Positive Misanthropy?
This is what happens when Ami listens to Pink Floyd before writing a reading response on the subject of the environment:
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Reading Response 12: "Do not worry about climate" by Emil Marten http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20100420/OPINION05/4200304/1018/OPINION/Do-not-worry-about-climate HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -- Oh, sorry, that wasn't a joke? ...Phew, where to start? Alright, I'm not a scientist, so I suppose I can't claim any expertise in the matter, but other scientists can (and frequently do) call BS on less ridiculous-looking articles than the one quoted in the letter. I'm currently under the impression that the greenhouse effect and global climate change are pretty well-established scientific realities, and although there likely are types of life that will flourish with a greater amount of CO2 in the air, there are many others that will succumb to the rise in temperature that comes with it. (The beautiful, fragile coral reefs only have a few more degrees to go before extinction, which threatens all the fishes that depend on reefs, and the people who depend on the fishes.) Mind you, that doesn't even take into account all the nasty crap we're doing to the environment aside from unnatural amounts of CO2. I find it unlikely that our children will "enjoy an Earth with far more plant and animal life" unless we make some drastic changes in the way we do business and live life. At the rate we're going, we'll be lucky if we break even on the varieties of life we have now. I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but sometimes it seems to me that people are too comfortable with the unsustainable luxuries they have, and like to stick their fingers in their ears and chant "lalalala" every time someone mentions just how screwed-up our run at planetary stewardship is going. I'm not exempt from that statement, believe me. I'm still trying to do what I can; I recycle cans and paper, reuse containers, use washcloths instead of paper towels, treat plants and animals with respect, etc., but I unfortunately know people who aren't even trying that much. Maybe it's lame to say, but some lyrics spring to mind from a good song by Pink Floyd, "Take It Back": "Now I have seen the warnings, screaming from all sides It's easy to ignore them and God knows I've tried All this temptation, it turned my faith to lies Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide She can take it back, she will take it back some day" And one of these days, Mother Nature is going to kick our collective asses to the curb and reclaim the Earth. After all, She'll have millions of years to recover from the hangover of humanity, and we're a pitifully insignificant (though annoyingly damaging) speck on the geologic timescale. Human beings really need a greater sense of perspective and humility for our tenuous grasp on this long-suffering planet. ...Damn, I didn't mean to end up sounding so misanthropic. ****************************** I ended up excising the second paragraph and leaving my rhetoric teacher a note that said that I had more written but felt it was too pessimistic. I had to resist the urge to write "HAHAHA DISREGARD THAT I SUCK COCKS" XD I stand by my feelings on the matter, but they could be expressed in a more positive and hopeful fashion. (Actually, is it weird that I find it positive that humanity will cease to exist on Earth one day? Nothing lasts forever, not even our earth and sky, as "Dust in the Wind" would have you believe.) Here's "Take It Back", if you're curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9r5EdnDZZM">http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20100420/OPINION05/4200304/1018/OPINION/Do-not-worry-about-climate
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -- Oh, sorry, that wasn't a joke? ...Phew, where to start? Alright, I'm not a scientist, so I suppose I can't claim any expertise in the matter, but other scientists can (and frequently do) call BS on less ridiculous-looking articles than the one quoted in the letter. I'm currently under the impression that the greenhouse effect and global climate change are pretty well-established scientific realities, and although there likely are types of life that will flourish with a greater amount of CO2 in the air, there are many others that will succumb to the rise in temperature that comes with it. (The beautiful, fragile coral reefs only have a few more degrees to go before extinction, which threatens all the fishes that depend on reefs, and the people who depend on the fishes.) Mind you, that doesn't even take into account all the nasty crap we're doing to the environment aside from unnatural amounts of CO2. I find it unlikely that our children will "enjoy an Earth with far more plant and animal life" unless we make some drastic changes in the way we do business and live life. At the rate we're going, we'll be lucky if we break even on the varieties of life we have now.
I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but sometimes it seems to me that people are too comfortable with the unsustainable luxuries they have, and like to stick their fingers in their ears and chant "lalalala" every time someone mentions just how screwed-up our run at planetary stewardship is going. I'm not exempt from that statement, believe me. I'm still trying to do what I can; I recycle cans and paper, reuse containers, use washcloths instead of paper towels, treat plants and animals with respect, etc., but I unfortunately know people who aren't even trying that much. Maybe it's lame to say, but some lyrics spring to mind from a good song by Pink Floyd, "Take It Back":
"Now I have seen the warnings, screaming from all sides
It's easy to ignore them and God knows I've tried
All this temptation, it turned my faith to lies
Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide
She can take it back, she will take it back some day"
And one of these days, Mother Nature is going to kick our collective asses to the curb and reclaim the Earth. After all, She'll have millions of years to recover from the hangover of humanity, and we're a pitifully insignificant (though annoyingly damaging) speck on the geologic timescale. Human beings really need a greater sense of perspective and humility for our tenuous grasp on this long-suffering planet. ...Damn, I didn't mean to end up sounding so misanthropic.
