Last Chance Saloon – Ramifications of the Corona Virus on the Human Race

In the space of a few weeks the Corona virus has disrupted our long held ideas of what happiness and success is. We have been brought up to be goal oriented. The primary goal is to earn enough money to have a comfortable life. Absolutely no problem with that. However, from the 17th century onward, the pursuance of wealth resulted in those with power invading and plundering other nations and communities. The 19th Century saw the rise of Communism, Capitalism and the National Socialism of Hitler. The two world wars resulted in the destruction of Europe and millions of deaths. This was followed by the deadly conflict between Capitalism and Communism. Tens of millions died in the pursuance of these ideologies. Though ideologically different, both Capitalism and Communism believed in science and its ability to tame nature in pursuance of wealth. These ideologies believed that animals, forests, rivers, oceans and all the mineral resources could be used for human benefit. Thus began the plunder of the planet, as never seen before.

This age of the beginning of the damage to the planet is known as ‘the Anthropocene’. The industrial revolution enslaved and entrapped millions to work in factories and what was known as ‘satanic mills’. It legitimised slavery and bonded labour. By the late 19th century Capitalism was stripped of some of its inhumane practices, thanks to many enlightened individuals. However, Capitalism itself carried on at breakneck speed. Economic growth was, and is, the Mantra.

During the last hundred years, the world’s natural resources have been driven to extinction. Mother Earth has been made infertile. The lungs of the planet, the Amazon forests have been devastated. Water resources are getting scarce. Global warming poses a big threat and the Antarctic is melting away. Coronavirus has proved that when nature hits back, our advanced civilisation and military might is of no use. Our children and grandchildren are already facing the consequences of human greed.

So what can be done? In the absence of any credible alternative, we have to live with the Capitalistic model. It has the ability to create millions of jobs. However, Capitalism will have to reform. First of all the tyranny of continuous economic growth as a sign of success has to be dropped. Instead, the world needs innovative ideas whereby the health of Mother Earth should be seen as a matter of success or failure. With immediate effect, the manufacturing of motor cars depending on petrol or diesel has to be stopped. We just cannot expose the new generation to the pollution of these vehicles. Our dependence on oil has to be minimised.

All slaughterhouses have to be closed with immediate effect. Nature is exacting a heavy price for our barbaric treatment of animals. The violence inflicted on billions of animals is leaving a cloud of unmovable negativity on the human race. It makes us as a species morally bankrupt. How can we expect peace for ourselves when we commit so much violence on the other species we share this planet with? The export of all animals should be stopped immediately. Hunting of animals, locking them up in cages, using them in laboratories to find cures for human diseases, using and abusing them for sports and keeping them in zoos for human entertainment, also has to be banned. Commercial fishing has to stop immediately if we are to save our Rivers and Oceans. Apart from over 80 billion animals raised for meat every year, trillions of fish are also killed annually. There are, at any time, four times more chickens on the planet than humans. We need two planets to sustain these numbers.

We are facing a huge threat from the growing ineffectiveness of antibiotics. Almost 45% of all antibiotics produced are fed to animals raised for meat. People consuming these animals are also ingesting the antibiotics and becoming immune to them. Thousands of people are already dying due to antibiotics not working.