Blog 10

What is Social Ecology (From the Readings)? What is your view/opinion of Social Ecology? 

What forms of hierarchy are in our world today and where do you think they come form? Are there and better alternatives? 

  Social Ecology contends that the hierarchal set- up of modern society is a socially- constructed phenomenon that has become institutionalized over time. In other words, Social Ecology argues that hierarchy, whether it be Socially, Economically, Environmentally or Politically based is not natural or innate, but rather something that humans implemented over the course of history. I have somewhat of a mixed view regarding social ecology. I really agreed with the argument being made in the "Third World Poverty" reading, that there exists a socially constructed hierarchy between underdeveloped and developed nations and in many ways this hierarchy hinders the development of third world countries. However, even after the readings I must admit that I still am a firm believer in Darwinism. Although Bookchin's concept of "mutual cooperation" seemed ideal, I do not believe that the natural order of things would allow for a holistic mutual cooperation to even be possible. There are too many forms of hierarchy in our world today to even count. While some are what I believe to be necessary and effective, like the Boss/ Employee relationship and democratic style of government, there are others that are completely unnecessary and detrimental to the advancement of society, like racial, religious and sexual hierarchies. These types of hierarchies really serve no other purpose than to oppress and should be eliminated. 

Blog 9

My view on Deep Ecology is that it is about recognizing the "Big Picture"of the earth and understanding that no single species is more significant than any other. Deep ecology principles hold g that man and nature are on a "equal playing field" and therefore humans need to respect nature for its own intrinsic value rather than only appreciate nature's direct benefits to mankind. I believe that when it comes to nature, one of society's greatest flaws is that we do not appreciate the intrinsic value (good for its own sake) of nature, we often tend to see nature primarily as a tool that can benefit us, often economically. For example, we appreciate certain plants and foods because we can eat them and sell them, rather than appreciating and respecting them for their own sake and beauty. The Deep ecology principle that I least agree with would have to be that there is a need and possibility for a "Classless" Society to exist. While having a society where no one class dominates over another class would be ideal, I do not believe that it would be possible to achieve. In modern societies today, separation of class is necessary in order to maintain social order and without it there would be chaos. I do not believe that investing significant time towards creating a classless society is a productive use of time.

Blog 8

Consensus Style decision making is an ideal way to make decisions in a group setting. However, with that being said there are several preconditions that must exist in order for group -wide consensus decision making to be effective. First off everyone in the group must maintain an open- mind. If members of the group are opposed to slightly modifying what they believe in order to achieve total agreement, then it would be nearly impossible for any decisions to be made. Another precondition that is necessary for consensus decision making is that there must be a non-hierarchal form of power already in place. This means that there cannot be specific set of a leader(s) in the group, everyone within the group has equal power and say. Essentially all members of the group act on an level playing field. One of consensus decision making's main strengths is that by using this style of decision making every member of the group knows where they stand, and knows that are equally important and equally influential. One of the weaknesses of this style of decision making is that it tends to only work effectively on small scales. Trying to achieve total agreement among groups larger than about 100 members is a very difficult thing to do, mainly because it is nearly impossible for everyone's concerns to be met at that large of a scale.

Blog 7

Culture Jamming is an anti- consumerist movement that seeks to reduce the influence that advertisement has on the American people. Ironically, Culture Jamming uses advertisements to discourage advertisements. It operates under the belief that advertisements are beginning to dominate the human sub- conscious and take control over our day to day lives. Culture Jamming's advertisements effectively confront consumption through rhetorical strategies that target "the purveyors of excess consumption and challenge them on their own turf"(Bordwell). One of the main organizations that practices culture jamming is the Adbusters Media Foundation. Adbusters creates "unadvertisements" that are put out into the public in many forms including: television commercials, internet ads, picture ads, newspapers, magazines and even campaign books. I personally believe that the Adbusters Media Foundation has the right idea and that their strategy will increase activism. I believe that the "unadvertisments" that Adbusters releases are a great form of activism because they are so relatable and do not preach far fetched ideas that the average will either not understand nor care about. Also, by using so many commonly viewed forms of media (television, internet, billboards), Adbusters is able to ensure that their message regarding the negative affects of consumerism will be seen by those who have fallen most vicim to it, and need the information the most. 

Blog 6

Ecofeminism was the topic that I was assigned for my Group Teaching Project and was my first choice. Last semester I took a Feminist Political Theory course and saw many similarities between what I had learned in that course about women's oppression and what the readings on Ecofeminism addressed. Overall, I was pleased with what most of the readings had to say about the issues regarding the social structure of society, how women fit into it and how that has impacted on the environment throughout history.
    Specifically, one aspect of one of the articles that I really agree with and believe should be brought up during our class meeting is the idea that patriarchy has assigned women closer to nature than men, and that this is view is socially constructed.  Women are not naturally closer to nature than men are, although society often has us believing different. I can absolutely agree with this claim and I believe that much of the reason why this inaccurate view about women and the environment exists is because we generally see the earth through feminine lenses as "Mother earth". Although viewing the earth as motherly and female seems like a pretty innocent view, it does have its drawbacks. Throughout history it can be seen that men have acted in ways that have harmed the environment and did so with the expectation that the women of their time would clean up their mess, since it was believed that the women cared more about the earth.
   Something else that I found to be very intriguing in the readings was that societies have often used women as political and social tools. In King's article, King brings up how throughout history and even in many societies today, women's reproductive rights have been seen as something that can be controlled and this can have a profound effect on the environment. Finally, I believe that while this topic is being presented to the class, it is important to stress that many environmental issues all around the world, especially in third world countries can be tackled simply by empowering women and strengthening social equality.