Heroes Not Zombies

Aldo Leopold writes, in “A Sand County Almanac”….

When some remote ancestor of ours invented the shovel, he became a giver: he could plant a tree. And when the axe was invented, he became a taker: he could chop it down.

This got me thinking about the balance between givers and takers in our society, and how we reward them. Our “modern” system is called capitalism, and it appears to be based on extraction….extraction of minerals from the ground, of plants and animals from the soil, and of profit from the labour of others. Alongside this massive extraction, it destroys….eliminates whole species, so reducing diversity, turns centuries old rich soil into dust bowls, and heats up the whole planet, as we pollute the air, the water and the soil with chemicals, microplastics and poisons. This is all about taking.

What do we give? What do we give to the soil, the water, the air? What do we give to the plants, the other creatures with whom we share this little planet? What do we give to each other?

Shouldn’t we give the greatest rewards to the carers, the growers, the creators? To those who nurture….babies, children, adults, other animals and plants? To those who nurture the soil, the water and the air? Instead of giving the greatest rewards to those who grab, extract, consume and destroy?

Is it beyond the wit of “Homo sapiens” to come with such a system?