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Holes in the Cornucopia Ernest Partridge

This article challenges the notion of infinite natural resources and critiques the flawed scholarship of those who dismiss environmental concerns. It explores the complexity of nature and argues against using an American economic model to predict future resource availability.

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Holes in the Cornucopia Ernest Partridge

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  1. Holes in the CornucopiaErnest Partridge • SIMON IS WRONG • Natural Resources Are Not Infinite • Simon confuses math concepts of infinite with the real world • You Cannot Use Human History to Predict Future Performance • Nature is Complex Not Mechanistic Inert Stuff • He Does Not Understand Thermodynamics • You Cannot Mine Waste Dumps for Future Resource • Nature Cannot Be Successfully Managed • He Used Bad Scholarship • He uses an American Economic Model to Predict • He dismisses those who do not agree

  2. SCARCITY OR ABUNDANCE?Julian L. Simon • All the gloom and doom predictions serve as a scare tactic are not based on long term trends. • People around the world are living longer • Agricultural labor is declining • Raw materials are cheaper • Food is more available • Pollution is declining

  3. ENVIRONMENTAL MYTHS • There is no populations crisis • Species extinction rate is low • History shows the world is getting better • Environment is improving not worsening

  4. Integrating the Environment into Business PlanningThomas Hellman • Some companies are moving from end of the pipeline technology to a waste minimization policy (Bristol Meyers) • These companies look at product life cycles to eliminate needless packaging and environmentally unfriendly manufacturing systems

  5. Cost Benefit Analysis: An Ethical CritiqueSteven Kelman • COST BENEFIT IS BASED ON THREE CONCEPTS • No act should be undertaken where cost exceeds benefits. • Cost and benefits should be expressed on the same scale. • Cost benefit analysis is important and worth the expense of gathering the data.

  6. CRITIQUE OF COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS • In cases of safety, environment and health benefits outweigh costs • There are good reasons not place a dollar value on everything • Measure some things is not possible (Clean Air) • Method only measures cost paying for benefit not how much is paid to give up benefit • Uses a private not public good standard • Place a dollar on some things cheapens that thing (love, health, sex) • It is not justifiable to spend scare resources on collecting information related to the environment, health, safety and welfare

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