The Joy of the Truth » Environment

Finally! Some “Green” Actions that Make Sense

Jeffrey S. Arrowood, MTS — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:00:52 +0000

I have been pretty critical of the popular environmental movement, which often seems more for show than for effect. However, there are some activities that I recently became aware of that actually make sense. As I have said before, I am not against being a good steward of Creation. It’s just that most of the “Go Green” movement is either hype, or treats Creation as more important that human welfare.

However, combating the “throw away society” has always made sense to me. I recently read about a movement to use refillable containers to purchase grocery items, it really resonated with me. Refillable milk jars, washable containers for meats and vegetables (instead of plastic and styrofoam), and purchasing fresh foods instead of pre-packaged are a few ways the article mentioned to do this. Reducing the amount of garbage my household produces seems like good stewardship to me.

Tell me what you think! Leave a comment!

Join the Crusade Against . . . Water

Jeffrey S. Arrowood, MTS — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 15:19:23 +0000

I know that Pen & Teller have been critical of Catholicism, but in this video they make a good point. They take on environmental extremism (or perhaps any extremism) and force the question, “Do people support causes out of knowledgeable concern, or out of blind, ignorant emotionalism?” In our politicized word, it’s an important question to ask. Even in causes as reasonable as pro-life, we can fall into emotionalism and make ignorant arguments. However, I am always impressed with the leaders of the pro-life movement in Catholic circles – Fr. Frank Pavone, Fr. Thomas Euteneuer, Peggy Hamill, Bobby Schindler, etc. They all ground their discussion of abortion and other life issues in the natural moral law and create reasoned arguments that show why abortion is morally evil.

In other sectors of the public square, we are often so used to hearing propaganda and sloganizing that we stop questioning if the claims to truth are true. Our politicized culture even makes science into a propaganda tool instead of an investigation into objective truth. Does anyone really know if “global warming” is real or not? “Science” seems to support both sides of the argument because science has been used as a weapon rather than as an honest search for the truth. This video calls us to task on accepting such a culture.

It’s also really, really funny.

How About "Go Smart" Instead of "Go Green"?

Jeffrey S. Arrowood, MTS — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:05:00 +0000

The problem with “movements” is that they all too easily fall into propaganda and media hype and neglect real solutions. The environmental movement has been in this camp for a very long time, and the increased fervor spurned on my the “global warming” hype has made things even worse.

Example: the gift shop at St. Clare’s Hospital has started to sell paper gift products made out of elephant dung. If they were selling this line of products as a novelty item the story would not have even caught my attention. However, the article couldn’t pass up the opportunity to claim that this was part of the “Go Green” movement. Now wait a second. How is shipping paper products from India going green? Sure, elephant dung is a renewable resource, and some of the money raised by these products goes toward conservation efforts. But these benefits seem quite minuscule and are easily negated by the cost of shipping and packaging.

Now, I have no real problem with these products. As a Catholic I also agree that human beings have the responsibility to care for Creation. After all, Creation is a sign of God’s love and care for us. My problem is with the constant touting of “Go Green” for small, insignificant and even silly acts. There seems to be very little effort to engage in intelligent environmental stewardship.

There are exceptions, of course. Hybrid cars make a lot of sense to me (totally electric cars that rely on coal-produced electricity make less sense). I have also written about true innovations that show the kind of thinking that could really make difference. These examples of “Going Smart” are worthy of emulation. “Go Green” propaganda make my eyes roll.

Endangered Species in Conflict

Jeffrey S. Arrowood, MTS — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 19:39:00 +0000

What happens when the main enemy of an endangered species is not man, but another endangered species? I am in favor of conservation efforts, for the most part. However, this story illustrates the potential for such efforts to go overboard, or to backfire.

States seek Lethal Sea Lion Removal, Joseph B. Frazier, Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Oregon and Washington are drafting a proposal for “limited selected lethal removal” of protected California sea lions in the Columbia River to ease pressure on the spring chinook salmon run.

The problem with conservation seems to come in when we fail to see it as stewardship of God’s resources, and start to see it as salvation. Some conservation efforts tend to see humanity as the enemy of all nature, and seek to eliminate human interference with nature. Other efforts make it their goal to save every species of animal, failing to realize that extinction is to some degree natural and inevitable.

For a peek at a more balanced view of conservation and environmental stewardship, check out these Catholic Educator’s Resource Center articles, especially the Cornwall Declaration.

