AUG./SEPT. 1980 Energy co-ops Changing the Rhetoric . Intensive Agriculture Revisited
Page 2 RAIN Aug./Sept. 1980 □□□□□o□□□□□□ o □□□□□□ o □□□□ o□ o □o□□□□□ ·' o oo□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□o □ooo□□□□ooooooc? • ' ✓ I L/j'---------, r.=================~1 'f\y',M:.=;1~:;z~! ~======::::t , , .. Dear Rainy Folk: Well, your back cover of the May issue inspired me to take up pen and ink and do some art again, and the above is the result, so I decided to send it to you for whatever use you may make of it. The three grafts are of wood from three different apple trees. They were put on this spring with wood I brought down from Oregon. One was blooming, and will probably bear apples this year; a second has turned out to have pretty reddish leaves and will bloom and bear too. Both are twoor three-year-old wood. I've got more than ~\(.I~ 1'1~o ~'1 1 C"1..1ftoPN~ a dozen kinds of apples on a couple of fullgrown trees up in Oregon. One first-year graft bore 25 golden delicious apples last year. Dan Knapp Berkeley, CA Dear Mark, Thanks for the good review of our study, Absentee and Local Ownership of Maine Manufacturing in RA/N's July issue. For RAIN your information, there is a charge of $3.50. The copy you received was a free press copy. Hope your work is going well. Russell Libby National Center for Economic Alternatives 122 State St. Augusta, ME 04330 Dear RAIN, In the note after the Illich article (July), you indicate that Toward a History of Needs is published by Pantheon. I suspect that this edition may not be available. . But the book has been re-issued by Bantam Books Inc. (666 Fifth Ave., New York, NY10019)-$2.95 (cat no. 12276-2). It has just been published in a new series called "New Age Books." Sincerely, Lee Hoinacki Cobden, IL RAIN: To update your Alcohol section, June issue: I ordered from most sources listed, with the following results: AAA (Texas) replied saying there would be a delay on supplies. DESERT replied: The $6. 95 quoted should be $9.95. RUTAN replied: Out of print, new version: $8.00 and offered AAA book from stock, but at $4.00 (other titles at high rates). Biomass and ACR haven't replied yet (but only 10 days gone by). Mother Earth News (not in your review) delivered their $15.00 plans in 25 days but with sheets missing. Various suppliers in Popular Science and similar mags' classified ads replied quickly enough, but supplied only Xeroxed rubbish. Better news: The DESERT book and the AAA book are available from EARTH MOVE, Box 4167, South Bell, WA 98225, for $7.95 and $2. 75 postpaid, respectively. They have others too. The DESERT book is Journal of Appropriate Technology RAIN is a national information access journal making connections for people seeking more simple and satisfying lifestyles, working to make their communities and regions economically self-reliant, building a society that is durable, just and ecologically sound. RAIN STAFF: Carlotta Collette, Mark Roseland, John Ferrell ·, Jill Stapleton Laura Stuchinsky Kiko Denzer RAIN, Journal of Appropriate Technology, is published 10 times yearly by the Rain Umbrella, Inc., a non-profit corporation located at 2270 N.W. Irving, Portland, Oregon 97210, telephone 503/227-5110. Copyright© 1980 Rain Umbrella, Inc. No part may be reprinted without written permission. Typesetting: Irish Setter Printing: Times Litho Cover Photograph: Andi Nance
A~g./Sept. 1980 RAIN Page ~ □ ~DDDDODDDDDDDOODDDOOOOOODDDOODDD□q□□□□□□□□□o□□ooooooooo□oooooooo□o□o□ooooooooo $10.95 from TMEN [The Mother Earth News] and $12.00 from Rutan. I hope ,,, you'll have more (good) sources of material next issue. Rich Miller Everett, WA Dear RAIN, I had to respond to Stan Knapp's defeat-. ism with regard to controversy in RAIN, , and to the inevitability of war (RAIN Letters, July '80).' It would be foolish to think that we can isolate ourselves in'our organic ghettoes and·escape the effects of the manipulations of corporation_s and governments. As long as groups like RAIN don't think that they should (or even can) remain apolitical in a society in which every decision has political implications, we will have a chance to avoid the military madness that Knapp accepts as inevitable. Thanx, Jim Elleson Madison, WI Dear RAIN folks, Enclosed is my renewal check. I want to thank you for the articles by Murray Bookchin (April), Donna'Warnock (April),,and Gerri Traina (December). They have helped me sort out a big patch of thought I had forgotten was there. I also appreciate the access to social change resources, especially being turned on to the Journal of Community Communications. The dialogue on population has been refreshing: both in itself and for being accorded generous space by your editors. Please continue your ecological analyses and commitment to sociable (appropriate) technology. . The m,a.ilings I've gotten via your list exchanges have been interesting, not "so muc;h junk mail," but alas for their senders haven't collected much money.• You have my best wishes for happy labors and play. Peace, Gordon Pederson Minneapolis, MN I hope you qt~ help me with something. Where is Lloyd Kahn these days? Many of us really liked his article, ''A Hard Look at How-To," which ran last December. I'd like to get in touch with him. We are thinking of running a similar type of article, only with the focus on energy gizmos that are now being oversold by the AT crowd to developing countries (e.g., not mentioning how expensive windmills are, ignoring the land ownership problems of small-scale hydro, etc.). I want to get Lloyd's reaction to tlµs. Who else do you suggest as good people to contact for an article like this? Who might be a good lead author? Suggestions are most appreciated! Once again, keep up the good work. I hope we will stay in contact in the future! Yours, _David Jarmul . Mankging Editor, VITA News 3706 Rhode Island Ave. , Mt. Rainier, MD 20822 David-Thanks for your kind words. We're • sending you Lloyd's address plus names of other people to contact. Perhaps some of our readers will send you suggestions also. Dear RAIN, When I first began working with solar heating, I fell in love with natural convection. Warm air rises, cold air sinks. Where such self-operating systems work it seems a shame to install fans. It took a long time to understand how to build efficient solar air ;ollectors that would store the sun's heat in rocks during the day and then shut the_mselves off at night. . The first investigations of these syst~ms ,. were conducted by what today would be judged improbable investigators at improbable sites. Berry Hickman, Ed Heinz, John Curl and I finally got a good system work- ' ing in September, 1968. I remember the date because it was