Stuff, capitalism, and population.

• Author: Kolwey, Neil
• Position: FROM READERS - Letter to the editor

I really enjoyed the "Less Stuff, or More Blood" article in the September/October issue. I totally agree that eco-efficiency improvements by themselves are not enough to make the math of sustainability work over the next 30-40 years, as Tom Prugh explained so well. Prugh also pointed out that the math at the general scale is a gross generalization of problems at the regional or local level, which will always be much worse in some regions that others. As David Schweickart stated in his article, "A New Capitalism--or a New World?" [same issue], there is more suffering going on today in many parts of the world due to war and starvation than most of us will ever experience in our lifetimes.

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Along these lines, I think it is helpful to consider current resource issues and conflicts as well as potential crises in the future. Staying connected to the present helps me to feel less overwhelmed and to be more optimistic. I personally feel much happier when I take a slightly optimistic attitude, and when I feel that I can do something to contribute toward making the world a nicer place.

Getting back to consumption choices and habits, I agree with Prugh that focusing on energy and meat consumption makes a lot of sense. In particular, I think we should focus on reducing our consumption of red meat, which typically requires much more grain inputs and generates much more greenhouse gas emissions per pound than poultry or form-raised fish. And within the category of energy consumption, I think it is especially important to focus on oil products (gasoline and diesel). Several wars have already been fought over oil, including the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. Despite other weak justifications...