Comparing Erosion And Politics

Here's how erosion works: A trickle of water carves a tiny channel in, say, a grassless slope. The channel, now a low spot, attracts more water and becomes a deeper groove. Soon enough, water that could run uniformly across an entire hillside becomes funneled into one narrow, destructive gully. Sound familiar? To columnist Elizabeth Sawin, it sounds like Enron -- and, more broadly, like our entire political system, where money and power that could be spread across society become channeled in fewer and fewer hands. We know how to deal with environmental erosion; now, Sawin says, we should apply the same principles to politics. Read about how you can be your own blade of grass, only on the Grist Magazine website.