Resisting Global Toxics (Part 1)

As I read the 2 beginning chapters of the book, it reminded me of another class I took last semester which was Environmental Politics and Policy. One of the key concepts we discussed in that class was regarding how society has changed from pre-modern, to modern and to finally post modern. I liked how post-modern society is framed as a risk society. I don't think very many people will immediately view society today as one that exposes themselves to constant risk. But I think it is a very true statement because science has brought about so many innovations but at the same time, we have exposed ourselves to risks that we do not know of, especially in the long run. The anti-thesis of the risk society would be that of a society that follows the precautionary principle - which is to avoid even doing something if we're not even sure of the risks that might come out of it.

I do not neccessary like the idea that we are living in a risk society but I feel in terms of some of the benefits that we currently have, it would be better than just following the precautionary principle. This is because I feel like the precautionary principle is another extreme end of the spectrum. If we stop doing things just because there could be inherent risk attached to it; I can think of some (probably silly) examples. Take for example, if we followed the precautionary principle, we as mankind will fail to learn new things in comparision to what we now know. Imagine when man first discovered fire. If he chose to stay far away from it because of the fear of burning himself or the place that he lived, we wouldn't be here today. Like I said, it's a sort of silly example but you get the idea.

I also liked the idea of toxic colonialism as compared to regular colonialism. I mean, it makes sense because "western" developed countries are dumping their garbage in poor under-developed countries. I guess things never really changed over time which was what I didn't expect. I mean, to know that things are still the same is quite sad. Powerful governments and corporations will always seek the path of least resistance and the idea of the corporatization of governments was something I never came across until I read the first chapter. It is strange to see how governments today are run like businesses - which will eventually promote self-interest but I hope it doesn't go as far as that on a large scale because then, governments will be pointless.

I guess I'm also excited to see the results of the upcoming elections. I think it will make a big difference to who gets elected into office. I did a research paper on the energy and environmental policies of both candidates for my other class and as far as I can tell, I prefer Obama's policies because it would make a larger desirable impact compared to McCain's.

But we'll see who wins...