Let me spin that cigarette warning 'Smoking can be deadly' plastered in cigarette boxes and wrappers. In this report of BBC, one of the arguments of biodiversity conservation is the foregone benefits of species that have become extinct. Who knows the cure for HIV-AIDS could have been the tusk of the mammoth? Or the beak of a dodo for cancer?
Some regard this argument as weak, however, due to the uncertainty to realize these benefits. Sustainable development advocates would defend this by asserting the precautionary principle, that is, basically, 'erring on the side of caution' or something akin to the 'better-have-it-when-you-don't-need-it-than-need-it-when-you-don't-have-it' line of thinking.
What about you? Will you weed out all the poison ivy in your yard? Only to find out that it could be the panacea!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment