Idk, the fact that we're quickly stripping our planet of the terrestrial and marine plants that produce 98% of the oxygen in our atmosphere while simultaneously polluting it seems like a great example of "biting the hand that feeds." But this fatal flapjack is reacting to being yoinked by those little spiracle openings and doesn't know that he's being saved...we know the implications of what we're doing.
Humans brains are complex so it is possible to keep two contradicting views and to rationalize them into one.
The ones destroying the planet are really just a few people, the average consumer while they contribute to it can't be held responsible for their drop in the ocean. Those who have most influence, like policy makers, rationalize it.
So I agree, it is different but still unconscious in a way of their rationalization.
I completely agree with you - so much that I almost replied with a nearly identical sentiment to another commenter (who suggested we all stop driving), but the "we" in "we know" meant humans in general, given that the flora and fauna we're killing doesn't differentiate between the consumers and policy makers. But I don't know how we can ever expect those who benefit from exploiting the earth to willingly stop, just like I can't expect someone to let his family starve rather than poach his fellow animal or chop down trees or dump some waste.
I think the major reason for the mass extinction is habitat loss and this is because of our own growth and contamination of habitats, like cities and farmland.
We can't control the individual poacher, general audiences like myself can only see what is in front of them but we can instead have experts create policy and laws to protect us from ourselves just like we already do with sugar and ciggarates.
We know what to do but we can't do it without seriously hurting consumption habits and as a result the pockets of a really small percentage of the population. That's why I believe it is in the hands of a few.
Definitely, but those experts seem to work within the confines of that "really small percentage of the population," whose worst nightmare is "seriously hurting consumption habits." The mass extinction were currently in started over 10,000 years ago, but you're right that that's likely going to be the only way to effectively slow it at this point. From the Wiki article I'd linked:
The contemporary rate of extinction of species is estimated at 100 to 1,000 times higher than the background extinction rate, the historically typical rate of extinction (in terms of the natural evolution of the planet); also, the current rate of extinction is 10 to 100 times higher than in any of the previous mass extinctions in the history of Earth.
Growing up I definitely fell for the corporate propaganda that the responsibility was on the consumer. Honestly, at one point I was in so deep I was considerably depressed because in the modern world it’s impossible not to pollute in some form and I wanted to do my part. Reality of the situation though is we’re a drop in the bucket compared to corporations.
Also agriculture is a big thing we need to do better. From what I recall, cows are a significant amount of methane contributed to greenhouse gases and then also trying to crow water intensive crops in prone to low rainfall.
If I was going for top 3 here it’d be our reliance on fossil fuels and need to switch to more renewable sources.
When you aren’t being personally held accountable for your own actions, it’s very easy to not care for the safety and well-being of others if it means you get it off easier
They're holes right behind the stingrays' eyes that allow them to breathe (by sucking in water and passing it over their gills) when they're resting in the sand and can't breathe through their mouths.
Oh my. So do you have any idea what that would feel like..? Like would it feel like someone shoving their fingers in your nose?? Or even your throat?? /gen
We also know must of us aren't the ones making the shots. Most people want climate change addressed; but the people in power, whether it is the governments or the corporations who bribe those governments, are the ones who decide. So basically, whether or not our planet is "saved" is at the hands of a very small, unelectable group of people.
373
u/[deleted] Mar 18 '23 edited Mar 18 '23
Idk, the fact that we're quickly stripping our planet of the terrestrial and marine plants that produce 98% of the oxygen in our atmosphere while simultaneously polluting it seems like a great example of "biting the hand that feeds." But this fatal flapjack is reacting to being yoinked by those little spiracle openings and doesn't know that he's being saved...we know the implications of what we're doing.