I am arguing a thesis that the Environmentalist movement (at least in Australia) basing of their agenda on new age values as opposed to basing on on empirical science, has meant that it has been prone to making catastrophic predictions which have not not eventuated.
There is a tendency in much New Age thought to think of the Earth as a whole, somehow as some kind of person. A more rational variant of this viewpoint is the Gaia hypothesis. However even the Gaia hypothesis has not been proven scientifically and it can be argued it is pseudo-science similar to Christian Creationism.
To give an example of how this thinking as infected even more scientific minded in the Environmentalist movement. Tim Flannery is one of the learned and prominent of environmentalists in Australia today. Also compared to the Environmentalists who are openly either New Age or Neo-Pagan. However Tim Flannery is very much influenced by the Gaia Hypothesis and from reading his works, I believe he has a rational version of this New Age philosophy I have discussed above.
Flannery is currently Australia's Climate Commissioner and five years ago he made some predictions. These were namely that the nation's dams would never be full again, they would need desalination plants to cater for water needs and other similar predictions. Flannery is not the only person to make such dire predictions, however given impressive academic credentials, people find it a bit surprising he of all people is making the sort of predictions that people considered “feral greenies” make.
I happen to deeply respect Tim Flannery, however he and the environmentalist movement have allowed their Gaia philosophy to inform them, when these make these predictions, which have often turned out not be true. Thus I am seeing a backlash in Australia against the Environmentalist movement, which politicians like Tony Abbott have exploited. It is very likely that once Tony Abbott becomes Prime Minister next year, his government will repeal the carbon tax and implement an energy policy which will result in the increased usage of fossil fuels. Australia will join the USA and Canada in having a do nothing approach to global warming.
If the environmentalist movement had based their predictions on solid science, I suspect they have not been so discredited as they have been in the last couple of years. Also there is a ray of hope in the environmentalist movement restoring their credibility in the eyes of the Australian public. This can be achieved by ditching this Gaia philosophy and basing their agenda fully on empirical science.
There is a tendency in much New Age thought to think of the Earth as a whole, somehow as some kind of person. A more rational variant of this viewpoint is the Gaia hypothesis. However even the Gaia hypothesis has not been proven scientifically and it can be argued it is pseudo-science similar to Christian Creationism.
To give an example of how this thinking as infected even more scientific minded in the Environmentalist movement. Tim Flannery is one of the learned and prominent of environmentalists in Australia today. Also compared to the Environmentalists who are openly either New Age or Neo-Pagan. However Tim Flannery is very much influenced by the Gaia Hypothesis and from reading his works, I believe he has a rational version of this New Age philosophy I have discussed above.
Flannery is currently Australia's Climate Commissioner and five years ago he made some predictions. These were namely that the nation's dams would never be full again, they would need desalination plants to cater for water needs and other similar predictions. Flannery is not the only person to make such dire predictions, however given impressive academic credentials, people find it a bit surprising he of all people is making the sort of predictions that people considered “feral greenies” make.
I happen to deeply respect Tim Flannery, however he and the environmentalist movement have allowed their Gaia philosophy to inform them, when these make these predictions, which have often turned out not be true. Thus I am seeing a backlash in Australia against the Environmentalist movement, which politicians like Tony Abbott have exploited. It is very likely that once Tony Abbott becomes Prime Minister next year, his government will repeal the carbon tax and implement an energy policy which will result in the increased usage of fossil fuels. Australia will join the USA and Canada in having a do nothing approach to global warming.
If the environmentalist movement had based their predictions on solid science, I suspect they have not been so discredited as they have been in the last couple of years. Also there is a ray of hope in the environmentalist movement restoring their credibility in the eyes of the Australian public. This can be achieved by ditching this Gaia philosophy and basing their agenda fully on empirical science.
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