Rating: 
Summary: Exactly what is happening and why you don't believe it.
Review: Reg Morrison tells us, in this book, not only what is happening to the world's ecosystem but he also tells us why most people do not believe it. Morrison lays it out step by step. He explains why the population, in the last century has grown at such an exponential rate, and why that growth will soon come to an end....and head dramatically in the other direction. But one of the most important things covered in this book is why we refuse to believe the obvious, why we are doomed to repeat the mistakes of the Easter Islanders and refuse to believe that our actions must inevitably lead to a dramatic population collapse.Morrison tells it like it is, we are by nature anthropocentric and have ultimate faith in the ability of Homo sapiens to overcome any difficulty. Faith, Morrison tells us, is the magic ingredient that enables to make that wondrous leap from grim reality into the totally bloody ridiculous. So those who have given this book one star are the true believers. They have criticized it because they say it smacks of genetic determinism, a term invented by the critics of sociobiology, and not subscribed to by sociobiologists themselves. Or they have criticized the book because it does not offer a rosy picture where we are all saved by the wonders of science. Morrison paints science as one of the culprits in the rape of the world and not our ultimate savior. That is a message that raises the ire of many a true believer. Yet all Morrison is trying to tell us is that what has happened many times in the past on a much smaller scale, is happening again on a worldwide scale. And it will happen because our population has already reached plague proportions and is now way beyond any sustainable level. This is the very best book I have read in years, and I read an awful lot of books.
Rating:
Summary: Great Stuff
Review: The author thinks our species is genetically programmed for extinction and can't do anything about it. He may be right. Species usually disappear immediately after an enormous run-up in population, and our population has doubled in the last 50 years. (Without people generally taking much notice of it, I might add.) Morrison doesn't think we have much choice in the matter, and I couldn't help remember the comment of the lead character in Neil Elliott's THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF JESUS CHRIST, when asked if mankind had free will sufficient to control his destiny. "Of course I believe in free will," he said, "--I have no choice!"
Rating:
Summary: Right On!
Review: The crux of the authors' argument is based upon a subtle assumption (in the preface, no less!). Once you accept that, then their "we're all doomed and nothing we can do about it" thesis acquires some weight and becomes truly depressing. My thought is: if we're preprogrammed to be the way we are, and the way we are makes us destined to destroy the earth and ourselves, then why write the book? This was really a dark, unrelenting journey of hopelessness. What I don't get is the other reviews: what is there to "get"? I'm being told I can't do anything to change this person's horribly bleak vision of destruction. I'm just "made" that way. I'll stick with Edward Abbey and try to do something constructive in my world.
Rating: 
Summary: Bleakness based upon an unproved theory
Review: The crux of the authors' argument is based upon a subtle assumption (in the preface, no less!). Once you accept that, then their "we're all doomed and nothing we can do about it" thesis acquires some weight and becomes truly depressing. My thought is: if we're preprogrammed to be the way we are, and the way we are makes us destined to destroy the earth and ourselves, then why write the book? This was really a dark, unrelenting journey of hopelessness. What I don't get is the other reviews: what is there to "get"? I'm being told I can't do anything to change this person's horribly bleak vision of destruction. I'm just "made" that way. I'll stick with Edward Abbey and try to do something constructive in my world.
Rating:
Summary: Chilling, eye-opening, essential reading
Review: This book puts the entire human predicament in perspective. It clearly explains how we got to the point of six billion people on a small, fragile planet and why we are unable to stop ourselves from multiplying our way into a disaster. Reg Morrison has done his research and the conclusions he draws, while not pleasant, make a lot of sense. I've read a lot of environmental books and this one is one of the best. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Reg Morrison wrote the book I wanted to write.
Review: Why is economic theory so screwed-up? Why do economists invariably assume what they hope to prove? Or what's even more incredible, why does everyone on the planet seem believe this stupidity? Obviously, we must answer these questions before we can even hope to solve our collective survival problem. Guess what? Humans are genetically predisposed to believe in mystics, UFO's, Neoclassical Economic Theory, good-luck charms, etc.! In short, we evolved to believe in all kinds of gods -- including the Free Market God. Reg Morrison wrote the book I wanted to write. The forward is written by Lynn Margulis. Morrison's book is endorsed by E.O. Wilson of Harvard, and Thomas Eisner of Cornell. If you are ready for some answers, read The Spirit in the Gene : Humanity's Proud Illusion and the Laws of Nature by Reg Morrison, Lynn Margulis from Cornell University Press (This was a 07 August, 1999 BrainFood Book Alert! Permission to reprint granted!)
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