If humanity cannot live with the dangers and responsibilities inherent in freedom, it will probably turn to authoritarianism. -Eric Fromm
Thanks to Beth Miller in Maine who turned me on to a site regarding The Center for an Ecology Based Economy. Her find is in line with my articles speaking to movements empowering readers within their communities. Beth responded to a post I placed on Diane Russell's Facebook Page, a representative holding an office in the Maine Legislature. (One never knows just how the word will spread.)
Eric Fromm wrote his most influential book in 1941, Escape from Freedom. This was during WWII, a time that was fathered by the German war machine and the attempt to eradicate Jews. This attempt towards genocide affected Fromm deeply (he was a Jew). Thus, one of his later books is Anatomy of Human Destructiveness.
Do these titles sound like us? Human Destructiveness? Escape from Freedom? Are we saying in response, "just give me my 25% off coupon and I'll be good, honest!" Is that an escape from freedom?
Meanwhile, as our culture at large continues escaping from freedom, the website for the Center for an Ecology Based Economy introduces us to a potential for members to be empowered. There we are invited to help invigorate freedom rather than escape from it . Consider the following paragraph:
Join the Center for an Ecology-Based Economy to realize the dream of healthy, sustainable communities and achieve greater resilience to climate and resource instability. Only by working together and celebrating our diversity and collective knowledge, will we realize our greatest potential as a community and thrive well into the future.
CEBE has programs, projects, and information regarding:
FOOD: We believe in human-scale food systems that provide an abundance of local food and jobs, while using the land, regenerating soils, and restoring people's health in Western Maine.
SHELTER: We work to build affordable and efficient, low-impact housing that is inspiring for the people living in them and for communities with similar climate challenges to Western Maine.
ENERGY: We want clean, renewable, and affordable energy to be accessible to everyone in our community, increasing efficiency, quality of life, and our local economy.
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