To The Eagle:

This is not intended to be a political letter but if you read it that way it's on you.

First, the earth doesn't need us anymore than it needed the dinosaurs before the last extinction. Secondly, we are by no means the only species regardless of how we think. Conveniently for humankind, we learned how to write and make up stories that give us total control over everything. Here's the rub. It doesn't work that way.

Most of us realize that our species is aware of living on a globe rather than a flat surface such as a petri dish where scientists have learned how to grow different species we call bacteria and viruses. Left to multiply unattended the organism will exceed the available space and die off. By trying different drugs we are able to find the correct one to kill these things and is how we obtain antiviral and antibiotic medicines.

Before our species obtained this knowledge the planet was swept by one devastating disease after another. Black plague, small pox, cholera and a host of others kept our population to a planet sustainable level and the planet was floating around in the endless orbit around our star we named the sun. But you already knew this so why bring it up?

Because without the weaning of our numbers on a grand scale we continue to reproduce as though we need to maintain our self approved role of lords over everything. Go forth and multiply has been the goal of mankind even before we made up a story to mandate it. After all, it's what all life does all the time and humans are no different than any other species in this regard. One would think that we could figure out how to maintain a sustainable population but when birth control is attempted to be taught or abortion utilized for any reason at all a hue and cry is raised by a certain segment of the already over populated masses going on about how all life is holy. Really? What about war and execution?

So, our planet makes one attempt after another to intervene and creates a new virus which drives everybody nuts, kills a few people until a vaccine is developed and then we move on with our relentless effort to go forth and multiply because it’s been ordained and that's what life does. What is the end game? Is there an end game? Perhaps the end game is the same thing that ended the dinosaur reign. So far we as a species have done nothing except what we already do. Along comes Covid-19 and the beat goes on.

James Roberts

Cathlamet