In a recent opinion article by Andrew Faust in the newspaper, it is reported that Europe has not opened a new landfill in over thirty years, has banned all plastic packaging and has effective composting systems widely available. So how has the U.S. fallen so far behind? May be Europeans have somewhat more responsive governments and thus the citizenry is less cynical about them. Likewise perhaps Europeans have a better sense of history and self preservation. It seems as if they understand the importance of making sacrifices today for the sake of future generations. One the other hand, we all know that U.S. politicians with a comprehensive ecological platform are less likely to get elected, outside of a few progressive districts. Most of our populate don’t even understand the specifics of what that platform entails. In all fairness though, we haven’t experienced the devastation of two world wars. Suffering on that level didn’t even happen during our civil war which was long ago and time out of mind. How does Andersonville, the Confederacy’s P.O.W. Camp, compare to Auschwitz? Likewise, how does the Gatling Gun compare to the weaponry of the 20th century.

Reading old issues of World Watch monographs, you learn that when Russia occupied Eastern Europe it was turned into the Soviet empire’s industrial slag heap. Pollution of the ground, air and water was horrifying, all for the sake of production that was supposed to make Russia more powerful so they could dominate the NATO countries. This was the legacy of the Cold War, a variant of which has resurfaced in the last ten years. And what’s new in the U.S. Bitcoin manufacturing, which uses unimaginable amounts of electricity and has no purpose except to entice speculators. If you were to engage the top financial moguls of Wall St in a candid discussion, many of them would tell you Bitcoin is a fantasy at best. What they might not tell you is what in the long run it will lower our standard of living. The Europeans copy some of our worst proclivities and have their own unique difficulties (like a disunified E.U. which would unravel.) with any lucky they will be less inclined toward Bitcoin.

Allan Frank

Phillipsport