Finding the elegant solution

Dave Hohle

"Mountaintop Removal" is surface mining by which seams of coal are extracted as entire mountaintops are blasted and bulldozed away. Surrounding valleys fill with debris sometimes 900 feet deep. Streams are buried, and the flow of rainwater is radically changed.

It's a high-impact operation. Dust and debris settle everywhere. Huge trucks rumble over roads not built for their size and weight. Water supplies are affected. The ecosystem and contour of the land are changed indelibly.

Does "progress" like this have to be so invasive? Could there possibly be a more elegant solution to the demand for energy?

World energy issues are debated by legislators and discussed at global assemblies like the one convening this week in Johannesburg. But we, as individuals, make decisions every day that affect our quality of life and that of our neighbors.

Recently a friend offered me a portable garage. It's a tent-like structure large enough to cover a car. This one is forest green and almost new. I was planning to set it up between the trees behind my garage and use it for storage.

But before I did, I asked my neighbor if she would have any objection. She was familiar with the type of structure; her brother has one. We walked into her yard to visualize it. Even though the unit would be well within my property and partially screened, it would still be visible to her and her family, particularly in winter.

I could tell she wasn't thrilled. So I decided to let it go. I just dropped the idea then and there. The fact is, I don't believe my progress needs to come at my neighbor's expense. Actually, real progress is impelled by God. And God is Love. And Love is universal; it does not benefit one person at the expense of another. I'm confident that a better solution will eventually emerge—an answer more beautiful and useful than the portable garage might have been. And I'm so confident of this that I'm willing to wait for that solution.

This Sentinel addresses some tough issues relating to progress—both local and global. How do we make correct use of our shared resources? How do we keep pace with development without ravaging our planet? We are all participants in the world's progress. We all have a stake in what happens. And we can all influence decisions by looking for elegant, practical, universally beneficial solutions.

Dave Hohle Senior Managing Editor

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