Just here to say thank you. Last year, after reading about Wells Fargo’s investments in oil and gas, I moved my small business account to a credit union. It was incredibly satisfying to explain why I was pulling my dollars out of Wells Fargo and my banker was both gobsmacked by my reasoning - and silenced. Under normal circumstances, I suspect he would have tried to sell me on staying but he could tell I wasn’t interested.
When he called the manager over to cosign the transfer request, (big enough to require a manager’s signature) I got to explain it again. The manager also asked why I was leaving. He tried to make me an offer to stay and I politely cut him off. I had held that account for nearly 40 years. What a pleasure it was to very visibly take my money and put it where my values are.
I’m only sorry I couldn’t participate in the protest in Stillwater, MN. On Tuesday. We have had a hellish winter here in Minnesota with ice storms and slushy snow which made walking a challenge. I fell last Monday and wrenched my knee. Dr ordered me to stay off it because at 68, it takes a while to heal. My fellow elders carried on. Woot!
Many have no doubt seen the viral video, but 100-year old Grace Linn demolishing a Florida school board for book bans is one of the most inspiring acts of resistance I've seen. There is no age limit when it comes to standing on the right side of history.
Thanks so much for leading the charge against fossil fuel banks. Is there a phone number or website for more help finding more climate-friendly banks? Thanks!
I really enjoy your newsletters! Don't know how you manage to make what usually feels like an out-of-control train coming our way and we're all tied to the track -- imply instead that what we're doing DOES make a difference and that there is hope. I'm a big Rebecca Solnit fan and she and you are on the same page with that definition of hope and how we can apply it to such an overwhelming situation. Thank you so much for what you're doing w/Third Act!
It was an honor, Bill, to provide even a little backup help and my body weight in spirit to you, Heather, and the other seniors in those 102 events and 30 states, including the handful of my colleagues organizing the fledgling Third Act Arizona. We put the launch of TA-AZ on hold to answer your call to do something for 3.21.23. And by all accounts it was successful.
But Bill, I’m one of those who often, to use your phrase, “feel very pessimistic, even despairing.” So your heart-felt and eloquent post inspires me to ask . . . Why are some aspects of the climate crisis taboo with environmentalists? And are they—dare I use a pun—TA-boo as well?
Why do we not face the issue of population growth, thoughtfully, compassionately, and ethically of course, but bravely and purposefully? Why is Paul Ehrlich considered happily wrong because the population bomb didn’t explode as suddenly as he predicted, even though it is exploding just as certainly and as horribly—in slow but inevitable motion? And why, as a direct result, are thousands (I can only hope it’s that few!) of our enlightened younger generation across this choking globe who are 100% down with every aspect of the environmental movement refusing to conceive the children that the Earth will so desperately need to protect Her in the future, saying they can not bear the weight of delivering new lives into the desperate, crying-like-a-baby future that is the only one they can any longer imagine?
Why do we not face the issue of food with the same compassionate, ethical, but brave purpose? Why do Michael Greger, Neal Barnard, Sailesh Rao, and so many other enlightened, creative, and (amazingly) still apparently unexhausted physicians and scientist/scholars, who are still bravely championing the glorious message of a whole food plant-based diet/lifestyle in contrast to the abominably cruel and incomprehensibly huge animal agriculture killing and burning machines—why do these relatively unsung heroes champion on with their message of hope and healing against a cognitive-dissonant-thick wall of ignore-ance (hyphen intended), not just from the polluted right(ha!)-wing of our government but also from some of our most widely respected and lionized environmental spokespeople?
(And as somewhat of an aside, why have some of our best and brightest minds and spirits, especially some prescient and inspirational early voices of the environmental movement, been marginalized as aging hippies and reduced to supporting themselves by giving talks and passing the hat at small town art-house theaters and second-tier college student centers, their idealism possibly providing some temporary encouragement to the already committed, while ironically driving some of those uncompromising faithful to levels of despair and paranoia that manifest in anti-establishment dropout behavior, uncivil disobedience, or even acts of violence that undermine and hinder progress toward the very goals they believe they are promoting?)
Why, Bill, are issues like these, in spite of their outsized and immediate importance and their unassailable veracity, considered off-limits by even our most faithful advocates? Is the reason why public sector institutions and their leaders shy away from the unfairly branded “controversial” causes of our crisis their reliance on the large and steadily predictable flow of financial support from as many philanthropic supporters as possible? As we vilify the banks who directly enable profiteering from the rape of the environment, are we nonetheless comfortable wooing other monied interests whose commitment to the future is assumed to be limited by a don’t-go-there door to the basement of their value system where it’s convenient to believe that their foundational truth is safely secured but they are not about to ever visit it, let alone allow it out? Has our post-truth world really reached the point where we are so preoccupied with protecting “the truth” and “nothing but the truth", that defending “the whole truth” is a distraction or—much worse—a pragmatic and necessary sacrificial compromise to be made to optimize some calculus of the movement’s net effectiveness? Is that where we are, envisioning a “best case” scenario for a definition of livability we’re willing to accept because it’s realistically achievable as opposed to ideally desirable, let alone necessary for survival? Do we envision ourselves at a great final celebratory gathering prepared to lift a half-baby trophy for our hard-working throng of supporters to cheer as proof of our victory?
