Dec 08 2008
Conserve Resources – Out of Self-Interest
I am the last person who would call himself an environmentalist. I am staunchly pro-technology, pro-industry, and pro-human progress. I do not consider man to be a blight on the Earth. Rather, I believe that everything that is good is good because it benefits man. Even when it comes to treating animals with dignity and respect, I believe that only man can save certain species of animals from the vicious waves of extinctions that have characterized virtually all of our planet’s history.
However, I also practice more resource conservation – with energy, containers, supplies, and money – than even many of my liberal environmentalist contemporaries. Why? The answer is simple. I believe in enlightened, long-term self-interest. If I use only the energy and other resources that I absolutely need, this means that I have more money to spend on other things. I can afford to have a highly positive savings rate, and in this credit-dependent, debt-ridden society, I can afford to pay for all of my everyday purchases with money that I actually have. I can afford to live a truly sustainable life – no risk of impoverishment, no risk of overstretching my resources, and plenty of money just sitting there, to be used in the event of any unforeseen contingencies or big essential purchases.
The environmentalists are not that far off in their more commonsense recommendations for reducing waste, reusing more of one’s property, and finding more efficient ways to accomplish the same goals. However, to do so for the sake of something vague, abstract, and not easily definable, such as “the environment,” is not a particularly strong motive considering that a much closer and more relevant one is staring you in the face. If resource conservation is desirable, this is because it brings about your own improved well-being. In earlier eras, this practice was considered a part of the virtue of frugality. The nature of this virtue has not changed one bit in our time.
Sincerely,
Gennady Stolyarov II
