“It has often been said that, if the human species fails to make a go of it here on the Earth, some other species will take over the running. In the sense of developing intelligence this is not correct. We have or soon will have, exhausted the necessary physical prerequisites so far as this planet is concerned. With coal gone, oil gone, high-grade metallic ores gone, no species however competent can make the long climb from primitive conditions to high-level technology. This is a one-shot affair. If we fail, this planetary system fails so far as intelligence is concerned. The same will be true of other planetary systems. On each of them there will be one chance, and one chance only.”
Having built societies and cultures based on assumptions of relatively unlimited raw material supplies, the mindset is … set. More recently and personal (but NOT unique), expansion of the U.S. in the 1600’s – 1800’s had a strong sense of determinism — “This is God’s mandate”. Population had geometrically increased, raw materials and space decreased, yet the momentum of our past is very hard to alter. THIS is where political leadership and, perhaps, popular will, might slowly turn this battleship. I have small hope and no great ideas to accomplish this.