during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. This first successful installation was made at Drop City, Colorado. Drop City became known as a hippie commun~-it wasn't long before the founders abandoned the place to drifters, dope addicts and alcoholics. The solar heated dome burned to the ground a few years later. Who cares? What differDear Friends: 1 ence does·this make? understand. What the hell is wrong with those idiots? I would like to come at least part way to a conclusion concerning the "Movement" and solar energy. The Solar Lobby and the ''Movement'' frighten me. What are they after? Couldn't all this energy and excitement be used to build houses and other equipment that is more to'this group's liking? I am also jealous, how can Dennis Hayes and Tom Hayden .be the sol~r big shots while people like me and my fellow solar workers are uninteresting to the newspapers, television and magazines? Why don't they ask Harry Thomason his opinion? Why not ask Harold Hay? In 1969, six months after we had finished the solar heating system at Drop City, Berry Hickman, Ed Hein~ and I started Zomeworks.... I'm glad we went into business. I am part of a movem'entthe production of useful goods., the economy, the human race, life. I recommend business for other great idealists, dreamers, people who have end- .less ideas and good advice for others. The •whole adventure can even have some of the delights and beauties of the natural convection system. If you have something that is useful to others they will want to trade with you and, like the warm air, your business will rise. "Yes-it sounds like a lot of hot air," you may say, because you know that the businessmen are cheaters, greedy for profits. Well, plenty of businessmen . ' are narrowm.inded and greedy for profits• and some are cheaters, too. They are people. But if you want a new world-with many of today's c·onveniences-that runs on solar energy, there is a lot of work to do and it may be a good idea to try and do some of this work one's self-directly- - instead of insisting that others do it tor, you. It is possible that forming lobbying groups, striking poses, and demonstrating against "bad things" will bring this world into being, but I wouldn't give these tactics very good odds.. Steve Baer Albuquerque, NM Congratulations on your most recent 1 • I am trying to understand what is goin'g Hi, issues of the magazine. RAIN is consis- on. What does it mean that recently 65,000 Loved the article (July) about the Abotently one of the most thought-provoking people assembled in Washington, D.C., to rigine Peace Corps by Ianto Evans, espemagazines to pass through our office, and it protest against nuclear energy and the cially the statement "we have answers to is well read by our staff. As a fellow editor, speakers I saw on television spoke of how their problems (many of which were caused I know the frustration of working hard on a delighted they w,ere to have the "Move- by us in the first place)." However the final publication and then not knowing whether ment" underway again. What is this · statement~"perhaps we can show them people o_ut there really like it. Rest assured: "Movement"? I know'that in the late '60s (the poor) some of us are less ugly than many of us like what you are doing. (Now: and early '70s I felt that many of my others"-disqualified the article for me. before your heads get too swelled, please do friends and I were involved in a very im- 1 Again we have a split, a division, a power not run any more three-page interviews · portant project. It was quite simple-we struggle as one tries to play God and decide with former VITA [Volunteers in Technical were going to remake the world.·Our mis- .who i's ugly and who is beautiful? , Assistance] staffers and then forget to iden- sion was so important that I for one had Paula Finek tify them!) nothing but disdain forthose who didn't Pittsburgh, PA □□□□□□□□□□o□□□□□oo□□DD□D□DDDDDDD□□□□□oo□□□o□□ DDDDOODDODDDDDDDDD□□ D□□□□□□□□
Page4 RAIN Aug./Sept. 1980 Jill ·Stapleton ( BIOFUEL The Do's and Don'ts of Methane, 2nd ed., by Al Rutan, 1979, 160 pp., $15.00 (paper) ppd. from: Rutan Publishing P .0. Box 3585 Minneapolis, MN 55403 All that the bacteria want is an air-tight tank, an occasional gentle mixing motion and constant even body warrnth. Given these three conditions and sufficient n,utrition, you will have the happiest bacteria in the world. But·without these three.conditions the bacteria are left very much unimpressed by all 'types of costly machinery and complicated engineering. This book describes how to keep the conditions in a digester ideal for methane-producing bacteria. The author discusses in ~¥~¥¥¥¥¥¥¥¥.¥¥¥¥¥¥ Byron Kennard A couple of months ago I happened to watch Dick Cavett's television program as he interviewed Dr. Freeman Dyson, the distinguished physicist from Princeton University. Cavett asked Dyson what he was working on these days and, so help me, the good doctor quickly replied, "I'm now interested in appropriate technology for national defense." Once I picked myself up off the·floor, I limped in to bed in a vain effort to ward off memories of the old days when we "Small Is Beautiful" freaks were struggling to shove the phrase "appropriate technology" dowri the throat of an Establishment unwilling,to swallow it. No~ it seems we succeeded all too well. • Appropriate technology for national defense? How easily the academic elite rips off the new rhetoric, fresh thinking and innovative approaches generated by the counterculture. One can only sit back and watch in horrified amusement. And when they chew it up and digest it, they excrete it in perverted forms we never imagined in our worst dreams. But Dr. Dyso11's new interest hits an all-time low. 11 Appropriate technology for: national defense" is the ultimate debasement of the1beautiful vision we had of a technology purposely planned to be nonviolent and life-enhancing. Now here is . this eminent professor talking on national television about weapons of death and destruction in the name of appropriate technology. E.F. Schumacher must be spinning in his grave! My friends, it's time to change the rhetoric again. While visions of renewable resource bombs and locally produced, easy-to-maintain missiles lurched in my head, I drea_med up a new phrase (new to me, anyway) to describe our program/philosophy/vision. But before I unveil it for you, let me admit my reservations about the _phrase "appropriate technology,'' the banner under which many of us have been marching these last few years. (I freely confess that I am one of the people who bears some,responsibility for the widespread use of this phrase. I am quite proud of this work and these comments are intended in no