With 40 people, there's enough for 5 or 6 different groupings of dialoguing at any one time. Are you involved, or just chalking up membership to a group with such a name as this as good enough?

Is there anybody getting together to talk about everyday living and what's going on locally? Or is everyone just sitting back and feeling great that they've pushed the "Join" button?

Yes, you're not alone in wanting to live differently, and there are certainly many more who don't even know about this website that would easily outnumber the people in this group. But are they, or you, sharing your experiences and thoughts?

Perhaps people don't have as much time on their hands as I do… Perhaps some people are too afraid of the unknown to meet random people for a topic that shouldn't be controversial but has been dressed up as such?

I know I'm not very comfortable meeting with strangers. As such, I'd recommend anybody who feels similarly to take someone along with you, and meeting in a somewhat public place if you are shy or concerned. If I could, that's what I'd do, I'd grab a buddy to take with me to meet new people. If anything, that'd help add to the dialogue anyways.

Unfortunately, the people I know personally aren't that concerned about living differently in that way. So in the mean time, being on my own in this pursuit, I'll probably just try to be attentive to this list and post some topics for dialoguing.

I figure someone's got to do something in these lists, or else why bother joining this group? Why bother being a member, eh? So, I'm haphazardly making a proposal: without fear or shame, let's post our everyday decisions.

And instead of condemnation or judging, like what happens in other forums that turn into flame wars of right/wrong, let's instead consider posting a reply with similar experiences and what we did, too. Seriously, every instance is different and the short descriptions of our experiences can't be all encompassing. So, if we could reply by sharing "what we did in a similar circumstance" instead of advising "the right way it should have been done", then I think we could learn a lot from each other without dwelling on a past we weren't involved in, as well as be inspired in future decisions and questions in our own lives.

Just some thoughts…

Mostly, I'm a bit perplexed, though. On the one hand, I don't really know what to do get you guys to consider this to be just as important as your television shows or other entertainment distracting you from this. And I don't really know why anybody would bother to push the "Join" button if they didn't want to develop this part of their lives further. Ultimately, it means deciding that something else in your life would be put on the sideline at times, like missing a TV show or two every once in a while.

On the other hand, perhaps this meetup group is a front, and you guys have secret meetings not publicly posted so as to not be found out by government organizations or other nemeses. [Cue secret agent conspiracy music…] Then, whenever a new member joins, you hack the meetup site and discover their IP and source it to a geo-location. Next, people are assigned to scope out the site(s) and get a visual/photo of the new member so further investigation of their daily routine can be logged. Then after a sufficient amount surveillance, if the new member isn't consider to be obviously a Fed or anti-eco individual in disguise, they'll be approached "accidentally" in their every day routine. A casual conversation will ensue and at some point an eco-topic will be brought up, but indirectly, and the person's response will be noted and observed by third-parties to better assess the individual's potential in the secret society. No potential, then no further "coincidental" contact. Otherwise, further initiation and assimilation into the secret society lurking behind this "Green Collar Change Agents" meetup façade will progress…

Or on the other hand, uhm, foot, uh, grouping of prosthetic phalanges? Er… Perhaps nobody knows what to talk about, or are afraid of sounding silly or uninformed, or of not being good enough to belong, or of being reprimanded. That's partly why I made the suggestions earlier. For instance, post something from our lives, like an experience at the grocery store when they didn't have something we were looking for and we had to try something else. Or what you learned about the different cars and trucks as you look for a personal vehicle, and the questions you asked and the answers you got (didn't get). It's also why I suggested a different response other than telling someone they did something wrong when they did what the could in the moment. Instead, share a similar experience, whether you succeeded or not.

I seriously believe one the many reasons people on the whole aren't doing much differently in their lives, i.e. continuing business and life as usual, is because they don't know of other possibilities. I believe another reason is they are afraid of being shamed or ridiculed or labeled, and essentially don't want to feel defensive. So, let's just share what we've done without fear, and read with acceptance of what happened instead of trying to apply right/wrong to everything posted.

I'll do what I can to provide an example, but I'm not exactly well practiced at this, as I don't experience it much if at all from other people. I'm just certain of what I'd rather experience, and what I haven't appreciated in other forums with know-it-alls (their typical accusation of each other) boxing each other's ears. Everybody is bound to have something somebody doesn't agree with, likely because it doesn't fit that other person's life. That's a perfect opportunity to mention what does work for them if it's something different, instead of beating up on somebody else.

Well, I just don't know what you guys are up to if nothing is happening online here. Considering that other possibility is a bit unnerving, the fabled and unknown society of secrecy, I'm not too sure I really want to know. So, uhm, no need to do any sort of surveillance of me, or stalking and whatnot. Really. Nothing to see here, no interest in getting myself killed as an agent for change. And if that's so, er, good luck with your, uhm, other pursuits.

As for writing another post based on living more accountably and therefore thoughtfully, and as such towards sustainable uses and different measures of success, I'll see what I can come up with myself. I really don't believe you can go wrong, so feel free to post anything, any thought in regard to this group's topic. Perhaps a book you read, or an issue in the newspaper, or whatnot. Let's get some dialogue going, rather than useless debates. In the end, it doesn't matter who's right if everybody is dead. Let's promote experiences and inspiration, preferences and desires, and not mere talk about right/wrong.

Yes? No? Maybe so?

Well, this is a lot of thought to answer to but here goes. There's a new movie out that all green living enthusiasts should see. We need to get more informed about our food choices and how the US food economy is negatively impacting our Earth and all her creatures within, more so than even all the car driving pollution in the world combined.

This movie, FOOD, INC., is currently showing with limited engagement at the Ko'olau 10 Theatres in Kaneohe. If you would like to join us tomorrow to see it or get more details, go to:
Animal Rights Hawai'i Meetup for Food, Inc.