A Dangerous Lack of Tolerance

It never fails to amaze me, and disturb me, how so many people take their existence for granted. They believe they have some divine right to be here and that explains a lot of behaviour. On one hand those who believe themselves to be special, treat others badly, and on the other hand, other special individuals treat people well as either some form of payback, or perhaps because our journey is brief and it is good to help others along the way.

For my purposes, the ignorant ones who treat people well are at least contributing to society. My beef is with the ignorant ones who don’t.

Why are they both ignorant? Many people, in my estimation, are, because much of it has to do with science... knowing stuff. By the way, ignorant is not a bad word. The tolerance of which I speak is not to do with race, religion or sexual preference, instead, it is of forces around us that have manipulated not who, but what we are.

I would like to begin by briefly drawing your attention to the “Peak Oil” crisis. In summary, oil discovery, the identification of the world’s oil deposits, has already peaked with estimates that some 95% have been located. And oil production will soon peak if it hasn’t already. There will be a declining surplus of oil to be refined from here on.

To look at the ramifications of a sudden drop in availability, one can use the analogy of water in the human body. It has been said that our bodies are about 85% water, give or take... the exact number is not the point. The point is that if people lose only about 5% of the water in their bodies, they become severely dehydrated, can go into shock and die. We do not need to lose all of our water before we ‘run out of gas’. This is a very fine line so to speak. A very small tolerance.

When the supply of oil needed to run our industries, power our cars, manufacture our plastics and much more, drops by some, as yet, unknown small percentage, the heavily industrialized nations of the world will go into shock! The flow doesn’t have to be cut off... only diminished slightly. The effects on our well-being, daily lives and social values will be staggering. The attention paid to this tolerance point of oil discovery versus oil production as it approached was terribly lacking.

It follows for me, therefore, that when I see people go about their lives thinking that they are here because they are special, I ponder the many other tolerances we have squeezed through just to exist. We aren’t special, we’re just leftovers. We are the only beings left around that happen to be able to function amid a myriad of narrowing physical tolerances.

First we have temperature. Our tolerable range appears to be about 80 degrees Celsius. Outside of this range we could not survive for very long if at all. The spinning earth’s tilt of about 23.5 degrees as we revolve around the sun, facilitates our seasons and the resulting temperatures. Any shift in this angle would destabilize that temperature range. Is it safe to say then that as long as this outside force has remained constant, man could not survive in any other form. We survive within this range because human life outside it could not be sustained.

Cosmic rays, actually, particles, bombard the earth and ourselves on a continuous basis. They come from the sun and other bodies in the universe. A preponderance of sun spots can have dramatic effects on communications and disrupt satellite transmissions. These particles are said to deteriorate DNA, contributing to some forms of cancer. Somehow our bodies are able to live in a tolerance zone involving a certain amount of cosmic radiation. Perhaps if our atmospheric filter were to change, coincident with enormous sun flares, things might not be so pleasant someday.

The atmosphere, yes, and the ozone layer specifically. Australia already experiences much higher levels of radiation from the sun, both cosmic and UV, due to a thinning of the ozone layer in that part of the world. If another 50 years of polluting the environment and worsening the ozone layer globally were to occur, what might your grandchildren look like, if they made it that far?

And further to the atmosphere, what of the air we breathe? Our lungs take in this invisible life giver comprised of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and a few other trace gases. Our bodies are biased to the oxygen component and do quite well around sea level. Sea level? 21%? Do you still doubt that we are what we are because we couldn’t be anything else?

Wind and storms... we’ve recorded the devastation that can be caused by category 5 hurricanes which are, or were rare, but what if such storms had been around for thousands of years. What would have been different?

Gravitational force and the earth’s rotation, two of my favourites. I don’t say ‘gravity’ because that connotes something falling. In fact, what we know of as ‘weight’ is only related to our position on the earth and the speed of the earth’s rotation. Gravitational force is invisible and exists between any two bodies in space. You and the earth are two such bodies. If the earth wasn’t spinning on its axis at about 25,000 miles per hour, you would be a pancake, weighing several thousand pounds. And if it was spinning faster, you might be 20 feet tall, weighing mere ounces. Of course, either case is no place for a human being to live. It is the spin that pushes our small bodies away from the earth’s centre and gravitational force that pulls it near. The tolerance, the balance between them, facilitates the human form we have now.

