2) In another interview transcript, Grist Magazine sits down with Edward Norton to talk about environmental activism. I respect Norton a great deal, both for some of his more impressive acting turns and for his intelligence. Unfortunately, he sometimes comes across as an arrogant prick - listen to the "Fight Club" commentary if you want to realize just how very much this guy loves waxing poetic about his own abilities - but some of his
3) James Howard Kunstler forecasts extremely dire futures for the First World, particularly our own country (and parts of neighboring Canada), but this recent adaptation of the introduction to his new book, The Long Emergency, is a very important read. It can be married to the excellent Stephen M. Meyer article (about extinction and wildlife conservation) to make you feel really good about the 21st century. I try to remain as optimistic as I can, but I find myself agreeing with Kunstler when he writes,
"It has been very hard for Americans - lost in dark raptures of nonstop infotainment, recreational shopping and compulsive motoring - to make sense of the gathering forces that will fundamentally alter the terms of everyday life in our technological society. [...] Suburbia will come to be regarded as the greatest misallocation of resources in the history of the world."Kunstler predicts, as the Pentagon did in their 2003 forecast, a complete economic collapse of the United States by 2050. The result will be a country in which train travel is the only economically feasible option and the southern 1/2 is torn apart by drought, disease, and racism. He thinks the northern half of the United States will fare better, but he neglects to address the "white flight" that would surely follow such a "long emergency."
Read it here.
3 comments:
The series you speak/write of, "Strange Days on Planet Earth," was pretty good. There were four episodes, each one dealing with a different contemporary problem. Invasive species, climate change, predator extinction, and, finally, water contamination/run-off. I would definitely show it to high school (even college) students were I teaching biology. Some of the editing was a little much for me, but all the information they provided was "fair and balanced." Of course, the makers of atrazine and the climate change nay-sayers would disagree.
I find it very interesting that a person who's living is pretending to be someone else can be arrogant. Confidence is warranted; arrogance never is. While Norton is a fine actor, he's replacable, as we all are.
"Suburbia will come to be regarded as the greatest misallocation of resources in the history of the world." What a great quote! And right on target. Wish I had said it.
Devo:
"Strange Days on Planet Earth" will definitely be replayed on PBS and it is also available on DVD from PBS.org.
As for suburbia being "transformed" into a net positive, my skepticism tells me this is impossible. While there is certainly much we can do to help quell the "evils" of suburbia and sprawl (your example, however extreme, is one of many options), no matter how energy efficient suburbia becomes (a lofty and unlikely goal), the misused, savaged land will remain populated.
Also, suburbia doesn't seem that "easy" to me. Of course, much of this has to do with the migraine headaches I get when I spend time in a suburban area, but there are other, more universal, difficulties presented by suburban life.
The automobile and white flight gave birth to the suburb and anything born of a union between thoughtless consumption and racism ain't good in my book, even if we can one day make it a little less destructive and offensive.
Should we ever get serious about conserving biodiversity and lessening our anthropogenic influence, the two poles of city and country life are the only reasonable options. Even country life, though, must be carefully considered. Unless you are a farmer, living in a farmhouse away from the towns will only compoind one's adverse impact. As much as I've always wanted to head for the hills and live far, far away, I imagine I'll end up in a medium-sized town, but one in which I don't have to drive often, the houses are small and the agriculture local. This may seem as "pie in the sky" as a suburb running on solar power, but whereas ignorance and industry resistance will keep the latter fantasy at bay, many small towns throughout New England, Michigan, Minnesota and the Pacific Northwest are slready making the transition.
The truth is, given our habits, no matter where we live we're having too much of an impact, but we can each do what we can to minimize it.
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