Click here to listen to an excellent audio clip on the Cornwall Alliance from Janet Parshall’s America.

Transcendent Thinking in Environmentalism

Jeffrey S. Arrowood, MTS — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 05:31:00 +0000

I often claim that Catholics cannot ally themselves with either the Democratic or the Republican party. Both parties hold policies that are opposed to Catholic teachings. Holding a view that transcends the political games that the two major parties play has some great advantages. These advantages have yet to be exploited by American culture in general, but the few people that have managed to actualize such transcendence have made some pretty large impacts. One such person is the green architect William McDonough.

In the “Inconvenient Truth” atmosphere of global warming paranoia, McDonough has been all but forgotten. However, his wisdom is very much needed today. The problem with Democratic liberal environmentalism is that it sees industrial America and big business as the enemy. In fact, it sometimes seems to consider all of humanity the enemy of the natural world. On the other hand, Republican conservative big-business tends to see all environmentalism as its enemy.

Conservative Christians who ally themselves with the Republican Party tend to make the same mistake. If Al Gore’s “Inconvenient Truth” alarmist mentality is incomprehensible, so is the attitude that since there is no evidence global warming is caused by human activity, there is no reason to try to control greenhouse gas emissions. I have to wonder, what is so wrong with wanting to put reasonable restrictions on greenhouse gasses and other pollutants? Since when is it anti-Christian to be environmentally conscious?

William McDonough transcends these myopic attitudes toward the environment and attempts to bring environmentalism and good business sense together. As an architect, he tries to make environmentally friendly buildings that save companies money by cutting energy costs.

USNews.com: Green Machine

McDonough is working to convince environmentalists and capitalists they have a common cause. What sets the architect apart is his rejection of traditional environmentalist attitudes. He discards as simplistic the notion of growth vs. no growth. “Most environmentalists are saying be less bad,” he says. “We think growth is good. It just has to be something you would be happy to see growing.”

Now that is transcendent thought! Instead of viewing big business as the enemy, McDonough tries to get big business to find profit in environmentalism. His philosophy is wise, deep and broad.

McDonough sketches his philosophy in a triangle, with economic returns, social good, and environmental benefits at the three corners. Instead of the either-or trade-offs typically associated with the environmental movement–build green or build cheap–McDonough believes it is possible to aim for the middle of the triangle, maximizing all three factors. Traditional thinking is that the way to build green is to, say, build a sealed box that costs less to cool because you can’t open the windows and it’s dark inside. But McDonough is convinced that with creative architecture and design, appealing workspaces can coexist with environmental efficiency and remain sound business decisions.

One would think that this out-of-the-box thinking (if you’ll pardon the pun) would be widely acclaimed. It is accepted by some. Ford Motor Company hired McDonough to redesign their original plant on Michigan Rouge River outside of Detroit. He also designed several office buildings in Silicon Valley in California. However, it seems his harshest criticisms come from environmentalists.

Some environmentalists are uncomfortable with the enthusiasm for business McDonough embodies, questioning the need to constantly justify good environmental design in terms of cost and vague promises of increased productivity. “Why shouldn’t corporations do it just because people will go home at night and feel healthy?” asks David Gissen, a professor at Penn State and curator of an exhibit on green architecture at the National Building Museum that will include several of McDonough’s projects. That he’s working with Ford at all has drawn criticism from environmentalists who see clients like Ford and the Gap as the enemy. McDonough bristles at those attitudes. “Who are we supposed to work with? At least they’re leading and trying to go forward,” he says. “People need to recognize the need of industry to transform–to move as quickly as possible toward the positive alternatives. Our job is to provide those positive alternatives.”

Why shouldn’t corporations do it just because people will go home at night and feel healthy? Because that’s not how corporations work. Corporations exist to make money. There is nothing wrong with that. They provide us with important goods and services. If they can make money, and make people go home at night and feel healthy, many corporations would be happy about meeting both goals. The narrow-minded thinking of McDonough’s critics will never work. We need more people like McDonough who are able to transcend narrow polemical thinking. We need these people in all areas of our culture, not just in environmentalism. The Catholic Church should be the largest source of transcendent thinkers. We need to get busy!

The Joy of the Truth » Environment

Finally! Some “Green” Actions that Make Sense

Related Links:

Join the Crusade Against . . . Water

Related Links:

How About "Go Smart" Instead of "Go Green"?

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Endangered Species in Conflict

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Transcendent Thinking in Environmentalism

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