Friday, May 06, 2016

Speciesism, The Myth of Human Superiority, Barry Lopez, E.O. Wilson, Wolves, Grizzly Bears, etc.

Attempts to rationalize the killing of wild wolves, grizzly bears, bison, coyotes  because of human attitudes and behavior does not adequately consider how we are systematically practicing "predator speciesism," an important ecological term rarely discussed in our contemporary media.  The term speciesism can also be applied to human recent contributions to the catastrophic earth wide extinction of other animals and plant species.

These topics are of great concern to me and I am trying to reconcile how to engage productively in discussions and actions that will affect changes that I really believe are needed. 

I recently read this article about Barry Lopez talking about his work dedicated to inspiring a sense of community between humanity and the natural world. 
http://www.thestylus.net/news/view.php/1019842/Barry-Lopez-speaks-on-the-need-for-commu



Clearly, Lopez's concerns can be related to the this important issue discussed in  "The Myth of Human Supremacy," a book by Derrik Jensen. 
http://www.derrickjensen.org/work/books-dvds-cds/#myth-of-human-supremacy



Furthermore, E.O. Wilson is promoting the idea of "Half-Earth, devoting half of the surface of earth to nature" and also notes that politicians are not talking about the extinction catastrophe and asks the question - "In a logical living ecosystem do all flora and fauna, including humans, have equal rights to life? 
https://aeon.co/essays/half-of-the-earth-must-be-preserved-for-nature-conservation
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/can-world-really-set-aside-half-planet-wildlife-180952379/