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The State of Humanity (Paperback)

~ Julian Simon (Editor) "The outlook portrayed in this volume is even more happy than before for two reasons: (1) conditions have improved in the phenomena we discussed a..." (more)
Key Phrases: New York, United Nations, Department of Agriculture (more...)
3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The State of Humanity will become essential reading for anyone who wants to put today's policy debates into a larger context." Business Week
" This book provides a comprehensive and balanced assessment of the state of the Earth and its inhabitants at the close of the twentieth century." Population Index, Vol 62 No. 2

The State Of Humanity provides a comprehensive and balanced assessment of the state of the Earth and its inhabitants at the close of the twentieth century. More than fifty scholars from all over the world present new, concise, and accessible accounts of the present state of humanity and the prospects for its social and natural environment. The subjects range from deforestation, water pollution, and ozone layer depletion to poverty, homelessness, mortality, and murder. Each contributor considers the present situation, historical trends, likely future prospects, and the efficiency or otherwise of current activity and policy. The coverage is worldwide, with a particular emphasis on North America. Fifty-eight chapters are divided into six parts, concerned with health, standards of living, natural resources, the production of food, the natural environment, and a concluding section on the formation, power, and uses of public opinion and the news media. The State Of Humanity is a magnificent synthesis of cultural, social, economic, environmental perspectives. -- Midwest Book Review


Product Description

This book provides a comprehensive and balanced assessment of the state of the Earth and its inhabitants at the close of the twentieth century. More than fifty scholars from all over the world present new, concise and accessible accounts of the present state of humanity and the prospects for its social and natural environment. The subjects range from deforestation, water pollution and ozone layer depletion to poverty, homelessness, mortality and murder. Each contributor considers the present situation, historical trends, likely future prospects, and the efficacy or otherwise of current activity and policy. The coverage is worldwide, with a particular emphasis on North America.

The State of Humanity is a magnificent and eye-opening synthesis of cultural, social, economic and environmental perspectives. It will interest all those - including geographers, economists, sociologists and policy makers - concerned to understand some of the most pressing problems of our time.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 704 pages
  • Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell (June 3, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 155786585X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1557865854
  • Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.8 x 2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #838,198 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
The outlook portrayed in this volume is even more happy than before for two reasons: (1) conditions have improved in the phenomena we discussed a decade ago, and (2) we now document a much wider range of phenomena pertaining to human welfare than in the previous volume, and almost all of these additional trends also point in a positive direction. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, United Nations, Department of Agriculture, United Kingdom, Bureau of the Census, Government Printing Office, Washington Post, Cambridge University Press, Economic Research Service, Great Lakes, Oxford University Press, Soviet Union, World Bank, Department of Commerce, North America, Latin America, Los Angeles, Popular Vision, Census Bureau, Environmental Protection Agency, Princeton University Press, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Clarendon Press, University of Chicago Press, American Council
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Customer Reviews

19 Reviews
5 star:
 (9)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:
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Average Customer Review
3.4 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Simon Says, and the Facts Back Him Up, June 2, 2000
By Dingus McGee (Papua New Guinea) - See all my reviews
This is a book jam-packed with statistical information regarding, what else, the state of humanity. Collected are statistics relevant to life, health, standards of living, and the ecological state of the planet.

For example, if you believed Ehrlich and Ted Danson in the 1970's that the Earth was on the cusp of another ice age, only now to believe that the Earth is warming rapidly, your extreme beliefs, no doubt influenced by a media that has little regard for facts, could stand a dose of reality from the information in this book. Of course, Simon is not the only writer to debunk the eco-extremists. Dr. S. Fred Singer, inventor of the satellite ozone monitoring system, is among the large percentage of globabl scientists who concur that there is indeed nothing wrong with the ozone layer. How could they come to such a conclusion? Probably a consideration of the facts, ones such as those Simon has amassed.

Far from culling information only from the western world, the statistics in this book are often global. Of course, this is a book largely composed of statistics. Regardless of the accuracy of the information, quantitative analyses such as this are purely for reference.

I suggest Simon's book not as the end-all-be-all of rational debate, but merely as one source of information. Simon, and the information he has gathered, do not speak conclusively on any issue. What you will most probably gain from reading this book is an understanding of the kind of evidence and material that is not even considered by those who make opposing arguments. Opinions may vary, but ultimately facts lend themselves only to a finite number of interpretations.

Most cultural debates have their ebbs and flows; I am glad to see this segment of the argument being constructed with facts and rationality, however incomplete they may be.

