The Viridian Manifesto

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We also love cops and soldiers; one problem with traditional cultural movements is that they have way too much culture and too few people with revolvers. As for terrorism and vigilante action, we just find this absurd. These people obviously have no idea how to seize and hold power.

One gets tired of watching cultural movements act as if they were engaged in something daringly criminal and semi-licit; the GCC fits that bill. So we don't engage in Net-radical hacking or monkeywrenching nonsense; we're far more interested in on-site inspections and legal indictments.

If several million people starve to death because, for instance, repeated El NiÒo events disrupt global harvests, there will be a catastrophe. The best solution would be something like the Czech lustration and the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The late 20th century has given us a mechanism by which societies that have drifted into dysfunctional madness can be put right. We expect no less for future malefactors whose sly defense of an indefensible status quo may lead to the deaths of millions of people who have derived little benefit from their actions and were never given any voice in their decisions. We recommend that dossiers be compiled now, openly, in a spirit of civic duty.

While it is helpful to have a polarized, personalized enemy class, there is nothing new about this political tactic. Revanchist sentiment is all very well, but survival requires a larger vision. It must become the work of many people who ignore traditional disciplinary and ideological boundaries and unite to pursue a single practical goal: redesigning the global climate.

Bruce Sterling is a science fiction and techno writer. The complete Viridian Manifesto is at www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/2606/viridian.htm. From Whole Earth (Summer 1999). Subscriptions: $24/yr. (4 issues) from Box 3000, Denville, NJ 07834.

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