Call for a Modern Victory Movement

This was posted on one of my Groups Today and I am passing it along.

Call for a Modern Victory Movement (MVM)

Anyone who is paying attention knows that we are facing many economic, environmental and energy-related issues that are changing the world we live in. The costs of energy, fuel, food and other resources necessary to modern civilization are skyrocketing, and there is no real relief in sight. In some areas of the world, real scarcity is starting to enter the system. Even the mainstream news media is reporting the high price of gasoline and the double-digit inflation over the past year of basic food stuffs such as bread, milk and eggs.

The common folks are being hurt. Imagine being on a fixed income or trapped in a low-wage job at a time when the basic costs of living are experiencing rapid inflation. Imagine being a factory worker at this time, knowing that your job might be moved to a third-world country at any moment. Imagine being a member of middle-management, knowing that a recession means down-sizing and lay-offs and no job security. What can we do to provide security during the tough times that lie ahead?

Today,I am calling for what I call a Modern Victory Movement, patterned after the victory garden movements of World Wars I and II. We do not need to wait for our leaders in government or on corporate boards to save us. Indeed, they will not or cannot. It is up to the common folks to mobilize and save ourselves.

History of Victory Gardens

During World War I, the United States and Canada had to provide food not only for their populations, but for war-ravaged Europe as well. As more food stuffs were shipped overseas, availability of food in North America decreased and prices increased on such staples as butter, milk,eggs and coffee. Meatless and wheatless days were encouraged by government officials to try to cut consumption. Community gardens began to spring up everywhere as people started growing their own food.

In 1917, the National War Garden Commission was founded to"arouse the patriots of America to the importance of putting all idle land to work, to teach them how to do it, and to educate them to conserve by canning and drying all food that they could not use while fresh" (Charles Pack, The War Garden Victorious, copyright 1919, page10). The Commission used posters (such as the one on our website), slogans, cartoons, press releases and pamphlets to educate people.

After the end of World War I, the idea of Victory Gardens went out-of-style. But the idea made a comeback during the Great Depression with Depression Relief Gardens. Early during the Depression, these gardens were promoted by local governments and were a bureaucratic nightmare,with squabbles and in-fighting over where to put the gardens, what to grow and how much control individuals should have over their plots in the community gardens. By 1933, however, local governments had relinquished control of these community gardens to private organizations, such as the Family Welfare Society, which did a remarkably better job organizing them. The federal government eventually took control, changed the names from "relief gardens" to"welfare gardens" and greatly restricted eligibility for participation. By the end of the 1930s the Depression era gardening movement was dead.

Then came World War II, and the Victory Garden movement was back. But the Victory Movement was about more than just growing food. Conservation of resources was also promoted. Scrap metal drives were commonplace, as were rubber drives. War bonds were sold. Societal norms were changed as women were encouraged to go to work in order to fill jobs left vacant by the men at war. Rosie the Riveter became a symbol to rally around.

War time efforts of the common folks were promoted by posters, slogans, pamphlets,billboards, cartoons, comics, TV and films. Whatever it took to get the word out and promote gardening and conservation efforts was done. A massive change in people's behavior was accomplished.

The Modern Victory Movement

I am calling for a Modern Victory Movement for the common folks. This victory movement will encourage and educate people to:

1- Raise and preserve as much of their food as possible.
2- Greatly conserve energy, fuel, freshwater and other natural resources.
3- Drastically reduce personal consumption of all goods and resources.
4- Repair, reuse and recycle to as great an extent as possible.
5- Plant trees as part of reforestation projects and edible landscaping.
6- Improve soils through wise use, composting and vermiculture.

The more people are able to provide food for themselves and their families,the better they will be protected from high inflation and potential future scarcity. From a simple veggie patch in the backyard to a fully integrated forest garden with free-roaming chickens for eggs, the more food each of us can raise, the better off the world will be. City farming in community gardens, on rooftops or in containers on balconies and windowsills is especially important.

Not only will energy& fuel conservation save people money, it will allow for a smoother transition to the low-energy future that is coming. In addition, we should all strive to conserve freshwater, timber and other natural resources.

We must drastically reduce our personal consumption of everything. The high consumption lifestyles of Western civilization cannot be maintained much longer. We must simplify our lives, be less materialistic, buy and use only what we truly need.

Reduce,repair, reuse and recycle must become a mantra for each of us. The first and best option is to reduce our consumption of goods and resources. Next, we must repair and reuse what we cannot reduce. Maximize the lifespan of goods so they need replacing only rarely. Finally, after something can no longer be repaired or reused, it must be recycled.

Trees are the future. Trees fight climate change, improve air quality, control flooding, stop soil erosion,maintain freshwater supplies, restore ecosystems and produce food, as well as provide timber for building and fuel for heating and cooking. Trees are an incredibly important source of food, much more productive per acre than livestock or even grains.

Good soils are an incredible store of future value. We need to conserve healthy soils and build new soils through wise use, composting and vermiculture.

How to start the Modern Victory Movement

We can start a modern victory movement (MVM) by spreading the word -telling our families, friends, neighbors and co-workers. We can learn how to do these things and then teach others. I am starting today,with this essay. Every Monday, I will post to this group a new essay on MVM encouraging people to adopt this new lifestyle and helping to educate them in how to do so. Of course, many of the posts to the group throughout the week are quite useful to this idea.

Please spread the word about the modern victory movement among your family and friends. Forward this essay to everyone you know. Tell people about this group and encourage them to join (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ModernVictoryMovement/). Write letters to the editor of local newspapers talking about the idea of a modern victory movement.

Those of you who have them, please post this essay on your personal websites or blogs. Those of you who belong to other Yahoo groups, please forward this essay to them or post about the modern victory movement to those groups.


Tim Gamble
Sustainable Future
http://tim-gamble.blogspot.com/