A Thinking Reed

"Man is but a reed, the most feeble thing in nature, but he is a thinking reed" – Blaise Pascal

Environment

  • The “green consumer” revisited

    Via Russell Arben Fox comes a terrific post by Laura McKenna taking a shot at trendy “green consumerism.” Rusell adds his thoughts here. I blogged a bit about this phenomenon here. It’s interesting (and maybe significant) how much conventional political wisdom is frequently at odds with common-sense (and traditional) wisdom. For instance: the idea that Read more

  • How green is McCain? (the continuing series)

    Grist‘s David Roberts has some thoughts. Read more

  • John Gray contra humanism

    Over the weekend I started reading John Gray’s Straw Dogs: Thoughts on Humans and Other Animals. Gray, a British political philosopher, has gone from being a free-market Thatcherite to a critic of global capitalism to a proponent of James Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis. If there is a connecting thread here it’s Gray’s resolute opposition to utopianism Read more

  • How green is McCain?

    John McCain has distinguished himself from the Republican pack by actually acknowledging the reality of global warming and even sponsoring some legislation to combat it. But would a President McCain really do what’s necessary to seriously address the problem? Read more

  • Crunchy cons, Pollan, Scully and meat-eating

    Rod Dreher of Crunchy Cons fame reflects on the morality of meat-eating, prompted by a discussion with a Christian friend about The Omnivore’s Dilemma (permalinks don’t seem to be working – scroll down to “Re-thinking the meat guzzler”). He also refers to Matthew Scully’s Dominion, an indictment of the factory farming system (and other practices Read more

  • A vegan critique of Pollan

    Erik Marcus, vegan and animal rights activist, has a review of The Omnivore’s Dilemma that is appreciative, but critical in key places. Key quote: Pollan’s book convincingly shows that animal agriculture can, in fact, operate in a way that respects the environment. For a reader who’s acquainted with the staggering wastefulness of animal agriculture, it’s Read more

  • More on Pollan and vegetarianism: vegetarianism as vocation

    I have to admit that I find Pollan’s argument that the domestication of certain animals entails a real gain both for the animals and for us pretty convincing. He points out that animal husbandry may be a necessary part of a sustainable agriculture since relying on animal fertilization is the chief alternative to the chemical Read more

  • Pollan on the ethics of meat eating

    In general I find Michael Pollan’s indictment of our current industrial food system, which floats on a sea of subsidized corn, fossil fuels, and chemical fertilizers, entirely persuasive. And his account of a week spent at self-described “libertarian Christian environmentalist” Joel Salatin’s Polyface Farm, where the natural ecosystem of a functioning farm is respected and Read more

  • Against the globalized food chain

    And why should a nation produce its own food when others can produce it more cheaply? A dozen reasons leap to mind, but most of them the Steven Blanks of the world–and they are legion–are quick to dismiss as sentimental. I’m thinking of the sense of security that comes from knowing that your community, or Read more

  • Cap and Trade 101

    A helpful primer (via Gristmill). Read more