Nobody wants to face this problem, least of all me, but it
appeared on the Yahoo news this morning and I decided to write about it. Sir
David Attenborough says that humans are "a plague on earth". The
86-year-old broadcaster said the negative effects of climate change and
population growth would cause disaster within next 50 years.
He told the Radio Times: "It's not just climate change.
It's sheer space, places to grow food for this enormous horde. Either we limit
our population growth or the natural world will do it for us, and the natural
world is doing it for us right now."
Are we 'meant to be here', as quoted in the Desiderata. If
so, should the human race go on expanding until it takes over the rest of the
natural world? China's policy of cutting the population by limiting the number
of children per family showed common sense. They are about to revise that rule.
I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because the nation is now wealthy.
Sir David Attenborough says, "Until humanity manages to sort itself out and get a co-ordinated view about the planet, it's (hunger in Ethiopia) going to get worse and worse."
Sir David Attenborough says, "Until humanity manages to sort itself out and get a co-ordinated view about the planet, it's (hunger in Ethiopia) going to get worse and worse."
Plague from the Encarta dictionary: ...spreads rapidly
through the population, killing a great many people. ... an affliction or extremely troublesome
thing.
From the bible: And
you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and
multiply therein. - King James Bible "Authorized Version", Pure
Cambridge Edition.
English standard version: Then God said, “Let us make man in
our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the
sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the
earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Maybe it's all about balance. If man has dominion over the other
creatures, shouldn't we care for them as well as our brothers and sisters? How
can an ordinary aging woman influence events worldwide? Perhaps thoughts will
have an impact.
It is a worry. I too read his article but I don't think ether of us are in a position to change anything. The population will grow. There will be periods of famine and war but then numbers will increase some more. I don't know if there is an answer but if there is then Attenborough would surely have said, wouldn't he?
ReplyDeleteYou are doing your part with your blog and raising awareness and issues. I do think that the news media sensationalize a lot of worrisome subjects. Good to be aware and avoid negative impacts, but I do think the world is quite a balancing act. All food for thought.
ReplyDeleteHi Francene .. I wondered when Attenborough would come out all guns blazing - but he probably didn't do that .. but gave a measured view - something has to give .. but with everyone at war with everyone else .. be they the tiny aspects of life ... or the major wars and famines etc and China .. I really don't know - it's interesting to say the least as history adds up ..
ReplyDeleteCheers Hilary