At tiny house workshops and festivals I am often asked why I named the tiny house I have been building for the last year, the “Silver Bullet”. Three reasons:
1. THE PROBLEMS IT CAN HELP SOLVE
“The phrase typically appears with an expectation that some new technological development or practice will easily cure a major prevailing problem.” There is no one “Silver Bullet” for the world’s climate change crisis or its diminishing resources. However, empowering people with appropriate techniques, skills and technologies to live healthier, more economic and sustainably responsible lives compatible with nature and the planet’s resources is the basis for the Silver Bullet Project.
2. IN RESPONSE TO DECADES OF USING THE GOLDEN HAMMER*
“The concept known as the law of the instrument, Maslow’s hammer, Gavel or a golden hammer[a] is an over-reliance on a familiar tool; as Abraham Maslow said in 1966, “I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”[1]“ “Overuse of one tool for all purposes” directly correlates with America’s reliance on debt for capitalism and consumerism or fossil fuel dependance for decades when other clean energy solutions were available. (Not to mention the selective confirmation bias of a certain political party regarding climate change).
3. SOME OF MY MOST ADMIRABLE ETHICS, INTEGRITY AND CHARACTER WERE BUILT FROM CHILDHOOD TV
Yeah, its true, I grew up in the 50’s and 60’s and spent many Minnesota winters either skiing or watching TV shows whose characters are highly responsible for having built my character, personal integrity and moral compass. I personally identify with the non-violent morality of Paladin in Have Gun/Will Travel, the moral codes and partnership between Tonto and the Lone Ranger, who used his silver bullets (and his horse “Silver” to dispense justice), and of course, Star Trek, which introduced me via sic-fi metaphor to political and social issues of the 60’s and 70’s. (I met my favorites: Clayton Moore, Jay Silverheels, Leonard Nimoy and William Boyd back in the day)
*You can read more about what I think of the American Dream here, how I began my in deeper commitment to an even more sustainable life here, or my recent post on ethical sourcing and consumerism here.
silver bullet tiny house 