"If you're waiting for an ecological crisis to persuade human beings to change their troubled relationship with nature — you could be waiting a long, long time."
Quite possibly forever: 1) It depends how fast the baseline shifts. It needs to shift quickly for folks to take note - but then the crash into the wall is already happening. 2) The trouble in a troubled relationship can reinforce the troubled relationship. Homo S "Sapiens" is the grandmaster of the vicious circle.
Example: Look how everybody hopes that new technology (plus, possibly, Jesus) will save our asses. (I also have ample material from my field studies of wannabe flower children sitting at garbage fires.)
It's not surprising that at least some politicians like the concept of a global warming scare because it empowers them which is what those reptiles live for.
Emotion rarely leads to good policy, but then, good policy is not something governments excel at.
"good policy is not something governments excel at"
Well, in the U.S at least, government wasn't set up to create good policy. It was set up to forestall tyranny, by making it hard to create policy at all. So far, results have been mixed.
UPDATE: The spambots got clever so the verification is back. Apologies
Some of the regulars here are having trouble telling the anonymice apart. Please add some distinguishing name to your comment such as Mickey, Minnie, Mighty, or Fred.
and here we are:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1312/10junoearth/
and
ReplyDeleteOn Easter Island, people learned to live with less and forgot what it was like to have more. Maybe that will happen to us. There's a lesson here. It's not a happy one.
As MacKinnon puts it: "If you're waiting for an ecological crisis to persuade human beings to change their troubled relationship with nature — you could be waiting a long, long time."
or unfortunately a very short time
ReplyDeleteHas Easter island been assigned a Godwin's Law corollary yet ?
ReplyDeleteThe antispam phrase reads like the buying price of another island:
20 rixpoom
"If you're waiting for an ecological crisis to persuade human beings to change their troubled relationship with nature — you could be waiting a long, long time."
ReplyDeleteQuite possibly forever:
1) It depends how fast the baseline shifts. It needs to shift quickly for folks to take note - but then the crash into the wall is already happening.
2) The trouble in a troubled relationship can reinforce the troubled relationship. Homo S "Sapiens" is the grandmaster of the vicious circle.
Example: Look how everybody hopes that new technology (plus, possibly, Jesus) will save our asses. (I also have ample material from my field studies of wannabe flower children sitting at garbage fires.)
Sound alarm, yada, yada...
ReplyDeleteCarbon pollution, yada, yada...
Alarms, threats, religious appeal...
I would say the physical embodiment of the speaker's irrational brain represents the worst kind of carbon pollution.
It's not surprising that at least some politicians like the concept of a global warming scare because it empowers them which is what those reptiles live for.
ReplyDeleteEmotion rarely leads to good policy, but then, good policy is not something governments excel at.
Space News:
ReplyDeleteTCTE in orbit.
Please direct future prayers to "JPSS, especially JPSS Free Flyer"
-HAUS.MAUS
"good policy is not something governments excel at"
ReplyDeleteWell, in the U.S at least, government wasn't set up to create good policy. It was set up to forestall tyranny, by making it hard to create policy at all. So far, results have been mixed.
Excellent, thanks for finding/posting this Eli.
ReplyDelete