Humans are earth's cancer

[Toro]

Are humans earth's cancer

I've found the flaw with my title and I've changed it. I didn't mean to imply that this was what I felt was absolutely true but rather looking for a discussion.
Im also not saying that I think we should kill all humans. I'm just looking for other peoples thoughts....a discussion.


I can talk about this for hours but I'm going to make two points and see what others have to say.

1. As far as I can figure nature's course seems to pretty damn good at maintaining earth's balance. With that being said I come to the conclusion over and over that nature is desperately trying to exterminate us. I believe this is because humans are the only element that can by it self solve earth's problems by being removed. Our existence seems to be the issue. Unfortunate for us... Haha.

2. Humans as far as I have found seem to be the only "animals" that have malicious intent. Human nature seems to drive their egos which lead down dark paths and cause them to do things such as kill each other for something as silly as money or clothes, and pure pleasure.....etc

3. We seem to be able to recognize a problem that is hindering us or killing us yet we completely ignore it so we can continue to live a life filled with selfish pleasure.

Point 1 could also be solved by reducing ourselves to a sustainable status ( population and lifestyle )

Point 2 could be fit into the lifestyle change. I'm not sure that humans malicious intent isn't being propagated by our environment or vice versa

Point 3 I feel like also could be fit into lifestyle change. It seems to me that we have been culturally burnt into us which would make progress (backwards) a really slippery slope.

 

[TheScornedReflex]

People who talk about humans as earth's cancer but make no real effort to do anything about it are also a cancer.

#EarthCancerSupportGroup-Syke

 

[Sinny91]

Yea Toro, come back when you've made your first kill, sheesh!

 

[Toro]

But that's just it. As a part of the world I still am stuck with the baggage. I still have a life and a family. Like many things, I can see both sides but I'm stuck in the middle.

Another thing to add is that trying to change ignorant people becomes very exhausting and at some point you just look out and don't see a point. Sit back, sip my tea, keep to myself, and watch the circus in my short time on this rock. I think it's extremely naive to say that someone who can recognize something but can't build the power to stop it is the problem. Killing myself would solve nothing and there would be no message received by anyone. A killing spree would just label me like every other goon who commits a mass murder. At least living out my time on earth leaves the possibility that maybe, just maybe I can make some sort of change someday.

Hopefully that comment isn't a reflection of the rest of this forums thoughts. I was looking for discussion. That is why I we t back over my points with other possibilities.

 

[Toro]

Yea Toro, come back when you've made your first kill, sheesh!

Maybe I already have

Nah, I don't have time to deal with people...I'd rather watch them kill each other.

 

[Toro]

People who talk about humans as earth's cancer but make no real effort to do anything about it are also a cancer.

#EarthCancerSupportGroup-Syke

You have absolutely no idea who I am or what I've done. Therefore your comment can't hold any truth.
We live in a society that has things that are and are not acceptable. There are boundaries that exist whether we like it or not. Jail and death are a real thing and the impression you leave on society is a real thing. One opinion doesn't change what the rest of the world thinks unfortunately.

 

[TheScornedReflex]

Actually. I know more than you realize, John

 

[Toro]

Actually. I know more than you realize, John

 

[QuickTwist]

I can talk about this for hours but I'm going to make two points and see what others have to say.

1. As far as I can figure nature's course seems to pretty damn good at maintaining earth's balance. With that being said I come to the conclusion over and over that nature is desperately trying to exterminate us. I believe this is because humans are the only element that can by it self solve earth's problems by being removed. Our existence seems to be the issue. Unfortunate for us... Haha.

This implies that the world has a collective being. What's more is that this being gives a damn what happens to the earth. What's more is that they want to kill us specifically. Kinda seems to be born of a day dream to me.

2. Humans as far as I have found seem to be the only "animals" that have malicious intent. Human nature seems to drive their egos which lead down dark paths and cause them to do things such as kill each other for something as silly as money or clothes, and pure pleasure.....etc

There is nothing magical that separates us from other animals besides our intelligence, which is very complex compared to some other animals. If a different animal was more intelligent than us, what makes you think they would be any different than the "supposed" threat to the earth that we embody? We fear that we are destroying the earth because we believe we have a great degree of control over what happens to it. We don't actually have that much power when looking at things from a macro sense.. When/if humans evolve, whatever we have done to the earth will be nothing but a footnote in the history of the world. This is simply green thinking.

3. We seem to be able to recognize a problem that is hindering us or killing us yet we completely ignore it so we can continue to live a life filled with selfish pleasure.

Its the same with animals. They have problems too, namely, how they are going to get their next meal to survive. We are really not that different than them in this regard, our problems are just more advanced than theirs.

P.S. I am just playing devils advocate here and its not necessarily what I believe.

 

[Rook]

@OP:

Just months ago I held views almost identical to yours, having no objection to extreme measures to enforce a sustainable human mode of existence, much like those espoused in the Utopia series of humans being filmed talking.

(EDIT: I must add that I would still support less humans, simply because it would lead to a quieter world where survivors can frolic through the forests or whatnot, individual preference rather than a universal prerogative)


Moving on, I have returned to the basic truth that humans are natural, we did not arrive here from some eldritch dimension. The simple truth is that we are a very young species, cockroaches*, sharks, crocodiles, coelacanths... these are the elder races. We simply have surpassed them in collective capability, as crocodiles have surpassed zebras in individual capability, as sharks have surpassed seals and fish.

