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As we approach Earth Day (April 22) this Ecologist and Tesla owner/lover likes everything Elon Musk says....except for his delusional rant about living on Mars soon.

Bill Maher feels the same (sorry; some profanity - and you know I hate profanity)...

Robecology 9 Apr 9
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2

Thank you for yet more proof of how clueless and lazy we are.
This crap about Mars is just another escapist idea about having a place to go when we trash this planet because we are soooo damn stupid and weak to take care of our own planet. It is unassailable proof of the total weakness of the human species. In the end we will all reap what we have wrought.

Years ago, I presented one of ZPG's many workshops to a middle school class. One thing said was that we need to get away from the 'Wild West' mentality as the west was full. We need to go to the space mentality and the number one rule in a space ship is to live with the resources you have. Any new births can only come about when one of the space ship inhabitants die. It's known as (true) sustainability not the oxymoronic growth based sustainable people toss around today.

1

He makes a point about fixing our problems here, and I agree, the problem with humanity is our imagination every time we imagine something we try to make it come true we will eventually colonize Mars because we're going to want to rip every f** thing we can out of the surface for our own use I mean look at con am 27 over on IO they had a big drug problem, not to mention what goes on on LV 426. 🤭

It is simply because too many fools think technology will save us from our own stupidity. The basic equation is I (impact) = P (population) x A (activity) x T (technology). Technology is a wild card because it can either help or make matters worse. Our dependence on it is making things worse.

@JackPedigo I'm impressed that you ran a workshop for ZPG...but I don't concur with "Our dependence on it (technology) is making things worse."

I'm optimistic that we will fix this.

Look at the tech explosion of communication - you and I chatting despite the fact we live on opposite sides of a nation. That's making things better...and I think that - thanks to this rapid improvement of communication (including Musk and SpaceX's launching a communication satellites) - that we'll realize that the rush to Mars is unwise.

[space.com]

@Robecology Sory, I disagree. There are lots of technology that are harmful like fracking. A 19th century financial philosopher once showed how the more efficient things become the more it is used. The Earth has finite resources and we have far surpassed its carrying capacity. No technology can make the planet support more than it can. The techno magic (and hubris) attitude of some humans is the main driving force behind Climate Change and our inability to face facts. We accuse the religious zealots of putting humans at the center of the universe but many non-believers do it as well.

@JackPedigo Yes....fracking is a disruptive/hurtful technology.

but that's on the way out for several reasons;

  1. We're learning more about the earthquakes it causes. Oklahoma - once a haven for fracking, has, since its connection with earthquakes - been banded there. Earthquakes are subsiding there.

  2. 95% of the "clean Hydrogen" for many of the concept cars comes from Fracking.

  3. Most scientists/even Fossil fuel CEO's know that we're running out of fossil fuels AND that burning them is hurting the environment.

Got a good book for you.

Go here, click on "listen".

I'll mail you my copy (annotated and highlighted) if you like....but this is a must-read.

[amazon.com]

@Robecology Thanks but no thanks. I have heard too many denial stories. Bottom line is the planet can support only so many humans (it's actually a numbers game - 10 billion, 50 billion, 100 billion, a trillion)! My question is why? Why do we feel the need to keep producing the most invasive and destructive species on this planet? Are we so in love with ourselves that we feel the world only gets better the more of us are added? It's not really rocket science - it's basic reasoning and humility.

Despite all the techno-magic in the world today how many feel the world is improving for us and other species. We are in the Anthropocene also known as the sixth great extinction. Not something to be proud of.

@JackPedigo I concur with your "bottom line". When I was born in '45 the population was under 3 billion. It's essentially tripled that about and continues to grow by 1.5 million per week.

Malthus said...1812; As the quantity of life increases the quality of life decreases.

We might be the last to see our planet as H sapiens. It looks like we're headed for extinction soon.

Not proud either...but more optimistic that we'll fix it.

[worldometers.info]

@Robecology I'm sitting here watching watching a show about the major issue of plastics in the oceans. The only way we can even hope to fix things is to first fix ourselves and how we view the planet. Good, you know of Malthus. He was the model for Scrooge in Charles Dickens "Scrooge."

@JackPedigo Boylan Slat...typical Dutch name...but not your typical teenager...is going full steam with lots of support on "fixing" ocean pollution.

[time.com]

And I recall the quip “If they would rather die,” said Scrooge, “they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.” - very "Malthusian"...and sadly true...

@JackPedigo Dam; Charles Dickens really did struggle!

[opportunityinstitute.org]

@Robecology A lot of people had it hard during those times. Problem was the systems of those days could not support the population and many suffered and died. That's how it works. Hunter gatherer tribes realized the limits of nature and often resorted to infanticide when their numbers got a bit high. Certain American tribes learned how to give themselves vasectomies using rose thorns so as to not have to commit infanticide. Now our technology makes it possible for some nations to go past the carrying capacity but this involves exploiting poorer countries and we have massive world-wide poverty and wars.
I have watched many 'good news' stories but they never talk about overpopulation. It's too hard to deal with and smile and denial is easier than doom and gloom. Still, I totally go along with the adage, 'no matter ones cause it is a lost cause if we don't come to grips with overpopulation. This is my area and I will not get sidetracked. Thanks for trying, though.

3

I agree with Bill more often than not. I think he got it just right about Musk!!

4

priceless!

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