The Land and Water Conservation Fund Needs To Be Spent
By Donella Meadows
–July 9, 1994–
At the edge of my town there’s an open field, kept mowed by a bunch of neighbors who play softball on it. At one wooded edge there’s a picnic bench and a kids’ sandbox. In the woods the land slopes down to a brook that’s deep enough for trout, but shallow enough for children to wade [...]
Health Care–Let’s Bring In Some New Designers
By Donella Meadows
–May 5, 1994–
While our elected representatives tangle themselves in the health care debate, I go on paying $182 a month for $1500-deductible health insurance.
While my insurance company hires more lobbyists, it doesn’t return my phone calls.
While the Congress tries to devise a plan that will make the Republicans look bad and the Democrats good, or vice versa, the [...]
A Nuclear Power Plant Out of the Old World Order
By Donella Meadows
–March 24, 1994–
On March 10 the Export-Import Bank of the United States pledged $317 million of loan guarantees — backed up by your taxes and mine — to complete two nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic. It did so over the protests of the Austrian government, 32 members of our own Congress, and many Czech citizens, including [...]
Restoring American Values: Who Goes First?
By Donella Meadows
–January 13, 1994–
“THE DECLINE OF AMERICAN VALUES” reads a recent headline. The subhead elaborates: “Right and Left Agree on This: Spiritual Crisis Grips the Land.”
Two stories on the same page illustrate the point, one for the right, the other for the left. Michael Jackson denies allegations that he sexually abused children. A local bank president, found guilty of [...]
The NAFTA Debate–More Than Al Gore and Ross Perot
By Donella Meadows
–November 11, 1993–
Sending a pair of gladiators like Al Gore and Ross Perot into the ring is not the way to illuminate a complex issue like NAFTA. There are more positions, theories, dreams, hopes, and fears about NAFTA than could be represented by any two people, even if they were polite to each other.
That variety of opinion, which [...]
