There is an overarching mantra amongst many social liberals and environmentalists which holds that any hierarchy between humans and nature should be destroyed; humanity just as natural as all other animals, etc., and should not be placed on a pedestal. This thesis seems to be mainly rooted in our past in the 'exploitation' of nature's resources. The environmentalist will hold that we claim ownership over anything that is not human, and use it for our own benefit. This is definitely true, but I have a few concerns and questions which the environmentalist seems to beg.
Consider the "Ego" side of the photo. A man is at the top, followed by women (next to whales?), and so forth. I wonder why the woman is still considered lower than the man in this depiction. Don't women have the right to vote, run for office, serve in the military, and work all of the same jobs for the same pay that men have? Regardless, I'll save the rest of the feminist talk for later, and consider the man at the top of the pyramid a woman as well; I'll consider it humanity.
Consider the "Eco" side of the photo. There is a circle, rendering all forms of nature egalitarian. Not much more needs to be said.
It is possible to fuse these to pictures into one.
1. It is impossible to deny the higher cognitive capacity of humans over all other known species. Spoken language, culture, civilization, and I dare say meta-cognition (knowing that you know) are mostly exclusive to sapiens, especially humans.
2. Because we have a much higher cognitive capacity, we understand earth and nature much more so than many other animals.
3. We are the only animals who seem to know how to exploit the earth and nature.
4. Therefore, we own the earth, and have no choice in the matter. Humanity defaults to the top of the pyramid.
However, with this ownership comes a responsibility. Just because we own the earth doesn't mean it is imperative that we exploit it until it is a barren wasteland. We don't want to over-exploit it for the very reason that it may very soon become a barren wasteland, and what good does that do humanity, much less nature? Our being at the top of the pyramid should be a beacon of hope for environmentalists and economists alike. It is possible to accept our reign over nature, while at the same time accepting that we need to take care of it, for the betterment of us, and them. For example, we don't want to over-factoryfarm animals and have their excess blood flow into estuaries, thereby destroying ecosystems, thereby destroying nature, thereby damaging future agricultural prospects, and thereby damaging our future as humans. Only humans understand this problem, so it is only our burden to lift.
I just can't see how these two pictures are any different.
Eco is Ego.
