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Speedyer · #20 (**permalink**) 10-29-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeadHallPirate

*agrees with denie*

therein lies the problem mate.

there is a great and fun world out there, if you've got the resources to enjoy it...and if you've worked hard to make the coin to indulge in them pleasures, its very hard to suddenly live a monastic life 'o denial, just so future generations can share in it.

look matey...if i put a cannon next to yer noggin, and i said, "live sensibly and conserve, or imma blow a tunnel through your temple", you'd do it. 'cept no one lives like that, and who can blame them? what fun is there in a life of conservating one's resources? in a country whar folks are barely compelled to save for their own retirement, the idea of saving resources for those that will come after us is a tough case to make. and for those of us who have the monies to do it, we've earned the right to hog more than our share 'o the pie. thats america, its the american way.

lemme just give ye one more example...

here in charlotte north carolina, we've experienced a record setting lack 'o rain. lake norman's levels are falling at an alarming rate. small townships sourrounding charlotte are talking about ways to divert water, since reseviors are drying up, and there has been talk (talk only) of limiting things like watering one's lawns.

so what do a bunch of our civic minded citizens do?

they drilled for water on their own property and are using their own wellwater to merrily water their lawns! to assauge any sense of guilt, they also have posted signs on their lawns, stating, "this water is not public water, its my well water". in the end, of course, its everyone's water. hehehehe, its actually sorta funny. what their signs are really saying, is, "this water is mine, fuck you".

there are folks, folks on this very board, who read posts like this and start laughing to themselves. the thing that they dont understand, is i'm laughing too, and to a degree, so are you denie. we're attached to our lifestyles, its very hard to unlearn a lifetime of gluttony in the face of a threat that still seems very abstract to many.

i guess, in the back of me own mind, is the fervent hope that techonology will save us. a silver bullet that will put our all troubles to rest...thats what i be hopin' fer. its like, ummm....one of them ads on tv, where they be showing before and after pictures of fat peoples. "look at how much weight i lost, and i still got to eat mac and cheese, burgers and pizza!!!!, just enroll in the (fill in the blank) diet plan and you too can lose weight without being hungry!". thats what imma hopin' fer.

AHOY!!!!!!!

-meadhallpirate

Well, at least you'll enjoy yourself until it actually effects you. o.o That being said, your example on technology saving us is a little far fetched. As such diets are either overrated, scams, or limited in their capability. That being said, I don't think technology is the answer, mostly because technology is very much part of the reason as well.

Or at least such in the waste that we produce, whether it be plastic or nuclear waste. Both of which, aren't going away anytime soon even though we've used them beyond our capabilities. Though you are correct, we as a whole are the problem. The riches nations on earth take resources like water for granted (do you know where you water comes from? I don't), even though the history of human civilization it self centers around water more than any other resource. We as a species simply don't give a damn about the generation after us or our children's children for that matter.

Thus a portion of the population of the world is threatened even more than it is at the moment. That being said, who honestly doesn't believe in climate change by this point and time? The details I'll grant you may be fuzzy or disagreed upon, but the fact that our climate is changing should be apparent to all by now. Even if there isn't quiet enough data to see the full picture, and unlikely to be for the future with NASA's budget going to moon bases and Mars missions instead (after we finally complete the ISS for its five years of use anyway). Oh well, that being said, whatever our fate as a species is our own doing and own deserving for our stupidity.