The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth

Book Description

In this daring work, Edward O. Wilson proposes an alliance between science and religion to save Earth's vanishing biodiversity.

Dear Pastor:
We have not met, yet I feel I know you well enough to call you friend. First of all, we grew up in the same faith. Although I no longer belong to that faith, I am confident that if we met and spoke privately of our deepest beliefs, it would be in a spirit of mutual respect and goodwill. I write to you now for your counsel and help. Let us see if we can, and you are willing, to meet on the near side of metaphysics in order to deal with the real world we share. I suggest that we set aside our differences in order to save the Creation. The defense of living Nature is a universal value. It doesn't rise from nor does it promote any religious or ideological dogma. Rather, it serves without discrimination the interests of all humanity.

Pastor, we need your help. The Creation—living Nature—is in deep trouble.

The Creation is E. O. Wilson's most important work since the publications of Sociobiology and Biophilia. Like Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, it is a book about the fate of the earth and the survival of our planet. Yet while Carson was specifically concerned with insecticides and the ecological destruction of our natural resources, Wilson, the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner, attempts his new social revolution by bridging the seemingly irreconcilable worlds of fundamentalism and science. Like Carson, Wilson passionately concerned about the state of the world, draws on his own personal experiences and expertise as an entomologist, and prophesies that half the species of plants and animals on Earth could either have gone or at least are fated for early extinction by the end of our present century.

Astonishingly, The Creation is not a bitter, predictable rant against fundamentalist Christians or deniers of Darwin. Rather, Wilson, a leading "secular humanist," draws upon his own rich background as a boy in Alabama who "took the waters," and seeks not to condemn this new generations of Christians but to address them on their own terms. Conceiving the book as an extended letter to a southern Baptist minister, Wilson, in stirring language that can evoke Martin Luther King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail," tells this everyman minister how, in fact, the world really came to be. He pleads with these men of the cloth to understand the cataclysmic damage that is destroying our planet and asks for their help in preventing the destruction of our Earth before it is too late. Never a pessimist, Wilson avers that there are solutions that may yet save the planet, and believes that the vision that he presents in The Creation is one that both scientists and pastors can accept, and work on together in spite of their fundamental ideological differences. 25 line drawings.

Customer Reviews:

Plea to protect nature.......2007-10-15

'"The Creation" represents Ed Wilson's writing at once at its simplest and yet most magnificent. I read it with approximately the same sense of urgency as that with which I jump off railroad tracks when I hear a train whistle. My sense of urgency is similar to that with which I have read half a dozen of Wilson's previous books--generated by the remote sense that I had very much wanted to write such if I were a decent writer myself. This is not said to detract in the least from Wilson's vision, method or perspicacity. He and I have indeed shared many of the same greatest friends and parallel experiences, but Ed Wilson has gone on to participate in true scholarship and refined education, while I have gone my own much lesser way.

More than that, we have both watched the ascendancy of molecular studies TO THE TRAGIC DETRIMENT OF environmental and field studies for over forty years; watched with growing anxiety the developing gap between what was NEEDED from field studies to make adequate societal decisions and what was available financially to provide such information. We have both watched, helpless, while education in natural history has been eroded by the molecular imperative--based solely on the notion that (now that scientists admit that biology is all reducible to chemistry and physics) all society really needs to teach in our colleges is chemistry and physics! Absurd notion when first stated in 1963 by Jim Watson (Harvard, pers com), and equally preposterous in 2006 at Wilson's writing. I personally and repeatedly have tried to disabuse several molecular biologists of this egotistic fantasy, but obviously to no avail.

As a scholar, Ed Wilson stands uniquely able to bridge the gap between religious conservatism and scientific conservation. Raised a Baptist in Alabama, he correctly has identified the deeply rooted spiritual connections between the naturalist, loving and studying nature, and the nature-connected religious fundamentalist. Speaking at once informed by his spiritual beliefs and by his profound--almost unique--understanding of the natural world, he eloquently pleads for a cease fire--a new cooperation between science and religion, (such as the Bush administration has fervently sought to abolish). Wilson makes it clear we are at a critical juncture, this is truly for the sake of all future generations.

First, Wilson establishes the fact and the rationale for the emotional links between our psyches and Nature, writ large. We have evolved to possess, he explains, a sense of natural kinship based on evolution during the long (pre-agricultural revolution) hunting-gathering period--likely a period of many million years. Then, Wilson eloquently details our deeper needs, for wholesome self-realization, to commune with a more complex nature than that provided by the suburban lawn or by the urban park. Here, I needed no convincing.

Then Wilson provides the urgency of species loss, of a radical decrease in diversity, globally. He cites numerous studies indicating hundreds-thousands of species dying irrevocably before even being described and cataloged. The solution? Several steps: For religious and scientific leaders to join forces to preserve "The Creation", the ecology that, largely unseen, provides actual support for our fragile human ecosystem.

Lastly, Wilson, award-winning teacher (never mind writer, published naturalist, or author of the socio-biology paradigm-shift), provides thoughtful teaching principles for providing a student with a real foundation in nature studies--ones with which many experienced teachers wilI certainly concur. Early, almost primal contact is urged, with nature and curiosity, tools and self-directed inquiry. Wilson, perhaps characteristically, reaches out, finally, in respect and humility, for help in his reverence to study this "little-known planet." Wilson cites numerous recent studies where experts and amateurs combine forces in concerted volunteer efforts to obtain the missing data--many one-time local population censuses of diverse plant and animal groups.

As a book, I rate this as a "must-read", but after watching the political-religious manipulations of millions of voters for six years with lies on pseudo-issues, I doubt this heroic effort by a genuine scholar will have much affect on those who deliberately self-proclaim their ignorance. At the same time I hope to be proven dead wrong!

Great Read -- But pay attention.......2007-10-05

It took me a couple of weeks to read this book, because the biology in it requires you to really pay attention. But Wilson's chapter on extinctions is scary and saddening.

A Passion for Life on Earth.......2007-09-13

It seems that Edward O. Wilson's goal in this book as an open letter to a southern Baptist minister was a persuasion to an enthusiasm in the enjoyment of the diversity of life, to use this to protect "The Creation" which is the biological riches that are still here, and indirectly to share his belief in evolution. Other than the last goal I felt his eloquent writing and passion was quite persuasive. He made me feel a bit guilty for not continuiing on as a biology teacher.

