>From: Julien Pierrehumbert <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>Even if it was possible to feed the current world population without
>mechanized
>agric. (I don't know),
Vananda Shiva talks about some methods. Anyone have more on her?
>the problem of the degradation of the physical/biological
>system which supports non-mechanical agriculture remains, as well as the
>problem
>of increasing world population.
Yes. More food means more people. *no matter what*! You have to break that
cycle.
You also have the immediate problem that the world food supply is heavily
dependent upon petrochemicals. Knowing what we know about oil and dieoff,
it is useful to understand what the prefix "petro" in petrochemicals stands
for. <g>
>
>
>About implemeting agricultural reform, Stan says:
>
> >Alternative
> >practices are essential, but simply imagining them and being "right"
>about
> >them doesn't put them into practice. It is NECESSARY to have political
> >power--legal monopolies on force to make coercive inroads against these
> >structures--to transform these alternatives into realities. If we accept
> >that, ...
>
>We shouldn't accept that. These structures are mainly based on profit. If
>there is
>more profit to be made by using alternative practices, they will be used.
>The
>relative profitability of different practices depend on many things incl.
>the price of
>inputs, the choices of consumers, tariffs, taxes, etc. Of course if there
>isn't something
>like a legal monopoly of force, it's not possible to collect taxes. But in
>that case, the
>whole system would collapse and there would be nothing to make "coercive
>inroads" into.
>It is probably true that without a struggle, alternative paractices will
>only be used
>when we'll be in the Cuban situation. But the struggle doesn't need to have
>such
>forms or goals.
Haven't we learned yet that you can't "coerce" people to grow stuff? They
have a word for the usual results of attempting to force people (even
starving people) to grow plants: famine. This is again where "attitude"
becomes paramount.
You can, hoever, "coerce" them into not having so many babies.
Tom
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