Soft Energy Paths: Toward a Durable Peace

This book is an important restatement of the small is beautiful view of the world. It merits careful attention because of the widespread influence Amory Lovins has had upon current thinking about energy. I started to read Soft Energy Paths about a year ago and at first blush thought the book could be reviewed rather quickly. More careful examination revealed, however, such a complex interweaving of graphic metaphors and sweeping conclusions that I soon saw there was no way to deal with the matter in a trice. The book is a potpourri of startling prophesies and non sequiturs which tumble end on end, occasionally interspersed with assertions so broad and general as to appear to rely for justification on faith alone. While Lovins's pronouncements deserve careful examination, they should be recognized as personal conclusions, frequently arrived at through direct perception and unsupported by empirical evidence, despite the contrary appearance created by copious footnotes.