We Are Special

In my 53rd year of life on Planet Earth, I acknowledge that I am just one of 7 billion humans, cooperatively destroying an organic world, which is flying through space.

But, oh hark, our plant is one of hundreds of millions of stars in hundreds of millions of galaxies. Yep, the Universe is a big place. So far, we have yet to find life beyond our planet. At this point, I must assume that life is an extremely rare occurrence. Heck, we may be the only life in our universe. But that's no big deal since space is endless and there may be only one living planet per universe. There could be hundreds of billions of universes.

We Are Special

I'm going to take the pompous position and say we humans are rare. It took millions of years on the Earth just for the first living cell to evolve. And that was the easy part. The hard part was getting that cell to reproduce, with nothing to help except for organic resources and plenty of time. Of course, we needed a few supernovas first to turn all the hydrogen and helium in our vicinity into the rest of the elements in the Periodic Table.

So, a lot had to happen before we could even be here. But once that living, reproducing cell was born the heavy lifting was done. From there the rest of the work was relatively easy as evolution progressed from single-cell organisms to the massively complex animals we have today.

Us

Then there us humans. This is where things got particularly tricky. Over time the single-cell animals in our oceans clustered and became more sophisticated. Brains slowly emerged to manage the processes of finding food, avoiding predators, and reproducing. Slowly, the brains got bigger and the animals became more complex.

As early as 7 million years ago early forms of humans begin appearing in the fossil record. Over the years we evolved into the creatures we are today. During the evolution of our species, something really odd happened. For some reason we acquired far more intelligence than what we needed for simply collecting food, reproducing, and fending off predators. Why is this so, and how did it happen? 

Evolution happens both slow and fast, and I'm guessing a series of mutations gave us bigger brains. Immediately, all those extra neurons were put to good use. I'm speculating that during this process the second amazing thing happened — we acquired self-awareness.

Game Changer

Now, it's this self-awareness or consciousness, that radically changed the Universe. With our ability to reflect, ponder, and appreciate its awe, the Universe suddenly becomes alive. Oh, sure, yes, we are rapidly poisoning and polluting our little planet, and killing ourselves by population overshoot and an overall disregard for our habitat. But in the brief moment that our species is here we make the Universe alive, through our philosophy, music, art, and reverence to the wonder of the stars.

It is our intelligence and consciousness that are the two great results of billions of years of planet creation and organic evolution. We humans are the end result, or perhaps only the next step. Now, we have the ability to study the mass cosmos through telescopes and even spacecraft. In effect, we are going back to the place where we were created — outer space.

Brains

Rivaling the greatness of the Universe is the incredibleness of our brains. I see the brain as a little universe in itself. Just the complexity it takes for me to get into an automobile and safety drive somewhere requires massively elaborate functions in my head. As I drive, my five senses are feeding me information, which translates into actions and decisions, which gets my body to some destination. All the while, in addition to my hundreds of functions like breathing and turning the steering wheel, I am also thinking. As my motor skills do their thing my brain is playing scenarios, pondering issues in my life, and so forth. Our very existence is mind-boggling.

Lessons To Learn

Now, the point of all this rambling is to say that you and I are special. It took billions of years of cosmic and evolutionary work to make us. But why did the cosmos and evolution want us? There seems to be a natural law out there that drives things from the simple to the complex. On the organic side, it has something to do with the more efficient use of energy. On the galactic side, it has more to do with gravity and stellar nucleosynthesis, which is where chemical elements assemble in the cores of stars. So, stars and supernovas are engines of life — they are busy creating the elements that we need to be, well, us.

Summary

If the universe and nature have gone through so much trouble to create us then we owe it to the universe and nature to do something worthwhile with our lives. First and foremost, our bodies and brains are absolute miracles and we owe it to ourselves to treat our lifeforms like a temple. It should be our duty to exercise, eat healthily, and to exercise our brain as well, through learning and exploring. I believe that the first step to saving the environment is to save ourselves. Every day when you wake up, acknowledge that you are an incredible creature, and live your life accordingly. Strive to make your habitat better and always dedicate part of your life to helping other humans, for they are miracles too.

Photo credit: dek dav / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

Animal Cousins

I see all of my pets and every animal in the forest as a fellow Earth Citizen. They have just as much right to live on this planet as we do. They should receive rights and our respect.

Although I feel we must minimize meat intake, I don't advocate vegetarianism. Rather, I respect the food chain. It's okay to eat a little meat on occasion.

For thousands of years we were the ones who lived in terror of faster and stronger animals. Somehow, we got smarter. We created tools to defend ourselves and to buffer us from the other animals. After a few milleniums this got out of control. Most of us have now forgotten where our McNuggets come from. We now live in this sheltered world apart from most animals. We move into the deep forests and when an animal frightens us we kill it. If a snake crawls into our McMansion garages, we whack its head off. What the hell, we are humans -- we are the bad asses of the planet.

Unfortunately, the "have dominion" lie has gone way too far. If we lived in harmony with our fellow creatures, we would likely better learn to live in harmony with each other. Instead, we call pest control companies to zap them, not realizing that we are destroying a balanced ecosystem that would survive on its own if left alone. There are birds and other bugs that would keep the annoying bugs in check. Life is all about balance and equilibrium, and evolution ensures that we will reach that point.

Strangely, we keep cats and dogs in our homes to, well, give us something to love. Cats are warm and soft and nice to pet and hold. Dogs are always loyal, which gives us an ego trip. How can these animals be loyal to us when few of our fellow humans are? We hold them and love them, and instead of sending money to starving people in Somalia, we spend billions on pet food. We ensure that they have yummy food snacks because we imagine we are enriching their quality of life, while we ignorantly desecrate our plant and lower the life quality for all living things.

A friend once told me that if I studied my pets I could better understand people. After all, we are all mammals and we all came from the same marsupials 150 million years ago. So, we are bros and sistas with the cats and dogs, and all other mammals. So, be nice to your cousins. We are all one -- we are all inhabitants together on this incredibly beautiful planet. Let us learn to live together in a respectful and harmonious way.

What Is Truth

I have spent a great portion of my life separating the truth from the lies, and the reality from the illusions.

So, what is truth? I define it as: Making a decision based on a preponderance of evidence.

First of all, the search for truth is never-ending, and you can never truly find it. Understandably, many people prefer things in black and white, and that's why they are so willing to accept a pre-packaged dogma. But truth is always gray, and you can never pin it down.

For instance, once upon a time someone told me that a divine being wrote a book. Well, actually He told various authors, in various countries, over a span of hundreds of years exactly HOW to write it. And now we don't hear from the divine being anymore because everything he needed to say is in the BOOK. You just have to study the BOOK and He talks to you through the BOOK. And, oh yeah, the Torah is incomplete and the Koran is a false book, but, by golly, some people around here have the REAL BOOK.

In humble response to that, I must confide that my cat is an alien space probe. I know this as a fact because she follows me like a shadow around the house and she ALWAYS has to watch what I'm doing, whether I'm eating or going to the bathroom. My cat is definitely a space probe, and you can't prove that it isn't.

But, hey, the evidence and what I know about cats tells me that, well, maybe she's just a cat.

Information

Seven years ago it became apparent that Religion, Corporations, and Government are the three powerful forces always trying to control me. Each of them provide their own dogmas, and if you simply accept them without questioning, you've simply bit the bait and you won't find truth. Thus, you must QUESTION the dogma that your institutions feed you.

