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Re: Brashears on Hanson
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Subject: Re: Brashears on Hanson
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From: charliew@hal-pc.org (charliew)
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Date: Wed, 11 Dec 96 00:47:50 GMT
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Article: 17194 of alt.sustainable.agriculture
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Newsgroups: alt.agriculture.misc, alt.org.earth-first, alt.politics.economics, alt.politics.greens, alt.save.the.earth, alt.sustainable.agriculture, sci.agriculture, sci.econ, sci.energy, sci.environment, talk.environment
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Organization: Houston Area League of PC Users
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References: <5840b9$g2p@news1.io.org> <5850e9$6pg_001@pm1-81.hal-pc.org> <Pine.A41.3.95b.961204163414.13254A-100000@dante07.u.washington.edu> <585cb3$a9c_001@pm6-75.hal-pc.org> <32A8AAAB.7FC0@xmission.com> <32AC7B27.3B1F@boeing.com> <Pine.A41.3.95b.961210114749.42386D-100000@dante14.u.washington.edu>
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Xref: newz.oit.unc.edu alt.agriculture.misc:6762 alt.org.earth-first:7326 alt.politics.economics:95309 alt.politics.greens:24547 alt.save.the.earth:27380 alt.sustainable.agriculture:17194 sci.agriculture:17100 sci.econ:61758 sci.energy:60052 sci.environment:114528 talk.environment:80898
In article
<Pine.A41.3.95b.961210114749.42386D-100000@dante14.u.washington.edu>,
"D. Braun" <dbraun@u.washington.edu> wrote:
>
>
>On Mon, 9 Dec 1996, Fred McGalliard wrote:
>
>> Jim wrote:
>>
>> > I would submit that environmental problems are not sufficiently
>> > described by "some animals being inconvienced". Although knowledge of
>> > global biodiversity is sketchy, virtually all biologists are in
>> > agreement that mankind is causing what would be the sixth mass
>> > extinction the earth has experienced, and may cause a majority of the
>> > world's species to go extinct.
>>
>> Most of the rest of Jim's post I entirely agree with, but this part
cannot go unchallenged. We may be
>> an important predator, and responsible for some of the changes that wipe
out species, but we are by no
>> means the only game in town. I think we are clearly in the middle of a
die off of large proportions,
>> but I do not think we are the prime cause. The question should be, why
have the species stopped
>> adapting to the changes that we and other factors are making in the
environment? If a major species
>> bloom were to happen, would we be able to survive? Perhaps we should be
thankful that we are in an
>> extinction period.
>
>?! This question is rather easily answered by students of ecology or
>evolutionary biology, never mind by experts. Habitat change, caused by
>humans for the most part, has occurred and continues to occur more
>rapidly than species can adapt. Species with limited ranges, or narrow
>niche requirements go first. Generalists like rats and roaches (particular
>species of these which are generalists) will probably outlive humans as a
>species.
I'm not certain about the rats, but I am fully confident that the roaches
will be here long after we are dead, gone, *and* forgotten!
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