Chocolate & Cheese - orig. 07/22/05
I just spoke with Waste Management for my town and they let me know that I can recycle plastics number one and two with my curbside recycling. In my cupboards and fridge I have primarily ones, twos and fives.
-----
Ellensburg’s electricity is supplied by Bonneville Power Administration. Apparently it can purchase gas from a number of sources as that industry has been deregulated. I am going to try and contact Bonneville Power Administration.
The following is a quote from the Bonneville Power Administration Web site, “ The Bonneville Power Administration, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Energy. BPA serves the Pacific Northwest through operating an extensive electricity transmission system and marketing wholesale electrical power at cost from federal dams, one non-federal nuclear plant and other nonfederal hydroelectric and wind energy generation facilities. BPA aims to be a national leader in providing high reliability, low rates consistent with sound business principles, responsible environmental stewardship and accountability to the region.” According to the site they encourage public comment and involvement. They also allow you to download documents that discuss BPA’s strategic direction. It looks like I have some research to do.
The nonfederal nuclear plant the BPA refers to is located in Hanford, WA. Here is another quote form Paul Hawkens book The Ecology of Commerce, In Hanford, Washington, the site of a nuclear weapons research facility managed for the U.S. Government by General Electric, there are enough wastes stored there to cover all of Manhattan with a radioactive lake forty feet deep. Some of these wastes are stored in underground tanks. The tanks are leaking.” Bear in mind that the book was written in 1993. Maybe the answer to the Hanford cleanup question is to ship the waste to Manhattan (lol).
-----
I just bought some organic cheese produced by Organic Valley Family of Farms. It cost $3.99 which is three to four times what I would normally expect to pay for cheese. I am going to their Web site and check out what they have to say. I also purchased a candy bar from the local natural food store. It cost $2.39 for a three ounce bar. It doesn’t seem realistic that the average American is going to switch to an organic diet when the retail price is so much higher than for non-organic foods.
The cheese came in plastic wrap with paper labels adhered to both sides. The chocolate is wrapped in a layer of foil paper and a second layer of paper with a really gloss finish.
The cheese and the chocolate bar are both very tasty.
-----
I should mention that I am not yet ready to give up electricity. I believe it is necessary for the efficient dissemination of information. If there were no power I would not have been persuaded to change my thinking in regards to my lifestyle.
I viewed a documentary recently about the effect of the dissolution of the USSR on the utilities in Bosnia. The electric company which had previously been run by the government was privatized and the people were asked to start paying electric bills. 90 percent of the people were behind in their electric bills at the beginning of the show. People who could not afford to pay to be hooked up to the grid were pirating their electricity. This practice is extremely dangerous (Attaching the pirate lines is dangerous, they showed the corpse of a man who had been electrocuted. It also poses an extreme fire hazard.) and was also widespread. I have seen a similar phenomenon on a show I watched about a city in South America.
There was more than one moment in the course of the show where people were gathering in mobs and close to rioting. This leads me to believe that it is important for us to maintain our electric grid. I will need to look into alternative sources of electricity. I am an electrical consumer and I don’t feel very good about it now that I am more aware of the source of my electricity.
-----
There were a couple of things I was thinking about before I ran across them in Paul Hawken’s book. One was the analogy of the canary in the mine shaft which I used in an early entry and which he also uses. It is such an apt analogy that it is hard to avoid using it.
The other thing I was thinking about and that Paul refers to on page 26 in The Ecology of Commerce, is, “Defenders of the status quo sometimes cite the Book of Genesis, in which God grants dominion over the planet and over all the creatures to mankind.” Dominion to me implies responsibility. This planet is a physical manifestation of paradise to me. It would be nice if we viewed ourselves as caretakers as opposed to consumers.
Regarding the sanctity of human life: When I was going to school in Germany I remember another American student saying something like, “For $200 I could get a junkie to bump someone off.” What would you do for $200? What would you do for $1,000,000? What would you do for one billion dollars? Think of what good could be done with one billion dollars (lol).
-----
While I’m thinking about it I need to mention a book by Henri Bergsun called The Two Sources of Morality and Religion. In it he discusses levels of morality. The first level of moral obligation is to ourselves and our family. The next level is to our community. The next level is to our nation. The next level is to the world. I may have missed some levels in there, but you get the idea.
It seems oxymoronic that in our drive to obtain security for ourselves, our families, our communities, our nation etc. that we may end up endangering them all.
Which brings us to situational ethics. Ethics as defined by dictionary.com:
eth·ic n.
1 a. A set of principles of right conduct.
b. A theory or a system of moral values: “An ethic of service is at war with a craving for gain” (Gregg Easterbrook).
2 ethics (used with a sing. verb) The study of the general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices to be made by a person; moral philosophy.
