CHICKEN LITTLE - NOAH & THE ART OF ARK BUILDING

Do we need an ark? Let's examine today's environment from the perspective of either "Chicken Little" or "Noah." By environment we mean the circumstances, objects, conditions and forces we integrated with and are surrounded by. Our environment can be represented by a bubble. Our bubble is strong! It's robust design sets it apart from the fragile bubbles we see in soap suds. The earth, the substance inside the bubble, is solid and sound. In regards to science, superstition, logic, destiny, fate, prophesy and predictions there may be a little to worry about, we have some history to corroborate that. History does not repeat itself but there are close resemblances. It appears that our current circumstances follow patterns we've previously experienced in the past. Whether this offers some consolation or encourages craziness is to be determined. We know that we are the most significant bubble of matter floating around in this solar system. Despite space exploration, none of us are moving to another planet any time soon. So we must be willing to face a realistic future despite the difficulties of the past. As long as we continue to address and resolve the problems we create within our bubble we should have consolation that it won't burst. Our stable bubble has sustained us this far and today the state of our bubble seems secure. Without it we would cease to exist like a fish outside of its bubble called water. So why do we need an Ark? Perhaps Chicken Little (Henny Penny) or Noah can enlighten us!

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"The sky is falling in" sounds similar to "its gonna rain." We find it very hard to believe until it happens! Is it wrong to label both Henny Penny and Noah as alarmist if That's how they're characterized? "What if you found out the sky was falling? Would you tell anyone? Would you be scared? Maybe even a little chicken?" (Disney) "But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matthew 24) Our environmental crisis goes way beyond pollution or pestilence. Maybe the weather is a sign of our growing crisis of consciousness.

OBVIOUS - predictable self evident apparent signs lacking sublety

Few people realize that the earth is the only planet in our solar system with a life sustaining atmosphere. How strong is our atmosphere? ​Is it fragile and vulnerable or tough and resilient? Is it possible for us to trash a whole planet? Or will the bubble spew us out first? Fortunately for us earths gravity is strong enough to hold it's atmosphere in place despite us polluting it. Our physical atmosphere is composed of gases we commonly call air. In our atmosphere, nitrogen and oxygen make up 99% of the gases. The remaining 1% of gases in the bubble are mostly argon then carbon dioxide followed by other trace elements. The seemingly minuscule amounts of gases within the remaining 1% of the atmosphere are still important. Carbon dioxide in chemistry, is similar to a "keystone species" in nature, and as such is highly significant even in small amounts. Our bubble has endured for millions of years and apparently is so resilient that despite all of the internal turmoil somehow it goes back into balance.

Our greatest concern is not about bursting the bubble it is about maintaining the balance within the bubble. Messing with the atmospheric balance inside of a bubble does not come without consequence. Although a person smoking cigarettes absorbs the bulk of the carcinogens, we've learned that the second hand smoke affects everyone no matter how they are exposed to it. "Climate is what we affect but weather is what we get." One bad apple can eventually spoil the whole bunch just as bad company can corrupt good manners. Our short memories consistently betray us. Perhaps it's because of the overwhelming number of diversions and distractions we face today. Everyone seems to have forgotten about the SARS pandemic we all experienced back in 2003. The 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) shocked the world as it spread swiftly from continent to continent, resulting in more than 8,000 infections. The "process of contamination" infects the company we keep, the places we frequent along with what we watch, listen to and think. True Contamination goes beyond guilt by association or birds of a feather flocking together. We know that association breeds assimilation and that appropriation is simply a subtle form of contamination. "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them." (Genesis 6) This is a depiction of a contamination so thorough that everything had to be destroyed. Is it possible that we are headed in that direction? If there were such a thing as mermaids; with all the pollution we put into the oceans, by now we would have killed them off. In addition to balancing and not bursting the bubble, it is important not to contaminate the bubble. A contaminate is a substance of poisonous or polluting blight that infests. Some cases of contamination require isolation or quarantine others cannot be fixed. Contaminated soil is usually removed and replaced because it affects everything in it and on it. Consciousness can be contaminated by thought, conversation and actions. Consciousness is connected to spirit. Spirit may be defined as the intangible part of a person that affects emotions and shapes character. Why do we acknowledge invisible forces like vibes, mojo, momentum, and energy  in sports and competition but not in every day life? Why limit spirit only to church and other religious events? There is spirit in business and government that affects us all. Contaminated spirits can move invisibly. It is the standards of our society that keep these spirits civil, limited or contained when they express themselves. Once a mind is contaminated it becomes increasingly easier to ignore the obvious. Like an alcoholic or drug addict the ability to see clearly continues to diminish with the increase of the habit. There is a quote that E.F. Schumacher wrote in his guide for the perplexed, “everything can be seen directly except the eye through which we see.” We are blind to unknowns in plain view by the unconscious biases all of us fall victim to. This is one form of mind contamination. 

