Monday
11May2009
Yay! The Story of Stuff makes The NYT
Monday, May 11, 2009 at 8:35PM
I just received an email alerting me that Annie Leonard's wonderful 20-minute animation, The Story of Stuff, made The New York Times' front page. I first mentioned Annie's work, briefly, in 2007.
It appears that the video has become a hit in America's classrooms, where teachers are using it to convey the basic law of economics: that finite resources are just that, finite. And that our rabid consumerism is accelerating the use of our planets limited resources.
Watch it here. Really, you should. It's excellent.
It appears that the video has become a hit in America's classrooms, where teachers are using it to convey the basic law of economics: that finite resources are just that, finite. And that our rabid consumerism is accelerating the use of our planets limited resources.
Watch it here. Really, you should. It's excellent.
Reader Comments (2)
Her section on computers made me skeptical of the entire video. I am studying Computer Engineering right now, and pretty much all of her facts or actions are incorrect. Her claim that only the CPU changes in each architecture change is absurd -- and I like the insinuation that a socket change is made just to "change the shape" to induce consumption. Umm, what? How about that a new socket and architecture can be built to use less energy -- a LOT less energy? Her old "less fashionable" CRT also uses upwards of 90 W in power -- versus only 15 W or so in a new LCD. Care to comment on the energy involved in destroying the old CRT versus continuously using it for another 5 years, Annie? 5x is a pretty big factor...
Another of her insinuations fairly early on -- that cities are wasteful, dirty, and a conglomeration of all that is wrong with the "system" -- is also farcical. While I'm sure Annie may drive "as little as possible" out there in Berkeley, CA, I drive *not at all* thanks to living in the biggest and the dirtiest -- New York City. I use the MTA, live in a small apartment, and do my shopping on foot. New Yorkers use a tiny fraction of what nearly everyone else uses energy-wise -- especially Californians. But, it never feels good to look at real numbers when you can make slick childrens' videos that gloss over real analysis to go with "feel good" assertions -- if there's a tree outside your window, you must be doing something better!
The definitive critique to the Story of Stuff:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5uJgG05xUY