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"DJ said things that we need to hear"

Written By: Jameson

I'm not going to banter on about if he was accurate, these things are what people need to hear. He made so many valid points and is trying to do good bringing these problems into the lime-light. Things he said made me be a little more mindful of what I"m doing on the day-to-day. He brings into focus how corrupt this world really is and encourages you to do something about it although is very far gone.

If you want to lead an ignorant life, then don't read this, it's not for the faint at heart. If you like this book, I might suggest 'Original Wisdom: Stories of an ancient way of knowing' by Robert Wolff

"A Call to Rethink Language"

Written By: Kevin Hatch

The survival of the human species depends on our ability to transcend the confinements of symbolic language. It has its uses but, ultimately, is limited. Derrick Jensen, masterfully and with powerful prose, not only explores his journey of discovering the sacred mundane but also offers a call to every individual, on the basis of how he or she interacts with the world, to reopen the vaults of childhood wonder and ardently refuse the mountains of trash heaped upon our persons by the narrow mind of modern culture. Thank you, Derrick.

"Deeply Radical Elegantly Written Heartfelt"

Written By: Stanley W. Rogouski Jr.

Derrick Jensen is a brilliant literary stylist. Even if you hate everything he argues for in this book, it's still worth reading.

"Horror and hope"

Written By: DKS

The planet is being destroyed. Endless war, unprecedented ecocide, nuclear weapons proliferation...the aforementioned are just a small sampling amongst the many measures that wreak havoc upon today's world. And how are ordinary human beings expected to combat this hulking giant that is the capitalist military-industrial complex? Consider that millions of people suffer under literal slavery (see Laos, Burma, Thailand, etc.) and scores more endure wage slavery (the "sophisticated" form of slavery...see the United States, Canada, Great Britain, etc.) Then consider the widespread cultural practices that brutally oppress women and the bloody ethnic/racial conflicts that permeate nearly every corner of the globe. When put in these terms, the outlook looks rather bleak. But once again, what can we do?

"I don't have time to think about deforestation in South America, I'm just trying to put food on the table."

Throughout the course of this book, environmental activist Derrick Jensen explores this prevailing culture of violence. We learn that as a child, Jensen faced horrific abuse under the hands of his father. Jensen concludes that his father's violence was not unique in the sense that it is symptomatic of a culture that accepts (even encourages) authoritarianism, oppression, and psychic devastation. Likewise, the Holocaust was not unique, as there have been numerous holocausts throughout the course of human history, all resulting in mass deaths of "lesser" human beings.

To Jensen, silence is the most salient part of the problem. As a child, Jensen attempted to deny the fact that abuse was taking place in his household. The facts were just too gruesome, too overwhelming. "I don't want to think about, so I won't think about it. If I never think about it, it's like it never actually happened." Jensen connects the micro to the macro; claiming that society at large operates under the same pathological mindset. The atrocities we witness everyday are so intense and harrowing that we minimize (negate, really) their impact. Only after breaking free from this cycle of silence will humanity begin to free itself by taking action in the face of destruction.

Jensen's writing style is unique. His prose is very casual and accessible. He weaves together his personal opinions with an ample amount of empirical evidence and varying philosophical and psychological perspectives. Included also are interviews and conversations Jensen has had with close friends, most of them sharing an ideology similar to his own.

Jensen's solutions are radical, not reformist, in nature. He believes that only the complete and utter abolition of industrial civilization will free humans and the environment alike. His position is that of an anarcho-primitivist or a neo-Luddite. These ideas are expanded upon and explained more thoroughly in Jensen's subsequent body of work.

This is a great book, very well written and moving. Even if you do not agree with Jensen's arguments or ideological standpoints (I actually disagree with him on several issues) there is great value to be found within these pages.

"An incredible wake-up call"

Written By: Stephanie McMillan

I can't think of another book that has affected me as profoundly as this one. It woke me up to the living world, or rather, made me remember what I knew as a child and managed under this coercive culture to forget: that the natural world speaks to us, if only we listen. As we witness the world being murdered before our eyes, we urgently need to learn to listen, before it's too late.

In all of Derrick Jensen's work, he offers brilliant insights about why civilization is killing the planet and what we can and must do about it. Many people have described this book as "heartbreaking," and that's true -- it breaks through the surface of hearts hardened by denial, confronts us with despair, then leads us carefully to the other side of that despair into healing and the possibility of conscious action. It combines investigation and well-reasoned political analysis with an engaging personal style and rare honesty that together offer the reader both intellectual understanding, and just as importantly, a deep emotional comprehension.

After reading this book I immediately bought three copies to give to relatives, in the hope that they would be strengthened by it as I have been, to break the silence, join the world, and stop the horrors.