Politics

Ecological reality is not what you hypothesize

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Calling E. F. Schumacher the “Copernicus” of economic theory, Greer bases his new work on Schumacher’s path breaking book Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered. Citing Schumacher’s ideas about “intermediate,” or “appropriate” technology, which the respected economist developed as a way to help the people of third world countries achieve employment and a reasonably comfortable standard of living, Greer says that using these same ideas might be a sensible approach for Americans in an age of scarcity.

Less heat, more light on peak oil

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“Because money talks and BS walks, if the hydrogen economy was an apprentice working for Donald Trump, it would’ve been fired in the first season.” This is just one of the pearls of wisdom from Transition Voice’s new “Snarky Guide to Peak Oil.” It’s got the facts you need to debunk energy myths and the attitude you need to defuse a heated discussion with a smile.

Global Youth Uprising: Dashed Hopes, Anger, and Realism

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Media reports often fail to connect recurring demonstrations in Greece and Spain with those in the Middle East and North Africa (Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Bahrain). After all, the MENA demonstrations are ostensibly about democracy, while European countries already have functioning electoral systems. Protestors in Greece and Spain are instead decrying austerity programs resulting from governmental efforts to rein in deficits and debt burdens.

Fighting corporate power since 1776

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The original Boston Tea Party, claims liberal talk radio host Thom Hartmann, wasn’t really a protest against higher taxes and unrepresentative government. Instead, its target was the excessive power of a large corporation — the British East India Company. In Unequal Protection: How Corporations Became “People” — and How You Can Fight Back, Hartmann surveys the 250-year tug-of-war between citizens and corporations in the US, charts the ascendancy of today’s plutocratic rule and calls for a movement to take back American democracy. But is it relevant to fighting climate change and preparing for peak oil? You bet it is.

Counter-intuition 101: Why recent bad economic news means it’s time for working less

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So what’s the alternative to slashing government programs, budget cutting, and more concentrated wealth at the top? The centerpiece of a new approach is to re-structure the labor market by reducing hours of work. That may seem counter-intuitive in a period when the mainstream message is that we are poorer than ever and have to work harder. But the historical record suggests it’s a smart move that will create what economists call a triple dividend: three positive outcomes from one policy innovation.

Monday Mayhem: Local, Organic Government

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In an ongoing series called “Monday Mayhem,” radio host with a pragmatic view of tackling the challenges of energy, food, and the local economy at the end of the age of oil goes head-to-head with a radio host who promotes free-market solutions. In this edition, Carl Etnier and Rob Roper discuss what it looks like to apply the principles of local, organic food to the functions of government.

A people-centered approach to improve access to food

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Much has been made of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization’s FAO) 2009 recommendation that the world will need to produce 70 percent more food to feed the projected global population of 9.1 billion people in 2050. Policymakers and agricultural investors have focused on increasing supply for the global food market. And while 925 million people worldwide today remain chronically hungry—amidst unprecedented population growth, resource depletion, and climate change—meeting the needs of the future is an enormous challenge for the world food system.