Too much Technology, Not enough Wisdom

[HCE SuiGeneris]

The old adage begins to ring all too true. As birds and honeybees, dolphins and cattle, polar bears and elephants, suffer calamitous strife within their species, we gallivant around the world destroying every habitat and environment within our reach.

And as humans become further subdivided between the haves and have-nots, we become less empowered in controlling our own destiny; and we fail in greater measure as stewards of this planet. What has happened in such a short time to alter the balance?

Avarice. Corruption. Power. Technology.

And to grease the process -- apathy and ignorance. In our quest to discover what we as a collective race are capable of, we have charged headlong into the quicksand of our own making. Cell phones and flat screens and new cars and pipe dreams. Nuclear energy and smart bombs. Hah!

Here in America, we have relinquished control of any worthy objectives to those suffering the most from the afore-mentioned maladies. Our electorate is our detractor. We live in fear, and our planet is dying. So what the fuck do we do?

If ever there was a time to be active within the political arena, it is now. I commend all of you for attending this forum and lending your ideas and passion to open discussion and observation. Let's take this voice and amplify it through everyone with whom we come into contact. Knowledge and discourse are our tools. It is our responsibility to inform, encourage, motivate, and prod all those with less understanding of the need to be responsible for our circumstances; to take a position and be proactive.

Time is running short. Just ask our animal friends.

[Pierogi_Pincher]

1. You've nailed it. Thank you.

I detest the abuse. Stewardship is not in their vocabulary. All for lust of the almighty dollar.

P_P

[greyl]

2. 2 quick things: Technology isn't the problem, nor is collective humanity. :)

Ok, a third thing: You seem to be saying that only animals other than humans are suffering for our culture, but there is a wealth of evidence that the entire community of life is suffering.
I do generally applaud your sentiments, though.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

6. No -- using animals was an appeal to emotion...

and was intended to minimize my preaching position. We are screwing this planet through callousness. Hierarchical of otherwise -- we had better revamp our system of governance.

And thanks for the recognition of my sentiments/intended message. :hippie:

[HCE SuiGeneris]

7. So our ability to pollute with synthetically derived chemicals

and waste-producing manufacturing processes is not the problem? I'm sorry -- it really is a large problem in the demise of this planet.

[greyl]

8. We'd agree that certain instances of technology are detrimental and unsustainable, however

that doesn't mean that technology at large is the problem.

[Prophet 451]

3. Time has run out.

Maybe I'm being overly pessimistic (as usual) but given, firstly, the current political atmosphere against international cooperation and in favour of "good for bidness" in the US; secondly, the amount of time it would take to get something done even if you got someone who took the problem seriously (say, Al Gore) into office; thirdly, the general selfishness and stupidity of the general public (one of my two life rules: "Always bet on stupidity"); fourthly, the noise machine which seems to exist mainly to distract us from real problems and finally, the damage that's already been done, I think it's probably already too late.

If the process of ecological death is already irreversable then all we can do is try to slow the deterioration as much as possible while we look for some way to get off this doomed planet (and preferably, leave the breadheads behind).

[greyl]

4. Exporting a failed civilizational experiment to another planet

won't make it a successful one, it'll only postpone the inevitable.

[Prophet 451]

5. Point

Except I was hoping that we'd leave the idiots behind and have learned from our mistakes.

Yeah, amazing how I can be so cynical but also so naive.

[siligut]

9. Technology is innocent.

Not enough wisdom is correct. The race to the finish was started long ago, exactly when it was prophesied that the righteous would receive their just reward after their death. Evil will always consume as much good as it can until its own demise, always.

I don’t know if I get solace in thinking the other life forms on this planet are not cognizant or just not so focused on the future, that they can’t be suffering what we are knowing. That and lacking responsibility for our destruction, I wouldn't lose any compassion for them, but the soul angst, I don't think they know.