How Bad does it have to get Before We React?

The Case of the Missing Ash Trees

During my morning walks I pass by a large pile of dead ash trees being cut up for firewood and a few minutes later I walk past a forest where I see the skeletons of dead ash either standing or half fallen over, as if in a drunken stupor, as they fell into the arms of their forest friends who are still alive. We murdered them and don’t seem to notice or care. “It’s not a big deal” think most people, if they think at all. Perhaps. But this is not the first we slaughtered a species to extinction.

Passenger Pigeon

The passenger pigeon, once the most common bird in the world, was hunted to extinction by 1902. The last Greak Auk was killed off by 1844. Within the US lower 48 wolves, bison and bald eagles were all murdered. But let’s not forget our plant friends. The American chestnut tree was killed by the billions by chestnut blight brought in from Asia I 19^th century. Dutch Elm disease, brought again from Asia, ravaged the giant Elms that lined the streets of Europe and North America in the 20^th century. Then in early 21^st century the Emerald Ash Borer from East Asia came to North America via non fumigated wood palletts. Without factors that would normally suppress emerald ash borer populations in its native range (e.g., resistant trees, predators, and parasitoid wasps), populations can quickly rise to damaging levels.[8] After initial infestation of an area and without control measures, all ash trees are expected to die within 10 years. Accident? Perhaps if it only happened once. But it keeps on happening so for me it smack of a neglect, a non caring so extreme that I call it mass murder. In my part of Ontario 1 in 4 trees were once Ash trees. No more. They are all gone. Except for dead logs pictured above.

How Bad does it have to get Before We React? How many species must suffer extinction or near extinction before we recognize that we are to blame and that they matter? How long until we notice another species no longer part of our life? How long until we care? How much personal pain and suffering will we have to experience before we suffer with our fellow creatures and realize that without them we die too? If you have an answer to any of these questions you are far wiser than me. All I know is that waking up to the fact that we as a species are mass murderers how must stop their rampage before we suffer the same fate as our victims needed to happen yesterday. So what can you do? Wake up. Live in whatever way you can to stop the murder of our fellow creatures. Live like you are actually worthy of being named homo sapiens. And as you live this way of healing, smile and laugh and share and be filled with joy that you are no longer supporting the slaughter.