So this past week when I was reading Morton's "Ecological Thought," I couldn't help but think about how abstract the concepts seemed. In other words, my mind went back to our outdoor class session that day where we struggled to stay in the "concrete" and kept drifting off into the abstract realm of things which, in the end, didn't help us explain or understand anything at all. Instead, drifting off into that realm seemed to only complicate things and leave us feeling more perplexed and helpless than before.
When reading "Ecological Thought" I felt as though I couldn't quite grasp at what exactly Morton was getting at; at least, not yet anyway. I feel that while the text was riddled with great examples (no pun intended, considering I can't seem to figure any of this out yet :) I felt that it was all a bit abstract and too wide in scope for me to quite wrap my head around. I like to be able to read and comprehend things right there on the spot; I struggle when I have to mull over topics in my head again and again in order to try and come to a conclusion as to what is being said. Hopefully this will hash itself out as I continue with the reading... I'm up for the challenge!
Tim makes the point that we have to settle our thought process before we can find real solutions. While I agree in part, I part company with him at "before". Many permaculturists are already living a lot of the real solutions without the benefit of the philosophy, though their activities are often limited by lack of philosophical vision. Symbol manipulation about ecology on the thought level can't "ecologize" the whole mind-body of a person, and certainly not a society; it's just another thing you can do in giant air-conditioned buildings. If you're interested in concrete concepts--Ecological Livelihood, let's call it--visit my blog pefkfl.blogspot.com. I think Ecological Thought and permaculture were meant for each other.
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