Quote Originally Posted by hoglahoo View Post
The trouble really starts when people begin to think that human presence itself is contamination. And honestly, please explain to me who or what does have dominion over nature or the right to destroy it? That statement in the post I referenced almost sounds religious. Is there some sort of planetary council dictating who does and doesn't have legal rights to the fate of nature? I guess it would be easiest to say that humans are responsible for the health of the planet but do not have right of dominion over it. All of the responsibility without any of the authority just for kicks and giggles.
Quote Originally Posted by hoglahoo View Post

Chief Seattle compared waste to contamination. Doesn't every living thing go through a cycle of waste and production? Isn't that natural? And who is to say what contamination is? One man's contamination is another man's nature preserve. Who decides what is bad for the planet? The same people that say they are polluting it themselves? What is pollution: whatever we don't like other people doing? If nature decides what is bad for the planet, we will have worms telling us that birds are bad, sand telling us that rain is destructive, bananas telling us that monkeys are perverting nature by using tools to get to them and eat them, and people telling us that breathing CO2 is destroying nature itself.

Those of you who are reading with indignation, maybe it would serve the environment (and your temperament) best to turn off the PC? I don't mean to offend for the fun of it, but my simplistic approach to this subject leads me to make light of of it.



I actually liked your post hogaloo, because to answer these questions requires great thought. I will have to ponder upon these for some time, but here is some quick response to at least part of your questions:

I don't think that the humans are the contamination, but the actions in the majority of modern societies causes great destruction for the purpose of profit. Many of these people are under the impression that humans have dominion over the earth, but for me, I don’t think anybody or anything has dominion over the earth other than the universe or great creator. Nor do I think that humans are responsible for the earth, but we should be responsible for our actions.

I think that it is sad that we now have lands that are completely uninhabitable for humans due to our actions that have caused great contamination of the land. I think it is bad when humans destroy entire species and remove diversity from our lands. As Chief Seattle stated so eloquently, we will eventually suffocate in our waste. For me, this is much more than the warming of the planet; it is the destruction of a natural state of life and polluting to the point that extinguishes life.

Yes, it would be best to turn off my PC and possibly remove myself from modern civilization. I don’t want to be hypocritical, and I do strive towards these goals, but it is difficult. Even natives have a hard time living as their traditions would dictate in a world that has been radically changed by conquering a “civilization”, but I strive to do what I can.

I may have more to add to this at a later time as I explore my thoughts on the issues you have mentioned. Thanks again for your post.