Before we turn to more optimistic topics, let's take a look at the website of the Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (VHEMT), whose creed is "Phasing out the human race by voluntarily ceasing to breed will allow Earth's biosphere to return to good health." Are they serious? Not serious, exactly, but "vehement": "Returning Earth to its natural splendor and ending needless suffering of humanity are happy thoughts -- no sense moping around in gloom and doom."

Serious or not, someone has put a lot of work into the site. While not pretty, there are versions in 17 languages, including Catalan and Slovenian, both languages which are in danger of dying out with their population -- evidence, perhaps, that VHEMT is on the job.

Naturally, so dramatic a solution to environmental problems raises a few troublesome questions -- and all are answered comprehensively on the website. For example, "Won't another species come along and do the same thing after we're gone?"

It isn't impossible that another species will come along and do as we are, just highly unlikely... E.O. Wilson wrote, "Darwin's dice have rolled badly for Earth. It was a misfortune for the living world in particular, many scientists believe, that a carnivorous primate and not some more benign form of animal made the breakthrough." We have an opportunity to prove we can behave benignly despite our biological heritage. We may never be able to stop fighting with each other, exploiting the natural world, or giving in to other primal urges, but we can stop breeding and eventually our nature will be history.

  The most frequently asked question is "Why don't you just kill yourself?" VHEMT has a very measured response to this provocative query:

It’s hard enough just to get people to consider not breeding. Advocating suicide, by any method besides old age, would be a particularly hard sell... Shortening an existing person’s life by a few decades doesn’t avoid as many years of human impact as not creating a whole new life -- one with the potential for producing more of us. We have a responsibility to help the world as much as we’re able before we die. Leaving the work for others would be irresponsible. VHEMT is a cause to live for not to die for.

There's lots more, including links to a Facebook page and designs for tatoos for those who are truly committed. Definitely a site which deserves to be much better known. ~ Thanks to Richard Umbers.

to make a comment, click here