As you can tell, I am not about to entertain a debate with a religious fanatic or a creationist. I see a world and a human race through a very different set of glasses. I recognize the mysteries of life and that there is still so much we do not know, and yet I see the human body as not so remarkable. How an ant can carry 20 times its own weight, or the many lenses of a fly’s eye, or the salamander’s ability to re-grow a tail, are fascinating to me. That certain creatures can only survive in the extreme pressures of the deepest oceans, that the moon’s 28 day rotation and its 28 day revolution around the earth match perfectly, permitting us to only ever see one side, now that’s amazing. And best of all, that if the lights go out, the grass is no longer green.

Mankind, as a thinking entity, has a duty to protect itself and the earth. Unfortunately, by ignoring mysteries like these and many more, man fancies himself something of a ruler. Someone special that has the right to do whatever can be conceived of. As much as scientists may have contributed to what ails us, it is the awareness, the knowledge of the world we see and don’t see that could have kept us safe. Unfortunately, much of the damage has already been done, to us... we can’t really hurt the earth. The earth will survive. It will renew itself as is has done repeatedly. It will simply shed us like we rid ourselves of so many pesky mosquitoes.

Gaia refers to the earth as a complex, living organism. This philosophy has been shared by many cultures around the world and over the course of time. The promoters of this belief, or knowledge, have been continually saddened by what man has done to the earth, the giver of life. It is my hope that by being more aware of our existence, of the forces in, around and passing through us, and of the notion of what we are and why, we might do a better job of keeping the world safe for a few more generations.

A Good Ice Breaker

Some among us are bold, brash and might even behave like the proverbial bull in a china shop when it comes to meeting new people. Others, left to their own, would sooner stay at home and never leave. For them, strangers can hurt you. Thankfully, there are plenty of citizens that fit between these two extremes.

For the moment, I’d like to discuss the shy ones, those who do get around, but find it a little unnerving to approach someone for the first time in an effort to make a new connection. The purpose may be to ask a favour of a neighbour, to complain about service in some establishment or perhaps... reliving that painful high school memory... to approach the one you admired from afar to ask for a dance. If this sounds a bit like you, you may appreciate a good ice breaker.

I fall well short of being one of the bold and the beautiful, but certainly a little above the shy introvert. I will do what it takes to make that call, approach that store manager, stand up for my rights or chat it up at a garage sale. It is of no surprise, of course, that when out of doors and among strangers, a common interest or simple distraction can immediately break the foreboding chill. It allows eyes to meet and a small grin to sneak out through the frown.

This week I had the fortunate need to meet with Donna and Paul of Forster’s Book Garden on Queen St. South in Bolton. I had some non-consumer questions to ask them and was concerned as to my approach. When I entered the establishment, I first saw Donna and her sister, and later, Paul, going about their business, and quite happily at that. Suddenly, I was being approached by a large caretaker of the canine variety, and an instant later, noticed an even larger dog. Both were extremely friendly and no threat at all. As our discussion ensued, the dogs simply blended into the background.

Now, I, being a dog lover and owner, had no problem with this and no one should. The point of the encounter though, is that by addressing the dog situation... the distraction... the approach issue that concerned me earlier, simply evaporated. The common thread, the interjection of some unexpected event, the diversion of focus, contributed to an easier exchange among strangers.

I made use of a similar distraction idea while hosting a seminar years ago. I was to be the first one to address a group of sales executives... at 9:00am. I wanted to relax the mood and shake things up... wake things up. Rather than present some hastily contrived joke that could flop, I asked a pertinent question that required a show of hands. And, while those hands were up, posed a second question, requiring the alternate hand to be raised. Yes, you would be puzzled too... I extended that into a 30 second morning stretch. A few sideways glances and chuckles later and I had their full attention.

A distraction, just like Donna’s dogs, made my task easier.

