in 1944, in his book ‘Time Must Have a Stop’, Aldous Huxley clearly stated his philosophy on how we were acting like madmen in the short-sighted destruction of the environment for greed and wealth.
It starts with a statement about religious fanatics and politicians who are prepared to embark on war to create their version of a perfect political or religious state. Both of which are equally diabolic and repugnant. These enterprises all run on idealistic basis with uncertain results. Yet they sacrifice millions for an unpredictable outcome.
The bigotry, ignorance and fanaticism that rules our world is exemplified in the Islamic State and US Foreign policy, in the Israeli’s and Palestinians, the factions in Syria, Iran and Yemen, Nigeria and Afghanistan.
Yet with the environment the results of are actions are utterly predictable.
Seventy years ago Aldous was explaining all this:
‘In politics we have so firm a faith in the manifestly unknowable future that we are prepared to sacrifice millions of lives in an opium smokers dream of utopia or world domination or perpetual security. But where natural resources are concerned, we sacrifice a pretty accurate predictable future to present greed. We know for example, that if we massacre the forests, our children will lack timber and see their uplands eroded, their valleys swept by floods. Nevertheless, we continue to abuse the soil and massacre the forests.’
‘Where we know quite well what is likely to happen.’
‘Those who the Gods would destroy they first make mad.’