Rejection of politics is deep and widespread. Even sincere and responsible individuals who practice it hold their nose while doing so. Yet politics must be practiced, and well, if the planet and the people are to survive. A clue for our future success as a species lies in the fact that ecology has never really been tried in politics. Yet ecology holds the secret of success for planet and people precisely in politics. Deep in ecology is the astounding fact, scientifically examined and attested to, that we are already related. Though taught by elite after elite that we are separate from nature and thus from everyone and everything, this can now be seen as the great mistake and a perpetuated lie from generation to generation. A new ontology of being related is the gateway of consciousness to a new and exciting politics for survival and democracy.
Waves of transformation lap at barriers in the political sphere. But they are repulsed by an entrenched politics rooted not only in the greed and power hunger of a dominant few, or in outmoded structures of economic and political power, but in the old millennial ontology of being separate. Our extraordinary times call for a new political party animated by the ecology of being related. It is a party of a different kind, one that frees itself from giant worldwide corporations, is fully and overtly dedicated to non-violence and rooted in the awareness that the people come first. This party knows that elections must be fair and equal and must enable undistorted dialogue, and that people in government must not only proclaim but practice the principle of being of, for, and by the people. This book challenges The Green Party, now on a footing in over 100 countries, to be this party of a different kind.
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John Rensenbrink is a deeply intellectual academic who is also a pragmatic citizen of the United States and the world. This work is a reflection of his lifetime commitment to social justice and ecological wisdom through his academic scholarship and is informed by his engagement in real life solutions to the most vexing problems we have faced as a people for generations. Whether one agrees with John’s theories of politics or more generally his political perspective, this work will for sure broaden one’s understanding of our political and social relationships and our connection to the planet.