How's your Sustainability?
Sustainability is the new watchword for all number of lefty activities. Did you know that in 2001 Oregon passed the Oregon Sustainability Act? ....or that in 2003 Gov. Kulongowski issued Executive Order EO-03-03, A sustainable Oreton for the 21st Century? ..... or that in 2006 the Governor issued yet another such Executive Order?
I also discovered that the University of Oregon has a Sustainability Leadership Programand that Oregon State has a website on sustainability called Looking for Oregon's Future.
At the "Looking For Oregon Futures" website I clicked on issues and then clicked on a link about something called Natural Capitalism.
Here we find Oregon State recommending a book by Paul Hawkin that suggests the following:
"In the next century, as human population doubles and the resources available per person drop by one-half to three-fourths, a remarkable transformation of industry and commerce can occur.
"Through this transformation, society will be able to create a vital economy that uses radically less material and energy. This economy can free up resources, reduce taxes on personal income, increase per-capita spending on social ills (while simultaneously reducing those ills), and begin to restore the damaged environment of the earth."
Now if that's not enough to get excited about try this:
"To me, the main point of the book is that traditional capitalistic accounting systems are not designed to measure or encourage sustainable economic practices, but with some key changes market systems can be used to help achieve a sustainable future," said Bill Boggess, the head of Oregon State University's Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
"First," Boggess said, "we need to make sure that market prices reflect the full costs of production and consumption, including resource degradation and pollution costs. Second, we need to focus more on resource use efficiency rather than the traditional focus on labor productivity. Finally, we need to account for changes in resource stocks or inventories, like trees or topsoil, as changes in net investment - assets - rather than as components of short-term revenue - profits.
"These changes would help create a price system that would systematically encourage both producers and consumers to change their behavior in ways that would lead toward a more sustainable future. It would also create incentives for businesses and consumers to actively search for new, more sustainable technologies and lifestyles."
"Natural Capitalism " and Sustainability"...... Create a price system? based on formulas developed by environmentalists? THIS IS SOCIALIST DOGMA AT ITS BEST and this is where we are headed if we are not very careful. These guys are intent on designing a future that makes us all slaves of some "Sustainability Ministry". It's a dangerous direction.
Vote Saxton!
Posted 12:46pm September 24 ,2006
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