******************************
I ended up excising the second paragraph and leaving my rhetoric teacher a note that said that I had more written but felt it was too pessimistic. I had to resist the urge to write "HAHAHA DISREGARD THAT I SUCK COCKS" XD I stand by my feelings on the matter, but they could be expressed in a more positive and hopeful fashion. (Actually, is it weird that I find it positive that humanity will cease to exist on Earth one day? Nothing lasts forever, not even our earth and sky, as "Dust in the Wind" would have you believe.) Here's "Take It Back", if you're curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9r5EdnDZZM
******************************
Reading Response 12: "Do not worry about climate" by Emil Marten http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20100420/OPINION05/4200304/1018/OPINION/Do-not-worry-about-climate HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -- Oh, sorry, that wasn't a joke? ...Phew, where to start? Alright, I'm not a scientist, so I suppose I can't claim any expertise in the matter, but other scientists can (and frequently do) call BS on less ridiculous-looking articles than the one quoted in the letter. I'm currently under the impression that the greenhouse effect and global climate change are pretty well-established scientific realities, and although there likely are types of life that will flourish with a greater amount of CO2 in the air, there are many others that will succumb to the rise in temperature that comes with it. (The beautiful, fragile coral reefs only have a few more degrees to go before extinction, which threatens all the fishes that depend on reefs, and the people who depend on the fishes.) Mind you, that doesn't even take into account all the nasty crap we're doing to the environment aside from unnatural amounts of CO2. I find it unlikely that our children will "enjoy an Earth with far more plant and animal life" unless we make some drastic changes in the way we do business and live life. At the rate we're going, we'll be lucky if we break even on the varieties of life we have now. I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but sometimes it seems to me that people are too comfortable with the unsustainable luxuries they have, and like to stick their fingers in their ears and chant "lalalala" every time someone mentions just how screwed-up our run at planetary stewardship is going. I'm not exempt from that statement, believe me. I'm still trying to do what I can; I recycle cans and paper, reuse containers, use washcloths instead of paper towels, treat plants and animals with respect, etc., but I unfortunately know people who aren't even trying that much. Maybe it's lame to say, but some lyrics spring to mind from a good song by Pink Floyd, "Take It Back": "Now I have seen the warnings, screaming from all sides It's easy to ignore them and God knows I've tried All this temptation, it turned my faith to lies Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide She can take it back, she will take it back some day" And one of these days, Mother Nature is going to kick our collective asses to the curb and reclaim the Earth. After all, She'll have millions of years to recover from the hangover of humanity, and we're a pitifully insignificant (though annoyingly damaging) speck on the geologic timescale. Human beings really need a greater sense of perspective and humility for our tenuous grasp on this long-suffering planet. ...Damn, I didn't mean to end up sounding so misanthropic. ****************************** I ended up excising the second paragraph and leaving my rhetoric teacher a note that said that I had more written but felt it was too pessimistic. I had to resist the urge to write "HAHAHA DISREGARD THAT I SUCK COCKS" XD I stand by my feelings on the matter, but they could be expressed in a more positive and hopeful fashion. (Actually, is it weird that I find it positive that humanity will cease to exist on Earth one day? Nothing lasts forever, not even our earth and sky, as "Dust in the Wind" would have you believe.) Here's "Take It Back", if you're curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9r5EdnDZZM">http://www.press-citizen.com/article/20100420/OPINION05/4200304/1018/OPINION/Do-not-worry-about-climate
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA -- Oh, sorry, that wasn't a joke? ...Phew, where to start? Alright, I'm not a scientist, so I suppose I can't claim any expertise in the matter, but other scientists can (and frequently do) call BS on less ridiculous-looking articles than the one quoted in the letter. I'm currently under the impression that the greenhouse effect and global climate change are pretty well-established scientific realities, and although there likely are types of life that will flourish with a greater amount of CO2 in the air, there are many others that will succumb to the rise in temperature that comes with it. (The beautiful, fragile coral reefs only have a few more degrees to go before extinction, which threatens all the fishes that depend on reefs, and the people who depend on the fishes.) Mind you, that doesn't even take into account all the nasty crap we're doing to the environment aside from unnatural amounts of CO2. I find it unlikely that our children will "enjoy an Earth with far more plant and animal life" unless we make some drastic changes in the way we do business and live life. At the rate we're going, we'll be lucky if we break even on the varieties of life we have now.
I don't mean to sound pessimistic, but sometimes it seems to me that people are too comfortable with the unsustainable luxuries they have, and like to stick their fingers in their ears and chant "lalalala" every time someone mentions just how screwed-up our run at planetary stewardship is going. I'm not exempt from that statement, believe me. I'm still trying to do what I can; I recycle cans and paper, reuse containers, use washcloths instead of paper towels, treat plants and animals with respect, etc., but I unfortunately know people who aren't even trying that much. Maybe it's lame to say, but some lyrics spring to mind from a good song by Pink Floyd, "Take It Back":
"Now I have seen the warnings, screaming from all sides
It's easy to ignore them and God knows I've tried
All this temptation, it turned my faith to lies
Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide
She can take it back, she will take it back some day"
And one of these days, Mother Nature is going to kick our collective asses to the curb and reclaim the Earth. After all, She'll have millions of years to recover from the hangover of humanity, and we're a pitifully insignificant (though annoyingly damaging) speck on the geologic timescale. Human beings really need a greater sense of perspective and humility for our tenuous grasp on this long-suffering planet. ...Damn, I didn't mean to end up sounding so misanthropic.
******************************
I ended up excising the second paragraph and leaving my rhetoric teacher a note that said that I had more written but felt it was too pessimistic. I had to resist the urge to write "HAHAHA DISREGARD THAT I SUCK COCKS" XD I stand by my feelings on the matter, but they could be expressed in a more positive and hopeful fashion. (Actually, is it weird that I find it positive that humanity will cease to exist on Earth one day? Nothing lasts forever, not even our earth and sky, as "Dust in the Wind" would have you believe.) Here's "Take It Back", if you're curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9r5EdnDZZM