Don't get all your information from one source, like an obese drug addict or a college dropout radio personality. Always get your information from multiple sources, and then draw your own conclusion.

Don't accept a party platform, religious dogma, or TV ad without questioning. Read alternative news sources, talk to people, and get all sides of an issue. Then make your own determination as to what you think is TRUTH.

Multiple Sources

In 2003, the more I read about my religion, the more I realized that it lacked scientific, archeological, and historical evidence. On the other hand, the more I read about evolution, the more I realized that there is a MASSIVE amount of evidence to back it. Like others, I had outdated or incorrect notions about evolution, and when I really studied it I realized that it's completely real. So, the point being, get information from different sources to shape your world view.

Political persuasion

I've been called a liberal, Republican, socialist, and more. The fact is that I can't be pinned down politically because I'm all over the map. That's because I take every issue and weigh it on its own merits, and I don't let some talking head or political party sway me. Yes, I proudly lean left, but on occasion I'll actually agree with the righties.

Culture Food

Sadly, the vast majority of people where I live simply play the role that the Dominant Culture creates for them. For example, they go to church and are "religious," but at the same time they like nice cars, big houses, and are materialistic. Now, based on the teachings and life of Jesus, he was CLEARLY NOT materialistic. But, ho hum, who cares. The Yuppie rich Christians will simply ignore the parts of the Bible that inconvenience them, and continue running over slow possums with their SUVs. They never question what TRUTH is -- they just accept what they are told it is.

Parting Thought

The most beautiful gift I have in life is my open mind. Even as a kid I enjoyed looking at all sides of an issue, and often taking an unpopular side. I don't try to be righteous about it, I just don't let anyone or anything sway my opinions. I am pro-gay, anti-war, but fiscally conservative. I am pro-life and pro-science. I make no apologies for my positions, and at the same time, I don't push them on anyone. I simply believe what I believe to be true, based on looking at all sides of an issue, and trying to think it out.

From Smart Shrews To Dumb Humans

I like to call human evolution "DE-EVOLUTION" because our species is going in reverse — we are not only destroying our immediate habitat, but the entire Planet as well.

The misinformation I hear about evolution is immense. I hear both educated liberals and de-educated creationists say things that shows that few people understand some of the basic concepts of evolution.

Allow me to clarify a few things:

• We DID come from apes. I'm not sure why people are offended by that, just because gorillas like to throw their poop around at zoos.
• We DID NOT come from dinosaurs — we split off from them 256 million years ago.
• I like to think that our earliest ancestors are the shrews, which started showing up about 220 million years ago. But, in reality, evolution is a continuum. Our earliest ancestors are, in fact, the eukaryotes, complex cells that first appeared 2.1 billion years ago. As mentioned before, it was a living hell getting those first cells to evolve, but once that happened the rest of evolution was easy.
• It was at 10,000 years ago when humans, as we know them today, began to emerge. It was around this time when we invented agriculture, started getting light skin, and began adopting cats as pets.

Our brains started evolving 550 million years ago when we were little flatworms in the water. In fact, by then a lot of what we are today had already evolved. For instance, we already had bilateral symmetry and germ layers, which led to the development of tissues and organs. So, when someone calls you a "slimy little worm," don't be offended because that's what you once were.


Anti-Enviro Shrews

The reason that evolution is so important is that the better we can understand our evolutionary history, the better we can understand our current human behavior. We are products of our flatworm brains.

When I see my brothers and sisters in the environmental movement hit a brick wall, I have to ask, "Why have they hit that brick wall?" What is it in our evolution that makes us so willing to horde resources and become obsessed with our immediate comfort, at the expense of our environment and children's future? Something apparently has gone very wrong in the evolution of our species.

One of the best ways to learn more about the facts of evolution and the myths of creationism is to follow the YouTube channel of AronRa, who is mostly a self-taught evolutionist. He does a great job of putting complex biological information into plain English.

Educate Yourself On Evolution:
Subscribe To AronRa's YouTube Channel

Excess Intelligence

As the story goes, we humans evolved out of the large ape family because of our unique environment on the African savanna. We eventually left the Dark Continent and started migrating around Europe and elsewhere. Around 10,000 BCE we started farming in the Fertile Crescent.

What puzzles me is that the human brain became far more powerful than what was needed to survive on the African plains. We became VERY smart.

Over the past 30,000 years or so we haven't changed much -- we just somehow got these powerful, big brains and have spent thousands of years growing into them. Just look at the progress we've made in ten millenniums, and imagine where we'll be in another ten millenniums. It seems that there is so limit to what our brain can learn and empower us to do.

One hundred thousand years ago we only needed enough brain power to escape predators and to hunt. Now, these basically same brains are allowing us to travel through space.

I recently brought this point up in an evolution discussion list and received many responses, although no one could really answer the question.

I will say that there is MASSIVELY more information to prove evolution than there is to prove the Abrahamic religions, but there are still some puzzling gaps.

There is no doubt that evolution exists, no matter how desperately the creationists try to debunk it. The evidence is everywhere and overwhelming.

But why are we so freakin' smart? This leads me to believe that there IS a higher power in the Universe and that humans have a mission. My gut feeling is that humanity is destined to populate the Universe, but who made us so smart and why?

Since humans started sitting around campfires thousands of years ago they began conjuring up stories about their existence. These same stories morphed into the wacky religions we have today. Modern religions are simply variations of ancient beliefs. Even in the earliest times it appears that humans had a "hunch" that there were supernatural forces at play.

Having read some articles on the origins of life I was beginning to think that creating a living thing is no big deal in the Universe. After all, the Universe has massive amounts of time and millions of chemical experiments taking place, so it's no surprise that life will pop up on occasion.

Creationists say that creating a molecule would be like throwing the contents of a scrapyard into the air and letting it fall into place as a 747. That is silly because we now know that lifeforms slowly transition from primitive forms to the more complex. In fact, as life evolves it continually increases in complexity, and there's no turning back. I read a book on this once called The Myth of Progress.

So, maybe there is NOT any higher intelligence at all, but, rather, only a set of laws in play. Maybe as we evolve, our brains keep evolving, and we just keep getting smarter because, maybe, there's an evolutionary advantage to that.

As we evolve mentally, look how we are also evolving socially and technologically. Just a century ago our children would be working 12-hour days in factories. And if we had just one abscessed tooth in the 1800s we'd probably die.

So, we are evolving in many ways, and, again, we are growing into our brains. Just how much are we capable of learning? Can we one day know ALL there is to know about the Universe? And, if so, then what do we do?

And won't the Universe run out of fuel one day anyway? When the last star burns out the Universe is going to be a really cold and dark as hell place. Then what do we do? Will we stockpile enough uranium from planets to keep us warm and cozy in our pitch black, expanding Universe?

This gets us back to the very core question: What is the meaning of life? I don't know, and I'm very perplexed by it. Maybe it would be better if there's no meaning at all. We just live, consume some resources, and return to space dust. End of story. It's certainly an easier story to comprehend.

The Goose

Jumping the Hurdle

A thanks to my friend Snaildarter for slapping some sense back into me. He said all we have to do is rise above our animalism. Here is his quote:

I agree mostly, but we have become technologically advanced enough to step out of the animal mode and move toward achieving our mis-named name homo sapien "wise man" or "thinking man."