Wilson does mention evolution in the book but his mentioning is not part of an overall arguement in defense of it. I imagine some people that either do not believe in evolution or do and would like it well defended were disappointed in this aspect of the book. I did not feel that it was the main point, despite the title and it's near play on creationism, and I think Wilson's writing and avidity for the diversity of life are the substance of this book.

There are plenty of biological gems illuminated in "The Creation" and I think anyone would be interested and fascinated by such information as the existence of over 700 species of bacteria in the average person's mouth or details of the underground biosphere that could continue existing even with a complete scorching of the earth's surface. Wilson's has learned much about the life of the earth and this small book is a distillation of his learning and thoughts from a life of study. I would recommend it to anyone.

" a title" ! What do you mean? explain.......2007-08-08

Very detail analysis of issues. I hope our leaders are required to read such material

Not the Fittest.......2007-06-09

The book didn't quite live up to its billing. I'd expected something that was not at all incendiary or overtly driven by scientific (evolution theory dogmatic) beliefs. Instead, the book came across much more as smelling of sarcasm with tones of "surely everyone knows this stuff". This is certainly scientific apologetics, without apology to its supposed intended audience. Staunch marcoevolutionists will smirk at the veiled selfaggrandizement. Creationists will find nothing new in the "others'" view. Those with feet in both camps still await the Rosetta Stone that bridges the gulf.

Steps to an Ecology of Mind: Collected Essays in Anthropology, Psychiatry, Evolution, and Epistemology

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What is the difference between a nip and a bite?
A true masterpiece!
Buzzwords mixed toghether in a pile of dross
Very good intro. to Bateson
Back In Print, Finally.

Steps to an Ecology of Mind: Collected Essays in Anthropology, Psychiatry, Evolution, and Epistemology
Gregory Bateson
Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
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ASIN: 0226039056

Book Description

Gregory Bateson was a philosopher, anthropologist, photographer, naturalist, and poet, as well as the husband and collaborator of Margaret Mead. With a new foreword by his daughter Mary Katherine Bateson, this classic anthology of his major work will continue to delight and inform generations of readers.

"This collection amounts to a retrospective exhibition of a working life. . . . Bateson has come to this position during a career that carried him not only into anthropology, for which he was first trained, but into psychiatry, genetics, and communication theory. . . . He . . . examines the nature of the mind, seeing it not as a nebulous something, somehow lodged somewhere in the body of each man, but as a network of interactions relating the individual with his society and his species and with the universe at large."—D. W. Harding, New York Review of Books

"[Bateson's] view of the world, of science, of culture, and of man is vast and challenging. His efforts at synthesis are tantalizingly and cryptically suggestive. . . .This is a book we should all read and ponder."—Roger Keesing, American Anthropologist

Gregory Bateson (1904-1980) was the author of Naven and Mind and Nature.

Customer Reviews:

What is the difference between a nip and a bite?.......2007-10-06

Really, what is the difference between a nip and a bite? They look the same, when you are watching kittens playing, how can you tell if they are biting in earnestness or just fooling around? Well you can't really tell, because a nip is a bite and isn't a bite all at the same time. However, you can tell, of course you can, because a nip has a sign posted on it saying "this is play", a bite on the other hand has a sign saying "this is for real". Moreover tells us Bateson - one of the greatest minds in social thought - whoever cannot tell the difference between a bite and a nip is in big trouble, because the sign stating "this is play" enables us to tell reality from imagination, thus safeguarding our sanity. "Steps in the ecology of the mind" is a profound statement on the mechanisms that make us tick, on the human condition.

A true masterpiece!.......2004-03-19

Bateson's writings are profoundly layered with meaning that a brief glance will overlook. His prolific influence can be found in sundry fields of study, including psychiatry, communication theory, and marriage and family therapy to name a few.

This is the type of book (among few) that can be read over and over again while discovering new facets of understanding every time.

I highly recommend the metalogues.

Buzzwords mixed toghether in a pile of dross.......2002-02-07

Take all the buzzwords in fashion in psychology and philosophy: classification, genotype, flexibility, somatic, discrete, threshold, characteristics, analytic... mix everything together and you get this book.
In other words there's not an ounce of meaning in those 700 pages, it's all worthless. No case studies, no examples, long phrases full of self importance written by someone who thinks he's an authority in everything from zen to medecine to evolution theory to archeology. Not only does he prove he doesn't understand anything, you'll laugh yourself silly reading any paragraph of the book at random.

If you have to read this for an assignment, you'd better change major and give it to your worst enemy for toilet paper. That's how low I think of this. And to think that a tree was felled for this. Ha !

Very good intro. to Bateson.......2001-12-04

Reading "Steps" helped save me from the unremitting horrors of divorce court; I'd probably be on a death row somewheres if not for this & some peripherally associated material. I am very pleased to see that it's in print again.

From those meticulous metalogues to those essays on the Theory of Logical Types, Bateson can mesmerize, if you're prepared for it. Especially enlightening is the lecture on the Treaty of Versailles & cybernetics; for Bateson, the two most important events of his lifetime: if you're going to deceive someone (the Fourteen Points), you'd better get an honest man (Woodrow Wilson) to do it.

"Steps" is to science & reason what Frost's "West Running Brook" is to poetry: an intense meditation, soliloquy & dialogue. It's worth your while.

Back In Print, Finally........2001-08-16

After my paperback copy of SEM decayed from several readings, I was more than a little disappointed to see that it had gone out of print. I'm glad that its finally back.

Absolutely, Bateson is a "sloppy thinker," just as Picasso was a "sloppy painter" by the standards of Vermeer and Rembrandt. And really a comparison to artists - not formal theorists - is the metric by which Bateson should be judged.

Why is it that Bateson attracts such loyalty? Because his writing illustrates a *process* of thinking, rather than a specific indisputable conclusion. Those who expend the time and effort to read Bateson - and in particular SEM - are rewarded with the certainty that the thinking process is as interesting as any possible conclusion. And it is somewhat more than "clever" that in the SEM dialogues, Bateson uses the very structure and form of his writings to illustrate the content he's explaining.

Indeed it is precisely that uncertainty which vexes "formal" theorists (such as the reviewer below). Bateson - as a systems thinker - was always more interested in process and context than in defining any literal end result. After all, what possible "proof" could be offered that dolphins are second-order thinkers because they can learn about learning?. How on earth could proof be gained that icons and verbalizations are mediated by dreaming?

I would offer this question to Bateson's critics: if his thinking is so irredeemably sloppy, what then is his lasting appeal? Why does he - among all the philosophers and scientists of the 20th century - continue to have such a loyal following? Name a single cybernetician or epistomologist who is commonly cited in contemporary philosphical thinking.

