Popeye is my philosopher of record. His two most profound observations were:
“I don’t know how youz duz it, but youz duz it.”“That’s all I can stand, I can’t stands no more.”
These summarize our general condition. Some people who, for want of a better word, we call leaders, directly and indirectly control our lives without us fully understanding how or why.
Their actions eventually reach a point at which we don’t know or care how or why we just won’t tolerate it anymore.
When and why do we reach that point? My research interest in climatology was focussed on the impact of climate and climate change on humans and their history. It stems from the idea that we are products of our environment and, according to Darwin, adapt and adjust to changes in the environment. The great myth used today to exploit people’s lack of understanding and fears is that climate change is new, and we must learn to adapt.
But we have always adapted. Indeed, what anthropologists identify as our greatest achievements were adaptations to changing environments. For example, we adapted to the cooling of the Pleistocene Ice Age by controlling fire, making clothing, and building shelters.
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