Inconsistencies and contradictions are linguistic artifacts; nature does not "contain" a nor or a not function in it's dynamics. Does a marine ecology "contradict" a terrestrial one? A natural balance is always a temporary eddy/stability in a relentless flux. Ecological apocalyptics are simply creating an aesthetics of futility and, like anger, are a waste of time. It is largely because we avert our knowledge practices from "seeing" our impermanence as malleable phenotypes that leads us to create pathological/parasitic ecologies of industrial habitats. No one is saying your list aren't ecological "bads"; its just that you're using the term contradiction in a context where it may not legitimately apply. For more see: Donald Worster's The Wealth of Nature, ch. 13. Frank Golley's A History of the Ecosystem Concept R. C. Lewontin's Gene, Organism, and Environment in Evolution from Molecules to Men Ruth Millikan's Language, Thought and other Biological Categories > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of Louis Proyect > Sent: Wednesday, May 26, 1999 3:58 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: [PEN-L:7263] Harvey, Leibniz & Marx > > > Ian Murray: > >Ecosystems have no essence; boundaries and material flows are observer > >defined constructs. Cities are ecosystems. There is a whole "new" field > >called industrial ecology that all Marxian thinkers would do well to look > >at, I'm sure Marx would have... > > Using the term 'ecosystem' in this fashion is consistent with Harvey and > Cronon's approach. Again, it does not address the fundamental > contradiction > addressed by Marx in the 19th century and which has only deepened. The > creation of cities like NYC, LA and Chicago has created huge > contradictions > in the natural balance. Industrial farming with its chemical fertilizers, > insecticides and pesticides is creating a major health crisis, including > the following: > > 1) cancer epidemics (see "Living Downstream" by Sandra Steingraber) > 2) death of marine life due to phosphate runoff from midwest > farms into the > Mississippi > 3) unhealthy food due to conditions necessary for industrial farming (mad > cow, ecoli bacteria, etc.) > 4) pollution of rivers and lakes by poultry and pork agribusinesses > 5) exhaustion of soil, and crop susceptibility to disease > 6) extinction of animal and plantlife because of unsustainable farming > practices > 7) desertification because of both the way soil is used and diversion of > rivers for wasteful irrigation > 8) etc. > > Now you can call cities Chicago "ecosystems" just as long as it is > understood that we are committing suicide as a species while the > contradiction between city and countryside is maintained. The problem is > that these issues are not addressed by Cronon and Harvey, which I find > astonishing for people who claim to have read Marx. > > > > > Louis Proyect > (http://www.panix.com/~lnp3/marxism.html) >
