At left is what Bertrand Russell said perhaps a century ago.
My take on this may be slightly different, in that I call religion our prescientific understanding of the universe. Human beings with our newly formed big brains were called upon to crave an explanation for natural phenomena: disease, weather, astronomy, etc., and we wanted our fear of death somehow assuaged. Absent science, religion was our only choice.
One hundred years hence, however, is there any reason to have any confidence that “religion … will fade away?” As we look at Israel vs. Hamas and the banning of abortion here in the United States at the hands of the evangelical Christians, do we see any progress along the lines that Russell predicted?
What we do see is a civilization careening at the edge, largely because of its failure to adopt science. When it come to climate change mitigation alone, it looks like we’re going to cook our home planet.
If I could only be a believer, my life would be so much easier. But I can’t accept that channel, and neither should you.
Historians point to Andrew Jackson, with his butchering of the Native Americans, to the presidents immediately before and after the U.S. Civil War, and to Warren Harding as the previous “worst presidents in our nation’s history.”
Having said that, regardless of what our country’s future turns out to be, it’s virtually impossible to imagine that Trump will not come out on the top of the list.
The meme here is a reminder that to call oneself a “conservative” used to mean something, other than the desire to conserve America’s racist and imperialistic heritage.
There have been conservatives all throughout U.S. history.
For some reason, our nation’s leaders at the turn of the 20th Century are probably the most notable, with TR and John Muir (national parks pioneer).
But skip ahead and you have those who have shaped environmental protection through science, advocacy, and media. Key figures include Jane Goodall (primatologist), David Attenborough (naturalist), Rachel Carson (author of Silent Spring), Steve Irwin (wildlife educator), climate advocate Bill McKibben, activist Naomi Klein, and Story of Stuff founder Annie Leonard.
Renewable Energy
The Constant Torrent of Disinformation Targeting Clean Transportation and Favoring Big Oil
Sadly, the world must deal with the cottage industry that has arisen to generation and publish malicious bullshit about electric transportation and clean energy more generally.
The efficiency of internal combustion engines is in the 20s, where the efficiency of charging batteries and discharging them through electric motors is in the high 80s. This is why we could replace every car and light-duty truck on Earth and with EV and experience an increased load on our grid of only about 14%.
The Constant Torrent of Disinformation Targeting Clean Transportation and Favoring Big Oil
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Climate Change8 months ago
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Greenhouse Gases8 months ago
Guest post: Why China is still building new coal – and when it might stop
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Climate Change2 years ago
Bill Discounting Climate Change in Florida’s Energy Policy Awaits DeSantis’ Approval
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Climate Change Videos2 years ago
The toxic gas flares fuelling Nigeria’s climate change – BBC News
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