Here Comes the Summer December 29, 2008
Posted by Graham in : General , 2commentsIt may seem a little early for some but with the passing of the winter solstice and the lengthening days I am already making garden plans for next year, ordering seeds and even sowing vegetables- planted my crop of Elephant garlic from last year, sowed broad beans inside and even have a tray of nine-star perennial broccoli sprouting in the greenhouse. The weather has been cool but we have had some beautiful days of sunshine, enticing enough for even the most reluctant gardeners.
If you are looking for veggie seeds you can do no better than Brown Envelope Seeds who have a great selection this year. Looking through their catalogue I was particularly struck by the number of varieties that would merit planting for ornamental value alone- from the Crimson Flowered broad Bean, the Black magic Runner, to the bright Lights Swiss Chard with its bright orange and yellow stem, amazing Painted Mountain corn, and my own favourite the astonishing romanesco Broccoli- aka “Fractal Broccoli” – there is a feast here for the eyes as much for the belly.
Peak oil gloomers and doomers should not miss the gift box selections which include the “Armageddon” Pack with 10 packets of seeds, pencil and plant labels- emergency flares not included. Sure to be a popular choice in 2009!
Book Review: The Long Descent December 11, 2008
Posted by Graham in : Human Ecology, Overshoot, Peak Oil, Science and Rationaltiy, Tools and technology, book review, collapse, consciousness , 12comments
The Long Descent- A Users Guide to the End of the Industrial Age
John Michael Greer
New Society Publishers 2008
John Michael Greer has written a fascinating and engaging, but also contradictory and perplexing account of how he sees the industrial age ending.
His primary thesis is that collapse will not come as a sudden, abrupt End Of Days or Die Off scenario- one minute thriving bustling affluent society with the universe at its feet, the next a crumbling pile of rubble with nothing but wisps of smoke to hint of its former glory- but will follow a “catabolic” process of progressive disintegration, over possibly a couple of centuries. In Greer’s scenario, short periods of abrupt and sharp downturns- the beginning of which we are experiencing now- punctuate longer periods of relative stability. Like an organism that begins feeding on itself, society will collapse in a series of stepped-down stages as it becomes progressively unable to meet maintenance charges with income.
One of the most interesting parts of the book is the chapter “Tools for the Transition” Greer has a most interesting discussion of the merits of the slide-rule over the pocket calculator, and explains why it is infinitely more suitable to a low-energy world:it is durable- a solid aluminum slde-rule could last nearly geological time-scales-, independent, dependable and perhaps most significant of all its use of transparent- a future archeologist would be able to work out exactly how to use it. I have never actually used a slide-rule, but this discussion has inspired me to get one, and even teach its use on permaculture courses as an example of durable technologies. There are many other insightful observations Greer makes in this chapter, including comments on salvage and organic agriculture, and what will endure into the post-collapse world.
What sets Greer’s book apart and make it really interesting is his focus on “The Stories we tell Ourselves”. He weaves his discussion of the Long descent around what he sees as two modern myths- the myth of unending progress and technological supremacy on the one hand, and imminent catastrophe and collapse on the other. Both are myths or stories that fail to see the much more likely outcome of catabolic collapse. (more…)
The Strange Case of David Bellamy and Global Cooling December 8, 2008
Posted by Graham in : General , 4commentsGeorge Monbiot today has another excellent piece on climate deniers and Bellamy here.
Its official: scientists say the earth stopped warming fully 10 years ago and has in fact been cooling ever since.
According, that is, to one scientist, some time TV presenter and British naturalist David Bellamy, who could be heard this week being interviewed on the Pat Kenny Radio show Today on RTE.
Bellamy is well known for his climate-skeptic stance, which according to Wikipaedia has lead to his fall from grace in media circles including the BBC.
Bellamy’s earlier claim that most of the world’s glaciers are in fact growing in size has been well debunked by George Monbiot who wrote on the subject a few years ago saying
“It is hard to convey just how selective you have to be to dismiss the evidence for climate change. You must climb over a mountain of evidence to pick up a crumb: a crumb which then disintegrates in your palm. You must ignore an entire canon of science, the statements of the world’s most eminent scientific institutions, and thousands of papers published in the foremost scientific journals. You must, if you are David Bellamy, embrace instead the claims of an eccentric former architect, which are based on what appears to be a non-existent data set. And you must do all this while calling yourself a scientist.”
None of this seems to have phased Bellamy who was once again heard confidently pronouncing that the vast body of scientific data supporting anthropogenic climate change is simply wrong- If the world has been warming it is a natural result of sun spot activity- but records show that the earth is as a matter of fact cooling. Bellamy sites Hendrik Svensmark and Nigel Calder’s book “The Chilling Stars” which posits the theory of cosmic rays as more significant than greenhouse gases. (Calder of course was implicated in the Great Global Warming Swindle film as well, lending his credibility as some-time editor of New Scientist to the skeptic’s camp.)- he saw this as being “good science”, while Kenny defended his show and media impartiality on the basis that they had reviewed the book and were therefore open to a wide range of viewpoints-
can we expect some serious interviews with members of the Flat Earth Society Pat for balance ?
So how do we know he isnt right if in fact global temperatures have been declining as he states? Apparently it is not that complicated- 2008 may well be the coolest year of the decade, but it is still a lot warmer than in pre-industrial times. The general trend in temperatures and CO2 levels are, like the oil price, still rising. The last ten years on their own are not representative- we have to look at the longer time scale. It is a question of comparing long term climate change to short term weather variability.
A bit like claiming we are going into an ice age because there was abit of a frost on the car this morning- not really the kind of calliber of argument you would want from a world-renowned scientist, defender of nature and household name, but there you go.
A good discussion of this can be found here at RealClimate.org.
Another climate skeptic is Irish Times journalist Kevin Myers who was interviewed by Paul Cunningham for the book “Ireland’s Burning”. Myers is quoted as saying that the “obsession” with environmentalism is like a new religion- “you conform or you are some kind of heretic and unworthy.” He particularly slates the Catholic Church’s call for action on climate change through Trocaire
as a cynical ploy to get money and get people to church. This all seems rather odd because, from the climate activists’ perspective, and that of many climate scientists’ as well, there is anything but obsession with climate change from government and the public, just lip service at best as we vigorously continue to pursue business as usual. He also thinks that a lot of environmentalism is based on fear- “fear of death and fear of the consequences of not having lived a good life.”
On probing deeper, however, it seems Myers may hold rather contradictory positions on the subject:
I dont think there is very much we can do about this. If the damage has been done on the lines people have said, then it is already too late. We have to recognise this possibility that we have stepped into the funnel and that the planet is doomed. It’s possible this is the case.
Now, coming from a climate skeptic, that sounds like real doom-mongering indeed.
