Comments on: Embracing the Tyranny of Place – Beating the Travel Drug

By: Jon Wright

Jon Wright — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:32:07 +0000

Thanks to you folks for not just reading it, but for thinking about it… gives me hope.

By: Ami

Ami — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:06:55 +0000

Thanks John. Helps put so much into perspective. I really enjoyed how you spoke to inner stillness. Being happy with who you are and not trying to have to be somewhere else to find that happiness, something I struggle with. Thanks again.

By: trying

trying — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 08:20:01 +0000

This is a brilliant essay and I just want to say thanks.

By: Jon Wright

Jon Wright — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:03:47 +0000

emj- We had a discussion here on this very subject last night – why do I then use a computer – and i'm with you totally on this one. What you speak of is true, in fact, of a multitude of 'green' products. It is why, for instance, i do not consider solar panels and hybrid cars sustainable solutions. Viewed in isolation, as the "end product" they may look okay (although I personally think they represent little more than the latest expensive gadgets perpetuating out enslavement,) but not so much so when one examines their entire manufacture. I am lately of the mind, in fact, that anything that stems from a modern industrial process is ultimately unsustainable. The industrial world will not be retrofit for sustainability, regardless of how convenient it would be for us if it could.

As for the net, it is too powerful a tool in the interim to be ignored, in my mind. We will need to transition to a sustainable future, we won't just jump right in. The transition period will require energy as does everything else, and for now that means oil and computers to get ideas across. When to draw the line? In stages, I suppose. Recognizing that we are down to the wire and desperately need to get on with alternatives, of course. I personally find the computer best enjoyed when i'm somewhere off-grid – as an easily forgotten memory.

By: emj

emj — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:30:49 +0000

I think it was Wendell Berry who said "Just stay put" when asked what was the best thing we could do for the environment.

When you write "This is the age of easy info" are you referring to the internet? If so, it may not be as easy or low footprint as you think:
The monster footprint of digital technology
by Kris De Decker
The power consumption of our high-tech machines and devices is hugely underestimated.

When we talk about energy consumption, all attention goes to the electricity use of a device or a machine while in operation. A 30 watt laptop is considered more energy efficient than a 300 watt refrigerator. This may sound logical, but this kind of comparisons does not make much sense if you don't also consider the energy that was required to manufacture the devices you compare. This is especially true for high-tech products, which are produced by means of extremely material- and energy-intensive manufacturing processes. How much energy do our high-tech gadgets really consume?

More: http://www.energybulletin.net/node/49730