The first part of "Killing off the Planet" majorly suggested that man would not kill off the planet, that it would be more likely that the planet would kill off man, largely because man's intelligence is such that he could unwittingly engender his own downfall which is an indirect suggestion that what is behind environmental problems needs to be addressed before the consequences are life threatening.
The second part, "Greenolosophy", looked at our understanding of how wealth is created and how man's understanding of the balance between notion and reality has to be watched to make sure that which we create does not become invasive in our lives.
The third part, "The Domino Effect", looked at economic understanding and suggested that there were not one but two energetic effects in wealth creation: one, market force, the other, market momentum, and suggested that market momentum acted like a sponge, sucking in reality and notions in order to keep producing wealth.
What becomes evident in this book is that the real disease affecting the earth in the twentieth century is the pace and scale of wealth creation, placing ever increasing pressure on the real earth.
Environment problems, such as deforestation, pollution, toxic materials and wastes, the greenhouse effect, the ozone problem - all have things in common. Firstly they are all twentieth century problems; secondly, they are all man-made; thirdly, they are all caused directly or indirectly by energetic activity; fourthly, they are all caused by man putting too much pressure on the earth "being too clever for his own good"; and finally they are all caused in the pursuit of wealth. Modify the drive for wealth, take pressure off valuable resources - that is the only route to rectify the problem which, if left unchecked, will get steadily worse into the next century.
The reason why there has been little in my work directly addressing the environmental problem is because I do not think it is. the problem - it is a detractive symptom of a far worse disease - unnecessary wealth creation - wealth creation that sucks in realities like wood, fossil fuels, gas, and spews out consumer goods for man who has to be constantly harassed and cajoled to spend, make personal wealth in order to spend, and spend some more.
What we have established in this book is that wealth creation and particularly the way wealth creation is out of control as wealth (within our economic management system) has a need to develop itself and that development sucks in the realities of the earth and human effort to make, consequently there is an ever-present need for more, making wealth creation extremely energetic. Making wealth creation energetic has required man to be increasingly energetic and call upon the elements of the world to induce energetic properties and it is in the frenetic exercise of yet more wealth, environmental problems begin to occur and develop yet they are just nature reflecting that which man is actively doing.
The conclusion to be drawn is that man has to review both energy making and wealth making. Clearly if a man makes a living chopping down 50 trees a week, to tell him he can now only chop down 10 trees a week without some other adjustment to his income, there is art insoluble problem unless either prices can be substantially increased or the man given another avenue to pursue personal wealth. So it is all very well to say that we should stop this and cut down that without damaging the economic infrastructure that exists.
Clearly, if we cut down unit production and energy use we will produce less, therefore the less has to be better and carry a higher wealth producing element than at present. But the underlying theme to economic restructure is less, better, more expensive, more profitable. This sounds OK but wealth itself as a value has not been in question in this work, only the current practice and effect of pressure for volume in our twentieth century role as custodians of the earth. Unless we can re-learn and re-learn quickly how to price and value our endeavours, our relationship with the earth will become increasingly threatened.
The reasons why prices need to go up is not because we need things to be more expensive but because we need to build a better infrastructure of societal care, as clearly if a major economic restructure is carried out, there are bound to be casualties both in the short and long term; consequently there will be greater need for personal and family financial support.
The more I review my own work, I cannot see any other way forward, than outlined above. If man is to cure his environmental problems he has to get his economic house in order and it is not a case of if this is necessary, just how quickly it is necessary.
I know that it has become fashionable to wave the "environmental improvement flag"; directly taking action to pacify environmentalists will not cure the underlying and far more dangerous problem, of how to collar and manage the strive for more and more wealth.
There is a short chapter to follow about ownership. Wealth creation and ownership are inter-related and the previous chapter on "domino effect" shows that in the 20th century man is being pressed to own more and more to suit the profit drive.
Therefore I thought that I would include a short chapter about ownership which looks at the historic principles of ownership and to address that which to man has become more and more perverse.
