Sunday, July 04, 2021

Preface To Disaster: The World Without Us

(image from here.)

It occurs to me I don't talk about books much on this blog, perhaps because I don't consume books at the rate at which I consume records, which is why I guess I play records on my show & not snippets from audio books, but the theme of "disaster" makes me think of this fascinating book called The World Without Us that posits what would happen if humans just disappeared one day.  Some folks have called it "disaster porn" but for me it was a difficult learning experience about how humans have manipulated the planet for their own gain, & how important it is for human to maintain the changes they've made.  The chapter on nuclear reactors gave me nightmares I hadn't had since Reagan was president.

Do I recommend it?  I do.  Do I recommend you buy it from Amazon or some other behemoth bookseller?  Please don't.  Find it at a local bookstore.  Or get it from your nearby library.  Please don't support giant chains that will bring a world without us sooner than we might expect.  Unless you're into that.  Some people can't pull the trigger so hope the world burns them up instead.  They're fools & cowards but they should be allowed to do whatever they want.

It's a fascinating read.  I suspect there's something in it for you.

Also, you know, happy fourth of July & shit.

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