These questions bedevil me. And they lead to the questions for which I have an especially immediate hope for an answer. Can Third Act, populated as it is with elders who have seen it all and have more daily but less yearly time ahead of them than their younger selves did, be that missing agent of change that can untie the paradoxical knot of sustainability? Can its members marshal the courage to be vulnerable about understanding and accepting their past and even current complicity without succumbing to guilt, and can they find energy in that enlightenment that will sustain them in continued activism and provide a beacon for the next generations to follow? And can you and the other leaders who inspire us and speak for us accept the additional and completely unfair responsibility of creating a culture, identity, and expectation—as well as the structural operation—for Third Act that supports, nurtures, and focuses us on this “old and bold" journey unafraid to face even the most uncomfortable parts of the “whole truth”?
Yours truly and gratefully, in the epic challenge of making the epoch of the Anthropocene not Earth’s last, but the last one it needs in order to last forever,
Inspiring to see the older generation link arms with mine and fight together for a livable future. Fills me up with joy, right to the bone. Thank you for sharing this behind the scenes view and giving faces and stories to these leaders. (also that Rebecca Solnit article?? chef’s kiss 😙👌)
Thank you, Bill, for being there! It was a very energizing event, thanks especially to you, Rev. Yearwood and Ben Jealous. And thanks also to my fellow oldsters who occupied the rocking chairs throughout a rather cold night before the march.
PS - That's me, holding the small sign, just to the left of the banner "This bank funds . ."
Thanks, Bill, for everything... Especially grateful for the link at the end of your article to Rebecca Solnit's essay. I might have missed that otherwise, and the result would have been less joy.
Just here to say thank you. Last year, after reading about Wells Fargo’s investments in oil and gas, I moved my small business account to a credit union. It was incredibly satisfying to explain why I was pulling my dollars out of Wells Fargo and my banker was both gobsmacked by my reasoning - and silenced. Under normal circumstances, I suspect he would have tried to sell me on staying but he could tell I wasn’t interested.
When he called the manager over to cosign the transfer request, (big enough to require a manager’s signature) I got to explain it again. The manager also asked why I was leaving. He tried to make me an offer to stay and I politely cut him off. I had held that account for nearly 40 years. What a pleasure it was to very visibly take my money and put it where my values are.
I’m only sorry I couldn’t participate in the protest in Stillwater, MN. On Tuesday. We have had a hellish winter here in Minnesota with ice storms and slushy snow which made walking a challenge. I fell last Monday and wrenched my knee. Dr ordered me to stay off it because at 68, it takes a while to heal. My fellow elders carried on. Woot!
Thank you for all that you do!
yeah!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you for all you do, Bill. Each and every person who took action against the Big Banks are heroes in the greater struggle.
I didn't see this mentioned, but GenZers are taking action. A group is suing Montana, based on a provision in Montana's state constitution that guarantees citizens a clean and healthy environment. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/24/climate/montana-youth-climate-lawsuit.html
Many have no doubt seen the viral video, but 100-year old Grace Linn demolishing a Florida school board for book bans is one of the most inspiring acts of resistance I've seen. There is no age limit when it comes to standing on the right side of history.
Thanks so much for leading the charge against fossil fuel banks. Is there a phone number or website for more help finding more climate-friendly banks? Thanks!
I really enjoy your newsletters! Don't know how you manage to make what usually feels like an out-of-control train coming our way and we're all tied to the track -- imply instead that what we're doing DOES make a difference and that there is hope. I'm a big Rebecca Solnit fan and she and you are on the same page with that definition of hope and how we can apply it to such an overwhelming situation. Thank you so much for what you're doing w/Third Act!
Rock On, indeed!
It was an honor, Bill, to provide even a little backup help and my body weight in spirit to you, Heather, and the other seniors in those 102 events and 30 states, including the handful of my colleagues organizing the fledgling Third Act Arizona. We put the launch of TA-AZ on hold to answer your call to do something for 3.21.23. And by all accounts it was successful.
But Bill, I’m one of those who often, to use your phrase, “feel very pessimistic, even despairing.” So your heart-felt and eloquent post inspires me to ask . . . Why are some aspects of the climate crisis taboo with environmentalists? And are they—dare I use a pun—TA-boo as well?