I'm really feeling like an ATHEIST tonight because I'm realizing that life is not such a miracle after all. As the Earth was forming there were trillions of little experiments going on at once. And these trillions of experiments took place for a couple of billion years, so it's no surprise that eventually mass would form into complex formations and make that leap into "life." And once that one little spark was finally created there was no turning back - life began to explode, develop, and become more complex. Humans are the inevitable result of evolution. It was only a matter of time before one creature would evolve to the point where it could begin controlling the world around it.

I mean, it's really amazing to think that things like eyes and memory could evolve from a pool of primordial stew. Evolution inevitably creates more and more complex life formations. This process continues until a formation is so complex that it has the ability to destroy its surrounding life support systems. No, not intentionally, but the destruction is simply the result of the increased complexity.

Out of the trillions of planets that are likely in the Universe, I'm guessing there are only a handful of worlds that could support life, for carbon-based life is a fragile and sensitive. Life is a force that can only exist within narrow parameters -- you need water, warmth, light, stability, protection from radiation, etc...

Of the few worlds that can support life, life may never happen because of absent minerals, unfavorable climate, or other factors. So, I'm betting that life is very, very rare in the Universe. But, somewhere out there I'm guessing that some life form has been able to get pass its self-destruction stage and flourish. And yes, I don't doubt for a moment that space travel is possible -- but right now it seems extremely difficult.

The odds of the human creatures on Earth being the lucky ones to surpass the Age of Self Destruct is highly unlikely, but it is possible. I keep hoping that both humans and the Earth will survive, and even if humans fail there is a good chance that Earth will recover from the relatively brief era of humanity.

God bless all of you, my children.

Goosey

It Is What It Is ...

I've been engaged in a fascinating debate this week on Jay Hanson's WarSocialism discussion list (see www.dieoff.org). The result of the discussion is downright depressing, and can be summed up in a few points:

• Humans are at the end of the modern age and are about to face a massive dieoff, which will likely be caused by nuclear war, an influenza pandemic, or ecological ruin. Not to mention, there is going to be mass chaos after the cheap oil is gone.
  
  
• Neither humans nor evolution have any kind of end plan or goal. As the saying goes, "it is what it is."
  
  
• The idea that human destiny is to colonize the Universe is not looking good. There are many factors that make interplanetary space travel basically impossible.

This leaves me with the conclusion that we humans are a one-in-a-trillion freak occurrence in the Universe, and we are about to go. We will likely go in an unpleasant way — extreme violence, starvation, or disease.

My own assessment is that losing jobs will just be the beginning. Before long we will be engaging in cannibalism again, like our chimp relatives. Also, I learned that a third of chimp males never make it to adulthood because they are murdered by chimp gangs, and that we share about 95% of the same genes as the chimp, so extreme violence is embedded in us as well.

This is sounding very, very grim, and tonight I'm about to give up all hope. But I know I won't, and I don't want to sell out my principles for food — I'm not sure how long I'll be able to hold out on that one.

The bottom line is human beings are a very sick, dysfunctional, and violent species. It's so sad because I see a lot of good in us too.

Space flight to other planets is impossible:

From Tom —

I recently saw a bumper sticker with the following slogan; "Earth First. We'll strip mine the other planets later." This is the perfect slogan for all the space cadets out there who believe the star trek, star wars science fiction fantasies Hollywood has filled our heads with throughout this soon to be fading, electronic age. Maybe we alpha males can even get lucky and score with some hot, green alien chicks while were propagating our benevolent expansion of the heavens as an added bonus. Captain Kirk sure seemed to get lucky a lot.

I find talk of colonizing other planets in other solar systems amusing because it's a perfect example of the arrogant, anthropocentric hubris that characterizes human beings which is what got us into this predicament of overshoot after in the first place. Colonization of other planets is practically impossible for at least a few logical reasons such as follow. The list is by no means comprehensive.

1. We are the product of billions of years of fine-tuned, ecosystem evolution and exploitation and our very existence is completely contingent upon the exact and delicate balance of atmospheric, climatic and terrestrial conditions (aka capital) that have yet to be verified on any other planet we could hope to reach before the consequences of our species overshoot overtake us.

2. As arrogant and capable as we are, the human body can't survive years in a gravity-free environment because our muscles, heart and bones are subject to radical atrophy. Any planet that we could potentially exploit is probably light years away and the laws of physics preclude such contingency. Don't bother talking to me about short-cuts through "worm holes" because no such thing has ever been verified. Worm holes are a science fiction hypothesis at best.

3. A significant feature of overshoot and collapse is the exponential conversion of capital into a waste stream leaving a degraded (read trashed) ecosystem behind with less viable resources for future generations. Translation: We won't have the energy nor the money available to get off the ground into space to export our benevolent intentions to other parts of the universe. In a nut shell, this is why space programs no longer practically exists for space exploration. Space exploration is past peak. We went to the moon, it was sterile and mainly useless and we'll probably never get any further.

Indeed flight was once thought to be impossible but the laws of aerodynamics permitted such after all (as long as the contingencies of capital, technology and energy are available). However, the laws of physics and specifically the laws of thermodynamics predict Homosapiens is destined (doomed?) to existence and eventual extinction here on good old planet Earth. It seems it's the only planet we'll ever really get to strip mine after all.

We Can't Evolve Our Way Out Of Our Problems

From Scott —

Several points to make about the likelihood of short term human evolution here. One is that evolutionary changes in primates and apes do not happen in just a few generations. It requires hundreds or even thousands of generations to evolve as a species. Humans have remained pretty much unchanged physically for over 100k years (not including the Neanderthals, which seem to have been a separate sub-species or population of humans that did not interbreed). Socially humans made a last significant change somewhere around 50k years ago into more or less what we are now. That is around 2,500 generations of humans since the last major distinctive change occured. If you want to put a stake in the ground for 'modern civilized humans' as the point of evolution that we made our last significant change (I do not believe this, this is just an example of scale) at about 12k years ago at the dawn of modern civilization, that is still over 500 generations of humans which remain basically unchanged from the dawn of history.

Another point is that as a population gets larger, like in humans today, the likelihood of a chance mutation or genetic alteration being passed on and affecting a large segment of the population (and hence leading to a genetic alteration and/or evolution) is pretty much drown out. The massively larger population of unchanged genes would be the ones that are passed on. 7 billion people are not going to evolve much, until/unless there are some abrupt environmental changes or pandemic that radically kills off large segments of the population.

Another factor that has risen from the human genome research is that humans have very similar genes to one another, as compared to our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees. As I recall, both types of chimps share something like 97% of chimp specific genetic traits, whereas humans are more like 99% similar in human genetic traits. This is not to be confused with the fact that humans and chimps share somewhere between 95%-99% of functional genes. The point here is that humans have far less genetic variation within the species than other primates, so the chances of our evolving from our current population is far less.

Given the three reasons stated above, we are not likely to evolve in just a few generations when a lot of 'stuff' is very likely to hit the global fan. We can and may well adapt culturally, but not genetically. Also one genration does not make Europeans a bunch of sloths. Humans (as well as chimps it seems) are prone to war; take away resources and you will fight your neighbors for them. Given that our ancestors likely diverged from the chimpanzees sometime about 5-6 million years ago, the war gene is deep in our genetics (and probably over 6 millon years old). Chimps have been observed to go to war with and kill rival chimps, BTW. They are also prone to cannibalism. Sound familiar?