Answer: there are none. So the bigger question is not why Bateson is popular, but why systems thinking (of which Bateson was a practitioner) is so absent from American academia. That fact is an indictment of something, but is certainly is not Gregory Bateson.

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Earth in Mind: On Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect

Everyone should read this book!

a great book in all respects

The Inclusion of Ecology Studies Needed In All Education

To change the world, we have to change our minds

Earth in Mind: On Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect
David W. Orr
Manufacturer: Island Press
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ASIN: 1559634952

Book Description

In Earth in Mind, noted environmental educator David W. Orr focuses not on problems in education, but on the problem of education.

Much of what has gone wrong with the world, he argues, is the result of inadequate and misdirected education that: alienates us from life in the name of human domination; causes students to worry about how to make a living before they know who they are; overemphasizes success and careers; separates feeling from intellect and the practical from the theoretical; deadens the sense of wonder for the created world.

The crisis we face, Orr explains, is one of mind, perception, and values. It is, first and foremost, an educational challenge.

The author begins by establishing the grounds for a debate about education and knowledge. He describes the problems of education from an ecological perspective, and challenges the "terrible simplifiers" who wish to substitute numbers for values. He follows with a presentation of principles for re-creating education in the broadest way possible, discussing topics such as biophilia, the disciplinary structure of knowledge, the architecture of educational buildings, and the idea of ecological intelligence. Orr concludes by presenting concrete proposals for reorganizing the curriculum to draw out our affinity for life.

Customer Reviews:

Earth in Mind: On Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect.......2007-01-10

David Orr exquisitely puts into words a need for an environmental ethos in the classroom. As a high school teacher, I have long-intuited his insights about how to bring daily connections to students about the natural world that we inhabit. He is deeply passionate, articulate and practical. I'd love to see school boards, administrations, faculty and students alike be exposed to his clear thinking and real suggestions. He brings urgency without bringing despair.

Everyone should read this book!.......2005-10-04

This is a very important book that should be read by all politicians, educators, and citizens of Earth. David Orr gives clear examples and ideas for making the radical changes we need to undo some of the damage that we have done to the planet. You will be inspired and moved if you read this book.

a great book in all respects.......2005-10-04

first off, as promised by the reseller, the book was in great condition.

as for the contents of the book, it's a fantastic read if you are interested in the root of the sustainability movement. that is to say the foundations and meaning of our educational system which as critical public good, is in dire need of a re-examination.

The Inclusion of Ecology Studies Needed In All Education.......2005-05-12

David W. Orr is chair of the environmental studies program at Oberlin College in Ohio and is most often credited with coining the word "ecoliteracy" (similar to the renown biologist Garrett Hardin's "ecolacy") to describe the very important study and understanding of ecology and natural resource processes. He is also credited with the simple, but profound statement, "When we heal the Earth, we heal ourselves."

No wonder then that Prof. Orr is well suited to write on the importance of ecoliteracy being incorporated into all educational systems for a more balanced perspective of reality.
Contemporary education, Orr says "...emphasizes theories, not values; abstraction rather than consciousness; neat answers instead of questions; and technical efficiency over conscience." (p 8) and, "As a result, after 12 or 16 or 20 years of education, most students graduate without any broad, integrated sense of the unity of things." (p 11)

"This is not an argument against education but rather an argument for the type of education that prepares people for lives and livelihoods suited to a planet with a biosphere that operates by the laws of ecology and thermodynamics." (p 27)

"Intelligence would lead us...to protect biological diversity, but for reasons that go beyond the calculation of self-interest. The surest sign of maturity of intelligence is the evolution of biocentric wisdom, by which I mean the capacity to nurture and shelter life-a fitting standard for a species calling itself homo sapiens." (p52)

"...I propose a different ranking system for colleges based on whether or not the institution and it's graduates move the world in more sustainable directions. Does four years at a particular institution instill knowledge, love, and competence toward the natural world or indifference and ignorance? Are the graduates of this or that college suited for a responsible life on a planet with a biosphere? This is an admittedly difficult, but not impossible, task."

A sense of "biophilia", as the renown sociobiologist, E.O. Wilson has described as that innate feeling of connectedness to a biological world where our roots and sustenance lie, is critical for developing a deep sense of respect and care of our world. Biophilia and it's antithesis, biophobia are well covered in chapter 20.

"We need an ecological concept of citizenship roots in the understanding that activities that erode soils, waste resources, pollute, destroy biological diversity, and degrade the beauty of landscapes are forms of theft from the commonwealth as surely as bank robbery. Ecological vandalism undermines future prosperity and democracy alike." (p 168)
"The first bit of conventional wisdom denies the importance of place and environment in favor of global vandalism masquerading as progress." (p 160)

Indeed, and a deep understanding of natural life-support systems would help mend that twisted perception of reality. David Orr has very well delineated the educational path here to creating graduates with a sense of awe and respect for the fragile, but life-supporting planet they live on.

To change the world, we have to change our minds.......2005-01-31

I once saw a lecture by James Randi, the skeptic and amateur magician who likes to debunk "miracles" and other mumbo jumbo. He was discouraged on this night, and he relayed his thoughts on how to save rationalism in a seeming advancing tide of superstition and magical thinking. He said something along the lines of, 'Forget trying to work with the adults, it's already too late for them. Concentrate on cultivating rational habits of mind among children, for whom there is still hope.'

This book by David Orr reminded me of that advice from Randi. While progressives and environmentalists make worthy efforts to control the worst aspects of industrial civilization through regulation and policy changes, what often gets short shrift is education. What is the use of treading water in the adult world of environmental destruction, if our children are still being taught to contribute to those very processes of civilization that do all of the damage? Orr reminds us that the most difficult change that needs to happen is one of mindset, of formative ideas. There are plenty of appropriate technologies out there to change the world, but we lack the political will and cultural mindset to implement what needs to be done.

The best way to create that ecological mindset, or worldview, is to teach children from the earliest age that they are part of a wonderful but fragile ecosystem, one that needs their help and devotion to survive. If we don't teach our daughters and sons that the earth is their home, and that processes that kill their home are ultimately suicidal, then all of the policy work and regulatory stop-gaps are worthless. This is good stuff, well worth reading.