way to disparage the A.T. community or its success in promoting a new philosophy of science and technology under the rubric of "appropriate technology.") My first reservation ts the simple, obvious and oft-heard objection to the word II appropriate." It is simply too fuzzy a word and it detail a large, continuous-feed digester, and the adjustments he made over several years to produce this system design, -such as using solar energy and insulating materials to keep the tank warm. If you're tired of alternative technology books where the author is so infatuated with the gadgetry thats/he forgets what it's attached to, then read this book. -Gail Katz , to find for unlocking the secrets of your local conglomerate. It tells you where to look to research financial and general information; company history; dom~stic plants and subsidiaries; foreign operations and overseas subsidiaries; bibliographic information on director~ and offices; stock ownership; and brand and trade namesmost of which should be available at your local business school library or by mail. Resources listed range from Security and Exchange Commission reports and company proxy-statements to the Directory of Corporate Affiliations and a book called Who Owns Whom. ( RESOURCES ) Sources of <;orporate Infonn_ation, 1977, 7 pp., $.50 ppd., from: Pa,cific NW Research Center (PNWRC) P.O. Box3708 Eugene, OR 97403 503/686-5125 Activists and researchers, take note! This chintzy little mimeographed bibliography is one of the m~st valuable keys you're apt The information is in outline form, but it is not annotated, ~hich may present some problems if you're new to this kind of investigating. But not to worry! Though staffed irregularly, PNWRC is good at answering correspondence. They also have substantial files dadng back about eight years on envirompental issues, disarmament, energy, multinationals active in the Northwest, etc. While not a lending Ii-
has caused us much trouble down through the years despite all the elegant justification we whipped up for it. The only reason we got the word in the first place was that Schumacher got so much flak over his.original phrase, "intermediate technology," that he decided to change it to admit the possibility of both small and largescale technology (where "appropriate") into his philosophical framework. Since Schumacher was willingto alter his rhetoric, I think we should be willing to change ours too. My -second reservation about the phrase has to do wit~ the word • "technology." For our purposes, the word has turned out to be a bumµier. In contemporary civilization, "technology" is something that belongs to the technologists, the credentialized elite with a vested interest in the mystification of science. Ordinary people can't have any "technology" unless it is provided for them by the technologists, unless the tool bears the elite's seal of approval. I remember once talking about this to a member in good standing ofthe science policy fraternity. Although he was quasi-sympathetic to the cause of appropri.ate technology,.he said to me, "Byron, I don't care a whit that these ideas came from Gandhi or Tolstoy or whomever. What I care about is seeing the cost/benefit analyses and engineering studies on these things." To me it matters a great deal that these ideas were handed down through time by great leaders, artists and radical org~nizers. Scientists may not know it, but the vision of what the human community could be if we shared more and cooperated better is as old as humanity itself. What we have been calling "appropriate technology" is only the latest upd~te on.this ancient ideal, rendered in our time perhaps more practical and achievable than ever before through the realization that our technological prowess might be used to reinforce community values rather than disrupt them. Armed with this vision and this practical possibility, I don't see why we have to wait around for the mandarins of science to lay their approving hands on "appropriate technology.)' In truth, who needs them? They can't help very much, but they 'can hurt a lot. So let them keep their grubby little word "technology." We can do better than that. We can steal the march on them. -.I propose a new description for our program) philosophy/vision. I propose that it be called community-based innovation. That's it. RAIN Pages Three words.·Community. Based. Innovation. Why do I propose this? Let's start with the word "community:" Now this is one of our words, one that the technologists will never get their hands on -no matter how hard they try. (Yes, I know some A.T. people have used "community technology" to describe their work and the phrase used to attract me. But still it uses that dreadful word "technology" and knowing what we know now I think rules it out.) Now let me skip to the word "innovation." Innovation is a.hot word in America. It conjures up images of progress and well-being. American know-how at work. Yankee ingenuity. Better mousetraps and all that. But the word doesn't possess the drawbacks that atflict the word "technology." True, the technologists would love to control the word and actually they try hard to, but they always fail for one simple reason.' Innovation, of course, can mean social as well as technologkal change. And all we ever meant by "appropri- -ate technology" was 90% social innovation and 10% hardware! Now social innovations, as luck would have it, are much harder to come by than technical ones. This is why th~ technologists shy away from politics and social change and why they crowd around to play t~e numbers game. Numbers are ever so much more manageable than people. But COll}munity organizers, almost by definition, _ are social innovators. It is our expertise. So we are the ones who deserve to wield tp.e inilo~ation rhetoric, not the technologists. This brings me to the word"-based". Community-based innovation. I put this word in simply to emphasize.that new innovations should grow out of the community; its needs, values, culture, aspirations, locale, ecology and unique asssets and liabilities. It's okay with me, of course, if people want to produce i_nnovations for innovation's sake; in the name of intellectual freedom, I would not suppress it. But what we need now is community-based innovation. Let's seek itby shedding that outworn phrase, ''appropriate technology." In the process, I think, we'll get not only a new measure of protective coloration which will allow our work to go forward safely beneath the contempt of the technologists, but our movement will get a new lease on life as well. Byron Kennard is a community organizer. Most recently, hr served as chair of Earth Day '80. • brary, they are glad to xerox and send