Book Reviews : Distribution. John C. G. Boot. Marcel Dekker Inc. $9.75. 126pp and 212pp Notes, References & Index. Common Globe or Global Commons: Population Regulation and Income The Domination of Nature. William Leiss. George Braziller Inc. $6.95. Index

Published date01 December 1972
Date01 December 1972
DOI10.1177/004711787200400615
Subject MatterArticles
733
Two
short
sections
deal
with
the
Treaty
of
Commerce
Establishment
and
Navigation
between
Great
Britain
and
Japan
of
1962,
and
the
Mem-
orandum
of
Co-operation
between
Japan
and
the
OECD
in
July
1963.
Most
interesting
of
all
as
a
portent
of
things
to
come
are
the
Resolutions
of the
Fourth
Arab
Petroleum
Congress
at
Beirut
on
the
12th
November
1963.
Distribution.
John
C.
G.
Boot.
Marcel
Dekker
Inc.
$9.75.
126pp
and
212pp
Notes,
References
&
Index.
Common
Globe
or
Global
Commons:
Population
Regulation
and
Income
The
Domination
of
Nature.
William
Leiss.
George
Braziller
Inc.
$6.95.
Index.
&dquo;Like
the
sorcerer’s
apprentice,
confident
of
our
mastery
over
nature,
we
have
unleashed
incredibly
powerfuly
forces
and
have
been
caught
in
the
ensuing
maelstrom&dquo;.
How
are
we
to
understand
and
control
the
social
impact
of
modern
science
and
technology?
William
Leiss
devotes
his
short
book
to
a
wide
ranging
consideration
of
the
idea
of
man’s
mastery
of
nature
which
now
underlies
the
whole
concept
of
western
culture.
But
the
&dquo;conquest
of
nature&dquo;
is,
in
fact,
a
contradiction
in
terms.
You
cannot
&dquo;conquer&dquo;
or
dominate
in
self-interest
an
entity
of
which
you
are
in
fact
an
integral
part,
by
&dquo;dominating
nature,
man
inevitably
also
&dquo;dominates&dquo;
himself,
depriving
himself
of
individual
freedom
thereby
and
threatening
not
only
to
dominate
but
totally
to
destroy
both
nature
and
himself
in
the
process.
Bacon
enunciated
the
contrary
principle
whose
truth
would
appear
to
be
re-emerging
today:
in
fact
&dquo;we
command
nature
by
obeying
her&dquo;
although
in
his
version
this
meant
using
the
knowledge
gained
by
observing
her
methods
to
subdue
her
to
&dquo;man’s
will&dquo;.
&dquo;For
you
have
but
to
follow
and,
as
it
were,
hound
nature
in
her
wanderings
and
you
will
be
able,
when
you
like,
to
lead
and
drive
her
afterwards
to
the
same
place&dquo;.
In
fact
he
used
this
concept
to
foreshadow
a
situation
where
&dquo;citizens
are
the
passive
beneficiaries
of
a
technological
providence
whose
operations
they
neither
understand
nor
control&dquo;
and
which
is
beginning
to
provoke
a
counter
reaction
amongst
the
young
today.
Although
the
author
argues
from
a
pre-determined
point
of
view
this
is
a
most
stimulating
essay
on
the
subject
on
the
theoretical
level
in
a
series
of
sections
entitled:
(1)
The
Cunning
of
Unreason;
(2)
Mythical
Religions
and
Philosophical
Roots;
(3)
Francis
Bacon;
(4)
The
Seventeenth
Century
and
After;
(5)
science
and
Dominations;
(6)
Science
and
Nature;
(7)
Technology
and
Domination
and
(8)
The
Liberation
of
Nature.
&dquo;As
mankind
increases
in
numbers,
our
common
globe
is
becoming
a
global
commons&dquo;
says
Dr.
John
Boot
in
the
course
of
a
short,
sharp
and
most
pungently
expressed
summary
of
our
present
dilemmas
but
focussing
primarily
on
the
population
problem.
One
of
the
most
valuable
aspects
of
the
book
is
the
way
in
which
the
author
interlinks
all
the
elements
of
the
equation
which
somehow
we
must
solve
if
we
are
to
survive,
at
least
on
any
civilized
basis.
Moreover,
he
questions
the processes
of
de-
mocratic
government
in
its
present
guise,
can
it
take
the
essential
steps
since
&dquo;Few
democratically
elected
leaders
with
an
instinct
for
self-survival
can
afford
to
make
decisions
which
are
painful
in
the
short-run
and
beneficial
in
the
long-run
if
they
have
the
option
to
make
decisions
which
are
painless
for
the
time
being
never
mind
the
malefic
long-run
consequences&dquo;.
But
despite
this
he
holds
that
it
remains
the
best
form
of
government.
The
author
examines
six
methods
of
controlling
population
growth.
The
government
can
rely
on
market
forces,
it
can
resort
to
moral
suasion,
it
can
invest
to
produce
more,
it
can
regulate,
charge
or
sub-
sidize.
He
then
outlines
his
chosen
&dquo;specific
and
workable,
fair
and
flexible
sys~tem&dquo;.
Every
woman
at
the
age
of
15
is
given
two
certificates
in
her
name
each
of
which
permits
the
birth
of
one
child.
At
30
if
not
used
she
can
sell
them
to
the
national
control
agency
who
will
re-sell
them
to
those
wanting
to
buy,
the
cost
being
variable
according
to
a
scale
rating
which
is
described
in
some
detail,
first
in
the
national
and
then
in
the
international
context,
and
the
objections
raised
against
the
suggestion
discussed.
He
finally
argues
that
such
a
scheme
should
be
acceptable
since
&dquo;The
real
common
enemy
is
population.
The
whole
globe
has
the
same
and
common
interest
here:
to
keep
it
within
limits.
This
could
be
the

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