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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Oh no!, January 9, 2001
By Carson F. (Vancouver, WA) - See all my reviews
I find the reviews of this book interesting. The last few comments made on the book are on how Simon's "predictions" have been debunked. His predictions are in fact panning out quite nicley. The united states "fall" on the world life expectancy list does not mean things have gotten worse: it means more countries are improving, and some have surpassed us. This is a bad thing? Other readers point out how things just havn't panned out. Are you all on crack? In truth Simon makes no predictions in his books that aren't based of fact. Over the last 100 years things have gotten MUCH better for EVERYONE. You can argue about disparities among the races, but the TRENDS for ALL of humanity show great improvements (ie, for all races). Scoff at his claims if you will, but you are likley living proof of some miracle brought about within even the last 40 years. It matters not what race you are. If you don't like Simon, hit up the statistical abstract of the united states and verify his numbers - this is a claim simon makes. Lastly, seeing some blips in humanity, such as the adverse effects of the fall of the soviet union (again, you cannot simply say simon is wrong because the soviets dove into free market economies and are struggling, anymore than you could have said capitalism is wrong because of the recession in the 80's, or the depression before WW2; russia is an EXTREME example of how NOT to transition into democracy, hence the term use of the uncontrolled "fall" in "fall of the soviet union"). This is the essence of simons ENTIRE BOOK - that the overall TRENDS are improving. Readers who miss that miss the book. Life isn't easy every day or every year, sorry. Don't go blaming Simon for that.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Have we PROVEN anything?, January 23, 2001
By A Customer
Simon states the world has trended positive in the past and will continue to do so in the future. If you read a review which states Simon has been proven wrong since the time of publication, then that reviewer totally misunderstands Simon's position OR really hasn't read the material. It would be impossible to say anything has been proven at this point, because Simon's analysis requires long periods of time for a trend to develop. Pointing to an increase in fuel prices or a decline in a region's life expectancy (due to a disaster, natural or economic) does not show a flaw in Simon's reasoning, only a bump in the road, to which humanity must develop a response. It is the RESPONSE which has made humans what they are, and has brought us to the modern state in which we now live.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars A detailed and very dogmatic case that all's well
This is the other side of the coin to the attacks on contemporary government, finance and business contained in books like Korten: When Corporations Rule the Worldand the earlier... Read more
Published on February 23, 2005 by Bill Godfrey

5.0 out of 5 stars Simon say "can I take a baby step?"
Since this book was published in 1995 we have had several revelations which have added to its most virtuous verification that the state of humanity is indeed improving. Read more
Published on February 18, 2002 by Eugene A Jewett

4.0 out of 5 stars A comment
I have a comment for the reviewer who seems to loathe everything about Simon. Life expectancy in the U.S. just reached its historic, all-time high. Read more
Published on October 20, 2001 by speicherak

1.0 out of 5 stars Failed predictions dismiss Simon as a fool
For those who are interested, there is more proof of Julian Simon's failure on CNN. It seems that the United States has fallen from close to the top of the life expectancy rates,... Read more
Published on June 6, 2000

1.0 out of 5 stars Fortunately for Simon, he's dead
Julian Simon is lucky he's dead. If he were alive today, he would have to face the shame of realizing that his sweeping predictions and optimistic vision of the future has turned... Read more
Published on May 24, 2000

1.0 out of 5 stars Hasn't stood the test of time
Julian Simon's seminal cornucopian works gave rise to the philosophy now dominant among our Libertarian corporate and political elite: that resources were infinite, environmental... Read more
Published on May 18, 2000

2.0 out of 5 stars Shallow
The State of Humanity, published by the libertarian Cato Institute, argues that all sociological trends, on a global scale, show that life is getting better for everyone. Read more
Published on May 5, 2000 by Jason Jones

3.0 out of 5 stars A rare mediocore review
People seem to love this book or hate it, based largely on their own psychological disposition of optimism or pessimism. I hope I can be a bit more objective. Read more
Published on April 27, 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars the truth hurts (that is...if you're committed to a lie)
I'd be an extreme environmentalist if I thought pollution in the world was getting worse. It's not. Read more
Published on December 16, 1999 by mcgee22

5.0 out of 5 stars No opinions here, just real facts, with full sources.
Among the reviews so far you can see two trends -- four or five stars among those who have open minds, zero or one star among those who refuse to see anything that doesn't match... Read more
Published on October 21, 1999

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