The essay I, Pencil by Leonard E. Read (1898-1983) is a celebration of the power of Adam Smith's "invisible hand" and of Friedrich Hayek’s emphasis on the importance of dispersed knowledge and the role of the price system in communicating information that “will make the individuals do the desirable things without anyone having to tell them what to do.” Personally, I am not a free market fundamentalist, but this piece is a beautifully written illustration of all that is involved in the process of creating something as simple as a graphite pencil.
And why does that interest me? Because it makes absolutely clear that energy and other resources (not to mention human sweat) are embodied in everything we use. Nothing, however small, should escape attention in our efforts to understand the environmental, social, economic and resource impacts of all that we do. There is no better illustration than this. [via kottke.org]
And they are not only for writing and drawing. Pencil art from dornob.
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