When Technology Fails (Revised & Expanded): A Manual for Self-Reliance, Sustainability, and Surviving the Long Emergency
by Matthew Stein
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Book Summary Information
Author: Matthew SteinEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-08-18
ISBN: 1933392452
Number of pages: 493
Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing
Book Reviews of When Technology Fails (Revised & Expanded): A Manual for Self-Reliance, Sustainability, and Surviving the Long Emergency
Book Review: The author misses much, but very good
Summary: 3 Stars
This book is EXCELLENT at teaching us to live a sustainable and green life style, and to survive a loss of our electronic gizmos if that were ever to occur. As someone deeply interested in greening my life, this book is excellent. The tips are wonderful. The resources great. In terms of this content, I would give the book 5 stars.
Amish and Mennonite Americans have been living this sustainable life style for ever. I admire them greatly, and one of the strengths of this book is showing us how we can all "get off the grid" and make the world a better place.
However, sadly, the author's ideology is deeply flawed in some respects, especially when it comes to population growth. In the introduction (which descends into fear mongering) the author talks about the so called proven problems with population. This is a falsehood as the book Population Control: Real Costs, Illusory Benefits clearly shows. Population growth will only be a danger if we refuse to treat the world with respect. An Amish family with 12 kids living on a farm off the grid using cloth diapers and sustainable farming practices actually would help green the planet, whereas a typical American family of four, with both parents off working and commuting in SUVs with annual vacations by plane and the children off in inefficient schools instead of home-schools will do serious harm to the planet. If one compares the two families, the modern family is the menace, not the children themselves. The family of 12 living sustainably is a gift, the family of 4 living in a rush to consume is the problem. Human existence, and human babies are NOT the problem (as much as the inconsisent ideologues on the eco-left would have us believe). Furthermore, as much as I am very interested in greening the planet (and am living my life accordingly increasingly year by year) much of this book's introduction is fear mongering. It reads like Malthus. He was wrong. So is this author. If we all take small steps, we can help change the world. There is no reason to go crazy moving to farms.
While we are considering the population question, the author I am sure is a big fan of chemical contraceptives which are imperiling our water supply and our planet themselves. As women who take the pill use our water supply to flush their waste, an INCREDIBLE amount of estrogen is finding its way into our rivers. Fish are failing to reproduce and frogs are dying off in disturbing rates as a result. This proven fact is largely ignored simply because of politics, but the studies showing the problem are relatively clear. One could use Natural Family Planning and the effects on the environment are ZERO, even as the method is 99% effective. (See The Art of Natural Family Planning or Taking Charge of Your Fertility, 10th Anniversary Edition: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health) Zero chemicals in the water, zero latex in the landfills, and our bodies are not marred by expensive surgeries.
So, this book tends to be ideologically extreme and unbalanced. But that shouldn't stop you from reading the book and profiting from its strengths.
These criticisms out the way (the ideology of this author was really off-putting), the ideas about off the grid living, green living, sustainable living, and electricity-free living are wonderful, if predictable. Just don't tell the Amish to stop having babies. It isn't necessary.
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Summary of When Technology Fails (Revised & Expanded): A Manual for Self-Reliance, Sustainability, and Surviving the Long Emergency
There's never been a better time to "be prepared." Matthew Stein's comprehensive primer on sustainable living skills--from food and water to shelter and energy to first-aid and crisis-management skills--prepares you to embark on the path toward sustainability. But unlike any other book, Stein not only shows you how to live "green" in seemingly stable times, but to live in the face of potential disasters, lasting days or years, coming in the form of social upheaval, economic meltdown, or environmental catastrophe.When Technology Fails covers the gamut. You'll learn how to start a fire and keep warm if you've been left temporarily homeless, as well as the basics of installing a renewable energy system for your home or business. You'll learn how to find and sterilize water in the face of utility failure, as well as practical information for dealing with water-quality issues even when the public tap water is still flowing. You'll learn alternative techniques for healing equally suited to an era of profit-driven malpractice as to situations of social calamity. Each chapter (a survey of the risks to the status quo; supplies and preparation for short- and long-term emergencies; emergency measures for survival; water; food; shelter; clothing; first aid, low-tech medicine, and healing; energy, heat, and power; metalworking; utensils and storage; low-tech chemistry; and engineering, machines, and materials) offers the same approach, describing skills for self-reliance in good times and bad.Fully revised and expanded--the first edition was written pre-9/11 and pre-Katrina, when few Americans took the risk of social disruption seriously--When Technology Fails ends on a positive, proactive note with a new chapter on "Making the Shift to Sustainability," which offers practical suggestions for changing our world on personal, community and global levels.Health, Mind & Body Books
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