For Earth Day

Reality, the Environment and Plan B

By John Taylor; 2009 April 22, Jalal 13, 166 BE

It is Earth Day today, and the following fits into that theme, more or less.


A plan to address our present environmental reality is laid out in an article in the May 2009 edition of Scientific American called: "Could food shortages bring down civilization?," by Lester R. Brown. The precis of the article says, "The biggest threat to global stability is the potential for food crisis in poor countries to cause government collapse. Those crises are brought on by ever worsening environmental degradation."

The newest part part for me of this analysis comes at the end, where Brown summarizes a proposed "Plan B" for saving us from the dire fate threatened by climate change. I had never heard of this plan. After a quick search of the Wikipedia article it transpired that Brown has been promoting this idea in Washington for several years through a group called the Earth Policy Institute. You can read about it at:

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Policy_Institute)

It seems that Plan A is a sort of negative activity intended to put to sleep the attitude that "business as usual" is enough to save the planet. Plan B is the positive measures that will take the place of all that renunciation in Plan A.

The original Plan B came in the form of a book proposing that America stop unsustainable practices like depleting soils and sucking aquifers dry. It suggested a World War II-like mobilization of all resources to reverse such bad habits. The plan was "a way of sustaining economic progress worldwide, an alternative to continuing environmental deterioration and eventual economic decline." Then more recently Brown wrote a revised version in a book called, "Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization." This according to Wiki is,

"A major expansion and update... Here he outlines a plan, a budget, and a timetable for rescuing our twenty-first century civilization. The plan includes eradicating poverty, stabilizing population, protecting and restoring soils, forests, rangelands, and fisheries, and conserving the earth's biological diversity."

As always, this plan is directed at the de facto world government, Washington. On page 56 of this Scientific American article, Brown gives a short outline of this plan in four steps, one, cut carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2020, two, stabilize the world population at 8 billion by 2040, three, eradicate poverty, and four, restore forests, conserve soils and refill aquifers. Although it would demand a massive effort, Brown calculates that the price is small in comparison with present arms budgets.

"...the cost for saving civilization would amount to less than 200 billion a year, a sixth of current global military spending. In effect, Plan B is the new security budget." (57)

Compare that price to the savings that would happen on day one after the formation of a world government. No need for inter-state military expenses at all. That would free up six times that money, at least. Huge resources would instantly be available for even more extensive plans to save us all.


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John Taylor

email: badijet@gmail.com
blog: http://badiblog.blogspot.com/

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