Evolution Has No Goal

From reductio0adabsurbum:

Sorry Todd, but you're wrong again. Evolution has no "goal", no direction, and no purpose. It just is. Natural selection in a nutshell: if the gene(s) that is(are) responsible for a particular phenotypic variation which endows the possessor of that(those) genes with a reproductive advantage, then that(those) gene(s) will be propagated into subsequent generations more so than will those genes that are less able to do so. That's pretty much it. You may feel dissatisfied by how inhuman and unfeeling that may be, but just because we as a species with our culture think we need purpose, (an illusion of) continuity that projects into the future, it doesn't mean that this need will be worked out into an objective reality. You can't overlay our own human frailties onto evolution or anything else outside our heads. Or at least you can't do that and expect that doing so will affect it in any objective way.

Evolutionary Pre-Disposition

This is a follow-up to my post from yesterday. It is from my friend Bro. G:

After reading Richard Dawkin's The God Delusion I became much more aware of the fact how pervasive evolutionary drives impact human behavior (Dawkin is a renowned biologist). The rule is simple: What helps survival will be retained, what hurts survival will be eliminated. Obviously high birth rate/sex helps survival, so does violence. Sex is pure pleasure, therefore sex is practiced frequently. Without pleasure in sex we would not practice sex so frequently. Violence must have an evolutionary function (no matter whether it gets stymied, sometimes, by moral considerations. Morals are way less genetically preserved than violence.). Otherwise we would have eliminated it. That some species are amazingly peaceful ALSO follows the evolutionary dogma. Only the specific conditions in THEIR environment nurtures peacefulness. Exceptions confirm the rule. Environmentally noxious behavior will not be eliminated until the consequences are clearly noticeable; but at that time it may be too late. Bad luck, humanity.

The point is that we are chained to our evolutionary baggage, whether we like it or not, and this may very well lead to our evolutionary fate.

And to add to Bro. G's statement, religion must have served an evolutionary purpose somewhere in our development. Maybe basic beliefs helped to unify our clans better, so that we could defeat those damn atheist Neanderthals in battle. Things have not changed at all.

SO, TODAY ....

I was working on my weed eater, and two young guys walked up the driveway carrying Bibles. I really didn't want to get into a debate with them, but one guy started grilling me, and when asked a question, I always like to give a straight answer. I have nothing to hide. And I think that the religiously programmed folks need to know that not everyone tows their dogma, even if that freaks them out a little bit.

So, basically, when the guy asked if I was a Christian, I told him I was agnostic, and he said I was going to hell. Both guys said it was sad to hear that I wasn't a Christian, and said that once in hell I wouldn't have a chance to change my mind.

The point is that Christianity uses the same basic control tactics as Nazism and Scientology. The only difference is that Christianity is OLD, and we are USED to it, so it must be okay. Most people in my area believe they are Christians because they want to go to heaven, even if they are total shits and don't even attend church. So, the idea is to say "YES, I'M A CHRISTIAN" so the guys in the driveway will leave you alone, and so that you won't feel like TOTAL CRAP for the rest of the day because you've just been condemned to hell.

Anyway, the two chaps asked for my name and said they would "pray for me." I imagine their prayer will go like this: "Dear God, please open the Goose's eyes so that he can see our dogma, our one-right-way, and so he'll say the three-sentence prayer that gets him going to heaven, just like us. Amen."

Gimmie a break.

Evo-Religion

The argument regularly comes up that humans have an innate desire to worship a god, thus there must be a god.

Sorry, but this logic may be flawed. I believe our desire to worship something comes from evolution. Okay, let's go back to, say, 30,000 years ago when humans were organizing into clans and tribes. A religion provided unity, continuity, and some sense of being for the tribe. This held them together and made them not only more efficient as a fighting force, but they also functioned as a more coherent group. The religion provided other benefits like order, structure, and enabled perpetuation of the group. Those wandering groups of homo sapiens who were not well organized through a religious order simply died out or were wiped out by competitive groups.

The Egyptians became the masters of using religion to create order and structure for their society. For an amazing several thousands of years their society changed little. When progressives pharaohs came along and tried to change the order or the religion, they were erased from history.

The ancient Greeks and Romans were long enamored with Egyptian civilization, and in fact, they both invaded the place. Through the contact with Egypt, their religious concepts and ideas permeated throughout the Mediterranean. Hmmm, controlling and providing order to society by using a deity is a GREAT IDEA!

Best of all, the deity, who can bring pleasure or pain, helps people to override their destructive human nature. If you piss off the deity you'll get punished, and if you make him or her happy, you'll get a reward. And, so, this helped make citizens behave, to an extent.

The Romans caught on quick and adopted Christianity as their official religion. Yeah, that's the religion that the Hebrews ripped from the Egyptians, and then the intellectual Greeks put their New Age spin to it. Yeah, real basic stuff -- if you're an evangelical Christian you just have to say a three sentence prayer and you go up to heaven, where you pet lions and sing hymns to God for a zillion years. If you're a little shit and refuse to say the prayer, you swim in a lake of fire with Hitler and a billion Muslims. Now, I remember when that river in Cleveland caught on fire in the 1970s — I suppose that's what hell will be like, except me and all the other people will be right in the middle of it. Yuck.

But I digress ... the point being is that the Roman Catholic Church is just like ancient Egyptian religion. Its function is to provide order and perpetuation. The purpose of perpetuation is to impose more order on we lawless and generally crappy human beings.

So, getting back to my point, religion evolved in our brains through Natural Selection, and when we stopped evolving, religion continued to evolve socially. A modern example of this are all the mega-churches popping around town. People got bored with traditional church services, with the stale hymns and the lady in the choir who always sang off-key. These new mega-churches provide live praise bands, multi-media, drama presentations, and even pyrotechnics! Yeah, serious. So, the organism, in order to perpetuate itself, has adapted to changing cultural trends. The beast feeds on that evolved desire to worship that some of us still have. And in turn, we feed the beast.

The end.

When Brains Collide

Why are humans so selfish, even at the expense of their young and future wellbeing? Why are humans so technically advanced, yet so primitively violent? While doing research this week I came across the quote below. According to the following theory, it appears that our poor brains have become cross-wired between our ancient ancestors and our REALLY ancient ancestors.

I have long felt that the better we understand our evolutionary roots the better we can deal with our behavior in the modern world. Now that we have the ability to destroy our species at the touch of a button,
it remains to be seen whether our intellectual side can override our
violent side.

Here's what one researcher has to say:

"..... The Phylogenetic Regression-Progression Theory, which is based on 50 years of research by Paul D. MacLean, goes a long way to explain why humans can be devils as well as angels: Our brains are the result of an evolution that incorporates both the instinctive behavior of 200 million years ago with the emotional mammalian addition approximately 100 million years ago and the cognitive capacity that first developed in the neocortex of the great apes approximately 5 million years ago. Depending on our genetic and epigenetic (environmental) makeup, we tend to regress towards our ancient brain or progress to our modern brain. In most cases the direction is under our control."

