A Sense of Wonder is a movie made from a drama which is really a monologue by Rachel Carson [an actress playing her very well indeed] during the last year of her life. The film was shot at her house in Maine and at her home in Silver Springs, Maryland. It was a moving, meditative piece. The sound track was only birdsong and the adagio movement of Beethoven's ethereal Violin concerto, one of Carson's [and my] favorite pieces of music.This was shown in the documentary film class I'm taking. It was preceded by a boringly didactic little filmed lecture about "stuff" from an ecological point of view. Both were preaching to the converted; the discussion afterwards was simply a lot of statements about what we all know about global warming, Carson's success and the miserable state of the world today. Even the Gaia theory was espoused by a woman I had thought was a sensible soul. Actually I understand the appeal of the Gaia theory but I do not see, as this woman did, that events like earthquakes, tsunami, avalanches prove it -- we happen to know more about how many catastrophies are happening because of the relentless news media which loves disasters of all kinds. I certainly see the world as one large system but not as one with intent or purpose.
As I just read in a Scientific American magazine this morning, [and have often read] we have a brain that makes patterns, it has contributed greatly to our survival but we also make mad, runaway patterns, seeing purpose in the sets of events and conspiracies in coincidences and comforting intent in serendipitous instances. I was happy to hear a room full of my contemporaries who are fairly well informed about these matters. I'm afraid, like me, they are incompletely informed and are a little too complacent about their being "are of the solution" when they refuse to buy water in plastic throw away bottles.
8 comments :
Rachel Carson's book, Silent Spring, was influencial in the banning of DDT. A new documentary, 3 BILLION AND COUNTING by Dr. Rutledge Taylor, exposes the myths, lies, and coverups surrounding the banning of DDT by the EPA in the 1970s. This medical doctor explores thousands of pages of EPA testimony and finds that DDT was found to be SAFE, but was banned anyway. He brings The Truth to the Light. THIS IS A MUST SEE; A REAL EYE-OPENER. DON'T DENY THE TRUTH any longer. Look into this for yourself. See website: 3billionandcounting.com for more info.
I can't find out anything about "Beverly". I find that Dr. Rutledge Taylor does not seem to be associated with any academic, scientific center but sells a line of products with healthful claims. It seems suspicious to me. But anyone is welcome to go to the above noted website and explore to their own satisfaction
Hey...I've seen this documentary on DDT. Wow! I never knew it was safe. I had always been taught and had accepted as being true that DDT was toxic to people, to birds....and then I find out how wrong I was. This guy presents scientific evidence to support his case. He even tracks down the original hearing papers from the 1970s - over 9000 pages - which show that DDT is harmless. There's a trailer here that folks might want to check out for themselves:
http://www.3billionandcounting.com/trailer.php
I"m not buying it but each person can decide who to believe.
I can understand June's resistance to the truth about DDT. I felt the same and checked out www.3billionandcounting.com and now see things a bit different. I see where Dr. Rutledge has proof of over ONE HUNDRED scientists and doctors, 10 YEARS after Carson's novel was published, saying DDT is safe and not harmful to humans or birds. Wonder if Rachel ingested some DDT (since she had cancer when writing her novel) if she would have lived longer. DDT has some wonderful benefits FOR the body. Isn't this amazing, after all these years to finally hear the truth? Let's bring DDT back.
Kathy, thanks for your comment. Rachel Carson was a scientist and wrote only scientifically researched book, no novels [which by definitions are not fact]. You are welcome to accept Rutledge's claims, as I said. Unless we are scientifically trained ourselves we must choose which scientists we and their theories we believe. I am not a scientist so I choose to believe those in the universities and mistrust those without academic approval.
Post a Comment