Hi SR,

I'll repeat: I don't think that individual humans are particularly special.

It depends what you do with your life, how much you or others are central to it. And of course we have obligations to nurture the planet to the best of our abilities, including elephants.

So much for your straw man :)

Joe

Dear Loudmouth,

You write;

"And of course we have obligations to nurture the planet to the best of our abilities"

With respect mate you seem particularly keen to dodge the question. To whom are we obligated and why are we obligated to nurture the planet? Particularly if we are only 'relatively special'.

Don - sorry to hear you have been ill. Now that you are feeling a little better, maybe the process could be helped along if you grab up a new project. Something drawing on reflections, wisdom, and possible useful advice. Angles you have seen to be significant points of view, original interpretations hitherto unshared or not sufficiently developed, etc. One immediate challenge within scope might be to set these 'stages of life' you have identified against the traditional Hindu stages of life for a man - childhood, (rebirth) student, householder and sage. The sage is timed for the fortieth birthday, when the householder retreats from the world to "go to the forest' - which is what I think you are talking about. But in the forest one attracts disciples who seek you out for your wisdom. For myself I have in mind a re-write of the history of the world devised to answer the question : "What is the key psychosocial dynamic that drives human action that shapes the world?". (I DON'T think it is a search to find God.) If you fancy running a dialogue with me on that one I'd welcome it. Otherwise there are numerous other important questions that invite speculative reflection or imparting of conclusions. You have a lifetime of data to subject to fresh analysis. Cheers, Glynne

SR,

In exchange for our brief lives on this planet, we are obligated to do less harm than good to it and everything on it, including to our fellow humans, since in a very general sense, we owe our existence to them, one way or the other.

Why are we obligated? Because it (the planet) and they (our fellow humans, including our ancestors) have nurtured us. In return, we are obligated to our descendants to leave the planet, their environment, in the best condition that we, each of us, can. So, in a very general sense, what our ancestors did for us, we do for our descendants.

And, of course, to learn and enjoy ourselves in the process.

Whether or not we are 'special', is not all that relevant.

Cheers,

Joe

Dear Loudmouth,

No need to answer if you feel I am being pedantic.

I'm not sure you have articulated where that obligation comes from. Ourselves or imposed by another?

When you write; “we owe our existence to them” does it also follow that they owe their existence to us? What does that look like? If it doesn't follow then despite what you say aren't you claiming a form of exceptionalism for us?

Also you seem to be taking more of an indigenous approach rather than a Western one. There is no talk of giving thanks to a higher being but rather a call to honour an obligation to 'mother earth'. Why do you think that is? Are you a Lovelockian by any chance?

Hi SR,

I've answered your questions. It's up to you to understand my answers, but without making leaps of misinterpretation.

I'm glad you raised the red herring of the 'Mother Earth' myth. Presumably you're referring to the modern-day 'tradition' - now more than forty years old - first mentioned by an Aboriginal writer in the person of Dr Gondarra Djiniini in 1977.

No, I don't adhere to such a myth, but I do feel very strongly that - myths and gods and magic aside - we all have an obligation not to pollute (or at least to minimise it) the environment of the earth. Hence, I'm very much in favour of any programs to re-forest and re-vegetate Australia, as well as to counter any excess CO2, even though it is a vital component in all vegetation - as well as programs to clean up rivers, etc.

In that sense, we have no right, each of us, to leave the world more polluted in any way than we found it. That's our obligation, to the earth and to each other. It's an obligation we should be prepared to impose on ourselves.

Yes,I suppose I'm a Lovelockian, if that's what it means.

I hope that satisfies your curiosity.

Joe