The modern traffic system is ecologically unsustainable; emotionally stressful; and poses a physical threat to individuals and communities alike. Traffic is not only an ecological and social problem but also a political one. Modern traffic reproduces the rule of the state and capital and is closely linked to class society. It is a problem of power. At its core lies the notion of ldquo;automobility;rdquo; a contradictory ideal of free movement closely linked to a tight web of regulations and control mechanisms. This is the main thesis of the manifesto The Traffic Power Structure; penned by the Sweden-based activist network Planka.nu.Planka.nu was founded in 2001 to fight for free public transport. Thanks to creative direct action; witty public interventions; and thought-provoking statements; the network has become a leading voice in Scandinavian debates on traffic. In its manifesto; Planka.nu presents a critique of the automobile society; analyzes the connections between traffic; the environment; and class; and outlines its political vision. The topics explored along the way include Bruce Springsteen; science fiction magazines; high-speed trains; nuclear power; the security-industrial complex; happiness research; and volcano eruptions. Planka.nu rejects demands to travel ever-longer distances in order to satisfy our most basic needs while we lose all sense for proximity and community. The Traffic Power Structure argues for a different kind of traffic in a different kind of world.The book has received several awards in Sweden and has been hailed by Swedish media as a ldquo;manifesto of striking analytical depth; based on profound knowledge; and a will to agitation that demands our respectrdquo; (Ny Tid).
#3802380 in eBooks 2016-08-02 2016-08-02File Name: B01JIQ3CRE
Review
