Review by Choice Review
Environmental philosophers insist that real change is impossible until people abandon the belief that nature exists for the benefit of humans. Lewis has no patience with this position; he wants a practical, immediate blueprint for environmental reform, one that will embrace both the positive potential of technology and capitalism. Unfortunately, rather then developing such a proposal, he devoted most of this book to demolishing the "eco-radical agenda." Drawing on statements about the kind of world one could foresee in a future based on human/nature integration, Lewis identifies that agenda as the imitation of primal culture, total decentralization, a retreat from technology, and the rejection of capitalism, and then proceeds to demonstrate its impossibility. Many of his insights are good and his criticisms appropriate, especially in his discussions of "primal purity." But because he refuses to acknowledge that this so-called agenda presumes ideological change and because he seems as indifferent to historical and cultural particularity as those he criticizes, his argument is ultimately unpersuasive, while his own ideas languish from want of attention. General; undergraduate; community college. L. Vance; Vermont College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Eco-extremists threaten the environment, Lewis argues, by fueling the anti-environmental countermovement. A professor of geography at George Washington University, he analyzes and sharply criticizes radical environmentalism, charging that it is founded on erroneous ideas fabricated from questionable scholarship and that its proponents ignore history and willfully dismiss economics. He profiles the principal groups of radical greens, pointing out the weaknesses and dangers of their agendas. A liberal moderate, Lewis advocates a Promethean rather than Arcadian approach to environmentalism; he would rely on technology, urbanizaton and Third World development to restore and protect the planet. Such primary problems as population growth and poverty, he argues, cannot be solved by poltical extremism. lewis makes a strong case for solar power and a globally integrated economy in this controversial book, which is likely to stir up a hornet's nest of debate. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Written by a self-confessed ex-radical now espousing an eclectic ``Promethean'' environmentalism that embraces, among other enviromental bugaboos, capitalism, large-scale government, advanced technology, and big cities, Green Delusions aims to ``distinguish the five main variants of eco-extremism . . . to expose the fallacies on which such views ultimately founder, and to demonstrate that the policies advocated . . . would, if enacted, result in unequivocal ecological catastrophe.'' The author generally hits his target cleanly and forcefully, making the book essential for environmental collections. Its clarity, detail, and solid documentation could also make it a surprise success in general circulation. Though clearly addressed to the academic and environmental communities, it could, given a little attention, gain a sizable audience among those ordinary citizens who find themselves increasingly disquieted by the extremism that currently dominates environmental discourse.-- Linn Prentis, Milford, Pa. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
