Back in October of last year, The Wall Street Journal reviewed "Three Books About Life on Earth and Elsewhere." Click that link to read The Journal's book review (The Journal's paywall permitting, of course).
It may be perfectly alright to contemplate the possibility that life will be found elsewhere in the universe. However, until demonstrated otherwise, there actually isn't any doubt that Earth is "exceptional."
William Shatner (Captain Kirk, from Star Trek), put it this way, as reported in one of my earlier blog postings:
Last year, I had a life-changing experience at 90 years old. I went to space, after decades of playing an iconic science-fiction character who was exploring the universe. I thought I would experience a deep connection with the immensity around us, a deep call for endless exploration.
I was absolutely wrong. The strongest feeling, that dominated everything else by far, was the deepest grief that I had ever experienced.
I understood, in the clearest possible way, that we were living on a tiny oasis of life, surrounded by an immensity of death. I didn’t see infinite possibilities of worlds to explore, of adventures to have, or living creatures to connect with. I saw the deepest darkness I could have ever imagined, contrasting so starkly with the welcoming warmth of our nurturing home planet.
This was an immensely powerful awakening for me. It filled me with sadness. I realized that we had spent decades, if not centuries, being obsessed with looking away, with looking outside. I did my share in popularizing the idea that space was the final frontier. But I had to get to space to understand that Earth is and will stay our only home. And that we have been ravaging it, relentlessly, making it uninhabitable (emphasis added).
William Shatner, Actor
We are getting ever deeper into what was, only a couple of months ago, a brand New Year. Can we make the year that is now upon us a year in which we will turn all of our attention, and all of our energies, to preserving and protecting the world that has preserved and protected us, and upon which all of our lives depend?
We had better say, "Yes," and act accordingly!
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