XR

Last night Hay and I went with a couple of neighbours to a talk by the local branch of Extinction Rebellion at Yate library and found it very interesting.

They're not a bunch of anarchists - far from it - they're trying to prevent anarchy and the collapse of society, a collapse which will be inevitable unless governments act in concert to prevent the situation reaching the tipping point.

Here are my short notes:

They are a non-violent, direct action, civil protest organisation whose objectives are:

• Political 
• Legal 
• Campaigning 
• Individual action

Their demands are:

• Tell the truth about the ecological crisis and declare a Climate Emergency.
• Net zero by 2025.
• Citizens' assembly on climate change.

Government support for climate change action is sporadic and half-hearted and most are in the pay of capitalism, which is destructive through competition.

• They permitted fracking, against wishes of local population. 
• The UK is not on track to meet  its 2 degree target. 
• So far, simple campaigns have been ineffective. 
• Individual action is not enough. 

Why hasn't it worked?

• Short termism of democracy. 
• Competitive capitalism can't price future implications of advancements.. 
• Action needs to be global. 

There's a long history of civil disobedience being successful - Gandhi, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King. Disruption costs money - the objective is to get noticed by hitting capitalism's pockets. However, climate disruption costs money - 2050 is too late.

Non-violence is critical, as the establishment knows how to counter violence. The establishment has no counter to non-violence. Due to the April 2019 XR protest, the government declared a climate emergency - but not that much else.

We will be joining the Wotton-Under-Edge branch.