Ecology, Community and Lifestyle: Outline of an Ecosophy

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Insightful and Much Needed Philosophy
A treaty of ecophilosophy

Ecology, Community and Lifestyle: Outline of an Ecosophy
Arne Naess
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
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ASIN: 0521348730

Book Description

Ecology, Community and Lifestyle is a revised and expanded translation of Naess' book Okologi, Samfunn og Livsstil, which sets out the author's thinking on the relevance of philosophy to the problems of environmental degradation and the rethinking of the relationship between mankind and nature. The text has been thoroughly updated by Naess and revised and translated by David Rothenberg.

Customer Reviews:

Insightful and Much Needed Philosophy.......2006-03-23

In his book, Arne Naess brilliantly provides the philosophical basis for deep ecology. He uses reasonable arguments that resound with all aspects of life. In a time when the market economy is pervading more and more areas around the globe, a philosophy like Naess's that can help us reconnect with the bigger picture is much needed. I am finishing up a degree in environmental economics and from my first year in environmental studies, Arne Naess's ideas have been pivotal in the re-shaping of my relationship with the world. His philosophy has been cited time and time again by professors of different disciplines and this book is required reading in many courses. This book is not too context specific and can be understood by any audience. It is highly recommended for the reader interested in philosophy, ecology, environmentalism, and life in general.

A treaty of ecophilosophy.......2004-07-07

The author develops the foundation of his nature-oriented philosophy with the traditional rigor, logic and method employed to describe new system of values. A bit harsh sometimes but philosophy demands that. For a more accessible and pragmatic artwork on the same subject, I would advise "Small is beautiful" by E. F. Schumacher.

Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction

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A decent book if you are well read on the topic ...
The Most Complete Review of the Subject in Print
Deceitful propaganda
An Excellent Introduction Explaining Why Evolution Is Science & Creationism Isn't
Sad -- this book sells "philosophy" as "science"

Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction
Eugenie C. Scott
Manufacturer: University of California Press
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ASIN: 0520246500

Book Description

Almost eighty years after the Scopes trial, the debate over the teaching of evolution continues to rage. There is no easy resolution--it is a complex topic with profound scientific, religious, educational, and legal implications. How can a student or parent understand this issue, which is such a vital part of education? Evolution vs. Creationism provides a badly needed, comprehensive, and balanced survey. Written by one of the leading advocates for the teaching of evolution in the United states, this accessible resource provides an introduction to the many facets of the current debate--the scientific evidence for evolution, the legal and educational basis for its teaching, and the various religious points of view--as well as a concise history of the evolution-creationism controversy.
Each of the four sections of Evolution vs. Creationism provides a resource that will assist the reader in better understanding these issues. The first section addresses the nature of how evolution works as part of the scientific enterprise, as well as a summary of the relationship between religious beliefs and science. A section on the history of the controversy provides a handy synopsis of the lengthy struggles, from before Darwin to the present day, between advocates of creationism and the proponents of evolution. A collection of primary source documents addressing cosmology, law, education, and religious issues from all sides of the debate constitute the third section. The book concludes with a selection of resources for further information for those who wish to study the topic in more depth.

Customer Reviews:

A decent book if you are well read on the topic ..........2007-09-24

I view this book more as a survey of the science literature rather than an approachable book on the subject for an average person. Personally, it was great for me but I feel that for someone new to the subject or with a non-technical background it would not be suitable. I would like to be positive about the book because to me it was pretty useful. Nonetheless, I would be dishonest if I didn't say it was a bit of a slog and ultimately unconvincing in that it often sidestepped many of the major burning questions in this debate (or was very weak). Ultimately, I felt that `if that is the best case that can be made for Darwinism then it might be in serious trouble'. Nonetheless, I haven't managed to find anything better to date in this type of book and so it's hard to complain. If I had to repurchase some of my existing library on Evolution I would certainly consider for pro-evolution: `The Blind Watchmaker' (Dawkins), and `Evolution' (Colin Patterson) and for pro-design: `Evolution a theory in Crisis' (Denton) and `The Edge of Evolution' (Behe). Nonetheless, I am not sure I would definitely repurchase this title (sorry).

The Most Complete Review of the Subject in Print.......2007-08-31

Eugenie C. Scott is probably one of the best spokespersons for the scientific community on the evolution-creation conflict. I won't call it a true controversy as that would imply that there was solid evidence on the creation science- intelligent design side, which (despite protestations to the contrary) there isn't. In reality the so-called "controversy" is an emotional and political argument, not an intellectual one. Still, Scott in her recent book "Evolution vs. Creation: An Introduction" presents the history of the arguments expressed by both sides in (I think) a very complete and reasonably fair, if not totally unbiased, manner (I doubt if creation science proponents would be as fair to evolutionary scientists). Despite its "Introduction" subtitle this is an astoundingly large collection of information.

As is pointed out by Scott, it is hard to be "fair" to some Creation-I.D. proponents as they consistently seem to misrepresent and misunderstand science. It is certainly true that scientists are human and subject to the frailties of our species, including arrogance, pride and often authoritarianism. It is also true that some accepted scientific ideas have been shown to be false. However, science as a method is unbiased, and is designed to be self-corrective, otherwise we would not have discarded such ideas as gemmules as genetic units or epicycles as planetary paths. The Piltdown hoax, a much used example of evolutionary science wrongheadedness, would not have been exposed if this were not true. In the ultimate science requires data- empirical evidence- that the ID proponents simply have not produced. On the science side there is a huge amount of evidence supporting evolutionary theory, and this is a solid foundation for most biological research. Although the descent of existing organisms from earlier organisms and the inter-relatedness of all life is in little doubt among biologists, no one can disprove (or prove) the existence of some sort of creator deity who may have started the process. Whatever we think about this has to be taken on faith. I have no quarrel with faith, but the creation-I.D. vs evolutionary science "controversy" is spurious science at best. Eugenie Scott has shown why this is true in this masterful volume.

In summary, Scott's book is a very well written and lucid description of the history of creation-I.D. ideas and why they are so prevalent at this point in time. I highly recommend it!

