The environment has long dominated man and his way of living. With the Industrial Revolution, however, and the explosion of technology that followed, humans attempted to control nature. The results have been miraculous in many cases. We now have a standard of living unimaginable one hundred years ago. But there has been a price to pay on the environment. In fact, some will argue that the price has been way too high and it is time to revert back to the "pioneer days" in order to save the planet Earth.
The purpose of this paper will be to review and discuss two books representing very different points of view in relation to the environment. The titles are: Trashing the Planet by Dr. Dixie Lee Ray (1990) and Earth in the Balance by Vice President Al Gore (1993). A description of each book and its issues will be presented as well as the author's perspective, biases and objectives. Further, the books will be compared and contrasted as to their opinions, attitudes and approaches to the environment. Lastly, the specific impacts these two books have on business decisions like product design, product processes and promotion, will be presented.
Ray's varied background provides a unique perspective for analyzing the environmental issues of today. A scientist as well as a politician, she has been exposed to differing sides of the argument swirling around the state of the planet, all of which have created what Ray calls a "hyperbole" of information used to incite and frighten the public. Ray's perspective is that of a scientist. Her belief in technology and all it has done for humankind demands a serious look be given to where we have cone from, how we got to where we are today and what is the accurate state of the planet with only facts used to measure results.
Through Ray's discussion of the different environmental issues, she includes a look at the history of each Issue such as acid rain or pesticides along with what is k...