A Lack of Good Morals

Dalton Snook
Biology 1120 F15

Most people dont give a damn about the world they walk around in. They could care less as is
demonstrated when they toss their cigarette buttes out of their car windows and leave a wrapper on the
ground without a conscience telling them that they should pick it up. We live in dirty cities, breathe in
dirty air, pass people on the street everyday that dont care about filth they are adding to society.

As the land ethic portrays, there should be no damn ruler or lawmaker, no governor of use of
our beautiful lands. As people we are subject to the lands beauty. It is a gift to us to create, destroy and
make use of in our own way, the land. I believe that there are more individuals and groups in this world
that care more about the economic value of the land, than the preservation of it. There are ways to go
about this world making a living and being successful while avoiding major harm and detriment to
invaluable aspects of this world.

As in demonstrated in the ways of the farmer in the land ethic article, most agricultural
operations only seek monetary gains in this world and show no regard for the community around them.
I found it very telling in how one may plow the unwanted debris from his field down into a community
area that is now not hurting his ventures, but is damaging and restricting local use of that area.

How is it that someone can say, Hey, wolves are hurting my livestock operations.., and from
there we can proceed to put an end to wolves in that area? We give out wolf tags for sport. That is truly
amazing, that it immediately makes us side with the farmer and not think about the wolf. It is a
privilege once again, for us to be utilizing what has for much longer been roamed by wildlife such as
wolves.

I have probably summed up the majority of my philosophical views in the first page, so I will
now give a backing as to where I got my my beliefs. As is with a lot of things in life, our actions and
moral conscience is created by how we are raised. I was taught by my father a very strong view of right
versus wrong. It is hard to describe that kind of thing. How do you put into words, without 1000
examples, what is means to live life the right way?

How do you teach a small child for instance, to not be the first child to eagerly take something
that is gifted to them and their peers. To sit back, make sure everybody else gets one first even if they
dont end up getting one at all. And that they must not complain if such an occurrence happens. Proper
manners are a must, always say please and thank you. Yes sir, no ma'am, these phrases are rarely heard
in normal dialogue these days.

I try to lead by example when it comes to demonstrating proper land ethic. I try to teach others
around me when I see them doing wrong. It is easier to stand back and let others leave the world a
mess, but that again is morally irresponsible and probably not a stronghold of a truly pro land ethic
stance. One would hope that the conscience and efforts you showed towards another, would then be
passed on in some way.

Today I believe that we have made strides, but we are still more economically inclined. We need
to not only teach conservation, but to make sure that this knowledge is brought to life. There will most
likely always be a need for economical use of the land, thus it means that it is ever so important to start
implicating ones land obligations.

It is only right that we treat the animals around us as equals. We need to create a world where
they as are equally cared for as our human counterparts. They are invaluable to us. As we need them for
many things,thus they now rely on us to save what is left of our own turmoil. I completely agree with
proper land ethic upholding integrity, stability and beauty in the biotic community. I believe the author
was not trying to position us and humans beneath this belief.

The beauty of the mountains, its pristine rivers and lakes, drives me to passionately look out for
its welfare. Good ethics are always a basis for my opinion, but because I often find myself engulfed in
its wonder, that alone pushes me to respectfully involve myself. My land ethic truly does base itself off
of non human elements. I have no self interest, nor do I ever wish to seek gains from it.

I enjoyed reading The Land Ethic. It was an agreement with my current and former thoughts on
the matter. I'm sure that to someone less conscience it may seem a detriment. I can see examples of the
thoughtless ways people use the land on a daily basis. I think this can be very useful in that it portrays
how society is and had been. This article needs to be widely shared. Its great to get a refresher, a
wakening to the image that people are continually doing more harm than good. This makes you want to
go out and make a difference.