Whales were saved from extinction because whale oil became obsolete. Whale oil lamps were essential in the old days.

It is not the first world but the third world that destroys its native life forms and dumps pollution into the air. It is Brazil that is destroying its jungles, aka, rain forests. Brazil, brown country with an exploding population, can’t afford not to.

In the jungles of Central America are the ruins of gigantic temples, built by civilizations that rose, destroyed their environment, and fell. Elizabeth and I have discussed how American Indians destroyed the land and would have made the Shenandoah Valley into a desert if the white man had not come along.

As always, the recurrent theme of Political Correctness is complete silliness. They say that nature is being destroyed “in the name of progress.” Back on Planet Earth it is the stagnant society that uses the same resources until they are no more. If Coal had not been developed into coke and other means found to use it, Europe would have been totally deforested.

But, unlike other societies, Europe developed an increasing need as it grew, but it also developed new MEANS. Coal and brick replaced wood.

China is in desperate need for reforestation. The paddy culture, developed in India, dates back to Roman times. It is not nearly as “ancient” as legend tells it. But the paddy culture is a recycling culture. China ruined its forests, but it retains the beautiful, clean paddies, where human dung is a major ingredient of the recycling.

At the beginning of this century, books would say, “As in medieval Europe, in China you can smell a city five miles before you reach it.” And if it were not for Europe, they would be that way today. People who will live in a sty are not likely to be environmentalists.

No, progress does not destroy nature. Stagnation destroys it.