information at cost. - PNWRC not only conducts research for community groups and others, but attempts to demystify research by teaching others the methods they employ and by imparting an enthusiasm for discovery. They recently published a full length study on Zirconium Hazards and Nuclear Profits ($4.95 plus $.65 postage) . -MR - tudes of New York architects toward passive solar design, and the maneuvers of Consolidated Edison to protect New Yorkers frnm "the evils of cogene,ration." We heartily congratulate A. C.'s staff on their recent decision to move the magazine "up from glossy to recyclable." Write Co-op Directory, 1980, pp. 143, $5.00 (non-profits, co-ops and "living . lightly" individuals; $10.00 professionals, businesses, libraries) from: The Cooperative Association • P.O. Box4218 Albuquerque, NM 87196 Alternate Cu"ents, bi-monthly, $6~00/ yr. from: 156 Fifth Avenue, Suite 404 New York, NY 10010 Aimed principally at New York City residents, this lively approp~iate technology magazine is loaded with ideas and inspiration for transforming urban communities everywhere. Recent A. C. articles have focused on the installation of a 40-kilowatt wind generator in the South Bronx, the operations of fuel co-ops and consortiums for apartment dwellers, the changing attithem for an introductory copy (free), - JF _ The Directory of Directories, edited by James M. Ethridge, 1980, 722 pp., $56.00 from: Gale Research Company Book Tower Detroit, MI 48226 This remarkable volume lists, describes, and thoroughly indexes more than 5000 directories of all kinds. It may just be the next best thing to Rain book when it comes. to uncovering mountains of fascinating information·about organizations, agencies, individuals and companies involved in every conceivable activity . .If your library doesn't already have a copy, talk to them about getting one. -JF Published yearly, the 8th edition of the Cooperative Directory lists over 4,500 coops throughout North America. The directory is chock full of useful information and easy to use-once you deciphfr their ~oding system. Entries are listed state by state, with information on each organization's ownership model (collective, member-operated or board run), identity (food, book, housing co-op . . .), volume of sales, and age. There are several chapters devoted to resources·(technical and financial), infor'" mation (educational centers and newsletters), and regional contacts. Interspersed between the listings are ads for various coo~s and illustrations. The directory is a • must for cooperatives, and its sliding-scale price makes it accessible to individuals on a tight budget as well. - LS
Page.·6 RAIN Aug: /Sept: 1980 "The Spiderwort Strategy" (poster), 1980, $2.00 from: Friends P.O. Box663 East Quogue, Long Island, NY 11942 U.S. EPA Environmental Research Center . Research Triangle Park, N 27711 91~/541-4577 Like a modern-day version of the coalminer's canary, the spiderwort is becoming the flower of the anti-nuclear movement. Researchers at the EPA's Health Effects Research Laboratory are experimenting with a hybrid Tradescantia, the spiderwort plant that commonly grows wild in certain parts of the country. Tradescantia looks. like a normal houseplant with long, grassy leaves; waxy, knobby stems; and tiny bluish-lavender flowers. The experimental strain of Tradescantia is a cross between a blue-flowering and a pink-flowering spiderwort, with blue being the dominant color. In the presence of mutagenic substances a change occurs in the gene that determines the color of the stamen hair cells of the flower, causing the recessive color-pink-to appear 5 to 17 days after exposure. This change is visible with a low-power microscope. The flower petals themselves do not visibly change • color, though pink spots hav'-been seen on some flowers in Japan. Accoraing t'J the poster, This process indicates a frequency of mutation which is used as statistical data to graphically challenge the myth of "acceptable standards." ... The Spiderworts will show in a short time what - would take years to appea,:- in the af- • fected population. The poster people poi~t out, though, that "for the strategy to work it requires many plants 'encircling the site' to collect enough data to then make conclusions about radiation in the environment." To speed up the-lengthy examination of the flowers under a microscope, the EPA researchers are trying to automate the process; they are also studying the pollution-detecting abilities of Arabidopsis ( of the mustard plant family), barley, and corn. Eventually they hope to develop "a battery of mutagen-sensitive bioassays, including plants, for monitorix,.g environmental quality," with a variety of test systems to detect different chemicals. The spiderwort poster is both eye-pleasing and informative. It includes a listing of the Spiderwort Strategy nuclear site monitoring projects going on in North America. These projects are totally dependent on community support, so purchasing the poster helps to finance the monitoring as well as to spread the word. One final note: Since the spiderwort used in monitoring is a non-seed bearing hybrid (propagated by root divisions and cuttings only), do not be taken in by the advertisements of fast-buck companies for ' spiderwort seeds, "Nuclear Plants," or "Geigercounter flowers." -MR Nukebuster, from: Solar Electronics 56 Drakes Lane Summertown, TN 38483 Three Mile Island made the danger of depending upon "assurances" of utility and government officials quite clear. It also made people understand the psychological nightmares of dealing with invisible clouds of death released by nuclear accidents. One wise alternative for individuals, neighbor- •hoods and communities is to have their own independent radiation monitoring systems, evacuation alerts and procedures. The anti-nuclear activists at The Farm in Tennessee have made available a profitable 12•vokalpha, beta, gamma and X-ray detector, with AC and battery adaptors .available, which can form the base for such independent community survival systems. Prices for various options run from $200 to $300. - Tom Bender Volca,:,icAshfall, 1980, free from: Federal Emergency Management Agency RegionX Fed~ral Regional Center Bothell, WA 98011 Some of you who only have to put up with ordinary, run-of-the-mill natural disasters like droughts and blizzards and tornadoes may be curious about how we in the Pacific Northwest deal with Ma St. Helen's volcanic eruptions. The feds managed to get this little pamphlet into every mailbox for hundreds of miles. It explains what volcanic ash is, how to prepare for it, what to do during an ashfall, and ways to protect your home, car, kids and pets (in that order). Most of it seems