A few weeks ago, I posted some thoughts on a "Two Worlds Analysis." The point of my brief essay was that it does not make any sense to seek out positive achievements in "our" world (the human world that we create) if it would be necessary, in order to make those positive gains, irretrievably to damage the World of Nature.
Lots of times, we act as if "our" world were more important than the World of Nature. Actually, it's not!
Lots of times, we act as if "our" world were more important than the World of Nature. Actually, it's not!
A phrase that came to mind, as I was writing that essay, is one that I associate with Xasáuan Today, one of my favorite locally-grown blogs. The phrase "Because Nature Bats Last" is the subtitle presented in every posting on Xasáuan Today. The "Nature Bats Last" sentiment can also be seen above in a bumper sticker that is apparently for sale for only $2.00.
I thought it would be nice to track down the origin of the phrase "Nature Bats Last," and considering the resources available on the internet, I didn't expect any problem doing that. In fact, I expected a Wikipedia article outlining where the phrase came from. Not so. Wikipedia did refer me to its article on Robert K. Watson, an international leader in the green building movement. Watson has been quoted to the effect that "Mother nature always bats last, and she always bats 1,000." No claim, however, that Watson was the first to propose this baseball analogy.
Guy McPherson, who is a Professor Emeritus of Natural Resources and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona, has his own blog, and he has titled it "Nature Bats Last." McPherson is a rather controversial figure, as it turns out, and I have enjoyed reading some of the debates about climate change and global warming that he has stimulated with his "Nature Bats Last" blog.
Thinking about the phrase, I realize that "Nature Bats Last" because "Earth Comes First." That's the proper priority, and that's what I was getting at in my earlier posting.
http://earthfirstjournal.org/merch/product/nature-bats-last/
"it is the top of the ninth inning and humanity is hitting nature hard. But everyone must remember that nature bats last."
ReplyDelete"The Population Bomb," Paul R. Ehrlich, 1968
Nope. That is not found in the Ehrlich's "The Population Bomb." Sounds more like something David Brower would have said but there is no documentation of it by Brower either. The mystery continues....but not without some fun around our home, pouring through all of our 60's and 70's book about environment issues. If we do ever find the origin, we'll pass it along to you, Gary. Meanwhile, Michael did find his Nature Bats Last bumper sticker, by Santa Cruz Earth First folks, which he had years before we met and he came to live in Santa Cruz!
DeleteCorrection!! Michael's bumper sticker is from Missoula, Montana Earth First! folks. That is another one of those coincidences, however, as I moved to Santa Cruz from -- yes! -- Missoula, Montana, where I was engaged with Earth First! as well as Friends of the Earth and the Sierra Club. One might say that Michael and I were destined to meet :o)
DeleteThe quote appears in Ehrlich's 1969 short story Eco-Catastrophe.
DeleteI will keep my eyes peeled for the origins of the phrase, as well! And salutations to Missoula!
ReplyDeleteMichael Lewis is right.
ReplyDeleteHigh baseball might be the lucky sport. Lucky sheerly based on the season that it's played in. https://axialsports.com/
ReplyDeleteBoth have one part of the picture, and it is time to see the whole picture and to constructively work with it.relaxing river sounds
ReplyDelete