This is an outstanding collection of various key documents in the history of our understanding of global warming. It provides both an informative viewThis is an outstanding collection of various key documents in the history of our understanding of global warming. It provides both an informative view into the history of the science behind global warming and a broad collection of responses to this reality, which makes this book both extremely gripping and very useful as a reference....more
We, the people of our culture, are the inheritors and administrators of a grave evil. Strong evidence of this evil is blazed in the destruction of ourWe, the people of our culture, are the inheritors and administrators of a grave evil. Strong evidence of this evil is blazed in the destruction of our environment, which is clearly caused by humans. Sadly, we have been taught, and we continue to teach others, that this evil is actually good: not that we should be destroying our environment, but that it is a consequence of an otherwise noble pursuit of our culture. With "Ishmael", Daniel Quinn bravely explores and exposes the destructive consequences of the assumptions of this culture.
"Ishmael" is a very important book, if the previous paragraph wasn't dramatic enough for you. It asks us some very hard questions, starting with why are we destroying our beautiful home, the Earth? Next up is does it have to be this way? (Spoiler: no.)
The book does have a number of idiosyncrasies that have alienated a number of readers; still, I exhort you to read this book and consider its arguments. Yes, the eponymous character is a telepathic gorilla; this is simply a device to project the arguments beyond the imposed isolation of civilization, to make us think about what nature could be teaching us if we tried to listen to it. Because of this, the book is technically fiction, but it is a thin veneer around a philosophy lecture. Yes, the author is a part of the culture he is criticizing. Yes, he uses fairly standard gender-weighted language ("man", "mankind", "Mother Culture"). How do either of these detract from his arguments? There are also some more substantive problems with the book, like the fact that he encourages the development of civilization without defining what he means by that, but these problems do not affect his main conclusions.
While this book contains philosophy and ambitious historical analysis wrapped in a thin candy coating, the philosophy is still presented very clearly. Quinn is not shy about his ideas; indeed, he lays them out in excruciating detail. For however much you may like or dislike his style, you still must account honestly for the substance of his arguments and his conclusions....more
In a series of essays, Heinberg calls us to action on various aspects of the problem that our energy addiction is causing and will cause in the near fIn a series of essays, Heinberg calls us to action on various aspects of the problem that our energy addiction is causing and will cause in the near future. Solving this problem is, of course, critical, and Heinberg has a good voice for shedding light on the nature of the problem. I was greatly agitated by the introduction (which is, of course, the point), but the rest of the book seemed less cohesive, although still compelling. (which I recommend to everyone) is a short and sharp summary of the problem of energy addiction (which generally manifests itself in our discourse as Peak Energy and Climate Change); Heinberg states directly that the book is not meant to go into detail about the problem, for he leaves that task to other books. The rest of the book is interesting and certainly frightening, but it explodes in a dozen different directions. It seems like the book is not meant to stand alone, but is instead a sort of continuation of Heinberg's other books. In addition, the book seems resigned about the problem, and I left it uncertain how to proceed, myself. I may start, however, by trying to complete the picture with his other books, as well as other sources....more
I may have only given this four stars, but it is clear that "Climate Cover-up: the Crusade to Deny Global Warming" emphasizes and explores a five-starI may have only given this four stars, but it is clear that "Climate Cover-up: the Crusade to Deny Global Warming" emphasizes and explores a five-star, unequivocally compelling topic, which is the ongoing and deepening sustainability and climate crisis.
Hoggan wants to make you angry. You should be angry, and he generally succeeds, but he doesn't grab the reader's attention as strongly as possible. Hoggan targets the oil industry, the coal industry, and other monied interests that would be less successful under additional environmental regulation, digging into the ways in which they have worked extremely diligently to avoid that regulation. The book provides details of the various strategies that these interests have used, which largely reduce to lies and misdirection to confuse and slow down any decision-making with respect to the crisis.
The book discusses all this in great detail, and provides historical context, but even Hoggan asserts that he doesn't want it to be a history. The book does a great job of pointing the spotlight on the motivations and strategies of those who would derail progress on the sustainability crisis, but it does not provide a continuous narrative, which might have helped to draw the reader more deeply into the reality of the situation. The approach that the book does take comes off as being a bit detached, and this is only aggravated by a poor analogy that Hoggan returns to several times throughout the book.
That said, the insight that this book provides is extremely valuable, and it is a great jumping off point for further research. Hoggan has a rich list of real life villains and heroes, with the challenge reaching to all of us to learn as much as possible about both in order to arm ourselves with the information that we'll need to make good decisions going forward....more
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