Sound Bite
The short-term benefits of unlimited growth are driving the American economic and social model right off a cliff. The author shows how corporations drown out scientists and global elites prosper during economic collapse. He charts the effects in terms of increasing poverty, population migration, and social tension.This book tells the story of the current climate change crisis, how it evolved, and why we shouldn't be surprised when little or no action is taken. Together with a forthcoming volume, this book aims to provide a comprehensive view of the substantial obstacles facing those who wish to avoid the inevitable consequences of this rapid expansion of human activity on a finite planet.
About the Author
Richard Mosey, a graduate of Wayne State University in Detroit, is a freelance journalist, newspaper reporter and editor based in Toledo, Ohio. He says, "I became interested in writing this particular book because of my experience with public policy and the environment through my work as a journalist and through my life-long interest in wilderness hiking. I could see that pristine areas had become less pristine and water sources had become less reliable even during the course of my lifetime. I found that any environmental action, even the most benign, met stiff resistance during the political process because of business interests. With a problem as all-encompassing as climate change, I doubt that our collective political will, or power, is strong enough to meet the challenge."
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About the Book
The American middle class is disappearing, and an obtuse, short-sighted and self-centered emphasis on growth rather than stability ensures this. Economic collapse is only accelerating the privatization of essential resources like water. Economic...
The American middle class is disappearing, and an obtuse, short-sighted and self-centered emphasis on growth rather than stability ensures this. Economic collapse is only accelerating the privatization of essential resources like water. Economic globalization will exacerbate planetary decline and create poverty for at least 80 percent of Americans (and those in developing countries). Environmentalist and writer Richard Mosey shows why scientists are woefully incapable of competing with corporations in a public relations and legislative war. He explores the role of corporations in creating a debate where no debate exists, and he exposes the professional and academic global warming deniers and the funding sources that inspire their research. The book also explores how globalization will accelerate regional and international conflict through competition for essential resources and the unprecedented migration that occurs when water and other needs run out. American consumption patterns outstrip the rest of the world's but even with the economic crash there is no significant slowdown in sight. The author looks at why our indebted society will keep spending money it doesn't have, and ponders the human compulsions driving this behavior.Neither the Democrats nor Republicans in Washington can survive without large amounts of corporate largesse because of the staggering amount of funding involved in running for and remaining in office.Windows of opportunity are closing rapidly and, unfortunately, are likely to slam shut before we muster the necessary national or global political will to take serious measures to address the unfolding crises. The recent American and global economic meltdown, while serious, pales in comparison to the catastrophic dangers if climate change is allowed to spin out of control. The increasingly desperate scientific reports will almost certainly be ignored or played down scientists are woefully outgunned in the battle for media coverage.The book begins with views of respected scientists discussing their fields of expertise, looks at demographic trends in the developed and the emerging economies, and lays out the implications for our future when massive expenditures and unimaginable sacrifices will be required when the truth of the situation becomes clear.
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SciTech Book News
Focusing mostly on water, Ohio-based freelance journalist Mosey describes the current climate change crisis, how it came about, and why he expects little or no action to be taken about it.
He discusses oceans; climate change; population; business as usual; deniers; and climate change, American history, and the economic meltdown. In a second volume, he will explore the influence of monotheistic religions, culture, and civilization on the climate debate; and the secular religion of growth and its influence on how people approach living on a finite planet. He includes a slender bibliography, but no index.
December 2009
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Pages 208
Year: 2009
BISAC: SCI026000 SCIENCE / Environmental Science
BISAC: POL033000 POLITICAL SCIENCE / Globalization
Soft Cover
ISBN: 978-0-87586-744-1
Price: USD 19.95
Hard Cover
ISBN: 978-0-87586-745-8
Price: USD 29.95
Ebook
ISBN: 978-0-87586-746-5
Price: USD 29.95
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