A water chat with Lloyd Carter

After I spoke to Tom Birmingham, I had a two hour chat [42MB MP3] with Lloyd Carter,* who spent 17 years as a reporter before turning his hand to law and protecting rivers.

I was intrigued to hear Lloyd describe his "Road to Damascus" moment -- encountering the massive environmental damages (and coverup thereof) from selenium-tainted water at Kesterson Wildlife Deadlife Refuge.

We also talked about migrant workers, Westlands, groundwater, the Delta, and so on...

Lloyd left me with this:

Civilization can only revive when there shall come into being in a number of individuals a new tone of mind, independent of the prevalent one among the crowds, and in opposition to it -- a tone of mind which will gradually win influence over the collective one, and in the end determine its character. Only an ethical movement can rescue us from barbarism, and the ethical comes into existence only in individuals. -- Albert Schweitzer

Bottom Line Nothing inspires like outrage, and we-the-outraged find it easy to jump out of bed in the morning!

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* We were occasionally joined (interrupted?) by Walt Shubin, an outspoken raisin farmer. Someday, I'll have to give Walt an hour (or three) for his own chat :)