Source: "Human Paleopsychology: Application to Aggression and Pathological Processes," (Lawrence Erlbaum, 1987) by Professor Emeritus Kent G. Bailey at the Dept. of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Va.

Lazolution

Okay, I was talking to a colleague tonight and he shared with me some interesting insight:

Why Americans Are Lazy

Back in prehistoric days, the individuals and tribes with the most food, most efficient organization, and best weapons were the winners. Those who could not compete were weeded out by evolution.

The problem is that these successful humans tended to be selfish, horded resources, and became lazy. Ta da, they have now evolved into Americans.

Unfortunately, our success in the caves of Europe 20,000 years ago may now lead to our failure in the good ol' USA. We have become like the Roman Empire in its last days — obsessed with good food, entertainment, sports, narcissism, and self-indulgence, and not really about the Earth or future generations.

Then there is the problem with all these big modern "tribes" that try to compete with one another for dominance. For instance, today we see Islam and Christianity competing with one another. One way these "tribes" try to overpower the other is by mass breeding. Growing the human population is never really a good solution, because all those humans require more resources and make a greater impact on the Earth.

I'm not sure how this will all end, but I am certain of one thing: We are all prisoners of our genetic coding, much more than we can ever imagine. So much of our behavior can be traced to those early days in our evolution. The problem is that what once suited us back in caveman days is not likely going to work well in our modern, global economy.

TD

A thanks to brother Steve in Maine for sharing his insight.

A Peaceful Feeling

This week I started re-reading my favorite book of all time — the 1992 novel Ishmael by Daniel Quinn. It has given me a strange sort of peace.

It's like after all these years I'm finally starting to understand the "big picture" and I have a good feeling about that. Whatever happens to either me or humanity as a whole, I'm cool with it.

I still want us humans to win, but I am no longer so perplexed at why humans are so non chalet about their demise — the book Ishmael helped me to understand.

I also have peace in having the courage to finally say that religion is a collection of stories. I was on to this at age 15, but who wants to be struck down, so I kept quiet about it most of my life.

As for Darwin, he nailed it. Many people are taking a long time to accept it. I imagine the same thing happened when folks finally had the balls to say that the Earth rotates around the sun. I know that was a shock and probably took a few decades to swallow, but people are okay with it now.

To get people to understand that we are like any other animal species and that we could very well go extinct, well, that is going to be a reality shock for a lot of people. It's funny that when I bring this little problem up to people I know, they just zone it out, and they even zone ME out.

Christian fundamentalists are not surprised that the World is going to end. They've already been given the story line. The shocker is that the end is not going to follow their script. The World is NOT going to end, only our Culture. But maybe we will screw things up so badly that the World WILL END. The only problem is that the good Christians will have to ride it out with the rest of us — the Almighty doesn't do rescue missions, especially for irresponsible people.

Well, I've entered a new level with all of this thinking, but I think I'm okay with it. And yes, most of the ideas above come right out of Ishmael.

Oh don't we wish that life could just go on the way it has been — like a long episode of Leave It To Beaver. Sorry.

Saving Ourselves, the Animals, and Planet

I think the first step in healing our dysfunctional humanity is to admit that we are a species. Once we do that, everything begins to fall into place. I am proud to be an animal, and I do not see myself as one bit better than my two dogs. Now this statement may freak out a lot of traditional religious type and neocons, but I happen to like being an animal.

Oh yes, I forgot to mention -- since we are the Big Brained species that learned to fight with our wits instead of our strength or claws, we do have some added responsibility. My dogs are like me -- in the wild it would be hard for all of us survive. We take care of each other -- my dogs look out for me and I look out for them. That's the way it should be with all animals -- we have an added responsibility to take care of God's creatures.

Right now our human population is exploding so vastly that it is hard to protect and respect hundreds of other species because we are simply squeezing them out, and/or killing them with our chemical waste products. We Big Brains are wiping out other species, and I consider this a horrible and serious crime. We Big Brainers have a RESPONSIBILITY to stabilize our population, lest we destroy other species.

Next ...

Now, for the second step in our recovery. We need to stop acting like we are flawed and accept the fact that nothing is wrong with us. Nearly all religions, even the farout ones, teach that there is something wrong with us, and we need to reach for salvation, enlightenment, or whatever the religion-of-the-week tells us. SURPRISE!!! We are not flawed at all. Look at your dogs, look at the birds in your yard -- is there anything flawed about them? Nope!

In the history of evolution, the really freaky creatures never made it out of the ocean. Some are bizarre looking, but are they flawed? Heck no, because they've survived for millions of years.

We Humans are neither bad nor good -- we are just Humans. We just do our own thing. The problem is that when we think we are FLAWED, it gives us an EXCUSE to be dysfunctional.

Still Evolving?

Are Humans still evolving? Heck yes. We are getting smarter and more attractive with each generation because the not-so-smart may not have the sense to make it to reproduction age, or their parents may not be smart enough to get their young to reproduction age. As a result, our species continues to get more robust. Are we going to evolve into another creature? Maybe not, unless the Earth's climate changes drastically (aka global warming).

Actually, the way we NEED to evolve now is in different ways -- socially, intellectually, mentally, etc... My hope is that we will somehow evolve beyond violence. I also hope we will evolve beyond the point where we destroy our own environment for immediate self-fulfillment.

We still have a LOT of work ahead of us. See, the traits that kept us alive in our caveman days -- like being selfish, hording resources, being aggressive, etc. -- these are the same things that may kill us now. So far, we are not adapting well to the way we've radically re-shaped our global environment in such a short period of time. Within a few generations we've totally saturated our Big Blue Marble with PEOPLE, and this has created all sorts of new problems.

The most important thing we need to do is stabilize our population. Right now we are suffering from species stress as competition continues to increase for resources (food, fresh water, jobs, land, etc..). Things MIGHT get very ugly before they get better. I hope that's not the case. My sincere hope is that people begin to WAKE UP. Humans need to throw all their self-destructive dogma and hangups out the window, and we need to START PROTECTING THE ANIMALS, THE PLANET, AND OUR FUTURE. That's all I ask.

The Goose

DNA and Doggies

I am blessed with two beautiful, adopted dogs. One is a little Terrier mutt and the other one is a Labrador mutt. I have been fascinated by just watching them and studying their behavior. With my new understanding of evolution, I now see them as fellow mammals that just happened to branch off in a different direction.

In a way, dogs are dumb, but in a way dogs are smart. One thing they are excellent at is reading my moods — and I can see how my moods affect them. Of course, our moods also affect the people around us, so maybe we need to learn to manage our moods better.

But to the point!

The point is that when Nemo, the black Lab, is going through all the puppy stages that Teddy went through four years ago. The funny thing is that their behaviors are remarkably similar, even though they are different breeds, different sizes, and four years apart.

Right now, I'm on the back deck on a beautiful July night. There are flashes of lightening in the distance and a very cool breeze. Nemo is at my feet playing with his rag toy.

I also work at dog shows to make extra money, and what I'm saying is that aside from some variations, most dogs behave pretty much the same way. They have the same responses to humans, other dogs, danger, etc. They are dogs, and much of their behavior appears to be encoded in them. They are absolutely fascinating animals, and we often take them for granted. At my family reunion today, I learned that two of my cousins rescue dogs. I think that's cool.

