A Deviator

[diapadion]

The whole random references thing in the titles is starting to tire me. I haven't even seen The Day the Earth Stood Still. Moving on

Comments

[anonymous]

I imagine in this case that society's view of the "natural" is whatever doesn't "go against nature," or put another way, whatever is "as God intended."

Society's impression of what evolution, survival of the fittest, and the general progression of life with humans are is flawed, it says.

-Daedalus

[diapadion]

Which raises the question of what deity form one uses for a standard. It seems that in the western world, we're sort of split between the traditional Christian God and the Blind Watchmaker.

OMG discussion

[diapadion]

What I was getting at was that much of the environmentalist movement is against the destruction of habitat or extinction of species. As is well known, both habitat changes and species eliminations are something that happen (dinosaurs, climatic changes through epochs, etc). Humans have been the likely cause of extinction of a number of species around the world as we've moved in on their habitat. A lot of people would say this was wrong of us - but is this really a different phenomenon from when other species wipe each other out in similar manners?

Many environmentalists would wish for all species to be preserved and habitats remain as they are, but what makes our actions any less "natural" than those of other species? I've tried to rationally examine the situation, and I haven't found any way to definitively say that we're somehow less natural.

Lest I fall into the naturalistic fallacy, I should note that whatever nature dictates is far from an indicator of what we ought to do, and solely provides justification for nothing.