Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Are We Coming to the End of the Growth Era?

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Are We Coming to the End of the Growth Era?

Click here to access article: a review of a Richard Heinberg's new book by this title posted in Canadian Dimension.

This is an excellent review in that it balances the insights offered by Heinberg regarding the hazards that lie ahead if our ruling classes try to continue with growth as usual with his optimistic view that capitalism can adapt to a no growth economy. The best that Heinberg can offer are moral imperatives for people of all classes to organize for a no growth economy. The reviewer, Cy Gonick, is critical of this view.