Monday, December 27, 2010

Save Us

A while back, I mentioned I had changed my views on the environment. I never did say how I feel differently.

I used to think we needed to save the planet. We've only got one Earth, better treat it well. Woe to us if we destroy the planet. What will the earth do if there are no more trees?

I now think we have been directing our attention in the wrong direction.

I don't think we can destroy the planet. But we are very capable of wiping out ourselves. What will happen to Earth if humans no longer exist? It will keep right on spinning. And probably will be better off.

If we kill all the trees, we will be the ones who can't breathe.

If we pollute all the water, we will be ones with nothing to drink.

If we let all the soil erode away, we will be the ones with no food.

The planet doesn't need saving. Humans do. No where else is there a species so stupid that it deliberately destroys the system that supports it. We know we need to consume less and produce less waste. We know we are poisoning ourselves. We keep right on doing it. When we are all dead the Earth will breathe a sigh of relief and reinvent itself.

Think about the beginning of the planet, when Earth was a ball of molten lava and poisonous gas. Eventually the fireball cooled. Land formed. Water appeared. Plants grew. Animals began to roam.  Now ask yourself what is the worst we could do? A nuclear holocaust where the whole planet is a fireball of noxious gas? Gee, what would happen next?

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