Shannon's comments

Shannon's comments from the Apocalypse Whenever group.

Note: Shannon is no longer a member of this group.

I'm reading Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore and also The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller. Both are good!

Yesterday I finished Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - I won't spoil it by saying what it's about, but if you're interested in dystopian novels you might like this one.

I don't think we get the History Channel in Toronto, so I haven't seen that show. But the thing that scares me most in life, and has done for some time now, is the idea that all our crap, all our tvs and computers and toasters and cars and plastic wrap and Tupperware and pens etc., will be here pretty much forever. The idea of these things not only never biodegrading and composting, but also leaching toxins into the soil and water and getting into the stomachs of many organisms, scares me shitless. I'd like to leave as light a footprint as I can, but it's pretty hard. Still, the idea of replacing electronics etc. just because it's come out in a new colour or whatever is just silly.

And on that note, I recommend Giles Slade's Made to Break: a History of Obsolescence in America, which is a fascinating study (and very well-written) of how our consumer society started and about Planned Obsolescence etc. In short: blame GM!! Seriously though, it goes well alongside George Monbiot's Heat, which is another must-read.

I LOVED that book! I learnt so much from it, it's full of interesting facts and history. It just goes to show that, in order to understand where we are now and where we're headed, we really have to understand where we came from.

Ben, I loved that chapter too. I had no idea all those animals existed on those continents. I also loved reading about the underground cities in Turkey. The Africa chapter was eye-opening as well, and the section about the no-go zone between North and South Korea.