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We Should Prove What to Whom About Acid Rain?
By Donella Meadows
–August 25, 1988–
Every weekday morning this summer, six college students set out from the Ravine Lodge on Mt. Moosilauke in New Hampshire to spend the day measuring trees. They bushwack through the forest to 15 marked plots on the east side of the mountain. Each plot is 20 meters square; some are at low altitude, some medium, some [...]
Real Change — Good or Bad — Takes Longer Than We Think
By Donella Meadows
–August 18, 1988–
After three years of perestroika, the Soviet people still live with shortages of consumer goods. The grain harvest is still inadequate, the meat supply is still here-again, gone-again. The only real change is that front-page stories about the failure of the Gorbachev revolution now run not only in our press, but in theirs.
Those stories demonstrate a [...]
Who wants a President Who’s Gone to a Psychiatrist?
By Donella Meadows
–August 11, 1988–
The rumor was that Michael Dukakis had been treated by a psychiatrist for depression in 1973 after the death of his brother in a hit-and-run accident. No such thing, said his campaign staff. After days of suspense, the Dukakis medical records were released, unblemished by any encounter with a mental health professional. Democrats breathed sighs of [...]
Organic Farms are Weathering the Drought
By Donella Meadows
–August 4, 1988–
Organic farmers have long believed that soils managed without chemical fertilizers produce steadier yields, year in, year out, than soils farmed conventionally. In a season when the weather happens to be perfect for chemicals, organic yields might be a little lower. But they should be higher in times of drought.
This year is the perfect time to [...]
Methanol Is Not What It Takes to Clear the Air
By Donella Meadows
–July 28, 1988–
In more than 60 U.S. cities, where 75 million Americans live, the air regularly violates health standards, and it’s getting worse.
The original Clean Air Act deadline for making city air breathable was 1975. That deadline was extended to 1977, then 1982, then December 31, 1987, then August 31, 1988. If the EPA ever decides to enforce [...]
