for the last 30 - 40 years or so.
Here's the thing. Just like every other non-botanical creature on earth, we are animals. We like to pretend that we are better than the other animals, but all the evidence is clear, we are just like them. We are ruled by uncontrollable and often unperceived impulses that regularly drive us to to take the worst actions, make the worst decisions, and behave in utterly irrational ways. We have several characteristics that seem to make us different or special, but in the end, we act no better (and often much worse) than any other animal.
One example; We have the capacity to understand that uncontrolled breeding will absolutely without fail lead to the devastation of our environment and ultimately our own demise, yet we breed like rabbits and then weep at the sight of starving children.
Smokers are addicts, I don't think there is any rational debate that this is so, but we like to pretend that it is a choice and therefore assign the blame to those that partake. The Obese eat too much and move too little, yet we claim that this too is beyond our control. Has anyone ever seen an obese person that lives in a famine stricken area? The very idea is ridiculous, but here in America obesity is due to genetics, a virus, a bad childhood, whatever we can make up to lay the cause on somebody/thing else. In fact, we have an entire industry devoted to nothing other than excusing our own lack of will that takes in more than enough money to end all hunger on earth.
And by this same lack of honest, objective consideration, we have a significant faction that fervently believes that denying help to those that need it will somehow, despite all evidence to the contrary, make those people give up the cigarette and put down the fork and just get better.
= new reply since forum marked as read
