All Life Is Equal

As I sit in my climate-controlled home and contemplate the future, while sipping a delicious cup of coffee, the idea of human extinction doesn't seem very real.  I have full protection from the elements, including high winds, torrential downpours, frigid temperatures, and extreme heat.  In fact, if it gets too hot, I can turn my air conditioner.

Until the power goes out.

According to Wikipedia, scientists estimate that 99% of all the species of life that have existed on Earth have gone extinct.  That's over 5 billion species!  That means a whole lot of life has come and gone before we humans ever made a mark on the planet.  Scientists are concerned, however, about the current high rate of extinction, and some estimate that 50% of the existing plants and animals on the Earth right now may become extinct by the year 2100.

Why is this happening?  Why are plants and animals going extinct so quickly?  It's because we humans are cutting down forests and converting land for farming, or for feeding cattle.  Or building apartments and housing developments without any concern for the environmental (or human) impact.  Seriously.  My house is close to a 2-lane highway, and over the years, developers have added housing further up the road to the point that traffic moves at 5 miles an hour during the afternoons, for miles on this road.  It's bad.  I can't even turn onto the highway from my street.  Who can I blame?  Who is responsible?  Is it the developers of the property?  Which one?  ALL the developers? Or the city/county/state government that allowed it?

I say it's just human activity, at a very basic economic level.  Demand: more places to live.  Supply: build more housing.  The issue with money is that it doesn't do long-range planning very well.  Money doesn't calculate what the yearly carbon footprint of a new apartment complex will be, for example.  Or inventory all the animals that will either voluntarily move (running for their lives) or die, as the developer's tractors casually mow down the trees that were standing on his/her property for development.

It's just what we do.

We have to change our attitude about life on Earth.  It's not fair that we destroy whole habitats for the sake of making a buck.  Sure, we have the bigger tractor, but you wouldn't like a hyper-smart raccoon (let's say) jumping into a fleet of automated machines and leveling your neighborhood, would you?  If you survived the attack, you wouldn't have a home to go back to, and you'd have to start over somewhere else.

Global warming is threatening to make parts of the Earth uninhabitable, just like your now raccoon-flattened former dwelling.  As C02 levels rise due to human activity, habitats are becoming too warm to support life.  In the book, "The Uninhabitable Earth," author David Wallace-Wells describes the "elements of chaos" that he predicts will result from unchecked global warming, which will certainly affect humanity, but also all life on Earth.  His book is a wake-up call for all of us, as we can still use techniques like green power, carbon capture, and carbon taxes.  To NOT take action consigns all of us humans to a grim fate, but also all of the other innocent life on Earth, that may not have gotten to enjoy any air conditioning before succumbing.

I think we need to embrace a truth we've forgotten, that it's not just humans that matter.  We need our home to have a sustainable environment, where every species has a chance to grow, thrive, and evolve.

Because all life is equal.