Environmental Zeros and Heroes of the 104th Congress
By Donella Meadows
–February 22, 1996–
All eyes are on the presidential contenders in the coming election, which is too bad, because (Bill Clinton being a jellyfish) it makes less difference who sits in the White House than which party dominates Congress. One of the vital matters hanging on that difference is the environment.
The starkness of the contrast between the two parties [...]
Dear Folks: February 18, 1996
Dear Folks, The call I had been waiting for, dreading, and yet also praying for finally came Sunday morning, February 4. “Karl’s gone,” my Mom said.
Karl, my stepfather, the sweet, capable, funny man my mother married when she was 59 and he was 64. They had 21 happy years together, but if you’ve been reading this newsletter for awhile, you know [...]
Lying to the Pollsters
By Donella Meadows
–February 15, 1996–
I want to assure you that my Mom brought me up right. Lying doesn’t come easily to me. I had to endure many New Hampshire presidential primaries before I thought of lying to the pollsters.
In the week or two before the primary they call almost every night. You can tell immediately that it’s a poll by [...]
Corporations Already Rule the World
By Donella Meadows
–February 8, 1996–
The title of David Korten’s new book — When Corporations Rule the World — does not refer to some theoretical future state. Korten’s point is that corporations already rule much of the world, and that the consequences aren’t good, not even for corporations.
His book is a detailed documentation — names, cases, numbers — of dysfunctional corporate [...]
Flat Tax, Vat Tax, Splat Tax
By Donella Meadows
–February 1, 1996–
There are four questions to ask about any new tax proposal. Will it be simple? Will it be fair? Will it raise enough money for the government? Will it be good for the economy?
The flat tax promoted by presidential candidate Steve Forbes fails on all four counts. But so does our present tax system. Forbes’s contribution [...]