I once had an employer that routinely brought his Dachshund into the office. It seemed strange at first, but it quickly became normal for most of the staff. One day a contract worker was in the office, arguing with the boss. As it happens, the dog took offense to the visitor and the boss terminated the relationship on the spot, citing that the dog didn’t approve of the contractor. Now that is no reason for bringing your dog to work, but there can be advantages. For the staff at least, the dog was a barometer of tension and a release valve for stress.

In looking at various employment job boards, I have noticed several employers specifying that one of the perks about the job is to be ‘working in a dog friendly environment’. Who knows, perhaps every employee is also responsible for poop-and-scoop duty. In any case, there appears to be a possible trend emerging that does confirm what I have heard from medical practitioners... that petting a dog and talking to it as we often do to an infant, can lower blood pressure and alleviate stress. To what degree I cannot say, but I certainly can attest to the calming effects for myself.

Now I don’t know much about cats, and frankly they’re not for me, so I apologize if some of my comments may sound a little ruff, but suffice to say that since moving here in 2006, I have noticed Caledon or, in my case, Bolton, to certainly be Pet Proud but Downright Dog Devoted. This small town has plenty of pet stores and groomers to go around. Not a bad thing, happy to see it. We love our dogs.

And dogs can be useful. They can, supposedly, help reduce blood pressure, reduce stress, and enable strangers to break the ice. A recent study I read indicated that toddlers that have grown up in a home which included a dog, suffer from fewer ailments and allergies than those that don’t. Makes some sense since, as infants, the new world travelers are only building up their immune systems. It’s the sterilization of our kids’ environments that retard their ability to fend off disease in later years.

As for other worthwhile attributes. Have you ever heard of a drug cat or guard cat? How about an explosives sniffing cat or mercury sniffing cat. As far as I know, there are none, but there are... such dogs. And what would your sight challenged uncle do with a seeing-eye cat? Could a cat pull a sled? Do you think one could traverse a mountain slope to locate a snow-covered, downed skier. I think not. And lastly, would you want anything but a strong, devoted dog to protect your family if the need arose?

For some of us, just having to get out to walk the dog is a good thing. Aside from all of these actions that, as far as I know, cats, budgies and fish don’t do, dogs also warn us when someone is coming to the door, give us the best greeting when we arrive home and provide us with unconditional love.

Yes, I think dogs are great, and everyone should care about their respective pets, moreover, I am pleased to see ‘working dogs’ allowed on buses and in grocery stores, to see an increasing number of leash-free parks and to see dogs brought into seniors’ homes for companionship.

To be able to rely on the fortunate distraction that some dogs can provide in a place of business or on the street, is an appealing, trendy idea. That they can enable perfect strangers to convert an awkward, foreign instance into an affable, bonding experience is truly remarkable. I sincerely hope that dogs, specifically, are given even more respect as the devoted companions they are, and that their presence is not something to be feared, as often happens in parts of the GTA.

Admittedly, many other mammals deserve respect for some common attributes, but if you think that our canine friends aren’t just a little bit better, than I think you’re barking up the wrong tree.

Life on the Edge

A few thoughts regarding a notion that is always with me but taken for granted by so many others. We put an inordinate amount of time into trying to save the ozone, identifying initiatives to counter global warming and being concerned about retarding the extinction of various animal species around the world. All of this presumes that it is somehow our responsibility, arrogance tells us so, to achieve these lofty goals.

In reality, we haven't got a hope. The world alone has spun on its axis for some five billion years. Species have come and gone, continents have shifted, islands and mountain ranges have appeared and disappeared. When an ice storm or hurricane strikes we shake our heads and still imagine we can divert its immense power next year. That is pure folly. Nature is the most powerful force that exists and it is by sheer coincidence, and chance that we are even here today... to think about this.

When you stand back and truly look at where and when you are, you can get a different appreciation for what is going on. Industrialized mankind has only been around for a few hundred years. Feudal and barbaric man for a thousand or two and ancient civilizations for thousands more. Man as a species for tens of thousands. Remember that five billion number?

Our memory on this earth may be but a spec in another ten thousand years. Nature will take care of the scars we put on the earth, otherwise known a highways and skyscrapers. It will initiate new species, replenish the forests, and recycle the seas. It will rip the airplanes from the skies, destroy the missile silos, and corrode the tanks. And that can start anytime.

