PGAQ #18 (FP) by Vic Steblin, Feb 29, 2008

2570 Laurier Crescent, Prince George, BC, 250-564-1123

I recall when David Suzuki gave a talk at UNBC and the audience gasped when he mentioned the smell of our air. In Prince George, the economy obviously comes ahead of the environment, which seems to be normal human behaviour. Most of us ignore long term health consequences for short term benefits like jobs.

What person, coming across a large gold nugget, would leave it for someone else to discover? What lumber company, coming across trees, jobs and profits would leave them for future generations? Few heavy industries can leave clean air unpolluted as they use energy and resources. It really is about the money!

Would any business interested in profit actually encourage people to use less? People who live lightly on the Earth tend not to buy things and do not use a lot of resources. Many who preach wise use of resources actually do so mostly because they are just pretending to care.

The reality is probably as Suzuki claims, that the environment suffers when the economy booms! It also suffers when the economy busts! The Earth probably suffers all the time when humans are around!