Why do we not face the issue of population growth, thoughtfully, compassionately, and ethically of course, but bravely and purposefully? Why is Paul Ehrlich considered happily wrong because the population bomb didn’t explode as suddenly as he predicted, even though it is exploding just as certainly and as horribly—in slow but inevitable motion? And why, as a direct result, are thousands (I can only hope it’s that few!) of our enlightened younger generation across this choking globe who are 100% down with every aspect of the environmental movement refusing to conceive the children that the Earth will so desperately need to protect Her in the future, saying they can not bear the weight of delivering new lives into the desperate, crying-like-a-baby future that is the only one they can any longer imagine?
Why do we not face the issue of food with the same compassionate, ethical, but brave purpose? Why do Michael Greger, Neal Barnard, Sailesh Rao, and so many other enlightened, creative, and (amazingly) still apparently unexhausted physicians and scientist/scholars, who are still bravely championing the glorious message of a whole food plant-based diet/lifestyle in contrast to the abominably cruel and incomprehensibly huge animal agriculture killing and burning machines—why do these relatively unsung heroes champion on with their message of hope and healing against a cognitive-dissonant-thick wall of ignore-ance (hyphen intended), not just from the polluted right(ha!)-wing of our government but also from some of our most widely respected and lionized environmental spokespeople?
(And as somewhat of an aside, why have some of our best and brightest minds and spirits, especially some prescient and inspirational early voices of the environmental movement, been marginalized as aging hippies and reduced to supporting themselves by giving talks and passing the hat at small town art-house theaters and second-tier college student centers, their idealism possibly providing some temporary encouragement to the already committed, while ironically driving some of those uncompromising faithful to levels of despair and paranoia that manifest in anti-establishment dropout behavior, uncivil disobedience, or even acts of violence that undermine and hinder progress toward the very goals they believe they are promoting?)
Why, Bill, are issues like these, in spite of their outsized and immediate importance and their unassailable veracity, considered off-limits by even our most faithful advocates? Is the reason why public sector institutions and their leaders shy away from the unfairly branded “controversial” causes of our crisis their reliance on the large and steadily predictable flow of financial support from as many philanthropic supporters as possible? As we vilify the banks who directly enable profiteering from the rape of the environment, are we nonetheless comfortable wooing other monied interests whose commitment to the future is assumed to be limited by a don’t-go-there door to the basement of their value system where it’s convenient to believe that their foundational truth is safely secured but they are not about to ever visit it, let alone allow it out? Has our post-truth world really reached the point where we are so preoccupied with protecting “the truth” and “nothing but the truth", that defending “the whole truth” is a distraction or—much worse—a pragmatic and necessary sacrificial compromise to be made to optimize some calculus of the movement’s net effectiveness? Is that where we are, envisioning a “best case” scenario for a definition of livability we’re willing to accept because it’s realistically achievable as opposed to ideally desirable, let alone necessary for survival? Do we envision ourselves at a great final celebratory gathering prepared to lift a half-baby trophy for our hard-working throng of supporters to cheer as proof of our victory?
These questions bedevil me. And they lead to the questions for which I have an especially immediate hope for an answer. Can Third Act, populated as it is with elders who have seen it all and have more daily but less yearly time ahead of them than their younger selves did, be that missing agent of change that can untie the paradoxical knot of sustainability? Can its members marshal the courage to be vulnerable about understanding and accepting their past and even current complicity without succumbing to guilt, and can they find energy in that enlightenment that will sustain them in continued activism and provide a beacon for the next generations to follow? And can you and the other leaders who inspire us and speak for us accept the additional and completely unfair responsibility of creating a culture, identity, and expectation—as well as the structural operation—for Third Act that supports, nurtures, and focuses us on this “old and bold" journey unafraid to face even the most uncomfortable parts of the “whole truth”?
Yours truly and gratefully, in the epic challenge of making the epoch of the Anthropocene not Earth’s last, but the last one it needs in order to last forever,
JT
Jon Thompson
Sedona, AZ
Inspiring to see the older generation link arms with mine and fight together for a livable future. Fills me up with joy, right to the bone. Thank you for sharing this behind the scenes view and giving faces and stories to these leaders. (also that Rebecca Solnit article?? chef’s kiss 😙👌)
Thank you, Bill, for being there! It was a very energizing event, thanks especially to you, Rev. Yearwood and Ben Jealous. And thanks also to my fellow oldsters who occupied the rocking chairs throughout a rather cold night before the march.
PS - That's me, holding the small sign, just to the left of the banner "This bank funds . ."
Thanks, Bill, for everything... Especially grateful for the link at the end of your article to Rebecca Solnit's essay. I might have missed that otherwise, and the result would have been less joy.