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Don’t Worry, Be Happy, The Environment is in Great Shape
By Donella Meadows
–June 8, 1995–
I have before me four reviews of Gregg Easterbrook’s trendy book about the environment (A Moment on the Earth: The Coming Age of Environmental Optimism). All the reviews are written by scientists whom I know and respect, and all of them are scathing. The reviewers are more than negative; they’re frustrated, because it isn’t possible to [...]
If We’re Going to Have Block Grants, Let’s Make Them Work
By Donella Meadows
–June 1, 1995–
Block grants are the second favorite right-wing solution to any problem. (The first favorite is to keep government out of it entirely.) If we must have government, it should be as close to home as possible. The distant, cumbersome federal power should be used primarily to raise money. Then we give the money to the states [...]
Ebola–Not Highly Contagious, But a Grim Warning
By Donella Meadows
–May 25, 1995–
Overexcited reporters are calling the Ebola virus, which is killing people in the cities and villages of Zaire, “highly contagious.” It is not. Ebola is deadly if you catch it, but it is nowhere near as infectious as the common cold — thank heaven.
Richard Preston’s timely book The Hot Zone documents previous Ebola epidemics, including one [...]
Stopping by Lambs on a Sunny Morning
By Donella Meadows
–May 18, 1995–
I should be writing about the new Clean Water Act just passed by the House. It removes half the nation’s remaining wetlands from federal protection. It vastly increases (from 5 to 70,000!) the number of pollutants for which industry can get exemptions from federal emission standards. This bill was drafted by chemical industry lobbyists. Its Congressional [...]
Shining a Spotlight on Hate Speech
By Donella Meadows
–May 11, 1995–
“Dear Dumbella: If there was any lingring (sic) doubt that the liberal mentality is a product of severe brain damage at birth with continued degeneration from there you certainly dispell (sic) those doubts….”
Normally I wouldn’t read further in a letter like that, much less subject you to it. Columnists get used to a continuous low flow [...]
