I'm reminded of the joke -

A Christian boy and a Jewish boy were firm friends.
When they grew up, one became a priest, the other a
rabbi.

On meeting years later - the rabbi asked his friend
the priest if he had any ambition of going any higher
in his vocation.

The priest smiled, and nodded. The rabbi
asked - "A bishop?" The priest again smiled and nodded.
The rabbi - asked - higher still - "A cardinal?"
Again the priest answered with a smile and a nod.
"What about a Pope?" asked the rabbi.

The priest again smiled an even bigger grin.

The rabbi asked - "How about a Jesus Christ?"

The priest was shocked.

This time it was the rabbi's turn to smile.

He replied:

"Why not, one of our boys made it!"

Dear David f,

Great if all people could live simply and be satisfied with less - as many in developing countries appear to, by necessity.
Plant-based meat substitutes hold promise.

It appears intensive livestock production, notably in China, supposedly gave rise to Swine Flu, SARS and H1N1 Avian Flu - most likely from cross-contamination from wildlife and/or bush-meat in the handling process - resulting in necessary mass destruction of livestock, pigs, chickens and other birds, and some cross-infection of humans from related mutations, SARS in particular.
The Hendra Virus appears also to have propagated from similar cross-contamination from bats. And in Africa the Ebola virus transmitted to humans from monkeys?
Intensive livestock processing and bush-meat handling is suspected as one possible source of Covid-19 in Wuhan.

Providing for mass human populations has attendant hazards, particularly perhaps in a society believing in the medicinal qualities of Pangolin scales, tiger penis and rhinoceros horn, and not having qualms about the destruction of elephants for their tusks rhinoceros for their horns and sharks for their fins.
Superstitions and idiocy surely should belong in the past.

Some vainly rely on technology, gene-manipulation and forest clearing for agriculture and intensive farming to overcome any problems arising from human population increase. Realistic?
But impacts on environment and climate appear of secondary, if any, consideration.

Hence, I did ask the question who are we to judge who or what should survive - when humanity is the cause of all the problems from their decisions and their demands?
Demands with minimal apparent deviation from an exponential?

I fear for environment and bio-diversity from the onslaught of humanity - not for myself, but for the benefit and wellbeing of future generations.
Global systemic annihilation?

A rabbi and a priest having a round of golf and the priest misses a putt - "Sh!t I missed."
Next hole, the same.
Rabbi says "You'd better stop that, or someone might get annoyed."
Next hole, the same - and suddenly the clouds separated and a lightning bolt just missed the priest, and out from the clouds a booming voice - "Sh!t I missed!"

Dear Saltpetre,

I’m afraid many people in developed countries are like my cousin, Myra. She said, “I don’t have to have what my neighbor has. I can wait a month or two”.

I wrote new verses to the old jazz standard:

Five feet two, eyes of blue
Jesus Christ, he was a Jew’
Has anybody seen my Lord?

Big hooked nose, there he goes.
Preaching so that everyone knows.
Has anybody seen my Lord?

Speared in the abdomen by a Roman
Blood gushing out
Rose from the dead, so it is said.
People believe without a doubt.
Has anybody seen my Lord?

Jesus died, still a Jew
Still a Jew, so why aren’t you?
Has anybody seen my Lord?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG5YXZxTPvg is a clip of me singing it

This is interesting perhaps in trying to account for different mindsets between the East and the West. Shame / Fear spectrum of cultures.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilt%E2%80%93shame%E2%80%93fear_spectrum_of_cultures

http://www.china-mike.com/chinese-culture/cult-of-face/

"The terminology was popularized by Ruth Benedict in The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, who described American culture as a "guilt culture" and Japanese culture as a "shame culture""

interesting topic, but I am not confident for the survival of many species.

The world will go on in some form, but who knows what it will happen when many species are lost.

Chris Lewis,

Do you know why the hominid find on Flores Island is nicknamed 'hobbit' and how he/she got to be small?