A few months back I happened to be browsing the Bookhouse at Stuyvesant Plaza and came upon Bill McKibbean's latest book, Deep Economy. Not a real fan of Bill McKibbean, I decided it sounded like an interesting topic to explore so I picked up the book and brought it home.

In his book, McKibbean looks at the need to re-localize our economy and start looking towards less-fossil fuel intensive methods of production. He argues for an economy not based on growth, but on it's value to society – and quite persuasively that quality is quite different then quanity of growth. Quality of life is not based on how many megawatts of power the local power plant puts out, but how much beauty is in our lives, how much spiritual enjoyment, and how much love in our community exists.

He argues that by focusing on the local economy, we can start bringing a greater quality to our society, rather then an emphasis on quantity. He looks at the growth of local industries, particularly local agriculture and cooperatives, and how these could be a model for our future in the country.

It's easy to agree with much of his sentiment. People don't realize how destructive fossil fuels have been on communities and society as a whole, to say nothing of the environmental and human health impacts. Automobile accidents are the leading killer of Americans, followed only by obesity caused by the sedentary lifestyle created by cheap oil.

Many of his ideas may eventually become reality, especially as energy becomes more expensive and it becomes more inexpensive to invest in the local economy then to truck items from distant areas. Our communities will become much more valued resources, when money starts to flow back into them rather then towards purchasing petroleum and toxic petroleum-derived products like electronics and automobiles.

None of it's going to happen overnight. Yet, Bill McKibbean makes some excellent points and moves the dialog forwards toward rebuilding our communities. His sentiment is not unique, but his book is well stated. Some of his chapters seem somewhat disjointed, yet taken as a whole, this is a worthwhile book to read and think about his ideas.