Point of no return (revisited)

In the "Bodies..." posting of his Great Adventure, the Maltese Donkey said:

And no doubt with the population requirements, and export, they have to increase efficiency of agriculture like everybody else, which can lead to pollution runoff.

As I mentioned in a previous post, we are creating an artificial environment around us, which is too brittle to sustain the continued growth and evolution of our own society / species.

The above quote is a perfect example of this short-sightedness, which will result in the self-stablising evolutionary principle leading to humanity's extinction.

The Point of No Return is upon us, yet as a species we are doing too little too late to avert this.

Where ever you look today you see adverts for Personal Growth courses, Lifestyle Changing seminars, the latest set of DVDs from Life Coach gurus such as Tony Robbins etc.
It would seem that despite our success as a species, our lives have become hollow and meaningless, and we are searching for something with which to connect, to feel whole again.

Again this is evidenced by the growing number of fringe religious movements, and the rise of "pop" spirituality that is so fashionable these days.

While some of these have a valid place (and some are dangerous or misleading "instant fixes"), the problem is more fundamental than that: it is not a "personal" loss of the individuals that comprise the species that is at the heart of this, but a species-wide loss of connection / understanding of our unity with our environment, our origins, and our purpose.

In essence, the species as a whole needs a Lifestyle Change, to allow us to reconnect with Nature and our Role on this planet.

Humanity as a species, has a singular position on this planet, in that we are the only species to combine industry, intelligence and creativity to such a degree that we can either destroy most life on this planet, or save it.

We are unique amongst the millions of species with which we co-habit, in that we are reaching out to the stars, and exploring beyond the confines of our Earthly abode.

Make no mistake, there will be a mass-extinction event soon, in cosmological timescales, either of our own making, or otherwise. The evidence suggests these are regular phenomena, and part of the natural process of evolution, and that we may be on the cusp of one now.

However, currently, Humanity is this planet's last best hope to minimise the effect of these, or to avert them.

But only if we step up to the challenge, by putting aside out petty tribal, xenophobic differences, and act in harmony, in our and the planet's best long-term interests.

It may seem a bizarre segue, but the 90's SciFi series Babylon 5 (probably my all-time favourite SciFi series) dealt with this. Though it only became apparent in the last two series, you can see the seeds of it right from the start. It's a masterpiece rivalled only by The Matrix, in terms of having layers upon layers of hidden meanings and interpretations.

The bottom line is: If we don't step up to the challenge, we are already extinct, and are merely fertilizer for the next species to achieve a similarly unique position during the next round of evolution.

And with us goes the vast richness of our culture and heritage: Mozart, Bach, Van Gogh, Turner, Da Vinci, Plato, Aristotle, Shakespeare, Dickens etc etc all gone. Forever.
And obviously other species will be wiped out too.

Surely we owe it not only to them, but also to our own ancestors, and for the sake of that which is good and that which we value of our Human culture and heritage to rise up and grasp the Destiny that is offered to us, and protect this fragile Earth for as long as we can?