Whole Earth: My Original Source

I so often reference The Whole Earth Catalog, Co-Evolution Quarterly and Whole Earth Review that I thought it might be good to introduce my readers to its wonders.

As a young teenager living in rural Virginia, the dearth of ideas offered to me threatened to shrink my head to the size of a peanut. When I discovered Whole Earth publications, I finally had an unending resource for cutting edge ideas from the most forward thinking people in America and around the world. Funny thing is, much of what was in its pages is still relevant today.

So every so often, I'll be posting links to selections from its pages, starting today.

One of my favorite writers was the late Donella Meadows. Her articles on economics were prescient and timely. This twelve year old piece on Nicolai Kondratieff's theory of The Long Wave predicts the situation we are in right now.

These were some of the things he said we could expect during this time, the very things we are currently experiencing.

1. Stagnation in the real economy and volatility in the money economy

2. Social distrust, selfishness, isolationism, scapegoating

3. Deflation of real asset values

4. Retreat to "basic values" and yearning for the strict imposition of law and order

5. Cutthroat economic competition globally, erosion of social compassion locally.

Any of this look familiar? I'm sure going to be re-reading her work.