Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Being Human

There is a debate raging these days about global climate change and evolution. Instead of arguing over things that divide us – lets think for a moment about what binds us together. Our species, as you know, is not like any other on this planet. No matter where you stand (right, left or in the middle) what we all can agree on is that we are, in fact – Different. What strikes me as the most significant difference between us and, let’s say, dogs, is that we worry about the future and about the well being of other living things.

Dogs may seem to care for us and form bonds of friendship with other animals – but they only live in the NOW. They aren’t worried about what kind of home their puppies may have one day or if a dog on the other side of the planet has enough clean water to drink. A dog is only concerned with what is right in front of their wet little noses - like that ham sandwich on the counter.


But not us. We fret and worry about everything from how much money we are going to have in the bank in 10 years to who will win the next presidential election. We save money for our retirement and we write wills so our loved ones won’t have to deal with it after we are gone. Animals don’t plan for the future; they react to changing conditions as they occur. As humans, we have the ability to see how our decisions today could affect the lives of our grandchildren tomorrow – and we care about what might be. Not only do we have the ability to plan and to reason, but we also have the capacity to have compassion for something other than ourselves. No other creature on this planet does this. To me, these are the most significant things that set us apart from animals and define us as human.


When we act selfishly, put our heads in the sand and refuse to care about the future or about the other living creatures around us, we are acting like something less than the humans we are. So, if you feel moved to bash an environmentalist for wanting our water to be clean, or ignore a scientist who releases a study that shows a rise in global ocean temperatures– don’t just dismiss them as godless liberals. The desire to understand our world and protect it for future generations is simply the manifestation of the better, selfless part of our nature. They are, after all, just being…human.