Deceitful propaganda.......2007-08-27

I purchased this book on the good reviews it had received and relying on the author's promise to provide an "accurate" historical perspective on the Evolution vs. Crationism debate. To my disappointment, upon reading the book, this promise proved to be only "deceitful propaganda". The author, Eugenie C. Scott is an ardent defensor of Darwinism, and was unable to keep her emotions about the subject out of the discussion, thus creating a dangerous mixture of fact and personal views. Also, she carefully left out some of the more responsible defensors of Creationism, such as Ariel A. Roth, whose book "Origins" is available from Amazon ".Origins, Linking Science and Scripture. If you're still searching for the broad, balanced perspective that Scott failed to deliver on the Evolution vs. Crationism debate, I'd recommend "The Evolution-Creation Struggle" by Michael Ruse, also available from Amazon. Ruse is also a strong proponent of Evolutionism, but he is capable of recognizing that while many Creationists misunderstand Science, today, many scientists have turned Evolutionism into a "secular religion". The Evolution-Creation Struggle

An Excellent Introduction Explaining Why Evolution Is Science & Creationism Isn't.......2007-06-09

Physical anthropologist Eugenie C. Scott has had the daunting, indeed Herculean, task of defending the teaching of genuine science - by this I mean of course primarily evolutionary biology - in science classrooms throughout the United States as executive director of the National Center for Science Education. Hers has truly been the battle of "David" versus "Goliath", or rather, an asymmetrical conflict between advocates of excellent American scientific educationg against creationist advocates benefitting from their association with affluent anti-evolutionist Conservative think tanks like the Discovery Institue, the intellectual headquarters of the "Intelligent Design" movement. If a Purple Heart could be bestowed upon her for valor, then she would have earned one hundreds of times, for successfully assisting and coordinating efforts to defeat by legal means, numerous attempts to introduce Intelligent Design and other forms of scientific creationism into science classrooms. Here in "Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction", she provides an invaluable introduction to the Evolution/Creation controversy (Of which I do include Intelligent Design since it is creationism's latest, most intellectually sophisticated, variety, having "evolved" from other, older forms of creationism.). And yet she has done a fine job trying to be fair in her presentation of the Creationist "world-view", by serving as a moderator at an Intelligent Design debate held a few years ago at the American Museum of Natural History (The pro-side was argued by leading Intelligent Design advocates William Dembski and Michael Behe; the con by philosopher Robert Pennock and cell biologist Ken Miller.). Once more she succeeds in this book by offering a more nuanced, balanced perspective in her discussion of Creationism, even as she makes a most eloquent case in support of genuine science, and especially, of evolutionary biology (Inspite of being "black-listed" by Creationist writers unwilling to grant her permission to quote directly from their published works, acting more like press censors working for Totalitarian regimes than "sincere" advocates seeking "balance" in science classrooms for their irrational, unscientific views to be discussed along with genuine science, she still tried to demonstrate their perspective by referring to their works.).

Eugenie Scott's "Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction" is an excellent introduction to this burning issue which should be read by anyone interested in ensuring quality science education in America. In her opening section on evolution and the nature of science, Scott is quite emphatic as to what science is - and what it isn't. She stresses not only its inherently rational character, but also the key feature which distinguishes it from a religiously-motivated pseudoscience such as Intelligent Design; that it is an objective search for an inconstant, ever shifting "truth", whose very nature undergoes self-assessment and correction. She does an admirable job describing the scientific method, and reviewing the overwhelming scientific evidence for the reality of biological evolution. The second section explores the intellectual and philosophical history of the search for an adequate explanation explaining biological diversity, beginning with ancient Greek philosophers and concluding with early reaction to the publication of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" from Christians in 19th Century Europe and America. The third section is her thorough, yet terse, exploration of 20th Century Creationism in the United States and of the many legal challenges mounted by creationists against the teaching of evolution (Those interested in more in-depth coverage may find more useful Robert Pennock's "Tower of Babel" for its extensive overview of all the different breeds of creationism, including Intelligent Design.). Originally published by a private Connecticut-based publisher, "Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction" is available now from the University of California Press, which means that is now available to as wide a readership as possible. Without question, it is still one of the best - if not the best - introductions to both the nature of the scientific enterprise and the religiously-oriented origins of so-called "Scientific Creationism".

Sad -- this book sells "philosophy" as "science".......2007-05-30

If you want a reasoned analysis of the evidences for and against evolution and intelligent design, then keep looking. This book is too shallow for any student of science and is a veiled attempt to sell the religion of Humanism. I would recommend instead Debating Design: From Darwin to DNA or What Is Creation Science.

I found no convincing arguments in favor of evolution in this book. There was no explanation of how inanimate elements conspired to form the first living cell or how new phyla of animals arose by mere natural selection. There was no scientific explanation for how language found its way into DNA or any rebuttal of irreducible complexity. This shallowness by itself is not consequential; but consider the fact that this author actively campaigns to censor anyone who presents scientific evidence that contradicts Darwin's Victorian-era philosophy, and you've got a recipe for scientifically illiterate students.

You know your position is tenuous if your only strategy is to prevent people from hearing your opposition. If Darwinism is so infallible, you'd think she'd want to allow open discussions in the classroom about its pros and cons--if only to demonstrate its infallibility. But when you live in a house of cards, you don't exactly welcome building inspectors.

Average customer rating:

Essential Reading
This is Really Good
A fun review of evolution, an excellent overview of the beauty of life.
A manual for converts
There is wonder aplenty in nature and science

The Sacred Depths Of Nature
Ursula Goodenough
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Elements of Pantheism
Secular Wholeness: A Skeptic's Paths To A Richer Life
Natural Atheism
Everybody's Story: Wising Up to the Epic of Evolution (Suny Series in Philosophy and Biology)
Dancing With the Sacred: Evolution, Ecology, and God

ASIN: 0195136292

Amazon.com

Ursula Goodenough is an internationally recognized cell biologist; she is also an accomplished amateur theologian--an unusual combination of interests in a time when science and religion are widely divided. In The Sacred Depths of Nature, she proposes what she calls a "planetary ethic" drawing on the lessons of both science and metaphysics, celebrating some of the mysteries that are central to both: "the mystery of why there is anything at all, rather than nothing," for one, and "the mystery of why the universe seems so strange," for another. Exploring scientifically based narratives about the creation of the universe and the origins of life, Goodenough forges a kind of religious naturalism that will not be unfamiliar to readers of New Age literature--save that her naturalism has the hard-nosed rigor of a laboratory-trained scholar behind it. Goodenough offers a crash course in the life sciences for her readers, encompassing the basics, for instance, of biochemistry in just a few paragraphs (and getting it right in the bargain), touching on Darwinian biology and population dynamics and even chaos theory to make "an epic of evolution" that has all the hallmarks of an origin myth. Faith and reason, in her view, are not mutually exclusive, and her well-written treatise makes a good argument for bridging the gap between the two. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

