In chapter 16 on p 462 Diamond exposes how religious beliefs of mining executives effect their attitudes regarding the environment. Diamond explains how many have the attitude, "God put those metals there for the benefit of mankind, to be mined". He also tells the reader that, "The CEO and most major officers ...are members of a church that teaches that God will soon arrive on Earth, hence if we can just postpone land reclamation for another 5 or 10 years it will be irrelevant anyway". It is sad to think that some people still subscribe to the idea that nature exists for human use.

Another sad thing worth noting from that same page(p 462) is that in 2000 the Clinton administration proposed mining regulations which would have moved the U.S. in the right direction. However, Bush came in and nixed those proposals.

How convenient and self serving it is to hold that since the world will end soon, let's rape it until it is dead.

My fellow humans...what interesting creatures.


A question:

Say you (all of you) KNEW the world was going to end tomorrow...If you were good, moral person, would you indulge in 'bad' stuff as a swan song?


Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

LOL

No, absolutely not! I would indulge in GOOD stuff, and not waste any time on bad.

Long as I get to decide what is good!! heh

Like some 100 year old Scotch, and the best bottle of Cabernet, or maybe French Bordeaux that I could lay hands on. Have tenderloin steaks, with fresh roasted aparagus, and home made cheese cake.

Get my kids and grandkids here, and play poker and trivia until the last moment. I assume the good fly fishing spots that are nearby would all be too crowded to enjoy.

In other words, pretty much what we are going to do next month on 10 days of family vacation. Just have to substitute Jack Daniels and on sale Cabernet for the expensive booze!!

But there will be whole days of fly fishing.

WW

Indulge in bad things as my swan song? Heck, yes!

What's the point of good husbandry when tomorrow there won't be anything to husband? (I tell my husband this all the time just to keep him in line.)

Marti in Mexico

ww: You have a good plan there!

Marti: lol

Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

mr p - what an interesting question! sort of 'would you cheat on your spouse with the person next to you if on a plane that was crashing?'

to me, it really depends what 'bad' thing you are considering. Robbing a bank? why bother - it's pointless. Punch the nose of your obnoxious next door neighbor? maybe - it might get some frustration off your chest. Abandon your work, casual social groups and other past times to spend more time with your family? Absolutely - who else do you want to spend the end of your time with (assuming you LIKE your family!)?

The situation really shows how relative morals can be, and how they are up to your personal judgement.

I would foresake all clothing and walk around ala mode...yes...with ice cream all over me...and the wife!



Mr. P.

The one thing of which I am positive is that there is much of which to be negative - Mr. P.

The pain in hell has two sides. The kind you can touch with your hand; the kind you can feel in your heart...Scorsese's "Mean Streets"

I came to kick ass and chew Bubble Gum...and I am all out of Bubble Gum - They Live, Roddy Piper

Yes, I would indulge in all of the things I restrain myself from, but would like to do. I would also refrain from doing things I'd rather not. For example, I'd eat tiramisu till I felt like I had my fill instead of till I thought I had a reasonable amount! I would also forget about doing the speed limit and drive as fast as I wanted to!

Getting back to the original topic, I seriously doubt that the motivation to play loosely with environmental protections is motivated by religion. It seems rather more likely that the mining execs have found a religious justification for something they would have done with or without religion. What mainstream Christian sect outright condones environmental irresponsibility? None, so far as I know -- only individuals looking for a way to justify their profit margin.

Examine it a little more closely and you'll see that the rationale doesn't even hold up. How soon do these execs expect to see the Second Coming? If it's within their own lifetimes, then why worry about industry in the first place? The orthodox Christian response to the purported advent of the Second Coming would be to renounce wealth altogether, not to look for justifications for accumulating more.

I have no doubt that there are individuals who espouse rationales like this, but I see no reason to class them among the true believers.