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On the matter of being separate and removed from nature, light pollution is something that needs to be addressed. There's nothing quite like staring into a sta
by canoebuilder 13y ago
On the matter of being separate and removed from nature, light pollution is something that needs to be addressed. There's nothing quite like staring into a star-filled sky. An experience had by millions upon millions of our ancestors, a regular imbuing of their souls with an infinite grandeur, has been greatly reduced in the past couple of generations. It is sad, really.
In addition to bemoaning that intangible, but nonetheless real, loss. There has been recent study of the detrimental effects of light pollution on the creatures that share the planet with us.
I think this is representative of an issue that is an underlying cause of a lot of modern chronic stresses. Our disrespect for all the life on earth and to future generations of that life, especially of our own species, by our falling down on the job of our stewardship of the planet.
Now that's a tall order to rectify, but if our collective actions can result in emergent effects that are detrimental to our societal and planetary health, the opposite is possible as well.
opposed to purely pursuing industrial optimization and efficiency.
Not to take away from your general point at all, but
I think the above is just something a lot of people tell themselves or that is assumed but the evidence for it is not actually there.
Similarly, there seems to be a lot of, "Well, we have to do X, because we have to do Y." Where Y is not something that actually has to be done.
I think a lot of things just develop a kind of inertia and go from there. Cars for example in their overbuiltness and overuse are about the farthest thing from efficient and optimized, especially when you factor in their impact on the environment, destruction of human life, and general unpleasantness.
- MisterBastahrd 13y agoTry living near a bunch of refineries. At night, the only things you'll see in the sky are a few planets and bright stars.... and if there are clouds, the flickering light from the stacks as they burn off gases.
- doctorcroc 13y agoI appreciate your response. Sadly, I think light pollution is one of the more tame harms we've done to this planet. There's stuff going on right now that's a lot more egregious (one which I think is going to be inevitable is the damage done by Hydrofracing, since we're not even sure of the extent). To your second point, I wasn't implying that we're even that efficient or optimized as a society - we hugely discount the negative externalities of our actions like you mentioned. What bothers me is the mentality surrounding it all. The Einstein quote pops into mind - "Confusion of goals and perfection of means seems, in my opinion, to characterize our age." In that sense, we are relentless in our pursuit of the next hot thing without asking ourselves what it will do for our collective happiness and joy in 10, 20, or god forbid 100 years from now.