Discuss: Theses on Sustainability

“You may call me a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.”

Nor the only dream. The danger in spiritual solutions is that it runs the risk of being another form of evangelism. If we cannot truly change things until everyone accepts a certain narrowly proscribed spiritual or religious world-view, then it becomes another dogma, another missionary attempt to convert the heathens to the true path. As does the rejection of spiritual solutions. We need the perspective to respect many different ways of reaching shared goals and not try to convert all to the one true path.

John

Hello John Chapman.  I am not really sure if you were referring to my post when you warned about “evangelism”?  I myself am not a member of any religion.  The word “spiritual” can be confusing unless more clearly defined.  What I intend by it is whatever is loving, good, beautiful, etc.  Of course all categories are susceptible to corruption.  Not all “holy water” is salutary, for sure.  User beware.  Check before using.  My idea of spirituality is very much an individually discerned reality; it doesn’t package well for the mass market.

I would ask the author, Eric Zencey and your readers to check out Technocracy Inc. This organization has had a blueprint for the most sustainable social system for decades.They would recommend doing away with money, the price system, and replace it with with an energy accounting system among other things in their blueprint for survival.
John

“They’re making more people every day, but they ain’t makin’ any more dirt.”
  —Will Rogers

I believe the sun is the way to sustainable living. The sun allows the creation of plants that can provide more output than the use of stored energy input. 

the delema is how to have enough of these energy (growers)creators near the energy users.

“vegetaion will save the nation” from Smith and Hawken

I don’t believe our government will let any tax be “revenue neutral”.

We need to get away from the lifestyle of conspicuous consumptionism. Living within our means with enough, but not so much that we destroy the planet. What those that have fail to realize is every material thing we get (while employing someone), uses valuable resources. Think if each of us gave up buying just one material thing we didn’t really need the long term impact this could have.

Eric,
The term ‘sustainability’ needed clarification, and your article was focused and insightful.  Your subsequent explanations on this discussion site were edifying, and I (and I’m sure many others) thank you for sticking to the subject.  Too often, comment sites are consumed by irrelevant discussions from folks trying to best the author or pull the topic to their area of interest. To quote another great writer, Bill McKibben,:”….the writing should disappear, the thought linger….”
I also believe that the time for information sessions and moral/spiritual platitudes on the subject of the sustainability of our Earth is over: we know the facts and we know what’s right.  The 5% of folks who will act on info and morals are already living sustainability.  The other 95% of folks need financial or legal boundaries to make them live in a way that ensures that their needs don’t compromise our grandkids’ needs.