Greta Thunberg

Back when I was a lad I was greatly impressed by Desmond Morris. He got me thinking. I like people who get me thinking. I avidly read The Naked Ape and The Human Zoo and as a budding biologist and naturalist I was hooked. I found his theories on how human beings had evolved fascinating. Our sexual dimorphism was so extraordinary. Desmond made me look at buttocks, breasts, lips, cheeks and eyes in a completely different way. Who would have thought that evolving to walk upright would have made such a difference in focus. Before Desmond enlightened me I had assumed breasts were for producing milk. I had never seen them as substitute buttocks or lips as substitute labia. Suddenly it all made sense.The Human Zoo was also a fascinating look at human behaviour. Not only was it very readable but it all made perfect sense. I found myself looking at the world in a new way.Desmond is one of my heroes.

The city is not a concrete jungle, it is a human zoo. We are trapped in a cage of our own making – an artificial world. We exhibit all the behaviours of caged animals – the violence, aggression and frustration. Biologically speaking, if something bites you it’s more likely to be female. They are after your blood to make eggs or your meat for their progeny. Us men know that women are dangerous. I viewed my fellow man not as a fallen angel, but as a risen ape. The sooner we move away from this idea that we are not animals the better. We share 99% of our genes with the chimps and gorillas we are presently slaughtering for bushmeat. The sooner we start treating this as murder the better. Artists like cats; soldiers like dogs. I like dogs and cats – and rats, rabbits, crows, snakes, lizards, frogs, toads ……………… Life is like a very short visit to a toyshop between birth and death. Far too short a visit – but plenty to delight in!

This is what I have to say about the destruction we are doing to nature and a way forward.