The Green Zone: The Environmental Costs of Militarism

by Barry Sanders

Book Overview

Environmentalism is the issue of the moment. Reusable shopping bags, hybrid cars and green energy solutions are all espoused as ways to reduce carbon footprints, but these are only the tip of the quickly melting iceberg. Sanders and Davis present a sobering revelation - until US military attacks are held accountable for the war they have waged on the environment, domestic changes made in good faith won't do a thing. Frighteningly, their argument is...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1904859941
• ISBN13: 9781904859949
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: AK Press
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.58 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

Militarism's high cost

"The Green Zone: The Environmental Costs of Militarism" can be a tough read, if only because the book is a relentless criticism of the extreme environmental damage caused by the military-industrial complex. That's not to say that the book shouldn't be read because it should: the environmental side isn't something we consider very often when thinking about the military. But the sheer numbers involving, say, putting a couple of helicopters into the air, are nothing short of staggering. By one estimate, Apache helicopters get a half mile to the gallon. Now picture them in the air for hours, flying and hovering over Iraq's cities. We occasionally read about the military's attempts to go green, using more efficient vehicles around bases. But that, not surprisingly, is just window dressing compared to the real damage brought about by the military machine and the thousands of people mobilized to support armed action. The incontrovertible facts are just about overwhelming. Defoliation campaigns, fuel emissions, radioactive waste: they're all here. But if you're trying to bring about new policies and effect great change in our priorities, the best place to start is with the facts.

Linking militarism with environmental destruction

War is hell - on the planet as well as the people involved. "The Green Zone: The Environmental Costs of Militarism" is a criticism of the huge environmental costs of warfare, presenting the facts that the world's militaries, the United States' most powerful one in particular, are causing more environmental damage than countless other sources combined. Linking militarism with environmental destruction, "The Green Zone" presents many intriguing ideas and is highly recommended.

One of the most important books you'll ever read!!!

In this short, accessible book, Barry Sanders exposes the ecological consequences of US militarism and argues that all the individual things we do to preserve the environment like eating organic food, choosing low-energy light bulbs, and riding our bikes instead of driving will accomplish very little unless we eliminate the military industrial complex, the single-greatest contributor to the global ecological crisis. Illustrated with powerful artwork created by students from the Pacific Northwest College of Art and very well-researched, this is an extremely important manifesto for anti-war and environmental activists alike. Over the years, I've noticed very few environmental organizations participating in anti-war demonstrations, and while peace groups like the ANSWER coalition and UFPJ may claim to be concerned about the environment seldom do they really address environmental issues in their rallies, literature, and picket signs. Hopefully, this small book will encourage a stronger coalition between anti-war and environmental activists, for we obviously cannot have real justice and peace without a healthy, living planet, as we, likewise, cannot have a healthy, living planet without real justice and peace. Thank you AK Press for publishing yet again another timely and informative book!