3 ethics (used with a sing. or pl. verb) The rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession: medical ethics.
It seems that ethics are closely tied to morals. Social psychology says that our morality is situationally based. The theory is that our ethics (what we consider to be right and wrong) are based on the expectations of the situation in which we are placed. This theory is used to explain the actions of folks involved in the Nazi movement as well as cults.
Many of the individuals involved in the desecration's of the holocaust did not necessarily commit terrible acts in any area of their lives other than their jobs and may have even been regarded as good men by their friends and family. But the power of the expectations of their situations caused them to behave on their jobs in ways which we would call evil.
The same thing happens to CEO’s of corporations who may be good people, but are forced by their positions to make decisions that have a harmful impact on some individuals e.g. layoffs or to the environment e.g. choosing to pay fines or buy pollution permits rather than to stop polluting.
I believe this effect to be pervasive in our culture. We all know that our consumer habits are detrimental to the environment, but the situation of our economy and culture compels us to continue consuming.
The effect is so pervasive that environmentalism has a stigma attached to it. I am in fact embarrassed to assume the role of environmental activist. But once again here is the scale: Embarrassment vs. the destruction of life on Earth.
-----
I believe that drug addiction is a good analogy for the consumer culture. I heard a lady on TV yesterday say that she was a, “product junkie.” She said it jokingly, but I find her choice of words very apt.
I hope that this blog will serve as a “turd in the beer” of every consumer that reads it. You will never be able to consume again without an awareness of the destructive nature of the act.
-----
I found last night that I was becoming numb. I think the ability to dissociate is what allows us to function in the face of tragedy or fear. It can also allow us to remain apathetic. I need to focus on making a habit of sustainable living such that even if I begin to feel less strongly I will continue to behave in what I consider to be a moral manner.
-----
I spent some time today looking for sites that I can email asking for a links exchange. I found a lot of good resources. A person could probably devote their whole life to researching sustainability and still not exhaust the available information.
I also mentioned to a couple of people that they should check out “The Corporation.” Progress is kind of slow, but like anything else this is a process.
-----
I guess the bottom line to me is if there is even a possibility that what I have been hearing and reading about is true then it is incumbent upon me to try and effect a change. I believe that personal change is possible and that public opinion can be swayed. I think the big fear is that by the time popular opinion comes around it will already be late.
-----
There are no pictures in this entry, but in the next one. I promise.
-----
Ellensburg’s electricity is supplied by Bonneville Power Administration. Apparently it can purchase gas from a number of sources as that industry has been deregulated. I am going to try and contact Bonneville Power Administration.
The following is a quote from the Bonneville Power Administration Web site, “ The Bonneville Power Administration, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Energy. BPA serves the Pacific Northwest through operating an extensive electricity transmission system and marketing wholesale electrical power at cost from federal dams, one non-federal nuclear plant and other nonfederal hydroelectric and wind energy generation facilities. BPA aims to be a national leader in providing high reliability, low rates consistent with sound business principles, responsible environmental stewardship and accountability to the region.” According to the site they encourage public comment and involvement. They also allow you to download documents that discuss BPA’s strategic direction. It looks like I have some research to do.
The nonfederal nuclear plant the BPA refers to is located in Hanford, WA. Here is another quote form Paul Hawkens book The Ecology of Commerce, In Hanford, Washington, the site of a nuclear weapons research facility managed for the U.S. Government by General Electric, there are enough wastes stored there to cover all of Manhattan with a radioactive lake forty feet deep. Some of these wastes are stored in underground tanks. The tanks are leaking.” Bear in mind that the book was written in 1993. Maybe the answer to the Hanford cleanup question is to ship the waste to Manhattan (lol).
-----
I just bought some organic cheese produced by Organic Valley Family of Farms. It cost $3.99 which is three to four times what I would normally expect to pay for cheese. I am going to their Web site and check out what they have to say. I also purchased a candy bar from the local natural food store. It cost $2.39 for a three ounce bar. It doesn’t seem realistic that the average American is going to switch to an organic diet when the retail price is so much higher than for non-organic foods.
The cheese came in plastic wrap with paper labels adhered to both sides. The chocolate is wrapped in a layer of foil paper and a second layer of paper with a really gloss finish.
The cheese and the chocolate bar are both very tasty.
-----
I should mention that I am not yet ready to give up electricity. I believe it is necessary for the efficient dissemination of information. If there were no power I would not have been persuaded to change my thinking in regards to my lifestyle.