pretty sensible, but there are a few gems. For example: • Don't panic. Stay calm. • You may eat vegetables from the garden, but wash them off first. The grit is . harmless. Don't believe everything you read. - MR C SOLAR ) Solar Law Reporter, bi-monthly, $15.00/ yr. from: Superintendent of Documents U.S. Govt. Printing Office Washington,DC 20402 Suppose you or your organization erects the first wind generator in town. Does the local height ordinance for buildings apply to your tower? What rights do you have if the neighbors complain to the city council that you are erecting an "eyesore"? Knowing what other people in other places have done in your situation could be very helpful, and that's why you should know about the Solar Law Reporter. Each issue of this SERI publication provides 200 solid pages of information of interest to anyone (not just lawyers) concerned with legal barriers or incentives to renewable energy development. Included are abstracts of recent federal and state legi~lation, solar news items from around the country, and articles on such topics as solar zoning restrictions I product liability for wind machine manufacturers, legal aspects of biomass energy conversion, and implementation of sola·r financial incentives. The Reporter is a potentially valuable tool for the solar activist, businessperson, or homeowner. - JF Solar Energy and Jobs (Report No. 49), July 1980, 11 pp., $1.25 prepaid from: Citizens' Energy Project 1110 Sixth Street N.W., Suite 300 Washington, DC 20001 This just in: Solar doesn't create jobs. Not by itself, anyway. Sure, there's lots of potential for solarrelated employment. But Ken Bossong's latest eye-opener shows that the present directi'on of solar commercialization will only serve to frustrate the promise of solar jobs.
Bossqng's report looks at the role of labor unions (which have been trying to block non-union solar construction projects), workplace hazards in solar manufacture, and the inadequacy of most solar jobtraining programs. Touchy stuff, and of critical importance to a movement which has been hesitant to confront it. Some other highlights: . • Few job opportunities for low-income and minority group members are being opened up, especially in the inner cities,. because current solar development efforts ,are focusing on the installati.on of expensive, highly engineered-hardware on new, single-family, suburban homes. • With the assistance of the federal government, big business is rapidly moving into the solar marketplace and introducing mass production, capital-intensive manu-• facturing techniques that are reducing the potential number of solar jobs. • • Federal funding is being channeled into large-scale, capital-intensive solar technologies that produce far fewer jobs/dollar than decentralized solar technologies. Included in the study are a series of recommendations, including a greater focus on low-income urban applications of solar technologies; restrictions on urion and big business involvement in solar; and a shift of emphasis from large-sq1.le solar hardware to distributed, small-scale energy technologies. Hmmm ... -MR C HANDSON) The Work Book,_Ken Kem and Evelyn Turner, 1979, $7.95 from: Owner Builder Publications Box817 North Fork, <;A 93643 Kern and Turner add a new look at the psychological costs and benefits of owner ' building to their previous work on the technical, legal and econo·mic dimensions of that process. Considerable family stress i~ common during the often prolonged, exhausting and scary process, often becoming the final straw causing break-ups of relationships. On the other hand, gains in selfconfidence, skills, and sense of achievement can add immensely to personal a,.nd family life. A good warning to potential owner-builders of lurking pitfalls and problems to be weighed in deciding whether or not it.is right for you. -Tom Bender Tage Frid Teaches yvoodworking: Book 1-Joinery, $11.95;Fine Woodworking Biennial Design Book, $8.95; Fine Woodworking Design Book Two, $15.95; Fine Woodworking Techniques, $13.95; all available from: The Taunton Press 52 Church Hill Road Box255 Newtown, CT 06470 Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking is the first of three books on furniture-making by a Danish master cabinetmaker. Frid's explanation of why joints work or don't work, clearly presented details of how ~o make joints, outstanding sections on mate'- rials, tools, jigs, production techniques and how to salvage mistakes make this the finest book on basic woodworking I've yet· seen. Frid feels that with judicious use of both hand and power tools, attentidn to the ,basics of business operation, and elimination of factory overhead and middleman ma'rkup by working·directly with customers, good quality individually-designed furniture can compete well with mass-produced furniture. Highly recommended for any woodworker. Biennial Design Book and Design Book Two together contain over 1750 photographs of some of the finest woodworking being d~ne in Ameri~a today. Not just Aug./Sept. 1980 RAIN Page 7 ~ ~ • • ~ /l.A,,j -~ ¥~' •artsy-fartsy stuff or backyard plywood specials, but a revival of good solid construction, sensitive design and good use of materials. A gallery of ideas, dreamstuff and accomplishments with which to measure , .what you see, buy or make. • Fine Woodworking Techniques contains fifty of the best technical articles from the first seven.issues of the magazine. Making tools,·solar lumber drying, gluing technolf :uJIJJJl'{D) minndiJL. TUJt'(d) """'1t.dia. ogy and techniques, 'hand dove!ails, technical considerations of various finishes, why certain woods were traditio·nally used in different parts of chairs, the basics of bowl turning, us,ing spalted wood, restoration techniques and special hints and tools that make work better, easier and faster. Together, these books, along with Fine Woodworking magazine itself, document one sector of our economy moving to the durable, good quality, creative local production necessary for ·a sustainable society. And they're'all done with the same thor- ' oughness, accuracy, clarity, attention to detail and quality as the woodworking t11ey • cover. If the publishers ever put together a repott on the economics and operation of small production woodworking shops, they will have made available the basic resources for small-shop furniture production! - Tom Bender