For many of us, the great scientific discoveries of the modern age--the Big Bang, evolution, quantum physics, relativity--point to an existence that is bleak, devoid of meaning, pointless. But in The Sacred Depths of Nature, eminent biologist Ursula Goodenough shows us that the scientific world view need not be a source of despair. Indeed, it can be a wellspring of solace and hope. This eloquent volume reconciles the modern scientific understanding of reality with our timeless spiritual yearnings for reverence and continuity. Looking at topics such as evolution, emotions, sexuality, and death, Goodenough writes with rich, uncluttered detail about the workings of nature in general and of living creatures in particular. Her luminous clarity makes it possible for even non-scientists to appreciate that the origins of life and the universe are no less meaningful because of our increasingly scientific understanding of them. At the end of each chapter, Goodenough's spiritual reflections respond to the complexity of nature with vibrant emotional intensity and a sense of reverent wonder. A beautifully written celebration of molecular biology with meditations on the spiritual and religious meaning that can be found at the heart of science, this volume makes an important contribution to the ongoing dialog between science and religion. This book will engage anyone who was ever mesmerized--or terrified--by the mysteries of existence.

Customer Reviews:

Essential Reading.......2007-09-05

Ursula Goodenough has produced a very rare bridge between non-theistic evolutionary science and religion where she expresses an understanding of the spiritual side of human culture while keeping her feet planted firmly on the science ground. Through what she calls 'religious naturalism' Goodenough seeks to show how natural reality abounds with natural 'miracles' that elicit 'religious' emotions without the need to belong to any particular religion nor believe in a god. More than this, she seeks to show how nature itself can provide every one of us with all that is necessary to be 'religious' in the sense of having a common planetary ethic, planetary wisdom and interconnectedness.

Religious people believe that existance without a god would be devoid of meaning, bleak and pointless. Goodenough explains how this absolutely does not need not be so and how, in fact, understanding how life works can fill existance with immense joy. She gives a clear, brief explanation of aspects of life from the origins of the earth to human consciousness and adds her own personal refections on the 'religious', though non-theist, way life makes her feel.

Mortality is one aspect of life that often spurs people to believe in a god and Goodenough explains the origins of mortality in the evolution of multicellularity and sexual reproduction with the resulting diversity of life. With multicellularity the germline cells are sequestered from the body cells which, not themselves going into the future, can specialize and create complex body parts including the brain. These body cells, and bodies, have a limited life ie "death is the price paid to have trees and clams, birds and grasshoppers, people and consciousness." Goodenough can therefore say: "my somatic life is the wondrous gift wrought by my forthcoming death".

I don't know how many people who are firmly in the non-theist or theist camp would find a bridge between the two as comfortable as Ursula Goodenough finds it but that is what makes this book essential reading for everyone.

This is Really Good.......2007-01-31

I loved this book and it's a refreshing thing for a thinking person to read.

A fun review of evolution, an excellent overview of the beauty of life........2005-07-05

It is refreshing to find a brilliant scientist who is willing to turn nature into poetry and spirituality. It shouldn't matter if you are an atheist or a deist, the description of the common bonds we have with the earth and the different species of the animal kingdom brings tears to your eyes. At the same time, we can have reverence and feeling for the profound desires of humans to communicate and feel intimacy with God who may well be a metaphor for the beauty of the gorgeous biological process.

A manual for converts.......2003-10-07

Few voices are as forceful or as eloquent as that of the convert. This account of personal awe in the face of Nature is a passionate example. From the centre of Christian America, Goodenough explains why ideas of divine forces driving Nature must be replaced. Her replacement, trying to mediate between "cold" science and misleading traditional dogma, is called "natural religion". Astonished by the wonders of cosmology and life, Goodenough became a scientist and shed her monotheistic background. What wasn't thrown out with the theology was her sense of wonder. Having once buried her head beneath a pillow out of despair over her inability to comprehend the cosmos, she relates how she emerged to study science. She chose biology, and it's well for us she did. Her description of protein construction is unmatched in science writing.

In this work, she opens at the beginning, explaining how physics underlies everything, including life. She relates how "life from non-life" can and does occur. She moves to a description of the origins and later development of life's processes. Cell mechanisms are portrayed. In this topic, she creates a wonderful idea - the Mozart Metaphor. We listen to a Mozart sonata with a sense of awe and veneration. Those feelings, she urges, aren't diminished by the knowledge that the music is reducible to blobs of ink on a page. Any musician can read those dots and restore the wonder by playing the music. In life, our knowledge of life's processes doesn't diminish the marvel of them. Goodenough translates that feeling into a "Mystery" which she wishes to share. If you need to understand how much of life functions, but fear abandoning "traditional" beliefs, this book is a fine first step.

A second step is one Goodenough regrettably omits. While her "natural religion" comes accompanied by a wealth of poetic, Biblical and other religious messages, the voice of science itself is silent in this book. Charles Darwin's own "grandeur of this view of life" is a serious omission in a book so descriptive of evolution. While some would resist pairing Darwin with Mozart, the evolutionist's reach extends beyond our tiny world. The same is unlikely to be the case for the composer. It's not enough to turn what science has shown us about life into a new "faith". Practitioners of science deserve hearing, especially when an author is speaking in their name. The information she uses has taken many years, much hard work and no little inspiration. Goodenough might have given that foundation a bit more ink. Some fine chapter illustrations grace the text, but the bibliography is limited. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

There is wonder aplenty in nature and science.......2003-06-25

"But there must be something more" is a common refrain among those who believe that science robs the world of its meaning; those who cannot countenance that we are ultimately elaborate biochemical reactions, that life emerged from non-life, that stars are nuclear furnaces, that the universe began with a Big Bang. Ursula Goodenough answers this refrain with compassion, patience, poetry, and above all, a command of science and a gift for communicating its achievements and its excitement. In "The Sacred Depths of Nature", Ursula Goodenough, a research biologist, presents a series of meditations on the mysteries of nature. She argues passionately that there are mysteries aplenty within us and about us, and that we needn't invent a supernatural realm. How can one contemplate the exquisite workings of a signal transduction cascade within a living cell, or the grandeur of stellar evolution, or the complexity of biological evolution without a sense of awe? As Carl Sagan was fond of pointing out, these stories have far greater richness and beauty than do any religious myths, no matter how richly embellished.

As Ms. Goodenough amply demonstrates in this unique little book, science needn't be devoid of awe; its language needn't be dry and unpoetic; its students needn't be deprived of feeling. In fact, quite the contrary. The intricacy and grandeur or nature, as revealed by science, is every bit as awe-inspiring as the greatest religious myths; indeed, even more so. Ms. Goodenough argues that understanding life is like understanding a Mozart sonata. As she puts it, "The biochemistry and biophysics are the notes of life; they conspire, collectively, to generate the real unit of life, the organism."