But the point, oh yes, the point, is that dogs seemed to be a very pre-programmed species. In effect, they are trapped by their DNA. However, this standardized DNA has allowed them to live and thrive for tens of thousands a year.

So, how much are we humans trapped by our DNA? How much are we controlled by pre-programmed behaviors. It's hard to say. But as I see our current civilization enter its final act, I'm wondering if we are too pre-programmed to break away from our destructive behaviors and start living in a better way.

Are we slaves to our genes? Are we going to behave in the same predictable ways, even though these behaviors are now taking us to self destruction? I hope not.

The good news is that I'm seeing more bloggers, podcasters, religious leaders, and even a few corporate leaders starting to wake up and question the old World Order. This gives me hope. This makes me feel like we are not programmed to destroy our civilization simply by behaving the way we always have. Something tells me that humans are intelligent enough to override their basic behaviors. Maybe, maybe not.

Figuring Out Life

Wow, what a puzzle it has been since I began trying to "figure out life" in 1997. Life is like an onion, and the more I peel away the more layers I find.

Lately, I've been giving a lot of thought about evolution, and how it may provide more answers than we realize. In my opinion, evolution was the theory that literally turned the world upside down. Once the Theory of Evolution came out, people started talking about Social Evolution, Economic Evolution, and to this I add Religious Evolution. It seems like everything evolves, often in ways we cannot predict. But what I do believe is that everything must follow Darwin's evolutionary laws, such as Natural Selection, Survival of the Fittest, Mutation, etc...

Thus, what I'm thinking today is that the whole secret to understanding our future might be understanding our past. By understanding how and why we evolved with certain characteristics, we can better understand ourselves, and, perhaps, where we are heading.

I just watched another documentary last night on cavemen, and the life our ancestors led was incredibly difficult. Perhaps this is why modern humans value comfort so much today. I also learned that all of us were once black, but the group that left Africa to settle in Europe changed both in skin pigment, culturally, and in other ways as well. Maybe that connects to the poor way that the whites have treated the blacks throughout history -- maybe we are seeing ourselves in a mirror and we don't like what we see.

As for believing in the Theory of Evolution, this took a lot of time, reading, watching the History Channel, and even having chats with a couple of scientists that I met. To me, Evolution is now as natural and as much of a fact as anything else in nature. I have a renewed interest in animal life because, well, I'm related to them. I love to observe all other life forms, and I am finding that other animals really aren't different than ourselves. Maybe if we saw the animal kingdom as relatives, maybe we would respect them more. This is not an argument for vegetarianism, but rather an argument for not driving other species to extinction.

If we saw ourselves as simply cave people with a few modern conveniences, if we saw ourselves as a part of nature instead of the exploiters of nature, and if we viewed animals more as equals, we might start changing the destructive way we live.

Oh, yes, and by the way, this is the entire purpose of my blog and website -- to explore all aspects of long term sustainability. Particularly, I am interested in studying human behavior, for unless our current behavior changes, I believe we will destroy ourselves. This really doesn't bother me, but I do believe that it's quite possible for us to do irreparable damage to the Earth, and that worries me.

Does Anyone Know What Time It Is?

Well, I haven't blogged lately because I don't think anyone really reads it, and I don't think anyone really cares. I guess I could say that I'm doing this for my own benefit, but I already know what I think, and the time spent blogging could be better spent on other tasks. But anyway, maybe I will blog some more later — maybe I won't. Here is a message I posted recently on the Atlanta Leavers discussion list, which sums up how I'm feeling today:

Alan & Brian,

Belatedly, I wanted to thank you both for your thoughts (Alan on Gaia and Brian on Today v. Tomorrow people).

I do believe that after trillions of years, our Universe and the ones before it, have created a consciousness, which some call Gaia.

This week I did a lot of reading on parallel universes. For an excellent summary of this theory, visit:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2001/paralleluni.shtml

The point being, a lot of the great mysteries of the Universe can be approached when you factor in multi dimensions (11 of them) and parallel universes. Once we get more atom-smashers online, I think we will begin to learn how our matter exists on many planes, and what we see with our five senses, and even with our technology, is only a small piece of the pie.

I am trying to tie all this into perspective of current world events. We talk a lot about the New Renaissance. However, what I see now is that the extremists of the Abrahamic faiths are determined to lead us into a third world war. Once Iran gets nukes, other Arab nations will quickly nuke up, which is an easy task since the oil-addicted West will continue to give them unlimited financing. And if we don't, hell, India and China will.

So, I'm trying to put energy, religion, overpopulation, and Gaia into perspective. I'm trying to understand why humans are determined to destroy themselves and their Planet, all in the name of their version of Gaia.

I really started my journey at age 10 with a simple question: "Why are humans destroying so much of nature so quickly? If they have taken so much just in my few years here on the Planet, what will the Earth be like in 100, or, say, 1,000 years?"

My journey took me on a road to environmentalism, overpopulation, women's rights, sustainability, Daniel Quinn and Deep Ecology, human behavior, God, space, and to now, interaction with multiple dimensions and universes.

I believe that the more we dig, the better we will understand ourselves. However, I no longer believe there are enough progressives on the Earth to avert the impending war.

Yellow Canary



"I think it's pretty lousy to wake up at age sixteen and realize you've already been screwed. Not that there's anything terrifically unusual about getting screwed at this age. It seems like everyone inside fifty miles is bent on doing you in. But not many sixteen-year-olds get screwed in this particular way. Not many have the OPPORTUNITY to get screwed this way. I'm
grateful, I really am."

-- opening of "My Ishmael

Happy Winter Solstice

We little evolution monkeys jumped out of de
text book so we can dance to Christmas music.

So There I Was...

Last night I attended my first Winter Solstice event and you know what, I LOVED it! When you celebrate the Winter Solstice you connect with nature and the very essence of your being. When you celebrate Christmas, you connect with malls, maxed out credit cards, and happy go-lucky shoppers who will fight you to the death for a parking spot.

As I was talking to this Buddhist girl and enjoying the Solstice party, I realized just how far I've come since I broke away from my old life eight years ago. Now, I am free. Now, I have real peace in my heart. I hate to say it but it's mind-numbing and demoralizing to sit in a pew year after year and listen to sermons that always have the same central theme — you must do more and give more. In a Baptist church, I know full well why no one sits in the first three rows. It's not just to humiliate the late people. Nosiree, it's to avoid getting sprayed by the preacher as he goes on and on about tithing, repenting, not skipping services, and so on. I mean it, one day we arrived late at my sister's church and lo and behold, that meant walking up to the front row in the middle of the service. My wife was so mad that she kept monkey-pinching me, and every time she did it I would let out a squeal of pain, and the pastor just thought I was getting into the message. And man, he screamed LOUD about if I didn't get saved right then, I could get killed in an auto accident on the way home and go straight to hell. Shit, there I'd be all alone with Hitler, serial killers (except for Ted Bundy, who went to heaven), and a billion Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and all the other folks who were born into the wrong religion. So in addition to giving me a second shower, all of this really had the net effect of scaring the crap out of me, especially that part about the lake of fire. See, you burn and feel the pain, but you really don't die (maybe because you're already dead), and just whither in pain for billions and trillions of years. Yes, all this makes perfect sense to me, but I'm just glad I'm free of it.

