Comments | nekrenas: good and silly environmentalism

nekrenas

good and silly environmentalism

Oct 25, 2009 19:06

I just finished reading Whole Earth Discipline, by Stewart Brand, of Whole Earth Catalog fame. The gist of the book can be found in his TED talk, Rethinking Green. An environmentalist, his book is about positions some environmentalists hold that they need to reconsider. In his talk he covers urbanization, nuclear power, and genetic engineering, all ( Read more... )

Comments 3

gybefan2000 October 26 2009, 20:05:54 UTC

In a way I guess urbanization is bad, but then the suburban model is far worse. The ideal I think would be for cities to conduct themselves sensibly, with lots of pedestrian access and closely-grouped buildings, kinda the Jane Jacobs model but with a little sustainability thrown in. As for nuclear power, I can't say I see a thing wrong with it, but then I haven't really done the necessary research. I think the anti-nuclear thing is an artifact of the '70s and '80s, or so I should hope.

My most radical hope is that oil depletion will lead to shrinkage in the sizes of cities and increased sustainability along the lines I've just mentioned, and actually there's a new book out, though I forget the title, arguing that this is exactly the kind of beneficial thing that'll happen eventually.

nekrenas October 27 2009, 01:51:09 UTC

I like urbanization because ( ... )

A Radical Environmentalist Responds anonymous October 30 2009, 03:20:19 UTC

As a radical environmentalist not only do I oppose all further urbanization but I would also like to rollback the urbanization that does exist via a massive reforestation program. I find the greater part of human civilization to be so degenerate (or otherwise aesthetically revolting) as to be more than worthy of destruction. Honestly, I don't see how anyone could think otherwise once they see the mindless sprawl (urban or suburban) that characterizes almost every modern metropolis ( ... )