Building on this theme, each chapter explores some aspect of biology, embracing the intrinsic beauty of some complex process, never shying away from accurate terminology, and always employing apt metaphors and analogies that make the concepts accessible to virtually anyone. For example, as Ms. Goodenough explains, "Patterns of gene expression are to organisms as melodies and harmonies are to sonatas. It's all about which sets of proteins appear in a cell at the same time (the chords) and which sets come before or after other sets (the themes) and at what rate they appear (the tempos) and how they modulate one another (the developments and transitions)." Each chapter ends with "reflections", in which the author grants herself greater poetic license to interpret the lessons of the chapter in a personal way, and to explore common intuitions about life, even as they have been sanctified in religious rituals. In one such reflection, Ms. Goodenough's declares "I have come to understand that the self, my self, is inherently sacred. By virtue of its own improbability, its own miracle, its own emergence."

Even if the reader does not come away with the same sense of awe at the workings of nature as the author, there is one observation that will surely be impressed upon him/her; that it is indeed possible for a scientist, a reductionist, a non-believer, to be filled with wonder, gratitude, and awe. These things are not antithetical to science; for some, they are integral to science. Those of us who are scientists typically have appreciated this fact in some way since childhood, although perhaps not as poetically or poignantly as Ms. Goodenough. For those who insist that there must be something more, Ms. Goodenough's reflections may begin to persuade you that there is wonder enough within a single cell to rival any liturgy, and any cathedral. How can anyone who even begins to grasp their inner workings ask for more?

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to appreciate the poetry and awe of science. It takes a small but significant step toward bridging a chasm between science, which is too often perceived as suffocatingly impersonal and dispassionate, and the sacred, which is mistaken for the exclusive domain of religion. My hat is off to Ursula Goodenough. I suspect that she will help to bring a good many talented young people into science who may not have otherwise ventured to go there, and just as importantly, help to remove some of the stigma associated with science and its practitioners.

Look to the Mountain: An Ecology of Indigenous Education
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Wisdom resurfacing

Look to the Mountain: An Ecology of Indigenous Education
Gregory Cajete
Manufacturer: Kivaki Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books | 19th Century | 20th Century | 21st Century | African Americans | Civil War | Colonial Period | General | Revolution & Founding | State & Local
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Similar Items:

Power and Place: Indian Education in America

A People's Ecology: Explorations in Sustainable Living

Native Science: Natural Laws of Interdependence

The American Indian Mind in a Linear World: American Indian Studies and Traditional Knowledge

Teaching American Indian Students

ASIN: 1882308654

Customer Reviews:

Wisdom resurfacing.......1999-12-08

Cajete's book is a fine work, that incorporates traditional Native American practices into the modern world. I recommend it to all teachers and students and American history for within the pages are academic, creative, and wholestic ways to approach learning and living. The book clearly sparkles with Native American philosophy/religion (ecosophy)which thought provokiing and clearly stated. The text weaves the traditional symbols and Indigenous American social customs into the modern educational practices of the USA. Respectful, multifaceted and interesting read.

Animal Passions and Beastly Virtues: Reflections on Redecorating Nature (Animals Culture And Society)

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Animal Passions and Beastly Virtues: Reflections on Redecorating Nature (Animals Culture And Society)
Marc Bekoff
Manufacturer: Temple University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Ethics & Morality | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Animal Rights | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

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The Emotional Lives of Animals: A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy - and Why They Matter
Minding Animals: Awareness, Emotions, and Heart
The Cognitive Animal: Empirical and Theoretical Perspectives on Animal Cognition
If You Tame Me: Understanding Our Connection With Animals (Animals, Culture, and Society)
Thinking with Animals: New Perspectives on Anthropomorphism

ASIN: 1592133487

Book Description

What is it really like to be a dog? Do animals experience emotions like pleasure, joy, and grief? Marc Bekoff's work draws world-wide attention for its originality and its probing into what animals think about and know as well as what they feel, what physical and mental skills they use to live successfully within their social community. Bekoff's work, whether addressed to scientists or the general public, demonstrates that investigations into animal thought, emotions, self-awareness, behavioral ecology, and conservation biology can be compassionate as well as scientifically rigorous.

In Animal Passions and Beastly Virtues, Bekoff brings together essays on his own ground-breaking research and on what scientists know about the remarkable range and flexibility of animal behavior. His fascinating and often amusing observations of dogs, wolves, coyotes, prairie dogs, elephants, and other animals playing, leaving and detecting scent-marks ("yellow snow"), solving problems, and forming friendships challenge the idea that science and the ethical treatment of animals are incompatible.

The Animals Reader: The Essential Classic and Contemporary Writings
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The Animals Reader: The Essential Classic and Contemporary Writings

Manufacturer: Berg Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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General | Animals | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
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Why the Wild Things Are: Animals in the Lives of Children

The Moral Menagerie: PHILOSOPHY AND ANIMAL RIGHTS

The Serpent and the Swan: The Animal Bride in Folklore and Literature

Killing Animals

The Emotional Lives of Animals: A Leading Scientist Explores Animal Joy, Sorrow, and Empathy - and Why They Matter

ASIN: 1845204700
Release Date: 2007-04-03

Book Description

The study of animals - and the relationship between humans and other animals - is now one of the most fiercely debated topics in contemporary science and culture. Animals have a long history in human society, providing food, labour, sport and companionship as well as becoming objects for exhibit. More contemporary uses extend to animals as therapy and in scientific testing. As natural habitats continue to be destroyed, the rights of animals to co-exist on the planet - and their symbolic power as a connection between humans and the natural world - are ever more hotly contested. The Animals Reader brings together the key classic and contemporary writings from Philosophy, Ethics, Sociology, Cultural Studies, Anthropology, Environmental Studies, History, Law and Science. As the first book of its kind, The Animals Reader provides a framework for understanding the current state of the multidisciplinary field of animal studies. This anthology will be invaluable for students across the Humanities and Social Sciences as well as for general readers.

