"'Current crops are adapted to the current climate. Start changing that and you change everything,' Fowler said. 'Plant breeders will have to be designing totally new varieties.'"
This, in a nutshell, is the crux of the problem with humanity. Not the statement itself, but the philosophy that drives it. This statement reveals that the speaker, like most people, places himself on a pedestal that is outside the reach of the rest of the natural world and universe. The statement assumes that if climate changes, the natural world will not adapt with it. It assumes that only by the hand of human intervention will the world continue to move along its course. It posits man as God, subjugating the lesser forms about Him to His righteous and proper will. It displays the great falsity in human understanding of the universe: that humanity must and will exist forever. A statement could not be further from the truth.
Mankind does not like the idea of change. Think about it. Do you? People like stability and order in their lives. Alas, such is not the design of things. Change is the nature of the universe. Moreover, this little rock, floating about in the interstellar ether of a far greater drama, will do just fine without our oh-so-necessary intervention. Plants will adapt to changing conditions, as will animals. Will some species die? Sure. That's how evolution as a result of climate change works. Will humanity die? Probably not, but maybe. Humans are quite adaptable, even without greater technology than fire. However, the important thing to understand and be ok with is that if humanity died out, it really wouldn't be that big of a deal.
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| Said the human: "This stinks"; said the volcanic bacteria: "I like this weather." |
Is your joyous, personal experience of life so goddamned important that the idea of not having a generation behind you to enjoy the same thing is heart-wrenching to you? If that's the case, than admit that your primary focus in life is simply to breed, drop monogamy, and start living like an animal. Otherwise, stop worrying about the planet. Sure, we'll jack it up (at least, for ourselves), but it won't whither and implode. It'll still be here, ripe for something else to propagate it. Maybe something that doesn't mind searing temperatures and water shortages. Maybe a hyper-intelligent race of horny toads. Man that would be so awesome.
"Many are concerned about the monuments of the West and the East - to know who built them. For my part, I should like to know who in those days did not build them - who were above such trifling." (Henry David Thoreau)
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