Lovelock's pessimism mirrors my own. Again and again, we see humans take the easy, convenient solution over the tougher ones. It's easier to drive the car than to walk or ride your bike. It's easier to drive your kids to school than to teach them to walk to school. Lovelock might be right, but it's not going to stop me from doing what I can, and ultimately, what else can we do?
Articles like this remind me why I decided years ago that the proper recipient of any charitable donations from me should to environmentalism rather than humanitarian aid. Without an environment that can support human life, no amount of developmental aid will help the human condition. Environmentalism isn't about saving the planet --- it's about saving the human race, which I think is the ultimate humanitarian aid.
Lovelock knows that predicting the end of civilization is not an exact science. "I could be wrong about all this," he admits as we stroll around the park in Norway. "The trouble is, all those well-intentioned scientists who are arguing that we're not in any imminent danger are basing their arguments on computer models. I'm basing mine on what’s actually happening."
Monday, October 22, 2007
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3 comments:
Just outta curiousity, what's the share of single-occupant drivers at the big G?
It's ridiculously high of course. Like all North American companies.
A few days ago, Lovelock gave a lecture about this to the Royal Society.
Well worth a listen to.
- Derek
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