Page 8 RAIN Aug./Sept. 1980 The Timeless Way ofBuilding, Christopher Alexander, 552 pp., 1979, $19.50; A Pattern Language, Christopher Alexander et al., 1977, 1171 pp., $39.50; The Oregon Experiment, Chrisfopher Alexander et al., 1975, 191 pp., $17.95. Available from: Oxford University Press . 200 Madison Avenue New York, NY 10016 ORGANIC DESIGN Facilitating Community Planning Th~se three volumes are undeniably valuable-as tools, as inspiration, as a way of making connections between the way we live and the buildings that we live in. "Language" is the tool for all our work-it is only through words that the "designer" can tell the carpenter where to put the bathroom. But our common knowledge of design has been usurped by a technical vocabulary and an elite grammar which are beyond the reach of most folks. Alexander and the people he works with at the Center for Environmental Structure, in Berkeley, CA, are trying to save that aspect of our common wealth that has nearly been lost. In homes, in workspaces, in communities the work of designing our own environments is invariably handed over to ''professionals"- but planners, architects and designers need to be able to work with the people whom, in conventional terms, they are working/or. Volume I, The Timeless Way ofBuilding, describes the global heritage of man-made environments. The "T~meless W~y" is an architecture without ego-it is what I make, added to what you make, each one allowing for the other's presence. When we build, we should do so according to the real needs that we feel every day (we need sunny places, quiet places, places to work, to play, to make noise, to.make love . . .). If we can build with this in mind we may discover what Alexander calls a "pattern which lives": This discovery "is not different from the discovery of any profound thing. It is a slow deliberate process, tentative, in which we seek to discover something profound, and where we recognize that we shall usually be wrong to start with, and that we may only approach a •proper formulation slowly." The second volume of the series, A Pattern Language, is the meat of the series. It describes in detail 250 or so "patter~s" each of which examines a problem and a solution. The work is unusual in that each pattern is inextricably connected to all the others. It is this richness of connections that, in the end, satisfies our basic needs and our desires for "community." Take, for example, Pattern 21, Four Story Limit: There is abundant evidence to show that high • buildings make people crazy. The evidence is extensively documented. The pattern itself is cross-referenced to many others that concern urban environments and the people that live in them. The chil- .dren of Glasgow have a song about tenements that they can't live in because they can't get their daily snack when it's thrown from a 20story window: The feely Piece Song, by Adam McNaughton (from A Pattern Language) Oh, ye canny fling pieces oot a twenty-storey flat, Seven hundred hungry weans will testify tae that, If it's butter, cheese or jeely, if the breid is plain or pan, The odds against it reachin' us.is nintey-nine tae wan.
Volume III, The Oregon Experiment, is the slimmest of the books and describes Alexander's vision for a process by which the University of Oregon at Eugene could avoid haphazard, ill-planned and out-of-scale "growth." These books have been out for several years now and they have been extensively reviewed. But what is in the books is theory-at the U of O in Eugene, people have been attempting to put the theory into practice. Several projects have gone forward, despite problems, and their success is visible. To the campus planners, the experiment has been "proven" now, for some time. In the early '70s the university's planning staff became dissatisfied with their "Master Plan." Typically, it was a set of maps that showed existing buildings and then a future "planned" campus that would consist of an orderly "whole"-large, new structures built according to the standard cast concrete and glass formula with little or no consideration for the land, the community, the users of the building, or the relationships between them. The U:niversity made known its desires for a new "plan" and Alexander was chosen, from a competing group.of design consultants, to,help formulate one that woul~ respond to expressed needs and that would create a cooperative way of meeting those needs. Language is the key he uses to open up the process of design. Alexander's particular language depends on differentiating between two kinds of order. "Totalitarian" order (the bad kind) is a whole that exists only on paper or in the minds of'the planners-it is a simplified answer to bureaucratically defined problems such as "statistical ne{ld," "projected growth," and "available funds." The other kind of order is "organic" (the good kind). Organic order is like-a shell that grows in increments, in proportion, and according to the shape of preceding sections. And like a shell, growth does not go on forever. The school has·created channels so that faculty, students and community members can become involved, but these integrated "committees" inevitably find their creativity and efficacy hampered, not only by a bureaucratic, "big is better" funding process but also by the split structure of the "community." Universities, however, are towns; they have economies, they have a politically organized, diverse population (consider the supporting staff and maintenance crew; the college town that depends on college dollars; and the increasing number of older people who are going back to school part-time). Such places offer a broadly supported, well funded and uni- . versally recognized opportunity to grow truly organic communities, but ~. ----- ~~--- . . --1· • ulll~II r1 Aug. /Sept. 1980 RAIN Page ·the effort_will require not onlfa renewed interest on the part of "apathetic" students, but also new spaces for "learning," that won't separate it from "real world" activities. It will also require a change in our concept of "school" as a camp in which youth are trained for entry into "_useful" society. As is true of most residential universities and colleges, the university population is fragmented into a transient student body and the more permanent faculty and administration. Students don't normally put too much emphasis on "making where they live a paradise" since they are only'there for four years and since they also have to pay to·be there. You pay, you expect to be served; that's the way that the "free" market works, right? The architecture student I talked to noted a trend that has ·received lots of attention lately, in the media and in educational institutions themselves: students seem to be more concerned with getting saleable skills and a marketable degree than they are with the qua_lities of a living and learning community. Students who "get involved" often become frustrated and "burn out," as this one did, when they see their work in the community conflicting with the "education" they are paying for. Burn out