(Continued from the Preceding post)
Ishmael, you tell us that, “The world was given to man to turn into a paradise, but he has always screwed it up because he’s fundamentally flawed.” I’m honestly not sure who did the giving. In terms of flaws, you say that we humans are biological beings, but beings with a rather high concept of ourselves who consider ourselves an exception to the rules of life. Actually, I think we can make a rather strong point that we are different. Hold on now, hold on! I didn’t say that we are an exception, but I think we can make a point for being different. After all, your thoughts are in something called a book. Books appear to be the exclusive artifact of humanity. We could say the same thing about our use of computers or the roads I just took into town. Is it possible, Ishmael, that we can do all of these things and still not be able to see where our environmentally destructive paths are taking us? We demonstrate daily that it is indeed possible.
Ishmael, you tell us that, “The world was given to man to turn into a paradise, but he has always screwed it up because he’s fundamentally flawed.” I’m honestly not sure who did the giving. In terms of flaws, you say that we humans are biological beings, but beings with a rather high concept of ourselves who consider ourselves an exception to the rules of life. Actually, I think we can make a rather strong point that we are different. Hold on now, hold on! I didn’t say that we are an exception, but I think we can make a point for being different. After all, your thoughts are in something called a book. Books appear to be the exclusive artifact of humanity. We could say the same thing about our use of computers or the roads I just took into town. Is it possible, Ishmael, that we can do all of these things and still not be able to see where our environmentally destructive paths are taking us? We demonstrate daily that it is indeed possible.
It was your hope that by communicating with selected students you could pass on your concerns and suggestions, and you have done that now for about two decades. You’ll be happy to know that there has been some progress, at least in knowledge. A handful of us now have a greater understanding of how global geological and atmospheric processes work. But it is a small handful. The science of ecology continues to contribute to our understanding of the very intricate nature of life process on global, regional, and local levels. But, unfortunately only a handful understand these studies. My own field, Conservation Biology, has begun to more carefully link human processes (e.g. population, economics, social systems, etc.) within ecosystems and bioregions.
