sorry: still no sound - we need a thumb drive transfer from my son's computer ...)
.
Man, that's a bummer. Praying that you'll be able to work it out because it's worth listening to. His books, however, are also available online...seen
here and
here.
I do agree, the "marriage" of business and government can be contrary to competitive development. Oil has such a long history of subsidy, and is also - it seems - nostalgically wound in the country's history.
That....and the ways we use oil go beyond gasoline, as it's in everyday products. Diapers, in example, are made from it and other things as well that are apart of everyday life. And what I'm saying doesn't just apply to oil. It applies to a myriad of ways that environmental damage is done to others and people don't take seriously the ways that it harms others, such as what has happened with many rural communities and
minining when mountaintops are destroyed regularly and it harms people in their natural supplies (i.e. water, air, etc)...but
not many care about strip mining and the damage it does.
People are able to make money and jobs...and that's the focus for a lot of people.
The same thing goes for
toxic/environmental racism, ironically championed by many saying that we need to have alternative resources and be better stewards of what we have, as what often happens is akin to environmental aparteid...
with rich communities doing very well/cleaned up often while those who are in impoverished areas recieve all of the waste and garbage.
As
another noted best:
In the small, suburban, working-class town of Kennedy Heights, Texas, hundreds of individuals complain of rashes, headaches, and a water supply contaminated with oil and toxins. More serious health issues also plague these unsuspecting residents, such as cancerous brain tumors, cancer, lupus, birth defects, menstrual problems, and even death. As one resident described, people are dropping like flies, getting sick. Homebuyers purchased newly built homes within the town several decades ago, but at that time no one informed them the properties were located on top of an oil dump, abandoned since the 1920s. The homeowners are now left in a precarious situation, as they can't sell [their] houses and [they] can't afford to leave. The sheer number of Kennedy Heights residents impacted by the toxic oil dump's adverse effects has drawn national attention, but this particular town attracted even wider attention because of the accusations of environmental racism.
The small town of Kennedy Heights, located outside of Houston, Texas, is comprised mostly of African-American residents. Unfortunately, the adverse health and environmental effects that the Kennedy Heights residents now experience are not uncommon among racial minority communities. In fact, many studies reveal that toxic waste sites are typically located adjacent to, or within, communities primarily populated with racial minorities. Another such community is Chester, Pennsylvania.
Environmental racism is the term often used to link federally funded environmental programs to discriminatory impacts. Although this Comment focuses on environmental racism and the deliberate placement of noxious facilities in certain communities, environmental racism encompasses a broad array of discriminatory practices. These practices include: (1) the increased likelihood of exposure to environmental dangers; (2) the differential cleanup rate of environmental contaminants in communities with various racial groups; (3) the concentration of ethnic minority workers in dangerous and unsanitary jobs; (4) the deficient upkeep of environmental amenities, such as parks and playgrounds; and (5) the incomparable provision of environmental services, such as garbage removal and transportation.
The reality of favoritism and prejudice will always influence much of the good others wish to do....
It'd be a massive overhaul to the way people live if switching to something else, even if it's something they could live without and find life with new products from differing sources favorable once adapting....and most people don't like change even when they want to avoid consequences of remaining where they are.
It's all an issue of perception of what is or isn't "needed"....
US Universities have been doing some interesting work - an example
(
All-carbon solar cell harnesses infrared light - MIT News Office)
That's really amazing
Inventors and early proponents of new technology don't always reap the rewards of their work - and sometimes I wonder whether in the US this phenomenon retards the willingness to invest and start with new tech
Good point, as it seems many times that the people with vision are not taken seriously by all others who may be blinded to what could occur.
