Monday, September 07, 2009

Where Are We Headed?

I'm in the middle of reading Heat by George Monbiot.  It's a few years old but still an excellent read.

Check out a couple of his recent blog posts.

Not Even Wrong

Should We Seek to Save Industrial Civilisation?

I find it very hard to know what to think of our current situation. Should I retreat to a cabin in the woods and attempt to live a pre-industrial life? But a few people doing that won't save us. Or do I give up and live it up while I can?

The middle ground of making some feeble personal attempts to "reduce, reuse, and recycle" seem almost pointless when the people around me are buying SUV's and McMansions. And when I, myself, hypocritically continue to travel by air, eclipsing any savings I might have made other ways.

4 comments:

  1. I've been asking myself these questions too. I've just moved to Saskatoon from Whitehorse. Our loghouse/hunter-gatherer lifestyle may have been healthy but it was quite unsustainable when you think of the amount of fuel it takes to get out on the land or ship "stuff" and food north of 60. I much prefer living here in town where I travel short distances and where most of my food comes from local sources. When it comes to living more sustainably, I think cities are the way to go.

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  2. I don't think any of us are in a position to judge our impact on the world around us. I hold on to the promise that if a butterfly flapping its wings can affect the weather on the other side of the world, then perhaps my efforts to walk gently and respectfully upon the earth can make a difference.

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  3. I wrestle with these questions, too. I think the most "successful" action I've taken is to be part of the fair trade certification movement: Building structures and an institution that make some kind of change on a larger scale.

    I spend a lot of time questioning why I wash dishes by hand when everyone else in the world saves themselves 20 minutes per day with a dishwasher. Never mind that they use 2 1/2 times the water.

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  4. It's all good to try to live with the earth in mind but you don't have to be so depressed about it all the time :o) We'll probably all die of cancer and aids and hunger before we kill the planet! Might as well take at least a little pleasure out of the short life we have (and that doesn't mean trashing the place to do it). I know I'm not going to save the world but I still plant trees and recycle. Planting trees makes me happy :o)

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