Thirst

by Michael Fox, Deborah Kaufman, Alan Snitow

Book Overview

Out of sight of most Americans, global corporations like Nestl , Suez, and Veolia are rapidly buying up our local water sources--lakes, streams, and springs--and taking control of public water services. In their drive to privatize and commodify water, they have manipulated and bought politicians, clinched backroom deals, and subverted the democratic process by trying to deny citizens a voice in fundamental decisions about their most essential public...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0787984582
• ISBN13: 9780787984588
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

An Uncle Tom's Cabin for Power Grabs

Give this book all the stars available. It is fascinating and informative, and for me life changing! I am a seventy-two year old retired school teacher who lives in the woods in rural Skagit County, Washington. I am also an avid reader and very concerned about water. The book "Thirst:Fighting the Corporate Theft of Our Water" has become my version of Uncle Tom's Cabin. I am carrying "Thirst" around in my purse and requesting that my friends, neighbors, elected officials, and even strangers read footnote 11 for Chapter One on page 216. International corporations are no longer a distant threat. They are now in my backyard. The Macquarie Bank of Australia listed in the footnote has made a bid to purchase our electric utility company, Puget Power/Puget Sound Energy (PP/PSE). The purchase will include two dams on the Baker River fifteen miles west of where I live on the Skagit River, the second largest river in the state of Washington. The town of Concrete where one of the dams is located is already selling its water for bottling. This has to be tempting to the thirsty Australians. Could this looming battle be a sequel to Thirst? Macquarie's reach is like a spreading fungus: power companies, toll roads, water and who knows what else. Thank you to the authors, Alan Snitow, Deborah Kaufman & Michael Fox, for your excellent book. My life would be a lot simpler if I had never read it, but I' m glad I did. It sure has made things interesting around here.

Real World Organizing

Today's news told of anti-epileptics, sex hormones, medications, antibiotics and a mood stabilizer found in US drinking water. What that has to do with water privatization isn't clear. But the detailed, in-depth scenarios in "Thirst" have a lot to do with activism to defend a vital resource that ought to be part of the public commons, not part of a Wall Street bottom line. "Thirst" tells the stories of people from all walks of life who have have banded together to fight privatization of their water. There's much to be learned from their experiences, perspectives, mistakes and triumphs. "Thirst" documents a few important battles in an on-going fight and offers valuable insights into the delicate art of community organizing.

Our Most Precious Resource

This is an easy to read but alarming account of the privitization of public water in eight communities across the United States. It is a book that should be read and understood in our nation's high schools and colleges. THIRST Fighting The Corporate THEFT Of Our Water is an interesting and entertaining read while also providing reasonable and ample documents and records to support the information provided on its pages. Snitow, Kaufman and Fox provide information in their book on how easy it is in today's world to lose our rightful access to the most precious resource we have - water.