Sometimes we put our brains at rest
and fail to see the obvious.
With open eyes we are not blind.
Our biases just trick our minds.

The tale of Chicken Little and the story of Noah ended successfully. Both saved the earth by their actions but accomplished it differently. We all have chosen at one time or another, whether consciously or unconsciously, to remain unseeing in situations where “we could know, and should know, but don’t know because it makes us feel better not to know.” Many relationships function this way. Blindness can be a physical, mental or spiritual condition. Many times it's simply a matter of will.

UNCONSCIOUS - insensibly unaware & unable to mobilize proper thought

Are we chickens? Wouldn't we rather be wrong? What policy do we create to deal with alarmist? Denial is not a policy! Do we err on the side of caution? How should we regard these warnings? Warnings are unneeded if they're unheeded. Although we haven't considered "The Boy That Cried Wolf," another story of an alarmist, The same scenario occurred. Eventually the wolf did show up but nobody believed him. Between Henny Penny, Noah and the boy crying wolf we have a dilemma of will. Ark building is a time consuming expensive project. It took Noah over fifty years to build his ark. There is an art to ark building and everybody cannot fit into one ark. Should such a problem be ignored? Or is this another case of willful blindness. Willful blindness is an epidemic in our society. Willful blindness is a legal concept. Willful blindness differs from ignorance. The law deems deliberate ignorance and positive knowledge to be equally culpable. To act 'knowingly', therefore, is not necessarily to act only with positive knowledge, but also to act with awareness of the high probability of the fact in question... 'knowledge is established if a person is aware of a high probability of its existence, unless he actually believes that it does not exist. Willful blindness, ignorance of the law, willful ignorance, contrived ignorance or nelsonian knowledge is no excuse in criminal matters! What about in matters of mutual concern. Some say that ignorance is bliss but in reality ignorance is blank. We need ark builders not necessarily the carpenter types but the courageous type whose example we can mark and follow. Ark builders are more interested in dealing with climate change more than pointing the finger at the drivers of it. These are the people who will call a spade a spade even at their own expense. These are the people willing to be wrong so that truth can be right. These ark builders are neither partisan nor do they side with a person or party. These ark builders put practices and policies in front of peoples personalities or politics. These are the people who define what a thing is by what it does. The ark sets the standards for thought and consciousness. The substance of the Ark is a composition of admonitions and warnings heralded by its builders. It is a figurative symbol we must constantly work on; not only for our sake but for the good of the planet. Whether it appears that the "sky is falling{" or "it's gonna rain" someone has to "cry wolf." Ark builders call climate change what it is, not a hoax. In that we have organizations like THE PENTAGON and THE UNITED NATIONS and THE NATIONAL OCEANIC & ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION and POLITICO saying the same thing must give it some credibility. 

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​After 13 agencies issued a National Climate Assessment warning that the intensifying effects of climate change pose a threat to the United States nothing has been done.