All Things Are Connected

I believe God expects us to be good stewards of the earth, and I do my part in small but limited ways: recycling, turning down the thermostat, using fluorescent bulbs, etc. Although I can hardly speak with authority, I do try to educate myself and read other peoples ideas and solutions. That's how I came across this article that I thought was worth passing along. Acoustic Dad's Place has a powerful post concerning global environmental issues from the perspective of a progressive economic environmentalist.

What is desperately needed is a new method of accounting that incorporates not just costs and benefits, but social costs and social benefits. It is insufficient to rely solely on an increase in GDP - or other traditional measures of economic growth - to provide an indication of an increase in overall well-being when little or no consideration is given to where this growth is occurring; nor to
its impact upon society and the natural world...

This brings us to a situation in which the ball has been placed squarely in the First World's court. Do we continue to operate under obsolete economic models that omit crucial holistic elements, each day digging ourselves deeper and deeper into ecological debt; or do we acknowledge that we have reached a place in time where our expenses are exceeding our gains, and adopt the measures necessary to ensure a more sustainable future.

I would do injustice to the article by trying to summarize it for you. Read it for yourself and give me your reaction. I found it unsettling to face the reality that the U.S. and other First World countries are increasingly reliant on the resources of developing nations as a way to make money. Once we ruin the earth's natural resources, what good will money do? For the sake of this planet and all people, we should be building bridges - not burning them.