It's Later Than You Think

Here on the east coast watching the tide creep in, enjoying the last precious days of relatively nice weather. It seems that we have crossed the point of no return according to James Lovelock, respected developer of the Gaia Theory which sees the Earth as a living entity with regulatory systems. The very systems that have kept our world livable and allowed for the evolution of our complex biosphere will now turn on us and there is little or nothing we can do. We have created what will be a living hell for possibly as long as 100,000 years.

He suggests thinking of how we can adapt ourselves and preserve what we can of civilization, at least on local levels. It's all pretty depressing and puts all of our many problems into perspective. I'm glad I'm not young.

Unless we, in the short term, and for the survival of our species, get rid of our corporate strongmen posing as leaders, we may truly be doomed -- heck, they couldn't even prepare for Katrina and there will be many more Katrinas. We may not be able to modify the effects of global warming (which are accelerating at an alarming rate daily) but we need to prepare our county and society to deal with what is coming and that will take a literal revolution as well as a revolution in thinking. The time for denial has past. The future of our civilization and maybe even of our species will depend on what we do in the present.

In the mean time, I think I'll have a drink. As there is probably little I can do to effect change and I'm living in an area that will no doubt be devastated by hurricanes and rising tides, I might as well savor life as if I only had a short time left to live and make that time worth the living.