Numbers Man
Collapse, How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Jared Diamond, 2005
Three Gorges Dam China 
Diamond is a Professor at UCLA specializing in evolutionary biology and bio-geography. This book looks at man’s effects on the environment today and in the past. He is interested in decisions that cause some societies to collapse and others to sustain themselves successfully for thousands of years. The book’s blurbs and Diamond himself try to give reason to hope, but the facts and figures of the situation in the modern world are pretty depressing reading, particularly the discussion of modern China. But Australia is pretty depressing reading as well. And I skipped altogether reading the chapters on Rwanda and Haiti.
Haze over China 
His central thesis seems to be that some people in the past have made enlightened decisions, some by highly centralized governments like Japan, and some by highly decentralized systems like New Guinea. He also finds optimism in some corporations who find economic reasons to act responsibly in the environment to avoid the massive cleanup costs of destructive mistakes. He sites a Chevron subsidiary (since spun off) that is such a model of environmental stewardship in New Guinea that their project is, in effect, the countries largest and most successful wildlife preserve. Of Chevron’s and Shell’s project in Nigeria, Diamond says merely that the project is older and the government of Nigeria is corrupt.
Shell Nigeria Oil Spill 
His discussion of the Bitterroot Valley south of Missoula in Montana was extensive. It seems that Montana, which has fallen to one of the lowest income states in America is now best suited for fat cat vacation homes such as those of Charles Schwab’s 2600 acre Bitterroot Stock Farm, 125 home sites with 6,000 sq ft million dollar homes of in a gated community. The only contact with the local population is when the fat cats show up at a local bar to enjoy the Montana Western fauna. Ted Turner’s buffaloes are elsewhere in the state. Is this a success or a failure? Preserve the environment for the wealthy?
Bitterroot Shack 
Gated Mansion in Bitterroot Valley 
His reasons for optimism at the end are a little strange; e.g. we could have been hit by a huge meteor over which we have absolutely no control, instead of the current man made disaster. If man did it, surely man can undo it. Really? It seems that man’s impact and control over the environment is why we are in this mess to begin with.