March 25, 2020

What do Scottish cod, rubber duckies, rock phosphate, and shipping containers have in common? They all ride the oceans in really big boats as part of the insanity of today’s global trade. Trade seems like it should be a simple thing. I give you something, you give me something else in return, and we’re both better off. But our capitalism-on-steroids society has converted the simple into a Rube Goldberg machine of criss-crossing cargo ships, vulnerable supply chains, and just-in-time delivery, all so we can save some bucks while exploiting workers and habitats around the world. We’ve gone batshit crazy! Seriously, check out the history of trade in bat guano. With coronavirus prompting a slowdown in global trade, it’s all the more critical to find a different way forward. Thankfully, Asher, Rob, and Jason have a few ideas about how to have fun while building a resilient local economy.

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Show Notes

• The Herald’s article on 10,000-mile cod
• Obsidian blades and their use in modern surgery
• Rob made an error calling Malcolm McLean by the wrong first name (Thomas). Here’s the story of the former truck driver who invented the shipping container.
• This Atlantic article contains facts from Rose George’s book Ninety Percent of Everything.
• 90% of global trade passes through 51,000 ships in the maritime fleet, which consume 2.1 billion barrels of fuel. This bunker fuel is high in sulfur, historically responsible for 90% of sulfur emission, but new regulations going into effect in 2020 aim to eliminate those.
• Annie Leonard’s movie The Story of Stuff
  Herman Daly’s take on illogical, inefficient trade http://www.paecon.net/PAEReview/issue87/Daly87.pdf
• More choice can cause lower satisfaction.
• The making of a t-shirt by Planet Money
• Rubber duck tragedy
• Plastic pollution in the ocean
• Palm oil plantations and orangutans
• Hurricane Maria’s effect on Puerto Rico’s medical supply industry
• Cargo ship emissions
• Sails making a comeback
• David Graeber on Bullshit Jobs
• Common Future, a network of leaders (re)building an economy that includes everyone
• Local businesses of Corvallis: First Alternative Natural Foods Co-op, Wild Yeast Bakery, Vivacity Spirits, Softstar Shoes, Coyle Treepieces bike helmets