We were so encouraged in 2007. Al Gore was the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize winner, we had the momentum generated by a new awareness.

There was the recognition that this is a war over resources, an energy war, that has quickly become a water war, a food war. The explanation by the Nobel Committee regarding this award was simple, and perhaps flew under the radar. Paraphrasing, the Nobel Committee stated, correctly, that global warming will lead to shortages of resources, and those shortages will lead to migration of peoples, and also to conflicts over resources. War. Access to resources, brings power and control over money.

We have seen the enemy, and it is us.

Last week, in close proximity, three distinctly separate news stories broke.

On Friday BP began shutting its North Sea Forties pipeline system, which supplies up to half the UK's oil, ahead of a strike planned this weekend at the Grangemouth refinery in Scotland. Grangemouth also supplies power to a nearby plant which processes crude oil from the Forties pipeline. The power plant is due to shut on Saturday ahead of the strike by 1,200 refinery workers, which starts on Sunday. It is the first such strike in 70 years.

Nigerian Militants said they blew up two more oil pipelines Monday in southern Nigeria.

Shell officials had no immediate information on any attack, and the Nigerian military battle group that patrols the oil region's waterways said it had no reports of overnight violence. Officials from Chevron could not immediately be reached for comment.

Finally, a cargo ship hired by the U.S. military fired warning shots at approaching boats in the Gulf, the U.S. Navy said on Friday, underscoring tension in the region as the Pentagon sharpened its warnings to Iran.

According to American defense officials, the Westward Venture cargo ship chartered by the U.S. Defense Department was traveling in international waters when two unidentified small boats approached on Thursday.

Obviously there are political implications here, which are very convenient. An environment of fear favors incumbents (see election 2004). Should you choose to focus on the political connection, you may miss the point.

In the last twelve months, we have seen crude oil prices rise from $50 a barrel to $120 a barrel. By November, we may welcome $100 a barrel with open arms. That this happens in the eleventh hour of the Bush Administration defies explanation.

The misguided effort to produce Ethanol using corn is so often cited we must now develop a code. We could wander around singing “ Oh What A Beautiful Morning” (“corn is as high as an elephants eye”). Farmers will tell you that cellulosic is the answer. Turn landfills into generators.

It has created world food shortages. Eighty pound limit for rice at Sam’s Clubs in the U.S. Riots in countries all over the world. China refuses to sell rice to Pakistan.

This is no different than Georgia refusing to share water resources with Florida and Alabama. It will happen everywhere.

And, as consumer confidence hits a 26 year low, and the dollar sinks to record levels in the face of a worsening recession, the market stages a rally.

So, lets focus our attention on what we can do. We declare energy independence.

There are obvious alternative sources of energy. They have always been there. The Wind, Water, Sun, and the Earth.

We are the Fifth Element.

The most immediate impact that we can make is in conservation and efficiency. Office buildings must be made efficient. This also accounts for 40% of greenhouse gas emissions.

Solar energy will see its fastest growth. As materials become less expensive, costs will compete. Residential solar will become a standard practice. Hybrid cars will become commonplace, but will be replaced by vehicles completely fossil fuel free. Hydroelectric power has unlimited potential. Do you think the ocean has something to offer us? We are just beginning to harness it. There are various technologies, underwater turbines, buoys that generate electricity from the movement of the waves. The Earth’s energy, emerging geothermal technology, begins to contribute to an alternative energy grid. And finally it is the Wind. New, more efficient, more powerful turbines are here. There is so much demand for these, that a production waiting list is 4 years long. Native American tribes want to build a wind farm that stretches from the Canadian border south to the border of Mexico. Given their history this is an act no only of incredible foresight, but of forgiveness as well. Native Wind

The best illustration of our role in all this, is through a movie (again)…

I have known for some time that there are powerful messages in movies. Supersized, inconvenient, sicko type messages. We, the media medium marketing masses, are reached. It becomes part of us.

Corporate executives and politicians don’t often get in that place.

The movie message for today, is that of The Fifth Element. You must look past the content, to the “moral of the story”. The search for the stones that can save the planet, that represent the four elements, wind water, earth and fire. The higher power that emergences in the form of a beautiful woman (Hollywood), and the “Fifth Element” saves the Earth from destruction. It is the metaphor that you may have missed in this comedic film.

We have been given everything we need to save this planet from what appears to be inevitable destruction. Our emergence, in a united world, where money and power are seen for what they are. We have been looking for the answer in all the wrong places.

You see, we are the Fifth Element.