[MAIPC] What you can do about claims that invasive species aren't a problem

frazmo frazmo at gmail.com
Wed Dec 7 10:17:03 PST 2016


Also folks might want to be aware that there is a Facebook group called
"Invasive Plant Education" that in my opinion tends to be biased toward
friends of invasives. However, the owner at least allows people to join and
has allowed contrary views to be stated. This is another venue for people
to participate in the discussion and refute denialist claims. And to see
what "the other side" is saying...

Also, for anyone interested who hasn't previously seen, please feel most
welcome to read my rant, "Invasives Skeptics and Their Nouveau Ecosystems",
posted last year to several places including my Plantwhacker.com blog here:

http://www.plantwhacker.com/2015/09/invasives-skeptics-and-their-nouveau.html

Cheers, Steve Young, Arlington VA


On Dec 7, 2016 12:32 PM, "Stephen Hiltner" <stevehiltner at gmail.com> wrote:

> For everyone involved in habitat restoration, there are simple ways you
> can discourage the false revisionism in books and news media that claim
> that invasive species aren't really a problem after all. One way we can
> reach beyond our bubble of relative agreement, and interact with other
> people in very different bubbles, is in the review section of online book
> sellers like Amazon.com and Goodreads.com. It's books like The New Wild and
> Where Do Camels Belong that serve as rationale for environmental editors
> and writers to publish denialist articles about invasive species. The
> recent article in the Boston Globe that I reviewed
> <http://newscompanion.blogspot.com/2016/12/the-latest-false-revisionism-about.html> on
> my website referenced the authors of these books as authorities.
>
> Reviews at Amazon that point out the fallacies are currently very rare, so
> these books get very high ratings from gullible readers. It makes sense
> that people with experience and knowledge should be participating in the
> discussion.
>
> Below are two ways to communicate interbubblely (best done with a glass of
> prosecco in hand). The second way is easier than the first.
>
> 1) If you've read one of the four books below (there are probably others),
> please post a review to Amazon.com and/or any other online bookstore that
> sells them. One question is how to read a book you don't want to support
> through purchase. For one book, I read the portions accessible online and
> wrote a targeted review of those portions only, then was later able to
> access a free copy and expand the review. One woman, without claiming to
> have read the book, wrote a "review" that simply encouraged everyone to
> read Daniel Simberloff's book. Since one of the problems with these books
> is that they demonize people like us, it's important not to demonize them
> in return, but simply to point out the flaws in their logic and content.
>
> 2) If you haven't read these books, you can still go to the bookstore
> websites, read the reviews, and click on whether you found each review
> helpful or not. Some of these reviews lash out at people like us, and you
> can simply click on the button for "not helpful". Reviews marked as
> "helpful" rise in the list and will then be more likely to be read.
>
> For instance, I posted an extensive negative review at Amazon about
> "Beyond the War on Invasive Species". It wasn't hard to give the book a one
> star rating, given how misleading the book is. You can go to this link
> <https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-War-Invasive-Species-Permaculture/dp/160358563X>,
> scroll down through the comments and, if you find my comment helpful, click
> on the "yes" button. There's also a one star review someone posted about The
> New Wild
> <https://www.amazon.com/New-Wild-Invasive-Species-Salvation/dp/0807039551>
> that points out that book's biases. It's easy to support these reviews.
>
> This really is a quick and easy way, in the fullness of time when you have
> a moment here and there, to have an impact on the public's perception of
> invasive species, and maybe even break a few bubbles. Amazon and Goodreads
> seem to draw the most traffic and reviews, but there may be others.
>
>
> *Bonus holiday tip:* If you buy stuff at Amazon.com, they will divert a
> tiny but semi-meaningful portion of your purchase to the charity of your
> choice if you log on via smile.amazon.com. Same price for you, but a
> slight, slight donation, so why not.
>
> Steve
> PrincetonNatureNotes.org
> NewsCompanion.com
>
>
> https://www.amazon.com/Rambunctious-Garden-Saving-Nature-Pos
> t-Wild/dp/160819454X/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=
> 1&refRID=DASS134HAW1WSRCS5HV8
>
> https://www.amazon.com/Where-Do-Camels-Belong-Invasive/dp/17
> 71640960/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
>
> https://www.amazon.com/New-Wild-Invasive-Species-Salvation/dp/0807039551
>
> https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-War-Invasive-Species-Permacult
> ure/dp/160358563X
>
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>
>
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