Every day for the last 21 days David Goldsmith (52) from Christchurch has been protesting outside our parliament about their lack of focus on Climate Change issues.
For the last 14 days he has been on a hunger strike because he wants a better world for his children.
With the help of some Wellington volunteers I caught up with Dvaid yesterday and did an interview for NZPTV which you can find here.
A good guy doing what he can to draw our attention to a dire situation.
Bryan Bruce is one of NZs most respected documentary makers and public intellectuals who has tirelessly exposed NZs neoliberal economic settings as the main cause for social issues.
Great courageous work David and thanks for providing the platform Bryan and posting it here.
This action reminds me of the many who protested against french nuclear tests in the pacific and other actions including the spring bok tour and further anti nuclear protests culminating in a law change and our withdrawal from ANZUS in 1987.
Interesting that only the Greens including Chloe spent time with and took an interest in what he is trying to do here.
His action and the others waiting to participate give me hope we can change peoples attitude and perceptions around what is a cataclysmic assault on our precious mother earth.
Now would be a good time for Jacinda to use some of that political capital to start leading the fight and like Covid make it a collective response.
I have just heard about this guy and his protest. Admirable. I have thought from time to time about the Buddhist monks who set themselves on fire to draw attention to wrongs that were being done. It is so hard getting through our pretend thick skins. Underneath we are so vulnerable, it would be good if we could have empathy for each other. And particularly for David Goldsmith who has caught the mind bug that makes you do things, even though you are the only one.
I am reading one of Daniel Goleman’s many books on how we need to be…different. This one is called Social Intelligence. Is that taught at school; possibly not in the home, as role modelling is probably the main way that info gets passed on there? Here is a bit on crowds following and acting out same behaviour. There is an observed formula for football hooligans did you know? They work themselves up and then a gang leader attacks a rival fan, and it sparks everybody off. It has been noted what coalesces a mass of individuals into a crowd is a ‘single passion’ that everyone shares. “A mood can sweep through a group with great rapidity, a remarkable display of the parallel alignment of biological subsystems that puts everyone there in physiological synchrony.” (Think term ‘mirror neuron co-ordination’.) Also the term ‘group contagion’ which just describes the feelings everyone is having at the films, concerts. It can happen at meetings; a test with two different meetings which were business simulations about applications of bonuses – both with actors taking a role, one to be confrontational and another to be helpful and upbeat. The group was affected by the mood of the individual and showed a definite change in what had been their mood.
So perhaps what David is doing, could be echoed by more people, and start an upbeat response to his climate change message. Who can carry on with some other positive, practical and happy continuation? If some new practice that is worthwhile comes along, it could be publicised and praised. Just listening to Country Life on Radionz Friday night 9pm/Saturday morning 7 am gives good vibes, there are some great ideas being trialled and practised already out there – innovative farming is going on. Townies could help farmers to move that way. The conservatism that shows up in rural areas may result in quite a smothering affect on farmers willing to try new stuff being left out of the neighbourhood loop as being too loopy to be bothered with! But others from out of the area coming forward with new approaches, which should be accompanied by facts about increased yields or better drought resistance etc, could be a catalyst for change.
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