This is my first read on the paper. These are immediate thoughts. So, take them in that spirit. I am not going to go paragraph by paragraph in detail.

This is my overall impression.

I am very flattered to be mentioned several times. This is a very impressive paper. Several of the points you made were things I had never considered.

Particularly your point about how the language of the "White Narrative" diffuses responsibility to all of humanity. That's brilliant.

That's excellent linguistic deconstruction of semantic content. You put the term "Anthropocene" in a whole new light for me. I see it very differently now.

You realize that you could have done an article just on that. That one concept is very powerful and really clear.

Back that up with some graphics showing how the US and Europe are responsible for 80% of historic CO2 emissions and you have a compelling meme.

Particularly when combined with the "Eurokleptocene". Please tell me you came up with that! OMG what at great term.

Because you are right. Language and Narrative are important. They define and shape the discussion and the decisions made.

That's the strongest part of the paper. The core part, the most important part.

Because, we have to move forward now and we have to do it together.

After reading this. I was extremely impressed by your depth of knowledge, your passion for justice, and your intellect. You made some excellent points and outlined an effective meme for a new way of viewing the Climate Crisis.

However, at the end what I most wanted to ask you was how you viewed Nelson Mandela?

How do you view the way he handled the end of Afrikaaner rule and Apartheid? Do you think he was a fool? Do you think he was wise?

Do you agree with what he did, as a means of moving forward? Even if it means that some will never receive the justice they deserve?

Would you be able to live with that?

Because that's the conversation the Global South needs to be having. It's not enough for "White Empire" as Indi.ca puts it so well, to bow down and say "sorry".

However satisfying that may be, you need to think about what your demands are going to be. What kind of leverage you have if you are united.

Do you want to settle scores or move forward? Language matters and from this paper it's unclear which chouce you would make.

Which is why I wanted to ask you about Mandela.