Who Will Save the Planet?

   Will Earth Survive Humanity?

   The hominid species, with opposed thumb, magnificently malleable brain and the blessing/curse of supreme adaptability is now the alpha species on this remarkable planet. The way we act sometimes makes me feel we don't deserve this beautiful earth, and we're going to lose her.

   We all love a happy ending. So much so, we rarely consider the possibility of tragedy, as if voicing our fears would somehow call forth negative forces that would work against our best interest. Exactly the opposite: we need concern and focus to mitigate and reverse our increasingly inappropriate impact on the very orb that sustains us. 

   Not only that - we should have started a long time ago. Far better to do preventive than cleanup. Initially there was some debate about the science. “No, just an accident the canary died," if you get my drift. Later, denial from those who profit from the status quo. Politics is expediency and messing with existing systems is met with resistance. Now our youth, who stand to suffer the most from their elders’ laxity, are bringing attention to the desecration of this unique planet, the only one of any history and beauty within light years of reach - and the argument becomes a political stalemate.

  Thus we find that a cadre of profiteering mindset has bought a position of power and will exercise every device to retain and improve that position. Regardless of impact on fellow humans or the mother planet, not only do they deny, but actually abet the destruction. It's a simple shake of the head, arrogance of power, flat out denial. When we all need to work together, instead we are divided.

  In a world where marketing rules, and unit volume must increase, this business of stopping to clean up our shit and reverse the damage must be declaimed. We are at a point where the analyzers of the "lizard brain" know how to push our buttons. If you're not distracted by the constant circuses that have come to pass as culture in much of the world, then you're routed to a deadening routine - neither of which offer opportunity for increased knowledge, analytical or philosophical thought. Thus a few power brokers control the fate of the world.

And there’s a basic schism in the species Homo Sapiens, stemming from our sexuality, our dual nature, male and female. Or if you prefer, female and male. We are a young species, only here for thousands of years on a gracious planet that has taken millennia to ripen and allow our occupation. Compared to eons, our history is short. Yet our accomplishments are great. Apparently greater than our ability to understand what we have wrought. Greater than our ability to control what we have invented. Our inventiveness surpasses our ability to foresee possible consequences. Yet we push ahead with a masculine drive, undeterred by what might be considered as matriarchal cautions.

   Predominately we have male dominated societies, with some female communities. We have families patriarchal and matriarchal. Studies have shown that conservative voters are more likely to come from "father knows best" households while those who are more liberal in their thought live in households where tasks are shared and group discussion and consensus lead to decisions. There are marketers and advisors playing us like violins. They appeal to our "demographics" to create markets for their products, whether they be material, ephemeral or political. If it's to their advantage, they will divide us. Unity is not a goal of those in power, while control is.

  Please wake up, wherever you are, and don't be persuaded by the classic arguments: "us against them," "they are causing your trouble!" We are separated by those who enjoy power. Their lust for superiority allows them to ignore atrocities with insular denial. Government is not going to save the planet. Corporations are not going to save the planet. People who love each other as fellow humans, people who ignore the manufactured differences that are dividing us, everyday people are the ones who will save the planet.

   But now we need an eleventh hour solution, a buzzer shot, a breakthrough! Love and understanding are the prerequisites to working together. We should have perfected that a long time ago, but it's not out of reach. There are many great stories of human solidarity in the clutch situation - but it will take an unprecedented and radical look at the effects of our technologies, coupled with a quantum leap in moral and ethical maturation to accomplish this one. We all love a happy ending. The problem is, we never thought there could even be an ending!