fosters cynicism. "Involved" students find that their "interests," as defined by narro~-minded curriculums and credit requirements, are at odds wfth the interests ofthe faculty arid administration, who have longer-term concerns at stak~, who are paid for their ·community efforts and who }lave the continuing support of their peers in working towards a well-defined set of goals. Within the student body itself, another division occurs-student "representatives" and the stu- •dents they represent find that concerns of "community" and concerns of credit requirements rarely coincide on a day-to-day basis. The planning committees continue to work despite various hindrances and have, in spots, succeeded admirably. The new addition to the School of Education is the best e_xample of the whole process of diagnosis, pmblem solving, coordination and construction. That the building is satisfying, and that it works, both inside and outside, is not due to the control and "vision" of an artistic "genius." In fact, the architect for the School . of Education yielded his own professional vision to a method that allowed the "user" group to work with the "designers." They created not only a beautiful (and passively heated and cooled) building, but also a charming courtyard and a pleasantly warm atmosphere to work in. Individuals are very important. This architect was important because of his own long experience in "us1er-initiated design." The concept itself, as I learnea: does not originate with Alexander's books. However, Alexander's work with language, and the effort to put it into practice at Eugene, are significant steps in a broader effort to nurture the quaJities that could make an "organic" civilization out of "totalitarian" societies. -KO •
Page 10 RAIN Aug./Sept. 1980 (CONSUMER) Consumer Sourcebook, 2nd ed., edited by Paul Wasserman and Jean Morgan, 1978, 2 vols., 1,623 pp., $64.00 from: Gale Research Company Book Tower Detroit, MI.48226 Expanded to almo~t three times the size of its first edition (published in 1974) the Consumer Sourcebook is a comprehensive guide to information in almost every area of consumer concern: finance, health, safety, environmental standards, social welfare, and more. Hundreds of governmental and non-governmental agencies are described, together with consumer- . oriented newspaper columns, radio programs, tel~vision shows,.books, and audiovisual materials. The largest section is a directory ot more than 17,000 companies which provide consumer goods and services. Very well organized, concise and clearly written, the Sourcebook is an invaluable resource, both for full-time consumer activists and for individuals with personal ''lemon'' laments. Tell your reference librarian about it. -JF C PERSPECTIVE) Ways of Seeing, John Berger, 1973, $2.50 from: Penguin Books 111q Ambassador Rd. Baltimore, MD 21207 Ways of Seeing was originally a four-part series made for'British television. Only later was it made into a book. It is very short, very readable and full of pictures. The words describe the pictures but not in the empty, stilted style of most art "critics." Berger's words complement his "critique" with his experience of the pictures. John Berger is an art critic, but in a much broader sense. He is an interpreter who recognizes meaning behind the'huge amount of visual media that most of us are assulted by (TV, billboard, magazine & supermarket ads; postcards; newspapers, etc.) I understood the pictures implicitly long before I read the book,. but that kind of understanding ("I don't know anything about art, but I know what I like") doesn't give a person a chance.to respond. Being subject to assault without any defenses is debilitating and oppressive. Berger's writ- •ing is an active reply to our globally common, commercial "culture_,., Visual literacy is an important tool not only for art critic;s. Technology affects our environment by its pictures as well as by its machines, and if a picture is worth a thousand words we need to be able to see very clearly. (The film series is available for rental in 16mm prints, in color, 4 programs of 25 minutes each for $35.00 per program; or as a series for $120.00; from Time-Life Multi-Media, 100 Eisenhower Dr., P.O. Box 644, Paramus, NJ 07652. Berger's other writings include: Art & Revolution, 19{>9, 191 pp., $2.95;About Looking, 1980, 198 pp., $4.95; The Success & Failure of Picasso, 1965, 210 pp., $4.95; all available from Pantheon Books, 201 E. 50th St., New York, NY 10022). -KD (AGRICULTURE) Farmers Markets ofAmerica: A Renaissance, .Robert Sommer, 1980, 94 pp., $6.95 from: • • Capra Press P.O. Box 2068 Santa Barbara, CA 93120 This short but impressive book draws its . strength both from the author's vision, commitment and loye, and from his hard and ·convincing evidence. After a short history of food marketing and the development of consumerism, Sommer makes a strong argument for the social, political and economic benefits of direct farmer's mar- ,kets. "Like any other single measure, it cannot solve all the problems that have developed. On the other hand, the estabHshment of local markets is clearly a pro.: gressive step that can accomplish as much by example as by its tangible benefits to small growers and consumers." While the "fancy" and "large" grades of produce may not be as readily available at a farmer's market as at a large chain store, most shoppers find the quality, diversity and lower prices to be ample compensation: Personal contact, long lost to the streamline process of coiwenience shopping, is essential to the spirit and operation of these markets. "Farmers stand behind their produce literally as they sell it and morally because they grew it." The second half of Farmers Markets is devoted.to the fruits and vegetables themselves: how to choose them, when to buy them, and how to cook them; There is also a helpful chapter on how to organize a market in your own community. In its entirety, this book is an excellent source of information on community markets and the important roles they can and do play. -LS C COMMUNITY) The Help Book by J.L. 1Barkas, 1979, 667 pp., $19.95 hardcover, $9.95 paper, from: Charles Scribner's Sons 597 Fifth Avenue New York, NY10017 How can you sue someone without a lawyer? Who will listen to your complaints about air pollution? Whe~e can you learn about travel services available to people with handicaps? These are the kinds of questions addressed in The Help Book, which is really 52 short directories under one cover, each containing basic information in a particular area of concern: alcoholism, cl\ild·abuse, crime prevention, employment, family planning, etc. With its emphasis on low and no cost services available from public and