Articles Analysis Essay on Ecology

Ecological Imperialism and the Global Metabolic Rift Reading Journal

The main arguments presented in this reading are that ecological imperialism is one of the main facets of the capitalists that has continued to degrade the environment. The capitalists have mastered unfair trade practices that have resulted in an unequal exchange of ecological goods. For example, during the colonial times, Britain exploited Chile for nitrates which they used to enrich their soil in Britain. This led to environmental degradation in Chile. The authors of this article point out the fact that capitalist nations, in a bid to extort more profits from their trading partners, seek to exploit those partners using systematic ecological imperialism which has always led to environmental exploitation and amounted to unfair trade practices and regional global economic challenges and conflicts.

The main evidence given to support the claims made by the authors is the consequences of Britain's ecological imperialism in Chile. Britain exploited Peru for guano and nitrates to enrich their infertile soils. The results of Britain's actions, a capitalist nation, were diminishing fertility of soils in Britain, the environmental degradation of Chile. The trade in the guano from Chile also led to a global metabolic shift as expatriates were brought into Chile from China and to Peru to work on the guano plantations. There was also conflict between Peru and Chile. The dispute was instigated and supervised by Britain who used this as an opportunity to exploit the two countries ecological resources while trying to improve their ecological status in Britain. The other evidence is the conflict in Iraq that was partly fueled by a quest for Iraq's oil.

I found the argument that capitalism fuels ecological imperialism convincing. Capitalism only cares about the profits and do not care about the means used to achieve those profits. For example, the conflicts in Iraq and those between Peru and Chile were fueled by capitalist ambitions to achieve selfish gains.

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The main arguments presented in this article is that the concepts of nature and society are functions of various factors. They are evolving concepts that were invented by philosophers to describe man's relationship with the external environment. The man has always related to the outside world regarding the profits made by interacting with the environment. Therefore, the concept of nature depends on man's ability to make gains. Another man would, for example, become part of nature if they can be made subjects to work for the profit of other men. Today's definition of nature, according to this article, is mostly from the capitalist and philosophers' perspectives.

One of the main evidence given to support the authors claim that the concepts of nature and society are the inventions of the philosophers and capitalists in a bid to define their profits is the skewed Portuguese cartography during the 16th centuries. The maps detailed by the Portuguese were not merely mapped to show the world but were important instruments of conquest. The Portuguese went as far as Goa in India to spread their trade imperialism using these maps. This tiny country had outsized selfish ambitions and defined everything to suit their intentions.

I found the arguments about the evolution of the modern definitions of nature and society convincing. The authors have been able to point out towards the fact that man is innately selfish and can do anything for personal gain. The conquerors and capitalists have been able to achieve their selfish ambitions by giving out their definitions of the environment surrounding them without considering the existing cheap natural laws.