Protestors climb on train

[omikron]

What on earth to ER hope to achieve this morning?! Such arseholes

@alkaseltz oh well, always nice to hear when one is appreciated

@adamum On the contrary, I think that you are a representative of a racist, classist, self-important, egomaniacal bunch of cunts who are doing immense damage to my city & my country.
Glad to hear that it's such a fucking joke to you.

And your smug little grinning emoji is a perfect encapsulation of everything that is wrong with XR. You should be fucking ashamed, not smirking your self-satisfied way through another smug Saturday.

"the planet IS dying" what stuff and nonsense. The plant is not dying at all, the climate is changing which will make it hard for humans and animals to exist as before. The planet is just fine.

@reanimatedSGB I agree it is absolutely essential that the movement deals with its race and class privilege. XR needs to learn and act fast on that. Nothing is more important for XR right now.
Personally I don't quite recognise the second bit of what you say, as most of the other people I've met in XR are also involved in other environmental campaigns and very respectful of those, so I'm not sure what to say about that.

@alkaseltz Believe me, I feel absolutely the opposite of smug. Scared, grieving, concerned, anxious, tired... Not smug.

@adamum

I don't think that XR or you, deserve quite the bile you are getting but can't you see how futile this is? XR will not accomplish anything. Nothing.

We have austerity. People are struggling. You can't expect people to tolerate what you're doing when they're having to go to food banks and worrying about how to pay the rent.

It's not fair.

@tumbleisatwat Thank you.
I don't believe this is either/or. We need to tackle austerity and poverty. And we need to tackle the climate emergency.
We can't tackle one without the other.

You need to tackle austerity first.

You're wasting your time with the climate change stuff otherwise.

That's the cold reality.

Did you know than infant mortality is rising due to poverty? In the UK, in 2019.

That's how bad things are getting. Climate change is a lot further down the list for most people I'm afraid.

@tumbleisatwat Yes, I work with very marginalised women who are survivors of violence, and I'm aware that people are genuinely struggling to get by in this country. I think the revived debates around a Green New Deal both in the US and the UK are hopeful. As I'm sure you know, these debates focus on creating an economy that is greener and that works for the majority of people, building environmental justice alongside social justice. I would paste some links but I don't want to look patronising - I'm sure you are reading and thinking about these issues already. If we don't take action, the fear is that climate breakdown will create more suffering for people who are already struggling, as well as threatening our planet.

@adamum alkaseltz Believe me, I feel absolutely the opposite of smug. Scared, grieving, concerned, anxious, tired... Not smug.

No, I don't believe you.

my family and I, including my very young children & my pensioner parents, are having to try to work out where we can flee to if Corbyn gets into power & an actually anti-semitic party takes power in the UK for the first time in our lives.

I have friends who are on the breadline, and then some. Single mums, mums of severely disabled children, ethnic minorities... we/they are scared.

Your pathetic little virtue signalling about how 'anxious' and 'tired' you are makes me sick .

We need government, industry, to act.

So why are XR undertaking actions that impact on ordinary people? Which part of government or industry did blockading Oxford Circus or holding up tube trains achieve?

@BrightYellowDaffodil Most of XR were totally opposed to the tube action. It's a decentralised movement and a few people can act alone.
Most of the actions over the last 2 weeks centred on Whitehall - i.e. government departments - and Westminster, plus banks and businesses, including media businesses. For instance, yesterday there were 100s of us outside Downing St, the Treasury, Dept for Transport and Min of Justice, protesting energetically and peacefully, but that didn't really get any coverage unlike the guy up Big Ben and the few at Oxf Circus. Wonder why!

@adamum Just want to say a massive thank you for what you do, and I am so sorry for the abuse you are receiving here, despite your really respectful and considered responses.

Why not save your fury for those who are trashing the planet, not those who care so deeply for it? And why not keep your mockery for those who are sleepwalking into environmental collapse, not those who are trying to raise the alarm?

Cos they are the ones ruining peoples day, stopping them from attending work or appointments. Risking them being fired, all for a few ego maniac protesters who think they are the be all and end all of this world

You know what also puts me off, the language, the doomsday vibe, like really, I dont do OTT drama for anything if i can avoid it and XR come off as a bunch of drama filled crack pots. Stop sounding like a hysterical doomsday cult, that alone is offputting and makes me go, ugh, bugger that for a joke. I mean grieving for a world, catastrophe, crisis, alarm? Bit dramatic dont ya think?

@truthfairy Thank you so much.

@squeekums We really are not being over dramatic in talking about an impending catastrophe and the need to sound the alarm.
This is not irrational - look at the scientific consensus. Over 1000 scientists have now signed a letter of support for XR's strategy of civil disobedience.
They say:
"We declare that scientific evidence shows beyond any reasonable doubt that human-caused changes to the Earth’s land, sea and air are severely threatening the habitability of our planet. We further declare that overwhelming evidence shows that if global greenhouse gas emissions are not brought rapidly down to net zero and biodiversity loss is not halted, we risk catastrophic and irreversible damage to our planetary life-support systems, causing incalculable human suffering and many deaths....
We therefore support those who are rising up peacefully against governments around the world that are failing to act proportionately to the scale of the crisis."
docs.google.com/document/d/1FuZYG-gT5EPTLDyvgNnlYIS5dAy43TM1MnvOls48qIc/edit
All the people I know in XR are not the kind that just enjoy protesting for the sake of it. They are busy, responsible people who are doing it because they are deeply worried about their own and their children's future.

Go and protest at the UN, industry expos, embassies.

That’s a good letter Adamum I’ve kept that

@adamum you completely don't deserve the really horrible abuse you're getting from some posters. I hope you're not taking it too much to heart. You sound very much like most of the lovely people I have met in XR.

@lordproffekkothepenguinphd There have been XR protests at industry HQs/expos and at embassies. There will be more I'm sure.
Also, anyone can join XR and bring an idea for an action, so if anyone is reading this and thinking, XR should really do this particular protest, then if you have the time and inclination, you can join your local group and see if others support it and go from there.

@marshabradyo @hmmpop Thank you so much!

What about the Chinese and us embassies in London? Big polluters, unrepentant and unwilling to engage. They need to have dialogue not blockades.

@lordproffekkothepenguinPHD There was a march between embassies on Thursday. I didn't go to that because I'd rather focus on what our government can do right now - I think it's there that pressure may lead to action first. Obviously in a decentralised movement people have different priorities.