today I saw the post below:

Looking for part time work between hours of 630am and 2pm any day of the week. Limitations: can’t lift heavy things or do physical work requiring strength or endurance, need the ability to sit or stand when I need, not interested in being a caregiver for elderly, children, or animals. I am allergic to most animals. Also need a quiet workspace. I need frequent breaks from conversational/social interactions due to my Autism or a quiet and low social job overall. Part-time office work maybe between 8am and 2pm? Currently no positions available unless someone knows of something?

My response:

Honestly these conditions do not sound unrealistic at all. It sounds like the majority of office jobs I’ve ever worked. What the people laugh-reacting this post might want to consider is that these conditions might not be unreasonable, period. Even if a person doesn’t have disabilities.

Could it be that (for example) even retail workers deserve a chance to sit down when they need it? In some countries, cashiers actually get to sit on a stool their whole shift if they want. It’s no impediment to working the register and interacting with customers.

We are moneymaking units for the owners! Workers make the profits for the owners. Something to ponder!

Next time anyone is tempted to put down a person with disabilities for being up-front about their needs & constraints, consider that their requests might be helping us all. Maybe all of us need to stand up for more reasonable working conditions that don’t result in blowing out our backs and hips and knees, unnecessarily interrupting our mental processes, and so on.

I will be so happy when nobody even notices or cares that I arrived by foot or bicycle to a meeting, gathering, or other event.

As an environmental activist and social-justice activist, I am working for a world where non-car-ownership is totally unmemorable and commonplace — because everybody has access to their daily needs without having to own their own car.

Right now we basically have a system
of forced car ownership in most parts of the USA. It’s a regressive tax on the poor, and a burden on the nondriving public as well.

The most dysfunctional example I can think of of this, is our local nonprofits’ food distribution events, where the flyer says you must show up in a vehicle; no walk ups. So many problems with that. Starting with maybe the person would be able to afford food if they weren’t forced to own a car. I speak from experience. A big part of why I never had to seek any food assistance during my “lean years” was that I was not burdened with the expense of car ownership.

(And not incidentally, it’s also really a burden on the driving public too!)

And also a burden on older people who are getting to where they probably shouldn’t drive but they still kind of have to.

I always cringe when people brag about how their elderly parent or grandparent is still driving, like that’s a good thing. If I’m going to be the stud-ette of my nursing home, I’d rather have it be because I was a successful advocate for public transport and walkability.

PS. This gives me an idea! Anyone who wants to join me in caravaning by bicycle (or foot) to upcoming events, give me a shout! There is safety in numbers, I know a lot about riding (and walking) safely, and this weekend the moon is going to be quite bright as it will still be almost full that evening.

PPS. For more content about environmental issues etc., please like and follow my FB page DEEP GREEN book by Jenny Nazak,

Someone in one of my ladies’ groups suggested joining & supporting ACLU.

Good suggestion. In recent years I also became a life member of Veterans for Peace and NAACP.

Social justice, climate justice, demilitarization … It’s all connected.