Thread: Earth has suffered irreversible damage

Originally Posted by T.F.B.M

Maybe or maybe not. It depends on the ore field.

Allright, but just bear in mind that recycling isn't just about conserving energy. It's also about reducing the amount we put into our landfills and trash incinerators.

Also bear in mind that there are two other important factors to consider in our wasteful consumerism mindset: we should try to reduce the amount we use, and try to re-use whatever we can.

Originally Posted by Undecided

Allright, but just bear in mind that recycling isn't just about conserving energy. It's also about reducing the amount we put into our landfills and trash incinerators.

Also bear in mind that there are two other important factors to consider in our wasteful consumerism mindset: we should try to reduce the amount we use, and try to re-use whatever we can.

Chiquita, are u getting this?

Originally Posted by Undecided

Allright, but just bear in mind that recycling isn't just about conserving energy. It's also about reducing the amount we put into our landfills and trash incinerators.

Also bear in mind that there are two other important factors to consider in our wasteful consumerism mindset: we should try to reduce the amount we use, and try to re-use whatever we can.

Would this be true even if more energy were expended and more pollution created in the process of recycling than in the process of destroying waste, such as with some plastics?

Is reusability and minimization of all resources the end goal, or is energy conservation and minimization of depletable resources the end goal? These two are not necessarily the same.

Originally Posted by drgoodtrips

Would this be true even if more energy were expended and more pollution created in the process of recycling than in the process of destroying waste, such as with some plastics?

No, that would be silly. If recycling plastic used more energy and caused more pollution than just incinerating it, that would partially defeat the purpose, and I think we would need to re-evaluate our recycling programs. But I think that's why we can only recycle #1 & #2 plastic (at least in my area), and not #3 and up.

Originally Posted by drgoodtrips

Is reusability and minimization of all resources the end goal, or is energy conservation and minimization of depletable resources the end goal? These two are not necessarily the same.

I think we should try to strike a balance, with the end goal being a balance between humans and the planet that we live on.

Originally Posted by EuroKnight

Chiquita, are u getting this?

You know. I am trying to figure out what you want me to recycle. I don't buy newspapers. I don't buy food in cans. I only take my trash to the curb every 4 weeks because I simply never get the can full. Toilet paper goes down, well the toilet. My old clothes go to goodwill. I put veggie peelings and coffee grounds on my compost heap for my flowers and shrubs. My car uses 20 dollars a week in gas. And that is only the weeks I work. (Excuse me for not riding a bike to work, I live a hour away by car.) When I don't work it doesn't use any gas. And I don't smoke, so I don't pollute the air with smoke. Now tell me why in the hell you think I am ruining YOUR earth? It is YOU who doesn't get it. You are claiming every goddamn thing in the universe as your own and accusing everyone else of ruining it for you. You refuse to see that there are natural things that happen and that man is not all powerful.

FYI: I live in this earth too. I have as much right to it as anyone else. And I would wager that you waste more, and pollute one hell of a lot more than I do.

This entire discussion reminds me of something that happened several years ago. In my hometown we got a terrible infestation of starlings. The excrement was ruining the landmarks and people in the neighborhood were getting histoplasmosis because of all the excrement. Our effort to do something resulted in world wide coverage. We got a letter from some fruitcake in London advising us to bake the blackbirds in pies beause they were excellent that way. She had no concept of anything other than a few hundred pigeons in Trafalgar Square. She could just not vizualize the millions and millions of filthy birds making the people of an entire city sick. You who have never been anywhere except downt he street simply do not have the big picture.

Originally Posted by Chiquita

This entire discussion reminds me of something that happened several years ago. In my hometown we got a terrible infestation of starlings. The excrement was ruining the landmarks and people in the neighborhood were getting histoplasmosis because of all the excrement. Our effort to do something resulted in world wide coverage. We got a letter from some fruitcake in London advising us to bake the blackbirds in pies beause they were excellent that way. She had no concept of anything other than a few hundred pigeons in Trafalgar Square. She could just not vizualize the millions and millions of filthy birds making the people of an entire city sick. You who have never been anywhere except downt he street simply do not have the big picture.

I respect animals and I do not believe in harming animals for no reason at all and I feel it should be a crime that is strictly punished. However, I also believe that the needs of humans should be put above that of animals when it involves are health and well being.

I love animals. I am eating one right now.

Originally Posted by Libertarian

I love animals. I am eating one right now.

Did it have fins, feathers, or feet?

Originally Posted by Libertarian

I love animals. I am eating one right now.

"I love PETA. Pork, fish sandwiches, hamburgers - come on, if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem!"

- Homer Simpson