So, the point being, the switch from nature-based religions to anthropocentric religion has really been horrible for Western humanity because we've lost touch with who we are. In the United States, we have millions upon millions of people who have no environmental ethic and no connection to the moon and stars and the beauty of nature. When I began questioning these things in 1997, my Sunday School teacher said I should "worship the Creator and not the Creation." But I'm not trying to worship nature, only connect with it — and become a part of it again. But in the world of conservative Christianity, any celebration of nature is still connected with Paganism, and that word still has bad connotations. When your grandma used to grab a switch from the yard and start whacking you silly for stepping in her flower bed, didn't she used to scream, "You naughty little Pagan?" Yeah, Pagans have a bad reputation, still. But our ancestors and indigenous people today have and had something special that we've lost. They have a sense of "connection" — the beautiful feeling of being a part of some massive organism that reaches out to the stars. It's really much more beautiful and satisfying than the fear-based religion I was raised in.

Don't be afraid to be free, and to study different religious ideas. Don't be afraid to break out. It will be the most rewarding step that you ever take.

The Yellow Canary

My 100th Posting

When I was about 10 years old I found the books about Tarzan ... and fell in love madly with this glorious lord of the jungle. ... That was when my dream crystallized. ... Everybody laughed at me ... but eventually I got to Africa. And over the 45 years of ... study, the most striking thing is we now know how like us chimpanzees are. We even share 99 percent of the composition of our DNA with them. Their brain is more like ours than that of any other living creature. ... They have intellectual capabilities that we used to think unique to us. Nonverbal communication, kissing, embracing, holding hands, patting on the back, swaggering, shaking the fist, throwing rocks. Family bonds that persist throughout life, and life can be over 60 years. ... We realize there is no sharp line dividing us from the rest of the animal kingdom, it's a very blurry line. And it leads to a new respect, not only for these chimpanzees, but the other amazing animals with whom we share this planet.
— Dr. Jane Goodall, primatologist and founder of the Jane Goodall Institute


The Battle Ahead ...


In my last post I talked about the great struggle we will soon face between the fundamentalists and the progressives. I mentioned that living sustainably on the Planet will require a new way of thinking. The quote above, by Canary Sister Jane Goodall, provides a perfect example. See, religious folks get offended when you call them a "Monkey's Uncle." But, the truth is that monkey's REALLY ARE our uncle. Now, this is a radical statement that really upsets people, because we Humans like to think we're superior, but really, we're not.

I know you are probably saying, "Well, God probably created us both with nearly identical DNA to save time." Now, I believe there is a supernatural element in the Universe that helps to create the magic of life. Yes, I believe in God. But the point is that we are by no means "chosen" or "superior" to the other animals — we are just one of millions of species that inhabit this Planet. Just by chance, we have larger brains. However, we are also the most destructive species the Planet has ever seen. For instance, we destroy 78 million acres of rainforest each year, which is about the same area as Poland.* So, PLEASE, don't go telling me how great humans are. We are not "GREAT," we are despicable creatures. But as soon as we start acknowledging that we ARE an animal, and as soon as we start respecting OTHER animals, I think things will begin to change.

Now, again, this is what I mean about a big battle, because people will scream "blasphemy," "heretic," "sacrilege," and every other Biblical control word that they can find. I am sorry. It would be nice if the Creation Story were true, but regretfully, it is not. DNA is the "smoking gun" that I waited 10 years for to decide how I was going to define my religion. Sure, you can ignore the dinosaur bones, you can ignore DNA, and you can continue on your blind path. But by doing this you are only insuring the destruction that your conservative religion predicts. Now, isn't that irony ... that your blind and stubborn faith may be the means to your end?

I am not anti-religion and, again, I strongly believe in God. But when a religion prompts people to act in a damaging or self-destructive fashion, then something is very wrong. Someone has to have the courage to challenge the system. Some denominations are reforming and adapting to the new millennium. Other faiths, regretfully, are stubbornly holding on to an ancient and illogical belief system. Many people feel that if they compromise any tenets of their faith, then their entire religion will be compromised. If you can't take the Creation Story in Genesis literally, then, yikes, how can you pick and choose what is literal in the Bible and what is not? This is a real and difficult problem for the faith community. Once again, some will just rationalize away the DNA similarities with other animals by turning on more faith. The more irrational the beliefs are, the more faith you must have to believe in them, and thus, you are trapped into a clever control system.

*** Happy 100th Posting! ***

Today marks my 100th post. I started my public journal (blog) around this time a year ago. Over the past year, I have spilled my heart. I have tried to put in writing the observations, revelations, and moments of epiphany that have come to me in the past 12 months. I have also written about and quoted from many Yellow Canaries around the world that I admire. Sometimes I have let new thoughts out that scare me, because I know there is no turning back from the religious conservative Republican that I once was. Something just snapped in me eight years ago and I still don't know exactly what happened. Some say I was brainwashed, but I am convinced it's the other way around. I do know that all of this was bottled up inside of me since age 15 when I first had my epiphanies. For 22 years, from 1975 to 1997, my realizations just sat there. The problem is that I didn't understand them, and I couldn't articulate them. All I knew is that after being alive for only 15 years, I already knew that something was very wrong. I started to sense that I lived in a world that was completely interwoven with dozens of lies — lies that created an artificial reality. By age 22, I REALLY began to suspect that something "wasn't right" in our world. I guess it took me another 15 years to unpeel all the layers of the Great Onion of Life.

Do I have peace? Heck no. Am I 100 percent certain of my new discoveries and realizations? No. But it has been a fun and fascinating journey. I do know that serious waterfalls are ahead, and I often wonder if I have the courage to stick with my new convictions. This new direction isn't easy and it is scary, but I'm not sure if I can turn back now. I'm not sure if I can capture my genie and force it back into a bottle.

All I know is that the Iraqi war is wrong, that our institutions are broken, and that humanity is heading in a direction that will lead to a horrible end. But I do have hope. Why? Because there are hundreds of Canaries like me who realize that we must make hard decisions now because we love our children. Eventually, I believe that the Canaries will begin to move the boulders of our failed religions, governments, and corporations. Once they are moved out of the way, we can continue on our path toward sustainability. Again, it won't be easy, and as soon as we clear one obstacle, we will hit another. But we've GOT TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD. By golly, we just got to!



A Thanks To My Friends And Fellow Bloggers

I want to thank my activist friends and fellow bloggers who have given me positive feedback and support this past year. I really haven't gotten much response to my blog, and sometimes I feel like I'm screaming in a big, empty room. But I have gotten a few great comments that have provided new insights and missing pieces of the puzzle. That is the beauty of keeping a public journal. Much to my surprise, I have not received any flames from angry right-wingers. I imagine they look at my blog and have the same reaction that I have to theirs — yuck! There is definitely a great divide between the free thinkers and the guardians of the past, and right now I have no idea how to bridge this great divide. However, my Canary door is always open to any opposing thinker who is courteous and civil. If anyone wants to have a discussion on the issues, I would enjoy and welcome this.

Sincerely,

The Yellow Canary


*Rainforest Action Network

Well .... sorry

I Capitulate




This comes from Brother Canary Günther:

I tell you, there is no recognizable difference between a human and a chicken embryo. What makes an animal of the human species and an animal of the chicken species lies singly and uniquely in their genes. The human gene set, only slightly different from a worm gene set and 98.5 percent identical to a chimpanzee gene set, is peculiar only by its potential to express genes leading to this bulk growth of neural tissue on one end of the body called brain. That capacity to grow a brain has at least as much been a curse to the planet and its inhabitants as it has been a blessing (I may argue it was more a curse than a blessing; it surely was no blessing for any species except a small group within the human species). I warn you. Don't allow Christians to take over politics and the moral code of humanity...

