Though he tried–in the clutter of conventional capitalism, commerce, materialism, and consumption; artificially manipulated high-speed electrons and electromagnetic waves (and many, many algorithms); and other aspects of an “invisibley handled”, high-input/-throughput world system– Páv?los had trouble getting the real attention of even family and friends closest to him. Moreover, although David Orr pointed out in his classic paper, “What Is Education For?”– http://www.context.org/iclib/ic27/orr/ that we need to holistically and profoundly understand and observe the Second Law of Thermodynamics, even one of Páv?los’ closest collaborators (in their perceived crime against human behaviors driven by conventional capitalism and of trying to achieve resilient and sustainable community) teased Páv?los about the recurrence ad nauseam of the Second Law in Páv?los’ discussions and essays.
Nevertheless, as family members–Helen Bain, Jeremy Bain and Ian Bain–sat listening (some more than others) to Páv?los Bain, Páv?los waxed not so eloquently and articulately, but tried to make a point about necessarily staying within the confines of the Second Law:
“Like many others—especially males, those north of the Tropic of Cancer, ‘white’ folk, and those in environments conducive to obtaining a fairly good education toward a livelihood–I enjoy the fruits of this artificially-fragile high-input world system which is so negatively exploitative of the Commons, Land, Nature and the relatively powerless, including other species. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that lower-input systems based on daily solar energy couldn’t bear adequate fruits for all of humanity and other species in better and just as enjoyable ways.
1. Now … go take a look at this NPR piece from yesterday: http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/08/05/429345848/green-pie-in-the-sky-vertical-farming-is-on-the-rise-in-newark and reflect on what might be possible as sustainable agriculture.
I do believe in local food sheds. But this idea of raising food indoors under grow-lights, and “aeroponics”, and elaborate systems of plastic and metal, is very illustrative of the desperate need for world-wide (positively ethical applied community) ecology across-curricula (including processes of teaching employees and members, and of continuing education) and across-campuses of schools; businesses; NGOs, governmental and bureaucratic entities; clubs; churches, families; and communities. Highly artificial urban food production systems such as the one highlighted in yesterday’s NPR report, which are “perpetual motion-type” ideas and which are directly and indirectly dependent on high inputs of fossil energy/materials, are ridiculous to even investigate. (You all look to the Land Institute– https://landinstitute.org/ , Agroecology in Action– http://agroeco.org/ , and sustainable community gardens– http://www.greensatx.org/community-gardens/community-garden-network for much, much more realistic, resilient and sustainable approaches which recognize the Second Law and principles and processes of applied ecology.)
2. Even though I have avoided the rat race of purchase of a cell phone or and continuing purchases and consumption of mobile computer technologies, I do regularly use a PC which one of my sons put together for Elisávet and I from used components, and I do often enter into the high-input/-throughout world of computer hard and software and the internet. Moreover, Google is too much of my life. … As I read and listened yesterday about Google’s new road to and within the San Antonio, Texas region– http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Google-Fiber-coming-to-San-Antonio-6425372.php , I recognize that we do have to begin to begin to confront the realities of incongruities of these highly artificial systems so dependent on high energy transformation and flux and high material flow … and the Second Law and principles and processes of ecology. Finally, I do suggest you read Wendell Berry’s “Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer”– http://home.btconnect.com/tipiglen/berrynot.html .
…………………….
In recapping all of this, I just want to emphasize that we need to:
• keep things (local and global systems) as truly Natural, Small, Slow, and Simple as possible,
• remember that (too much of our own) order creates chaos (for others), i.e., the Second Law, and
• abide by this Second Law of Thermodynamics.”