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Ecology of FearSnagging.org In association with Amazon.co.ukOnline Shop | Property Guides | Kitchen & Home | Garden Tools | Power Tools | Consumer Electronics Get the Snagging Checklist Here!  Price: £81.61 Prices subject to change.Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Dewey Decimal Number: 813 EAN: 9780330376556 Edition: New Ed ISBN: 0330376551 Label: Picador Manufacturer: Picador Number Of Pages: 496 Publication Date: August 11, 2000 Publisher: Picador Studio: Picador Related Items:
Editorial Review: Amazon.co.uk Review: The 1990s have not been kind to Los Angeles. As Mike Davis writes: "The destructive February 1992, January 1993 and January 1995 floods ($500 million damage) were mere brackets around the April 1992 insurrection ($1 billion), the October-November 1993 firestorms ($1 billion) and the January 1994 earthquake ($42 billion)." But, he argues, the increasing fear about nature's reign of terror in Southern California reflected in Hollywood's preoccupation with apocalypse--L.A. has been destroyed on screen by everything from lava (Volcano) to nukes (Miracle Mile) to alien death rays (Independence Day)--is in reality a strong case of denial. Again, Davis himself says it best: "For generations, market-driven urbanisation has transgressed environmental common sense. Historic wildfire corridors have been turned into view-lot suburbs, wetland liquefaction zones into marinas and floodplains into industrial districts and housing tracts. Monolithic public works have been substituted for regional planning and a responsible land ethic. As a result, Southern California has reaped flood, fire and earthquake tragedies that were as avoidable, as unnatural, as the beating of Rodney King and the ensuing explosion in the streets." As in City of Quartz, his earlier book about Los Angeles, Davis reveals the deeper ideological narratives behind historical events. Whether he's explaining the motivations behind the persistent refusal of civic leaders to admit that a tornado alley runs down the middle of the region, from Long Beach to Pasadena, or discussing, as one chapter refers to it: "The case for letting Malibu burn", he outlines his arguments with a fascinating amount of detail and a subtle sense of irony. There are wonderful chapters here, such as "Maneaters of the Sierra Madre", a zoology of the wild beasts Angelenos fear, including mountain lions that descend from the hills to eat joggers and small children, swarms of Africanised killer bees making their way across the deserts and El Chupacabra, the "goat-sucking vampire" that joined L.A.'s roster of faddish icons in 1996. Although this book is specifically about Los Angeles, its lessons about the relationship between urban developments and natural ecosystems and about the dangerous influence of class politics on environmental safety policy are applicable to any city. Anyone with a serious interest in natural history or urban policy should make a point of reading this book. --Ron Hogan Amazon.co.uk Review: The 1990s have not been kind to Los Angeles. As Mike Davis writes: "The destructive February 1992, January 1993 and January 1995 floods ($500 million damage) were mere brackets around the April 1992 insurrection ($1 billion), the October-November 1993 firestorms ($1 billion) and the January 1994 earthquake ($42 billion)." But, he argues, the increasing fear about nature's reign of terror in Southern California reflected in Hollywood's preoccupation with apocalypse--L.A. has been destroyed on screen by everything from lava (Volcano) to nukes (Miracle Mile) to alien death rays (Independence Day)--is in reality a strong case of denial. Again, Davis himself says it best: "For generations, market-driven urbanisation has transgressed environmental common sense. Historic wildfire corridors have been turned into view-lot suburbs, wetland liquefaction zones into marinas and floodplains into industrial districts and housing tracts. Monolithic public works have been substituted for regional planning and a responsible land ethic. As a result, Southern California has reaped flood, fire and earthquake tragedies that were as avoidable, as unnatural, as the beating of Rodney King and the ensuing explosion in the streets."As in City of Quartz, his earlier book about Los Angeles, Davis reveals the deeper ideological narratives behind historical events. Whether he's explaining the motivations behind the persistent refusal of civic leaders to admit that a tornado alley runs down the middle of the region, from Long Beach to Pasadena, or discussing, as one chapter refers to it: "The case for letting Malibu burn," he outlines his arguments with a fascinating amount of detail and a subtle sense of irony. There are wonderful chapters here, such as "Maneaters of the Sierra Madre," a zoology of the wild beasts Angelenos fear, including mountain lions that descend from the hills to eat joggers and small children, swarms of Africanised killer bees making their way across the deserts and El Chupacabra, the "goat-sucking vampire" that joined L.A.'s roster of faddish icons in 1996. Although this book is specifically about Los Angeles, its lessons about the relationship between urban developments and natural ecosystems and about the dangerous influence of class politics on environmental safety policy are applicable to any city. Anyone with a serious interest in natural history or urban policy should make a point of reading this book. --Ron Hogan, Amazon.com Average Rating:
 Rating: - A quirky view of Southern CaliforniaNo stone is left untouched in Southern California in this gripping book that bombards the readers with bewildering (but possibly questionable) statistics about real disasters in the region since it's civilisation. Covering floods, fires, tornadoes, earthquakes, mountain lions and even disaster movies as separate chapters in the context of development in Southern California, principally around Los Angeles. Whilst it is gripping, fascinating and entertaining book in a very easy to read and follow format, it is very one-sided and leaves the reader wondering "it can't *all* be that bad?" and a sense of bitterness on part of the author on Southern California. This is why I believe it does not get the full 5-star rating it otherwise might have deserved - it is a good book to read but not as something to take to heart of all told in the book.  Try searching the Internet for "Ecology of Fear" or Ebay for "Ecology of Fear". You might also be interested in the following great products:
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