Yesterday, the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, called on President Obama to come to Copenhagen in December. But first we Americans need to compel our Congress to be there, too, in spirit.
Ontem, o presidente do Brasil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, pediu para o Presidente Obama comparecer em Copenhague em dezembro. Primeiro, nós americanos precisamos exigir a presença de nosso Congresso, também, em espírito.
Readers: Please help amplify this message by contributing a translation of the simple text above in any of the languages you speak. I've started by translating it into Portuguese, and will update the diary once there are a few other contributions. The world is looking to the US for a signal of our willingness to change and lead the way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Follow me over the fold for a visual diary of the October 350.org action in San Francisco and a few remarks on the photos.
I've hesitated before now to contribute a photo diary, but after attending the recent 350.org action in San Francisco (with my Hasselblad), I think it's time to set aside that scruple: we progressives have to use whatever skills we can muster to shake off complacence, to encourage and inspire each other. I was moved by the display of disciplined organization on the part of the many young people who worked patiently with a large crowd that brilliant northern California afternoon to form a giant 3 - 5 - 0, entirely of people. The number means something specific: the upper boundary of what's thought to be a 'safe' quantity, expressed in parts per million, of CO2 in the atmosphere---that is, a level of CO2 that will not further accelerate man's contribution to global warming.
The photographs were shot on black and white film (Kodak TXP) on a Hasselbad medium format camera. (All photos: Sheila Newbery)