Beyond Civilization: Humanity's Next Great Adventure

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A book worth having, reading, and re-reading.
Perspective on 'takers' concept
Confusion Abounds
Beyond Civilization
Quinn's best yet

Beyond Civilization: Humanity's Next Great Adventure
Daniel Quinn
Manufacturer: Harmony
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Philosophy of History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

Civilization & Culture | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books
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Tales of Adam
The Story of B
Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit
My Ishmael
Providence

ASIN: 0609604902
Release Date: 1999-10-05

Amazon.com

Futurist Daniel Quinn (Ishmael) dares to imagine a new approach to saving the world that involves deconstructing civilization. Quinn asks the radical yet fundamental questions about humanity such as, Why does civilization grow food, lock it up, and then make people earn money to buy it back? Why not progress "beyond civilization" and abandon the hierarchical lifestyles that cause many of our social problems? He challenges the "old mind" thinking that believes problems should be fixed with social programs. "Old minds think: How do we stop these bad things from happening?" Quinn writes. "New minds think: How do we make things the way we want them to be?"

Whether he is discussing Amish farming, homelessness, "tribal business," or holy work, Quinn's manifesto is highly digestible. Instead of writing dense, weighty chapters filled with self-important prose, he's assembled a series of brief one-page essays. His language is down to earth, his metaphors easy to grasp. As a result, readers can read about and ponder Beyond Civilization at a blissfully civilized pace. --Gail Hudson

Book Description

If a team of Martian anthropologists were to study our culture, their initial findings might read something like this: These people have the strange idea that the thing they call civilization is some sort of final, unsurpassable invention. Even though vast numbers of them suffer in this oppressively hierarchical system, and even though it appears to be plunging them toward a global catastrophe, they cling to it as if it were the most wonderful thing (as they quaintly say) since sliced bread. That a more agreeable (and less catastrophic) system exists BEYOND civilization, seems to be entirely unthinkable to them.

In Beyond Civilization, Daniel Quinn has made it his task to think the unthinkable. We all know there's no one right way to build a bicycle, no one right way to design an automobile, no one right way to construct a pair of shoes, but we're convinced there must be only one right way for people to live--and the one we have is it, no matter what. Even if we hate it, we must cling to it. Even if it drags us to the brink of extinction, we must not let it go.

Many other peoples have built civilizations--and then walked away from them. Quinn examines the Maya, the Olmec, the people of Teotihuacán, and others, who did just that. But they all walked away moving backward--to an earlier lifestyle. Quinn's goal in this book is to show how we can walk away moving forward, to a new lifestyle, one which encourages diversity instead of suppressing it. Not a "New World Order," but rather a New Personal Order. Not legislative change at the governmental level, but rather incremental change at the human level.

This is a guidebook for people who want to assert control over their destiny and recover the freedom to live at a scale and in a style of their own choosing--and starting now, today, not in some distant utopian future.

Customer Reviews:

A book worth having, reading, and re-reading........2007-04-01

The fact that "Beyond Civilization" begins with a fable that captures the entire essence of what's wrong with our civilization is an absolute winner in my eyes.

I read this book with pleasure. Like Ishmael, Quinn's other winner, I could not help but experience the ambivalence of getting angry about our human backwardness, yet encouraged to keep myself from falling into the traps of "Mother Culture" and the thoughts of "old minds."

As a "new mind" I wrote two books: "The Awakened Leader: One Simple Leadership Style That Works Every Time, Everywhere," and "Spirituality in the Workplace: What it is; Why it Matters; How to Make it Work for You" (the last one co-authored with Dr. Satinder Dhiman and Dr. Richard King)

Both of these books present ways to apply wakefulness in our lives, and with that, make a positive difference for ourselves and others.

Beyond civilization is a great and inspiring reader, and so are "The Awakened Leader," and "Spirituality in the Workplace."

Perspective on 'takers' concept.......2007-03-08

Mr. Quinn has, as have most Jeremiahs in earlier societies, engendered quite a lot of animosity for his calling out of our American (nee western) society as a 'taker society'. Here in Beyond Civilization Quinn puts his proverbial 'money' where his former books' mouths were and outlines what the hell we can do about the state of things we 'takers' have brought about. A good read, but not for those who are lazily comfortable living in 21st century America.

Confusion Abounds.......2006-07-27

I thought I finally had Daniel Quinn all figured out after reading the Ishmael trilogy, but after reading this, I have way more questions than answers. For starters, he has talked through his books about our culture being one of totalitarian agricuture and this being the downfall of our culture, that we force everyone to live this way and now there is no diversity left and our "civilization" will self destruct soon without a change. His change is an escape from civilization (going beyond civilization) by taking up tribal living again, albeit tribal living in a new way (basically by starting businesses that work on a tribal level with everyone contributing and playing just as equal part so that everyone feels valuable). The big problem is that he never says how this is going beyond our culture. Sure, he started a tribal business in New Mexico with his wife and two other people, but they still had to live in this culture, be supported by this culture, and rely on this culture to survive. He cannot think of any examples as a way of living outside of this culture, for all the times he advocates us doing it. I see what he means by the circus example and his small newspaper, but these are still dependent upon the larger culture to exist, couldnt exist without the support of the one culture that they are trying to escape. How do we escape this culture? He wants us to jump over the prison walls and forage out on our own, but doesn't address what seemed to be the big issue of our totalitarian agriculturalist society. I thought this was the problem, so it is hard for me to see how the two can connect: how to live in a new tribal way that also exists outside the culture of totalitarian agriculture? Is there an answer that I am missing? Or does Daniel Quinn simply not know (which I think he tries to make a point of in this book, that he probably doesn't know and that's ok to not know). Mostly this book rehashes everything from the trilogy but throws in some new stuff about tribes, very little, however, and it is clear I guess that he really doesn't have any answers here.

Beyond Civilization.......2006-07-17

Daniel Quinn has laid out the only reasonable solution to the seemingly impossible problem of an industrial/military domination of the planet. Using our inability to serve ourselves as the trap in which we seem to find ourselves, our servants are herding increasing portions of dependant mankind into the corral of mother culture. Becoming independent of the debilitating conveniences too readily provided, as individuals and as tribes, we can finally abandon a bad idea at its roots as exemplified by other civilizations whose machinery sits idle beneath jungle root and desert sand while their populations persist in more local organizations.

Quinn's best yet.......2006-07-02

In my opinion, this book represents Quinn's best book. At the same time, it wouldn't work unless I had read his other books. Here Quinn more clearly states his ideas for a better world, one where hierarchy no longer exists. It offers suggestions for how this can come about. The alternative is to remain "pyriamid builders". I would recommend this book to anyone, but I would suggest reading Ishmael first so one understands some of the concepts Quinn is using here.

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