Moral Ground: Ethical Action for a Planet in Peril

This was a required reading for a course. It is full of chapters designed into letters from many different authors with the same viewpoint. This makes the reading both great at times, and terrible. Because there are so many authors attached to this book it is hard to give it a good or bad review. Some authors lose me entirely on their point or argument, some are concise and stick to their point. They all however follow the same path in their argument. Which sums up this whole book, “you are a bad person and need to change your ways, otherwise you are the problem”. “Agree with me or be considered a bad person”. Of course this is nonsense, nobody has the moral authority to blame entire generations on their failings without undoubtedly forgetting about their own. If you want a biased take on the global climate mixed in with generational blaming and poems that don’t make any sense. Here ya go.

As this kindle-specific review can't be unhooked from the book's overall rating, I apologize for using a 3-star review in order to draw attention to a kindle-only defect.The grace of this remarkable project is that 80 (eighty!) short essays were solicited to answer the question "Do we have a moral obligation to take action to protect the future of a planet in peril?" (Compare to Wiesenthal's _The Sunflower_ -- though here the respondents differ only on *why* they say yes.) The essays are somewhat artificially organized according to their broad patterns of moral reasoning. Obviously, some essays are more compelling than others, but since these are all public voices, it's worth reflecting on how they frame their responses.The print edition displays the question clearly above the table of contents, and it lists each essay according to AUTHOR and essay title. So, you can browse through names including the Dalai Lama, E.O. Wilson, Barack Obama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Ursula K. Le Guin, Peter Singer, J. Baird Callicott, Thomas L. Friedman, Mary Catherine Bateson, bell hooks, and Barbara Kingsolver (and 68 others), turning to each as you like.The kindle edition OMITS THE QUESTION over the table of contents (so its "Yes, because..." headings are non-sequiturs). Worse, the table of contents lists essays by title but NOT AUTHOR. The kindle edition is therefore useless for anything other than a linear reading. Apparently there's "nobody home" at Amazon's kindle-edition assembly line to think about what readers need to have included in a digital edition. (If this problem is somehow fixed, I will retract this artificially-low rating.)

A must read for everyone. If only all could read this book and understand the dire need for policy change.

I bought this book for an environmental-related college class. I read excerpts from most of the book and found parts of it interested while others were downright bizzare. The book itself is a collection of short stories about climate change and environmentalism. It served the purposes of my class but I did not care for it too much.

For those of us who are trying our best to do what we think is ethically and morally our job to protect the future of this planet, these essays and poems remind us that we are not alone and that others are there with us if not in the field with us then in spirit. They are from all over the world, all different backgrounds but with the same goal in mind and every bit we do is progress. I can't wait for the book to be out on Kindle as I refer to my copy with the notes in the margin on such a regular basis already that I have 2 copies. Thank you to all the contributors!

This is a wonderful compilation of well-reasoned and thought provoking viewpoints concerning the state of our earth. Each contribution adds a fresh facet to the bigger picture. The common denominator is the sorry state of our planet. But the sum of the parts somehow goes beyond that sad reality. Regretfully, I have only recently begun to contemplate these issues. After reading this book, I am challenged to stop taking earth for granted. And I am inspired to more carefully evaluate my actions as they relate to a bigger perspective than self. I am grateful to the editors and to each contributor.

This book provides an excellent and diverse compilation of essays dealing with the ethical considerations of climate change and the moral responsibility all of us have to take immediate action before it is too late.

The essays present a wide perspective on the environmental damage the planet is experiencing and how we are at a tipping point at best. Even if you don't believe this is happening, you owe it to yourself to hear these voices.

This book is thought provoking and I like that. I haven't finished it yet but am working on it. There is some politics included though. For example Barack Obama has a very nice essay on how we need to take care of the environment and yet his administration is responsible for trying the strip the Endangered Species Act of much of it's power. For the most part it is a good read that, as I said, will make you think and hopefully start you on a path of Environmental Stewardship. Our planet is much like a manufacturing plant in that if we put nothing into repair and maintenance sooner or later the equipment will breakdown or even fail. Then what will we do?

thanks

Excellent read.

Excellent but at times painful to read.