Owl & Ibis - A Confluence Of Minds

Alice: How long is forever? White Rabbit: Sometimes, just one second. - Lewis Carroll Modernity: A historical category marked by the questioning or rejection of tradition; the prioritization of individualism, freedom and formal equality; faith in inevitable social, scientific and technological progress, rationalization and professionalization; a movement from feudalism (or agrarianism) toward capitalism and the market economy, industrialization, urbanization and secularization; the development of the nation-state, representative democracy, public education, etc. - From Wikipedia based on Michel Foucault 1977 This is a detailed continuation of my recent lyrical essay,  “The Fatal Myth of Human Progress.”  It covers the connections between U.S. politics and environmental protection in the late 20 th  Century. It also discusses what actions and supporting stories Humankind must come up with as we near ecological and economic collapse. Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost

O nce upon a time, long ago, in an ordinary part of space, a small but extraordinary planet gave rise to Life. Among its great variety of living things was an extraordinary animal. T his creature was not physically exceptional among its apelike cousins. But it was unique because it survived and flourished by dominating the planet’s resources. It did so by using its wits to cooperate, and by making and using tools. It was inconceivable to the planet, Earth, or to this unique creature we’ve come to call “human,” that this ape might ever pose a threat to itself and all other life forms on the planet. Humans thought little to nothing about the future. They remembered yesterday but lived in today. H uman survival skills were not always successful, especially in unpredictable weather places such as the Middle East. To avoid starvation in years of drought and food scarcity in this area humans began growing and storing food. They were successful. They also tamed cows, sheep and goat