Life, but not as know we it...

Apparently, human beings are just too much for the planet to bear:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4391835.stm

The report says the way society obtains its resources has caused irreversible changes that are degrading the natural processes that support life on Earth.

Trouble is, the developed countries won't stop developing, and the developing countries simply want to follow in the footsteps of the developed countries, so they're not about to reign back either.

If any of that report worries you, I suppose there are a couple of ways to react:

1) Develop at a greater pace to ensure that your technology either allows you to survive in the remains of a cesspool that once was Mother Earth or to survive elsewhere

or

2) Change the habits of 6000 Million people - (http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/popclockworld.html)

I'm not sure if these predictions of doom are really all that helpful - looking at the problems at that scale makes you wonder if the effort of recycling the junk mail through the local paper recycling scheme makes any difference at all.

Looks like Mr Smith from the Matrix is correct, humans are a virus slowly choking the world to death.

If humanity started recycling every piece of recycleable product today, addressed the wasteful use of fossil fuels. Placed a moratorium (sp?) on industrial fishing for 10 years. And a raft of other badly needed, but highly controversial eco-friendly legislation. Perhaps we might just stop the planets ecosystem being driven into meltdown.

Yeah, that will happen in todays consume and dispose society.

Originally Posted by Earl of Bronze

Looks like Mr Smith from the Matrix is correct, humans are a virus slowly choking the world to death.

If humanity started recycling every piece of recycleable product today, addressed the wasteful use of fossil fuels. Placed a moratorium (sp?) on industrial fishing for 10 years. And a raft of other badly needed, but highly controversial eco-friendly legislation. Perhaps we might just stop the planets ecosystem being driven into meltdown.

Yeah, that will happen in todays consume and dispose society.

I think part of the problem is the polarity in our society - there are people who care only where their next thrill is coming from and don't know they are breathing, let alone what they breathe. Then there are those who believe it is their right to have several houses, cars, planes & that they are 'too important' to worry about the environment.

In between are people who genuinely care for our planet, who recycle, use local suppliers, etc - usually labelled as 'slightly weird' - and, unfortunately, in the minority.

I was pleased to see EOB's comment about industrial fishing, I would like to see a drastic reduction in the use of fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides - we don't need the high yields of crops to feed ourselves (in the 'western' world, anyway) and the problems of run-off of theses chemicals into water courses is getting worse.

[dilli-theclaw]

Will the last human alive please turn out the lights on the way out

I was pleased to see EOB's comment about industrial fishing, I would like to see a drastic reduction in the use of fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides - we don't need the high yields of crops to feed ourselves (in the 'western' world, anyway) and the problems of run-off of theses chemicals into water courses is getting worse.

Considering how much farm produce sits in warehouses all over the EU, its a sodding disgrace.

As EU citizens we pay for farmers to over produce everything. Then pay to have it stored and eventually destroyed (what else can you do with mountains of over quota food). In this case, would it not be better to sent over-quota food as humanitarian aid. Surely the cost of long-term storage is as high as transport, and distrobution as aid in the third world?
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Will the last human alive please turn out the lights on the way out

I have a funny feeling the lights will have gone out many years before the last human pops his clogs.

[basa]

Originally Posted by Earl of Bronze

............In this case, would it not be better to sent over-quota food as humanitarian aid. .................
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Unfortunately to send vast quantities of food aid to the third world would only encourage over population and development in areas unable to naturally support it.
I would suggest cutting subsidies to western farmers and send the cash to underdeveloped areas instead but this would lead the third world to attempt to cultivate and develop these areas possibly destabilising the natural ecosystems there.
Heads we lose, tails we lose ??!!

[allieyoung666]

We will end up going back to the stone age if todays generation does not stop doing damage to this planet, never mind the vision of the future where we will have cars that drive them selves, as there will be no efficent energy source to run these wonderful creations, we will probally have to go back to bushcraft, thats if there is anything left!

Originally Posted by dilligaf1701

Will the last human alive please turn out the lights on the way out

Remember, though, that's Lister from Red Dwarf! Do you really think he's going to bother?!

[ian@huth]

The human failing is that most people think that what they do is insignificant when compared with the world as a whole. The promlem is that all those little insignificancies add up to make one unholy mess.

Originally Posted by ian@huth

The human failing is that most people think that what they do is insignificant when compared with the world as a whole. The promlem is that all those little insignificancies add up to make one unholy mess.

Very, very, true.

But who really listens to what *the little people* say?

Big buissness is in it to make as much profit as possible, and damb the consequences. Gotta keep the share-holder happy, or the fat cats go bye-bye.

Polititians do it to look good, get in the media, and feather their own nest.

The average bod in the street is too busy trying to keep a roof over his head, feed his family and being afraid that he will be downsized and loose everything he has spent years aquiring. Its an age old formula, that keeps the people with real power (you, me and the rest of the general public), to afraid to tell the big boys to *cease and decist*.

Just my 2 pence worth mind.