Last year ECW editor Jen Knoch asked me a few questions about A Tidy Armageddon. I loved the central concept of this book, which basically turned our staggering material possessions into a maze and put a few humans as rats in it. Where did the idea for A Tidy Armageddon come from? I’ve always been a conservationist, […]
A Tidy Armageddon Author Questionnaire Read More »
The cognitive dissonance of the smartest men on Earth dedicating themselves to the craft of building precise, beautiful machines dedicated to the wholesale slaughter of millions of people put me in mind of all the animal lovers I know, including one of my own children, who continue to eat meat, despite their recognition of the
From H-Bombs to Animal Cruelty: Cognitive Dissonance and the Future of Civilization Read More »
Trigger warning: This post contains an image of a Facebook post containing racist language, and a reference to dehumanizing words used to describe a trans person. Canadians watch with smug superiority the hate and anti-science movements in the United States, but fail to recognize that regressive attitudes flourish here too. You might be surprised to
Yellow Vests Canada Facebook group: a forum for Canadian hate and ignorance Read More »
Recently, in my neighbourhood in Toronto, as part of a multi-year expansion of the much-neglected cycling infrastructure, the city installed bike lanes on both sides of a moderately-busy street named Woodbine, which many drivers use on their commute between downtown and the suburbs. The installation has caused a firestorm on social media, specifically in a
Bike Lane Bellyaching Symptomatic of Civilization’s Doom Read More »
On my bicycle commute today I stopped along a trail for a moment – okay, it was to step behind some trees to pee – and I’d been listening to the haunting Radiolab podcast Dark Side of the Earth. I had just heard David Wolf’s account of spacewalking outside the Mir spacecraft with fellow astronaut
And if there isn’t a democratic solution…? Read More »
The methane feedback loop appears to be ramping up. Beckwith goes on to say, “This is abrupt climate change in real-time. Humans have benefited greatly from a stable climate for the last 11,000 years or roughly 400 generations. Not any more. We now face an angry climate. One that we have poked in the eye with our
Hate to Say I Told You So, Climate Change Deniers, But… Read More »
My family voluntarily pays more than we have to for our electricity and natural gas. This may seem a crazy notion – indeed, some of my neighbours have said as much, but less indelicately (“it’s interesting and cool”) – but it’s the right thing to do. Traditional energy is underpriced, because the price does
Crazy Environmental Effort #3: Sustainable Power Read More »
We have on the roof of our house a solar hot water heater. The system, made and installed by Global Solar Energy Inc., takes municipal cold water under normal pressure and heats it before delivering it into our gas hot water heater, reducing the amount of energy needed to heat the water, and shrinking our
Crazy Environmental Effort #2: Solar Hot Water Heater Read More »
When I make tea, I drain the kettle, fill the mug I’m going to use, and pour the water from the mug into kettle. That way I am boiling exactly the correct quantity of water, saving both energy and time.
Crazy Environmental Effort #1: Heating Only As Much As I Need Read More »
We are not going to destroy the Earth, but we are going to destroy our way of life. This is how the end begins. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIZTMVNBjc4]
Our Planet, Literally Falling Apart Read More »