Some more basic beings even predate these elder ones, simple organisms that have changed little, seeing the rise and fall of pterodactyls and chalicotheres. We may have used and changed our habitats in far more varied and complex ways, but we are still infantile and quite fragile: Bacteria, virusses, ants, these are beings that can survive a nuclear winter.

To understand the reasons why humans are more prone to depleting their own or other habitats, evolutionary psychology comes into play. Greed, a drive for grand monuments, all these facets are a product of our animilistic nature. If finches were we, they would strip the savannah of grass to construct their nest cities, lions would have domesticated a myriad of species for food, chimps would wage great wars, even as they wage tribal wars now.

While done in a comedic vein, this is an interesting take on things:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cjRGee5ipM

*not sure whether we have surpassed cockroaches in collective capability, while more prevalent they do not have nukes or anthroticide...

 

[ProxyAmenRa]

1. As far as I can figure nature's course seems to pretty damn good at maintaining earth's balance. With that being said I come to the conclusion over and over that nature is desperately trying to exterminate us. I believe this is because humans are the only element that can by it self solve earth's problems by being removed. Our existence seems to be the issue. Unfortunate for us... Haha.

I, for one, being quite a liberal and open fellow, totally and 100% support your measure in removing humans from the planet so long as you are first on your list.

 

[Toro]

I worded the title poorly and that's my fault. I meant for this to be a discussion rather than me trying to imply this as the truth.

 

[Haim]

I worded the title poorly and that's my fault. I meant for this to be a discussion rather than me trying to imply this as the truth.

What you ask is what you say/limit what others what to say.

 

[Anktark]

Quicktwist and Rook have expressed some ideas I wanted to after reading the OP, so now I won't have to. Yay!

1. It was touched upon, but to reiterate, Earth is HUGE by individual human understanding. If nature really wanted to kill us, it would require no effort on it's part. There are myriad of ways and pretty much nothing we could do about (not even involving the Sun). That is if you believe nature is capable of intention.
There is no need to separate humanity from nature. Not only do we come from it, we are part of it. We may have changed the terrain quite a bit in some areas, but so have ants.
The attempts to kill us may stem from either misjudgement or misattribution.
a) You see lots of people dying in catastrophes, from diseases and whatnot, but rarely do you get reports of how many people survive and how many are born. So far, data indicates that we are not quite going extinct.
b) As population of species (one or several similar in kind) grows, it naturally runs into problems at a certain point. Either there is more disease, parasites, predators, food/territory shortage and so forth. While we don't have many predators, we are still susceptible to everything else.

2. Yes, there are evil people. And we kill those who kill people to show that killing people is bad. But there are also extremes of kindness and good. Maybe they are not celebrated or shown as loudly, because it doesn't make such good news.

3. There are also quite a few problems we have solved. Though there is so much time and energy in a day. But true, there is also a lot of complacency.

As for solutions, point one could also be solved by inhabiting more planets. Or transcending the human form. Don't quote me on this, but I think that solutions the allow to follow path of least resistance, allow freedom and more options, are better.
We can limit ourselves and go for homeostasis or keep going and survive the universal maximum entropy (or whichever else death of the universe comes first) (these states not need be mutually exclusive, yet I believe both philosophies would have harder time coexisting).

Welcome to the forum! I expect to die alone (unless singularity) and childless so I kinda do support your suggested perspective in the OP!

 

[Architect]

Most of the universe is a natural environment "unsullied" (in this idea) by life. The Earth has been reshaped by life for 4 billion years. All that oxygen life has put into the atmosphere has radically changed the planet, as its a potent oxidizer. We've worn down the hills, changed the oceans and completely reworked the atmosphere and temperature. Human kinds additions? Little really, just a blip on a long chain of using the Earth to life's advantage.

You think it's better if we weren't here? Just look around, Venus looks like a shitty place to me.

 

[waechter418]

Most non-Occidental cultures adore and treat Gaia, Pachamama, Nature and whatever else the organism which breads and feeds us "humans" might be called, as their mother. In the Occidental "civilization" grew during the last two centuries the tendency to rip, rape, poison and destroy her.
As she is not only a very fine tuned, but also of a very strong organism, she doubtless will get rid of this sick bastard, either by him destroying himself, or by her drowning him in the bathtub.
As most mothers, she will take care of the children that love her.

 

[Toro]

Most non-Occidental cultures adore and treat Gaia, Pachamama, Nature and whatever else the organism which breads and feeds us "humans" might be called, as their mother. In the Occidental "civilization" grew during the last two centuries the tendency to rip, rape, poison and destroy her.
As she is not only a very fine tuned, but also of a very strong organism, she doubtless will get rid of this sick bastard, either by him destroying himself, or by her drowning him in the bathtub.
As most mothers, she will take care of the children that love her.

I'm with you on that. I can't ignore how beautiful the earth's system is. And I can't ignore how we fuck it in every way possible.

You all make very good points. I don't believe earth can just destroy us at its will. While it seems that simple I have to point to how our bodies sometines struggle to kill off infections. It completely destroys most things that but there are viruses that kill humans also. While it seems like so many powerful forces of nature could just kill us I doubt it's that simple.