Posted on 01/23/2006 8:39:36 AM PST by Nicholas Conradin
James Lovelock, godfather of the “Gaia” theory that the Earth’s biosphere is a single living entity, has weighed in on the fate of mankind under the threat of global warming, as well as other environmental maladies. In a January 16 Independent article, Professor Lovelock wrote “Before this century is over, billions of us will die, and the few breeding pairs of people that survive will be in the Arctic where the climate remains tolerable."
Professor Lovelock views himself as more than just a scientist with a theory. He is Mother Earth’s physician: “My Gaia theory sees the Earth behaving as if it were alive, and clearly anything alive can enjoy good health, or suffer disease. Gaia has made me a planetary physician and I take my profession seriously, and now I, too, have to bring bad news.”
The bad news is that the disease that Gaia is currently suffering from (popularly known as “mankind”) has progressed to the point of no return, a fatal illness with little hope for a cure. If you want to learn more about the gory details of this degenerative disease, Lovelock coincidently has a new book coming out on 2 February, entitled The Revenge of Gaia. Lovelock sees little hope for us, with the major developing countries of the world rapidly increasing their use of fossil fuels and other natural resources, and the developed world continuing to ravage Gaia’s frail body in our industrial business as usual mode.
Now, I’ll admit to a certain amount of skepticism about the whole Gaia Hypothesis and the Earth’s being a living thing. How is it that mankind, being part of Gaia, can choose either to be a lethal virus, attacking Gaia’s health, or the equivalent of white blood cells, halting and even helping heal the environmental damage we have done? And how exactly does Gaia reproduce? Without knowing what part of Gaia’s body I’m currently inhabiting, I can only anticipate the arrival Gaia’s mating season with considerable trepidation.
But maybe this is the time to accept the diagnosis, and try to look at the bright side of what humanity has left. For instance, we no longer have to argue about what should be done about global warming, because our fate is sealed anyway. “Eat, drink, and be merry…” comes to mind. And we can start planning for a future bursting with exciting changes. For instance, it used to be that the Canadian government would give away land if the owner would improve the property. If this is still true, this might be the time to get a few lots, at different elevations, with the hope that rising sea levels will lead to one of these properties being beachfront property someday.
But if you can’t bring yourself to see any hope in these inevitable future developments, you can buy Lovelock’s book and drown yourself in its gloom and despair. I actually feel sorry for those who are already in a perpetual state of hand wringing over humanity’s sins against our Mother. It sounds like this book will crank it up a notch for them.
And never mind the fact that the last major similar work, Paul Ehrlich’s The Population Bomb, was full of dire predictions of mankind’s fate that proved false. Maybe Ehrlich really will eventually be proved right…he was just ahead of his time.
As for me, I’ll blissfully continue on with my life, too blind in my ignorance to recognize the suicidal path we are on. None of us are getting out of this alive, anyway, so I’ll pop open another beer, kick back, and watch a rerun of “The Day After Tomorrow.” After all, I do love science fiction
Not to worry! Nuclear Winter will offset global warming..
I think he is 100% right on this. Most of the people alive today will be dead when the century turns.
"and the few breeding pairs of people.."
Where do I sign up? :)
BTTT
Mother Earth is havin' hot flashes!
Aimed at selling books to the Art Bell crowd.
LOL. A gem. Too bad people didn't shoot down his daft theory with this sort of deft precision when Lovelock first made it
Dirt worshipers.
dirt-for-brains
its true...if there are billions of people alive today...then by the end of the century most of them would have died.
this guy needs to take off his tin foil hat on occasion.
"WE'RE DOOMED! DOOMED!
Mother Earth is havin' hot flashes!"
And GaiaBoy sounds downright menopausal, too.
Must be a 'midlife crisis' or somethin'....
And then, on the other hand, we have Scientists like Professor Lovelock. Who would never dream of confusing religion with science.
Right?
Huh?
"It provided a scientistic veneer for the anti-capitalist mentality of the ecomaniacs, similar to what is being attempted to promote Intelligent Design."
Proponents of ID are anti-capitalist ecomaniancs?
Seems the anti ID folk are seriously lacking in reason and logic....their thinking process is akin to a chicken running around with its head cut off....oh well...
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