"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."

This is a quote by Philip K. Dick. He is my favorite science fiction author. I don't particularly like science fiction in general, but his stories were prophetic in many ways. The underlying core of most of his stories though, wasn't science or the future, but the nature of reality. Everyone lives in their own unique world, and for most people, it seems like they can never truly experience what someone else does. Being that this is the case, it's rather amazing how coherent and interactive our experiences are. There is a basic consensus of what is 'objectively real', even though no one can observe anything objectively. All experience is subjective.

If you accept this to be true, and anyone who is honest with him/herself must admit this, it can be very liberating. What it means is that you literally create your own reality, simply by directing your thoughts and actions a certain way. On a personal level, this can be very powerful. If you are depressed and unhappy with your life, this means that it's your fault. Maybe there are valid reasons for you to be depressed, but the key to fixing it is by changing your thoughts and attitudes. This is of course the idea of existentialism, that you are responsible for everything in your life. It's also an idea that is used in Psychology. What is more interesting to me though, is how this applies to social, economic, and environmental problems.

For example, most of the world is in the midst of an economic crisis. There are many obstacles in the way, and they are usually framed in esoteric terms like liquidity, interest rates, inflation, etc...But none of these things are real. People made them up, and they exist because we treat them as real. The obstacles are self made and self maintained. We made our economic system a certain way. We continue to believe in this economic system. The solution then is obvious; we have to start believing and acting as if we had a different economic system. The current one is made for crooks in suits to make as much money as possible, and to keep common people happy enough that they won't demand a change.

We can't depend on the people that benefit from the current system to change it. We have to change our perceptions (and actions) on a personal level if we want to change it.

don't just boycott bp, boycott oil!

It's a lot easier to believe in things than to do them. People can say they care about the environment, but then they buy bottled water and drive every day. Can such a person still claim to care about the environment? We all know such people, and 99.99% of us are such people. Whether the issue is religious, personal, or social, it is very difficult to live your beliefs. What I think is important though, is to consciously try to live by your beliefs. Otherwise, we're all hypocrites.
Because of the BP oil spill going on now, I am thinking about environmental concerns more than usual. A lot of people are upset about the oil spill. And I'd guess that most of these people continue to buy gas and drive, or take airplanes to wherever they want. Some of these people are trying to get others to boycott BP, but boycotting BP is not the real issue. The issue is our over-reliance on oil. We consume far too much and rely on oil in order to do so.
Food consumption and transportation are the two major areas where you can make a personal difference in how much oil you are using. There are many things you can do to lessen your dependence on oil, including: eating less meat (or no meat), eating locally produced foods, using public transit, walking, or bicycling when possible, traveling less often, and having a garden. These are just a few of the many things you can do. Although boycotting BP is a step in the right direction, using less oil is the goal we should strive for. And it begins with our every day choices.