is that we think the Earth was made for us to take and use and abuse as we please. What we must realize is that we were made for the Earth, just as the squirrels and the birds and the trees and the bees all were. We must learn to share it and nurture it and live at peace with it just as all the animals do, and we were doing fine for quite some time, until around 10,000 years ago when we began to tame her and use her as our own. We became the gods of this planet. We were the first life on this planet to become sentient(and not much about that has changed) should we not ensure that the other life here lives long enough to do the same? Should we not lead everything on some grand endeavor of enlightenment, not just for our own sake, but for the sake of all the life that will ever exist? But alas, I think we are doomed to fail, and I really have no clue where I'm going with this. Your thoughts?
we shouldn't lead anything but our own lives. I do agree with you when you say we are Gods of this planet. Not so much that the other animals aren't God either but the imagery of God is one who creates. That is our purpose on Earth- to create. We are the only creature on this world who has the ability to manifest out of its own thought.
the problem with humanity is that one person usually cares more about their own interests than societies or other peoples best interests but yea, i completely agree with you
the problem with humanity is there are lots of problems with humanity. i don't believe we were made for the earth, nor the earth made for us. it's the idea that things were made for some purpose for which i don't see proof. that's just a master-servant dichotomy that is familiar and easy to visualize in our mind and so a lot of people latch onto it, i believe. so outside of such dichotomy maybe you can say, if forced, that we are made for ourselves, but then how do we take care of ourselves and continue living? harmony with what is around us, with everything and everyone, right? but we're not some masthead or god, we're just another link in a chain, everything relying on everything else to continue its survival (as a species) not sure if i was going anywhere else with that...
Humanity was doing fine until the industrial revolution. Then we started burning fossil fuels and urbanizing and fucking everything up.
Totally agree with you. There are still some human tribes which have not connected with the rest of the world yet. They have no idea of material things, and they are still happy. They see it as the Earth gives to them, so they give back whatever they can.
I absolutely agree! Your on to something! We as a collective whole act as if this beautiful planet was put here for our sole benefit, Ive been having the same thoughts the past month or so. Thinking that Earth and other life forms existed long before human beings were part of the scene. This is what many people fail to either remember or never learn, that as human beings many of our greatest lessons are naturally learned in nature. For example, inventing the wheel (round shape made of stone). Human beings, for the most part, have lost their connection with nature. Man evolved just as the wheel did, through trial and error, patience and creativity. Process. Something which technology has made it easy to forget. I for sometime pondered the physical purpose of human beings, as opposed to lets say Cows or Bees which serve a physical purpose in this world. But that is why the world, or at least the United States is in the position its in. Because of greed, malice and contempt. If you can't love something that you physically need to stay alive (nature), then you sure as hell aren't going to love human beings. It's funny in a way though, because we can only ruin nature so far, but it was here before us and will be here after us. In the end, its almost a much deserved joke on natures part. Sort of like a last laugh. Good post Keif!!
humanitys #1 problem: those who feel their personal wellbeing is better/more important that the wellbeing of others.
all we all need to do is correct our outlook toward the earth. everything we have is from the earth - a fact nobody can deny. people need only realize they owe it gratitude, and the correction in this outlook will change their actions. people should also remember that all we take from her now - we are not leaving to future generations. any generation's greatest mark on history is the generation it's leaves behind. when you take more than you need - it may be from the mouths of your grandchildren. consider also that they may know why.
What about prairie dogs, ants, or birds, for example, who create homes out of the things around them? Or how about when primates make sticks into tools? Beaver and a damn? Bee and a bee hive?
thats false in so many ways. survival of the fittest is when a mutation in a individual of a species causes a physical or behavioral variation. and if this variation is favorable in the enviorment of the species. this individual will live longer than ones without. and thus reproduce more and hundreds of years later the entire species has this favorable variation. now humans. yes we undergo mutations and thus variations. but we can alter our enviorment, thus the variation is irelavent, we have medicine to alter mutations and cause mutations. and we can also ubstane from sex even if a member of the opposite sex has a favored variation. thus we do not undergo natural selection (evolution). and natural selection isnt to avoid over population, it is to evolve the species to survive in their natural enviorment. and a knowing we are all equal doesnt lead to overpopulation. if we understand all out well beings are as important as everyone elses. we still die from natural diseases. and we still can limit reproduction if we know we are running out or resources as a species
i thonk survival of the fittest and those kind of natural laws almost no longer apply to humanity. an animal who is the fittest can survive in his natural habitat - what is man's natural habitat? you can't really say a house - it's not natural. and we build them like a beaver builds a dam - but they all build dams. house building is not a trait of humans in general. we are so specialized that many of us would die if just "set loose" in our natural habitat. i guess that closest thing you can call our habitat is tanzania - how long would any of us make it set loose in tanzania? since we owe our survival to our fellow humans - we should watch out for theirs. i think humans are special on this planet - but we need to learn how to mange it and ourselves properly or we'll all die - and then the arguments won't really matter much for either side.