I have just started reading a very good book by Nic Frances called, The End of Charity. In itself the book is very interesting and Nic sounds like a very cool guy but it was something he said near the begining that got me thinking about this car industry subsidy debate that we are not really having.
How do we create a market for positive change? For a start, we have to price the things we want to achieve according to their value and the cost of not having them. They cannot be priced according to ideology or historic preference. For example, subsidising the cost of electricity generated by brown coal, a major polluter, while not subsidising hydro, solar or wind power or energy efficiency to the same extent forces us to remain polluters and undermines the market’s ability to self-correct.
It is too late in the evening now for me to finish this post with a long winded rant about the rich man smacking you with the ‘market decides’ argument on one hand and asking the government for money on the other hand because the market decide they should fade away.
Anyway, you can check out the book here: The End of Charity and/or thanks to google read the first few chapters here.
My first Organic Cotton T-Shirt was an Inhabitat.com shirt, which my partner Rachel lovingly brought back from New York. So soft and comfortable. For my birthday today amongst some awesome books I received another Organic Cotton T-Shirt but this time from an Australian company which has some very cool designs. I want one of everything. The picture above is the one I recieved. If you want a soft comfortable shirt that happen to look really good too, then you have to check out www.kindling.com.au
As a side note. If you have smelly feet try cotton socks. I walk in puddles if I wear anything but cotton socks. I have never owned organic cotton socks but swear by natural fibres for my feet. Now I must find some organic socks.
Like so many of these things we may never actually get the chance to purchase it, but I would love one of these. When are they going to realise that there is a market for these things and so many of us can’t wait. I love my little VW Golf Diesel but I would ditch it in a second for one of these Peapods, and not just because it has built in support for my iPhone.
I am still looking into it but this is a very interesting issue that probably does need our attention. Extremely Drug Resistant TB. They are saying that it can be prevented. That is good news, but it still requires attention. For more back ground info on the site watch this TED Video: James Nachtwey: TED Prize wish: Share a vital story with the world.
This is a very interesting looking doco about the future of Water. It is said that one day we will be fighting wars over water. Man I hope it doesn’t come to that, it would be a real failing of our society. At Urban Grind I have always said, “Never deny anyone the opportunity to a glass of water or to use the toilet.” What goes around comes around and I might be real thirsty one day and having to rely on the kindness of my fellow man.
