Absolved

It’s not my fault.

I hardly ever drive.  I don’t eat meat.  I’ve never owned a private jet or superyacht.

I’m not a member of an organized religion that believes its members are more favored by God or that they have a divine right to live in some specific Biblical homeland.  I don’t hold a long-standing grudge against a certain race or ethnic group based on far-off historical event.

I haven’t any aspirations to build a giant casino or massive data center in a desert.  You won’t find me harboring territorial ambitions regarding the places that other people live.  I’m perfectly fine with leaving that forest or untapped wilderness alone.

I have no desire to kill anyone to take their stuff.  I can’t see a need to travel to or colonize other planets.  I don’t even fish.

I’m not into fast fashion.  I don’t indulge in any of the drugs that devastate our cities and rural areas while making the cartels rich.  I’m not a health insurance corporation CEO.

Nor am I a corrupt, self-serving politician.

I let my lawn go dormant in the summer.  I take public transportation whenever possible.  I pay my taxes.

I have flown half a dozen or so times in the past couple of years.  But the planes were already going to those places, anyway, so don’t blame me.  Much, anyway.

On the rare occasions I order take-out coffee, I almost always use my recyclable mug.  It’s made of plastic, sure, but I’m keeping it out of the ocean.

I only have one child.  I pick up my dog’s poop and dispose of it responsibly, according to the guidelines on our local waste management company’s website.  I drop off spray cans and used batteries at the hazardous waste disposal site.

My 401k plan includes mutual funds with holdings from major multinational corporations; my home sits on the stolen lands of indigenous people; I’m an American.

Come to think of it, mea culpa.