Why? Because we live on the edge, in a truly temperate zone. The only reason that man lives in our present form at all is because the earth's current temperature range, radiation levels, gravitational forces and so on, permit our kind of life to flourish, and that it has the time to evolve is also a gift of chance. Just as a few thousand years is insignificant compared to five billion, so too is a comfortable 70 degree Celsius temperature band compared to all that space could throw at us. The species that exist, man included, do so at the whim of nature.

At any time, as has likely happened in millennia gone by, a resistant strain of bacteria, or an extra half degree tilt of the earth's axis, or a near collision with a comet, could wipe out all known species in the blink of a celestial eye. And we think we can fix the environment and so much more. Please, be thankful that it only rained 1 inch and not 21, that you could vacation in the Caribbean, ski in Banff and not open your front door to a blast of cosmic radiation powerful enough to render the flesh from your bones.

We only live here and now because nature has not yet closed this window of opportunity. We are merely the leftovers!

The unborn may control global warming

A 10 year study out of the Queensland University of Technology has linked the proximity of air pollution to the shrinking size of the fetus, in particular, abdominal and head circumference and femur length. The ultra-sound scans of 15000 pregnancies were studied, though why someone got money for this I don't know.

So they are reporting that as air quality declines, so does the size of the fetus. This was done by measuring the distances the pregnant mothers lived from high levels of air pollution. Interesting discovery, but let's look at this another way, just to show how such studies can be flawed.

Let's say a young woman lives near a source of very poor air quality. What might we say about her? Perhaps she has little income or is not so bright because we would hope she would have moved away from there long ago. Perhaps she is unwed and quite poor or the daughter of a steel worker. Would she be of average or better intelligence, have a good health plan or the funds to afford a good doctor, eat well and exercise, have the support of other bright, affluent mothers-to-be... if she lived near such a place? I think not.

Australia spends less on health care than both the US and Canada, and the doctors apparently have no cap on billing, so, assuming this information coincides with the study, it stands to reason that the unfortunate mothers, living in less than favourable, polluted cities, might not be in the best health. Furthermore, the poor, unwed moms may have had more babies in the 10 years studied, skewing the figures even further.

That pollution itself causes the decrease in fetus size may be a convenient coincidence. Rather, I'd like to think that a) nature is finding a way to make more of us fit on this shrinking planet, or b) that a race of smaller infants is causing global warming.

If ya can't stand the heat...

Today, the temperature in the greater Toronto area is expected to reach 14 degrees Celsius. That's 57 for those of you who haven't converted to the Metric system. Help... the igloos are melting!

No, we don't live in igloos and believe it or not Toronto is a larger, more advanced city than most in the U.S. In any case, such uncommonly warm weather for us during the winter is a little alarming.

Can this be related to global warming? Most would say no because we should not be swayed by the occasional glitch. However, we have had several glitches this year, and the hurricane season down south is getting worse very quickly.

Global warming is likened to a steady 1 degree rise in mean temperature over the course of a year, which doesn't sound so bad. Does it? It is though, since it affects ocean temperatures which have a devastating effect on our weather.

Ignoring the pundits and promoters, if individuals continue to ignore that fact that minute changes in an eco-system can cause major changes down the road, then environmental technology firms will not receive the backing they desperately need.

Our human species will suffer the same fate as those we terminated in the wild.

Lights out

And so it begins. Out of Nairobi Kenya, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist has come up an idea to counter the effects of greenhouse gases said to cause global warming. The notion is that by adding certain pullutants high into the atmosphere, typically sulfates, the earth will reflect more of the sun's heat, allowing the climate to cool.

Now, that in itself sounds a little ironic, since pollutants have been blamed thus far, but I draw your attention to a sentence hidden deep in the article Scientists say pollution may be helpful. Tom Wigley, a senior U.S. government climatologist said "a temporary shield would give political leaders more time to reduce human dependence on fossil fuels". Remember, the U.S. rejected the Kyoto deal.

What happens when you allow more time for something? You use it up! And the U.S. is the biggest user. The other problem, a complex one, is the long term effect this remedy may have intermixed with the gases already present, and the inevitable build up in concentration.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it; but if you broke it, screw it up some more!