Well, okay. DNA is another reason why this whole religion thing needs to be tossed out the window. The gig's over. We need to stop playing warm fuzzy games and, instead, we need to start smelling the coffee. While the religion thing was once handy for explaining the mysteries of the Universe, it ain't working well anymore. Rather, it has become a destructive force that may very well bring the end to humanity. Really, there ain't much difference between an Islamic fundamentalist and a Christian fundamentalist — both are trying to desperately hold on to the past, even if it means destroying civilization. I mean, really, there is not much difference between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Both nations are willing to allow their fundamentalist elements to drive humanity into the ground, all for the sake of an ancient religion. In the next few decades, the fundamentalists will present the biggest challenge to the Big Brained Creatures (BBC). I mean, personally, I don't care if we religionize ourselves into extinction or not. I mean, what the hell, we certainly deserve anything that we've got coming.

And when we do become extinct I imagine, heck, maybe dogs will become the next dominate species. Maybe by an incredible freak of nature (well, that's exactly how evolution works) some big-brained dog will emerge. I mean, they've been domesticated for 30,000 years, so they really have the hang of things. So after the warmonger George W. Bush and the Iranians, and the North Koreans, and the terrorists nuke out and dirty bomb Mother Earth, well, a few dogs will survive and they will take over the planet.

Oh, what? That's not what the Bible says? Well, really, in a way, "yes it does." Sorry, folks. The end will not be pretty, and the end is soon, probably within this century.



I mean, really, I don't care if you continue to play your game, maintain your steeple social clubs, and believe that your myths are going to take care of everything. If you think you are going to be playing the harp, petting lions, and singing gospel hymns for trillions of years, okay, keep playing your game. I mean, I really, really don't care anymore.

I tried to warn ye, but no one listened. We have to do our little religion thing every Sunday morning while we drag ol' Mother Earth down. We have to play our game, even to the point where it doesn't make sense. Yeah, OF COURSE God planted all those dinosaur bones in the ground to test your faith. OF COURSE! Of FUCKING COURSE!!! Go ahead and keep playing your game. I really don't care. When I croak, just throw my carcass in a dipsy dumpster and be done with me. Because I don't care. You won. You got your right-wing corporate tit sucking president reelected. You got your war. You got your gay bashing laws passed. You got your stem cell research quashed. You got your abortion regulated. You got your right-wing fanatics appointed to the courts.

What more the hell do you want? What more do you need to assure our death and destruction? What more do you need to assure the misery of the disenfranchised? What more do you need to justify your tired and irrational religion?

YOU WON! I am used to being the minority now. I am used to being the loser. Honest, I really, really don't care anymore. The generation that disagreed with me is the generation that destroyed me. You, by your zealous, irrational religious convictions, stole the future from my two daughters, whom I love with all my heart. You took it, man. You spread the lies, distorted the truth, and made your little war, where poor Americans are promptly sent to die for an immoral, fat, and corrupt nation. You hold all the cards in your hand, and you played them.

So, go to your holy churches, sings your songs, and relish in your victories. For the hand that makes war will also be the hand that kills you. Play your little religious games while you can. Time is short.

Respectfully,

The Yellow Canary

Will Humans Make It?

What's It All About, Alfie?

Here I am, just one of 6.4 billion humans, living on a Big Blue Marble that's floating through space. The Human Story has so far been interesting. I often wonder how it's going to unfold. Like everyone else, I'll only be on this Planet for a short while, so I have no idea how it's all going to end.

As I drive to work or as I lay in bed, I often try to figure out "what it's all about." One thing I know is that studying history provides a big piece of the puzzle, so I spend much time watching the History Channel and reading up on the web. What I see from, say 10,000 years ago, is an interesting human progression. As I see it, the human scenario will end in two ways: We will either experience unprecedented success and populate the barren Universe, or we will become extinct in the next 100-200 years. That's all there is to it.

All my life I've been a futurist, and I've dreamed of humankind's destiny. What a joy it will be to travel the Universe, set up colonies, and expand our civilization infinitely. Space is really the ultimate goal and the ultimate joy for our species.

Getting My Head Out of the Clouds

Whew, it's wonderful to dream, but when I come back to Earth I see an ugly, complicated, BIG mess. Humans are a dysfunctional lot and seem more bent on self-destruction than on progress. We humans are destroying our environment and reproducing ourselves with reckless abandon, at the expense of our Planet's health. Without question, I think the number one problem facing humankind is premature overpopulation. By "premature" I mean, yeah, sure, one day we can have trillions of people but only when we can begin settling the Galaxy. Right now, our Planet cannot support infinite growth without doing two things: hurting other species and harming the biosphere that supports us (possibly permanently). We just can't seem to get it into our head that the size of our family has a global impact. We simply can't make the connection between cute little babies and increased traffic congestion and rainforest destruction. "Oh, MY CUTE LITTLE BABY isn't causing these things," we say as we hold little junior into the air. "NO, NOT MY KID, DAMNIT!"

The Second Biggest Challenge

The number two greatest problem facing humans is our pre-programmed dogma. We just can't seem to get our ancient beliefs and habits out of our head, even though they are causing us to walk head-on into a wall. It's really time for us to pull all this crap out of our brains and start all over again. Now, granted, there is a lot of good collective knowledge and ideals that we've collected over the years, but we've also accumulated a lot of destructive garbage. We really need to sit down and sort things out, and say to ourselves, "Now, what is good for the community and the future, and what is hurting us and holding us back?"

Of course, religion is a huge part of "pre-programmed dogma." We've created these religious stories and characters to personify all the great things we have learned, like "love one another." But at the same time, we all use our religions to beat each other over the head. Religion provides yet another excuse for us silly humans to fight, judge, murder, and basically do bad things to one another. In short, religion sucks.

Other Challenges

Somewhere over the past hundreds of years we've gotten this crazy idea that we are above all the other animals. As a result, we've disrespected and abused the millions of other living species that we share the Planet with. Now, I'm not saying that it's wrong to eat other animals because it's not. But it's damn sick when we push other species to extinction or we poison their habitat to the point where they are sick and miserable. Now, for those of you who are always looking for a good sin to point a finger at, well, that's a BIG SIN. It's WRONG! Please don't pull out some Bible verse out of context to try to justify it because species destruction is one of the most horrible things that we humans are doing. Yes, it is genocide.

Along these same lines, within the last few decades we've lost our connection with nature. This is the greatest, heartbreaking tragedy of all. We've created this massive, climate-controlled environment and we rarely get outdoors. We've filled out lives with tons of trivial busyness, and as a result we no longer take time to enjoy a sunset or the twinkle of the stars. We fill our lives with rented movies without realizing that we our numbing our soul in the process. We no longer appreciate nature, and what's worse, we don't respect it. This is the greatest problem of all with modern humanity, and losing our love for nature may very well lead to our destruction.

This quote really sums up my thoughts today, and it's so true:

"In the end we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we have been taught."
— Baba Dioum, Monterey Bay Sanctuary