private agencies, The Help Book can be a valuable first-stop reference for facing many kinds of problems. -JF "When They Close the Factory Gates,lf The Prog,:essive, August 1980, $1.50 from: 408 W. Gorham St. Madiso~, WI 53703 "The 2000 largest [U.S.] firms--about-1 % of all the manufacturers-control 88 % of manufacturing assets and make 90% of the manufacturing profits; the other 99% share 10% of the profits." These guys have it so wrapp~d up that even when they lose money they make money! U.S. Steel, for example, with $261 million in earnings last year, will'also be receiving millions of dollars in tax rebates for 1979. Get this: "the corporation's net.profits will actually exceed its gross profits." The reason? The Internal Revenue Service, the national tax collector, offers "tremendous, often irresistible incentives" to big businesses to shut down plants. Hence, the government has actually encouraged the epidemic of plant closings! Other articles in this set look at the Youngstown situation, problems facing the leadership of the United Auto Workers, and a critique of Time magazine's recent attempt to modernize Social Darwinism by blaming the victims of our economic and energy crises. (In June I attended a terrific conference in Portland on plant closures. "Shuttered Factories, Shattered Lives" was sponsored by the Int'I. Woodworkers of America and several other groups and unions. We hope to be running regular material on developing alternatives to plant closures as we come across it.) - MR
You may remember Debra Whitelaw's name from her work last year as a RAIN intern or from her article in our Feb.!Mar. 1980 issue, entitled "Elderly & Energy." Debra is presently lending her talents to the New York Statewide Senior Action Council and to Alternate Currents magazine (see access this issue). - JF AGING by Debra Whitelaw The number of elderly people in our midst is accelerating rapidly. There are now approximately 25 million senior citizens in the United States, accounting for 11 % of the population. It might be redundant for some to be reminded of the pathetic treatment our senior citizens have received in this youthoriented culture. In every possible aspect (housing, employment, recreation, medical treatment, etc.) aging persons have been pushed aside and forgotten because of their closeness to the greatest question people have ever feared and faced: the end of existence. Instead of offering the elderly greater comfort, security and warmth as the cycle draws toward its close, we do the opposite. We alienate and make the final stage of life for our elderly a frightening, disgraceful and ugly experience. Thankfully, interests in gerontological studies are on the rise-schools are offering courses and degrees, books are being written and read, but most importantly the seniors of our country are speaking out and working for a more dignified lifestyle. We can hope that with an increased awareness of gerontology the fears attached to aging will be diminished. The study of aging is a study for all, for if there is one condition all living things share, it is aging. Unloving Care: The Nursing Home Tragedy, by Bruce C. Vladeck, 1980, 266 pp., $13.95 from: Basic Books, Inc. 10 East 53rd St. New York, NY10022 This moving and highly informative book realistically examines the $12 billion private nursing home industry, which provides housing for more than one and a quarter million Americans. Public policy is the main culprit and contributor to the failures of many nursing homes according to the author. He believes the "real issue is not how poor government performance is, but why it is as poor as it is, where it may be better than it looks, how it might be improved, and whether or not there is any alternative." Among the alternatives discussed are congregate living (i.e. group homes), day care centers, and home health and help services. Unloving Care presents constructive criticism and viable options for the future care of our senior citizens. Aging: Its History and Literature, by Joseph T. Freeman, 1979, 161 pp., $13.95 from: Human Sciences Press 72 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10011 Gerontology is certainly an area that has been overlooked in the chronicles of many a historian. This book allows the reader to catch up on all that has been ignored over the years. Aging: Its History and Literature traces the study of aging from ancient times to the modern era. Distinguished works and institutions offering gerontological studies are also listed, as are noted journals on aging. A handy book on many aspects of the study of aging. Geriatric Psychotherapy, by T.L. Brink, 1979, 304 pp., $9.95 from: Human Science Press 72 Fifth Ave. New York, NY 10011 Aging and grace do not necessarily go hand in hand. This book addresses the many elderly who have approached their later years without the peace of mind that, hopefully, a long, fruitful life can bring. Geriatric Psychotherapy is a comprehensive guide to the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders in elderly persons. Various theories are illustrated, including Freud's attempt to show that senility was due to a sexual disturbance (not too surprising for a Freudian theory!) As psychiatric analysis, encounter sessions and group therapies gain increased usage, the particular concerns of seniors should be given careful consideration. The Rights of 01.der Persons, by Robert N. Brown, 1979, 433 pp., $2.50 from: Avon Books The Hearst Corporation 959 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10019 This handbook, one of a series put out by the American Civil Liberties Union, is a straightforward account of legal issues and rights of concern to the elderly. Everything from Social Security benefits to Medicaid/ Medicare eligibility, from private pensions to age discrimination in employment, is covered. The Rights of Older Persons is objectively written and presented in a clear, question/answer format. An excellent source to acquaint you with programs, bureaucracy and benefits involving the senior citizen. Handbook ofHuman Services for Older Persons, by Douglas and Monica Holmes, 1979, 288 pp., $16.95 from: Human Science Press 72 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10011 This handbook is filled with resources (i.e., contact people, agencies, attached bibliographies) relating to the eight services for the elderly which it covers: information and referral; multipurpose senior centers; homemaker and home health; legal; residential repair and renovation; employment; day care; and nursing home advocacy. Handbook is a very helpful publication for those who wish to be helpful to others.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc4NTAz