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Where Does News Stop and Gossip Begin?
By Donella Meadows
–August 29, 1997–
A newspaper near and dear to me recently ran a story about the accidental death of a 17-year-old. At the end was a sentence informing us that the young man once had a run-in with the law, unrelated to the tragic circumstances of his death.
His relatives and friends pelted the paper with letters asking why it [...]
The Black Helicopters are Coming!
By Donella Meadows
–August 21, 1997–
The folks who warn us about the black helicopters of the United Nations swooping down and taking over the world might maybe be a bit right, sort of.
What they are really worried about, I assume, is secret, inaccessible power — a few people meeting in luxurious rooms in big cities, planning the future of everyone, and [...]
Co-Housing–Somewhere Between Neighborhood and Commune
By Donella Meadows
–August 14, 1997–
“So you’re planning a commune,” my friends say.
“No, co-housing,” I reply, and their faces show that I haven’t clarified the matter. Co-housing is not a household word. But judging from the interest that arises when I explain it, I predict it will be.
If there were a scale of community “togetherness,” it would go something like this [...]
The New American Dream Home
By Donella Meadows
–August 7, 1997–
On the cover of the newspaper’s Sunday magazine section, THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM HOME invites us to enter its softly lit, splendidly arched, mostly glass, double front door.
An arrow points to the “KITCHEN: Adjoining ‘great room’ and eat-in nook give busy families space to congregate; a countertop personal computer lets the cook fetch recipes or the [...]
Is a Bioengineered Potato Organic?
By Donella Meadows
–July 31, 1997–
It’s tempting for someone who has grown some carrots any old way to slap the label “organic” on them and get a higher price. Whenever there’s real value around, someone will come up with a counterfeit.
So farmers who raise their vegetables with the care that the word “organic” implies have been working on certification programs with [...]