I viewed a documentary recently about the effect of the dissolution of the USSR on the utilities in Bosnia. The electric company which had previously been run by the government was privatized and the people were asked to start paying electric bills. 90 percent of the people were behind in their electric bills at the beginning of the show. People who could not afford to pay to be hooked up to the grid were pirating their electricity. This practice is extremely dangerous (Attaching the pirate lines is dangerous, they showed the corpse of a man who had been electrocuted. It also poses an extreme fire hazard.) and was also widespread. I have seen a similar phenomenon on a show I watched about a city in South America.
There was more than one moment in the course of the show where people were gathering in mobs and close to rioting. This leads me to believe that it is important for us to maintain our electric grid. I will need to look into alternative sources of electricity. I am an electrical consumer and I don’t feel very good about it now that I am more aware of the source of my electricity.
-----
There were a couple of things I was thinking about before I ran across them in Paul Hawken’s book. One was the analogy of the canary in the mine shaft which I used in an early entry and which he also uses. It is such an apt analogy that it is hard to avoid using it.
The other thing I was thinking about and that Paul refers to on page 26 in The Ecology of Commerce, is, “Defenders of the status quo sometimes cite the Book of Genesis, in which God grants dominion over the planet and over all the creatures to mankind.” Dominion to me implies responsibility. This planet is a physical manifestation of paradise to me. It would be nice if we viewed ourselves as caretakers as opposed to consumers.
Regarding the sanctity of human life: When I was going to school in Germany I remember another American student saying something like, “For $200 I could get a junkie to bump someone off.” What would you do for $200? What would you do for $1,000,000? What would you do for one billion dollars? Think of what good could be done with one billion dollars (lol).
-----
While I’m thinking about it I need to mention a book by Henri Bergsun called The Two Sources of Morality and Religion. In it he discusses levels of morality. The first level of moral obligation is to ourselves and our family. The next level is to our community. The next level is to our nation. The next level is to the world. I may have missed some levels in there, but you get the idea.
It seems oxymoronic that in our drive to obtain security for ourselves, our families, our communities, our nation etc. that we may end up endangering them all.
Which brings us to situational ethics. Ethics as defined by dictionary.com:
eth·ic n.
1 a. A set of principles of right conduct.
b. A theory or a system of moral values: “An ethic of service is at war with a craving for gain” (Gregg Easterbrook).
2 ethics (used with a sing. verb) The study of the general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices to be made by a person; moral philosophy.
3 ethics (used with a sing. or pl. verb) The rules or standards governing the conduct of a person or the members of a profession: medical ethics.
It seems that ethics are closely tied to morals. Social psychology says that our morality is situationally based. The theory is that our ethics (what we consider to be right and wrong) are based on the expectations of the situation in which we are placed. This theory is used to explain the actions of folks involved in the Nazi movement as well as cults.
Many of the individuals involved in the desecration's of the holocaust did not necessarily commit terrible acts in any area of their lives other than their jobs and may have even been regarded as good men by their friends and family. But the power of the expectations of their situations caused them to behave on their jobs in ways which we would call evil.
The same thing happens to CEO’s of corporations who may be good people, but are forced by their positions to make decisions that have a harmful impact on some individuals e.g. layoffs or to the environment e.g. choosing to pay fines or buy pollution permits rather than to stop polluting.
I believe this effect to be pervasive in our culture. We all know that our consumer habits are detrimental to the environment, but the situation of our economy and culture compels us to continue consuming.
The effect is so pervasive that environmentalism has a stigma attached to it. I am in fact embarrassed to assume the role of environmental activist. But once again here is the scale: Embarrassment vs. the destruction of life on Earth.
-----
I believe that drug addiction is a good analogy for the consumer culture. I heard a lady on TV yesterday say that she was a, “product junkie.” She said it jokingly, but I find her choice of words very apt.
I hope that this blog will serve as a “turd in the beer” of every consumer that reads it. You will never be able to consume again without an awareness of the destructive nature of the act.
-----
I found last night that I was becoming numb. I think the ability to dissociate is what allows us to function in the face of tragedy or fear. It can also allow us to remain apathetic. I need to focus on making a habit of sustainable living such that even if I begin to feel less strongly I will continue to behave in what I consider to be a moral manner.
-----
I spent some time today looking for sites that I can email asking for a links exchange. I found a lot of good resources. A person could probably devote their whole life to researching sustainability and still not exhaust the available information.
I also mentioned to a couple of people that they should check out “The Corporation.” Progress is kind of slow, but like anything else this is a process.
-----
I guess the bottom line to me is if there is even a possibility that what I have been hearing and reading about is true then it is incumbent upon me to try and effect a change. I believe that personal change is possible and that public opinion can be swayed. I think the big fear is that by the time popular opinion comes around it will already be late.
-----
There are no pictures in this entry, but in the next one. I promise.
posted by T-Bone_Jones at 8:47 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home