Dear Mr Meacher/Dear Editors,

I disagree profoundly with your, Michael Meacher's, attitude and contention that "the government can and should take action now [against increasing inequality in income]", because it perpetuates the myth that the rest of us can sit back and leave it to government to put things right, and ultimately to save us.

Government can do neither! The roots of the PROBLEM, which is existential and goes far beyond the question of social inequality, are too deep and too extensive for any government to do anything but make minor changes to the part jungle/part garden we call human society.

The gross social inequality and injustice that have ALWAYS characterised our society are no longer just matters of a particular moral or political standpoint, but are now central to our survival.

We are mistaken in assuming the poor to be the world's biggest problem (who we all want to help to become as rich, or nearly as rich, as we are), when in fact it is the RICH who are the real - certainly the far bigger - problem! Not simply because they (we) place a far greater per capita burden on our planet's finite resources and carrying capacity than the poor, but much more importantly, because they act as "role models", whose non-sustainable lifestyles and ways of doing business, communicated and extolled by the media, most of the world's other (soon 6-8 billion!) inhabitants are striving to emulate.  When only a few (thousand/million) rich people owned a car and jetted about the world our planet could shrug it off - but not any longer.

The wealthy and powerful are leading us ALL, rich and poor alike, towards our doom! Which is what the failure to achieve a sustainable global economy and lifestyles for Earth's billions of inhabitants will mean. 

The concept of "SPACESHIP EARTH" is familiar to most, but too little understood. Remember Apollo 13, whose life-support systems were seriously damaged by an explosion on its way to the Moon. Because of the vast differences in scale, what took only seconds to become apparent aboard that spaceship, is taking years (decades) on Spaceship Earth. But for those with eyes to see, the signs are clear enough.

A ludicrous comparison? Of course Earth, its climate and ecosystems, will adjust and recover from whatever damage we do to them. But it may take thousands, 100's of thousands, or even millions of years to do so, which is an awfully long time for our descendents - those who survive the turmoil - to have to wait!

The point I'm making is that social inequality and injustice are central to the question of SUSTAINABILITY, and thus to our survival.

The forces responsible for social inequality and injustice are the same forces which drive our non-sustainable economy and lifestyles. They stem from our primitive, more animal than human, nature. They are the forces on which our economy is based and on which it depends.

Our capitalist, free-market economy is fundamentally non-sustainable.

That is hard to swallow, I know - such a short time after its glorious and well-deserved victory over Communism and Socialism.

 What are we to do? First we must face up to the situation and recognise just what radical and rapid (i.e. revolutionary) changes are necessary (to our economy and lifestyles) in order to achieve sustainability.

At the moment the situation looks pretty hopeless, because so few people (including many who are sure that they do) recognise the magnitude and urgency of the PROBLEM (of achieving sustainable economies and lifestyles for 7 - 9 billion people BEFORE the middle of THIS century). I am nevertheless hopeful and optimistic. Most people, once they realise just what is at stake (their own children's and grandchildren's future) will be prepared to do (and, even more importantly, cease from doing!) whatever is necessary.

Recognising the hopelessness of our situation is the first step. The next step is not to despair at the prospect of changing it. No ONE can change it, because what each of us does (or does not do) is just a tiny drop in the proverbial ocean. We must have FAITH (that what we do, and do not do, will make a difference, even though it is too small to notice) and do OUR bit (in taking us away from our current non-sustainable economic activity and lifestyles and towards sustainability).

Then we need a vision of our goal (of a sustainable economy and society and of our role and place in it). This is essential to strengthen our faith and resolve to persist in striving for it. Getting there, even noticing that we are moving in the right direction, is going to take some time.

Finally we need to know HOW to go about making our own particular contribution to achieving our goal (of creating a sustainable society, i.e. economy and lifestyles).

An enlightened government, if we get one, will be very helpful in the creation of a sustainable society, but it cannot create it for us. We, the people - those of us who want it, who recognise the necessity and urgency of it - will have to create it ourselves. It is not enough just to talk and theorise about it, as so many "intellectuals" love to do (perhaps because that is all they feel capable of), we have to ACTUALLY create it.

Everybody wants a sustainable society, of course, but hardly anyone wants to do (and refrain from doing) what is necessary to achieve it. We are like an alcoholic who wants nothing more than to be sober, but who lacks the will to stop drinking. We too are addicted to and dependent on our non-sustainable lifestyles and growth-dependent economy.

And to make things worse, there is so much confusion, with hundreds, nay, thousands, of politicians, journalists, political commentators, university lecturers, etc. telling us their authoritative view of the situation and of what needs to be done. If one school of thought says one thing, another, with equal authority, will say the opposite. And now I come along and add my voice to the cacophony!

Hopefully I will succeed in striking a note which will gain for my ideas the attention they deserve.

And here, for the moment, I must leave it.