I'd go along with both views below. I haven't read Lovins' book but I've
little doubt that it's a more fully worked-up version of several fixes that
he's been trailing for years. He actually belongs to the traditions of the
Victorian inventors of the 19th century when we had economic
growth-via-efficiency. My guess is that he'll be taken up by the Chinese
(and probably has been already) who are still in that phase. The problem
for Western economies is that we've been side-tracked by governments into
economic growth-via-inflation for the past century. We could have as much
electricity as we want and as cheap as we like but it still wouldn't solve
the problem of increasing unemployment due to automation shepherded by a
meta-class which is increasingly separating itself from the majority of the
population and also governments which are increasingly fixated by the
financial mess they are now in and don't know how to solve.
Keith
At 21:23 19/09/2010 -0400, you wrote:
Amory Lovins did some contract work for the Science Council and so I got to
know him a little. My read is that he is as bright as you say. I think he
is an irrepressible techno-optimist. That all problems have solutions, if
we only look at things in a certain way.
Arthur
-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of David Delaney
Sent: Sunday, September 19, 2010 2:27 PM
To: [email protected]
Cc: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION'
Subject: Re: [Ottawadissenters] Amory Lovins latest book
Amory Lovins is a deeply disappointing man. He is a genius. But his genius
adroitly fails to
to acknowledge or address in any way the elephant in his work room. He has
built a stunningly
clever body of work, the work of a lifetime, on industrial and societal
efficiency in the use of resources, but ignores
the fact that systemic efficiency worsens the problem he purports to solve
with it: the threat to the existence of civilization posed by over-use of
the world.
After years, decades even, of shaking my head in puzzlement over the
contradictions he embodies, I have, sadly, come to the conclusion that this
magnificently creative man must be a captive of his venal impulses. It's the
only conclusion that seems to make sense of him.
On 2010-09-19, at 1:41 PM, Arthur Cordell wrote:
>
>
> Subject: Amorey Lovins
>
>
>
> Arthur; in case you missed this you can download his latest book.
>
> Roger
>
>
>
> http://www.oilendgame.com
>
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Keith Hudson, Saltford, England
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